Think Moderates!

In Think Moderates Milton King Makes A Strong Case For Changing Public Debate From An Unproductive Focus On Extremists Problems And Off-Centered Public Life To A More Productive Focus On Moderates Solutions And Balance. He Shows That Turning To Moderates For Solutions And Balance Is A Hobson’S Choice Because Conservatives Want To Take Us Too For Backwards And Liberals Want To Take Us Too Far Forward. For Ultra-Conservatives Refuse To Acknowledge That Significant Changes Have Taken Place In Society And Ultra-Liberals Refuse To Acknowledge That Certain Traditions Are Grounding Traditions And Shouldn’T Be Discarded. Moderates Turn Out To Be The Only Ones Who Can Balance The Two Forces And Help Us Regain A Semblance Of National Equilibrium. The Author Acknowledges That Though Moderates Possess The Right Temperament And The Right Attributes For The Task Of Restoring Sanity To Public Life As Of Yet They Haven’T Developed The Requisite Group Consciousness That Would Move Them To Organize And Establish An Adequate Public Persona As Conservatives And Liberals Have. However He Sees In Their Current Strong Reaction To The Out-Of-Control Extremism An Incipient Group-Consciousness Developing Within Certain Circles. For A Number Of Moderate Bloggers Have Built Respectable Online Followings. But Moderates In General Are Not Part Of This Developing Group Consciousness. So One Of His Goals Is To Take The Significant Discussion Going On Among Moderate Bloggers And Their Followers Develop It And Make It Known To A Wider Audience Not Only Among Moderates But Also Other Activists Public Servants Etc. His Research Reveals That Moderates Would Need To Accomplish Seven Tasks In Order To Become The Force Majeure They Should Be As The Majority Cohort. He Draws On History Philosophy Sociology And Family Systems Theory To Make The Case That One Of The Public Roles Of Moderates Is To Be A Force For Balance And Equilibrium. He Uses The Current Culture War And Political Polarization To Support His Case: He Argues The Reason The Conflict Between Extremists And The Polarization Between Political Parties Have Power To Divide Us Is Because Moderates Have Failed To Understand They Are Obligated To Neutralize Those Forces. His Basic Assumption Is That The Majority Status Of Moderates Is Supposed To Be Used To Express The Will Of The Majority Because This Is The Normal Use Of Majority Status. Consequently The Fact That Our Society Is Conservative Politically But Liberal Culturally Is A Non-Sequitur. Our Off-Centered Life In Other Words Does Not Follow From The Facts That Moderates Are The Majority And That Historically We Have Been A Moderate Nation. Thus Our Off-Centered Public Life Not Only Reflects To What Extent Moderates Have Been Eclipsed It Also Indicates The Eclipsing Of The Majority Is The Most Fundamental Problem We Face. Thus A Full Reconfiguration Of Our Public Life To Reflect The Fact Our Historical-Philosophical-Moral Embrace Of Moderation As One Of Our Highest Values Should Be Our Primary Focus Right Now. This Means Turning The Spot Light On Moderates And Their Potential To Resolve Issues And Restore Balance. This Means It Is Time For Us To Think “Moderates.”