Political Reality Check. By Eric Smith

We on the Left may not want to accept this but the fact of the matter is this nation will always be just right of center regardless of changing demographics for people, no matter who they are, generally grow more, not less, Conservative with age. It doesn't matter their race, gender, sexual orientation, or even economic class; as people get older they generally see life through an every narrowing band; acquiring more certainties and not less.

In short as people age they generally tend to be less inclined to step out of their comfort zone; to be open to new ideas and new possibilities as they get older. Those on the Far Right in this country have always understood this dynamic far better than those of us on the Far Left and as a result they have repeatedly been able to win elections that even they will admit they should have lost on the merits.

They recognize, as far too few of us on the Left do that when given the choice between two extremes, America will always choose Right Wing Extremism over Left Wing Extremism. So unlike them we do not have the luxury of being holier than thou self righteous moralists. In order to win elections and in order to make public policy we must by political necessity be willing to move to the center. We must be willing to compromise our core principles on more occasions than the Far Right does in order to get things done because let's face it they are at heart more in sync with the core Conservatism that is at the heart of human nature as we age.

This being the case, the Right has the ability to effect great change in this country by running sprints whereas we on the Left we can only do it by running marathons. Therefore if we approach things from a strictly Liberal, Far Left perspective, we're going to lose regardless of the changing demographics. We must, as President Obama does so well, play long ball. We must look down field and plot our path to the end zone one screen pass or short run at a time. Human nature and this nation being what they are, only the Right Wing has the ability to consistently throw long and score. They are the masters of the quick strike and until we recognize it we will continue to be surprised by its ability to deliver the knockout blow when we are the ones who have them on the ropes.

So it all comes down to our seeing things as they really are, rather than as we wish them to be. If our objective is winning elections and making policy then we can neither be moralists nor extremists. We can only be centrists who are slightly to the Left. That is our one and only sure path to victory and if we are truly serious about winning elections and effecting the changes we believe in, we will collectively come to accept this reality and learn to comport ourselves accordingly.