Yes, I Have This Problem Too
People are so wrapped up in their own irrational bundles of ideas that they seem unable to conceive of any bundle that isn't
a) theirs
b) the exact opposite of theirs
It just floors me when people want to argue that the current conservative/liberal or Democrat/Republican positions are internally consistent and the logical (or even only) way to parse the world of ideas. Particularly when I can start naming so many issues where the two sides have swapped positions over the last few years. For example, left/right opinions on unchecked presidential power tend to have a lot to do with whose guy is in office. Bill Clinton proposed most of the Patriot act as his anti-terrorism bill way back in the mid-nineties, and was opposed in Congress by Republicans led by John Ashcroft.
