You’ve probably seen a number of people on social media decrying political partisanship and the heated political environment. Many of these commenters like to pride themselves on being “moderate” and above the partisan fray. And here’s why that’s bad.
There’s nothing good about trying to be “moderate.” By labeling themselves as such, these people are engaged in a type of virtue signaling. What they mean to say is, “I’m so much better than you people, I can keep above the political bickering and focus because I’m so pure and only want what’s best for the country.” Yada yada yada.
It’s a form of arrogance, trying to put themselves above others. And most importantly, it’s a condemnation of themselves.
What these people are really saying by saying that they’re moderates is that there isn’t anything they wouldn’t compromise on, or that there isn’t anything they wouldn’t sell out on, at least as long as it doesn’t affect them. They’re not interested in doing what’s right or just, they’re only interested in taking the middle road, the easy road, the road that gets them popular acclaim and approval and that doesn’t force them to make any hard choices.
There’s a reason Jesus stated on numerous occasions that he would spit the lukewarm out of his mouth. Those who call themselves moderates are the lukewarm. They’re too afraid to take an unpopular stance or to speak up for the truth, so they take a wishy-washy position and try to couch their cowardice as principled moderation. But it’s not fooling anyone.
At some point these moderates are going to get bitten in the ass by their weakness, after they’ve sold the rest of us down the river. After all, the relentless march towards leftism knows no stopping point. And if radical leftists state that even liberals will get the bullet too, what do you think they’ll do to “moderates”?
These moderates think they’re making themselves likable or showing that they have what it takes to be pragmatic, when in reality they’re just too scared to pick a side or take a stance, and they’re going to be despised by everyone eventually. As tempting as it might be to be seen as “moderate” and therefore popular right now, it’s far better to stand up for what’s right, even if it means being despised or taking abuse. There’s no virtue in failing to do the right thing.