An older person may think they have become more conservative, but they are in fact comparing how conservative they currently are to how conservative everyone else is at that moment. They are not comparing how conservative they are now to how conservative they were 20, 30, 40 years earlier. People are terrible at remembering such things, because we see ourselves through the lens of who we are now, in the context of the society we live in now.

As an aside, saying that I lack the wisdom to understand your point is pretty insulting, and doesn’t make your argument any more valid. In fact, you said several insulting things. Why?

Yes, I did in fact read the article.

The article states very clearly:

“the surveys did not provide data for the same individuals at different stages”

If you do not test the same individual at different periods over their lifetime, how else could you possibly measure these results accurately? This study was not conducted under true scientific standards. Had it been done that way it most certainly would have proven my point.

Let’s think of it another way. Assuming young voters are more liberal and people became more liberal as they got older, why wouldn’t the liberals have control over the House, the Senate and the Presidency all the time?

The fact that they are not in control every year also helps support the theory that people become more conservative.

For my theory not to be true, you would have to assume one of these two things:

1) that young voters are more conservative (which is BS if you look at any College campus or ask young people who skipped college who they support)

2) that nearly equal numbers of voters become more conservative as ones who become more liberal and vice versa

It is also possible to see flaws in the test unless samples are taken frequently and well controlled over an entire lifetime. Many people’s political opinions sway one way or the other over their lifetime.

Therefore, depending on current events, a person may claim to be more conservative or more liberal.

Had you asked people this question in October or November 2001, they would have said they were more conservative. Remember how the country felt? Maybe you aren’t old enough. If you asked them the same question near the end of George Bush 43′s Presidency, they would have claimed to be more liberal.

Oh wait, that study was published in 2007…….Hmmmmmm…….

Don’t be so naive as to think that these kinds of studies aren’t produced and manipulated for one political persuasion or the other. Studies are not proof of anything in many cases. They are just one person’s opinion based on their own research. You probably think that everything you hear on NPR radio is unbiased also.

Let me conduct my own study right now…….

Mom… Are you more conservative than you were when you were younger?…. Yes son.

Dad… Are you more conservative than you were when you were younger?…. Yes son.

Are you guys really telling me the truth?………Yes son.

There you have it. Definitive proof from a controlled study that 100% of people in this study agreed that people do in fact become more conservative as they get older.

Thanks for clearing that up. I feel better knowing that my theory has now been definitively proven.

You obviously lack the wisdom to understand the point I made. When you get older, (aka grow up) you will realize “Hey, that guy was right”

It is in fact common sense and common knowledge that people get more conservative as they get older. You probably think a pot of cold water comes to a boil faster than a pot of hot water too. Genius.

Agreed, we have improved in many ways since then.

Todd,

This is called common sense republican for a reason. If you had any common sense at all, you would realize that people do in fact become more conservative as they grow older. It is called wisdom.

Sarah,

Thanks for the laugh and yes you can.

Guess what- people don’t become more conservative as they age:
http://www.livescience.com/health/080310-liberal-seniors.html

America was not a democracy until 1968 lets not forget it