@@NekoMouser yup, I used to be in that camp and now that I’d like to think I’ve slowly grown out of that, I feel like I can take in political points much more openly and examine them without a need to be “right” or “wrong”.
I think it's because of a good example in the channel itself. He is actually quite talented at being unbiased and inflammatory, and it's really nice. I wish more people on the right and left would adopt this
Although I’m quite solidly on the left, I actually really appreciate hearing about your perspective as a conservative, particularly in the non-combative way you always put things. I try to avoid stating my political opinions in my videos (almost to the point of secrecy) because what I hate most about modern political discourse is how liberals and conservatives *have* to view each-other as an evil enemy force to be stopped, as opposed to fellow citizens with slightly different values. I just don’t believe people should be shamed for their political beliefs.
agreed. i'm quite solidly left as well, but i grew up somewhat conservative, though more so the classical conservativism that jj describes rather than the crazy right wing evangelicals. it's nice to have a refreshing perspective since i think that most people have more in common with their political beliefs than they wish to believe, since most people may lean one way or another and not be extreme to that direction, if that makes any sense.
When one side is filled with Nazis, racists, sexists, homophobes, and greedy capitalists, not being on the left means that you hate human rights. How can there be peaceful discourse with one side based on human rights vs one side based on temerity in expressing wickedness?
I've watched your content for years, so much of this is stuff that I already know. But I don't watch you particularly because of your political stance. There are times I agree with you and times I don't. I watch because you have a distinctive style and you're engaging, if not also funny. Your biggest strength is that you never take yourself too seriously, even when talking about serious things.
Another thing is that even when JJ disagrees with me, it never feels like he is pushing it on me, and I can always understand where he comes from and why.
Saying "I don't know" to many political issues is the most liberating feeling. Totally with you on the move away from partisan politics to personal politics. It's so freeing.
One opinion I have strongly is that politicians need to be in charge of less stuff because they can't possibly know the best answer for all of it. If someone asked me how to regulate an industry, I'd say I don't know and I doubt they do either.
@@MidwestArtMan That's a weird take. So then we would have no laws because the people who make them might make a mistake? It also builds on the assumption that politicians are the only ones without complete knowledge and that everybody else is smart and good enough to always do the right things.
I know your audience is generally left of center but as a part of the percentage that is probably even further than right than you are, I want to echo everyone else's respect for your positions. Your dignity and humility in approaching everything is what makes you such a one of a kind voice in this space. It is something you've inspired me to practice myself.
and in the other direction, as a marxist (a position even you many times ridicularized in your videos) i still enjoy watching your videos, your explorations of certain aspects of the world and seeing your opinions on many different topics. Because of that, i can easily put aside and respect your opinions as even when you label my views as antiquated i still can follow the vibe and example set by the rest of the video. To finalize, using your example of "conditions lead to people being lead to certain ideological views" that my position as a Brazilian of a mid-low income, the governments i have seen, the financial situations my family has been through, as well as my philosophical views, that you could argue that was why i ended up with the political opinions that i have.
I'm a pretty unapologetic "lefty" (though think more European social democrat than socialist) and I really appreciate your thoughtfulness and channel as a whole. I am so sad that moderation has been largely lost.
JJ, i just want to say, I love to hear more moderate voices, people who don't say "both sides are right" but who take a look at individual issues and decide based on their own philosophy what us right. I really hope you keep up the good work, and just know that you are a special person in the world of (semi) political commentary on RU-vid
I don't actually think JJ is especially moderate. Maybe you get that impression from his RU-vid channel because, as he said, he tries not to make his videos too political. My impression is that he is very firmly in the right-wing of Canadian conservatives. For example, whenever the Conservative Party has to select a leader, JJ is always highly critical of the candidates in the "moderate lane" and more sympathetic to the further-right ones. He has also expressed some opinions that seem pretty fringe, such as wanting to abolish the CBC.
This is good political content. I was raised as a “centrist” moderate conservative, and have drifted center-left on average over time as I took the time to re-examine my positions with more information and more nuanced moral arguments, but I deeply respect anyone who can coherently articulate and civilly argue their beliefs in good faith...which is sadly becoming rarer as the parties here in the US play the populist game of erecting strawmen to tear down.
@@sergelondon916 It's not the only factor (the US has been two-party since basically day one, but only tribalist ABOUT those parties in SOME periods of its history, so that on its own can't be sufficient on its own to produce tribalism in the public at large, even if it is a major contributing cause), and I would argue that the two-party system is itself a natural consequence of the way our voting system is structured, so the easiest way to solve the two-party system is to change the voting system (preferably to STV or MMP, but AV would require fewer amendments, and even it would help *tremendously*), but yes, the fewer tribes there are and the closer they are to even in power, the more likely one is to demonize the other, and once they do political discourse rapidly starts racing to the bottom.
@@night6724 Who said anything about a third party system? Your worried about that when you need at least $10 million dollars to run for political office. $1 billion at least to be president. And the electoral college derails the Democratic process.
@@night6724 the theory goes that it's harder to demonize ur enemies with simple strawmen if they exist in. a variety of different parties that need to be more nuanced and targeted to get more attention. You may be "right-wing" but if you're uber socially conservative then you might be part of a "Christian Democracy" party while if ur socially liberal and just want less taxes/spending then you'll be part of a more libertarian-ish "free market" party, and vice versa on the left, a "labor party" for the normal social democrat, a socialist/ecological party for those who want socialism or are just a tree hugger and et cetera and et cetera
@@night6724 It's about removing the mechanisms that allow for parties to consolidate power, and therefore have an oligopoly/monopoly of power in government. And i say monopoly because in most of the US, for example, only one party has any chance of winning. A government monopoly brings with it all the negatives that a corporate monopoly brings in addition to making it easier for those with money and power to buy influence and gridlock the government (thus preventing meaningful changes to the status quo that allows those with money and power to have said money and power). A mechanism that allows for the two party system to o exist and a proposed solution: replace first-past-the-post voting for ranked-choice voting for all federal, state, and local elections. The "easiest" way I see to achieve this is with a constitutional amendment (easy being relative; remember the two parties that we depend on to make the amendment are controlled by people who stand to lose from such an amendment)
The community you’ve garnered around this channel is truly amazing, it’s so rare to see genuine dialogue and understanding between rivalling opinions. Growing up in a middle class family in a nice suburban neighbourhood in maple ridge I feel very similarly to issues as you and you’ve helped me find the right words to express my opinions to both family and friends and for that I can’t thank you enough. I strive to be as unbiased as I can and look at things from every side (my family is very liberal so that also helps me stay grounded in my more conservative beliefs); and to find a channel like yours that effectively reports on issues and events in ways that appeal to most people on both spectrums has had a very positive effect on how I’m able to discus politics considering I’m still young and learning (just graduated last year). Just wanted to say thank you for the sincerity and knowledge you’ve shared.
As a lefty bordering on socialist, I respect and understand you viewpoint because it's grounded in a broader understanding. If all political discourse had as much thought as yours we've be a long way from the culture war crap to that motivates too many voters. Thank you.
Unfortunately there is evidence of unfriendly foreign influence manipulating many issues through bot accounts to help create this culture war. The tech industry doesn’t help either because it’s algorithms end up trying to make one feel angry because thats what gets more clicks and advertising revenue.
@@Snoop_Dugg it's so funny. The culture war may be spearheaded by AI but it learns from our choices! And sadly people choose to consume and participate in drama more than anything else. We thrive off potential validation WITHIN that confrontation! This in turn IS our culture!
Oh yeah, humans love controversy. But we never had these problems in the 80's, 90's because we didn't have this constant bombardment of information and news.
Anytime I try to have any discussions with socialists now, they just get angry and name call. I used to be a socialist. I wish more of them would be cordial. They would see maybe we don't disagree on as much as we think.
I cannot begin to express how much i appreciate your mindset on a lot of these things. The world needs more people who think like you (not necessarily policy wise or specific idea wise) but people who are able to be pragmatic about things and arnt afraid to have a more nuanced political identity. thank you
Umm, if you look now days on who wants to conserve the corporations it’s the left. Basically all Corps, main stream media and the likes are very leftist!
Most conservatives are that way, I hunt because I care about the environment and my area has a major bear and deer problem. I play music with a small British style brass band because they are disappearing so I want to keep them around. That is why most people are conservative.
Amazing. I loved how he explained why he’s conservative by putting his background into perspective. Different people have different political beliefs and alot of it has to be with how you grew up.
This video made me realize we all been polarized so much that it was shocking to me at first that I can share the same opinions on some topics with someone who does not share the same political point of view with me but it was more shocking to realize this was shocking to me in the first place. Excepting everyone to agree with your own beliefs is not healthy, progression comes from conflict, I guess all the crazy people in both parts made me subconsciously think that they would be never on the same side. However we often forget there’s no sides, the main goal is to make everyone’s life better and this can be achieved only by different ideas clashing and shaping the best outcome. Thank you for this video. As a 23 year-old in that phase of burning with ideological fire, it’s so easy to lost the plot sometimes.
@@jasperfisch8652 as I said progression comes from conflict, so it should be polar sides but not so strong that two polars started to tear apart each other. It defeats the while purpose.
Very true... It's even easier to get riled up when the extreme sides are louder and often get the spotlight, so we feel like it's us against "the bad guys" I'm on the same stage in life and having this type of content makes me think more rationally about politics
As a Conservative, I wish all Conservatives were like you. Maybe then our perspectives and philosophies (yes, plural, we are a diverse group) would be taken more seriously by the international community and lead to more understanding and respectful discourse.
@@youdontknowme8129 it’s not so easy to do, though I agree they do need to be dropped. They are kind of deep rooted in the Conservative party that seems to be being removed with time
As a leftist, it's refreshing to see a reasonable conservative talking, given that the majority of people on social media calling themselves conservative are much more the prickly culture war types. That, and your intentions seem to be relatively good. I think it is more appropriate to build your own beliefs and principles stronger rather than tear down those of another when pleading your case in the political field
@UCrrHYkS0Z_JnkWFwGdpIWpA The problem is that those tend to be the quiet ones. They're the truly "live and let live" ones, which is honestly a pretty perfect way of going about life, it just means that the conservatives that are heard happen to be the homophobes.
As someone who's firmly positioned on the left, it's good to hear there are people who don't necessarily agree with all my values but in a way that doesn't demonize the very existence of certain groups or the inflammatory moral grandstanding often heard from conservative rhetoric. It's also refreshing to hear someone with this particular perspective of conserving the status quo that is aware that their position is at least in part influenced by how they benefit from the status quo. I think the main thing that separates you from most conservatives is that you actually think critically about your beliefs rather than simply leaning on appeals to emotion. Great vid
This is probably your best video and the most refreshing “political” video I’ve seen in years. Very thoughtful and insightful and I’m a lifetime leftist. I personally find the “un-left” aspect to your channel to be appealing to me because it challenges some notions I have. The culture war type videos on both sides are just so draining to me at this point.
This, very much. I'm pretty much far right, but I'd describe myself more of a real politik kind of person. It seems that the entire idea of "right" youtube videos are just the American anti-progressives and the left are the opposite, both just being exported to the rest of the world. Sure, I agree with some of these people, but it does get really tedious. Would you say you're more economically right or politically? I'm curious :P
@@AlienTreeGuy What positions do you hold to be able to consider yourself far right? This is pretty interesting because i don't think i've seen anyone actually identify as far right.
@@extremedrumming3393 to be quite honest they could just be a North American conservative living in France or Denmark. Especially with the separation of social and economic beliefs, I would find it likely that they are either European or a younger person.
@@extremedrumming3393 Generally I consider myself somewhat of an authoritarian of some description. I like the idea of a strong leader directing a country, since all I generally see in politics is weak responses and compromises. I don't mean authoritarian as in dictatorship necessarily, but I do idealize some of older kings such as Frederick II of Prussia or Gustav III of Sweden. A sort of enlightened absolutism. That's just my preferred way, though. I'm perfectly happy with strongman politics in democracies as well. I'm generally left economically, since I come from Sweden, but I fall right in most other regards. Strong police, strong military, strong prisons. Emphasis on tradition and cultural uniqueness within nations. That doesn't necessarily mean I disagree with some things that is not traditional. Being gay myself, I generally support LGB stuff. Complicated opinions on most things, in any case :P
I'm pretty heavily left wing, but you represent a very welcoming and understandable form of conservatism. And as someone from the U.S. I can genuinely say it's incredibly refreshing to see a conservative that doesn't break down into cultist conspiracy. I enjoy engaging with your videos and really appreciate someone who treats politics reasonably. Thank you for being here :]
@@Ant-fc7rf I mean, those are the kinds of people that have the American culture by the balls. My dad has always voted Republican down the line, still does, but even he can, for example, see that his brother is an insane cultist with the Qanon, stolen election, trumpian politics, conservatism where they consider Putin preferable to biden. I think its largely the media they consume responsible for this, but the biggest names in American conservatism right now are the cultists.
@@Ant-fc7rf It's what most people are exposed to, the loudest voices get heard more. Hence why the right think we are all rainbow colour screamfests. While we all think conservatives are batshit consipracy theroists trying to take away rights. Tbf what's happening in America atm with trans rights and women's choice, doesn't help that notion.
As a middle-class German guy whose believes range broadly between conservative centrist and liberal left social democrat, i must applaud you on how you approach politics, especially in regards to politics on the internet. I too have noticed the trends that you mentioned in the video, and i'm happy to see that a RU-vidr who deals with politics (even if it is not the majority of your content) finally take a stance against the polarization that is going on. But regardless of that, congratulations on reaching 600k subscribers! Hopefully it will indeed be at least 1 million by the end of 2022!
It helps when your country has some form of proportional representation. Imagine if your only choice was a CDU coalition with AFD or SPD coalition with Die Linke, Merkel's grand coalition is something that is just not possible in a two party system.
I just wanted to say that I really appreciate your perspective. You are one of the best channels on RU-vid, always showing me knew things about the world and the wonder that hides in every day life and culture. You’ve shown me so much beauty and fascinating dynamics and history in the stuff I normally just accept as part of everyday life. Your ability to explore to turn the mundane into the fascinating, common knowledge into exciting wisdom, to turn everyday occurrences into lessons about the world, history, and humanity is an incredible gift you have. Additionally, your self-awareness shows how much thought you put into what you create and how carefully crafted your messages and videos are. You treat your audience not as an instrument to play the right notes to, but as people. I hope that one day you will reach a million subscribers, but million or not, you should take pride in being one of the best RU-vidrs, and one of the best creators.
You're the first conservative I've heard admit to upholding the status quo-- or parts of it --as a value (personal or otherwise). You know, to actually conserve things you/we already have. You're not the first conservative to hold that position, of course, but you are the first to be self-aware of it in my experience. I don't even consider it a negative, just rare and refreshing. And that's why I'm subbed. Plus your flag related videos are quite enjoyable.
I just honestly think the status quo isn’t that bad. I think more people should stop and think about all the things they have to be grateful for. That was something I was really taught as a child. My mother will still often text me and say things like “remember to count your blessings JJ!”
@@JJMcCullough what you're saying is that your political beliefs lie with preserving yourself and not aiding and progressing both your life and the lives of others, which I don't see a point in
I'm glad that you openly talk about political opinions instead of toxicly denying that videos are apolitical. This a lot more honest than other creators. Being honest with that can make it easier for both viewers understanding which comments might be neutral or which might have a bias (in a way you didn't intend).
I just wanna make clear, I do lean far to the left of the political wing. But, with that being said, I’ve always enjoyed your videos knowing we probably don’t see eye to eye on most things politically. I think you do a great job at criticising your own ideology (something I think everyone should do) and in your regular videos you do a good job at explaining the facts of the situation rather than a politically motivated view. Overall, I think you’ve done incredibly well at maintaining a fun and knowledge driven audience rather than an ideologically focused audience like a lot of RU-vidrs
I love that I can leave my echo chamber and find people who are agreeable and nice while still being different in values to me. It's very pleasant to see a temperate and nice person who disagrees with me, when open discussion is otherwise so hard.
This is probably very close to my personal philosophy. Increasingly, I feel politically like I am in a no man's land as I value moderation, cautiousness and compromise which I feel the two parties in the US no longer value given how partisan our politics have become.
ZiPolishHammer moderates in the senate rn obstruct stuff like build back better and bigger stimulus packages from getting passed. they say they wanna compromise, but they just throw the whole bill away when ppl like biden do compromise
@@processlayer1212 From the reading I've done (as a layman in politics), there are _many_ ways to improve our first-past-the-post system. (That is, be more representational, have less toxic debates, etc.) There's different systems such as single transferable vote, mixed-member, urban-rural. Unfortunately it would slightly weaken or be neutral to the dominant parties, so they don't have a direct incentive for these types of reforms. (But that's why it's important to be involved in politics. :)
I feel the same way as you. It seems like you can't have a nuanced view of any issue--everything issue has to be black and white, no gray and able to be easily boiled down to slogans that can be yelled at a rally or protest or put on a sign and that scares the hell out of me because that's just groupthink in it's purest form.
I think politics is at its best when two opposite sides of the political spectrum can sit down with one another and exchange ideas in a productive and thought provoking way. As a progressive left winger it’s really interesting to hear a person educated in politics from the other side of the spectrum sit down and talk about their reasoning behind their final judgement. Your like the ideal kind of person to debate politics with if you know what I mean.
" Hi person who wants to genocide Jews, " Political dissidents ", homosexuals, Bisexuals, Transgender people, other LGBTQIA+ people, blacks, the disabled ect " " Hi person who wants to abolish an evil system aswell as give freedom to every people " " Let's talk " x2
@@YouHaveAnApeHead I mean, JJ clearly wants none of those things. Jut as not every left winger want to be Pol Pot. Small c conservatism has a different meaning and JJ identifies with that ideeology. Of a smaller government, belief in the value of consumer culture, of free trade, etc...
@@Noah-ws8ho Pol Pot wasn't a communist firstly, he was a US backed genocidal dickhead. Communist Vietnam was responsible for the collapse of Pol Pots regime infact. JJ's belief in Capitalism is the problem, the system in nature is oppressive, apart of this oppression is the idea of a traditional family. Capitalism has Men for Labour, and Women to have children and raise them to either be housekeepers or factory workers. Anything that says people can be anything other than that is disliked as the rich will struggle more to make more cheap labour. This is why LGBTQIA+ peoples are always oppressed under Capitalism. Also, any consumerism will lead to the exploitation of the resource rich third world and all of it's people. There is no ethical solution to this, it's either revolt or hope something changes that never will. Any free market ideology will kill us all, it requires infinite growth on a finite planet.
7:56 this is so true. I’m a teenager who’s always been pretty moderate in my opinions, never really radical. When shown a highly debated topic I don’t develop my own strong opinion about it right away, and if shown new evidence I can change my mind pretty easily compared to others. I’ve always had people tell me that’s a bad thing, that I should have my own solid beliefs and fight for them. But when you get too stuck in your beliefs you end up ignoring obvious facts and occurrences that go against them. People who think that way also very rarely have productive debates and conversations with those with differing perspectives. Heck Ive seen people learn that another person is a conservative or a liberal and proceed to negatively assume their entire personality and value system, it’s very black and white. As the world changes, so should the way you think about certain things. I like to take in parts of different perspectives to then make my own. It’s also so alleviating to see truth in opposing opinions and admit that you don’t know which side of an argument is right.
@@SamuraSan7204 yes I agree. That can be the danger with being toooo open to different perspectives, it’s the balance of being open minded while not betraying your own fundamental morals.
@@SamuraSan7204 however, I’ve found it is often the radical parts of someone’s beliefs, that I explained I am wary of, that would be referred to as their “brain falling out”
I find myself in almost the exact same position as you and like you said society an politics right now are very black or white, people tend to forget the different shades of grey there are, Im really enjoying this comment section as you are probably and it feels nice :)
I started watching you shortly after you started. You popped up on my recommended feed and I was hooked. I'm a lefty, coming from an impoverished southern US community, the ideals that I've formed over my youth into adulthood (I'm well into my 30's now) haven't changed much. I've always known you were conservative, but I've always been drawn to your political essays for the "friend who lives in another town" vibe they've always given. It's had an impact on my own beliefs and I very much appreciate that, as trying to search out content that challenges your biases on either side of the compass tends to end up in frustrating painful dives into "the other side", with all its own vitriol and spite. To that end, your content is a breathe of fresh air, and a level headed, non-party-towing example of an honest, true example of someone's opposing viewpoint. Thank you. I also love your other content. I could watch you talk about pop culture all day, this is one of the few channels I've "rung the bell" on, and for good reason.
This is why JJ's channel is by far my most favorite channel, he is extremely articulate and well informed, and as for his political beliefs he actually has good reasons for believing in them and most importantly he understands what has led him and has influenced him to have those beliefs. That self-aware nature is extremely rare I believe when it comes to politics, on both sides of the border.
"Life is much easier when you can get comfortable saying things like "I dont know" or "maybe they're wrong" and not feel like your whole identity will come crashing down as a result." Thats the juice, right there.
The best thing about politics is talking about them as just another conversation topic instead of a intensly heated discussion, it sure feels good to be able to say what you believe, and I am currently involved in politics but I have always watched all of your videos since they are entretaining and also bring Canadian culture to me.
A couple years ago I watched your videos and I was thinking that...uhh just another western liberal...but since than my views became less extremist I realised I miss judged your political beliefs and subscribed and like your work.
I'm Québécois and I identify as "left-winged" (not center-left). Still, I always highly respected J.J. Although, we may not agree on every political issue, he does care about presenting unbiased facts, he stands up against conspiracy theories and he is not a bigot of any kind. He deserves credit because he works harder than basically anyone else to inform people about Canadian politics. In a democracy, that kind of stuff is more important than "having the right ideology".
This is very intersting to see different peoples political ideologies in the comment section. I am proud of how civil yall are. I am a libertarian' right leaning in the political compass test.
Thank you for this. We need for centre right in Canada, I personally am in a more die hard right position right now, but greatly appreciate your views on Canada and politics in general. Thanks for a great, clear video
I may not be conservative myself, but seeing someone expressing their beliefs in a calm and reasonable manner is truly a breath of fresh air in this excessively polarizing era of media. And in the end, that's why I watch your channel: Exploring the variety of human experiences while respecting others'. Keep making amazing content!
Yeah, I'm pretty solidly a leftist myself. I can respect JJ's positions and outlook quite a lot. I'm personally also pretty sick of the effects of the "culture war" era of politics. Its pretty useless, polarizing everything, and just makes a much angrier and combative culture. JJ seems to have relatively similar conservative politics to my dad. And even though I vehemently disagree with those beleifs sometimes, I always find that being understanding and empathetic makes for far better discussions. Understanding that the person you are talking to is a human being who has reasons for believing what they do (whether good or bad reasons), makes for much more positive experience. Letting emotions flair up too much usually only makes both parties angry, has nobody changing their minds, and leaves a bad taste in everyone's mouth.
Personally as a self-titled socialist I was a bit concerned to watch this video as I immediately saw the conservative hashtag. I have never personally found a place for myself on the political compass as I think ideologies are very fluid. Needless to say I was delightfully surprised to see your views on politics are actually quite eye opening to me! As a Native American I heavily enjoyed your videos and shorts on the first nations and how the Canadian government is dealing with it and overall I find you really respectable! Thank you so much for this video as I understand that being open about politics is a must in todays space, especially in North America. I will continue to watch you and I really enjoyed this video, keep it up J.J.!
@@gorbachevspizzahut well, they said that they're socialist, but don't really fit into the traditional definition. They also said they're native American. Some native American cultures had an interesting process of distributing resources within the community, and so I was wondering if that is what they were describing, or something like it.
This channel is and always has been a breath of fresh air. You’ve always felt so genuine and unique in the way you look at culture without the common pessimistic view I see everywhere. A channel that frequently discusses politics and consumerism is something I watch for joy, and I never thought that could be. I’ll also never get tired of the excellent presentation value of these videos (the amount of game sound effects I recognize is consistently amusing).
After years of watching you, JJ, I can say that I'm more conservative than I thought I was before, although still not very, and your points about how privilege plays a role in this are well taken. Your content makes me feel smarter afterwards so as long you stay with that good good informative business we'll always be friends!
Hey J.J as someone in their early 20’s who grew up in a conservative household I always found your commentary very interesting. While I may lean somewhat more left( I’m sure higher education plays a part) I have always been open to hearing people out. I think it is important to listen to people who have differing views to your own. This is one thing I feel that makes my political identity different than others my age. Many young people that I encounter tend to either have continued their parents ideological views or made it a mission to outright rebel against them.
I'm fairly hard left, and I absolutely love this channel. It's refreshing to be reminded that there's a subset on the right with insightful and balanced perspectives. Thanks!
Jesus Christ. As a more right wing American, I completely agree, especially with the whole partisan dumping on each other, from left to right and right to left. You are a very intelligent man and hope you hit 1 million subs soon!
we need LEFT and RIGHT. Liberal Freedoms, Conserving those freedoms. words should be Liberally used, not creating taboo words. Conserving our freedom of speech. We should liberate every individual by making aware that their self worth is derived from themselves not others.
Hi JJ, I just wanted to thank you for making this video. You must have been nervous in making this video, but I really appreciate the transparency and your openness in expressing your personal beliefs and how they changed over time. I grew up in a conservative American Protestant household and have moved further left in my politics over time. As much as I don’t agree with some of your stances on certain things, I still have a lot of respect for you and genuinely enjoy your videos. It’s really refreshing hearing a different perspective from a conservative when a lot of American conservatism is lacking in a diversity of thought, at least that’s my point of view. Long story short, (too late) I really enjoy your work and I hope this new year treats you well.
Favourite author is Thomas Sowell, so conservative values and religion was never a link I recognized until the Trump era too. Religious dogma wastes as much time as political correctness.
@@shway1 CRT is what happened to the natives-- leftists only replaced the church and residential schools on reservations. They only build cheap schools on reservations to deny special education needs of welfare cases multiplying unabounded. The few that do make it through are lobbied and ushered by there own professors into social justice where they return home unqualified to aid illiterate children with math. Youth are committing suicide with no history of abuse or drugs or alcohol at an unprecedented rate.
I really enjoyed this video. I agree with a lot of your points and relate to your perspective. I've also grown tired of the whole "culture war" and "class war" nonsense and I also do see merit in preserving the status quo for the most part. However, I grew up in a family where my mother was absolutely obsessed with the "american dream" of the middle class ideal inherit in consumerism to the point of it being detrimental to her and everyone around her. She grew up poor and became obsessed then of achieving middle class but wasn't accepted into the middle class because she was still culturally lower class, and her understandings of what makes someone middle class were a lot more about things and products and lifestyle magazines than like actual principles and attitudes. She was also obsessed with pushing me and my siblings into chasing some high paying "prestigeous" career and I had many fights with her over this as I wanted to find something that paid enough that I didn't hate doing that offered me enough free time to enjoy cultural things like video games, movies, etc., I went into college still fairly conservative but ran into a lot of the "cultural war" people as it was around the time that Romney was running against Obama and had to pander to a lot of the evangelical types. I kind of stayed in the middle between "culture war" and "class war hyper woke" people. I ended up failing out of college due to developing panic attacks and PTSD, and was homeless for a while after that because my parents disowned me once I failed out. I now live on disability from the government in an assisted living home with about 10 other men just like me, most of whom are much older than me. So this whole story was a long way of saying that I agree with a lot of your attitudes towards conservatism, but my life experiences have shown me some of the flaws in the status quo that I would like fixed, mainly how flawed the American welfare system is. My grandma had my mom at a very very young age and was kind of screwed by her family disowning her and having to rely on charity to even survive, which affected my mother which then affected me. Many of the people at my group home, myself included, are also trapped on the welfare system as it works currently, so if we were to attempt to work and improve our lives too quickly, or sometimes at all, we'd lose our benefits and be homeless. Very old and antiquated system that doesn't promote bettering yourself. If there was a better welfare system in place then more people could enjoy the status quo consumerist lifestyle that you enjoy that I want to enjoy more. Anyway, I really enjoy your channel whether you post culture videos or political videos because your perspective is unique as far as youtube goes. Keep up the good content man.
JJ I’ve watched your videos for about 2 years. I look forward to whenever you upload a video. You have an articulate world view and I personally appreciate your honesty. Keep on rolling man
truly one of your best videos. this is an incredibly insightful view into the world of conservatism removed from this reactionary mode branded on childish populism
JJ, I must say you are an inspiration of prudence and reasonableness that I find is missing in the world today. Not only in political thought, but most acute there definitely. Thank you for that.
I think a lot of us who have watched you for a while kinda already knew this, and those of us that are on the left and leftists really appreciate your work still. You provide so many insightful views whether it’s on politics (Canadian, North American, or otherwise) or just really fun topics on culture (food, history, imagery, or even just Halloween monsters 😉). You have a unique sense of humor and are super engaging with your content and it’s always great to see a new JJ video pop up, even if it’s something I may not completely agree with. Keep up the good work and congrats on reaching 2/3 of a million! You’ll definitely be reaching that million mark soon and I can’t wait for it!
I myself was caught up in the culture war stuff and have been brought back to the intellectual honesty of my "small c" conservative, or "classical liberal" philosophical lens which is natural for me. Creators like yourself and Mr. Beat have definitely helped this process, so thank you!
I agree 100% with what you say about J.J. :-) However, I teach history and I find Mr. Beat to be very partisan & politicized. I wish Mr. Beat could present history in a more balanced way. I left him a message once asking him politely to be more balanced and neutral but he answered me with a scathing ad hominem attack so I stopped watching his channel.
I feel like I’m speedruning the political stances process by watching so many political content from the left and the right and of course this channel as a proverbial middle. I experienced being a radical environmentalist to pseudo-right anti-sjw person to something more moderate and nuanced or at least I hope I am. Im not even American, I’m Filipino but I’m learning a lot, although the political environment here is quite distinct. The experience is sobering.
For me, as long as your version of conservative values doesn’t include restricting the rights and liberties of marginalized groups we can coexist peacefully.
@@onelazynoob15 Freedom of speech, Personal freedoms (No Mask, no Vaccines) What happened to my body, my choice like abortion? Carbon tax, destroying oil/gas jobs for a radical left wing agenda. Vehicle restrictions Etc...
@@PersephoneDarling28 Britmonkey is pretty low key, but definitely centrist. Econoboi is good if you're an economics dweeb. Most channels focusing on IR or geopolitics do it from a liberal-leaning lens (Caspian Report sticks out here). A lot of the more mainstream news channels are actually pretty good; PBS, DW, and France 24 do pretty interesting pieces, although ones to be taken with a grain of salt given where their funding comes from. Destiny is controversial, but he's probably the face of liberalism/moderate politics online right now. Apart from RU-vid, the biggest community I've found is r/neoliberal on Reddit. Not necessarily for everyone and definitely kind of shitposty, but it's a big tent, and if you're a centrist, you'll find people you fit in with.
@@Not_actually_a_commie Destiny actually holds rather progressive views, it just may not be so obvious since the establishment keeps moving leftward as indicated by the increase of progressive content in the media mentioning affirmative action, LGBT, BLM, and nowadays you can even see republicans waving the trans flag.
You're one of my favorite channels for breaking down political concepts and situations. I'm definitely more on the libertarian left and while I've disagreed with your views on many occasions I've always felt like you've done your homework and always characterised oppositional opinions accurately.
Its so hard to find "Conservative" voices online that are not just either insane or deeply hateful, at least ones that have a size where I will find them, so I cherish when someone can articulate themselves and their ideologies in a way that makes it possible to see how someone can fall into them. A hell of a lot I disagree with J. J. on but I have hella respect for him and his ability to be open about his political beliefs while also being able to see why others would, and encouraging others to disagree with him. To the point where I wish the average left/progressive person was able to be this thoughtful as well. I feel like a lot of the big ones are, but many other big ones and the average no platform besides their personal twitter feed person is not.
I recently lost a good friend who introduced me to this channel and was my unleft perspective, my surroundings tend to be quite leftist so it is refreshing to hear another perspective. I have lost him now but a little bit of him lives on in this channel. Your self-awareness and intellectual honesty are what we should all strive for, the world becomes a slightly better place when we do.
I'm a center left Democrat in America, and honestly I feel like we have vast majority overlap in beliefs and values. Maybe that means Canadian conservatives are more "reasonable" than our conservatives who have seemingly been taken over by way too much culture war stuff, but at the same time, there's too many people on the left (by that I mean vocal minority who is good at dominating conversation) playing along and it causes this stupid metaphorical boxing match between the two. It's detrimental as there's a lot more important issues at hand, and talking about those bigger picture issues while being less sexy than say transgender bathrooms or whatever, are a lot more important and impactful to people's lives.
I'm a pretty solid libertarian (with at least 1 foot in the ancap tent). I find JJ's perspectives on things very refreshing and enlightening. Thoughtful moderates are often hard to come by; most seem to have just swallowed conventional wisdom whole without digesting any of it. Even when I disagree with one of his perspectives, I am never in doubt that his opinions are well considered and presented in good faith.
As an ultra-Christian conservative (that’s right, I am leaning in), I have truly enjoyed JJ’s perspective for two and a half decades. I don’t agree with everything he believes, and I think he misunderstands what I believe, especially with regard to government and sexuality. But all the same, his perspective has been extremely valuable during my life, and I am thankful that he remains who he is, authentically. If I am inclined to consider changing perspectives, JJ is most persuasive, though I have rarely found us on opposite sides of an issue. Haha, except Trump. I think he dislikes Trump but likes some of his policies. Well maybe we are not too far apart on that issue either.
@@bloodwargaming3662 i don't think so. for the most part, most conservative tend to be ok with LGBTQ while being anti woke. because conservatives tend to be very pro freedom of choice with some very inner caviar such as abortion and the me too movement. but aside from that, i think many conservatives tend to agree with a lot of stuff from the liberals point of view( more specifically fiscal and monetary issues)
@@MrExtraordinaire16 only if that would be true in america half of the republicans voted against the marriage equality act which ensured equal rights for gay couples and lesbian couples , the Even more shocking fact was that it wasn't like you were forced to accept them it was just that if a state has issued a marriage license to gay and lesbo couples everyone gotta respect it . That was also rejected by half of the conservative polticians and some called it an attack on Christians even
Honestly, something that really has annoyed me about today’s modern politics is how, pointless it all is. Like I would call myself a leftist, however to me, that term really is useless. What I care more about is policies. Like for example, I personally believe drugs like marijuana and psychedelics should be legalize. So I don’t care if you are a leftist, libertarian, etc., if you want to help me get this policy, I would gladly work with you. But instead people seem to just want to divide each other and feel superior. And don’t even get me started on people’s weird obsession with the culture war. It anyways, even tho we may not agree politically, at least we both agree culture is cool and you make good videos. Don’t know why each side has to be at each other’s throat
"...that government could discourage out of existence." is such a good way of describing the way in which evangelicals believe the government should work in a country they deem "free".
It’s funny to me that you describe this as conservative, but I guess that’s what conservatism really is, at its core. I think of you as more of an “informed centrist.” Centrists get a bad rep for “not taking stances,” since people think they just don’t care or don’t know anything. Oftentimes centrists are some of the most informed, they just see that there are multiple sides and the truth lies somewhere in the middle.
Yeah, there are definitely centrists like that who just wanna be edgy, but many rightfully point out how imbecilic left and right wingers can be sometimes. I consider myself an independent who leans left socially, but tries to balance logic and emotion as they are both central to the modern human condition.
I am a very left liberal and i watch your channel for the cultural commentary. When you do show your conservative bias, i appreciate that you are explicit about it and you are capable of approaching a more full understanding of topics. I'm a fan.
I'm speaking as a Vancouver Christian conservative, and I wanted to make a note on your perspective on the Evangelical Protestant political movement in the USA. The frustration that the evangelical community often faces while engaging in political discussion is that because our worldview is based in spiritual/religious concepts, it is often branded as an inferior lens through which to see the political sphere our continent (USA + Canada, I can't speak to Mexican politics) is in. My question to others would be why the argument 'leave religion out of politics' actually makes sense. If you are a left-leaning, pro-choice, social democrat in favour of a high tax welfare state with open border policies, and your worldview is based in secular concepts of human value, equity and empowerment, what gives that more validity as a worldview than a right-leaning, pro-life, capitalistic stance in favour of nation-focused policies and higher personal freedoms? They are both lenses through which we see the world, both sources of morality, and both influence our political opinions. I'd actually love some input from people (just keep it respectful) on this question: if everyone's political opinions are merely outflows of their overall worldview, why are religious political influences so readily tossed aside, while irreligious ones so readily accepted?
J.J., you hit the nail on the head! As someone whose been active in Republican politics for around 30 years now, one of the reasons I gravitate to your channel and appreciate your takes is because we think alike in that regard, such as our distaste for the populism that's crept in over the last 15 years or so. I consider myself a Reagan conservative, but as a Lutheran, my skepticism about evangelical populism is has now come to match my attitudes toward leftism (as opposed to liberalism). Please keep doing what you do; it is appreciated and needed!
I am currently 21 years old and have been watching your content for quite a few years now (since you talked about flags and had a moustache lol). Back then I had just discovered anti-SJW RU-vid. To be fair looking back at my political beliefs I was always sort of pragmatic and anti authoritarianism. I always hated when I felt like someone would try to push some kind of rhetoric or agenda onto the public and therefore I would let myself be convinced by «the side that looked the least powerful on the political landscape». My parents are mostly apathetic towards politics so I did not grow up with any particular political ideology at home and when I started to show interest about politics I mostly sided with whom I felt was being injured by mainstream narratives. At first I identified with the left bc they presented themselves as «the protectors of the under-served like LGBTs and poor people», afterwards (when I discovered the anti-SJW community of internet) I realised that perhaps despite what the left said that there were some important arguments on the other side as well and that they were indeed wronged by the media and everything. My personal development and intelectual growth at university have pretty much taught me that I never truly had a hyper ideological nature. I read a lot about political science and an empirical understanding of the world is pretty much what I have been guided by nowadays. Any worldview that is constructed on the basis of «we have all the answers and the other side is to blame for everything bad» sounds to me like a bunch of manchildren being self-righteous and immature. When I first saw your video about conservatism, I thought «wtf is this so-called conservative talking about», but now I see myself more&more comprehensive of the idea that us humans are products of our genetics+environment. In conclusion, your channel has helped me realise my pragmatic and moderate nature that I felt scared to show when I was younger. :) ;)
I’m not a conservative and don’t agree with it as a philosophical approach but I really appreciate the sort of practical and non-dogmatic way you talk about your ideas. It’s very refreshing and interesting because you see this dogmatism pretty much everywhere on the political spectrum.
He is exactly the kinda of conservative that is worthy of respect. Someone with critical thinking and that you can truly debate without it turning into a battle. It's refreshing.
I consider myself rather left-wing, probably to the point where I'm rather biased unfortunately, but I'm so glad to see a conservative who is actually moderate and not some kind of "own the libs anti-sjw" attack channel. People like yourself are a pretty rare breed nowadays. I disagree with a couple things that you've said in the past like the whole Remembrance Day thing, but I find you very agreeable in general, especially about the state of politics. As a fellow Canadian, I respect it.
"I'm so glad to see a conservative who is actually moderate and not some kind of "own the libs anti-sjw" attack channel. People like yourself are a pretty rare breed nowadays." Which I think may be exactly the problem. People like JJ ARE a "rare breed" now days. So do they really count as "conservatives" in the way the rest of society perceives that to mean? I acknowledge that who they are used to be the conservative position.... but, in America at least, that position has left people like him behind for something far more radical. So much so that I think it may actually be harmful overall unless clearly differentiated from the modern societal take on what the Right Wing stands for. In America, JJ would be labeled as left wing by the GOP....even if he isn't. Hell, a lot of those voters would consider him leftist for the fact that he's gay alone. The whole sphere of right wing discourse in the US has become incredibly tainted by dogmatic evangelical tribalism.
You are a good egg JJ. I have now idea why I watch your videos by i enjoy them. In learning a lot about Canada and your perspective. I am a conservative American living in New York. I can also say I am mostly un-left myself. Just playing defense here in New York.
Honestly as a very solid leftist as in I would probably never be considered right wing at all, I appreciate the fact that you do actually seem to be an intelligent conservative who is able to look at politics in a different way to someone like me. And I can definitely look at some of your points and be like, "That's pretty reasonable." and the fact a lot of conservatives tend to lean into the ideals of being anti something and owning the liberals despite the fact that Liberals are really just conservative because no Liberal party people want to support the workers and support the formation of unions to help represent workers apart from of course a few who would fit into another countries Labor party or equivalent. But yeah I do also appreciate that you aren't anti left and I think that is a mature response to have as a conservative and personally I would definitely engage a lot more with conservative beliefs if they were all as reasonable as yours.
I do think this is super interesting because as an American, interest in things like foreign culture and cultural exchange is thought of as a very liberal thing
As a terrible and much maligned lefty from the U.S., I must say that you are proof that, like most things, even conservatives are friendlier from our neighbor to the north. I despise Jordan Peterson, Steven Crowder, Ben Shapiro, and Dinesh DeSusa as purveyors of malignant propaganda, but you come off as an actual human with your own interests and motivations and not a one-sided cardboard cutout of a cartoon villain.
As a hard-left person, I appreciate your views on things. I think the left's biggest weakness is the tunnel vision we tend to develop, taking for granted that everyone sees (or at least should see) the world through the same classist and generally anti-capitalist lens that we do. Refusing to listen to each other's positions, saying that only we have The Truth, is the biggest problem in political discourse today, whichever side you're on.
Your are truly one of the most brilliant and thoughtful voices in culture and politics that our generation has. I hope you continue to gain in popularity
I think the distinction between economic and cultural conservatism/liberalism is quite interesting. I consider myself to be much more liberal culturally than economically, however many have “gone off the deep end” in recent times with liberal culture, which has fuelled trump and his ultra conservative movement in return. From my experience, parts of LGBT have been the most common example of excessive cultural liberalism, as it’s huge growth leads many to wonder if all of these young new members are actually who they say they are, or just wanting sympathy and/or attention. In my ideal world people wouldn’t care who you are, but for many this has become a core part of their identity and there’s almost a sort of “nationalism” towards it. Come to think of it, far left and far right have a lot more in common than you’d expect.
As a left winger, in America, learning how the Canadian political system works, I realize that Canadian Conservatives are basically center right, whereas American conservatives are far right. American “liberals” are center right, and Canadian liberals are Center left. It’s very easy to agree with you because you aren’t advocating for the removal of lgbtq rights and things like that.
i wish western countries like the US, canada and australia would have like a democratic socialist party since they all have moderate right wing parties but no moderate leftwing. In australia we just have centre left labor and slightly more left green party.
@@MarxistMogger The US is actually a pretty unique country on the world stage and it's useless to compare the left vs right spectrum with that of european nations. There is a far greater sowing of government distrust in the American psyche especially since Reagan.
As an east coaster and a “conservative” I find it extremely difficult to compare myself or even agree with conservatives from western Canada, I feel starkly left wing in comparison. Ive always felt that divide between the PCs and Reform/Alliance types of Tories still exists. I wonder what your thoughts are on this JJ, and congratulations on 600k.
You are comparing yourself to your trained perception of western conservatives rather than reality. The Reform party was never really about guns, abortion, or religion. Such issues matter no more in the west than on the east coast. However a news story that exaggerates such claims sells headlines. The average eastern canadian has been fed a steady stream of bs regarding the west that has no more accuracy than an episode of South Park. The Reform elements do exist and will eventually dominate the conservative party, but they have nothing to do with left or right. The issue is demographic. The historical habit of buying eastern votes ends with western resource money will end when the west has more seats. Left and right has nothing to do with it.
I consider myself a social Democrat and I stan you JJ. In recent years I've drifted from having passionately liberal political beliefs and more towards an anti-conservative stance, mainly because of the Trump era's dogmatic point scoring. Like you said, much of the right-wing media ecosystem is so preoccupied with being broadly anti-intellectual, conspiratorial and contrarian that it's made me hate everyone identifying as conservative. But your political beliefs are so pragmatic and honest that it makes me sad your philosophy hasn't caught on more. I think there's a solid neoliberal ideology that you could inspire (with effective social programs like welfare and health care) that I would sign up for in a heartbeat.
idk ive always seen social programs as a waste of money, heck even now they are around half our budget if it wasnt for them we wouldnt have a national debt , our tax rate would be half what it is now. Honestly i somewhat see Trump as too moderate but i admit i hate the Qanon stuff but heck we didnt have $8 gas under him
@@constantineergius1626 The inflation we're experiencing is mainly because of COVID interrupting supply chains. It's a myth that social spending had much of an effect on it, considering inflation has affected multiple countries.
@@lilstevechan8427 i would of banned employment during covid. social spending is around half the budget without it you could half the tax rates, simply dont allow anyone to close their shop rather than forcing them to
