I have been trying to get my head around how progressives think. One of the biggest sticking points we conservatives have with progressives is hypocrisy. Liberals frequently seem to have a double standard when it comes to conservatives (and I must admit it drives us conservatives nuts).
   Let's take the subject of freedom of speech. There is a clear double standard in America. Liberals love to have their say, but will shut down conservative speech whenever possible. There is a move right now to shut down conservative talk radio and enact "Net Neutrality" on the Internet.
   To us conservatives, this is clear hypocrisy (as well as being antithetical to the First Amendment). One of the more memorable interviews I saw on the O'Reilly Factor was an exchange between Bill O'Reilly and a Democratic Party "Strategist" (whatever the heck this means). The topic concerned former Communist-turned-Conservative David Horowitz, who had been invited to speak on a college campus (by a conservative group) and had been shouted down by left-wing radicals. The "strategist" explained that the leftist shouters were exercising their freedom of speech and were just giving voice to their frustrations at not being otherwise heard. Bill reminded her of Horowitz's right to freedom of speech, and asked the strategist what should Horowitz do the next time he encountered this situation. She answered, that if he thought he was going to be shouted down, he should stay home. The sound of my jaw dropping was probably audible in the next county (Okay, a hyperbole). The woman seemed to be perfectly sincere, but the blatant hypocrisy was stunning.
   I had been thinking about this exchange for a while, trying to make sense of it. Why do liberals like to espouse their love of freedom of speech, but then (seemingly) shamelessly try to shut it down when it applies to conservatives? And when you call them on it, they stare at you with a look that says: "Hypocrisy? WHAT hypocrisy??" Are they really that dense that they can't see it?!! We conservatives certainly see it!
   Recently, the answer struck me. First, we need to consider the nature of hypocrisy. It occurs when someone espouses a belief, but then acts in a manner opposite from that belief. We conservatives believe in RULES - that the same rule should apply to everyone equally. Thus, everyone should be able to express their opinions, and should, in turn, tolerate others' opinions even if they disagree. In this context, the behavior of liberals is hypocritical.
   However, progressives are results-oriented (not rule-oriented). The result they are obsessed with is the implementation of the progressive agenda. If liberal speech advances this agenda, then it is to be encouraged; if speech (such as conservative expression) works to the disadvantage of the agenda, then it is to be discouraged. The idea espoused is the advancement of the agenda. I realized that in THIS context, the behavior of liberals makes sense. When they shut down conservative speech, they do not view themselves as hypocritical; they are simply following their belief that the liberal agenda be implemented no matter what the cost. Thus, in their worldview, there is no discrepancy between ideas and actions, and therefore, no hypocrisy.