Random political thought thread.

[Virtual ghost]

More so than the CDU?

Yes.

CDU is generally party of rural family people that like to get the job done.
While FDP is generally the party of ambitious business people that tend to be urban in every way.

 

[Julius_Van_Der_Beak]

Yes.

CDU is generally party of rural family people that like to get the job done.
While FDP is generally the party of ambitious business people that tend to be urban in every way.

I'd prefer CDU, I think.

 

[Red Herring]

More so than the CDU?

Definitely. The CDU normally has no issue with the social safety net per se. That's like asking "are you for or against public roads". They tend to be on good terms with the business world but don't actively hate on poor people. The main difference between CDU and FDP is that the FDP is more fiscally conservative and socially more progressive (sort of). The difference between CDU and SPD is that the CDU is more hesitant to implement or accept social changes and leaning more towards the employer side and have a very ambivalent position in immigration. The main difference between the CDU and the AfD is that the AfD is much more anti-immigration and wants to kill off the entire current system while the CDU created the current system.

The people the AfD hate the most are the Greens (i.e. what they consider woke urban progressives who want to regulate everything and spell the death of German culture and identity). The CDU is currently going through an identity crises in that they traditionally also hated the Greens but now sometimes cooperate or even co-govern with them and repeatedly had to join the chorus of the "mainstream" parties in condemning the latest death or rape threats from the far-right against the Greens or other competitors.

My current home state is ruled by a coalition of CDU and the Greens and our CDU governor has recently suggested to his fellow party members nationwide that when in doubt the CDU should rather governor with the far-left Linke than with the AfD! That was previously considered an unthinkable alliance (think someone like Colin Powell and AOC governing together to keep MAGA out of government). Sadly the CDU in the East is keeping much less of a distance.

 

[Virtual ghost]

I'd prefer CDU, I think.

To tell you the truth so do I.
FDP stye to communication is something that I find toxic and very ideological in most cases. I don't have a fundamental problem with the idea of free market but you have to recognize when you are pushing things too far and thus you are creating problems. I mean those two parties have their equivalents all over Europe. So the story is similar all over the places, although in many places FDP like parties crashed in support. Since people couldn't stand this ideological 24/7 show. While CDU like parties tend to be rural and thus more practical, what means that they are less likely to fall into pure ideological zeal or being the everyone's favorite idol.


Or if you want it in typological sense:

CDU - e1
FDP - e3

 

[Virtual ghost]

Biden's path to winning the Electoral College runs through the Midwest

Speaking of the obvious.

 

[SensEye]

Well, the FDP is by far the most fiscally conservative party in Germany. If you want something more radical this might not be the country for you, LOL. Budgetary discipline is their No. 1 priority (followed by tax cuts for middle and higher incomes as a second and keeping the social safety net as small as possible as a third priority)

I like what I'm hearing. But honestly, it the devil is in the details. Budgetary discipline is my #1 priority too so that sounds good. However, I would not want to gut the social safety net. I fully support publicly funded education and universal health care and things like that. I don't know where Germany stands social safety net wise. I feel things have gotten out of hand in Canada though. The general policy of the left (and even the center) in Canada is: More free stuff for everybody (but especially the poor)! Spiraling deficits and debt to GDP ratio be damned!

I can see where all this is leading (nowhere good) and so I am a bit hypersensitive about these issues. But I am fine with social safety programs if the government runs a balanced budget and holds the lines on taxes (which are plenty high in Canada already).

 

[Virtual ghost]

I like what I'm hearing. But honestly, it the devil is in the details. Budgetary discipline is my #1 priority too so that sounds good. However, I would not want to gut the social safety net. I fully support publicly funded education and universal health care and things like that. I don't know where Germany stands social safety net wise. I feel things have gotten out of hand in Canada though. The general policy of the left (and even the center) in Canada is: More free stuff for everybody (but especially the poor)! Spiraling deficits and debt to GDP ratio be damned!

I can see where all this is leading (nowhere good) and so I am a bit hypersensitive about these issues. But I am fine with social safety programs if the government runs a balanced budget and holds the lines on taxes (which are plenty high in Canada already).

If you want perfect fit of a party for you that is something you wouldn't find even in the most developed multi-party system. Especially since the details shift based on leadership changes, regional flavors and circumstances. Therefore some smaller compromises have to be made.
However out of German parties FDP is indeed best fit for you in the terms of "content". Average member of FDP isn't for litteral wrecking of people with austerity. After all Germany still has collective trauma over what happened there a few generations ago. However based on your statements supporting of large scale immigration could be your top problem with the party.