Well, autolycus, I'm more or less ambivalent concerning who is more touchy about criticism... liberals or conservatives. I don't believe in criticism, and we're all doing far too much of it. From my way of being, I find it too distracting, and as such it tends to highlight incidental peripheral issues that initially may have little to do with core values... or personal accomplishments. People from all walks of life seem to find solace in criticising others these days... and very few of us do it constructively. All too often, as a 'knee jerk' expression, criticism seems like a cowards tool... an excuse to not be fully present and caring... and expresses a desire to be superior without sharing the underlying comradery that true superiority relishes.


If you are talking about self-criticism... who can know? Do conservatives learn from their mistakes better than liberals? Do liberals have a decided advantage when it comes to rigorous self-appraisal? Probably not, in either case.

You could, perhaps, say with equal vehemence... that conservatives are doers, and liberals are dreamers. And though it is often the case that doers 'do' things wrong, and that dreams 'can' come true... criticism seldom changes anything. It either distracts or distances the 'doer', and it gives the criticiser a false sense of accomplishment. What gets people's attention is irrelevant... it is all about what people 'do' with their attention.

"Judgement and comparison lead us irrevocably to duality". -Krishnamurti

I personally learn best by the positive examples of others, and by the possibility of being able to admit I was wrong without abusive emotional retribution... And I'll be willing to bet that you do too.
ttr