Talk Elections

General Politics => Individual Politics => Topic started by: ian on March 23, 2005, 01:49:26 PM



Title: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: ian on March 23, 2005, 01:49:26 PM
Just because I am interested in knowing y'all a bit better, I think a topic should be made descibing you all and your personal views on politics.  I like the way Sen. WMS has linked his personal views to his signature, and I found his comments very interesting.  So, that's what I'm planning on doing with this post; you should, too.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: ian on March 23, 2005, 02:20:30 PM
I am a total social libertarian, with the exception that I am pro-life, oppose hate crime legislation, pro-censorship, anti-drug, anti-prostitution, and I don't support any extreme issues, albeit the separation of church and state, where most would consider me to be very extreme (ie taking "under God" out of the pledge of allegiance, "in God we trust" out of money", and the 10 Commandments off of governmentally-run buildings.)

Economically, however, I am much more complicated.  I am an economic moderate/liberal.  On the liberal side, I oppose the modern privization attempts by Republicans, mostly oppose welfare reform (because I feel that it is my job as a human being to help a person live, even if he will not help him/herself), support labor unions, support agricultural subsidies, am pro-environment, strongly in support of affirmative action, oppose tort reform, and oppose school vouchers.  However, my Conservative economic views are these:  I oppose progressive taxation, support a flatter, more fair tax system, I am a deficit hawk, support tax cuts for all, especially the wealthy, and would have supported Bush's tax cuts had the deficit not been so astronomical; I oppose special interest groups getting funding from the government (NASA, I'm talkin' to you!), oppose the pessimistic comments made by the majority of the Democratic party criminalizing the rich, support school choice in a non-voucher system, support the rights of businesses over ethics, oppose big spending in general, oppose efforts to encourage immigration or lessen the amount of years it takes to immigrate, and support protectionism in trade with other countries.  And I have no official opinion on free/fair trade, embargos on China and Cuba, and health care, among several other economic issues I cannot remember at the moment.

And, foreign policy-wise, I'm a dove.  (Although I don't support UN approval to go to war).  Expanding on this, I don't believe that one can go to war with a non-existing country, such as "Terrorism," but military intervention into terrorist networks is advisable.  Oppose Iraq.  As far as Israel and Palestine go, I support offering military aid to Israel if other nations declare war on them for being the only official Jewish nation.  I also believe that Israel treats Palestine unfairly, and Palestinians have just as much a right to live in that country as the Jewish people; it is, after all, both of our holy lands, and I would suggest a separation of church and state to ease tensions in Israel.

So those are my positions on the issues.  Let's hear some of you.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Cashcow on March 23, 2005, 03:02:13 PM
I share the logic and viewpoints of a moderate, but I almost have the mind of a liberal. Economically and socially libertarian but not too far from center either way. Do you want us to type up our feelings on lots of subjects? Why don't you pick out a few?


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: TeePee4Prez on March 23, 2005, 03:02:37 PM
Socially:  Complete civil libertarian a la Russ Feingold.  Separation of church and state, pro-choice (except 3rd trimester in which case life, rape and health only), strongly opposed to new FCC regulations, favor gay marriage, opposed to the death penalty.  However, being a Philadelphian that knows a lot of cops, Mumia is not a political prisoner and deserves life in prison throw away the key.

Economics:  Generally moderate-left.  Pro-union, favor a progressive tax structure, opposed to maximum capital gains taxes, opposed to privatization of SS, opposed to tort reform.  Trade is a iffy issue for me however.  Based on what I learned in economics, I realize it's beneficial.  In reality, it has proven anything but in some cases, but in some it has worked out very well such as trade with Canada, Sweden, France, Britain, Germany, Japan, and Singapore, etc.  Basically I don't mind helping out a poor country, but at the same time they should try to plut in place labor and environmental stances.  Universal health care is another iffy issue as well.  Our current system with drug prices is HORRIBLE policy and Canada has a better policy here.  I believe in compettition, but at the same time the health industry lobbyists are raking in excessive profits.  I would be in favor of a hybrid system where a portion of one's paycheck is taken out, such as SSI for a choice between basic health plans with an option for extra insurance (prescription drug/vision,dental, etc.) out of one's own pocket which of course would be discretionary.  I could go on for hours about this, but this is basic.  I lean conservative on issues such as welfare reform, Section 8 housing, and affirmative action.  I liked a lot of Clinton's ideas on welfare reform.  There are people who don't work for a living and smoke crack on my tax dollars and also get Section 8 vouchers to live in a decent neighborhood next to paying customers.  Not saying it should be eliminated, but overhauled.  Affirmative action is a tough issue as well because there is some "country club nepotism" among wealthy white males who could be underqualified, BUT I dislike AA because it ignores poor, working class white males who didn't exactly come off the Mayflower (my case an Irish coffin ship).  There is also the fact that white males are held to a ridiculously higher standard when applying for some jobs.  Example, the Philadelphia Police/Fire.  Blacks get 20 POINTS EXTRA on their evaluation just for being black.  Now in that case, the Irish-Italian males have a monopoly on those jobs and can show some nepotism there, but what's fair is fair.  Should be based on scores and aptitude, not nepotism or race.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: nini2287 on March 23, 2005, 03:40:30 PM
Socially, I'm conservative on some issues and liberal on others.  I believe abortion should only be legal to save the mother's life.  However, I do support stem cell research so long as it's done responsibly.  I generally support the Patriot Act (although we need to look at specific abuses).  I favor funding of religous charities, so long as it's not shoving Jesus down the throats of those using the services.  I also believe gun control is a state issue (or even a local issue in some states with extensive hunting and crime filled cities, Michigan or Pennsylvania for example).  I also believe in moderate controls on network television and in libraries.  On the other side, I strongly support gay marraige, I am vehemently against the death penalty  and strongly oppose school prayer/displaying of religious icons in public places (Ten Commandments on courthouses).

Economically, I'm more liberal.  I believe in a progressive tax system, and would like to see it become slightly more progressive.  I don't believe we should raise corporate taxes per se, but better enforce tax evading businesses and put limits on deductions.  I oppose affirmative action in the workplace, but slightly support it for college admissions.   I favor a law increasing minimum wage at a constant rate every year.  I think our health care system should be similar to France's in which everyone is given either public or private coverage.  I also am in support of tort reform.  I favor increasing the cap on payroll taxes for social security but we should continue to look at ways to improve the system.  I'm very liberal when it comes to the environment and ANWR drilling.  I also believe we should increase military funding and veteran's benefits.  I am opposed to school vouchers as they take money away from public schools that need it to the most.  I also oppose NCLB  I believe we should keep legal immigration as is an toughen border controls for illegal immigrants because of drug and terrorist concerns.

From a foreign policy standpoint, I strongly disagree with the War in Iraq.  I think we should have waited until the weapons inspectors had finished their job and until we could garner more international support (although in case of emergency, I believe in war without UN support).  However, I do support staying in Iraq as long as necesary to ensure a smooth transition.  I feel this war has hindered America's efforts in rebuilding Afghanistan and taken the focus of more immenent threats such as North Korea and Iran,  as well as humanitarian crises in Rwanda and Sudan.  Although I am Jewish, I don't like either Israel or Palestine and I believe that peace in the region should be a main focus of our foreign policy.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Jake on March 23, 2005, 03:55:51 PM
Hmm, good question

Socially, I'd describe my self as very conservative.  I oppose the legalization of hard drugs, though I could support marijuana legalization if the government controlled the sale of it, and if exorbitant taxes were put on it.  On abortion, I oppose all abortion, for any reason.  If a mother would hold her own life as more important than the child's she deserves to die.  I also support ex post facto death penalty for abortionists.  I support civil unions for all couples, and I believe that they should receive all benefits of marriage except adoption rights.  No child should have to have two gay parents.  On the death penalty, I support tougher standards for evidence. Scott Peterson should not be put on death row based on circumstancial evidence, neither should anyone else.  I do favor the introduction of more painful ways of death.  The present system of poisoning them while they are asleep is pitiful.  Babies are slaughtered by riping pieces of their bodies off, so should those on death row.

Economically, I favor massive reforms in the education system.  I'd give schools the right to permenantly expel repeatedly misbehaving children from the public school system. I also support vouchers for every student.  Vouchers bring competition to education, and competition is always the best way to make things better.  I favor privitisation of all federal and state owned services.  Amtrak, power systems, public transportation.  Once again competition makes things better. On social security, I favor eliminating the system all together.  Eliminate payroll taxes, and let people do whatever they want with the money they get back.  The poor already have welfare.  I favor a reducation in taxes for those making under 250,000 a year back to a maximum of 25%.  I still am undecided as to a flat tax.  For those making over 250,000, their rate will rise to 40%.  All capital gains taxes will be eliminated to make up for the income tax raise.

Foreign policy wise, I'm a hawk.  I believe in the complete independence of our military from international obligations.  I favor a strong military policy that shows the world that America is ready and willing to engage terrorists, rogue states, and those that threaten our allies.  I favor responding to any North Korea attack my immediately nuking the North Korean infrastructure, cities, towns, supply dumps, ports, etc.  


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: WalterMitty on March 23, 2005, 05:37:11 PM
social issues:  fairly liberal.  support legal abortions, support gay marriage, support affirmative action, support gun control, oppose the death penalty.

economics:  i support the free market and free trade.  period. 

foreign policy:  fairly hawkish.  pro-israel.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: A18 on March 23, 2005, 05:38:37 PM
economics:  i support the free market and free trade.  period. 

Then why were you complaining about a flat tax about a week ago?


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: WalterMitty on March 23, 2005, 05:40:50 PM
economics:  i support the free market and free trade.  period. 

Then why were you complaining about a flat tax about a week ago?

the flat tax and flat tax proponents go out of their way to be cruel to those less fortunate.

the system is cruel enough as it is, not that i lose any sleep over poor people (and im not going to pretend otherwise), but no use rubbing salt in the wounds.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: A18 on March 23, 2005, 05:43:08 PM
It's about fairness. If everyone has a stake in lower taxes, the free market benefits. No 'tax the rich' schemes.

Anyway, that plan actually exempted a generous amount of money.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: WalterMitty on March 23, 2005, 05:45:39 PM
It's about fairness. If everyone has a stake in lower taxes, the free market benefits. No 'tax the rich' schemes.

Anyway, that plan actually exempted a generous amount of money.

well i do believe in a graduated income tax.  the rich should pay more than those of lower classes.

however, many, if not most liberals, want to punish the rich with ridiculous tax rates.  i find that pretty repulsive.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: phk on March 23, 2005, 05:46:23 PM
I'm a Marxist-Leninist activist for revolutionary intercommunalism. I'm also an avid student of economics and philosophy. I love history. I read all the time. I live in the ghetto.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: A18 on March 23, 2005, 05:47:04 PM
The rich pay more than those in lower classes under the flat tax.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: A18 on March 23, 2005, 05:54:32 PM
Social: I'm a libertarian. I believe the government should stay out of issues of morality unless it is a matter of negatively impacting others. On abortion, I am pro-life, although I hate those who go around calling pro-choice people "murderers." This is not productive to me.

Economic: Left-leaning libertarian. I believe the government should stay out of business issues unless they are directly and negatively impacting people in a significant way. The government should focus less on quotas, and more on prosecuting bad companies. Good corporate citizenship should be rewarded with tax breaks and logos usable for advertising. I believe taxes are necessary to allow the government to function, although they should be relatively low. Welfare should only be for those who truly need it.

Foreign Policy: Think before you jump and, if you jump, be honest about it. This is a primary reason why I disagree with the Bush administration - an important part of foreign policy is being honest about when you screw up and how you will correct it. The ends should not justify the means.

I never knew you were a libertarian! Welcome to the club; you should join the Republican Party.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: PBrunsel on March 23, 2005, 07:21:35 PM
I'm a Social and Economic Conservative. I am 100 percent pro-life [including the Death Penalty and euthenasia]. I oppose gay marriage and judicial activism. I believe that a government that governs least governs best.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: John Dibble on March 23, 2005, 07:37:26 PM
Social and economic libertarian. I believe that most government services and laws should be provided at the state or local level, as they are easier to reform or get rid of them as is necessary, plus one size fits all federal programs tend to do poorly. Leave people be and keep taxes low.

Foreign Policy: For the most part, leave other nations to their own affairs. Trade with pretty much anyone to ensure peace. Only attack other nations when attacked or when they make unprovoked, conquest based attacks on other nations - if they don't respect the sovereign borders of their neighbors, they won't respect ours if they ever become strong enough to take us.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Brandon H on March 23, 2005, 08:09:48 PM
I am a paleo-conservative Christian who believes in indivdual responsibilty and making corporations play by the same rules as everyone else with a "realist" foreign policy.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: WMS on March 23, 2005, 09:11:55 PM
I appear to have sparked a modest trend. :o

The different flavors of moderation are very interesting...

...and don't forget: for the full effect, put a link to your post in your signature. ;)


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Max Power on March 23, 2005, 10:15:40 PM
Social Issues: Very liberal, although political compass says I'm moderate. I am 100% Pro-Choice. I am against seperate but equal ideas, so I support SSM.

Economic Issues: I am moderate-to-conservative here. The spending is insane in our government, and we don't know where it's going. I support low taxes, but not everybody's taxes can be low with a debt this colossal. I support free trade 100%.

Military Issues: "Speak softly and carry a big stick, you will go far"- T.R. That explains my beliefs here. An unstoppable military and a strong diplomacy. I support the war in Afghanistan. The war in Iraq was flawed when concieved, but the results (as in voting) are fantastic, so I now believe it was worth it. I never thought it would turn out this way.

Social Security- I am against privatization, but I believe you should be allowed to add extra money to your account, but keep a minimum %.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Sam Spade on March 23, 2005, 10:37:13 PM
Hmmm...  I'm bound to forget my beliefs on some things, but here it is:

Social:  I am against abortion, except in rape or incest or endangerment of the mother's life.  I am fundamentally against gay marriage, civil unions, hate crimes and all this other garbage.  My caveat here is that I believe that all of this should be left up to the states.  The federal govt., the courts, etc. should stay out of these two issues.   This means overturning Roe v. Wade, Lawrence v. Texas, etc.  DOMA is still the best solution for the gay marriage issue, though I fear it will be overturned someday.  Only (and I repeat only) in that situation will I support a constitutional amendment.

I am anti-euthanasia (and I believe the Constitution strictly outlaws it), but am pro-death penalty for serious crimes; though my position on that has gone to the left over the years to me, there are just some crimes that do deserve the death penalty, sad to say.  This whole Terri Schiavo thing does make me re-think that, because this innocent woman is receiving a much more horrible death than any death row criminal.

I am actually in support of school prayer (which might surprise some people), but this is should be a state issue.  I oppose affirmative action, but this is also a local issue for me.  I am pro-marijuana legalization and drug legalization in general, but once again it should be left up to the states.  I think the drinking age should be lowered to 18.  I think the anti-smoking advocates are far too powerful and that we shouldn't be outlawing smoking in public places.

I am in favor of vouchers.  Prostitution should be illegal, gambling should not. (both state issues, imo)  I oppose Internet filtering in schools and public libraries.  I oppose prescription drug importation from Canada.

Economic:  I support strong spending cuts and putting those towards eliminating the federal budget deficit and debt.  Chief of those programs to eliminate to me are Medicaid and the prescription drug plan for Medicare, as pointless socialism.  The health care funding issue is in many ways a more pressing issue than Social Security and the continued intereference of government in these things and the power of malpractice lawyers will continue to drive prices up ridiculously.

I do not support tax cuts at this time (except maybe some targeted ones), nor do I support tax raises, except if a separate higher tax bracket were created for those who make over $1,000,000 a year.  This would keep nearly all small business owners out of the higher tax brackets, which a raise for simply the higher tax bracket wouldn't.

Tax simplification, at a revenue-neutral basis, would be a very good thing in the long haul.  I would support a flat tax, but I don't think it is feasible in the present-day US.  Tax simplifcation might be.

I am for trying to eliminate corporate loopholes, though I recognize eliminating them may create new ones.  I continue to support the welfare reform that Clinton signed at present.

I am anti-Balanced Budget amendment, anti-term limits and pro-Line-item veto.

I am for a total privatization in certain government programs, like Amtrak, postal service, etc.

Foreign Policy:  Fundamentally, I am a old-school realist, but I realize that the War on Terror has changed a lot of our prior assumptions.  This is one of the reasons why I supported Bush, though I despise his domestic policy.  For that, I did and do still support our actions in Iraq and Afghanistan, but I certainly do think that at some point soon our troops will have to come home.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Horus on March 23, 2005, 10:40:00 PM
Social Issues: Against partial-birth abortion, but other than that support a woman's right to choose. Pro Same-Sex Marriage. Against Affirmative Action in any way shape or form, it is nothing but reverse racism. 100% organized school prayer, the though pledge thing was a bit much. I think Marijuana should be legalized and taxed. If people want to be stupid, they have a right to be. Drinking age should be lowered. Prostitution should be legal in certain places, though they should be kept away from schools. I believe all child molesters should be kept in an isolation cell for the rest of their lives. I personally oppose internet filtering, but believe it should be left up the schools. Homeschooling annoys me and I think it really hurts kids, but if the parent and child both wish to do it, it isn't my business.

Economics: Pro free-trade. I have no real problem with partial privatization of social security so long as it is done slowly and carefully. I support universal healthcare as well, but that is probably my only liberal economic position. Not much else really, I don't care about economic issues as much as most people.  

Foreign Policy: I believe the Iraq war was a mistake. Usually, it depends on the situation.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: bullmoose88 on March 23, 2005, 10:44:47 PM
Social: Raging Social Liberal (Save Abortion...I'm marginally prolife). One should be able to do whatever he or she likes, unless it has a direct negative impact on someone else. The state better have a compelling interest before it even considers some sort of social regulation.

Fiscal: Center Right. In favor of a progressive tax system thats fair, but also for lowering the tax burden on as many people as possible. For a social safety net, but to a smaller degree than currently in place. For empowerment...giving people the tools to do the job, rather than doing the job for them.



Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: nclib on March 23, 2005, 10:48:26 PM
Social: Very liberal. Completely pro-choice, pro-gay marriage, anti-censorship, anti-death penalty. Support separation of church and state.

Economic: Very liberal. Increase taxes on the rich and create a greater safety net for the poor.

Foreign: Against virtually all wars. Oppose draft and selective service. Liberalize immigration policy.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Max Power on March 23, 2005, 10:58:17 PM
Against Affirmative Action in any way shape or form, it is nothing but reverse racism.
Not to attack your opinion, but what about hiring more women? I have met many women who say they missed out on a job because they are a woman.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Horus on March 23, 2005, 11:08:31 PM
You see, than in that case, the company would have been choosing a man because he was a man Therefore whoever it was, was putting put men over women. Sex shouldn't come into it at all. If the man is more fit for the job than the woman, the man should be hired and vice versa. Companies shouldn't make their decisions on the person's race or sexuality (whether it be favoring men or women), they should make them on the person's abilites to to their job.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Moooooo on March 23, 2005, 11:18:26 PM
Social: 
-Pro-choice durring the first trimester only.  After that you lose your option to choose.
-Support individual prayer in school.  Support some christian teachings in public schools.
-Support the public school system.  Do not support vouchers
-Immigration:  I support the placement of a division of the National Guard on the southern border.  If you go through the system system and file the proper paperwork you will be rewarded with U.S. citzenship.  If not, you will be sent back, immediatley.
-Gun-Control:  Support some gun controll, but we are taking it to far.  Responsible citizens should be able to bare arms without the gov't giving them a hard time and breathing down their neck.
-Crime:  This country is too lenient on vicious criminals and too strict on people who commit petty crimes. 
-Death Penatly:  Support, but only w/ DNA evidence.
-Against Gay marriage, but I do support the idea of civil unions for the most part.

Economic:
-Budget Hawk.  I undestand that running a deficit can sometimes be beneficial, but I really hate the idea of the America having this huge debt.
-Support a progressive tax system.  The middle class is overtaxed and the rich are undertaxed.  Families First tax plan: fair,progressive,simple,responsible.
-Free Trade:  Freed trade is OK, but there must be restrictions, which prevent American jobs from being shipped over sea's by the millions while the company responsible gets a tax cut for packing up and leaving.
-Pro-Union
-Support Social Security in its current form.  Increase the cap or eliminate the cape entirely and lower the payroll tax.
-Health Care:  I like the idea of a Universal Health Care system, but it does not seem financially feasible.  Therefore, I support single-payer health care system.

Foreign Policy:
-Support more spending on the armed forces.  Support the War on Terror.  Id prefer that the War on Terror expand to more countries and more terrorist training grounds.  But I would rather the WOT consist of strategic strikes on certain terrorist bases and training camps rather than invading the countries containing those bases and camps.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: MHS2002 on March 23, 2005, 11:26:55 PM
Socially: Pro-life in virtually all cases, against euthenaisa, support the death penalty for the most heinous of crimes, against gay marriage but also against a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage such as the FMA, undecided on civil unions. Also against hate crimes legislation and affirmative action, oppose most FCC regulations on cable and other pay TV channels, in favor of some Internet censorship when it comes to K-12 public schools and libraries where computers are being used by children. Generally oppose prostitution and legalization of drugs but support gambling for the most part. Support the status quo for immigration. Support individual prayer in public schools and prayer before sporting and other major events. Support school vouchers and faith-based charities.

Economically: Proponent of the free market but there should be a small safety net for those who have fallen on hard times. Support free trade, welfare reform, tort reform, a slightly graduated income tax, and farm subsidies for small family farms. Against personal and corporate tax loopholes, corporate subsidies, and universal health care. Would like to see a more balanced budget and feel that Medicare and Medicaid spending are more pressing issues than Social Security (support privatization of SS).

Foreign policy: Supporter of the War on Terror, including Iraq and Afghanistan. Strong supporter of Israel.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: A18 on March 23, 2005, 11:30:25 PM
-Support a progressive tax system.  The middle class is overtaxed and the rich are undertaxed.

People who say this miss the point. An income tax is not a tax on the rich, but the people becoming rich.

The best way to get the rich to pay their fair share is to close loopholes and end tax shelters. A perfectly flat rate would be ideal, as this is the only system completely void of 'get-arounds.' But the top rate right now is 35%! Certainly that is high enough!

Quote
-Support Social Security in its current form.  Increase the cap or eliminate the cape entirely and lower the payroll tax.

That is not Social Security in its current form. That is a welfare program, equivalent to abolishing Social Security.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Moooooo on March 23, 2005, 11:35:50 PM
-Support Social Security in its current form.  Increase the cap or eliminate the cape entirely and lower the payroll tax.


That is not Social Security in its current form. That is a welfare program, equivalent to abolishing Social Security.

Your right.  What I should have said is, I support increasing the cap or eliminating it as a way of "fixing" the current system.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Beet on March 24, 2005, 03:40:08 AM
Social:

Liberal Views
- Pro-choice during the first trimester.
- Immigration: Suport increased legal immigration and amnesty for undocumented workers who have shown commitment to making a productive life in America.
- Gun control: Support mandatory waiting periods and background checks. Support provisions of Assault Weapons Ban of 1994-2004.
- FCC regulations: Support a return to pre-Michael Powell regulatory priorities. Do not agree with pandering to narrow special interests trying to control what people can see on television.
- Marijuana: Support legalization on a state-by-state basis, but under highly regulated and taxed conditions, with increased safeguards against marijuana dependency. Support limits on amount of marijuana that can be purchased.
- Gay marriage: Support civil unions on a state-by-state basis.

Mixed Views
- Support religion in school on a voluntary basis, but not required religious activity such as prayer or moments of silence. Support secular education on religious scripture and history as part of the school curriculum.
- Crime: We are too lenient on vicious criminals but too harsh on petty offenders. There are too many people in jail. Go to the root of the problem.

Conservative Views
- Fathers' Rights: Support the equal rights of fathers in all custody cases.
- School vouchers: Support. Support privatization of all public schools, subject to community approval in well- and average-performing districts.
- Multiculturalism: Believe in assimilation, not multiculturalism. Oppose bilingual education except as a last resort bridge to English-only education.
- Affirmative action: Oppose race-based affirmative action.
- Death penalty: Support, with DNA evidence. Try to rehabilitate all people, even those on death row.
- Causes of social problems: Believe 1960s liberalism led to undesirable breakdowns in social capital; the causes of high crime are mostly family breakdown and weakening of community culture.

Economic:

Conservative Views
- Favor dismantling social security entirely, but favor the government stepping in to aid seniors who face an unexpected sudden loss of retirement savings.
- Support tort reform. Support cap of $750,000 for pain and suffering damages.
- Oppose farm subsidies. Support government action to prevent large corporations from going bankrupt, but otherwise oppose corporate welfare.
- Support free trade. Generally anti-union.
- Support suburban development. Oppose no-growth lobbies. Support state infrastructure spending.

Liberal Views:
- Budget deficits are not a problem. Debt is a structural thing shared by all industrialized countries, and always will be.
- Support a progressive tax system, top income tax rate of 44%. Support the estate tax. Oppose increasing regressive taxes such as sales taxes. Oppose cap on income considered for social security tax.
- Favor government-funded medicare vouchers for medical insurance for the poor. Every child should have health insurance.

Foreign Policy:

Realist. Share a philosophy of war with William T. Sherman, and for that very reason has a very high threshold for justifying a pre-emptive war. Still believe the reasons do not justify starting a war.
- Support spreading democracy by peaceful means, such as building up goodwill and cooperation with Arab peoples and the less oppressive governments.
- Support bilateral talks with North Korea, only because multilateral talks are clearly getting nowhere.
- Support coordinating with E.U. on Iran.
- Favor ending monetary grants to Israel.
- Realize that we must support some undemocratic regimes, such as Pakistan, because the alternative would be worse.
- Support debt relief, AIDS drug funding, and other economic assistance to LDC regions, especially in sub-saharan Africa.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: PADem on March 25, 2005, 05:59:10 AM
Social:

- Proud Pro-Life Democrat. Support abortion in cases of rape etc
- Against Prayer or Religious influences in state schools-
- Support school vouchers
-Immigration: Support a clamp down on illegal immigrants coming  across the borders, reward those who apply through official channells
-Gun-Control: I respect that this is a touchy issue. In support of a ban on stupid guns that people have no need to have (eg assault rifles) - otherwise then I don't really care
-Crime:  Support tougher penalties for major offences (rapes, assualts etc), and lighter penalties for things nobody cares about (minor Marijuana offences etc)
-Death Penatly:  In favour, DNA evidence and automatic appeals are a must
- Against Gay Marriage, completely opposed to any kind of constitutional amendment though. Don't really have a problem with civil unions

Economic:
- Anti-Deficit, and think that Bush's economic policies aren't the way to go
- Support asset-tested tax system. The poorer you are the more tax breaks you get, the richer the less
-Free Trade:  Pro NAFTA, CAFTA etc, but outsourcing is a real problem
- Support at least partial privatisation of social security
- Anti-Affirmative Action: I don't by into it being reverse racism,  but I think it doesn't help, and we should be looking at the roots of the problem

Foreign Policy:
-Support enlargement of the army, and extra military spending. If we need to deploy troops then the powell doctrine is the way to go


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: DanielX on March 25, 2005, 06:34:14 AM
I'm somewhere between a warmongering libertarian and a free-love conservative. Chew on that one.

Essentially:

Social: Center-left. Far left on issues like prostitution and gambling; far-right on abortion, center-left on most other things.

Economic: Right to Far-right.

Foreign Policy: Center-Neocon.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Starbucks Union Thug HokeyPuck on March 25, 2005, 12:24:20 PM
SOCIAL: somewhat of a libertarian with some Democratic ideas.  All for gay marriage, gay adoption, gay rights.  I believe the government has to do everything in its power to uphold free will on public property, because as much as I feel strongly about people expressing themselves and having the freedom to do what they want as long as they are not hurting anybody, I feel just as strongly for an owner of private property to do what they want in their homes, businesses, once again, as long as they are not hurting anybody.  Very liberal when it comes to censorship, I think anything should be allowed on the air as long as parents and caregivers to children are given a heads up to what's there.  Basically when it comes to that, I love the V-Chip, because any broadcaster can express their free speech and any parent can easily have anything they dont want in their homes blocked.  My views on the rights of private property owners extend to hiring practices.  I think affirmative action is beyond unconstitutional, the government has no right to tell a business who to hire.  But, I'm a big union supporter because I also think it's the workers' right to have fair pay and enough to money to adjust to the growing economy.  I'm liberal on abortion, as I see it as somehting the government can't control and whether or not to bring a life into the world is the parents' choice, not the government.  Strong advocate to the ACLU, one of our country's best organizations.  I'm all for 2nd Amendment rights barring the failure of a psychological test.  Conseratives are right, people kill people, not guns, so we just have to keep guns away from people who kill people.  As for everyone else, if you want to keep an AK47 in your home, fine by me.  Just pass the tests.  I believe the drining age should be lowered to 18, and marijuana legalized.  Hard drugs should stay illegal, because they just simply alter your mind to the point you really have no control, unlike softer casual things (I dont even consider them drugs) like pot and alcohol. Voting age should be lowered to 16, because I think our younger citizens should have a voice.  I'm 100% for a clean environment, as I see it as a right for the next generations to have a clean Earth to live on.  No businesses' profits should come at the expense of our planet.  On religion, I'm as liberal as you get.  Of course, I support peoples' right to practice, but it should be completely out of the government, courts, and schools.  Teaching faith as fact, imposing "God" onto atheists and agnostics, through the pledge and oaths, and justifying rules with religious doctrice are all imfringments on free will and thought in my eyes.  Those who do this are trying to alter the soul and very person the vicitm is, and should be punished.  If I had to some up my social views, you do whatever the hell you want, as long as you are not hurting anybody or anything, or putting someone in danger.  I'm a freedom and rights liberal Democrat. 

ECONOMIC: Basically, I'm all for workers' rights but there are few places where I think it should be up to the owners.  I believe in high taxes on the wealthy, as they should give back to the system that got them where they are to help those who were, by no choice ming you, born into a less desirable situation.  America is the land of oppurtunity no doubt, but many simply cannot help the situation they were born into, and its the responsibilty of the government to help them.  Minimum wage should be reasonable to get by in our society.  The governmentshould support unions, as they are the main defense against oppressive owners and big business bosses who use their position to exploit workers.  Since working and making money is essential in a capitalist society, owners rights to should extend only to hiring and how they run their business.  The workers have the rest of the power beyond that.  They cannot be fired without good reason, and must always be treated fairly as long as the job is getting done.  Basically on the economic side, I'm a populist with one or two libertarian leanings. 


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: No more McShame on March 29, 2005, 12:01:16 AM
Social Views- I consider myself a social moderate
   Oppose abortion except to save the mother's life or incest.  Overturn Roe v Wade and leave it to the states.
   Oppose gay marriage and the Federal Marriage Amemdment.  Believe it should be left to the states.  Support DOMA to allow the states the freedom to define marriage how it sees fit.  Personally support civil unions.
   Oppose euthanasia on 14th Amendment grounds.
   Support allowing states to set their own laws on marijuana use.  Personally, I would just legalize all drugs as I believe that would drastically cut down on the crime rate.
   Support the death penalty with DNA evidence.  I agree with the other poster who said Scott Peterson shouldn't get it because his case is circumstantial.  The Supreme Court was wrong to outlaw it to under 18 yr olds.
   Oppose "3 strikes and you're out" legislation.  Sentences should be handed down on a case by case basis.  Some crimes and it should be 1 strike and you're fried.
   We need to rewrite the Patriot Act, there are good elements to it, but other elements that give government a scary amount of power.
   Oppose further gun control.
   Oppose affirmative action.  Two wrongs don't make a right.
   Favor a set term for Supreme Court and lower court judges to rein in judicial activism.  Say 8 years.
   School prayer is a neutral.  "As long as there are tests, there will be prayer in school."  Support personal shows of faith but oppose organized prayer groups.
   Support vouchers to make our schools more competitive.
   Support the National Park System and allow limited use of wilderness areas such as drilling in ANWAR.  Oppose the Kyoto Treaty.
   Enforce laws on illegal immigration.  Do not give illegals driver's licences or allow them in-state tuition.  Have a guest worker program for jobs that are not filled to reduce the temptation for people to illegally cross.  Say in no uncertain terms that there will never be amnesty.

Economic.  Mostly Libertarian
   Support in principle the effort to have private accounts in social security but wonder how it's going to be paid for.  Support raising the retirement age to keep with the original intent of the program and eliminating the early retirement option.  Would like the whole thing phased out but that is not practical at this time.
   Oppose new prescription drug benefit to Medicare.  Instead set up private Health Savings Acccounts to replace insurance.  Insurance causes overuse of the system.  Oppose gov't funded health care.
   Would prefer a consumption tax, but only if a constitutional amendment was passed to eliminate the income tax.  Since that's not going to happen institute a flat tax with a high personal deduction for progresivity.  As compliance costs drop, billions will be released into the economy.
   End corporate welfare.  Wal Mart makes enough money, they don't need the taxpayers to fund new store construction.  Same with major sports leagues
   Allow private charities, including religous ones, to administer welfare programs as long as the money is going to help and not to preach.
   Strongly oppose the mininum wage.  It only destroys jobs.
   Support NAFTA and exansion of the trade agreement as it will create more jobs in the long run by opening foreign markets to U.S. goods and keep prices down.
   Combat outsourcing by eliminating the corporate income tax (very few corporations pay income tax anyway).  Tax dividends at the flat rate.
   End the embargo on Cuba.  Treat Castro like we've been treating the Chinese and change will come.

Foreign Policy- Basically a hawk.
   Strongly supports the wars in Afganastan and Iraq.  Despite Iraq having no WMD, Saddam was a threat and was only waiting for us to turn our backs to restart it.
   Strongly oppose the draft.  Instead offer better pay and incentives to our troops.  They deserve it!
   Improve the VA system and help families of fallen soldiers.  We need to take care of those who take care of us.

  That's my view in a nutshell.  think I got everything.
   
   
   
   


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: they don't love you like i love you on March 29, 2005, 12:23:09 AM
Social

Abortion: pro-choice. I want it legal in the first trimester. After that I don't care about much restrictions as long as its legal for health reasons, and oppose waiting periods, notifications, and all that other junk. I'm not against the idea of the Unborn Victims of Violence Act but don't like it being passed with this Congress, plus just look at the name.

Gay rights: I'm 100% in favor of all gay rights and gay marriage, atlhough I'd rather just get marriage out of the government altogether. Civil Unions for everyone.

Gun control: I basically have Howard Dean's position. I'm happy with the current laws.

Death penalty: Strongly opposed.

School prayer: I'm against any organized prayer, but think the ACLU often goes too far. If the students themselves want to make some sort of religious reference in something like say a graduation speech, that's fine. Just don't have prayers over the intercom in the morning or anything like that.

Affirmative Action: Should be class, not race based.

Patriot Act: Repeal the damn thing

3 Strikes Laws: Not a bad idea in theory, but they get implemented poorly. Need serious reform. A better solution would be just to increase penalties on violent and serious offenders instead.

Prostitution: Legalize and regulate strongly. Ban pimping.

Gambling: Completely legalize

Drugs: I'm for legalizing pot. Everything else probably not, but we should focus on rehabilitation rather than imprisonment.

Strip Clubs: You already know :)

Economic

I'm basically a socialist. 100% pro-union. I support wage caps. I like the negative income tax idea. I'm completely in favor of universal health care. I'm very protectionist.

Foreign Policy

Very dovish. Want to gut the hell out of the military. We spend way too much. I obviously opposed the Iraq invasion. I hate both the Israeli and Palestinean leaders and think an independent Palestinean state is the best solution. I strongly opposed any trade with China, and support lifting the Cuban embargo.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: ○∙◄☻¥tπ[╪AV┼cVê└ on March 29, 2005, 12:38:16 AM
Social:

Liberal views:
- Pro-choice for the first two trimesters, and to save the life of the woman
- FCC regulations, we need media to belong to organizations that actually report the news
- Marijuana:Legalize
- Gay marriage: legalize
- School vouchers: oppose
- Death penalty: oppose

Mixed views:
- Immigration: I'm against worker visas, H-1B visas. I'm sort of neutral on immigration itself
- Gun control: I'm mostly for gun control, but a bit undecided

Conservative views:
- Affirmative action: oppose

Economic

Liberal:
- Keynesian economics
- Tax hikes on the rich
- Fair trade not "free" trade

Mixed:
- Support guaranteeed welfare for anyone who will work if they can
- Oppose very large deficits like those we have now. Small deficits are ok.
- Oppose farm, corporate subsidies

Foreign policy
- General cut to a lot of wasteful military spending
- For fighting a war on terror, engaging Al Qaeda in Afganistan, Pakistan, and Saudi Arabia
- Against wars for no good reason like Iraq
- We need to stop trying overthrowing random countries we don't like, for instance Venzeuela
- All together I'd be less militaristic but not more isolationist
- Working on providing permanent solutions to disease, hunger, poverty in poor countries. Help them become developed without massive environmental problems.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: A18 on March 29, 2005, 01:21:50 AM
Social:

Libertarian views:
- Oppose FCC; realize that's not realistic right now, but at least stop it from spreading
- Legalize drugs
- No prescription necessary to buy anything
- Fully support school vouchers
- Don't apply federal Bill of Rights to the states; just consolidates power in the federal judiciary
- Federal government primarily for defense and free trade among the states
- Oppose gun control; legalize machine guns
- Oppose affirmative action

Mixed:
- Replace death penalty with hard labor

Liberal:
- Support guest worker program
- Relax immigration restrictions
- Oppose flag burning amendment

Conservative:
- No need to take vague references to God out of public life ("In God We Trust," "Under God" in the pledge, etc.)
- Oppose abortion except to save life of the mother
- Oppose campaign finance reform (also libertarian, I guess)
- Oppose gay/incestuous/polygamous marriages

Economic:

Liberal:
- Remove cap on all payroll taxes
- Cut Social Security and Medicare benefits for wealthy

Libertarian:
- Abolish the 'normal' income tax, and use the payroll tax to replace it, at a flat rate of about 15 percent, with no cap
- Repeal sixteenth amendment (since payroll tax is not a direct tax, as it is paid only by the employer on behalf of the employee)
- Get rid of taxes on everything except wages (includes sales taxes, property taxes, double taxation of all sorts, etc.)
- Abolish a lot of federal departments (Agriculture, Education, etc.)
- Cap federal outlays at 20 percent of last year's GDP

Conservative:
- Increased defense spending (like we're doing now)
- Oppose large deficits, but not necessarily small ones like we have now. The real problem is too much government spending.
- Support states' rights (oppose Federal Marriage Amendment in its current form; oppose Controlled Substances Act both because of this and because I support drug legalization, plus it's unconstitutional; etc.)

Foreign Policy:

Conservative views:
- Support Bush Doctrine
- Support Operation Enduring Freedom
- Support Operation Iraqi Freedom

Libertarian:
- Pull out of the UN
- Support free trade agreements

Mixed:
- Create a treaty making organization similar to NATO, only expanded


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Bandit3 the Worker on March 29, 2005, 02:17:46 AM
Just because I am interested in knowing y'all a bit better, I think a topic should be made descibing you all and your personal views on politics. 

To put it simply, I oppose the evils of fascism and capitalism.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: ian on March 29, 2005, 10:05:30 PM

- Oppose large deficits, but not necessarily small ones like we have now. The real problem is too much government spending.


Small?  $7,798,011,499,375.68 is not small!


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: bullmoose88 on March 30, 2005, 12:44:36 AM
That would be the national debt (i believe). A18 is referring to the annual shortcomings which aren't exactly small in and of themselves.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: MaC on March 30, 2005, 02:58:23 AM
Social Issues:
pro-gun to the point where some people would say extreme.  I don't think I should need a permit to carry a weapon, or neccessarily be law abiding.  The only real gun control that is fair is self control in not pointing it at other people unless being threatened.

pro free speech- every kind of speech, I don't care if you don't like what I have to say, you don't need to listen to me.  You have to realise, sometimes you're gonna get offended by thing people say.  It should not be the government's say in whether or not your able to hear them

anti-affirmative action- favoritism to any group of people is unfair.  Affirmative action is still racism (regardless if it's reversed).

pro prostitution- let the john worry about getting HIV/AIDS or herpes.  it should be no concern of the state.

pro homosexual rights-  if two consenting people (both male or both female) want to have sex or marry, who am I to say they should be stopped.  Yes, the definition of marraige is between a man and a women, but I hardly see how gays marrying is going to bring a downfall or moral decay to society.  It's still really really gross though.

pro drugs- let's face it after millions of dollars, thousands of lives ruined and massive property damage by the Federal government, the Drugs won the war on drugs.  Someone else toking up has no affect on me same as someone drinking whiskey has no affect on me.

pro-life, and pro choice.  I really wish more women would reconsider before abortion.  I realise how incredibly annoying the religious right is on this issue.  I want to make it clear I don't support this practice, but I don't want the federal government getting it's hands into legislating it.

anti-death penalty- I really am for this, and I think in many cases it is a just punishment, but I know there are many people who have been wrongly convicted and put to death, and I don't trust the state to spend my tax dollars wisely, so there's no way I trust the state with life or death matters.

Anti-socialized medicine.  When the state takes over and dictates health policy for the nation, the poeple should only expect death and disease. Government monopoly in the health industry will cause many competitous industries who work hard to provide the best care go out of business. Many drugs already are forced to go through the FDA for a rigorous screening process lasting 5-10 years.  By the time it's made legal someone who needed it could've died.  Besides this will create longer waiting lines and let in hypocondriacs while emergency people suffer in line.

Economic Issues:
pro free market education:  this is not the same as a voucher system where allowances are doled out by the state and you still must choose their schools.  I think that schools should run like a business and in a capitalistic society a need is met where it is found.  Rather than the government monopoly we currently have, schools should compete for academic excellence.  Children graduate smarter because their not just being passed along and the standards of learning are not state controlled.

pro repealing the 16th Amendment.  Scrap it. No progressive tax.  No "fair" tax.  No federal sales tax. None of that crap.  Our government was relatively small before it was enacted and look how much it grew in the past 90 years.  It's the politicians' royal road to your pocket book, and in a way, it's slavery.  By that I mean you work so hard for yourself, but out of nowhere you owe the government your hard earned labor and wages from that labor.  Forced working under someone like this, when it's not your own I think counts as slavery.

pro free trade-I think a lot of these embargos put on goods are done to control the economy and regulate the goods and services coming and going. 

pro deregulation-I favor ending a lot of these stupid laws that do nothing but cost people money and waste time.

pro silver- I favor backing money with silver.  It needs to be backed by something or else inflation will never stop and the US dollar will grow weaker and weaker.  Silver is a good choice, it's a precious metal, that will be easily more liquid and better flow with the current economy than gold.

anti subsidies- I think liberals complain about big corporations way too much, when they should be complaining about big government that shows economic favoritism towards certain companies and not others.

anti social security- started when FDR decided people are too stupid to handle their own money, so we gotta step in there and take it from them, then return some of it for when they're older.  I like the libertarian plan, but don't know all the details.  Cut younger workers off from it.  Middle age and baby boomers get about half of what they put into it back.  Old people have their accounts transfered to variable annuities in private accounts for themselves.  To finance this, the government sells much of the private land it owns (which is a good amount) to individuals.

Pro balanced budget amendment: For congress to balance their budget, they should've said enough is enough after Reagan ran a huge debt.  I have no idea of what the long standing damage the W deficeit will be.

Foreign Policy:

Anti Iraq War: There was no reason to do it in the first place.  I could go on and on about it, but I'll save room for others to. 

Anti draft:  The draft is slavery-it's forcing you to work for the government.

pro noninterventionism.  After 9-11 was the only time in the last 50 years intervention was necessary.  And it should've only been used to find binLaden.  His action is still criminal and not war.  Therefore I'm also against the Afghanistan war.

pro Mexico.  Many people come here from Mexico legally, and the number is far greater than those who enter illegally.  I think a lot of people come here legally because they can get welfare and not get a job.  However those who do enter legally get harassed and get a bad reputation from the illegals.

anti U.N.  The number one job of the UN was supposed to be to prevent war.  Look at what a bad job that has done.  It's now a world beuracracy hell bent on fixing social ills and feeding the hungy while Americans go hungry and American tax dollar go to the UN

Some understanding on my veiw points mostly libertarian, some of them modified...



Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: ian on March 30, 2005, 02:54:29 PM
That would be the national debt (i believe). A18 is referring to the annual shortcomings which aren't exactly small in and of themselves.

Ah, yes.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: A18 on March 30, 2005, 02:55:51 PM
As a percentage of GDP, they are historically small.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: TomC on March 31, 2005, 12:06:38 AM
bump, for the agree w/ me BRTD thread


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: tarheel-leftist85 on June 19, 2005, 02:46:19 PM
Social Issues
-Pro-Death penalty (age>17yrs., IQ>65, for murder, child molestation, treason, war crimes)
-Oppose homosexual marriage (civil unions & rights up to states)
-Affirmative action:  Amend it, don't end it.
-Pro-choice, Pro-parental notification, and Pro-Laci's Law
-Legalized medicinal marijuana
-Pro-Hate Crimes Legislation
-Oppose funding of Religious Inst.
-Pro-2nd Amendment
-Against funding the arts
-Pro-Equal Work, Equal Pay
-For OTC RU-486 Emergency Contraception
-Pro-federal funding of stem cell research (from fertility clinics)
Defense Issues
-Gitmo:  Amend it, don't end it.  Establish a protocol that is set in stone, no exceptions or loopholes and document (audio, written, or otherwise) detainer-detainee interaction.  Stop serving them fancy food, only beans and cheapest fruit possible (maybe let them grow their own if it saves us money).
-Iraq:  We should have gone in with twice as many troops, better equipped, and with the reason we have now
-"Policing" the world:  It's sometimes necessary, but don't beat around the bush as Bush does with the hand-cutting Saudi Kingdom.
-War on Terror:  REAL energy independence (what happens when we run out of all of our oil, no matter how long into the future?); deep involvement in Israel-Palestinian relations; protect our borders (land and maritime); fund cities, not fly-over country (the terrorists ain't gonna bomb Wyoming, they look for economic and population centers); debt relief for Africa
-Armed Forces:  We treat them like crap.  They only deserve the best supplies and a good standard of living, not food stamps and lip service.
-Woman in the military:  Of course.
Economic Issues
-Taxes: More progressive and simple tax code w/ brackets as follows:
          $<27,000--No income taxes
          27,001<$<39,000--16.5% (w/ Children--12.0%)
          39,001<$<51,000--19.5% (w/ Children--15.0%)
          51,001<$<63,000--22.5% (w/ Children--19.5%)
          63,001<$<75,000--25.5% (w/ Children--22.5%)
          75,001<$<99,000--28.5% (w/ Children--25.5%)
          99001<$<123000--31.5% (w/ Children--30.0%)
          123001<$<147000--34.5% (w/ Children--33.0%)
          147001<$<171000--36.0%
          171001<$<195000--37.5%
          195001<$<270000--39.0%
          270001<$<345000--40.5%
          345001<$<450000--42.0%
          450001<$<600000--43.5%
          600001<$<750000--45.0%
          750001<$<900000--46.5%
          900001<$<1200000--48.0%
          1200001<$<1500000--49.5%
          $>1500001--51.0%
          All you have to do is look at your bracket and if you have
          children.  NOTHING ELSE!
-Soc. Security:  No private accts., Raise min. age by 1 or 2 yrs., Make more progressive if prob. still exists
-Budget:  The only way there is, balanced.  Modest entitlement cuts + Modest tax inc.
-Minimum wage:  $6.75/hr (2005) + yearly inflation (min. wage automatically adjusts every yr.)
-Education:  As tuition inc., fed. endowments to inst. decrease
-Vocational training (from high school on up)
-HS Graduation Requirements:  Algebra 2 (or equivalent math course directly before Trigonometry) for college-bound students and thorough arithmetic training for vocational-bound students, as well as 2 lab science courses.
-Tort "Reform":  No way in hell!
-Pro-Union
-Tax cuts for business that hire American citizens
-Incentives for hybrid vehicles, energy efficient materials
-Child health care (in households w/ incomes less than $75,000 and/or children with parent in armed forces)
-For availability of generic medicines and importation of medicines
-Insurance rates (all types) may not exceed 1.5 times the rate of inflation from the previous year
-No more corporate welfare.
-If an able-bodied/minded person refuses to work, they surrender their right to entitlements of any kind.
Election system:
-Congressional redistricting must be approved in a state by referendum
-Run-off election for each state if no Presidential candidate receives a majority of the popular vote in that state.
-Congressional and executive salaries may not exceed the rate of inflation.
Miscellaneous
-Make English the official language
-No f-ing way in hell should the govt. be funding Viagra or similar bedroom drugs...thanks Rep. leadership.

I think that's pretty comprehensive :)



Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Emsworth on July 27, 2005, 07:24:43 AM
Social Issues

General philosophy: Libertarianism

Separation of church and state: Very strongly support; remove "under God" from the pledge; end federal funding for "faith-based initiatives"

Freedom of speech: Oppose banning flag burning, etc.

Right to an abortion: Very strongly support throughout the pregnancy

Affirmative action: Very strongly oppose

Gun rights: Support

Civil unions or gay marriage: Support both, but the latter is preferable

Euthanasia: Strongly support

Prostitution: Support legalization

Capital punishment: Oppose

Economic Issues

General philosophy: Close to laissez-faire capitalism.

Employers and Employees: Strongly support liberty of contract. If the employer wishes to fire the employee for no reason at all, the government should not interfere. If an employer does not wish to hire women, then the government should not interfere, etc., etc.

Taxation: Highest tax bracket should be no more than 30-35%. The Alternative Minimum Tax should be abolished.

Spending: Cut government spending on wasteful programs, including some welfare programs, farm subsidies, foreign aid, and others.

Free trade: Very strongly support. The consumer should not be sacrificed on the altar of protectionism.

Funding of the space program: Strongly support.

Foreign policy

General philosophy: Hawk; realist (as opposed to idealist)

Iraq: Opposed, not on so-called "moral grounds," but on the grounds that it destabilizes the region and causes the U.S. to incur too much expenditure

Neoconservatism: The American military exists to protect American interests, not to topple dictatorships


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Ebowed on July 27, 2005, 07:32:19 AM
Interesting positions, Emsworth.  I suspect that we're closer on social issues than it would seem from comparing the positions posted here.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Emsworth on July 27, 2005, 07:34:13 AM
Interesting positions, Emsworth.  I suspect that we're closer on social issues than it would seem from comparing the positions posted here.
Yes; we seem to differ on hot-button issues like abortion, but agree on other matters.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Speed of Sound on July 27, 2005, 08:00:49 AM
Social Issues

General philosophy: Liberalism

Separation of church and state: Very strongly support; remove "under God" from the pledge; end federal funding for "faith-based initiatives"

Freedom of speech: As long you put no-one in direct physical danger i.e., yelling fire in a theater

Right to an abortion: Very strongly support throughout the first two trimesters

Affirmative action: Very strongly oppose

Gun rights: Support an assault weapon ban, oppose a handgun ban

Civil unions or gay marriage: Support both, but the latter is  much more preferable

Euthanasia: Strongly support

Prostitution: Support legalization

Capital punishment: STRONGLY Oppose

Economic Issues

General philosophy: socialist

Employers and Employees: Strongly support liberty of contract. If the employer wishes to fire the employee for no reason at all, the government should not interfere. If an employer does not wish to hire women, then the government should not interfere,etc., etc. but i support unions.

Taxation: Income Tax: 35% or 40% then give the people Universial Healthcare and free public education. Otherwise the income tax should be very low. Every Other Tax: 'Power To The People' taxation. You dont like a plan? you dont pay for it. you pay for what you support, dont pay for it what you dont. The Senators gave themselves a pay raise? Not if you can help it!

Spending: Cut government spending on wasteful programs, including some welfare programs, farm subsidies, foreign aid, and others.

Free trade: Very strongly oppose. Our un-employment rates are bad enough. Protectionism keeps the jobs here-at home.

Funding of the space program: ONLY for a human trip to Mars. other than that, most (not all) of it is a waste of space. (no pun intended) Cut most spending to the space program

Foreign policy

General philosophy: 'Dove'

Iraq: Strongly Opposed. It is morally wrong, we have no reason to be there, and then we complain like Hell when they fight back?!?No Blood For Oil!

The American military exists to protect American interests, not to topple dictatorships. I wish someday we could make it into a Dept. Of Peace, but right now there isnt enough trust among nations.

For Everyone to lazy to read this whole thing, here's a visual:
                                       Economy
()
                                   Social Issues[/u]
()


                                            Foriegn Policy[/u]
                                                        ()




Sorry about taking your list, Emsworth, just to lazy to make my own :D


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: KillerPollo on July 27, 2005, 10:04:43 AM
Social Issues

General philosophy: Conservatism

Separation of church and state: Oppose... America was not meant to be a secular nation.

Freedom of speech: Support. I have the right to speak bigotry if I must.

Right to an abortion: Very strongly Oppose. Baby-killing is murder.

Affirmative action: Very strongly support

Gun rights: Support fully. Even though personally, I shunn firearms. I like swords, bows and arrows, daggers and knives better

Civil unions or gay marriage: Strongly oppose. This should not even be an issue.

Euthanasia: Strongly oppose. But only if the person is consenting.

Prostitution: oppose

Capital punishment: STRONGLY Oppose

Economic Issues

General philosophy: An interesting mix of socialism and capitalism, leaning toward socialism. (capialism?Socitalism? ???)

Employers and Employees: Strongly support liberty of contract. If the employer wishes to fire the employee for no reason at all, the government should not interfere. If an employer does not wish to hire women, then the government should not interfere,etc., etc. but i support unions.

Taxation: Income Tax: 5% or 4% then give the people Universial Healthcare and free public education. Otherwise the income tax should be very low.

Spending: Increase gov't spending on foreign aid.

Free trade: Strongly support. This is doing wonders for me :D.

Funding of the space program: OH YEEESSSSS

Foreign policy

General philosophy: 'Dove', isolationist

Iraq: Strongly Opposed. It is morally wrong, we have no reason to be there, and then we complain like Hell when they fight back?!?No Blood For Oil!
Also. Leave Iran alone, and N. Korea is more of a nuisance than a threat.
Respect towards sovereignty = peace. Neutrality will keep us safe from danger.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Starbucks Union Thug HokeyPuck on July 27, 2005, 11:51:15 AM
I'll redo mine, since I think I'm a little bit different than I was a few months ago, and I think I did a pretty bad job explaining them. 

SOCIALLY

General: Liberal

Total Equality: I believe in this country, the government should be blind to gender, creed, race, disability....whatever, you name it.  Age factors should be the only exception (obviously, a child should not have the same driving rights as an adult). 

Individual comes first: When it comes to social issues, the individual's wants and needs always comes first.  You cannot stop a person from excerising their free will just because the majority doesn't like it, or assumes it will have a negative effect on society.  I strongly believe it is a much bigger responsibility of a free nation to protect the minority rather than always cater to the majority.  I don't care if 99.99999% of the country is against gay marriage, I believe that gay couples' right to enter a marriage as equal as any straight couples' should never put up to a referendum.  Freedom to only the degree a particular group wants it (even if they are the majority), is not real freedom.  Real freedom is the right to your own free will, regardless.  Of course, there are always exceptions.  I advocate legalization of marijuana, but it's no myth that harder drugs are a social disease that destroy neighborhoods.  I basically believe that as long as you are not hurting someone, putting someone is danger, stealing, negatively impacting another, etc. you do whatever the hell you want.  I also believe it is not the government's responsibility to protect an adult from themselves, i.e. the seat belt law is awful and has to go for adults and owners of cars. 

Seperation of Church and State: Has there even been a bigger enemy to freedom than legislated religion? (Not in America, but read up on Europe in the Middle Ages, it's scary) No, not really.  Seperation of Church and State and a secular U.S. is the only way we will ever be truely free.  You simply cannot legislate ones' beliefs.  Of course, freedom to worship in the way you see fit (of course, unless it involves things like sacrifice) is vital to be upheld.  Also, I see no problem with prayer in a public school if everyone in the classroom (and their parents) wants to (and wants them to) participate.  Religious symbols in a public places are a problem though.  Please get the commandments out of the State Court.  I also hate the "America was founded on Judeo-Christian....blah....blah" argument.  It's bullsh**t.  If you make that argument, you obviously know jack about our Founding Fathers.  They were the biggest advocates for a secular America this country's ever seen!

Abortion: Tough, very tough.  I see legal abortions as a necessary evil.  I also think up until close to birth, whether or not the child is brought into the world is up to it's mother.  I also cringe to the thought of going back to the 40s and 50s when women would call up secret abortion doctors who used dirty instruments to perform to procedure, throw themsleves down stairs, hurt themsleves.  Pro-choicers just see the moral argument in a different.  I personally have no problem with Pro-Life people, because yes, abortion is the killing of a human being.  I just see it being legal as a necessary evil, that's all.

Gay Marriage (and marriage in general): Honestly, I don't think it's up to the government to enter people into a spiritual bond.  I think they should hand out equal marriage licenses to anyone (humans) who wants it besides close relatives.  Incest is bad. 

Death Penalty: Only in the MOST serious of violent and sick crimes.  Sorry, if you're the guy who killed a baby girl while raping her......you gotta go assh*le. 

Gun Rights: If you are 18, and you pass a psych test and physical test, THEN you have absolute right to gun ownership.  Why should a psycho be able to just walk into a gun show, buy a rifle for $50 and mow down the next family he sees. 

Freedom of Speech on the airwaves: Proper warnings on free airwaves (certainly less than what we have now though....).  Cable and satellite channels, absolute right to say, do, anything you want.  We have the V-Chip people, I don't even want to hear from a parent again that they can't control their own kid.  Besides, violent/sexual images haven't been proven to have any negative impact.  If you don't understand what you're seeing, you don't understand.  If you do understand, and you go repeat it (violence), that person has pyschological problems that have NOTHING to do with what they saw.  If you play GTA and then go shoot someone, GTA was just the trigger, you had serious problems before you ever flipped the PS2 on. 

I'll do Economic and Foriegn later


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Filuwaúrdjan on July 27, 2005, 12:03:33 PM
Has there even been a bigger enemy to freedom than legislated religion?

Yes. Quite a few things.

Quote
(Not in America, but read up on Europe in the Middle Ages, it's scary)

I'm not entirely sure what your refering to here... certainly most of the various countries, semi-countries, defacto countries, principalities, free cities... etc, etc, etc that made up Mediaeval Europe (if there was such a thing) were "not exactly" free, but that certainly wasn't the main problem...


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: TeePee4Prez on July 27, 2005, 02:21:16 PM
Social Issues

General philosophy: Liberalism

Separation of church and state:  Strongly favor.  I favor allowing religious education, but it shouldn't be taxpayer funded.  In Philadelphia, I have a problem with Islamic education being funded via charter schools.  Charter schools should be secular.  I can see some Title I funding for religious schools in poorer areas, but IHMO, religious education is an option parents should pay for themselves.   

Freedom of speech: Strongly favor.  If a parent doesn't want their child watching Howard Stern or South Park, there's a V-Chip.  Please stop b!tching.  I also think there should be nudity allowed on TV.  Europe is so far advanced than us on this.  Nudity on the internet- great thing!  Seriously, it sure cuts down on the amount of sexual assaults that could happen.

Right to an abortion: Very strongly support throughout the first two trimesters.  In the 3rd trimester I favor life of mother, incest, and physical health only.

Affirmative action: Generally oppose, but keep most of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Gun rights: Support an assault weapon ban and a handgun ban, but allow rifles for hunting.  I'm sure midstate Pennsylvanians could tolerate this.

Civil unions or gay marriage: Support both

Euthanasia: Strongly support

Prostitution: Support legalization, but shoudl be regulated a la the Netherlands.

Capital punishment: Mostly oppose, but allow it for terrorists and extreme cases.

Sex: Increase funding for contraception on TV and freely advertise where people can go and pick up condoms or pills.  Some educational institutions are so archaic about this.  Planned Parenthood should have stations outside parochial high schools giving students more accurate information than what's being taught.  Seriously, the number of teen pregos would be GREATLY reduced and DHS cases woudl drop dramtically.   

Economic Issues

General philosophy:  Standard pro-union Democrat with collegiate infulence from economics professors

Employers and Employees:  Strongly pro-union, but businesses should have some leeway to compete.  Expand OT rules into lower end professional sectors.  From a personal standpoint I will not leave the government for an accounting firm that will pay me little me more to work 60-80 hours per week.  If an employer wants to run young professionals into the ground they should pay them!   

Taxation: Income Tax: Look whatever balances the budget given reasonable services.  At this point they should be raised in a progessive fashion.


Spending: Cut government spending on wasteful programs, including some welfare programs, farm subsidies, foreign aid, and others.

Free trade: Cautiously favor.  Bilateral agrrements with labor and environmental standards.  Free trade is the best policy, but exploitation makes it worse to compete.

Funding of the space program: Favor.  New technology is brought about from such missions.

Foreign policy

General philosophy: 'Dove', isolationist

Iraq: Strongly Opposed. It is morally wrong, we have no reason to be there, and then we complain like Hell when they fight back?!?No Blood For Oil!

The American military exists to protect American interests, not to topple dictatorships. I wish someday we could make it into a Dept. Of Peace, but right now there isnt enough trust among nations.

Took some thigns from LiberalPA, because I thought a lot of it was good.  There are some disagreements though.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Starbucks Union Thug HokeyPuck on July 27, 2005, 06:02:53 PM
Has there even been a bigger enemy to freedom than legislated religion?

Yes. Quite a few things.

Quote
(Not in America, but read up on Europe in the Middle Ages, it's scary)

I'm not entirely sure what your refering to here... certainly most of the various countries, semi-countries, defacto countries, principalities, free cities... etc, etc, etc that made up Mediaeval Europe (if there was such a thing) were "not exactly" free, but that certainly wasn't the main problem...

In many countries in Europe, your rights were basically taken away if you were a Jew.  Name one bigger enemy to freedom that had an impact legislated religion has. 


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: dazzleman on July 27, 2005, 06:42:39 PM
I am a center-right Republican conservative.

On social issues, I think that the greatest threat to our social cohesion, and ultimately our economic vitality, is the breakdown of the family structure.  For this reason, I cannot in good conscience be a social liberal and give my approval, in the name of freedom, rights, or what have you, to the type of behavior that is contributing to this problem.  I believe that illegitimacy is our number one social threat, and that we need to oppose the idea that it is our right to indulge ourselves in any way we please, even if it hurts other people, particularly innocent children.  This is the end result of social liberalism, like it or not.

Economically, I am center-right.  I believe in progressive taxation to a point, but I don't think we should punish creation of wealth.  This hurts the poor more than it hurts the well-off. 

I believe it is in our self-interest to help the poor, and those who have not had a strong chance to become successful for whatever reason, in a constructive way.  I believe that many of the programs offered in this regard by liberals have been highly destructive, and that they should be judged by their results, not their intentions.

With respect to education, I believe that government should provide an escape hatch to those trapped in failing schools.  It is unrealistic to think that we can appreciably improve schools that serve communities with no parental support or family structure, and those who wish to receive an education should not be consigned to the toxic environment in schools located in such communities.

I believe that government interference in private lives should be minimal, and that the government's primary job should be maintaining security from both foreign and domestic enemies.  Therefore, I am tough on crime and a hawk on foreign policy.  I support capital punishment for murderers.

I am much more a realist than an idealist.  Policies should be judged by results, not intentions.  I believe that many things are counter-intuitive, and that ultimately cruelty is often dressed as kindness, and vice versa.  Sometime, policies described by liberals as tough and heartless are the kindest thing of all, just as soft liberal policies that are meant to be kind have sometimes resulted in unspeakable cruelty in practice.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: jokerman on July 27, 2005, 07:15:21 PM
hmm, our social ideas are quite similiar.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: dazzleman on July 27, 2005, 07:20:59 PM

That's why I was surprised when you said you would vote not to confirm me as a judge.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Redefeatbush04 on July 27, 2005, 07:37:14 PM
Social IssuesGuns: Oppose banning of "assault weapons," rifles, or pistols.  Oppose waiting or cooling off periods.  Support the legality of fireworks year round.
Drugs: Support legality of marijuana and hard drugs for medicinal and recreational use.
Capital Punishment: Oppose the use of the death penalty for all circumstances.Marriage Issues: Preferably the government should get out of marriage and both gay and straight couples could get civil unions.  Oppose government recognition of incestuous marriage, bigamy, and polygamy, and strongly support cracking down on Mormon fundamentalist polygynous communities in Utah.  Fully opposed to the legalization of incest, first cousin or closer.
Abortion: Shouldn't be legal in any circumstances, same goes for infanticide or "post partum euthanasia" as some advocates like to call it.Gay Rights: See above for stance on civil unions/marriage.  Oppose sexual orientation being protected by civil rights laws (see below for stance on "hate crimes").  Undecided on gay adoptions.  Fully support allowing gay people to serve in the military openly-- in the words of Barry Goldwater (paraphrasing), "It doesn't matter how straight you are to be in the military as long as you can shoot straight."Hate Crimes: If a white man murders a black man, it should be treated as any other murder.  Even if racism was the motivating factor behind the murder, the crime should not be weighted more because of that, as racism is protected by free speech.  Oppose hate crimes legislation in regards to race, sexual orientation, gender, religion, or any other factors.
Hate Speech: Oppose any efforts to limit "hate speech."  Certainly freedom of speech shouldn't be illegal; why make an exception because someone criticizes a race or religion?Racial Profiling: Strongly opposed.Affirmative Action: Strongly opposed, for both race- and class-based affirmative action.  I also oppose racial or sex quotas for workplaces or schools.Flag Burning: There's no reason to ban this.  The amendment is a waste of time and a threat to our civil liberties.
PATRIOT Act: Strongly opposed.  Again, a threat to our civil liberties that is being disguised as an effort to stop terrorism.  I don't want to know what business Bush has with my library records, and frankly he shouldn't be able to look at them.
Gambling: Legalize it.Prostitution: Opposed to legalization.Smoking: Very opposed to efforts to ban smoking in "public" workplaces or restaraunts.  It should be up to the owner of the restaraunt whether or not people can smoke cigarettes in his building.Alcohol: Lower the drinking age to 18 (and lowered to 12 with parental supervision).  It's ridiculous that some American citizens can go to war but not drink alcohol.
Female Toplessness: Support its legalization in public areas like parks and buildings owned by the government.  For non-federal businesses it should be up to the owner of the business, as should the rest of the dress code.  Full nudity could be legal in designated in areas such as nude beaches, but not in all parks or other public places.Immigration: Support looser restrictions on immigration and amnesty for "illegal aliens."  However, I support making English the United States' official language.Euthanasia: Opposed to the legalization of physician assisted suicide and euthanasia.  By the way, I should probably make clear the difference between the two: physician assisted suicide is when you ask the doctor for a lethal prescription and he gives it to you; euthanasia is when the doctor helps your suicidal attempt by exposing you to poison gas (much like you would do to a criminal) or putting a bag over your head to suffocate you.  The other type of euthanasia, where you exterminate people without their consent (say, due to a disease), should be illegal, of course-- that goes without saying.Voting: All citizens should be able to vote, including criminals and ex-criminals.  It should also be easier for an immigrant to acquire a citizenship so that his right to vote is not infringed.  I also support lowering the voting age to 16.Presidential Qualifications: Get rid of the rule that says only people born in America can be President; it's unnecessary and discriminatory.  Property Rights: That recent Supreme Court case where the liberals on the court came up with some imaginary law that renders the government Communist was one of the greatest invasions of freedom that the United States has seen in recent years.  Obviously, if you own a building, the government can't just take it over for its own purposes.Censorship: Basically opposed in general.  No federal regulation of TV programs, video games, music albums, etc.  Internet wise, the only thing that comes to mind that they should really crack down on is child pornography, and that is finding out the source of the material and giving them one hell of a punishment.  Strongly opposed to Internet filtering in public schools and libraries.
Pornography: Only depicting consenting adults 18 and over; people 16 and over should be able to purchase it.
Term Limits: Oppose term limits on presidency (means repealing that amendment), Congressmen, and Governors (though the last should be decided by each state).
EconomicsFarm Subsidies: Support.
The Arts: Are you kidding?  No reason for the government to fund this stuff.  Some advocates of this, like Congressman Dennis Kucinich, say that the arts help strengthen the community, but it sounds like a pretty sissy excuse to me to spend taxpayer money during a deficit so that some guy can paint a picture of a triangle and call it "abstract art."Worker's Rights: I'm kind of rightwing on this one, I'll admit it.  An employer should be able to fire an employee when he wants, and it should be totally up to him who he decides to employ, not up to some "Fair Employment" committee that tells him he needs to have at least 15% of his workers be of a minority background.  However, I do support a minimum wage as one safeguard, preferably around $8/hr.  However, food and accomodation should be able to be part of a minimum wage if an employer wants, and if he were able to factor that into the eight dollars or better an hour in a satisfactory way, he should be able to do it.Departments: No more of them.  And abolish the Homeland Security and Education departments while we're at it, possibly some other ones too.  It's ridiculous how many of these we have.Socialized Medicine: Socialized healthcare should be available for those under 18 as they are not personally responsible for their parents' financial situation.  Emergency operations for adults should also be federally funded, but I mean stuff that you need in order to keep living, not something like braces, a nose job, or Viagra.Education: I'm not a fan of public education, I'll admit.  I think individual communities should have more control over what's taught in their schools.  As stated above, I advocate abolishing the Department of Education as it's a huge money waster.  Classroom attendance definitely shouldn't be compulsory.
Faith Based Initiatives: It sounds like a good idea at first, for churches to provide welfare services, but I have examined the issue closer and it's not satisfactory.  Churches are not able to preach any religious content, so from a Christian point of view, it is a violation of freedom of speech and religion, and from a liberal point of view, sanctioning religious welfare is discrimination against people who are not religious.  On the welfare issue as a whole, I am leftwing, and believe it should stay in the hands of the government, not churches (assuming that these restrictions on preaching to those who are served by the churches stay).Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Fully opposed to the funding of this, as well as being morally and ethically opposed to the research itself.Social Security: Undecided.  Both the left and right have good arguments on this one and I'm not really inclined either way.  Anyone care to convince me why their view is the best?Space: Support federal funding of missions, exploration, etc.
Foreign Policy
Weapon Treaties: Support treaties against chemical, nuclear, and biological weapons.
Iraq: I opposed the invasion, but now that we're there we'd better stay until we can clean this thing up.  Of course, we'll need to provide adequate services for our Veterans who come home with no place to go.United Nations: The United States should not pull out.  But no, we should not need the approval of the United Nations to go to war-- though it would be nice.  But if we don't have their approval, that shouldn't stop us if we actually have to go to war for a valid reason.
damn man. we agree on almost everything. I agree with you more than i disagree with you on 35 of 38 topics. a few differences:
1. physician assisted suicide should be legal (if patient is consenting)
2. prostitution should be legal but government regulated
3. hard drugs such as crack and LSD should not be legal for recreational use
4. i agree that we need to cut back on departments but disagree that we need to eliminate all of them
5. education.....i like our public schools (despite going to private schools). I also think that the government should fund higher education. 6. Stem cell research - I am morally torn but believe that it helps more than it harms. 7. guns: certain guns should be banned such as those that pierce bullet proof vests + machine guns
PS: sorry bout the compactness i ran out of room


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Max Power on July 27, 2005, 07:58:13 PM
Using Emsworth's List
Social Issues

General philosophy: Moderate-Liberal-Libertarianism

Separation of church and state: I strongly support the seperation of church and state, but oppose removing 'under god' from the pledge and 'in god we trust' from coins.

Freedom of speech: I strongly support a freedom of speech, and I oppose movie and video game ratings, and CD warning labels.

Right to an abortion: I support an absolute right to an abortion.

Affirmative action: Very strongly oppose

Gun rights: Support with a few restrictions, but mostly a states' rights issue.

Civil unions or gay marriage: I support gay marriage 103.637%

Euthanasia: Undecided, but lean towards support.

Prostitution: Support legalization 101.12%.

Capital punishment: Unconstitution as 'cruel and unusual punishment'. So oppose with the exception of Terrorists, and child murders like the one in George W. Bush's article.

Economic Issues

General philosophy: Capitalism.

Employers and Employees: I support allowing people to sue employers for firing them based on race, gender, and sexual orientation. I also support allowing employers to sue workers for the same, except replace firing with harrassing.

Taxation: Flat tax around 15%. 5% for the poorest people.

Spending: Cut spending on meaningless programs, spend less on welfare, absolutely eliminate farming subsidies.

Free trade: Support 102.45637%.

Funding of the space program: Support.

Foreign policy

General philosophy: Hawkish Dove

Iraq: Opposed do to the fact that now we see the reasons for going there were lies.

Neoconservatism: What do you mean?


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: nini2287 on July 27, 2005, 08:22:35 PM
Updated list

Social Issues

General philosophy: Pretty much issue-by-issue

Separation of church and state: Compelete separation.  No public displays of religion (10 commandments, school prayer, etc.)

Freedom of speech: I believe in the right to publish whatever but with strict adherance to movie, TV and video game ratings.

Right to an abortion: Oppose in all cases except to save the mother's life.

Affirmative action: Oppose it in the workplace (esp. government), support limited affirmative action on college campuses for diversity purposes.

Gun rights: Should be left up to the states, or in some cases (like Pennsylvania) local or county level.

Civil unions or gay marriage: I personally strongly support gay marraige and am undecided on whether it should be determined on a state level or not.

Euthanasia: Support in the case of an explicitly stated living will, otherwise oppose.

Prostitution: Keep illegal

Capital punishment: Unconstitutional.  Illegal on all grounds.

Economic Issues

General philosophy: Progressive capitalism.

Employers and Employees:Employers should have the right to fire an employee for whatever reason they want outside of race.  Employers must recognize the right of employees to unionize.

Taxation: Income tax should be slightly more progressive.

Spending: Cut excess internal government spending.  Oppose most other cuts except for purely bureaucratic programs that serve no purpose.

Free trade: Support only to developed countries.

Funding of the space program: Continue to fund.

Foreign policy

General philosophy: Cautious peacelover

Iraq: I was always opposed to the war with and without hindsight.  However, now that we are in Iraq we cannot leave and allow Iraq to become a terrorist haven.  No timetable should be set for withdrawal.  If absolutely necessary, there should be a draft.

Neoconservatism: Formerly opposed, but starting to understand it a bit more.  Still disagree but ask me again in a year.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Max Power on July 27, 2005, 08:35:00 PM
damn man. we agree on almost everything.
We need to give ourselves a new political category. ;)  Not quite populist, not quite libertarian.  What do you think?
Poputarian?


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: MHS2002 on July 27, 2005, 09:02:56 PM
I think I'll update this as well:

Social Issues

General philosophy: Lean Conservative

Abortion: Strongly oppose in all cirumstances.

Separation of Church and State: There should not be an established religion, however I don't support the total separation of church and state. A local city hall that has a nativity scene should be allowed to keep such a scene up.

Marriage: Oppose any changes to the definition of marriage as it stands today. Oppose FMA. Would consider civil unions for homosexual couples or government out of marriage altogether. Unsure on how to vote on VA constitutional amendment in November.

Affirmative Action: Oppose for the most part.

Gun Control: Oppose for the most part, support 2nd Amendment.

Death Penalty: Support keeping it legal but the death penalty should be administered in only the most serious of circumstances.

Censorship: Some restrictions on public TV/radio waves, little restriction on pay TV/radio. Support some filtering of the internet at public schools and libraries.

Flag burning: Opposed to a law/amendment to ban flag burning

Hate crimes: Opposed to hate crimes legislation.

Hate speech: Generally opposed to hate speech legislation, although if you get your a** kicked, it happens.

Smoking: Opposed to laws that restrict where and when a person can smoke. This is a decision to be left up to the owner and the consumer.

Alcohol consumption: Support lowering the age to 19.

Euthanasia: Oppose legalization of euthanasia.

Drugs: Oppose legalization in general, willing to accept legalization of marajuana but little else.

Gambling: Support its legalization.

Prostitution: Oppose its legalization.

Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Oppose for the most part, if someone makes a good argument I might change my mind.

Immigration: Support increasing the ease with which skilled and unskilled immigrants can enter the country, provided they have no criminal record. Those who enter illegally should be sent back.


Economic Issues

General Philosophy: Conservative for the most part

Taxes: Top rate should be about 35%. Make deficit cuts a priority before tax cuts right now.

Unions: Support right to work laws.

Free trade: Support in almost all circumstances.

Spending: Cut unnecessary/wasteful/pork-barrel spending, cut farm subsidies, cut Medicare drug benefit, reform Medicare and Medicaid as a whole before they get out of hand. Wouldn't mind starting the whole budgetary process from scratch to be honest.

Social Security: Support some privatization measures.

Workers' Rights: Oppose the government telling business who they can and can not hire and fire. If you're fired for any reason other than poor performance, your employers will inevitably suffer and the market will give them what they deserve.

Space Program: Would support funding the thing if it was shown there was some use from the program.

Welfare: Temporary safety net in place for those that inevitably fall on hard times. Anyone receiving welfare should either be working or looking for a job.

Healthcare: Support basic healthcare for the young (i.e. those that can't help their financial situation), support some sort of healthcare "safety net" for the elderly and the poor, opposed to Medicare drug benefit, opposed to spending money on things like Viagra.

Education: Support vouchers for low-income students, support educational decisions made at the local level, not by some bureaucrat in D.C.


Foreign Issues

General Philosophy: #1 goal should be the protection of American citizens. However, U.S. should make efforts to assist other countries when it is feasible.

Democracy and Trade: Democracies that engage in economic trade rarely go to war with one another, would support efforts to make this a reality.

Anti (fill in the blank) Treaty: Support for chemical/biological, oppose for nuclear

United Nations: Reform, don't leave the United Nations. U.N. is a fairly inefficient body as well.

Iraq: Support then, support now. Don't leave until the job is 100% complete.

Israel: Strong supporter of Israel.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: ilikeverin on July 27, 2005, 09:06:17 PM
Overall Philosophy: Characterised by general irrationality.  Generally holds position because they're 'nice' or 'right', not because they're 'correct' or 'rational'.  Stubbornly clings to positions in spite of evidence to the contrary.  Positions are not typically as in depth as it would appear.  Most likely does not have a single original idea; instead, he picks and chooses things from other people that he likes and attempts to fashion something from them.

Social Issues

General philosophy: Social Liberal, not Libertarian.

Separation of church and state: It's a good thing! :)  'Under God' should remain in the pledge, though, and if someone wants to substitute 'Under Allah' or 'Under Satan' or 'Under The Supreme Waffle Kitten' or even 'Under The Sky', that's fine and dandy.  'In God We Trust' should remain on money because no one cares what's on their money, just that they have the money :P

Freedom of speech: It's good?  Not much else to say.  Could you provide specific examples?

Right to an abortion: First two trimesters good :)  third trimester bad :( except for rape, incest, or health of the mother or child/fetus/whatever.

Affirmative action: Mostly oppose, switch to class-based AA, I think.  Something.  It shouldn't be as major as it is.

Gun rights: EVIL! :P  I oppose ownership of the majority of firearms.  I mean the vast majority.  Hunting stuff only, and even then I oppose the barbaric slaughter of animals except for food or thinning the herd if it's for their own good.

Civil unions or gay marriage: Civil unions for all.  Marriage is a religious affair.

Euthanasia: Leaning towards support, but I'm mostly neutral.

Prostitution: No legalization.  Focus on prosecuting pimps, not the prostitutes.

Capital punishment: Abolish entirely.  And, yes, that means everything, even <insert child molester/rapist/murderer/terrorist here>

Economic Issues

General philosophy: Mainstream liberal; some goliath government programs created, but I mostly oppose state-owned business.

Employers and Employees: Err...

Taxation: Progressive income tax, 0% for the poorest, I think, and something like 30% for the richest.  That OK?

Spending: Nationalised healthcare good.  Public educaiton good.  It's good to absolutely gut pork from budgets, and I think most administration would be streamlined and made more efficient.

Free trade: Neutral; I think it'd be great in an ideal world but sometimes you need controls.

Funding of the space program: Excellent for new scientific advances.  Could we make it less cumbersome, somehow?

Foreign policy

General philosophy: Dove with a humanitarian interventionism streak

Iraq: Now that we're in there, we'd better stay for the long haul.  Otherwise, we'd just abandon Iraq to anarchy, and that wouldn't be good :(

Neoconservatism: I support invading the nation of Neoconservatism :D


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: WalterMitty on July 27, 2005, 10:48:23 PM
Social Issues

General philosophy: generally liberal

Separation of church and state: support.  however, the leftists have taken it to an extreme.

Freedom of speech: strongly support in all cases

Right to an abortion: i support keeping abortion legal

Affirmative action: support.

Gun rights: i favor sensible gun control measures.

Civil unions or gay marriage: strongly support gay marriage.

Euthanasia: i have mixed feelings

Prostitution: Keep illegal

Capital punishment: strongly oppose

Economic Issues

General philosophy: staunch capitalist

Employers and Employees:  the 'contract' between an employee and an employer is voluntary at both ends

Taxation: taxes should be kept as low as possible.  i strongly support abolishing the capital gains tax.  it is the most evil tax that exists.

Spending: cut all non-essential spending to the bone.  the government should only be involved in the essentials (ie defense)

Free trade: strongly, strongly, strongly support.

Funding of the space program: the space program should be privatized.

Foreign policy

General philosophy: generally a hawk.  i certainly support the idea of an american hegemony.

Iraq: strongly support.  next up: syria!

Neoconservatism: i tend to agree with the foreign policy objectives of neo-conservatism (i have a bit of a zionist streak myself).  however, the neo-conservative's acceptance of socialist economic policies is sickening.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Nation on July 28, 2005, 12:04:32 AM
My attitude and personality is a bit more lewd/abrasive than my actions -- unless you get some alcohol in me.


Over time and up to this point, I'd say I subscribe to a generally capitalist economic philosophy. For the most part --- I support Bush's (attempted) reformation of social security, I support low taxes, and getting rid of useless social programs and the pork that goes with them.

I also believe the debt shouldnt get too high, for even if it's impact is overblown by some liberals, it must be considered and be dealt with.

The WTO/IMF I don't have a problem with. Free trade rocks.

When you cut taxes, you should probably cut spending as well.

I have a firm belief that strict constructionalists are the best fit for the supreme court -- people like Scalia and Rehnquist. However, if a president simply appoints a qualified candidate who has a strong understanding of the law, even if i dont agree with him on everything, ill support the candidate.

People shouldn't immediately look for any possible flaw with justices -- people who do that usually live their life in the same manner, and that's a bad way to live.

_________

That said, I believe that faith-based institutions should play a much more active role with government and charities -- I believe that Christians elected to public office have a RESPONSIBILITY to use their faith, and their beliefs in order to make government more efficient.

In Education, I believe that more money is generally a good thing for public schools, but when it becomes wasted -- it only hurts the very things it tries to help. Get the feds out of education. Repeal No Child Left Behind, and give control to education back where it belongs -- to the states, and to the local governments (even though local is where most corruption occurs, IMO)

I don't like abortion, and would NEVER encourage anyone close to me to get them. I wouldn't report them to those crazy Catholic "pregnancy crisis centers" or whatever, but I'd try and dissuade them from getting one.

They shouldn't be banned, but they should be left up to the voters of the states. Most liberal states (California, New York, probably even Florida) would legalize it anyway. I don't vote for politicians based off their abortion position anyway, which is why I respect people like Paul Sarbanes AND Rick Santorum.

I agree with WalterMitty on gun control. Sensible gun control is good -- which means VERY little gun control. Only that which is necsscary.

I could care less about gay marriage, when I think about it.

_____________

Foreign policy:

I am a moderate hawk in foreign policy. Iraq should have
 been used as a stepping stone in combating terrorism in multiple Middle Eastern countries --- instead, we're going to end up with an Iraqi civil war. This is why I do not like Bush, and this is why I stay a Democrat --- for now.

I believe in sensible defense measures though --- maintain our current spending on national security. Attack other countries only when we're gravely threatened, or when we undergo a promise to fight terrorism -- of course, the Bush administration managed to mangle that quite a bit, but whatever.

I'm a moderate Democrat, and that's how I plan to stay, unless they decide to keep f'ing up the party. Then I'll switch.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Filuwaúrdjan on July 28, 2005, 09:24:39 AM
In many countries in Europe, your rights were basically taken away if you were a Jew.

Rights? No one had many rights back then. Round here most people had a right to farm a little strip of land and let what animals they had run around on certain stretches of open ground (the latter is still a right in places and the Government is about to get a bill passed to help maintain those areas and make our rights to them secure). That's about it... the local Baron or other petty dictator could and did make most people work for him on his fields (this applied pretty much everyone) and some people (serfs) were as good as slaves.
Oppression of the Jews and other minority grounds (including early Protestants like the Lollards) was truely horrific, but the extent of which it was motivated by religion is debatable... it was really more the nasty c***'s that ran the show looking for scapegoats for all the huge problems the Mediaeval world had.

Quote
Name one bigger enemy to freedom that had an impact legislated religion has. 

Nazism. Communism. Totalitarianism in general.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: AuH2O on July 28, 2005, 10:00:22 AM
Overall Political Philosophy: sort of eclectic mixture, most heavily influenced on the philosophical side by Oswald Spengler and George Santayana, though certainly I have respect for utility as a concept; I find Rawls distasteful. Politically my favorite is the venerable John Locke, a more recent example perhaps being Samuelson.

Issues

Social

I support:

- free speech

- drug legalization

- capital punishment

- right to keep and bear arms

- prostitution (in regulated zones)

- euthanasia (with regulation)

I oppose

- hate crimes or speech legislation

- affirmative action (including Title IX)

- gay marriage

- abortion

Economic

I support

- balanced budget amendment

- flat income tax or national sales tax

- right to work laws

- fairer trade... comparitive advantage matters, but so do strategic considerations if we let the Chinese abuse us

- greatly reduced federal spending

- more automony for the states

I oppose

- national healthcare

- national educational standards

- fees imposed by non-legislative agencies

Military/Foreign Policy

I support

- a strong military, but with fewer aircraft carriers, more light capital ships, more special forces, more space-based weapons development

- missile defense

- protecting Taiwan if attacked

- reduction in foreign aid

I oppose

- the invasion of Iraq (though I also oppose a hasty exit)

- the UN

- continued bias in favor of Israel


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: nclib on July 29, 2005, 12:02:17 AM
expanded views using Emsworth's list:

Social Issues

General philosophy: Liberalism.

Separation of church and state: I strongly support the separation of church and state, including removing 'under god' from the Pledge of Allegiance (actually oppose teacher-led readings of the Pledge)

Freedom of speech: I strongly support the ACLU's position on free speech

Right to an abortion: I support a woman's right to choose, including late-term abortion, and Medicaid funding if she cannot afford it

Affirmative action: Support AA, but oppose racial quotas

Gun rights: Increase restrictions on guns

Civil unions or gay marriage: Support gay marriage, though the issue should be left to the states

Euthanasia: Support, but only with clear consent

Prostitution: Legalize, but heavily regulate

Capital punishment: Unconstitutional as 'cruel and unusual punishment'.

Public nudity Generally allowed, with some restrictions. Female toplessness always allowed.

Gambling Allowed, but government shouldn't sanction it (i.e. lotteries)

War on Drugs Treat drug addiction as a public health issue. Decriminilize all drugs.

Economic Issues

General philosophy: Socialism.

Employers and Employees: Sexual orientation, along with race, religion, gender, disability, etc. should be protected from discrimination.

Taxation: Progressive tax. No tax for the poorest people. Up to 50% for the richest.

Spending: Greatly increase spending on social programs. Increase welfare and Social Security Disability Income.

Free trade: Some tariffs are necessary.

Funding of the space program: Support, but reduce funding.

Foreign policy

General philosophy: Dove

Iraq: Opposed from the beginning.

Neoconservatism: Oppose


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: RBH on July 29, 2005, 12:36:42 AM
Social Issues

General philosophy: Social Libertarian

Separation of church and state: I support the current constitutional wall between organized religion and the Government. I don't care too much about if "Under God" is in the pledge or what's on our coins, because it's not unconstitutional.

Freedom of speech: I support it in it's current constitutional status. I also feel the Internet is helping more people exercise that freedom.

Right to an abortion: The status quo works for me. The government should be more concerned about reducing unwanted pregnancies than trying to find ways to restrict abortions.

Affirmative action: Favor until it's unneeded. But, we should have a fair check of that sometime soon.

Gun rights: Support it. Handguns, Shotguns, Rifles. I don't care if you like guns and I won't stop you. We should do more to crack down on illegal sales.

Civil unions or gay marriage: Civil Unions, but in a way that is basically like Gay Marriage, but maybe the details can be worked out.

Euthanasia: Support if the person who is going to die clearly wants to die.

Prostitution: Leave that up to states.

Capital punishment: Support it if it's done responsibly. It's constitutional too, in my POV. We should make sure there are ways to prevent bias due to anything other than the manner of the crime.

Economic Issues

General philosophy: Compassionate Capitalism.

Employers and Employees: Employees shouldn't have to be harrassed. Basically, if they want to sue for discrimination or harassment, that's fine.

Taxation: Raise taxes on higher income brackets. Remove loopholes. Get enough to reduce the debt and deficit.

Spending: Spend responsibly and don't cut blindly.

Free trade: I support trade where we don't get screwed and where we don't screw others. I support free and fair trade.

Funding of the space program: I'm tempted by the idea of letting private groups run some sort of space business. Also, We should make sure our space program isn't wasting money and that it's safe.

Foreign policy

General philosophy: Fair but not Stupid

Iraq: Skeptical at first, Opposed now. We should remove all the troops if the Iraqi government wishes for it. We should also make sure they can deal with the terrorists and rebels in their nation. When it comes to Iraqi Democracy, I hope they can pull it off, but I suspect they may have another dictator within the next decade.

War on Terror: We should make sure that the number of people joining terrorists goes down. We should infiltrate and destroy terrorist groups. We should shut the backdoor and hammer them from the front. Bin Laden's terrorism is based on his personal interest and his personal grudges.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: dazzleman on July 29, 2005, 07:02:04 AM
My attitude and personality is a bit more lewd/abrasive than my actions -- unless you get some alcohol in me.


Over time and up to this point, I'd say I subscribe to a generally capitalist economic philosophy. For the most part --- I support Bush's (attempted) reformation of social security, I support low taxes, and getting rid of useless social programs and the pork that goes with them.

I also believe the debt shouldnt get too high, for even if it's impact is overblown by some liberals, it must be considered and be dealt with.

The WTO/IMF I don't have a problem with. Free trade rocks.

When you cut taxes, you should probably cut spending as well.

I have a firm belief that strict constructionalists are the best fit for the supreme court -- people like Scalia and Rehnquist. However, if a president simply appoints a qualified candidate who has a strong understanding of the law, even if i dont agree with him on everything, ill support the candidate.

People shouldn't immediately look for any possible flaw with justices -- people who do that usually live their life in the same manner, and that's a bad way to live.

_________

That said, I believe that faith-based institutions should play a much more active role with government and charities -- I believe that Christians elected to public office have a RESPONSIBILITY to use their faith, and their beliefs in order to make government more efficient.

In Education, I believe that more money is generally a good thing for public schools, but when it becomes wasted -- it only hurts the very things it tries to help. Get the feds out of education. Repeal No Child Left Behind, and give control to education back where it belongs -- to the states, and to the local governments (even though local is where most corruption occurs, IMO)

I don't like abortion, and would NEVER encourage anyone close to me to get them. I wouldn't report them to those crazy Catholic "pregnancy crisis centers" or whatever, but I'd try and dissuade them from getting one.

They shouldn't be banned, but they should be left up to the voters of the states. Most liberal states (California, New York, probably even Florida) would legalize it anyway. I don't vote for politicians based off their abortion position anyway, which is why I respect people like Paul Sarbanes AND Rick Santorum.

I agree with WalterMitty on gun control. Sensible gun control is good -- which means VERY little gun control. Only that which is necsscary.

I could care less about gay marriage, when I think about it.

_____________

Foreign policy:

I am a moderate hawk in foreign policy. Iraq should have
 been used as a stepping stone in combating terrorism in multiple Middle Eastern countries --- instead, we're going to end up with an Iraqi civil war. This is why I do not like Bush, and this is why I stay a Democrat --- for now.

I believe in sensible defense measures though --- maintain our current spending on national security. Attack other countries only when we're gravely threatened, or when we undergo a promise to fight terrorism -- of course, the Bush administration managed to mangle that quite a bit, but whatever.

I'm a moderate Democrat, and that's how I plan to stay, unless they decide to keep f'ing up the party. Then I'll switch.

You don't sound much like a Democrat to me, man.  COME TOWARD THE LIGHT......:)


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Middle-aged Europe on July 29, 2005, 02:20:12 PM
Social issues: In American terms... I´m probably liberal to very liberal. I strongly oppose the death penalty and I´m in favour of gay marriage and gun control. However, I do not particularly care about abortion rights or "affirmative action", which means I´m probably slightly in favour of it, but not that mad about it.

Economic issues: I´d say I´m bouncing back and forth between liberal and centrist, but generally center-left. Moderate socialist with some libertarian leanings. *lol*

Foreign policy issues: Uh, perhaps I would describe myself as an "pragmatic internationalist". I generally support my country´s  membership in the UN/NATO/EU etc. I´m slightly skeptical about military interventions, although I don´t rule it out as an option. I oppsed the war in Iraq, but the German troops in Afghanistan should stay there they are. I´m not a pacifist, isolationist, hawk, neo-con or follower of any other extremist ideology. :D


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: nclib on July 30, 2005, 06:44:30 PM
What's your opinion on polygamy, bigamy, and incest, N.C. Liberal?

I am generally against polygamy and bigamy unless each partner considers themself married to all the other partners (i.e. one straight man and two bisexual women). Of course, this is a very small percent of polygamous relationships.

As far as incest goes, if consensual it should be legal, but marriages should not be recognized between relatives closer than first cousins.

What are your positions on those issues, Ebowed?


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Gustaf on July 30, 2005, 07:01:37 PM
These things are summaries? :P

I believe in the rights and freedoms of the individual and the responsibility within a society towards your countrymen. ;)


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Democratic Hawk on August 08, 2005, 08:30:51 AM
In a nutshell:

Economics: Generally, left-of-centre - 'new' liberal/Keynesian (-4.38 on political compass); however, while I support progressive taxation, I don't believe in punitive taxation (minimum tax rate would be 5% and maximum 35%) and I favour balanced budgets

Social: Generally, mixed - but mildly populist (1.90 on political compass). Pro-life, pro-three strikes mandatory sentencing and pro-Second Amendment. Anti-death penality but take a states' rights position and pro-civil unions for same-sex couples (I oppose gay marriage) but take a states' rights position

Foreign: A committed 'Hawk' ;). UN support for military action would be preferable but if not forthcoming, I support military action without UN

Dave


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Blerpiez on August 12, 2005, 02:47:19 PM
Social Issues

General philosophy: Libertarianism

Separation of church and state: Support.  Don't care about pledge or coins, but important not to favor religions

Freedom of speech: Pro freedom of speech, including legal flag burning and legal "hate speech".

Right to an abortion: Support till viability outside womb, then only in special cases

Affirmative action: Oppose based on race, support based on economic need

Gun rights: Strongly Support

Civil unions or gay marriage: Support government only recognizing civil unions

Euthanasia: Support

Prostitution: Support legalization

Capital punishment: Oppose except for mass murder and terrorism

Economic Issues

General philosophy: Moderate

Employers and Employees: Support right to fire employees, except based on race and gender.  Unfortunatelysome will take advantage of this and claim a firing was race or gender-based, but this is good in principle

Taxation: Support progressive rate, happy with taxes as present

Free trade: Support.

Funding of the space program: Support presently, but could change based on other needs

Foreign policy

General philosophy: Realist

Iraq: Opposed because I didn't think the threat was enough to justify invasion.  If it had been more, I would have supported it.  Presently I believe we should stay in and send more troops if neccessary.

Thanks for whoever made this template


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: nini2287 on October 14, 2005, 05:54:34 PM
Social Issues

Separation of church and state: Support; remove 'under God' from pledge and public Ten Commandments displays.  However, I'm ok with faith-based initatives if they are applied blindly.

Freedom of speech: Support Holmes' "clear and present danger" philosophy.  Keep flag burning legal.

Right to an abortion: Strongly oppose except to save the mother's life.

Affirmative action: Strongly oppose in hiring practice.  Somewhat support in college admissions for diversity purposes, but it is too extreme in its present form.

Gun rights: Support the 2nd amendment, though the states should be able to set policy from there.

Civil unions or gay marriage: Strongly support personally but leave the issue to the states.

Euthanasia: Support among mentally competent patients.  For the mentally impaired (such as Terri Schiavo) if a living will exists requesting it, I support euthanasia.

Prostitution: Let the states decide.  Personally I would probably oppose but I haven't thought too much about it.

Capital punishment: Strongly oppose

Economic Issues


Employers and Employees: A legally binding contract between employer and employee.  I support the right to sue over discrimination and support the right to form a union.

Taxation: Slightly make the tax brackets more progressive, but don't tax the rich into oblivion.

Spending: Scale back foreign aid and government waste.  Look for ways to downsize the bureaucracy.  Don't cut funding from most social programs.

Free trade: Support with countries with stable and strong economies (I would vote no on CAFTA).

Funding of the space program: Strongly support.

Foreign policy

Iraq: Opposed from the outset because we had bigger problems to deal with at the time (Iran, North Korea).  Now, I support remaining in Iraq until the country is fully stablized

Neoconservatism: I am opposed to nation-buliding.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Emsworth on October 16, 2005, 05:54:20 PM
Update:

Social Issues

General philosophy: Libertarianism

Separation of church and state: Very strongly support; the government should be completely neutral on all religious questions (neither pro-religion nor anti-religion)

Freedom of speech: Oppose all laws restricting the content of speech, except libel, slander, perjury, etc.; accept more restrictions when the speech is occurring on government property rather than private property

Right to an abortion: Very strongly support, although it is not constitutionally protected

Affirmative action: Very strongly oppose

Gun rights: Strongly support gun rights; oppose assault weapons bans, trigger locks, restrictions on concealed carry, etc.; oppose all federal gun control whatsoever

Civil unions or gay marriage: Support both, but the latter is preferable

Euthanasia: Strongly support

Prostitution: Support legalization

Capital punishment: Oppose

Economic Issues

General philosophy: Close to laissez-faire capitalism

Employers and Employees: Strongly support liberty of contract

Taxation: Highest tax bracket should be no more than 25-30%. The Alternative Minimum Tax should be abolished.

Spending: Cut most government spending

Free trade: Very strongly support

Foreign policy

General philosophy: Hawk; realist (as opposed to idealist)

Iraq: Opposed, not on so-called "moral grounds," but on the grounds that it destabilizes the region and costs too much

Neoconservatism: The American military exists to protect American interests, not to topple dictatorships


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Jake on October 16, 2005, 06:26:54 PM
Social Issues

General philosophy: Authoritarian

Separation of church and state: I strongly oppose government actions to remove religion from public places. I believe a government body has every right to display religious items on their grounds and I strongly oppose attempts by anti-religious organizations to censor displays of religion in public.

Freedom of speech: I believe there is no blanket right to free speech. I oppose allowing free speech that incites violence or terrorist acts against the United States and I believe anyone that puts American troops in harm overseas by writing slanderous articles about them should be jailed. I oppose the Supreme Court rulings that allow the defilement of the American Flag.

Right to an abortion: I oppose any and all abortions preformed for any reason. I support criminalizing abortion on the same level as any other murder.

Affirmative action: I support income based affirmative action for public school admissions.

Gun rights: I support an unalienable right of gun ownership and usage for those citizens with a criminal background free of a felony. I oppose gun ownership by those with a history of a felony.

Civil unions or gay marriage: I oppose government recognition as gay unions as marriage and oppose adoption by gay parents. I support gay unions for two adults.

Euthanasia: Oppose any form of murder, consensual or otherwise.

Prostitution: Oppose any legalization

Capital punishment: Oppose in all cases where the life of the prisoner will not compromise security. Support replacing it with mandatory life in solitary confinement. Picture the worst prison imaginable.

Economic Issues

General philosophy: Capitalism

Employers and Employees: I oppose any attempts to regulate employee/employer regulations by a federal minimum wage and I support allowing termination of a contract for any reason the employer cares to give.

Taxation: I support a progressive tax based on around 10 brackets ranging from a low of 0% to a high of 35%. Remove all capital gains taxes, the death tax, and institute a poll tax.

Spending: Give the President the power of a line-item veto and look into a national referendum on the federal budget.

Free trade: I support free and equal trade, though tariffs are warranted in some sectors.

Funding of the space program: I support economically beneficial funding of the space program, along with possible military applications.

Foreign policy

General philosophy: Realist Hawk

Iraq: Support because of the influence we've gained in the Middle East.

Neoconservatism: Oppose some of the more idealistic goals of the ideology.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: The 2nd Constitarian on October 16, 2005, 06:45:25 PM
I'm a constitarian all the way.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Max Power on October 16, 2005, 07:28:53 PM
Oh god......


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: ilikeverin on October 17, 2005, 06:58:29 AM

()


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Max Power on October 17, 2005, 04:11:11 PM
Looks more like a Spike Lee movie than a Carl Reiner movie.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Emsworth on March 05, 2006, 08:03:12 PM
Why should one person live in wealth & luxury with money to burn, while someone on the other side of town, who works just as hard or harder, live in poverty?
One could also ask: Why should one person's property be stolen in order to benefit someoen else?


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: ?????????? on March 05, 2006, 08:12:16 PM
MARIJUANA – Marijuana should be legalized or at least decriminalized. It's the same as alcohol & tobacco. If it isn't legalized the only people that should be fined or be jailed should be people with heavy amounts of pot that are using it for the purpose of trafficking. Someone that just smokes recreational shouldn't be punished. There are always people that abuse things. Even with drugs illegalized, people get addicted & have the urge to try more hard drugs, but most do not. Same with alcohol. There will be alcoholics, but should we have Prohibition just because a few ruin it for the rest of us? Of course not! Someone's life shouldn't be ruined with a criminal record, because he was caught smoking weed. I'm pro-choice too – I don't think someone can force someone not to smoke pot if they want to. It's their choice, & they could put into their body whatever they want – the only person they hurt is themselves. & to those that told me – "My taxes are paying for their lung cancer bills from smoking weed," then we should also ban fast food/unhealthy food for causing obesity, cars for polluting the air & causing respiratory problems, etc.

SMOKING – Tobacco should be banned in public places because of second hand smoke. No debate here.



Nice double standard.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: opebo on March 05, 2006, 08:57:00 PM
Why should one person live in wealth & luxury with money to burn, while someone on the other side of town, who works just as hard or harder, live in poverty?
One could also ask: Why should one person's property be stolen in order to benefit someoen else?

Because 'property' is merely something which is given to someone, and protected by State power.  It is the State which created the power relationships texascindy described above, and your use of the term 'stolen' is rather silly.  A better way of putting your post would be 'Why should the State cease using force to maintain the owners in the positions of advantage over the workers?'


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Ebowed on July 12, 2006, 07:23:52 AM
Overall Philosophy: Left-libertarian

Social Issues

General philosophy: Left

Separation of church and state: Support

Freedom of speech: Support; oppose banning hate speech or flag burning

Right to an abortion: Support in the first two trimesters; oppose restrictions (i.e. mandatory counseling, spousal or parental notification or consent, waiting periods, etc)

Affirmative action: Oppose in its entirety

Gun rights: Support the second amendment and concealed carry (Vermont/Alaska style); oppose common restrictions (i.e. closing the "gun show loophole" non-issue, mandatory trigger locks, assault weapons ban, waiting periods, etc)

Civil unions or gay marriage: Support full same-sex marriage & adoption rights

Euthanasia: Support physician assisted suicide or euthanasia for consenting adults

Prostitution: Oppose legalization

Capital punishment: Oppose in all instances; abolish and replace with life imprisonment

Economic Issues

General philosophy: Left-libertarian

Employers and Employees: Support employers' rights

Taxation: Increase it

Spending: Decrease it

Free trade: Support

Funding of the space program: Not particularly concerned with

Foreign policy

General philosophy: Cautious isolationism

Iraq: A mess, don't really have a clue what to do


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: opebo on July 12, 2006, 08:49:22 AM
Prostitution: Oppose any legalization

Economic Issues

General philosophy: Capitalism

Apparently your irrational religion addled brain has not noticed the inconstitency in the above positions.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Bdub on July 12, 2006, 09:59:05 AM
Overall Philosophy: Center

Social Issues

General philosophy: Center Left

Separation of church and state: Support

Freedom of speech: Support;

Right to an abortion: I support its legality in the first trimester.  Unsure about the second.  I am against third trimester abortions.

Affirmative action: Definetly opposed

Gun rights: Support the second amendment

Civil unions or gay marriage: Support full same-sex marriage & adoption rights

Euthanasia: I support this

Prostitution: Support legalization

Capital punishment: Heavily Support

Economic Issues

General philosophy: Center Right

Employers and Employees: Support employers' rights

Taxation: keep the same

Spending: Decrease it

Free trade: Support

Funding of the space program: I support the funding of the space program

Foreign policy

General philosophy: not sure

Iraq: We took the wrong approach with Iraq


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: adam on July 12, 2006, 05:11:55 PM
Overall Philosophy: Moderate-Conservative-Libertarian

Social Issues

General philosophy: Moderate

Separation of church and state: In a nation as religiously diverse as the United States, I feel as though it is silly and ignorant to govern with an "Iron Cross". If God wants to walk out of the sky and run for political office, then (and only then) will I take his opinions into account.

Freedom of speech: Support. It is the FIRST ammendment.

Right to an abortion: I am neutral on the abortion issue. I am not a woman, and thus will never have to worry about whether or not I should have an abortion. My general idea is, "their body, their business".

Affirmative action: A flat out violation of both civil and property rights.

Gun rights: As a gun owner, I am adamnet in my support for the second ammendment.

Civil unions or gay marriage: Also neutral, I am not gay and thus will never have to worry about it. Like abortion, "their life, their business". I personally feel however that marriage benefits should be denied to all couples of people.

Euthanasia: Undecided, I just don't really care. "Their family, their business".

Prostitution: I hate to sound redundant but, "Their body, their business". For some women, it could be all they have and they should have the right to take advantage of what they deem as an oppertunity. Allow me to quote George Carlin. "Selling is legal, ing is legal...so why is selling ing illegal?"

Capital punishment: I am probably in the top 5 most conservative on crime and capital punishment. I support a "punishment only" policy for crime, and an extention of the death penalty to include rapists and child molesters.

Economic Issues

General philosophy: Conservative

Employers and Employees: I support employers rights to hire whom they please and fire those that they deem incompetent. I do not support "freedom from firing" for employees who strike.

Taxation: I support a 15-18% flat tax.

Spending: We spend far to much in my mind. I support a 70% decrease in general spending to counteract the effects of a 60% spending increase since GWB took office.

Free trade: Support, but not with nations whom have a history of civil rights violations.

Funding of the space program: With the growing fad, and dream for some, of going on a "space vacation"...I think that partial privitisation would be an effect route to take.

Foreign policy

General philosophy: Moderate

Iraq: I am glad that Saddam Hussein has been eliminated, this doens't change the fact however that he was in no way connected to 9/11. Should have stuck to Afghanistan and searching for Osama bin Laden.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: TomC on July 12, 2006, 05:43:11 PM

Social Issues

General philosophy: Left

Separation of church and state: Strongly support

Freedom of speech: Support

Right to an abortion: support in first trimester, opposed in third

Affirmative action: I don't approve of quotas, but otherwise support for government positions, oppose for a mandate  for private sector

Gun rights: Support the second amendment, but might favor limiting the manufacture of certain guns

Civil unions or gay marriage: Support full same-sex marriage & adoption rights

Euthanasia: support

Prostitution: hmm... I guess I don't want to make it legal, but I oppose police entrapment tactics to catch "Johns"

Capital punishment: Support as a measure to protect society, oppose as a means of enacting retribution for victims

Economic Issues

General philosophy: Center

Employers and Employees: too vague to respond- I do support right to work laws

Taxation: simplify

Spending: Decrease it in some areas

Free trade: Support

Funding of the space program: oppose- there are so many more things relevant to our existence than this- I oppose spending billions to larn about some planet beyond Pluto while people are starving on Earth. If money were not an object, sure

Foreign policy

General philosophy: support efforts at diplomacy and concensus building

Iraq: oppose Iraq war


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: afleitch on July 12, 2006, 05:56:46 PM
Social Issues

General philosophy: Leftist/Libertarian

Separation of church and state: Strongly support

Freedom of speech: Strongly Support

Right to an abortion: Support in the first trimester

Affirmative action: Oppose

Gun rights: Oppose in a UK context- leave it as a state issue in the US

Civil unions or gay marriage: Support civil unions with the progression onto marriage

Euthanasia: Support

Prostitution: Let local areas decriminalise ot if they wish.

Capital punishment: Strongly Oppose

Economic Issues

General philosophy: Centre-Right

Employers and Employees: Huh?

Taxation: Reduce across the board and move towards a flat tax system.

Spending: Reduce across selected areas

Free trade: Strongly Support.

Funding of the space program: Strongly Support. We need to discover.

Foreign policy

General philosophy: Humanitarian Hawk

Iraq: Support. Now waning due to anger at the excrement that poured from Blairs mouth. But we need to stay in now we are there.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Filuwaúrdjan on July 12, 2006, 07:12:36 PM
Social Issues

General philosophy: Not really sure if I have one. See if you can spot one for me.

Separation of church and state: That depends what you mean by "seperation"; I support disestablishing the Church of England, but I don't support going as far down that road as the U.S has.

I also support the "Keep Sunday Special" campaign, but that links into other areas (not all Religious ones at that).

Freedom of speech: I support this, up to a point at least. I also support certain incitement laws.

Right to an abortion: I do not support a right to an abortion. I do think that it should be legal early on in the pregnancy (although I'm never sure where to draw the line), but I also think that other restrictions than time are needed; especially as far as genetic disorders go. Don't like abortions for those. At all. I find eugenics and so on to be utterly disgusting... and I could happily rant away about that for hours.
I also do not think that, if there is an illegal abortion, that the woman should be prosecuted.

Affirmative action: It really depends whether it is needed or not. Outright discrimination (ie; quota's, AWS and so on) I'm opposed to, though.

Gun rights: Beyond certain basic standards, this is essentially a cultural thing. What works in Birmingham, Warwickshire, may not work in Birmingham, Alabama. And vice versa.

Civil unions or gay marriage: I support civil unions/partnerships/call 'em what tha' will.

Euthanasia: Oppose in principle. The edges of the issue are more complicated.

Prostitution: Tolerate (but do not actually legalise) certain brothels, but crack down on street prostitution. Big jail terms for pimps.

Capital punishment: Strongly oppose; the State should not kill.

Economic Issues

General philosophy: Socialism (of various old fashioned strands)

Employers and Employees: Strong supporter of Trade Unions and the rights of their members (ie; while I think it should be illegal to fire workers on strike, I also think that all strikes should be balloted. And so on and so forth). I dislike state paternalism (which I think weakens all sides) and over-tight labour regulations (it is the role of Unions to protect their members. And they do a much better job than anyone else would) and support things like ACAS.

Taxation: I support taxation as a way to raise money to redistribute (hey, there's nowt wrong with a little honesty). I do not support using taxes to redistribute; it just don't work, and you end up with less money to do serious redistribution.
I support a progressive/whateveryeshallcallit income tax, but am open to the idea that people that do white collar jobs should be taxed at a higher rate than people who do skilled trades/engineering/healthcare/etc jobs.
I can't say that I especially care whether taxes are high or low; the important thing is to raise money without causing damage to the economy.

Spending: I strongly support useful spending, but equally strongly oppose useless spending; the main thing is to redistribute as much as can be got away with, while making sure that public services are good. As such, waste (real waste) is the proverbial enemy.

Free trade: Support in principle and up to a point. I think we need to be fairer to all involved though (so no dumping sugar mountains on third world countries).

Funding of the space program: support

Foreign policy

General philosophy: Anti-Genocide

Iraq: Did not really support, did not really oppose, did not believe things said by either those in favour or opposed to it, did not like a lot of the people involved in the anti-war thing, did/do not like the hypocrisy, do not approve of the Post-War planning or lack of it, think that Rumsfeld should be fired (from a cannon), think the fact that Iraq has had elections is a very good thing, think it looks disturbingly like Northern Ireland in certain respects, think that both sides (ie; in the West) should try to be a little more honest (this is not hard) and so on and so forth.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: 7,052,770 on July 13, 2006, 10:58:02 AM
Social Issues

General philosophy: Liberal

Separation of church and state: Support

Freedom of speech: Support.  Flag burning should be legal.  Fred Phelps' sh**t should not be.

Right to an abortion: First trimester legal.  Second, leave to the states.  Third trimester illegal.

Affirmative action: Oppose, but I don't have an objective eye since I've been personally harmed by it.  Slave reparations are a better solution, I think.

Gun rights: I support gun rights for hunting, sport shooting, etc.  I also support common sense things like trigger locks, background checks, waiting periods, bans on cop-killer bullets, and restriction of firearms that have no purpose but to kill someone with.

Civil unions or gay marriage: Gay marriage.  An acceptable compromise would be repeal DOMA, but let each state decide whether to have gay marriage performed in itself--a backhanded way of gay marriage everywhere, I guess.

Euthanasia: Unsure

Prostitution: Should be illegal, but let each local area decide for itself

Capital punishment: Strongly Oppose

Economic Issues

General philosophy: Liberal

Employers and Employees: Employers can hire whoever they want.

Taxation: Reduce for middle and low class, raise for the rich.

Spending: Increase spending in education and social programs

Free trade: Not sure.  Not at expert, or even a novice on the issue.

Funding of the space program: Dramatically increase.  Perhaps the most important thing we do.

Foreign policy

General philosophy: Dove

Iraq: Withdraw


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: DownWithTheLeft on August 11, 2006, 10:41:29 AM
Overall Beliefs: Hardcore Conservative

Seperation of Church and State: While the federal government shouldn't support one religion in particular, activist judges shouldn't be able to rid society of religion (ex. nativity scenes, 10 commandment postings)

Freedom of Speech: While people have a free speech rights, things such as flag burning that so disrespect for the country on a whole should not be allowed.  Any speech that poses an imminent threat (death threats, flag burning) should not be allowed.

Abortion: Do people not realize that the fetus will grow into a person?  Adoption is the option, not murder.  Doctors and patients who conspire on abortions should be charged w/felony convictions

Affirmative Action: Why should this generation suffer for something another generation did?  The most qualified people deserve what they get, you shouldn't get an advantage b/c of race, when it boils down to it its racism.

Guns: Guns don't kill people, abortion clinics do!  Every America deserves the right to own a gun if they don't have a prior felony.  The bad guys are gonna get the guns, shouldn't the good guys stand a fighting chance?  And hunting controls overpopulation which will lead to more problems.

Gay Marriage: Absolutley NO!  Marriage has been between a man and woman since the beginning of time.  The point is stopping gay marriage is not as much that's it gay marriage, it's that it opens the door to polygamy and people marrying animals.  Marriage is fine as it is now and should not be changed because of radical judges.  America must keep some morals.

Euthanasia: Again, MURDER.  Only God can decide when life should begin and end, doctors should stop playing God.

Capital Punishment: Support, you might say I'm hypocritical, but it is killing an evil human, not an innocent child or sickly person.

Economic

General: Conservative

Employers and Employees: Same as affirmative action, hire the most qualified person, not by skin color or gender, again racism

Taxiation: Breaks for all people, no one should be paying more so that people, like illegal immigrants with legal relatives can live off you.  Why should I pay because people mess up their lives, did I mess it up?  And how do you expect those people to get jobs if employers are paying such high taxes?  Give the employers more money they can give more jobs and money to the poor.

Spending: Cut spending, completly delete the welfare system and abolish teacher's unions.  Pay them for what they work, half the year, not full year salaries because the union bosses told you to.

Unions:  The most harmful thing to America other than the ACLU

Free Trade:  Allow it

Space: Don't we have enough problems on Earth?

Foreign Policy

Overall: Hawk

Iraq: Stay the course and make sure at the end of the day Democracy reigns in the middle east

I'm going to add some more, people can add these to their beliefs:

Energy: We need to develop alternative fuels, but for the meantime we need to drill in ANWR

Health Care:  I shouldn't be the people's responsibility to pay for other's people's health insurance.

Immigration:  Border fence, mass deportation of illegals and felony convictions for hiring them




Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: ?????????? on August 11, 2006, 11:18:25 AM
^^^^^My kind of rightie!


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: jerusalemcar5 on August 11, 2006, 11:57:40 AM
Social Issues

General philosophy: Hard-Core Liberal

Separation of church and state: Strongly Support

Freedom of speech: Strongly Support.

Right to an abortion: First trimester legal.  Second, using Bush doctrine (rape, incest, save mother's life). Third, save mother's life.

Affirmative action: Support.

Gun rights: Very limited.  Ban semi and automatic weaponry.  Strong checks on handgun possession and strict penalties who illegally possess guns. 

Civil unions or gay marriage: Gay marriage, of course.

Euthanasia: Strongly support.  People have the right to die.

Prostitution: I am open to a restricted legal industry.

Capital punishment: Strongly Oppose.  It still is murder, plain and simple.  The state should be chraged with murder.

Economic Issues

General philosophy: Leftist

Employers and Employees: Private employers should not discriminate based on race, gender, or other factors.

Taxation: Reduce for middle and low class, raise for the rich.

Spending: Increase spending in education and social programs, sharply decrease defense spending.

Free trade: Support only with countries that have labor laws upt to par with our own.

Funding of the space program: Decrease a little.  Focus only on possibilities of other planet inhabitation.

Foreign policy

General philosophy: Liberal-Focus on diplomacy and international forums

Iraq: Phased withdrawl.  There is nothing we can do except wrosen the crisis.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Energy-Boost train industry and other mass public transportation indutries (through funding to increase the numbe rof routes and vehicles).  Hike gas taxes to boost revenue and get people to start using mass transport so that gas consumption severly decreases.  Never drill in ANWR-it will lead little gas and a lot of environmental destruction

Health Care-Universal.  It is every person's responsibility to help those less fortunate in their society.  At the very least, control insurance companies profits since private insurance companies are horrifically corrupt and greedy.

Immigration-Sharply decrease immigration regulations.  Amnesty for illegals.  Completely abolish quotas.  Harsh penalties for failure to pay taxes for new immigrants.
[/quote]


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: nini2287 on August 11, 2006, 01:09:11 PM
Overall Beliefs: Moderate Libertarian

Social

General:  Moderate Liberal

Seperation of Church and State: There should be no state-sponsored religion.  I'm opposed to displays of religious symbols on public buildings and teacher-led school prayer.

Freedom of Speech: Strongly support.  Flag burning should be legal.  Fred Phelps should be a free man.  Oppose only in cases of imminent danger.

Abortion: Abortion is murder, so strongly oppose in all cases except to save the mother's life.

Affirmative Action: Favor LIMITED affirmative action, race, geographic and socio-economically based in undergraduate college admissions.  America's top colleges shouldn't look a Connecticut country club.

Guns: Gun control should be dealt with on a state or local level.  Maryland and Montana don't need the same laws.

Gay Marriage:  There's no reason why two people in love should not be able to marry.  As Kinky Friedman would say, "Let them be miserable with the rest of us.

Euthanasia: Should be legal, both on one's own and physican-assisted.

Capital Punishment: Strongly oppose, but support life sentences in harsh prisons.

Wiretapping/PATRIOT Act:  Support to prevent another 9/11 from occuring.

Economic

General: Moderate Conservative

Employers and Employees: Employers and employees should be free to apply, hire, fire and quit at will.

Taxiation: Cut taxes on small business and the lower tax brackets.  All other income taxes are fine for the time being.  Also keep the estate tax until the national debt is paid off.

Spending: Eliminate wasteful pork and bureaucracy.  Refund (at least partially) all social security payments.  Abolish Medicare and expand Medicaid to include more senior citizens.

Unions:  Support the right to unionize but some unions are too strong (auto workers).

Free Trade:  Should be followed except in cases of egregious human rights abuses or where the effects would be drastically negative for the American economy.

Space: Keep exploring.

Energy:  Work to achieve energy independence as quickly as possible by addressing both supply and demand issues.  Better fund mass transportation and explore alternative fuels.  Oppose any ANWR drilling.

Foreign Policy

Overall: Moderate

Iraq: It was a mistake to invade in 2003 and drain our resources from fighting real threats (Iran, North Korea, Syria).  However, it would be foolish to withdraw now and let the country fall into Civil War and chaos and make Iraq a training ground for terrorists.

Immigration:  Illegal immigrants for the most part are just coming to America to make a better life for themselves and their families that Mexico cannot provide for them.  Strengthen border security to keep the criminals, human traffickers and drug lords out, but let law-abiding immigrants into this country and treat them as people and let them go on a path towards citizenship.

Other Middle East:  Hezbollah, other terror groups in the region-and their backers, Iran and Syria need to be stopped by all means possible to let democracy flourish in the area.  Hopefully, the UN will support action because the US military is unable to help presently due to being tied down in Iraq.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: MHS2002 on August 11, 2006, 01:20:56 PM
I think I'll update this as well (topics are from beginning of thread):

Social Issues

General philosophy: Lean Conservative

Abortion: Strongly oppose in all cirumstances.

Separation of Church and State: There should not be an established religion, however I don't support the total separation of church and state. A local city hall that has a nativity scene should be allowed to keep such a scene up.

Marriage: Oppose any changes to the definition of marriage as it stands today. Oppose FMA. Would consider civil unions for homosexual couples or government out of marriage altogether. Unsure on how to vote on VA constitutional amendment in November.

Affirmative Action: Oppose for the most part.

Gun Control: Oppose for the most part, support 2nd Amendment.

Death Penalty: Support keeping it legal but the death penalty should be administered in only the most serious of circumstances.

Censorship: Some restrictions on public TV/radio waves, little restriction on pay TV/radio. Support some filtering of the internet at public schools and libraries.

Flag burning: Opposed to a law/amendment to ban flag burning

Hate crimes: Opposed to hate crimes legislation.

Hate speech: Generally opposed to hate speech legislation, although if you get your a** kicked, it happens.

Smoking: Opposed to laws that restrict where and when a person can smoke. This is a decision to be left up to the owner and the consumer.

Alcohol consumption: Support lowering the age to 19.

Euthanasia: Oppose legalization of euthanasia.

Drugs: Oppose legalization in general, willing to accept legalization of marajuana but little else.

Gambling: Support its legalization.

Prostitution: Oppose its legalization.

Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Oppose for the most part, if someone makes a good argument I might change my mind.

Immigration: Support increasing the ease with which skilled and unskilled immigrants can enter the country, provided they have no criminal record. Those who enter illegally should be sent back.


Economic Issues

General Philosophy: Conservative for the most part

Taxes: Top rate should be about 35%. Make deficit cuts a priority before tax cuts right now.

Unions: Support right to work laws.

Free trade: Support in almost all circumstances.

Spending: Cut unnecessary/wasteful/pork-barrel spending, cut farm subsidies, cut Medicare drug benefit, reform Medicare and Medicaid as a whole before they get out of hand. Wouldn't mind starting the whole budgetary process from scratch to be honest.

Social Security: Support some privatization measures.

Workers' Rights: Oppose the government telling business who they can and can not hire and fire. If you're fired for any reason other than poor performance, your employers will inevitably suffer and the market will give them what they deserve.

Space Program: Would support funding the thing if it was shown there was some use from the program.

Welfare: Temporary safety net in place for those that inevitably fall on hard times. Anyone receiving welfare should either be working or looking for a job.

Healthcare: Support basic healthcare for the young (i.e. those that can't help their financial situation), support some sort of healthcare "safety net" for the elderly and the poor, opposed to Medicare drug benefit, opposed to spending money on things like Viagra.

Education: Support vouchers for low-income students, support educational decisions made at the local level, not by some bureaucrat in D.C.


Foreign Issues

General Philosophy: #1 goal should be the protection of American citizens. However, U.S. should make efforts to assist other countries when it is feasible.

Democracy and Trade: Democracies that engage in economic trade rarely go to war with one another, would support efforts to make this a reality.

Anti (fill in the blank) Treaty: Support for chemical/biological, oppose for nuclear

United Nations: Reform, don't leave the United Nations. U.N. is a fairly inefficient body as well.

Iraq: Support then, support now. Don't leave until the job is 100% complete.

Israel: Strong supporter of Israel.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Josh/Devilman88 on August 11, 2006, 01:51:34 PM
Social Issues

General philosophy: Conservative

Separation of church and state: Oppose

Freedom of speech: Strongly Support.

Right to an abortion: I only support it in cases of rape and life and death cases.

Affirmative action: Strongly Oppose.

Gun rights: Oppose, we have the right to have guns, but I think we should have better systems to check backgrounds on the people who are bying them. 

Civil unions or gay marriage: Strongly Oppose on gay marriage, unsure on Civil unions.

Euthanasia: What ever.

Prostitution: Strongly Oppose.

Capital punishment: Strongly Support. 

Economic Issues

General philosophy: Leftist

Employers and Employees: Private employers should not discriminate based on race, gender, or other factors.

Taxation: Reduce for middle and low class, keep or raise for the rich.

Spending: Increase spending in education and social programs and education spending.

Free trade: Support only with countries that have labor laws up to par with our own. (Has human rights laws)

Funding of the space program: Keep the same.

Foreign policy

General philosophy: Central

Iraq: Stay in as long as need, but decrease the amount of soliders there.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Energy- Start look for other sources then oil.

Health Care- The Government should only help those who can't afford it.

Immigration-Sharply decrease the number immigration. They are taking our jobs and living off our tax payers.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Jake on August 11, 2006, 02:07:40 PM
Social Issues

General philosophy: Strong Conservative

Abortion: Strongly oppose in all cirumstances.

Separation of Church and State: I don't see anything wrong with religious displays by the government, as long as Congress doesn't attempt to influence how or what people worship. State governments should be free to establish or promote religion.

Marriage: I'd support the Federal Marriage Amendment, though I'm not very hostile to civil unions, as long as adoption rights are removed from the equation.

Affirmative Action: Oppose race based. I can see a reason for socio-economic based AA.

Gun Control: I support a nationwide gun registry with significant background checks, but I oppose trigger locks and limitations on what types of weapons can be owned; i.e. anything above an automatic weapon should remain banned, but I have no problem with automatic weapons that are registered. Major penalties for gun related crimes however.

Death Penalty: I'm morally opposed, but I can support keeping it legal as long as DNA evidence is a must.

Censorship: I support restricting objectionable content from non-pay radio and TV stations. Libraries and other government agencies should be allowed to enact strict filtering policies.

Flag burning: Strongly supportive of a flag burning amendment.

Hate crimes: Opposed to hate crimes legislation.

Hate speech: Opposed to hate speech legislation.

Smoking: I support public smoking bans; i.e. on the streets, subways, sidewalks, etc. Private property bans should be up to the owner.

Alcohol consumption: Support lowering the age to 19 and drastically increasing penalties for driving under the influence.

Euthanasia: Oppose legalization of euthanasia.

Drugs: I support the decriminalization of the use of marijuana, though the sale of marijuana should remain illegal.

Gambling: Support its legalization and oppose separate rights for Indian casinos.

Prostitution: Oppose its legalization.

Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Oppose embryonic stem cell research, and federal funding for it.

Immigration: Support opening our borders to more immigrants with a zero tolerance policy once they are here. Illegal immigrants should be eligible to become legal residents in exchange for a special tax payable over a certain period. No services should be provided to illegal aliens.


Economic Issues

General Philosophy: Moderate, though all over the board mostly.

Taxes: Taxes should be shouldered by all members of society, and I generally support to removal of capital gains taxes and an expansion of the income tax. Lower income workers should gain additional exemptions.

Unions: Oppose anything giving unions legal rights at all. Support expanding employer's right to fire employees without cause.

Free trade: Support in almost all circumstances. Should not be connected with anything but our economic benefit.

Spending: Deficits are fine for pressing reasons; i.e. war, recession, etc, but I oppose wasteful domestic spending or congressional pet projects. President should have a line item veto.

Social Security: Oppose privatization, and I think it should be turned into a low income retirement scheme.

Workers' Rights: Employment should come with a contract detailing salary, benefits, expected work, and conditions under which termination of employment can occur. The contract should be followed. I oppose laws blocking firing employees based on non-work related reasons.

Space Program: I support a level of space spending that allows the US to maintain or military and civilian satellite net. I support basing weapons in space.

Welfare: Support generally, though benefits should be tied to attempting to better your position through education or work experience. Abuses should be punished harshly.

Healthcare: US health care needs a top-bottom reform, as it's clear that our mixed public-private system with intense regulation is not successful in the least. I oppose universal health care being instituted as a band-aid program over our current system. Support strict limits on medical malpractice cases.

Education: Federal government's role should be as the funder of education. All decisions on school management and curriculum should be made at the school district level. Vouchers should be an option for all students.

Foreign Issues

General Philosophy: Promotion of US interests in the world. "Realist"

Democracy and Trade: Trade should not be dependent on democracy, civil rights, or political freedoms.

Anti (fill in the blank) Treaty: Oppose nuclear weapons bans and space weapons bans.

United Nations: Support the removal of Security Council veto powers as a start.

Iraq: Rebuild the country and attempt to introduce democratic reforms where possible.

Israel: Give Israel a blank check to "reform" the Middle East.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: jerusalemcar5 on August 11, 2006, 02:18:30 PM
Immigration-Sharply decrease the number immigration. They are taking our jobs and living off our tax payers.

Oh my goodness. That's something I'd only expect to come from jake or Carl Hayden's mouth.  "They" take "our" jobs.  What the hell?  Immigrants are Americans as well.  Most pay taxes while a lot of natural born Americans do not.  It is restrictions on immigration that leads to illegal immigration where these immigrants don't pay texas and are forced to hide to avoid deportation.  If we allowed more people to come in legally we could keep better track of them.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Brandon H on August 11, 2006, 03:14:59 PM
Overall: Paleo-Conservative

Social Issues

General philosophy: Conservative

Abortion: Strongly oppose - life begins at conception.

Separation of Church and State: (Besides the fact this does not appear in the Constitution.) Religious symbols are ok, but one religion should not be favored over another.

Marriage: Marraige should be left to the churches, not the government.

Affirmative Action: Oppose.

Gun Control: Anyone who owns a gun should make sure they are in control of it.

Death Penalty: Overused, but appropriate in some circumstances. Person should not spend more than 10 years on death row.

Censorship: Job of the parents, not government, though certain content should contain a warning.

Flag burning: Should not be illegal, but won't feel sorry if something bad happens to someone who does burn the flag.

Smoking: Should be legal on private property.

Alcohol consumption: Lower to 18.

Euthanasia: Oppose.

Drugs: Unsure.

Gambling: Lower to 18.

Prostitution: Oppose.

Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Oppose.

Adult Stem Cell Research: Favor, but should not be government funded.

Immigration: Borders should be secured. Not sure what to do with the II's that are already here. Don't know who they are, where they are, or how many they are. The legal process for obtaining a green card and citizenship should be easier.

USA PATRIOT Act: Oppose for U.S. Citizens.

Selective Service & Draft: Should be eliminated; unConstitutional.
 
Economic Issues

General Philosophy: Conservative.

Taxes: Income tax should be lowered. Support sin-tax and "entertainment tax". Would support corporate taxes, but it would be ineffective - cost would be passed on to customers.

Spending: Lowered. Many services provided by the federal government would be more efficient if provided by state and local governments.

Unions: Workers should be allowed to organize, but should not be granted any special rights.

Free trade: Oppose Bush Quasi Free Trade. Mixed on Real Free Trade. We should purchase from where they are the cheapest, but the trade deficit is not good for the country.

Social Security: Make optional and phase out over time; make sure anyone who paid into system is given back what they put in.

Workers' Rights: Workers should have rights.

Space Program: Support

Welfare: Limited support at State level.

Healthcare: Oppose socialized healthcare, but accept the fact that some people can not pay for it themself, so state should provide healthcare if necessary. Frivilous lawsuits are partially responsible for increase in costs.

Education: Should be funded by state and local governments.

Copyrights & Patents: Should harder to get something approved or sue for infringement. DMCA should be repealed.

Foreign Issues

General Philosophy: Realist

Democracy and Trade: Trade should benefit the U.S., but the trade deficit is hurting the country.

United Nations: U.S. should withdraw and they should find a new home.

WTO, NAFTA, CAFTA, WIPO, FTAA, GATT: U.S. should withdraw from these organizations and any other that threatens American Sovereignty.

Iraq: Shouldn't have gone in the first place, but now that we are there, we need to finish the job. Should have finished the job in Afghanistan before even considering going into Iraq.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Rob on August 11, 2006, 06:16:13 PM
Social Issues

General philosophy: Hates Jesus

Abortion: I support the continued availability of these services, including so-called "partial-birth" abortion.

Separation of Church and State: Strongly support. Pray in church if you must, but don't shove your beliefs on others via the government.

Marriage: I support same-sex marriage. I wouldn't have a problem with government getting out of "marriage" and granting everyone civil unions, either.

Affirmative Action: Support class-based AA for college admissions.

Gun Control: Oppose, with obvious exceptions (RPGs, etc.).

Death Penalty: Oppose; there are too many innocent people on death row for me to comfortably support state-sponsored murder.

Censorship: No restrictions on radio or television content. It would also be nice if the MPAA and ESRB would fade away (I'm aware that these aren't government agencies).

Flag burning: Don't ban it, especially not with a constitutional amendment. Doesn't Congress have more important things to do?

Hate crimes: Oppose.

Hate speech: Oppose censorship.

Smoking: Don't ban public smoking, as disgusting as it is.

Alcohol consumption: Lower drinking age to 18.

Euthanasia: Keep it legal; if a person wants to take their own life, it's their business.

Drugs: Legalize everything, regulate, and tax.

Gambling: Legalize everywhere.

Prostitution: Legalize everywhere.

Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Strongly, strongly support.

Immigration: Make future immigration easier; grant amnesty to undocumented workers currently in the US.

Economic Issues

General Philosophy: Communist!!!1

Taxes: Tax the hell out of the top 1 percent. Also oppose regressive sales taxes.

Unions: Strongly support the right to unionize.

Free trade: Oppose NAFTA.

Spending: Oppose corporate subsidies, cut military spending, increase social spending and foreign aid.

Social Security: Keep as is.

Workers' Rights: Workplace safety rules = good.

Space Program: Support (knowledge- even impractical knowledge- is always valuable), but I oppose the ridiculously expensive manned Mars landing that our President has proposed.

Welfare: Increase spending.

Healthcare: Support universal healthcare.

Education: Oppose vouchers, increase spending on public ed, make it easier for the poor to attend college.

Foreign Issues

General Philosophy: Blame America first

Democracy and Trade: Good things. :P

Anti (fill in the blank) Treaty: The fewer weapons humans can use to slaughter each other with, the better.

United Nations: Strongly support.

Iraq: Disastrous illegal war; withdraw all US troops by the end of 2007.

Israel: Cut off all military aid; work toward closer relationships with the Arab states.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Speed of Sound on August 11, 2006, 06:27:55 PM
Dude, your freakin awesome. :)


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: The Dowager Mod on August 11, 2006, 06:40:33 PM
Separation of church and state: keep your messiah out of my government.

Freedom of speech: Support.

Right to an abortion: On demand at anytime until the third trimester for any reason.

Affirmative action: couldn't care less, if i'm the best one for a job i'll get it.

Gun rights: Anyone should be allowed to own a gun without restrictions.

Civil unions or gay marriage: If two people are in love what does it really hurt to let them be married?

Euthanasia: Anyone should have the right to end their life at any time.

Prostitution: Should always be illegal.

Capital punishment: total B.S.

Economic Issues


Employers and Employees: All employees should have the right to strike for better conditions without the threat of being fired.

Taxation: Tax the rich more

Spending: We need to spend a helluva lot less on the military and more on helping people get out of poverty.

Free trade: oppose
Funding of the space program: Waste of money until we come up with a better and faster way to get anywhere interesting.

Foreign policy


Iraq: The right war at the wrong time and the wrong place.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: © tweed on August 11, 2006, 07:48:50 PM
Social Issues

General philosophy: I don't know what to call it

Abortion: I support the legality of first-trimester abortions and illegality thereafter

Separation of Church and State: Should be extended to every individual state

Marriage: Support equal economic benefits for heterosexual and homosexual couples.

Affirmative Action: Oppose.  I don't want black people taking my jobs.

Gun Control: Support more than anyone on this forum in all likelyhood.  The second amendment should be repealed.

Death Penalty: Oppose in all circumstances.  But I don't like the "save Tookie" bullsh**t that goes on either.  He's not worth our time.

Censorship: No restrictions necessarily, but a governmental department should place a rating on every TV show, movie, and video game to allow parents to decide what to let their kids watch.

Flag burning: Sounds like fun.

Hate crimes: Oppose hate crime legislation

Hate speech: Oppose hate speech legislation

Smoking: I hate tobacco companies, so it's appealing to ban smoking, but it doesn't hurt sales so forget it.  Let property owners decide what they'd like to do inside their own property.

Alcohol consumption: Lowering drinking age to 18 is a decent start.  A 21 year old drinking age is idiotic and repressive.

Euthanasia: Technically illegal, but a slap on the wrist penalty for doctors who perform.  $75 fine.

Drugs: Lessen penalties on hard drug possession.  There should be no such thing as jail time for possession.

Gambling: Legalize everywhere with no gambling age.

Prostitution: The prostitution industry should be nationalized.  The government can make money through running brothels.

Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Support government funding

Immigration: Amnesty for illegal immigrants.  Build a fence if that makes you feel so much better, but have private corporations build it since they're so wonderful.

Economic Issues

General Philosophy: 21st century socialism

Taxes: Raise top income tax bracket to 50% and incrementally increase after that until you get to the bottom 30%.

Unions: Union workers should be protected from being fired during strikes.  Right to work laws should be repealed.

Free trade: Oppose free trade.

Spending: Cut military spending and corporate welfare.  Add government programs that aid the poor.

Social Security: Wonderful program

Workers' Rights: Essential defense from exploitation

Space Program: Slash it

Welfare: Maintain current level of spending

Healthcare: Support universal, single payer healthcare.

Education: Oppose vouchers, increase public education spending

Foreign Issues

General Philosophy: Interventionist isolationism

Democracy and Trade: Democracy is incompatible with Islam and efforts to expand democracy to the middle east should be ended.

Anti (fill in the blank) Treaty: Like SALT?  Don't care, although the USA got shafted on the salts.

United Nations: Support it's existance.

Iraq: Cut and run by end of 2006

Israel: Not a big fan.  I give them their best wishes in their fight with Hezbollah and Hamas and so on.  They've been fighting for 1000+ years, it isn't going to end now.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: DownWithTheLeft on August 11, 2006, 10:00:24 PM
According to Jon Corzine the drinking age already is 18! :)

Moderator: Should the drinking age be lower to 18?

Corzine: Isn't it already?

Forrester: No, no, actually its not, you really should check that

LOL


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Josh/Devilman88 on August 11, 2006, 11:58:20 PM
According to Jon Corzine the drinking age already is 18! :)

Moderator: Should the drinking age be lower to 18?

Corzine: Isn't it already?

Forrester: No, no, actually its not, you really should check that

LOL

A beautiful moment indeed.

Who is that person in your sig?


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Boris on August 12, 2006, 12:42:02 AM
Social Issues

general philosophy: Hard to pin down, but I guess overall, I lean liberal.

Abortion: Strongly oppose in all circumstances with the usual exceptions.

Separation of Church and State: Strongly support.

Marriage: Support homosexual marriage, although I oppose homosexual adoption.

Affirmative Action: Oppose.

Gun Control: Strongly Support. The 2nd amendment sucks. Support the Gun Control Act of 1968.

Death Penalty: Oppose in all circumstances.

Censorship: Strongly oppose any censorship of the entertainment mediums. Let the viewers decide what's inappropriate and what's not.

Flag burning: Don't care.

Hate crimes: Oppose hate crime legislation

Hate speech: Oppose hate speech legislation

Smoking: Support public smoking bans.

Alcohol consumption: Don't care. Just because the drinking age is 21 doesn't mean that underage drinking isn't prevalent. It's impossible to enforce anyway.

Euthanasia: Should be illegal.

Drugs: Support decriminalization of marijuana and lessen penalities on drug posession. However, I support the War on Drugs when it comes to fighting drug traffickers and hard drugs. Nevertheless, I feel as if the War on Drugs has been mismanaged since the 1970s, and in its present form, is unwinnable.

Gambling: Should be left up to local areas.

Prostitution: Strongly support its legalization, with government regulation.

Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Strongly support with government funding.

Immigration: Not very knowledgeable about this issue. I support amnesty for illegal immigrants, but we need to do something about the border. What to do, alas, is the question.

Economic Issues

General Philosophy: Moderate

Taxes: Support maintaining current tax levels for the upper brackets, while lowering taxes for the middle and lower classes.

Unions: Eh, mixed opinions. In some cases, they're good, but in other cases, they're awful.

Free trade: Generally support. Support NAFTA.

Spending: I believe in fiscal responsibility (i.e. not the current administration's viewpoint). Maintain defense spending levels, but scratch any missile defense program or any programs designed to deal with Cold War threats. Oppose "great society" type programs to help the poor, in general, although there should be some welfare.

Social Security: Oppose privitization.

Workers' Rights: Support, to a point.

Space Program: Strongly support.

Welfare: Fine as it is currently. 

Healthcare: Support universal healthcare (single-payer).

Education: increase spending, oppose vouchers.

Foreign Issues

General Philosophy: Interventionist/Hawk.

Democracy and Trade: Don't link human rights to China. It isn't economically viable and we can't do anything about it.

Anti (fill in the blank) Treaty: Strongly support disarmament of all nuclear weapons and efforts to stop nuclear proliferation.

United Nations: Strongly support, although it needs to be far more efficient. Nevertheless, I am a major proponent of mutli-lateralism and support working with NATO in all of our large military operations. In fact, I wouldn't engage in any large military action without support from the UK, France, and Germany.

Iraq: Eh, not much we can do but wait for the Iraqis to get strong enough to take over their own nation. Thank you Mr. President for getting us into this inescapable quagmire!

Israel: Tough one. Hezbolllah is a terrorist group, no doubt about it, but Israel's conduct during the Lebanese conflict has been awful. I guess I'd express scorn over the present conflict, but alas, I'd still support Israel. But most importantly, I'd work towards compromise and peace in the Middle east.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: CPT MikeyMike on August 14, 2006, 09:51:12 AM

Social Issues

Abortion: Generally oppose but understand for rape, incest, protecting life of mother.

Separation of Church and State: Overrated – I really don’t care

Marriage: Let the states decide. What you do in the bedroom is not my business and don’t make it my business!

Affirmative Action: Oppose – strongly.

Gun Control: Strongly Support LARGO. Lawful and Responsible Gun Owners

Death Penalty: Oppose for murderers if they can have hard labor in prisons. Support it for rapists and child molesters.

Censorship: Strongly oppose any censorship of the entertainment mediums. Let the viewers decide what's inappropriate and what's not.

Flag burning: I punched a person/hippie trying to burn a flag back in ’98 so I think you know where I stand.

Hate crimes: Oppose hate crime legislation

Hate speech: Oppose hate speech legislation

Smoking: Support public smoking bans in public places

Alcohol consumption: Don't care. People are going to drink no matter what age.

Euthanasia: Should be illegal.

Drugs: Support decriminalization of marijuana.

Gambling: No opinion but it’s a bad habit.

Prostitution: No opinion

Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Support increased government funding.

Immigration: Build the fence between US and Mexico. Employers who wire illegal immigrants face tough financial and criminal penalties.

Economic Issues

Taxes: Eliminate all taxes and institute a national sales tax (under 3%)

Unions: Against

Free trade: Generally support. Support NAFTA.

Spending: Have a balanced budget. Military spending should be kept at current status. Eliminate programs that are “Great Society” like welfare, food stamps, medicaid etc.

Social Security:  What you put in, you get back. Support privatization.

Workers' Rights: Support, to a point.

Space Program: No opinion.

Welfare: Have it but, make it next to impossible to get. 

Healthcare: Keep status quo

Education: Support vouchers and school choice.

Foreign Issues

Democracy and Trade: Unless it is a threat to our security, then trade all you want. Of course support spreading democracy. Cuba embargo should be lifted. If it is, within 10 years, Communism will be dead.

United Nations: Totally f***ed up. Need strong reform. John Bolton’s not a bad choice for the US UN Rep.

Iraq: Need to ensure that their military and police are fully trained and ready to protect their country. When they can do that, then redeploy.

North Korea: They are only going to shoot themselves in the foot. With pressure from Japan, South Korea and China, North Korea will fail to exist in 20 years.

Iran: Honestly, wipe it off the map!


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Reignman on August 14, 2006, 12:38:57 PM
Social Issues

General philosophy: Liberal?

Abortion: First 1-2 trimesters legal; try to make it rare without limiting choice.

Separation of Church and State: A good thing; a nativity scene in front of a library is just fine.

Marriage: Support gay marriage; state-issue, and preference for legislatures figuring it out instead of courts.

Affirmative Action: Support to an extent (i.e. Bill Clinton).

Gun Control: State issue, although AKs should be illegal again.

Death Penalty: Oppose in all circumstances.

Censorship: Current level seems OK.

Flag burning: Disrespectful, but should be legal.

Hate crimes: Oppose hate crime legislation

Hate speech: Huh?

Smoking: Shouldn't be taxed any more than it already is.

Alcohol consumption: A bad idea, but don't change policy towards it.

Euthanasia: Legal, but I don't particularly care either way.

Drugs: Legalize/De-criminalize marijuana and don't spend so much on finding drugs (it just lowers supply, drives up the price, and then encourages people to make 'em).

Gambling: A bad idea, but don't change policy towards it.

Prostitution: Keep illegal. I mean seriously--ew.

Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Support government funding.

Immigration: Try and keep illegal immigration down; guest worker programs sound OK (we wouldn't want to deport them all since they do jobs no one else wants to do, but we shouldn't open up our borders either).

Economic Issues

General Philosophy: Liberal?

Taxes: Close loopholes. Consider making it more progressive, but not by much.

Unions: Dunno.

Free trade: Support free trade.

Spending: Cut corporate welfare other pork. Reduce military funding for fighter jets which become "obsolete" after a couple of years and spend more on protecting soldiers (body/tank armor, etc.).

Social Security: Change indexing from wage to cost-of-living, lift 90k ceiling, increase retirement age to 67.

Workers' Rights: Huh?

Space Program: Don't particularly care.

Welfare: Maintain current level of spending.

Healthcare: Require anyone who can pay for health insurance to do so, subsidize it for everyone else.

Education: Increase funding. Not a big fan of vouchers, but I could be potentially open to some.

Foreign Issues

General Philosophy: ?

Democracy and Trade: Huh?

Anti (fill in the blank) Treaty: Huh?

United Nations: Good.

Iraq: Have most of our troops out of the country within 6 months.

Israel: End military aid, if not because they don't need it, because they too often have disproportionate/indiscriminate military actions.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Undisguised Sockpuppet on August 14, 2006, 02:16:31 PM
Social Issues

General philosophy: LEAVE PEOPLE THE FUCK ALONE!!

Abortion: Not the government's problem.

Separation of Church and State: Keep the churches from doing "morals' legislation but allow things like public nativity scene.

Marriage: Support giving everyone civil unions and letting churches hash out what is "marriage"

Affirmative Action: Abolish

Gun Control: End all gun control

Death Penalty: Use it if you need to.

Censorship: Unless its kiddie porn, necrophilia, bestiality or anything by Mike Naso allow it on daytime TV

Flag burning: Keep it legal

Hate crimes: Oppose strongly

Hate speech: Keep it legal. We have enough PC

Smoking: End takes on tobacco and remove all smoking bans

Alcohol consumption: End all anti public drinking laws and the high drinking age

Euthanasia: not the government's problem

Drugs: Legalize/De-criminalize marijuana and don't spend so much on finding drugs (it just lowers su

Gambling: Legalize

Prostitution: Legalize

Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Legalize and take down the names of those responsible for protesting against it/stopping it in congress. Bar those people frmo EVER using medical procedures derieved from stem cell research.

Immigration: Close the borders, deport all illegals and end all ideas of guest worker programs. Also open up immigration mroe from latin america and east asia while ending all african/muslim immigration.

Economic Issues

General Philosophy: Meh

Taxes: Make it more progressive

Unions: Stop being so anti-union in legislation

Free trade: Support free trade.

Spending: End all pork spending

Social Security: Bar anyone born before 9/11/1987 from getting any beneftists whatosever and use the funds of contributers born before then as a nest egg.

Workers' Rights: Meh

Space Program: Favor strongly. I favor cutting the miltiary budget to say the same total amount of money as Japan and using the space program to stimulatew the economy.

Welfare: Maintain current level of spending.

Healthcare: Euro style singlepayer healthcare.

Education: Vouchers.

Foreign Issues

General Philosophy: The west united for western civilization

Democracy and Trade: Screw democracy

Anti (fill in the blank) Treaty: Huh?

United Nations: Bad. too biased towarrds third worlders.

Iraq: Establish genghis khan style rules of engagmenet. If ther'es no IRaqis left there won't be any insurgency.

Israel: Give the isrealis green cards and airlift them out. Isreal is too much trouble


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Alcon on August 14, 2006, 02:19:57 PM
Gun Control: Oppose, with obvious exceptions (RPGs, etc.).

Wait, you oppose except for rocket-propelled grenades? :P


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Rob on August 14, 2006, 03:41:23 PM
Gun Control: Oppose, with obvious exceptions (RPGs, etc.).

Wait, you oppose except for rocket-propelled grenades? :P

Think about it. I oppose gun control, except in the case of heavy weaponry.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: RBH on November 25, 2006, 10:24:22 PM
General philosophy: Social Libertarian

Possibly a misnomer.

Quote
Separation of church and state: I support the current constitutional wall between organized religion and the Government. I don't care too much about if "Under God" is in the pledge or what's on our coins, because it's not unconstitutional.

Still true

Quote
Freedom of speech: I support it in it's current constitutional status. I also feel the Internet is helping more people exercise that freedom.

Still true

Quote
Right to an abortion: The status quo works for me. The government should be more concerned about reducing unwanted pregnancies than trying to find ways to restrict abortions.

The government probably can't reduce abortions anyways. But, ineffective nudging beats banning.

Quote
Affirmative action: Favor until it's unneeded. But, we should have a fair check of that sometime soon.

Still true.

Quote
Gun rights: Support it. Handguns, Shotguns, Rifles. I don't care if you like guns and I won't stop you. We should do more to crack down on illegal sales.

Left of the NRA, Right of the Gun Controllers

Quote
Euthanasia: Support if the person who is going to die clearly wants to die.

Although I'd rather not have people be ordered to die due to medical conditions if they don't consent to such a thing.

Quote
Prostitution: Leave that up to states.

Granted, there's no real way to get prostitution to work. And I'd rather try to keep the government's hands out of that.

Quote
Capital punishment: Support it if it's done responsibly. It's constitutional too, in my POV. We should make sure there are ways to prevent bias due to anything other than the manner of the crime.

Still true

Quote
General philosophy: Compassionate Capitalism.

If such a thing exists. ;)

Quote
Free trade: I support trade where we don't get screwed and where we don't screw others. I support free and fair trade.

Although free trade isn't always free.

Quote
General philosophy: Fair but not Stupid

"A friend to all who seek honest friendship"

Quote
Iraq: Skeptical at first, Opposed now. We should remove all the troops if the Iraqi government wishes for it. We should also make sure they can deal with the terrorists and rebels in their nation. When it comes to Iraqi Democracy, I hope they can pull it off, but I suspect they may have another dictator within the next decade.

16 months, no real change

Quote
War on Terror: We should make sure that the number of people joining terrorists goes down. We should infiltrate and destroy terrorist groups. We should shut the backdoor and hammer them from the front. Bin Laden's terrorism is based on his personal interest and his personal grudges.

Yeah, I don't think a lot of progress is being made there.

Other stuff.

Unions: Support em. They're needed to balance the playing field.

Immigration: I haven't figured out if there's a good idea on this. Red tape needs to be cut in the INS.

Flag burning: A stupid means of protest. I'd rather prosecute those people for some form of littering.

Hate crimes: A good idea in some instances, as long as it doesn't go too far and as long as it's fair.

Hate speech: We're not Canada. Words don't kill, people do.

Smoking: If people wanna do it, let them do it. And tax them too.

Alcohol consumption: Tax these people too.

Drugs: Find new ways to crack down on drugs. Find sensible ways to stop drug prosecutions from overcrowding prisons.

Gambling: It's the state's right

Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Support it federally and state-wise.

Social Security: Keep it strong, don't allow privatization.

Workers' Rights: Yes, they should be able to strike and fairly negotiate with employers

Welfare: Keep it working well for people who need it.

Healthcare: Find ways to expand the scope and reduce the costs.

Education: Workable funding, with minimal waste

Foreign Policy

United Nations: A force for good when focused. Don't pull out.

Israel: I support their right to exist and I like them more than the Palestinean terrorist groups.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: adam on January 20, 2007, 06:54:45 PM
Social:
Liberal
- I am pro-choice in the first trimester, and in RLM cases.
- I support civil-unions.
- I support marijuana decriminalization.
- I am pro-prostitution.
- I am anti-censorship, within reason.
- I am pro-stem cell research.

Mixed
- I am anti-smoking ban.
- I am neutral on flag burning.
- I am neutral on euthanasia.

Conservative
- I strongly support the death penalty, as well as extending it's use to rapists and child molesters.
- I am strongly opposed to illegal immigration.
- I oppose gay marriage.
- I oppose government sanctioned political correctness.
- I oppose removing "under god" from the pledge.
- I strongly oppose gun control.


Economic:
Liberal:
- I support significantly increasing funding for public education and dumping NCLB.
- I support increasing teacher salaries.
- I support more government funding for medicaid and other health programs.
- I oppose trade agreements (NAFTA, GATT)
- I support more government research into renewable energy.

Mixed
- I support cutting welfare and other programs, and using the money saved to fund job training.
- I oppose congressional earmarks.
- I would oppose both increasing and decreasing foreign aid.

Conservative
- I strongly oppose affirmative action.
- I support free trade.
- I support dismantling the IRS and replacing it with a fair tax.
- I generally support businesses over unions.
- I oppose stronger environmental regulations.
- I support privatizing a portion of Social Security.
- I would support a balanced budget ammendment.
- I oppose campaign finance reform.
- I oppose raising the minimum wage.

Foreign Policy and Homeland Security:
Liberal:
- I oppose the Patriot Act.
- I oppose NSA wire-tapping.
- I would strongly oppose a draft.

Mixed:
- I am undecided on the troop surge.
- I am pro-Israel.

Conservative:
- I support increasing troop salaries and benefits.
- I support significantly increasing military funding.
- I supported the invasion of Afghanistan.
- I still support the invasion of Iraq.
- I support pulling out of the UN.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: tik 🪀✨ on January 21, 2007, 04:14:04 PM
- Fire stations should be privatized.
- Any game of basketball that does not properly reflect the distribution of race in society should be outlawed*

That's about it for me.

* HORSE not included (white man's game)


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: tik 🪀✨ on January 21, 2007, 04:45:05 PM

hell doesn't have privatized fire stations which is why it's always on fire


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: MaC on January 21, 2007, 04:47:58 PM
- Fire stations should be privatized.

Freedom Fighter!


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: ○∙◄☻¥tπ[╪AV┼cVê└ on January 21, 2007, 04:50:15 PM

Damn, you mean that isn't just a straw man position?


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: MaC on February 04, 2007, 11:22:28 PM

Damn, you mean that isn't just a straw man position?

don't take this forum too seriously.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Gustaf on February 05, 2007, 05:36:40 AM

hell doesn't have privatized fire stations which is why it's always on fire

That was a quite well set-up joke.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: SPC on March 05, 2007, 10:01:06 PM
Social:
Liberal
- I am pro-choice at the state level
- I support civil-unions.
- I support decriminalization of any drug
- I am pro-prostitution.
- I am anti-censorship, within reason.
- I am pro-stem cell research.
- I am tolerant of flag burning, so long as you do it on your own property.
- I support euthanasia.
- I strongly support removing "under god" from the pledge.
- I support evolution
- I oppose school prayer
Mixed
- I am anti-smoking ban.
- I am opposed to illegal immigration, but feel that quotas should be abolished.
Conservative
- I strongly support the death penalty, as well as extending it's use to rapists and child molesters.
- I oppose gay marriage.
- I oppose government sanctioned political correctness.
- I strongly oppose gun control.


Economic:
Liberal:
- I support a tariff on foreign oil
- I support more government research into renewable energy.
Mixed
- I support cutting welfare and other programs, and using the money saved to fund job training.
- I am neutral congressional earmarks.
Conservative
- I strongly oppose affirmative action.
- I support free trade.
- I support dismantling the IRS.
- I generally support businesses over unions.
- I oppose stronger environmental regulations.
- I support privatizing Social Security.
- I would support a balanced budget ammendment.
- I oppose campaign finance reform.
- I oppose raising the minimum wage.
- I oppose increasing funding for public education and NCLB.
- I strongly oppose more government funding for medicaid and other health programs.
- I oppose foreign aid.
- I strongly oppose the FDA, the IRS, and the ATF
-
Foreign Policy and Homeland Security:
Liberal:
- I oppose the Patriot Act.
- I oppose NSA wire-tapping.
- I would strongly oppose a draft.
- I oppose the troop surge.
- I oppose increasing military funding.
- I support withdrawal from areas of the world where our presence is unnecesary (i.e. Europe, Afghanistan, Japan)
- I do not believe in going to war with countries that do not pose a direct threat to us.
Mixed:
- I am pro-Israel.
- I support partitioning Iraq.
Conservative:
- I support pulling out of the UN.
- I believe that we need to be aggresive toward Iran and North Korea to stop their nuclear programs
- I do not believe that habeus corpus applies to prisoners of war. (i.e. Gitmo)


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Dr. Cynic on March 05, 2007, 11:33:50 PM
Hmm... I don't remember doing this, so I will now.

I am a social liberal. I support abortion rights (Although not publicly funded unless it poses a danger to the mother's life), I am pro-Gay marraige, and pro-stem cell research. I am pro-marijuana legalization, and pro-euthanasia. I am opposed to organized school prayer, and am pro-gun. I also believe in some form of National Health Care. I oppose the death penalty. However, I oppose affirmative action, and would like to see something more efficent take its place.

Economically, I am also Liberal. I believe strongly in the tariff, and the progressive income tax. I oppose tax breaks to large corporations, but support them for small businesses. I am generally pro-Labor, although there have been some exceptions (Namely in certain school strikes where the teachers make alot more than they're worth... In one school I remember that went out, the teachers made 100K a year and had a health plan). I strongly support a minimum wage raise.

On foreign policy, I consider myself moderate-liberal. I support increasing the millitary's budget, and oppose Star Wars as a waste. I oppose unilateral millitary action, and believe that the millitary should only be called to duty in cases of national defense or human rights. I opposed the war in Iraq, but supported the invasion of Afghanistan. I oppose the creation of a "Peace Department". I oppose Nuclear disarmament as impractical.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: NDN on July 06, 2007, 01:00:53 AM
My views have evolved considerably. By now I'm basically a social liberal, fiscal conservative and a (pragmatic) internationalist.

Social Issues:

Abortion: Pro-choice. 1st and 2nd trimester abortions should be available on demand. 3rd trimester abortions should always be allowed for health/life saving reasons. If a women can not afford an abortion but needs one for health/life saving reasons, she should be provided with one by the government.

Gay Rights: Strongly support. Legalize Gay Marriage, Adoption, Open Military Service, etc.

Separation of Church and State: Strongly support. End "faith based initiatives," compulsory AA attendance, vouchers for religious schools (the Supreme Court was wrong), etc.

Affirmative Action: Oppose. The most qualified person should always get the job. With that said, I recognize there are still disparities. But those should be remedied by vigorous enforcement of anti-discrimination laws -- not government sanctioned discrimination.

Gun Control: I reluctantly support gun registration and licensing to screen out the mentally incompetent or criminal, but otherwise oppose gun control.

Death Penalty: Support for violent repeat offenders, and with regulations such as videotaping interrogations, witnesses, etc. for cases involving murder.

Censorship: Strongly oppose any censorship of the entertainment mediums. Let consumers make their own viewing or listening decisions. We don't need anymore moral guardians or government officials telling us what we can or can't see.

Flag burning: It's unconstitutional to ban it on the grounds of "offensiveness", although ordinances preventing it based on safety concerns might be OK.

Hate crimes: Oppose. It's redundant, just try them for assault/murder/etc. Everyone should be equal under the law, creating "special" crimes for minorities is hypocritical.

Hate speech: Support within reason. It's one thing to engage in defamation or encourage violence, it's another to just be prejudiced. The former are directly harmful, the latter isn't.

Smoking: I support public smoking bans. While people have every right to smoke, second-hand smoke is a health risk that no one has the "right" to expose others to.

Alcohol consumption: It should be legal to buy beer at 18, and the drinking age should be abolished. The current laws are unenforceable, inconsistent, and ultimately hostile to personal freedom.

Euthanasia: It should be legal. Who is the government to tell the terminally ill and suffering that they can not end their pain?

Drugs: I support the legalization of at least soft drugs, and the decriminalization of drugs in general. The current War on Drugs is an expensive, tyrannical failure just like Alcohol Prohibition was.

Gambling: It should be legal to gamble, but Casino development and the like should be left up to local areas.

Prostitution: It should be legalized immediately.

Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Strongly support. The opposition to this infuriates me. People, these aren't even fetuses, they're embryos. They're cells. Do you really care more about something that isn't even in the womb more than suffering Parkison's or Alzheimer's patients?

Immigration: We should increase funding to ICE, slap companies that hire illegal immigrants with stiff fines, and establish an Earned Citizenship policy that allows certain illegal immigrants to become citizens. I oppose Guest Worker Programs and Blanket Amnesty however.

Patriot Act: Oppose, at least in current form. Certain sections of it such as 215 are still too broad and undermine or flat out eliminate basic civil liberties such as protection from unwarranted searches and seizures, privacy, etc. People might feel safer, but ultimately if the government can break the highest law of the land in order to protect us, no one is safe.

Economic Issues

Taxes: Should be progressive and tied to spending (Pay-GO). Cut them if spending is cut, but raise them if spending is raised (better to do that then have inflation and huge tax hikes later).

Unions: They're holding a lot of this country back, such as the Rust Belt. In many respects, they have as negative of an influence in politics as Big Business. I support restricting the right to strike further and  reducing their power considerably. If possible, I'd flat out abolish private unions, although that would probably be unconstitutional.

Free trade: While I dislike the bureaucracy associated with NAFTA, WTO, etc. I firmly support Free Trade, and thus am willing to tolerate those if we have no other options. Free Trade means more markets for American Businesses, cheaper and more diverse goods for American Consumers, and increased peace and prosperity in the long term.

Spending: I believe in fiscal responsibility. Roll back pork spending both domestically and military wise. That means slashing subsidies, unnecessary military spending projects, etc. At least a third or more of the current government should be either cut or flat out abolished.

Social Security: Abolish Social Security as we know it. Only provide benefits for the poor and disabled. We did it for Welfare, why are we treating this as a sacred cow? Also, if we do keep it, make it illegal for congress to raid the trust fund.

Space Program: We should look into privatization. The near-monopoly NASA has had on space exploration has resulted in stagnation and little advancement. And Space Tourism or Space-Plane Manufacturing is a promising industry...

Welfare: Continue reform.  Welfare should focus on providing temporary child care and getting parents who are able to work back to work.

Health-care: I think we should implement Massachusetts-style Healthcare Reform nation-wide. Everyone within a certain income range should be covered by Medicare/Medicaid, the rest should be required to buy health insurance.

Education: We need to overhaul our whole approach. The Department of Education should be abolished, as it has done little if anything to improve education. The US should establish a "National Education Trust Fund" instead to ensure that the federal government meets its obligation to fully fund our educational priorities and to make sure that schools can meet high standards. Teacher's salaries should be raised and mass renovation of schools (with thorough audits to prevent waste) should begin.

Foreign Policy Issues:

Democracy and Trade: Don't link human rights to China. It isn't economically viable and we can't do anything about it. By the same token, end the embargo on Cuba. We could make more money and destabilize the Socialist government there if we just let American business into that country.

Anti (fill in the blank) Treaty: Strongly support disarmament of nuclear weapons and efforts to stop nuclear proliferation.

United Nations: It's corrupt and needs reform, but our participation is needed. The UN still provides many valuable programs that combat poverty, hunger, etc. world-wide and is still one of the best tools for diplomacy out there.

Afghanistan: Increase funding for the Afghani war and work to convert the Opium there into pharmaceutical drugs. That's both more realistic and more profitable for American business. The current attempts at stopping the heroin trade by burning Poppyfields isn't working.

Iraq: A disaster. Iraq was never a threat to anyone, there was no reason whatsoever to invade it. Furthermore, our presence in Iraq is just fueling the current insurgency further. The US should attempt to re-partition Iraq, then immediately leave.

Russia: Russia might be hostile to us now, but a lot of that is justifiable paranoia. We didn't help ourselves by invading Iraq pre-emptively or by continuing to threaten them with nuclear weapons and bases long after the Cold War ended. We need to engage them and take a carrot-stick approach, emphasizing that they can do whatever they want to get rid of their own Islamist/terrorist problem. A Russian-American alliance is achievable if we play our cards right.

Israel: Hezbollah and Hamas are both terrorist groups and hostile to the West, no doubt about it, but Israel's conduct in many respects has been almost equally bad (and it's creation was a mistake).  I'm really at a loss as to what we should do here. Each time we intervene, we tend to make things worse.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Small Business Owner of Any Repute on July 06, 2007, 02:20:59 AM
Social Issues:

Abortion: Pro-choice: keep abortion safe, legal, and rare.  Opposed to partial birth abortion, except for the health/life of the mother.  Supportive of parental notification (with Judicial override).

Gay Rights: Support across the board.  Lukewarm on support for hate crimes legislation, however.

Separation of Church and State: Keep 'em separate, boys.

Affirmative Action: Strongly oppose quotas.  Affirmative action should be phased out, but the government should still continue periodic checks to make sure race-based discrimination is not happening in the workplace.

Gun Control: I support a ban on assault weapons.  Mandatory background checks.  Lukewarm support of the Brady Bill -- a waiting period is a good idea, but likely to be ineffective.

Death Penalty: Support only for the most heinous of crimes where guilt can be proven without a shadow of doubt.

Censorship: First Amendment supporter, though there should be common-sense controls on television (e.g., no profanity in kids programs, no graphic sex acts on network TV, etc.).

Flag burning: Protected by the First Amendment, and should stay that way.

Hate crimes: See above.  The government should not be in the business of punishing thought.

Hate speech: First Amendment, within reason, so long as said speech does not lead to actual, physical violence (as it sometimes does).

Smoking: In general, I'm fine with indoor smoking bans.

Alcohol consumption: Ultimately supportive of reducing the drinking age to 18 on principle, but certainly not a crusader: the streets are safer with alcohol being available only to those over 21.

Euthanasia: Should be legal.

Drugs: Legalize marijuana.  Hard drugs are a key contributor to violent and property crime, and should stay illegal, but punishments should be fair and equitable.

Gambling: An issue best left for towns and states to decide.  I do not support the massive Indian Casino tax breaks.

Prostitution: Legalize and heavily regulate.

Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Strongly support.  Public funding should indeed be made available.

Immigration: Guest worker/amnesty programs are duds.  We should severely punish employers of illegal aliens, but ultimately increase the level of legal immigraton into the country.

Environment: Create a carbon trading market.  Push increases in CAFE.  Global warming IS real, and oil WILL run out, so it is important to research alternative, low-impact energy sources now.  Fuel cell technology looks like a poor option: push hybrids in the short term, electric in the long term (powered, ultimately, by clean fuel).  Bring existing but dormant nuclear plants back online, but don't build new ones...the (essentially) permanent waste is too dangerous.

Patriot Act: Dangerous affront to our freedoms.  It should be gutted, with only the most vital of anti-terrorism aspects allowed to stand.

Economic Issues

Taxes: Keep a progressive structure, and do not allow deficit spending for the purposes of pushing a tax cut.  Work towards eliminating property taxes.  Keep sales taxes to a minimum, and exempt clothing and food.  Keep taxes as low as spending levels will allow.  Strongly supportive of Massachusetts' Proposition 2 1/2, which requires public approval of any property tax increase greater than 2.5% per year.

Unions: Supportive, though Unions are quickly losing their influence nationwide.  I oppose card check, however.

Free trade: Somewhat supportive of free trade, so long as it is FAIR trade.  That puts countries like China, who do not trade "fairly," on the hot seat.  Trade sanctions should be imposed for human rights violations.

Spending: Balanced budgets are key, and deficit spending should only be allowed in crisis and wartime situations.  Limit growth in times of surplus, and keep a rainy-day fund.

Social Security: Privatization in full is a bad idea, but minimal privatization may work.  Workers should be able to invest up to 5% of their Social Security deduction in private accounts, with the caviat that they must accept a later retirement age or a 95% benefit level for the privledge.

Space Program: Stay the course.  Humans will need the ability to seek out other planets if the continuation of the species is to be guaranteed, but this should not quite be a top priority at this point.

Welfare: More reform.  Welfare should focus on providing child care and getting parents who are able to work back to work.

Health-care: I'm starting to lean towards Universal coverage.  At the very least, the state should band together and provide benefit assistance coverage to the middle-class who are not offered insurance by their employers; these employers should be charged a penalty fee for this.
The Massachusetts system is doomed to be a costly failure, where people who can ill afford it will be forced into buying "junk" insurance coverage just to comply with a poorly-thought out state law.  It should be repealed.

Education: No Child Left Behind was well meaning, but poorly executed.  Urban schools can benefit through vouchers and charter schools, and should be given more leeway to hire and fire teachers based on performance.  The real solution to poor inner city standards remains fixing the cultural problems, where those who strive to achieve are looked down on as "acting white."

Foreign Policy Issues:

Democracy and Trade: Restore limited trade to Cuba.  Use trade sanctions to punish human rights violations, but cut off trade only in the most extreme (wartime) situations.

Anti (fill in the blank) Treaty: Work to reduce the number of nuclear weapons worldwide.

United Nations: It's a disasterous combination of anti-Israel interests.  The U.S. needs to stay heavily involved to minimize the impact of extremist countries.

Iraq: Giant clusterf***.  The US should begin to plan for troop withdrawls, and should work with other countries in the region to minimize the post-war fallout.

Israel: There's so much hate going on in the region, I don't know where to begin.  The Israelis have a right to exist, but so too do the Palestinians.  Israel needs to work and be more accomodating to its neighbors, and its neighbors need to do the same.  Realistically, though...not much we can do here.  We cannot up and abandon Israel.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: DownWithTheLeft on July 06, 2007, 08:19:06 AM

Social Issues:

General Philosophy: Conservative Libertarian

Abortion: I'm am 100% pro-life with no exceptions.  I fail to see how the life of the mother is more important than that of the child, and times when they are both destin to die is amazingly slim and therefore we cannot have exceptions that lead to loopholes of other abortions being performed.

Gay Rights: An interesting way of phrasing it as I believe gays should have rights, however, these rights should be extended to the point of marriage or civil unions.  Well I hate the intervention of the federal government, if one state legalizes it, everyone will go there to get married and move back as appears to be happening.

Separation of Church and State: Not a federal issue but I fail to see why the state should not be able to do things like put up a Christmas or a school cannot sing Christmas carols.

Affirmative Action: I oppose in all circumstances
 
Gun Control: I oppose in all circumstances and wish to abolish any current restrictions to buying guns.  However, I am in favor of registering guns but at the state, not federal level.
 
Death Penalty: I oppose in all circumstances

Censorship: I oppose for the most part, however, it is it vital to censor some things such as classified government information from leaking

Flag burning: I oppose in all circumstances and suppport a constitutional amendment

Hate crimes: I oppose in all circumstances and will fight hard to keep sexual orientation off the list.  Something such as race cannot at least be seen by the attacker, but if the attacker does not know your gay and then they get charged with beating up a gay person that is not right.  Being gay or black should not make you more of a victim.
 
Hate speech: I support it, however, I strongly detest people speaking out against America

Smoking: I oppose smoking in public places

Alcohol consumption: I support a complete repeal of alcohol laws

Euthanasia: Oppose as part of my pro-life ideals
 
Drugs: Legalize all of them now and heavily tax them!

Gambling: Legalize everywhere
 
Prostitution: I support a policy of ignoring it but not condoning it
 
Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Oppose embryonic support the proven adult stem cells research

Immigration: Heavily oppose illegal immigration and I want to require knowing English as a requirment for applying for anything that could lead to citizenship.  However, I support letting illegals already here to join the army to become citizens.
 
Environment: I flat out do not care about the environment at all and will not buy into man-made global warming unless someone proves the existence of martians
 
Patriot Act: Neutral, however, I realize it has done a lot of good like stopping the Brooklyn Bridge plot

Economic Issues

General Philosophy: Far-Right

Taxes: I support shutting down the IRS immediatley and replacing our current system with a Fair or Flat Tax system.  I would also cut massive amount of programs to account for these cuts.

Unions: I do not support a unions right to exist and hope that an employer fires any union employee who goes on strike

Free trade: I support free trade in all forms and wish to lift embargos on other countries

Spending: Massively reduce spending by eliminating programs that provide aid and other things that are not necessary for our country functioning.

Social Security: Complete privitization

Space Program: Keep at current levels

Welfare: Eliminate it all, no questions asked

Health-care: Not only stop the expansion to UHC, eliminate Medicaid and require that you must be a legal US resident to receive care at a hospital.  Also, make free hospital care for emergencies only, although I'm not really sure how to enforce that.  Also, create AHPs

Education: Cut education funding drastically and consolidate the number of schools and school positions.  For example, Moonachie, NJ has one K-8 school with a principal (they go to another town for HS) and they also have a superintendent making $120,000+.  This and many other positions are useless.  I support putting a cap on when teachers must retire to say districts money.



Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Ebowed on July 06, 2007, 08:58:05 AM
Social Issues:

General Philosophy: Liberal
Abortion: 100% pro-choice
Gay Rights: 100% pro-GLBT
Separation of Church and State: strongly in favor
Affirmative Action: oppose
Gun Control: oppose
Death Penalty: abolitionist
Censorship: oppose
Flag burning: support
Hate crimes: oppose (though as long as we have hate crimes, I support including sexual orientation)
Hate speech: support the right
Smoking: support the right
Alcohol consumption: support the right (drinking age at 21 is a hilarious joke)
Euthanasia: support
Drugs: support legal pot; oppose jail time for users of drugs; oppose six taxes
Gambling: support the right
Prostitution: support the right
Embryonic Stem Cell Research: support funding
Immigration: pro-amnesty and open borders
Environment: support all goals of environmentalism
Patriot Act: oppose

Economic Issues:

General Philosophy: Liberal
Taxes: support high and progressive taxes
Unions: support
Free trade: support
Spending: increase social spending; gut defense spending
Social Security: support
Space Program: support
Welfare: support & repeal 90s reform
Health-care: support universal not-for-profit single-payer
Education: repeal NCLB

Foreign Policy Issues:

General Philosophy: Liberal
Democracy and Trade: good things...
Anti (fill in the blank) Treaty: support pretty much all weapons bans
United Nations: support
Iraq: immediate withdrawal
Israel: withdraw all aid


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Verily on July 06, 2007, 09:04:21 AM
Gay Rights: An interesting way of phrasing it as I believe gays should have rights, however, these rights should be extended to the point of marriage or civil unions.  Well I hate the intervention of the federal government, if one state legalizes it, everyone will go there to get married and move back as appears to be happening.

Clearly you are completely ignorant on the issue. Of all states, only Rhode Island recognizes same-sex marriages performed in Massachusetts as legally binding. Therefore, no one moves to Massachusetts just to get married, then moves back. (Plus, that would be an obscene expense for basic equality.)


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: NDN on July 06, 2007, 09:34:11 AM
Gay Rights: An interesting way of phrasing it as I believe gays should have rights, however, these rights should be extended to the point of marriage or civil unions.  Well I hate the intervention of the federal government, if one state legalizes it, everyone will go there to get married and move back as appears to be happening.

Clearly you are completely ignorant on the issue. Of all states, only Rhode Island recognizes same-sex marriages performed in Massachusetts as legally binding. Therefore, no one moves to Massachusetts just to get married, then moves back. (Plus, that would be an obscene expensive for basic equality.)
Which is unfortunate, since refusing to recognize them is clearly a violation of basic constitutional rights. It's too bad our courts are too conservative and spineless to actually strike down the DOMA. Otherwise, gay people might actually have seen some REAL gains in civil rights by now.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Filuwaúrdjan on July 06, 2007, 09:34:57 AM
Unions: I do not support a unions right to exist and hope that an employer fires any union employee who goes on strike

Ah, I see that thou art still a follower of the "General Jaruzelski" approach to Unions...


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: afleitch on July 06, 2007, 09:38:30 AM
Thought I'd go through this in a little more detail; my views have altered somewhat
Social Issues:

Abortion: Pro-choice. Satisfied with current UK laws on abortion. Dislike abortions for 'contraceptive' purposes and would prefer comprehensive sex education and easier access to contraceptives to help cut the number of potential abortions amongst the youngest age categories.

Gay Rights: Always supportive. Believe current UK legislation is acceptable, though would like to move towards gay marriage in the forseeable future. Support the need for better anti bullying policies in schools.

Separation of Church and State: In the US, must be kept seperate. Would support the disestablishment of the CofE, but it is practically impossible.

Affirmative Action: Oppose. It is important to remamber that affirmative action is not the same as anti-racism/sexism etc policy; those should remain and be enforced, but to try to redress the balance by actively promoting 'positive' discrimination is wrong.

Gun Control: Support. I don't see why anyone needs a gun or the right to own one unless it is part of your job to carry or use one. I know it's probably political heresy as a libertarian to say so.

Death Penalty: Oppose in each and every single case put before a civil or military court.

Censorship: It is not up to the government to promote the censorship of anything unless it directly incites people to commit an illegal act or act contrary to common law.

Flag burning: You have the right to burn a flag.

Hate crimes: Tough cookie this one. It has been common in law for centuries to not treat all acts against the person as the same; motivation and circumstance have always been taken into account. For example, an act of poisoning with intent to kill, for a long time automatically received the death penalty in England and Wales because poisoning was considered to be pre-meditated. I.e you could stab a man out of immediate rage brought about by a situation which could be grounds for manslaughter not murder, but you had to plan and execute an act of poisoning. If the courts see it fit to sentence someone harshly because of his attitude towards the persons colour or sexuality etc then they are within traditional rights to do so. Whether or not there should be a law to enforce it in each case is another matter.

Hate speech: Oppose unless, as with censorship it directly incites people to commit an illegal act or act contrary to common law.

Smoking: I support smoking bans. Why we once tolerated smoke filled cinemas and aeroplanes to begin with is beyond me.

Alcohol consumption: Should be maintained at 18, but should be waived in all cases for those younger where supervised. It is important to 'wean' people onto alochol in a responsible manner.

Euthanasia: Should be legal. Legal forms should be made freely avaliable from the Post Office and signed by a witness and doctor.

Drugs: I oppose the decriminalisation of marijuana except for medicinal purposes. Over the past twenty years, marijuana has become stronger, more dangerous and addictive due to indoor farming and cultivation to ensure the strongest crop. 

Gambling: I don't oppose it, but I oppose the reasons, in the UK at least, for legalising it; to boost government revenue and then to shortlist impoverished areas as potential sites well aware of gambling and addiction problems that often blight those areas.

Prostitution: Promote legalisation, though regulation. Prostitutes should have full control over their client list and this should be enforced. Brothels should be very heavily regulated.

Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Strongly support.

Immigration: Support current UK levels of legal immigration and would strongly encourage migration from EU member states. Oppose illegal immigration as it does not occur though proper channels.

Environment: Support the expansion of renewble energy and nuclear power. Support tidal and wave power. Support the promotion of 'energy independence' for households.

Patriot Act: Vigourously oppose and oppose any attempts to pass similar legislation in the UK

Economic Issues

Taxes: The Income Tax threshold should be raised to an level between £10 and £12k lifting poorer, part time workers and students out of the income tax altogether. Working Tax Credits should be abolished and incapacity/unemployment benefits should be restructured.

Unions: Supportive. Though I believe all unions should be unaffiliated with any political party.

Free trade: Strongly support except in military equipment.

Spending: Levels of spending should be pinned to inflation until their internal finances and administrative structures are reviewed and waste identified. Where cuts in spending can be made they should be made.

Social Security: Move towards part privatisation of the pensions system and an immediate raising of the retirement age to 67.

Space Program: Continue to invest.

Welfare: If you want to encourage people to enter the workplace, you have to make the take home pay higher than welfare. As outlined above, income tax should be abolished for those below a certain income allowing an incentive to non workers. The disability/incapacity benefits system should be completely gutted. There is too much waste and too many workers claiming it for trivial reasons.

Health-care: I support the NHS. I believe that the state and private sector can go hand in hand.

Education: Restore the assisted places scheme, reintroduce streaming and setting by ability in primary and secondary schools and encourage the promotion of craft/volcational/apprenticeship non academic education from the age of 14

Foreign Policy Issues:

Democracy and Trade: Use trade as a political weapon. Suspend trade with Zimbabwe.

United Nations: Strongly support. We must work with other nations to 'lock out' dubious undemocratic nations from key posts.

Iraq: Establish a flexable timetable for withdrawal.

Israel: Strongly support Israel and its defence of it's people and territory. Support establishement of Palestinian State under democratic leadership. Propose that Jerusalem become a joint adminstered 'free city' under the UN.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Verily on July 06, 2007, 09:45:07 AM
And... (some quoting directly from NDN)

Social Issues:

Abortion: Pro-choice. 1st trimester abortions should be available on demand, later abortions should always be allowed for health/life saving reasons.

Gay Rights: Strongly support. Legalize Gay Marriage, Adoption, Open Military Service, etc.

Separation of Church and State: Strongly support. End "faith-based initiatives," compulsory AA attendance, vouchers for religious schools (the Supreme Court was wrong), etc.

Affirmative Action: Oppose. The most qualified person should always get the job. With that said, I recognize there are still disparities. But those should be remedied by vigorous enforcement of anti-discrimination laws -- not government sanctioned discrimination.

Gun Control: I support gun registration and licensing to screen out the mentally incompetent or criminal. I also support a modified version of the assault weapons ban that would fully encompass all semi-automatic and automatic weapons rather than select ones, weapons made for no reason other than to, well, assault others. Otherwise, I oppose further gun control.

Death Penalty: Oppose on the principle that guilt can never be 100% definitively proven, and the risk of executing an innocent person, however small, is always there. Life in prison is not a lesser sentence in any case; I have never understood the absurd need for vengeance killings.

Censorship: Strongly oppose any censorship of the entertainment mediums. Let consumers make their own viewing or listening decisions. We don't need anymore moral guardians or government officials telling us what we can or can't see.

Flag burning: It's unconstitutional to ban it on the grounds of "offensiveness".

Hate crimes: Oppose. It's redundant, just try them for assault/murder/etc. Everyone should be equal under the law, creating "special" crimes for minorities is hypocritical.

Hate speech: Support within reason. It's one thing to engage in defamation or encourage violence, it's another to just be prejudiced. The former are directly harmful, the latter isn't.

Smoking: Support public smoking bans.

Alcohol consumption: It should be legal to buy beer at 18, and the drinking age should be abolished. The current laws are unenforceable, inconsistent, and ultimately hostile to personal freedom.

Euthanasia: Should be legal.

Drugs: I support the legalization of all soft drugs, and the decriminalization of drugs in general. The current War on Drugs is an expensive, tyrannical failure just like Alcohol Prohibition was.

Gambling: It should be legal to gamble, but Casino development and the like should be left up to local areas.

Prostitution: Should be legal.

Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Strongly support. The opposition to this infuriates me. People, these aren't even fetuses, they're embryos. They're cells. Do you really care more about something that isn't even in the womb more than suffering Parkinson's or Alzheimer's patients?

Immigration: As a temporary solution, I support one-time full amnesty with no strings attached so as to encourage faster assimilation and avoid the costs of mass deportation. However, this is clearly not a viable long-term solution. In the long term, I would like to relax restrictions on legal immigration, allowing workers to immigrate legally into the country if they have been offered work in the United States. (Thus establishing a "guest worker" program without the "guest" part.) This will ensure that most immigrants from Mexico and Latin America generally are here legally and thus paying full taxes and encouraged to assimilate (as second-generation immigrants do anyway, but this is for first-generation).


Economic Issues

Taxes: Should be progressive. If we can not cut spending, we should raise taxes (either on the wealthy or across the board if severe enough). If we do cut spending, they should be cut unless the increased surplus is used to pay off the deficit or will clearly be needed for one-time spending some time in the near future.

Unions: They're holding a lot of this country back, such as the Rust Belt. In many respects, they have as negative of an influence in politics as Big Business. On the other hand, it cannot be denied that there is a right to organize enshrined in the Constitution (albeit not intended in the way unions use it). We should rely on companies to control unions, lifting some restrictions on firings during strikes.

Free trade: Free trade as established under the WTO is unfortunately bureaucratic and inefficient, but, as of right now, it's the best we've got. I support continued membership in the WTO, though I would like the US to surrender its stranglehold on control of the WTO leadership to the UN. Free trade is important if for no other reason than because it drives the economy to modernize, something we have been all too reluctant to do.

Spending: I believe in fiscal responsibility. Ban earmarks, and roll back current pork spending both domestically and (especially) on the military. Eliminate subsidies to defense contractors, the automobile industry, oil and natural gas producers, etc. Also eliminate government spending and subsidies for small-scale local projects.

Social Security: Privatization is a terrible idea. It would require less benefits, huge transfer costs (in the trillions) and would be riskier than the current system. Either fully fund Social Security and keep the government from raiding it, or abolish it altogether. There is no middle ground here.

Space Program: The near-monopoly NASA has had on space exploration has resulted in stagnation and little advancement. Privatization has already begun, and, for now, the government should sit back and let private companies take up the burden. Greatly reduce funding for NASA and instead contract private companies as necessary for transportation to the ISS.

Welfare: Insofar as radical changes to our other economic plans will not be realized within the next few decades, welfare is an unfortunate necessity to continued functioning of our economy. Realistically, it should only be necessary in cases where the individual cannot be held responsible for his or her own failure (else it should be a "working welfare" program). However, unequally funded public education has blurred the lines of responsibility so far that welfare is necessary far more often than it should be. The only major reform that I would support independent of reform elsewhere is to require a demonstration that the welfare recipient has applied for a job within the past two weeks in order to receive a welfare check.

Health care: Universal health care is the only efficient and effective way of providing health services for the citizenry. The United States should adopt a system modeled on Germany's in which all citizens are automatically covered for all health costs by the government but may purchase more expensive insurance from private companies if they so desire.

Education: Most importantly and above all, the use of the property tax to pay for education should be abolished. To replace it, federal income taxes should be increased slightly, with the proceeds going entirely to a "National Education Trust Fund" sealed from congressional dipping. This trust fund would distribute its value annually between school districts nationwide based solely on the number of students attending each district's schools. In addition, all money initially generated by eliminating pork programs, described above, should be diverted to a mass construction program to build at least one new school in every school district nationwide.

Foreign Policy Issues:

Democracy and trade: Don't link human rights to China. It isn't economically viable and we can't do anything about it. By the same token, end the embargo on Cuba.

Nuclear proliferation: Strongly support disarmament of all nuclear weapons and efforts to stop nuclear proliferation.

United Nations: It's corrupt, but our participation is needed.

Iraq: A disaster. Iraq was never a threat to anyone, there was no reason whatsoever to invade it. Furthermore, our presence in Iraq is just fueling the current insurgency further. The US should attempt to re-partition Iraq, then immediately leave.

Israel: Cut off economic aid to Israel (and to Palestine) and let them deal with Hezbollah et al. alone until they learn the use of diplomacy and come to a permanent agreement with the Palestinians.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: DownWithTheLeft on July 06, 2007, 10:05:27 AM
Just for fun, thing we have in common:


Affirmative Action: oppose
Gun Control: oppose
Death Penalty: abolitionist
Censorship: oppose
Hate crimes: oppose
Hate speech: support the right
Alcohol consumption: support the right (drinking age at 21 is a hilarious joke)
Drugs: support legal pot; oppose jail time for users of drugs; oppose six taxes
Gambling: support the right

And of course, the big one:

Quote
Israel: withdraw all aid


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Jaggerjack on July 06, 2007, 10:17:37 AM
Social Issues:

General Philosophy: Liberal
Abortion: Pro-choice
Gay Rights: Pro-GLBT
Separation of Church and State: strongly in favor
Affirmative Action: oppose
Gun Control: don't care
Death Penalty: abolitionist
Censorship: strongly oppose
Flag burning: don't care
Hate crimes: oppose
Hate speech: oppose the right
Smoking: support the right
Alcohol consumption: support the right
Euthanasia: support
Drugs: as long as its legal
Gambling: support the right
Prostitution: support the right
Embryonic Stem Cell Research: support funding
Immigration: pro-amnesty and open borders
Environment: support all goals of environmentalism
Patriot Act: strongly oppose

Economic Issues:

General Philosophy: Center-Left
Taxes: support high and progressive taxes
Unions: support
Free trade: support
Spending: increase social spending; gut defense spending
Social Security: support
Space Program: support
Welfare: support & repeal 90s reform
Health-care: support universal
Education: repeal NCLB

Foreign Policy Issues:

General Philosophy: Liberal
Democracy and Trade: Hell yeah
Anti (fill in the blank) Treaty: support pretty much all weapons bans
United Nations: support
Iraq: immediate withdrawal
Israel: They need no aid


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: SPC on July 06, 2007, 01:03:03 PM
I'm going to update this:

Social:
Liberal
- I am pro-choice at the state level
- I support civil-unions.
- I support decriminalization of any drug
- I am pro-prostitution.
- I am anti-censorship, within reason.
- I am pro-stem cell research.
- I am tolerant of flag burning, so long as you do it on your own property.
- I support euthanasia.
- I strongly support removing "under god" from the pledge.
- I support evolution
- I oppose school prayer
Mixed
- I am anti-smoking ban.
- I am opposed to illegal immigration, but feel that quotas should be abolished.
Conservative
- I support the death penalty if DNA evidence is provided.
- I oppose gay marriage.
- I oppose government sanctioned political correctness.
- I strongly oppose gun control.
- I strongly oppose the Fairness Doctrine.

Economic:
Liberal:
- I support a tariff on foreign oil
- I support more research into renewable energy.
Mixed
- I support cutting welfare and other programs, and using the money saved to fund job training.
Conservative
- I strongly oppose affirmative action.
- I support free trade.
- I support dismantling the IRS.
- I generally support businesses over unions.
- I oppose stronger environmental regulations.
- I support privatizing Social Security.
- I would support a balanced budget ammendment.
- I oppose campaign finance reform.
- I oppose raising the minimum wage.
- I oppose increasing funding for public education and NCLB.
- I strongly oppose more government funding for medicaid and other health programs.
- I oppose foreign aid.
- I strongly oppose the FDA.
- I strongly oppose eminent domain.
 
Foreign Policy and Homeland Security:
Liberal:
- I oppose the Patriot Act.
- I oppose NSA wire-tapping.
- I would strongly oppose a draft.
- I oppose the troop surge.
- I oppose increasing military funding.
- I support withdrawal from areas of the world where our presence is unnecesary (i.e. Europe, Afghanistan, Japan)
- I do not believe in going to war with countries that do not pose a direct threat to us.
Mixed:
- I am pro-Israel, but do not support giving them aid.
- I support partitioning Iraq.
Conservative:
- I support pulling out of the UN.
- I believe that we need to be aggresive toward Iran and North Korea to stop their nuclear programs
- I do not believe that habeus corpus applies to prisoners of war. (i.e. Gitmo)


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Hash on July 07, 2007, 12:58:25 AM
Some might be strongly influenced by French politics.

Social

Abortion: Pro-choice
Gay Rights: Support gay rights, although neutral on marriage.
Separation of Church and State: I'm a proud secular and oppose any and all attempt at all to give religion a role to play in politics.
Affirmative Action: Oppose
Gun Control: Support, I don't see why anybody needs a gun.
Death Penalty: Generally oppose, but would support it for serious crimes against the state.
Censorship: There should be no censorship.
Flag burning: You have the right to burn a flag, its freedom of expression.
Smoking: I support smoking bans in public areas. Outside and inside.
Alcohol consumption: Should be maintained at 18, but there needs to be some kind of regulation to avoid excessive consumption at that age.
Euthanasia: Should be legal
Drugs: I strongly oppose legalizing marijuana or any other drugs.
Gambling: With moderation!
Prostitution: Should be illegal.
Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Strongly support.
Immigration: Oppose legalization of illegal immigrants and support stricter rules on allowing immigration. Immigrants should speak the language of the country, should find a job within 6 months of arrival, and of course follow ALL laws (or else, expel them)
Environment: Serious issue, should take immediate action to stop it before its too late.
Patriot Act: Vigourously oppose

Economic Issues

Taxes: Current levels are fine.
Unions: Support unions, as long as it doesn't become an excuse to go on strike for everything the company does that they don't like.
Free trade: Strongly support except in military equipment.
Social Security: Support universal, public healthcare.
Space Program: Continue to invest, albeit less than right now.
Welfare: Continue attempts at reform

Foreign Policy Issues:

Democracy and Trade: Suspend trade with dictatorships.
United Nations: Strongly support, although there is an urgent need for reform.
Iraq: A complete disaster. Leave. Fast.
Israel: Strongly support Israel and its defence of it's people and territory. Support establishement of Palestinian State under democratic leadership.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Fmr President & Senator Polnut on July 07, 2007, 07:02:21 AM

Social

Abortion: Pro-choice
Gay Rights: I fully support gay rights, up to an including full legal equality (marriage/civil union and adoption)
Separation of Church and State: I'm a proud secular and oppose any and all attempt at all to give religion a role to play in politics.
Affirmative Action: I think in certain circumstances it is needed
Gun Control: The idea of owning a gun boggles my mind.
Death Penalty: Death penalty is barbaric - the state should play games of blood lust.
Censorship: Moderate levels.
Flag burning: It's a symbol, yes. But it is a symbol that is owned by every citizen.
Smoking: I hate being around smokers - it should be as limited in public as possible.
Alcohol consumption: The legal drinking age should match the age of voting right.
Euthanasia: Support, with very strict medical guidelines.
Drugs:Drugs are dangerous - and they should not be legalised. I do support small quantities for medical reasons.
Gambling: With moderation!
Prostitution: It's never going to disappear - don't decriminalise - but don't prosecute.
Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Strongly support.
Immigration: All illegal arrivals must be identified within 6 months or returned to the border. Amnesty for all those illegals already in the country. Maintain refugee committment.
Environment: Aggressive action - but based on economic common sense.
Patriot Act: Vigourously oppose

Economic Issues

Taxes: The tax rate should be as low as possible for those on incomes below $40,000pa. Focus tax cuts on low and middle incomes.
Unions: Unions have a place - but they cannot control things in a liberal market economy.
Free trade: Careful supprt.
Social Security: Support universal, public healthcare.
Space Program: A very low priority.
Welfare: Continue attempts at reform

Foreign Policy Issues:

Democracy and Trade: Aim sanctions at non-democratic states - but only military sanctions as first resort.
United Nations: Strongly support, reform needed.
Iraq: A complete disaster. But mess is made by us, we have a responsibility to leave it as stable as possible.
Israel: Israel needs consistent support, however, there MUST be a viable Palestinian state by 2012.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Undisguised Sockpuppet on July 07, 2007, 08:23:02 AM
Social

Abortion: Pro-choice
Gay Rights: Full legal equality.
Separation of Church and State: Get religion out of politics but don't go ACLU insane and persecutre christmas
Affirmative Action: End it. We shouldn't have bothered going beyond integration/enforcing the right to vote to forced busing/AA. All AA does is divided society between the majority and the priviliged groups.
Gun Control: End gun contro
Death Penalty: Keep and expand the use. Abolish appeals for it.
Censorship: Abolish it
Flag burning: Allow it
Smoking: End all bans on smoking. If a business chooses to permit smoking its their affair.
Alcohol consumption: Abolish all alcohol related laws besides guidelines on manufacturing it.
Euthanasia: Support, with very strict medical guidelines.
Drugs: Legalize already. The war on drugs isn't working.
Gambling: Legalize now
Prostitution: Legalize and regulate but give EXTREMELY harsh punishments for sex trafficking/pimping. I'm thinking death for anyone who does those.
Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Strongly support.
Immigration: No more refugees or illegals being tolerated. Do a version of the 1921 immigration restriction act(the part abotu restricting locations not numbers) and ban immigration that's not from either the first world, latin america or East Asia. Also all muslim immigrants must convert to another religion within 5 years if they want to even think about citizenship/staying in the US
Environment: Aggressive action - but based on economic common sense.
Patriot Act: Support

Economic Issues

Taxes: Raise taxes to keep the budget balanced.
Unions: Unions have a place - but they cannot control things in a liberal market economy.
Free trade: Careful supprt.
Social Security: Give universal healthcare of some sort(either a NHS type deal or national health insurance. Some kind of plan) but give workers a better plan than the unemployed.
Space Program: A very high priority.
Welfare: Expand welfare for the working poor but reduce it for the urban unemployables.

Foreign Policy Issues:

Democracy and Trade: Do not factor human rights into trade.
United Nations: Strongly oppose. The UN needs to be replaced.
Iraq: Leave ASAP
Israel: Completely drop supposrt for Israel and ban charitable donations/selling weapons to it. Also deport all Americans who also have Israeli passports


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: useful idiot on July 07, 2007, 01:28:48 PM
Social

Abortion: Generally pro-choice if done within the first 16 weeks or so
Gay Rights: Apathetic. I don't really care if gays get married or not because it doesn't affect me and most of my gay friends don't seem to care much either.
Separation of Church and State: means different things to different people; i dont mind if the pledge is kept or ten commandments at courts, but do I want an established "American Church"? Of course not
Affirmative Action: Support
Gun Control: Oppose for rifles, shotguns, and handguns
Death Penalty: Generally support
Censorship: Oppose
Flag burning: Freedom of expression.
Smoking: Smoking bans are for nazis
Alcohol consumption: 18 years of age
Euthanasia: Support legalization
Drugs: Support legalization of soft drugs
Gambling: Oppose
Prostitution: Support legalization
Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Support relaxing restrictions and allowing it to occur, but no federal funding.
Immigration: Support stronger border security, the fence, no amnesty, send illegals home and don't let them come back, make it easier for honest immigrants to enter legally.
Environment: Oppose Kyoto, support more restrictions than exist now with regards to wildlife protection, no federal funding to stop "Global Warming"
Patriot Act: Generally oppose

Economics

Taxes: Federal flat tax at a rate around 18%(Russia's is 13%), sales tax for the states.
Unions: Support
Free trade: Oppose
Social Security: Keep it public and federal, divert money from other places to keep it afloat.
Space Program: Ridiculous waste of money, almost sickening considering how much of that money could help the less fortunate. Thousands of kids will die of hunger so that a space shuttle can launch for no discernable reason. Private companies are starting to do it anyway, so there's no reason to continue with NASA.
Welfare: Support reforms

Foreign Policy

Democracy and Trade: Oppose trading with dictatorships
United Nations: Oppose, what a joke
Iraq: Leave immediately and take as much oil with us as we can when we go.
Israel: Support the State of Israel's right to exist and defend itself; set benchmarks for Palestinian statehood(democracy, seperation of church and state, stable military to control Islamists.)


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Hash on July 08, 2007, 12:52:48 AM
Social

Abortion: Generally pro-choice if done within the first 16 weeks or so
Gay Rights: Apathetic. I don't really care if gays get married or not because it doesn't affect me and most of my gay friends don't seem to care much either.
Separation of Church and State: means different things to different people; i dont mind if the pledge is kept or ten commandments at courts, but do I want an established "American Church"? Of course not
Affirmative Action: Support
Gun Control: Oppose for rifles, shotguns, and handguns
Death Penalty: Generally support
Censorship: Oppose
Flag burning: Freedom of expression.
Smoking: Smoking bans are for nazis
Alcohol consumption: 18 years of age
Euthanasia: Support legalization
Drugs: Support legalization of soft drugs
Gambling: Oppose
Prostitution: Support legalization
Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Support relaxing restrictions and allowing it to occur, but no federal funding.
Immigration: Support stronger border security, the fence, no amnesty, send illegals home and don't let them come back, make it easier for honest immigrants to enter legally.
Environment: Oppose Kyoto, support more restrictions than exist now with regards to wildlife protection, no federal funding to stop "Global Warming"
Patriot Act: Generally oppose

Economics

Taxes: Federal flat tax at a rate around 18%(Russia's is 13%), sales tax for the states.
Unions: Support
Free trade: Oppose
Social Security: Keep it public and federal, divert money from other places to keep it afloat.
Space Program: Ridiculous waste of money, almost sickening considering how much of that money could help the less fortunate. Thousands of kids will die of hunger so that a space shuttle can launch for no discernable reason. Private companies are starting to do it anyway, so there's no reason to continue with NASA.
Welfare: Support reforms

Foreign Policy

Democracy and Trade: Oppose trading with dictatorships
United Nations: Oppose, what a joke
Iraq: Leave immediately and take as much oil with us as we can when we go.
Israel: Support the State of Israel's right to exist and defend itself; set benchmarks for Palestinian statehood(democracy, seperation of church and state, stable military to control Islamists.)


()


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: useful idiot on July 08, 2007, 06:59:32 PM
Social

Abortion: Generally pro-choice if done within the first 16 weeks or so
Gay Rights: Apathetic. I don't really care if gays get married or not because it doesn't affect me and most of my gay friends don't seem to care much either.
Separation of Church and State: means different things to different people; i dont mind if the pledge is kept or ten commandments at courts, but do I want an established "American Church"? Of course not
Affirmative Action: Support
Gun Control: Oppose for rifles, shotguns, and handguns
Death Penalty: Generally support
Censorship: Oppose
Flag burning: Freedom of expression.
Smoking: Smoking bans are for nazis
Alcohol consumption: 18 years of age
Euthanasia: Support legalization
Drugs: Support legalization of soft drugs
Gambling: Oppose
Prostitution: Support legalization
Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Support relaxing restrictions and allowing it to occur, but no federal funding.
Immigration: Support stronger border security, the fence, no amnesty, send illegals home and don't let them come back, make it easier for honest immigrants to enter legally.
Environment: Oppose Kyoto, support more restrictions than exist now with regards to wildlife protection, no federal funding to stop "Global Warming"
Patriot Act: Generally oppose

Economics

Taxes: Federal flat tax at a rate around 18%(Russia's is 13%), sales tax for the states.
Unions: Support
Free trade: Oppose
Social Security: Keep it public and federal, divert money from other places to keep it afloat.
Space Program: Ridiculous waste of money, almost sickening considering how much of that money could help the less fortunate. Thousands of kids will die of hunger so that a space shuttle can launch for no discernable reason. Private companies are starting to do it anyway, so there's no reason to continue with NASA.
Welfare: Support reforms

Foreign Policy

Democracy and Trade: Oppose trading with dictatorships
United Nations: Oppose, what a joke
Iraq: Leave immediately and take as much oil with us as we can when we go.
Israel: Support the State of Israel's right to exist and defend itself; set benchmarks for Palestinian statehood(democracy, seperation of church and state, stable military to control Islamists.)


()

So being pro-choice, supporting affirmative action, immediate withdrawal from Iraq, supporting unions and opposing free trade, opposing the Patriot Act, supporting the legalisation of drugs, euthenasia and prostitution, opposing censorship and attempts to ban flag burning are Republican ideals now, eh? Hmm, I might have to look into switching parties....


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Undisguised Sockpuppet on July 08, 2007, 08:10:19 PM
This is Hashemite. Ignore him.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: NDN on July 10, 2007, 12:11:09 AM
After having thought about it for a few months, I think the "cut benefits" people are right on Social Security. Why are we forcing the working and middle class to pay for current retirees who can support themselves just fine? Either abolish it or make it a means-tested welfare program targeted only to the elderly poor.

Not to mention the constitutionality of the program is questionable.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Verily on July 10, 2007, 12:20:57 AM
After having thought about it for a few months, I think the "cut benefits" people are right on Social Security. Why are we forcing the working and middle class to pay for current retirees who can support themselves just fine? Either abolish it or make it a means-tested welfare program targeted only to the elderly poor.

I could agree with that. The problem I see with social security, however, is that it encourages people not to be too concerned about their finances. Obviously it doesn't affect the decisions of a well-off person, but someone who could either A) save a certain amount of money over their lifespan for retirement or B) spend that money on worthless consumerist goods and get it back from the government anyway will always choose the latter, which, IMO, is not a good idea to be promoting.

Quote
Not to mention the constitutionality of the program is questionable.

How so?


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: NDN on July 10, 2007, 12:33:29 AM
After having thought about it for a few months, I think the "cut benefits" people are right on Social Security. Why are we forcing the working and middle class to pay for current retirees who can support themselves just fine? Either abolish it or make it a means-tested welfare program targeted only to the elderly poor.

I could agree with that. The problem I see with social security, however, is that it encourages people not to be too concerned about their finances. Obviously it doesn't affect the decisions of a well-off person, but someone who could either A) save a certain amount of money over their lifespan for retirement or B) spend that money on worthless consumerist goods and get it back from the government anyway will always choose the latter, which, IMO, is not a good idea to be promoting.

Quote
Not to mention the constitutionality of the program is questionable.

How so?

1. I would agree with that as well. The government should be promoting private accounts through tax breaks and the like.

2. A variety of reasons. But the basic problem was that under the "reserve clause" of the Constitution (the 10th Amendment) powers not specifically granted to the federal government are reserved for the States or the people. Since the government was obviously not explicitly authorized to do that, they only had two possible justifications: the commerce clause or the broad power to levy taxes and expend funds to "provide for the general welfare," as the basis for the programs in the Act. But neither one was really convincingly argued, in fact the Supreme Court only ruled that the Social Security tax was valid.

Not to mention FDR misled Congress and the Public on the nature of the program.



Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Verily on July 10, 2007, 12:43:59 AM
I suppose I should point out that I support universal health care, and, once it is implemented, social security becomes more or less redundant (as the vast majority of expenses incurred by the elderly are health-related anyway).


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Madhur on July 10, 2007, 03:45:48 AM
Liberal:

-Pro-Choice no matter what
-Allow homosexual marriage
-Time Table system to get out of Iraq
-Increase economic aid to allied nations
-Increase school spending
-Staunchly secular. No public school prayer what so ever
-Increase in veterans benefits
-Actively combat global warming
-Against drilling in ANWR
-Increase reliance on renewable energies
-Very limited censorship
-Cut tax loopholes the rich use
-Eliminate most corporate tax cuts with an exception to Green companies
-Tax Oil company windfall profits
-Universal Healthcare (voluntary government funded)
-Increase minimum wage
-Legalize euthanesia
-Legalize Marijuana

Moderate:

-Support Bush's immigration plan. Limit immigration from Mexico dramatically, build a border wall and expand out border patrol
-Support gobalization but put tarrifs to protect valuable American industries
-Cut excessive social spending but maintain some level of it
-Re write Patriot bill
-Eliminate farm subsidies for high income farmers
-Consitutional amendment outlawing the governments ability to get into debt
-Moderate gun control

Conservative:

-Avidly anti Union (workers adress their complaints to law enforcement)
-Cut pork barrel spending
-Increase military spending
-Limit funding of UN
-Independent aggressive foriegn policy
-Lower taxes all across the board and simplify our tax system
-Expand death penalty for rapists and pedophiles
-Outlaw parole and  increase sentences
-Keep prostitution illegal
-Against Affirmative Action
-Illegalize flag burning


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: D.R.M. on July 10, 2007, 04:37:46 PM
A lot of these issues are unique to Canada, so don't be surprised if you aren't too familiar with a lot of them.


Social Policy

Same-Sex Marriage: Marriage is a civil institution with the function of legally uniting people who love each other, at least in their own eyes. Any two people who think they love one another should be allowed to get married. This means couples of the same gender should be able to get married. If theocrats really believed marriage was “sanctioned by god” this would mean atheists or followers of a different religion couldn’t get married, clearly something against human rights as civilly determined.

Abortion: I support abortion on demand up to the Third Trimester. In the Third Trimester abortion would be allowed for health issues.

De facto Secularism: The only religious reasons that ought to be considered when drafting or debating bills in the Senate or House of Commons should be that of religious liberty. End the State-funded Catholic School System in Ontario (http://secularalliance.ca/2007/06/28/one-school-system-network-enters-public-light-at-queen%e2%80%99s-park/) and keep Faith-Based Arbitration (http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/1126539690860_121948890) out of the legal system.

Intellectual Freedom: Support the right to state ideas in any medium which aren’t slanderous, defamatory, or libelous in exception to advertisements.

Drugs: Legalize “soft drugs” and treat drug abuse as a health rather than criminal matter and fine users of “hard drugs”.   

Stem Cell Research: Should be legal and supported, if not funded, by the federal government.

Immigration: Keep Canada’s current immigration laws, as is.

Euthanasia: Doctors should be able to kill somebody in unbearable pain/no chance of survival with their consent. 

Health Policy

Healthcare: Stop creeping privatization; keep Canada’s single-payer public healthcare system, and fund research & development into medical technologies. Anyone under 20 should have access to government funded dental care.

Daycare: Fund a federal daycare program for children and offer tax credits to stay at home parents.

Tobacco: Ban smoking in public places, put a 90% tax on cigarettes (on top of the GST) and keep the ban on cigarette advertisements. Use revenue from the tax to fund programs that help smokers quit.

Anthropogenic Climate Change & Pollution: Subsidize automobile industries that produce “green cars” and industries working with to develop environmentally-friendly energy sources. Extensively fund research & development into alternative energy sources and impose a progressive carbon tax.

Drugs: Continue educating school children on the dangers of drugs, use fines from hard drug users to invest in Drug Rehabilitation Centres.     

Alcohol: Keep the legal drinking age as is in Canada (18 years). Continue to teach children and the public at large about the dangers of alcohol abuse and fund rehabilitation centres. Place a 2% tax on alcohol on top of the GST. 

Trans Fat: Impose a 12% tax on anything with Trans fat on top of the GST.

Sexual Education:Teach Junior High School and High School Students about the dangers of unprotected sex and on how to use a condom. When going through birth control methods, mention abstinence.

Crime: Keep Canada free of capital punishment. Prisoners convicted of violent crimes should be forced to preform labour which will generate income for the prison. The prison should use the income for rehabilitation programs. Introduce mandatory minimum sentences for child molesters and do not let child molesters out of prison unless surgically or chemically castrated (as in California (http://www.cnn.com/US/9608/29/castration/))

Government Reform

Head of State: The Monarchy is an anachronistic and aristocratic institution, decided by heritage rather than merit. It’s out of place in a country with equality rights embedded in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The Monarchy discriminates on the basis of religion, baring Catholics and all non-Anglicans from the thrown. “Defender of the Faith” as part of the Canadian Monarch’s title shows how at odds with a country of multiple faiths the institution is. The Monarchy would be replaced with a Governor-General elected by Parliament (http://www.canadian-republic.ca/faq.html#If%20we%20choose%20to%20Canadianize%20our%20Head%20of%20State), akin to the President of Ireland, with the approval of the Commonwealth of Nations, hence making Canada a Commonwealth Republic. The office of Governor-General would be mandated by the constitution to be nonreligious/secular. Canada’s horrible citizenship oath (http://www.canadian-republic.ca/citizenship_oath.html), as a result, would lack reference to the Queen.

Electoral System: Merge electoral districts of smaller population together to create multi-member constituencies. That is, districts that sends more than one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons. To be precise, there would be four MPs from each multi-member district. Candidates must have a certain quota of votes to be elected (the Droop Quota). In essence, elections to the House of Commons would be done with the single transferable vote system (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Single_Transferable_Vote).

Senate Reform: Democratize the Canadian Senate, elect members to the Canadian Senate through the single transferable vote system. Increase the number of days the Senate has to sit.

De jure Secularism: Remove “God” from the Preamble to the Canadian Constitution and add on “Freedom from and of Religion” to the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Amend the constitution to bar Federal, Provincial, or Municipal Governments from giving preference to one religion over another in any way.

Aboriginal Governance: Give First Nations reserve councils more autonomy and money, as the aboriginal population is booming on reserves. Also elect an additional Member of Parliament from each province to represent reverse and aboriginal interests. 

Civil Service: Make civil servants record their spending and publish records of their spending on their department’s website each month. Additionally implement U.K. style reforms, with the exception of privatization, to the civil service in order to make it more effective and efficient.

Foreign Policy

Trade: Placing tariffs on foreign products usually hurts impoverished third world producers. But trade, as currently conducted, benefits the multinational “middlemen” more so than the producers. This is why we should renegotiate trade agreements to give third world producers a more equitable share and place high tariffs on products made in sweatshops or by child labour. In summary, Fair Trade.

United Nations: Hold elections to determine Canada’s Ambassador to the UN and try to reform the Human Rights Council to get Human Rights Violators off it. Give 0.7 % of Canada’s GDP to UN humanitarian aid programs and increase the number of Peacekeepers supplied by Canada by a third and follow up on Canada’s peacekeeping dues.     
 
Israel/Palestine: Condemn human rights abuses by Israel in the Occupied Territories. Condemn terrorism of Hamas. Officially support absorbing the “Occupied Territories” into Israel and giving all Palestinian residents citizenship in a secular/multicultural Israeli democracy (One State Solution (http://www.thenation.com/doc/20031103/lazare)). 

Fiscal and Economic Policy

Canadian Broadcasting Corporation: Require everyone with a television to get a Television license, as to fund the CBC.

Labour Unions: Encourage labour unions and pass anti-Strikebreaking legislation to protect workers on strike.

Taxes: Keep the GST at 6%. Increase corporate income tax, both domestic and foreign. Introduce taxes on cigarettes, alcohol, Trans fatty foods, and a carbon tax (as stated above). Keep most personal income taxes as are, except increase taxes on those making 3 million dollars a year and above to 40% of their income taxed. Eliminate tax shelters in the Upper Income Brackets (those earning 126,000 - 3 million [my new tax scheme introduced the 3 million and over bracket] and those earning 3 millon and over).

Corporations: Aside from increasing their taxes, try and limit the number of corporations chartered and encourage sole proprietorships over corporations.

Telecommunications: Create “Canada Telephone Service”, a nationalized crown corporation dealing with telephone services.

Pensions: Make regulations to prevent employers from under-funding pensions.

Minimum Wage: Let collective bargaining decide that. 

Work Week: Introduce a 35 hour work week.

Tuition: Give out Australian-style tuition rebates to students who stay in Canada after finishing university.   

Universities: Increase funding for Universities by 12%.

ATM Fees: Ban ATM fees.

Cooperatives and Credit Unions: Issue statements of moral support for these organizations.

Science

Canadian Space Agency: (http://www.space.gc.ca/asc/eng/default.asp) Mandate the agency to cooperate more with privately-run space organizations, such as Canadian Arrow (http://www.canadianarrow.com/spacecentre.htm), to put Canada on the “space exploration map”, so to speak.

Evolution: Encourage Provincial governments to make evolution crucial in high school biology curriculum.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Person Man on July 11, 2007, 06:07:07 PM
Political Typology: Western Democrat  Examples: Jon Tester, Ed Pearlmutter, Brian  Scwitzer, Dave Freudenthal


Social : Microcratic Liberal

Education: Keep status-quo on evolution
Abortion: Pro-Choice, support the originial ruling in Roe v. Wade, no funding though. No restrictions on funding or practice of stem cell research or health care delivery.  Full prosecution for murder for 3rd trimester abortions unless in self-defense. 2nd degree abortions outside of rape, insest, self-defense and unforeseen defect can be civilly liable on the federal level and criminally liable at the state level. End the Mexico City policy and reconsider cloning. Fully fund birth control clinics and comphrehensive sex ed.
Homosexuality: I support legal recognition of homosexuals or an end to the state recognition of sectarian marraige.
Church/State: I support the status quo on the issue.
Drugs: Continue combating meth, end prohibition on marijuana. Defer the drug war to the states.
Affirmative Action: Nuetral on issue and its a states' rights issue.
Immigration: I support the current status quo on the issue and favor enforcing current laws
2nd Amendment: Legalize assault weapons and conceal carry. Support "Make My Day".
Euthanasia: Support Oregon's Law
Death Penalty: Oppose with exception to terrorism or in war time.
Prostitution: Legalize it, still prosecute if STDS are transferred.
Freedom of Speech and Pornography: So long as children are not involved and no other crime is committed, pornography should be legal and indecent exposure should only be enforced around children. All other speech should only be restricted around children as well and violent video games should be a matter for the states only. I am really hung up on campaign and ethics reform.
Tort Reform: The 7th and 8th amendments are suitable for this need.
Gambling: Laws against this seem unreasonable given that when one invests, one is gambling.
Patriot Act: Strongly Oppose. We all must understand that 9/11 was a once in a lifetime event.
Hate Laws: I oppose hate speech(I would consider flag burning hate speech) rerstrictions, but a violent crime done clearly done in the name of hate should be aggrevated. However, it should be a complete defense  in any legal subsequent legal proceding if someone "lashes out" because of the hateful speech of another...
Rapists/Pedophiles: Perhaps we should try physical, not chemical, castration and use them as eunuchs




Economic Issues: Moderate Liberal

Taxes: Restore the Clinton Tax code, redistribute tax cuts to 35K to 90K income bracket and remove payroll taxes for paychecks that are for less than 400 dollars a week.

Unions: Supportive. As companies buy labor, there should be companies that sell it by selling themselves.  Repeal Labor Laws and give that power to unions.

Free trade: Strongly support except for funding the development of new infrastructure and industries.

Spending: Levels of spending should be pinned to inflation until their internal finances and administrative structures are reviewed and waste identified. Where cuts in spending can be made they should be made.

Social Security: Move towards part privatisation of the pensions system and an immediate raising of the retirement age to 67. It should also be raised to 70 when life expectancy is raised to 87 (probably by 2045) and should be privatized completely when average life expancy rises to 100 (by 2085).

Space Program: Increase Funding, privatize all sub-orbital and orbital space infrastructure, services, research and transportation. National should focus on making sure that the ORION system matures and establishes Moon Stations and Martian Expeditions.

Welfare: If you want to encourage people to enter the workplace, you have to make the take home pay higher than welfare. As outlined above, income tax should be abolished for those below a certain income allowing an incentive to non workers. Also, there should be an earn income tax credit program to allow those who work at least 40 hours(or 35 for a single parent with more than 2 children so long as they see a social worker) a week to supplement their income so that they are above the poverty line.

Health-care: I support the Massachuettes plan. We need to allow people to work by what is good by them, but allow them to be able to afford the plan they need. However, for one to be eligible for MediAssist(insurance subsidies for middle income individuals), MedicAid or MediCare, they must be able to show that they are taking preventative steps in order to lower their costs. Also, medical programs should make it easier to buy vocational prosthesis such as cybernetic implants and gene therapies as they become available.

Education: Use an alternative voucher system and raise overall funding.

Environment and Subsidies:Transfer subsidies from oil to uranium, solar energy and hydrogen production. Create new industries to buy off all of the excess corm produced by subsidies, cut subsidies of farmers once agriculture becomes more profitable from new industries. We should allow states to manage the wolf populations per the designs so long as the continental wolf population stays above 50% of its current level.

Foreign Policy Issues: Centrist

Democracy and Trade: Don't punish the citizens of a country because its government is destructive to the common good or its people.

Afghanistan: Send an extra division to Afghanistan.

United Nations: Strongly support. We must work with other nations to 'lock out' dubious undemocratic nations from key posts. The UN can be used as an insturment to secure America's leadership.

Iraq: I initially supported the war, but began opposition in April 2004, Leave by the election, except for 4 brigades near the Syria Border and 4 brigades in Kurdistan.

Israel: Strongly support Israel and its defence of it's people and territory. Support establishement of Palestinian State under democratic leadership. Propose that East Jerusalem become a joint adminstered 'free city' under the UN. Allow Israel to deal with Gaza in whatever way it sees fit.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Person Man on July 11, 2007, 10:42:11 PM
Wow, you are so liberal, you make me, an active tow-the-line democrat blush.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Small Business Owner of Any Repute on July 12, 2007, 09:47:03 AM
I suppose I should point out that I support universal health care, and, once it is implemented, social security becomes more or less redundant (as the vast majority of expenses incurred by the elderly are health-related anyway).

Uh, no.  Social Security won't be redundant, and the VAST majority of seniors' out of pocket expenses are not health related.

Seniors already have universal health care.  It's called Medicare.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Small Business Owner of Any Repute on July 12, 2007, 10:01:33 AM
Health-care: I support the Massachuettes plan. We need to allow people to work by what is good by them, but allow them to be able to afford the plan they need. However, for one to be eligible for MediAssist(insurance subsidies for middle income individuals), MedicAid or MediCare, they must be able to show that they are taking preventative steps in order to lower their costs. Also, medical programs should make it easier to buy vocational prosthesis such as cybernetic implants and gene therapies as they become available.

I have no idea why anyone would want to support the Massachusetts plan.  Do you think most HMOs do a good job now?  Do you think everyone should be forced to be on them under penalty of law?

Are you familiar with the idea of "junk coverage"?  Essentially, that's what you're getting with the Massachusetts plan: astronomically high deductables that make the health insurance virtually useless for all but the most extended of hospital stays.  And even for that, you'll be paying at least $150 a month.

There's no reason to force 25-year-olds to buy HMO coverage.  Over the past year, I've had one emergency room visit, five doctors visits (specialist and primary care), one elective surgical operation, and a number of different non-refilled prescriptions.

Total cost of all my health care without any insurance?  Approximately $5,000.   Total cost with one of the Massachusetts "junk plans"?  Approximately $4,000, plus another $1,800 in yearly premiums.  The high deductable makes these HMO plans absolutely useless for 98% of common problems 25-year-olds face.  (They do cover simple doctor visits, but you'd need a lot of visits to your PC physician to make up the $1,800 in premiums.)

That's how sh**tty these Massachusetts plans are.  And the income cutoffs for free/subsidized care aren't as high as you think: somewhere around $30,000.

It's a disasterous program that I completely resent being forced into under penalty of law.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Person Man on July 12, 2007, 10:24:40 AM
Then again, it could just be elective....have a cutoff at the 60th pencentile and work with HMOs for custom packages that are worth about about 1000 a year in general expenses plus CHIP and dental.

Upon further thought, I oppose the fairness doctrine anywhere, at anytime. Nuetrality is a fundamental right to the media.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: © tweed on July 12, 2007, 10:53:53 PM
Social Issues

General philosophy: atheist

Abortion: oppose making it illegal

Separation of Church and State: drive religion underground

Marriage: abolish state-recognized marraige

Affirmative Action: oppose

Gun Control: guns allowed ONLY if purchased with the intent to forcibly overthrow the government of the united state of america

Death Penalty: oppose

Censorship: against

Flag burning: legal and encouraged

Hate crimes: oppose hate crime legislation

Hate speech: oppose hate speech legislation

Smoking: ban effective Jul 30 2008 except for pre-existing smokers.  tobacco companies nationalized and subsequently dissolved

Alcohol consumption: abolish drinking age

Euthanasia: legal

Drugs: legal

Gambling: legal

Prostitution: legal

Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Support government funding

Immigration: goddamned mexicans dragging down my property balues

Economic Issues

General Philosophy: 21st century socialism

Taxes: steeply progressive

Unions: union workers should be protected from being fired during strikes.  right to work laws should be repealed.

Free trade: protectionist

Spending: gut military spending (have soldiers shovel snow like they did in Canada back in '99 or whatever it was), increase social welfare

Social Security: support

Workers' Rights: slit the throats of the owners

Space Program: must get cracking on that sh**t since earth will be cooked by 2200

Welfare: increase

Healthcare: one-tier nationalized single-payer healthcare    private sector disbanded

Education: Oppose vouchers, increase public education spending

Foreign Issues

General Philosophy: overthrow Israel

Democracy and Trade: whatever

Anti (fill in the blank) Treaty: those usually are good

United Nations: has right to exist, although the USA's permanent seat should be replaced with Venezuela

Iraq: leave

Israel: fund Hamas


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Undisguised Sockpuppet on July 16, 2007, 06:49:03 PM
A simplified versions of my views(can provide detailed on request).

Socially: Hands off social permissive. Do whatever you want with your body. Its not my problem. Legalize vices and get the state out of being society's moral arbiter.

Economically: Hamiltonian/Dengist state capitalist. This is mainly to ensure that we don't have things like megacorps running rampant and to be able to do programs like a MASSIVE space program, infrastructure building and a MASSIVE funding of tech/science.

National Security: National Security state now and a militant isolationist police; you don't mess with us and we won't attack you but if you mess with us your nation's ethnic group will only be a footnote in history books and your language only spoken in hell(this is if your language is only spoken in your nation). Reward America's friends and death to America's enemies.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Josh/Devilman88 on July 17, 2007, 07:40:47 PM

Social Issues

General philosophy: Lean Conservative

Separation of church and state: Oppose

Freedom of speech: Strongly Support.

Right to an abortion: I only support it in cases of rape and life and death cases.

Affirmative action: Strongly Oppose.

Gun rights: We should have background checks on everyone buying a gun. 

Civil unions or gay marriage: Leave it up to the state

Euthanasia: Support

Prostitution: Oppose.

Capital punishment: Strongly Support. 

Economic Issues

General philosophy: Leftist

Employers and Employees: Private employers should not discriminate based on race, gender, or other factors.

Taxation: Cut taxes across the boarder, there to make a flat tax rate.

Spending: Increase spending in education and social programs

Free trade: Support only with countries that have labor laws up to par with our own. (Has human rights laws)

Funding of the space program: Keep the same.

Foreign policy

General philosophy: Central

Iraq: Stay in as long as need, but decrease the amount of soliders there.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Energy- Start look for other sources then oil.

Health Care- The Government should only help those who can't afford it.

Immigration-Sharply decrease the number immigration. They are taking our jobs and living off our tax payers.



Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Frodo on August 25, 2007, 08:52:19 PM
Social/Cultural Hot-Button issues

Affirmative Action: Strongly oppose affirmative action based on gender, race, and/or ethnic background.  Would support affirmative action on a socio-economic basis, however.

Abortion: I support the overturning of Roe vs. Wade and Casey vs. Planned Parenthood, and returning the issue back to the states where it rightfully belongs.  Accordingly, I favor the nomination of those justices to create the majority required to overturn the 1973 decision.

Stem-Cell Research: Strongly support using federal tax-dollars to fund embryonic stem-cell research, and lifting the ban on letting laboratories create new lines of embryonic stem-cells.

Gay Rights: Favor letting the states determine where they stand on the gay marriage issue as opposed to the Supreme Court.  Would support extending to gay and lesbian couples rights normally restricted to heterosexual married couples, such as hospital visitation, inheritance of estates and other property, among others.  Also support hate crime legislation, as well as overturning 'Don't Ask; Don't Tell', and allowing gays and lesbians to serve openly in the military, and without harassment for their sexual orientation.  In fact I would go further, and advocate creating an elite unit in the U.S. military composed entirely of gay male couples (w/ a corresponding one for lesbian couples) based on the Sacred Band of Thebes.

Sex and Prostitution: Favor comprehensive sex education programs, including accurate and up-to-date information regarding safe sex (condoms, contraceptives, etc.), sexually transmitted diseases like HIV-AIDS, as well as abstinence.  Also favor the legalization of brothels.

Second Amendment: The Second Amendment was intended to be seen as protecting an individual right as with all the other original ten amendments that comprised the Bill of Rights when it was added to the Constitution -given this context it makes little sense to interpret it otherwise.  When it was originally written, 'militia' connoted the entirety of the citizenry, not just a government-created body. 

Accordingly, I support concealed-carry, 'castle-doctrine' laws, and other liberalizing measures.  Needless to say, I strongly oppose gun-bans at any governmental level, be it municipal, state, or national in scope.  However, as with every other amendment, there are limits that must be recognized, and criminals and those deemed certifiably insane by the medical profession should not have access to firearms, and I support measures (e.g. background checks) to that effect so long as the definitions regarding these groups are narrowly construed.   

Drug War: Given the results of the past forty years since the 'war on drugs' was first inaugurated by President Nixon, most dramatically seen in Mexico's increasing likelihood of disintegration as it battles drug lords, I now support ending the 'war on drugs', and instead direct our attention and funding towards prevention and treatment of addicts. 

Election Reform: I support replacing the First-Past-The-Post system with proportional representation with regard to Congress and state legislatures. For presidential elections, I favor having each state assign electoral votes to each presidential nominee based on vote totals they win within each congressional district (similar to Maine and Nebraska), with the precondition that such congressional districts are redrawn not by political parties but by judges within the state they are redistricting.

I also favor replacing our current front-loaded primary/caucus schedule with a Rotating Regional Primary System (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rotating_Regional_Primary_System).

llegal Immigration: I would support full amnesty of the 12 million or so illegal aliens in the United States if we focus first on ensuring that our borders would be secured so as to prevent future hordes of Mexicans and other Latin Americans from coming across the border. I also support significant increases in funding for ESL (English-as-a-Second-Language) programs, as well as shifting the emphasis of our immigration policy away from family reunification towards those immigrants who have skills, and are well educated.

Economic issues

Minimum Wage: Support raising it and having it pegged to inflation, provided there are provisions made for small businesses who can less afford the higher costs involved than a multinational corporation.

Labor Unions: Strongly support the passage of the Employee Free Choice Act (http://www.aflcio.org/joinaunion/voiceatwork/efca/) to strengthen labor unions.

Energy Independence and the Environment: To build a more ecologically sustainable society over the long-haul, I favor research into nuclear fusion and hydrogen fuel-cell technologies; increasing investments into alternative renewable energy sources like wind, solar, geothermal, and biomass among others; promoting energy efficiency in government as well as in private industry, using the LEED Green Building Rating System (http://www.usgbc.org/) as a model; tax credits for hybrid vehicles; increasing the fuel economy standards for newer vehicles; as well as the expansion of new nuclear power plants, and updating those already in existence (particularly in areas east of the Mississippi, where the only other viable alternatives to power eastern urban metropolises are coal and oil).  The federal government should also increase investments into mass transit programs in urban areas so as to concentrate population growth in those areas.

Am also open to imposing mandatory CO2 emissions limits as well as a carbon tax (http://www.carbontax.org/) to combat (anthropocentric) global warming.

NASA -Space Exploration: Strongly support President Bush's initiative to refocus the space agency away from the International Space Station (instead letting private companies and international space agencies fund the ISS upon its completion) and towards the exploration (and hopeful colonization) of the Moon and Mars.  I also support replacing our ageing space shuttle fleet with newer rockets built as part of the Constellation program (http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/main/index.html), and distributing funding accordingly.  I do not support extending the use of our current space shuttles beyond 2010.   

Foreign Policy

The United States is not likely to retain its status as the 'sole, remaining superpower' as this century progresses, and our power will decline relative to the continued rise of new great powers like China, India, Brazil, South Africa, and Iran.  It is therefore to our long-term benefit to strengthen international law and institutions to brace the liberal international order that we heralded into existence after the end of the Second World War, and to make more likely that such rising powers assimilate to the existing order rather than create a parallel system that is not so conducive to the spread of free markets, democracy, and liberal norms.   


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: wdecker1 on August 26, 2007, 03:32:21 PM
Abortion:
-I support Roe v. Wade, but I do not encourage women to get abortions.
 
Budget and the Economy:
-I believe in a balanced budget.

Civil Rights:
-I support equal opportunity for all, however, I do not support affirmative action or qoutas.  I believe that race should not be an issue when hiring people for jobs, or enrolling students into universities.
-I belive government wire-tapping is a violation of people's rights, thus I am against wire-tapping or any kind of monitoring.
-I believe that the display of religious symbols on public land should regulated at the state level, not the national level, unless these symbols prohibit others from freely practicing their religion.  Then federal interference may be necessary.

Crime:
-I am against the death penalty because it is not an effective measure in reducing crimes.
-I believe in the three strikes your out policy.

Drugs:
-I believe in fighting the War on Drugs.

Education:
-I believe that prayer in schools should not be enforced, but if individual students want to pray, they can.
-I am against the use of school vouchers.  I believe we need to put more money into our public schools.
-I believe that we need to provide more federal funding for college students.

Energy and Oil:
-We need to reduce our dependence on foriegn oil, and promote the use of ethanol.

Environment:
-The U.S. needs to sign the Kyoto Protocol and force businesses to reduce there energy consumption.
-I believe we need a carbon tax on industry.
-We need to put more pressure on China, to lower their energy use.

Foriegn Policy:
-America and the United Nations need to provide more aid for the people in Darfur.
-The United Nations needs to put more pressure on China to protect human rights.
-I believe it is time to pull out of Iraq.  I support the Joe Biden plan of dividing Iraq into three different sections.  We need to support Afghanistan more, and put more pressure on Pakistan to give up Bin Laden.
-We need to work diplomatically with Iran to resolve our issues with them, and not go to war with them.

Free Trade:
-I believe in withdrawing from NAFTA, and abolishing the WTO.
-I think workers should have more of a say in trade agreements.

Gun Control:
-I believe the 2nd Amendment should be protected.

Health Care:
-I support universal health care.

Immigration:
-We cannot deport the illegal immigrants in the US.  We need to have a path to citizenship for them.  However, we need to put more security on the border to prevent more illegal immigrants from coming in.

Infrastructure/Technology:
-We need to have no censorship on the internet.
-We need to proivde more money to repair our bridges and roads.

Jobs:
-I believe that the government needs to provide more support for the small farmers.
-I believe in a higher minimum wage.
-I believe in a stronger OSHA, and that all of the union busting lawyers need to be expelled from the department of labor.
-We need to stop outsourcing jobs, and keep the good industrial jobs in America.
-We need to enforce antitrust laws and give the labor unions support in negotiations.

Social Security:
-S. Security should not be privatized.

Tax Reform:
-We should repeal the Bush tax cuts and maintain the progressive tax system.

Welfare and Poverty:
-We need to encourage people to get off of welfare and get into the workforce, however, welfare should not be abolished.
-I believe faith-based charities can have access to government funds.




Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: etnavibes on January 27, 2008, 06:11:24 PM
Social Issues:

Abortion: Pro-life
Gay Rights: Pro-civil unions, but government should stay out of marriage since it is a religious issue. 
Separation of Church and State: Support
Affirmative Action: Oppose, it is reverse discrimination
Gun Control: Less regulations
Death Penalty: Oppose
Censorship: Oppose, but keep laws against libel, slander and defamation against individuals
Flag burning: Oppose
Hate crimes: Oppose legislating special rights to victims of a crime
Hate speech: Dialogue is healthy, violence is not
Smoking: What an individual does to his/her body is their choice
Alcohol consumption: See above
Euthanasia: Oppose- killing is the exception to the rule above
Drugs: Marijuana for medical purposes
Gambling: Support
Prostitution: Support
Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Support, on the condition that the cells do not come from the un-born
Immigration: Strengthen our borders
Environment: We must conserve open and forested land, reduce our pollution, give incentives to alternative energy, and encourage individuals and private groups to preserve land
Patriot Act: Oppose, we must protect the citizens' right to privacy

Economic Issues:

Taxes: Lower taxes, abolish the IRS
Unions: Support company-based unions rather than trade-based unions
Free trade: Free trade is good in principle, abolish such agreements like NAFTA
Spending: Streamline government programs to ensure efficiency
Social Security: Let people in their 40s and younger get out of the system- privatize and do not raid the social security fund
Space Program: Support- a lot of great technology comes from this program that later finds itself in the consumer market
Welfare: Support right-to-work programs
Health-care: Make sure the children are covered, and focus on healthy living. Find market-based solutions to get adults insured
Education: Focus on results and let parents decide where to send their kids

Foreign Policy Issues:

United Nations: Oppose
Iraq: It was a diversion from the real objective of the War on Terror- capturing Osama. Find solutions to get out safely.
Israel: Do not fund them


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Хahar 🤔 on April 05, 2008, 01:08:34 PM
Social

Social issues are generally cold-button for me. Economics is much more important.

Abortion: Mildly pro-choice. First trimester, yes. Second trimester, sometimes. Third trimester, almost never. Oppose partial-birth abortions.

Gay rights: I couldn't care less. I have no problems with civil unions.

Gun control: Strongly pro-gun control. It's a lot harder to kill somebody with a knife than with a gun.

Death penalty: Not against the idea, but if you sentence somebody to life without parole by accident, you can release them and give them a s**tload of money. If you fry someone by accident, they're still fried.

School prayer: No organized prayer. Casual references are okay.

Affirmative Action: No. Just no.

Patriot Act: A clearly unconstitutional document.

3 Strikes Laws: There can always be extenuating circumstances. Hard and fast rules are dumb. If the acccused has committed three serious crimes, then the judge will realize that.

Prostitution: Legal, but restricted and regulated.

Gambling: Casino revenue isn't worth the crime it generates.

Drugs: Legal, but restricted and regulated.

Economic

Education: It should be the state's #1 priority. If you don't like what the state gives, go to a private school, but you won't get money from the state for it.

Free Trade: Permissible, if and only if the country in question has equal or greater protection for workers.

Income Tax: The "Fair Tax" has the most Orwellian name I've ever heard. Progressive taxation is key. Let those who can pay pay.

Universal Health Care: Badly needed in this country. I fully support it.

Foreign Policy

Israel: It's here. It's not leaving. But it has a hugely bloated ego, due to the United States. I support a two-state solution.

Iran: Let them be.

Iraq: It is not up to us to determine what sort of political system another country wants.

Military Spending: Slash it.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: NDN on July 06, 2008, 07:08:40 AM
Summary: Personal Liberty, States Rights, Fiscal Conservatism and a Humble Foreign Policy.

Cultural Issues:

Abortion: Pro-choice but okay with late-term restrictions and not for using this as a litmus test.

Gay Marriage: I support gay marriage for obvious reasons. However, this issue should be left to the states and courts for the time being.

Affirmative Action: I oppose it, government racial preferences are unconstitutional and this policy often has unintended consequences. I would not oppose class based preferences however.

Gun Control:  No federal gun control! This is a state issue at most. Respect Heller Verdict.

Death Penalty: I support it although it needs reforms such as mandatory DNA testing and videotaping of police interrogations. The costs associated with it aren't that great when you factor in plea bargaining or the severity of the crimes involved as well.

Censorship: Oppose it, unless it directly harms an individual (e.g. libel). FCC regulations and obscenity laws need to be abolished.

Flag Burning: Do not support efforts to ban it, although fire ordinances should be observed.

Hate Crimes/Speech: Generally oppose, especially in cases of free speech. However, in cases of group intimidation or decades old 'civil rights' violations they can be appropriate.

Smoking: I support public smoking bans because second hand smoke is a public health hazard, which often harms people against their consent.

Alcohol consumption: I oppose the current drinking age (partially on the grounds of states rights), but support far tougher penalties for DUI.

Euthanasia: Support. If someone is of sound mind and in extreme pain, they should be allowed to end their suffering in a humane way.

Gambling: I oppose it but this is a state issue.

Prostitution: I support legalization but again, this is a state issue.

Embryonic Stem-Cell Research: I support federal Stem Cell Research.

Sex Education: I support it. Teenagers should be informed on STDs, birth control, etc. to prevent the spread of disease and teenage pregnancy.

Drug War & Marijuana: End the federal war on drugs, it is an tyrannical and expensive failure. Let states make their own laws.

Voting access: Aggressively prosecute 'caging.' Require a paper trail for all electronic ballots.

Illegal Immigration: No 'Amnesty' or Guest Workers! Increase border security, fines, etc. while streamlining process for qualified applicants.

Patriot Act: Oppose, it threatens constitutional rights such as due process, protection from search and seizure, etc. Replace it with the Benjamin Franklin True Patriot Act.

Economic issues

Social Security: We should phase out benefits for the well off and establish tax-free personal retirement/savings accounts for everyone. Congress should be banned from raiding the Trust Fund.

Healthcare: Implement Universal Healthcare similar to the Healthy Americans Act; provide automatic coverage for the unemployed and a choice between private or public coverage for the employed. Allow importation of drugs and buying health insurance over state lines.

Welfare: Focus more on grants and encouraging private charities, including religious ones.

Education: The federal government is ruining education. Abolish the Department of Education and repeal No Child Left Behind. Move towards Charter School system and provide regulated Vouchers. Support Head-start, Student Loans, and After School Programs because they all have proven success records.

Taxes: Raise taxes for wealthy, cut taxes for business and the poor instead. Simplify the tax code overall, there are too many deductions and loop holes.

Spending: Implement a Balanced Budget Amendment to control spending and require more transparency. Enough is enough.

Farm Subsidies: Protect small farms through crop insurance, loans, etc. End subsidies to Megafarms and their predatory practices (incidentally, the public agrees).

Minimum Wage: Abolish the Federal Minimum Wage, leave wage 'rates' to the states. Expand the Earned Income Tax Credit and support for charities or similar relief instead. This has been shown to be more efficient (e.g. Congressional Budget Office study).

Eminent Domain: This is extremely disturbing and yet another example of how big government and big business are colluding against us. We must stop special interests from violating property rights and literally driving families from their homes, farms and ranches.

Regulation: Simplify and enforce, because Big Business is evading the law while Smaller Business is generally bearing the brunt of it. Some areas such as food safety need drastic improvements, others are overly complicated (e.g. acquisition).

Infrastructure: Build smarter not larger. Stop funding so many massive highways, subsidized suburban sprawl, etc. New Urbanism and sustainability should be the new model.

Energy Independence and the Environment: Invest massively in alternative energy including Nuclear Power over the long term. Drill for oil offshore and in ANWR but divert a portion of profits to fund research. Move more towards mass public transportation. Enforce existing regulations, don't add new ones (e.g. Kyoto).

Currency: The dollar is being devalued, restore the 'Gold Window' and cap spending to combat it.

Trade Policy: Reform NAFTA and other agreements. Trade should both lower tariffs and aim to promote basic environmental and labor standards. Massively subsidize steel and alternative energy companies.

Foreign Policy

Military Involvement: Our commitments are excessive, we need to focus more on our own problems. Cut funds and involvement in areas such as West Europe, East Asia, Latin America, etc.

Iraq: We were lied into an unconstitutional war, and we are not seeing real progress. Begin phased withdrawal and talks to repartition the country.

Cuba: End the embargo, it is not working and there is no real need anymore.

Israel: The US needs to move towards neutrality.

Iran: Carrot and Stick diplomacy. Offer trade liberalization if they comply more with us. No military action!

China: Maintain relations with China and Taiwan. No MFN; sell arms to Taiwan.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: DownWithTheLeft on July 06, 2008, 07:48:56 AM
Unintentionally one year later, let's see what's changed:
 
Prostitution: I support a policy of ignoring it but not condoning it turning into a legitimate business and collecting taxing off it

Patriot Act: Neutral, however, I realize it has done a lot of good like stopping the Brooklyn Bridge plotOppose, it has vastly overstayed its welcome and strayed from its intended purpose

Taxes: I support shutting down the IRS immediatley and replacing our current system with a Fair orFlat Tax system.  I would also cut massive amount of programs to account for these cuts.  (Fair Tax=bad idea)

Space Program: Keep at current levelsScale back heavily to the point of almost elimination

Not as much as I thought, although my stance on gay marriage is a tad different too, but the idea stays the same


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: NDN on July 06, 2008, 10:49:14 AM
Separation of church and state: An endorsement of atheism is just as bad as an endorsement of Christianity.

Huh?

Keep income on par with spending. Eliminate income tax.

I'm not sure how you'd do that and still have a mandate for state-administered health insurance plans. Even with the massive spending cuts you're proposing, which let's be honest are not going to happen short of a financial meltdown.


That would just make Social Security even less solvent. Logically that would entail less revenue for the program in addition to benefits cuts and the costs incurred from setting up 'transfer accounts.' At least that's assuming you favor something along the lines of the 'partial privatization' the GOP has been touting lately.

Welfare: Extreme overhaul. Subsidize working.

Details please.

Other than that most of what you posted looks pretty logical and straight forward for the most part.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Ebowed on July 06, 2008, 10:54:27 AM
An endorsement of atheism is just as bad as an endorsement of Christianity.

Who is proposing a government endorsement of atheism?


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Хahar 🤔 on July 06, 2008, 11:19:43 AM
An endorsement of atheism is just as bad as an endorsement of Christianity.

Who is proposing a government endorsement of atheism?

The Turks. :P


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Flying Dog on July 06, 2008, 04:29:23 PM
Social Issues:

Abortion: Pro-life; full ban with exceptions of rape, incest or danger of mothers life. More funding for single-mother programs and make adoption easier.
Gay Rights: Support hate-crime legislation. Support gay marriage with full rights and privileges.
Separation of Church and State: Support faith-based initiatives and religious symbols in public buildings
Affirmative Action: Oppose
Gun Control: Support 2nd amendment rights. Safety locks, waiting periods and back-ground checks are good, however. Oppose ban on assault weapons.
Death Penalty: Oppose in all cases.
Censorship: Oppose
Flag burning: Support the right.
Hate crimes: Support hate crime legislation. Steeper penalties.
Hate speech: Support as long as it's not a public safety issue.
Smoking: Public Ban on smoking.
Alcohol consumption: Current laws suffice.
Euthanasia: Oppose
Drugs: Oppose legalization. Medical Marijuana is an exception.
Gambling: Support with higher taxes
Prostitution: Oppose
Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Support (Castle-Degette Bill) Left over embryos from in vitro clinics should be used instead of thrown out.
Immigration: Support easier path to citizenship. Guest-worker program
Environment: Sign Kyoto treaty. Level penalties against companies that violate environmental statutes and give incentives to companies that protect the enviroment.
Patriot Act: Oppose/Repeal

Economic Issues:

Taxes: Reform the Tax Code. Cut loop-holes out for the rich and repeal Bush tax cuts. Increase taxes on rich while giving tax cuts to poor/middle class.
Unions: Support Unions right to organize. Protect striking union members and laws against company's interfering with union votes.
Free trade: Abolish hurtful trade agreements like NAFTA and level tariffs on foreign goods.
Spending: Streamline government programs to ensure efficiency
Social Security: Raise the age requirement. Cut benefits for rich.
Space Program: Support more funding for NASA.
Welfare: Increase. Enforce requirements.
Health-care: Universal coverage
Education: Repeal NCLB. More funding for failing schools and less emphasis on test scores.

Foreign Policy Issues:

United Nations: Support. Abide by most resolutions.
Iraq: Time-table for withdrawal
Israel: Support in current capacity.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Hash on July 06, 2008, 09:17:03 PM
Abortion: Pro-choice of course, but a non-issue for me.

Death Penalty: I support it for the most heinous crimes such as high treason in wartime, recidivist rapists and serial murderers

School prayer: Strongly oppose

Separation of church and state: Strongly, strongly, very strongly support.

Embryonic Stem-Cell Research: Strongly support

Gay Marriage: I oppose gay marriage (but I oppose an amendment in the constitution) but support civil unions. Also, I'm all for letting the states decide.

Sex Education: Teach the children what they need to know.

Gun Control:  I support tougher gun controls to prevent former criminals etc. for getting guns.

Drug War & Marijuana: Legalize medicinal marijuana, and that's it.

Voting access: Uhm, what? I don't see any reason to change current laws. But I'm skeptic about electronic thingees.

Illegal Immigration: I support a path to citizenship, or regularization of status, if that immigrant has learned English, found a job, and has no past criminal record.

Economic issues

Social Security and other Entitlement programs:  No opinion

Medicare:  No opinion

Medicaid: No opinion

Welfare: Increase a bit, but encourage other options

Education: Provide free, good quality, public education to all.

Taxes: Lower taxes a bit for the lowest classes, and increase a bit for those higher up.

Minimum Wage: Increase, but no need for a timetable or stuff for increasing it

Energy Independence and the Environment: Oppose ethanol fuel, support Kyoto, support renewable energies for cars and so forth. Oppose ANWR drilling and support more public and railway transportation.

Foreign Policy

Iraq: Phase, timelined withdrawal of troops

Afghanistan: Focus the fight on terrorism in Afghanistan. The problem is there.

United Nations: Support, o/c. But also support reform

Iran: Tough stance with Iran, but war as an absolute last resort.



Region-specific issues for France:

35-hours workweek: Strongly oppose. Either scrap it, or depenalize companies with employees working more than 35 hours.

Institutional reform: Support all parts of it, but also support looking into a directly elected Senate (elected Senate in both France and Canada)

EU: Support it. But oppose bureaucratic tendencies and bureaucratic rules and regulations. Oppose Turkish entry into the EU.

Environment: see above, and support all recommendations of the Grenelle. And apply them too.

Immigration: Oppose mass regularization of all illegals, but support a strict case-by-case system and implement a system to allow only the needed legal immigrants.

and Canada:

Afghanistan: see above

Senate: Support triple-E Senate. A Senate elected with MMP or PR would be perfect.

Electoral reform: Support referendums on electoral reform modes such as STV or MMP (prefer MMP)

Liberal carbon tax: support

Stephane Dion: No charisma.

Environment: see above


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Iosif is a COTHO on July 07, 2008, 02:14:58 AM
Social Issues:

Abortion: Debate has been overrun by extremists. Have to find a middle-way option. Perhaps legal up to 20 weeks, with no abortion-on-demand.

Death Penalty: Strongly oppose in all cases. The state and the courts should not have the power to kill people.

School prayer: Public schools? Oppose.

Separation of church and state: Strongly support.

Embryonic Stem-Cell Research:  Support

Gay Marriage: Gay couples should have the same legal rights heterosexual couples have. I have no real problem with it being called 'marriage'. Churches should have the right to refuse to marry gay couples though, that's their prerogative.

Sex Education: Support compulsory sex ed from the age of say, 13. Teaching should cover all types of sexuality.  Kids have to know what's what to avoid STD's and unplanned pregnancies. 'Abstinence-only education' is just naive and reckless.

Gun Control:  A state's issue. What's good for New York may not be good for Wyoming. Our main priority should be stopping gun crime in the cities. Perhaps some kind of buy-back program in major cities is a good idea.

Drug War & Marijuana: Marijuana should be legal. For harder drugs, there should be no penalties for use, but rehabilitation.

Voting access: Pen and paper voting. Only those currently in jail for serious offences should be prohibited from voting. Though even then I'm not convinced by the reasoning.

Illegal Immigration: Make legal immigration easier. Illegal immigrants currently in the U.S who have caused no problems should be given a path to citizenship. The worst thing about illegal immigration is the exploitation of the immigrants by criminal employers.

I don't know enough about the exact features of the U.S health systems and welfare systems to make an informed comment on them. Suffice to say that I think universal public health care and a fair welfare system are vital to a moral and just society.

Education:  Free, good quality, public education should be available to everyone. No government funding of private schools (I don't know how that is in the U.S, but it certainly happens a lot in Australia.)

Taxes: Low for those with little, high for those with a lot. Though I would favor a general lowering of tax rates if it meant severely cutting deductions and other loopholes.

Minimum Wage: Pegged to the inflation rate.


Energy Independence and the Environment: Renewable energies! Do everything possible to reduce our dependence on oil.

Iraq: Only withdraw troops when the Iraqi Government and security forces believe it is okay to do so. To drop everything and leave would be a disastrous and cowardly betrayal , almost as bad as the betrayal when Bush Sr. left the Iraqis.





Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: SPC on July 07, 2008, 11:54:53 AM
Let's see where I've changed:

Social:
Liberal
- I am pro-choice neutral at the state level
- I support civil-unions seperation of marriage and state
- I support decriminalization of any drug
- I am pro-prostitution.
- I am anti-censorship, within reason.
- I am pro-stem cell research. but against funding it with tax dollaws
- I am tolerant of flag burning, so long as you do it on your own property.
- I support euthanasia.
- I strongly support removing "under god" from the pledge.
- I support evolution
- I oppose public schools prayer
Mixed
- I am anti-smoking ban.
- I am opposed to illegal immigration restrictions, but and feel that quotas should be abolished.
Conservative
- I support the death penalty if DNA evidence is provided. the jury is competent and paid voluntarily
- I oppose gay government licensing of marriage.
- I oppose government sanctioned political correctness.
- I strongly oppose gun control.
- I strongly oppose the Fairness Doctrine.

Economic:
Liberal:
- I support strongly oppose a tariff on foreign oil
- I support oppose government more research into renewable energy.
Mixed
- I support cutting welfare and other programs, and using the money saved to fund job training.
Conservative
- I strongly oppose affirmative action.
- I support free trade.
- I support dismantling the IRS.
- I generally support businesses over unions.
- I oppose stronger environmental regulations.
- I support privatizing eliminating Social Security.
- I would support a balanced budget ammendment.
- I oppose campaign finance reform.
- I oppose raising the minimum wage.
- I oppose increasing funding for public education and NCLB.
- I strongly oppose more government funding for medicaid and other health programs.
- I oppose foreign aid.
- I strongly oppose the FDA.
- I strongly oppose eminent domain.
 
Foreign Policy and Homeland Security:
Liberal:
- I oppose the Patriot Act.
- I oppose NSA wire-tapping.
- I would strongly oppose a draft.
- I oppose the troop surge.
- I oppose increasing military funding.
- I support withdrawal from areas of the world where our presence is unnecesary (i.e. Europe, Afghanistan, Japan)
- I do not believe in going to war with countries that do not pose a direct threat to us.
Mixed:
- I am pro-Israel, but do not support giving them aid. pro-non-intervention
- I support partitioning immediate withdrawal from Iraq.
Conservative:
- I support pulling out of the UN.
- I believe that we need to be aggresive toward completely stay out of Iran and North Korea's affairs to stop their nuclear programs
- I do not believe that habeus corpus applies to prisoners of war. (i.e. Gitmo)



Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: ?????????? on July 07, 2008, 12:05:32 PM
So Fezzy, outside of foreign policy, where do we disagree?


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: SPC on July 07, 2008, 12:08:15 PM
So Fezzy, outside of foreign policy, where do we disagree?

The War of Northern Agression.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Ebowed on July 07, 2008, 12:21:03 PM
The Pledge of Allegiance is an interesting issue indeed.  The 'under God' nonsense is a complete political albatross for anyone who dares oppose it, not that anyone in federal office would.

The better question is why we ought to have any pledge in the first place.  Regardless of any religious references it might contain.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: SPC on July 07, 2008, 01:56:46 PM
The Pledge of Allegiance is an interesting issue indeed.  The 'under God' nonsense is a complete political albatross for anyone who dares oppose it, not that anyone in federal office would.

The better question is why we ought to have any pledge in the first place.  Regardless of any religious references it might contain.

Five stars! ;D


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: MasterJedi on July 07, 2008, 01:59:18 PM
So Fezzy, outside of foreign policy, where do we disagree?

The War of Northern Agression Southern Illegality.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Хahar 🤔 on July 07, 2008, 09:06:31 PM

:D


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Albus Dumbledore on July 07, 2008, 09:14:57 PM
You mean the slaver revolt. :P


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Person Man on July 07, 2008, 09:24:45 PM
Or simply the Slaver Riot. :P


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Albus Dumbledore on July 07, 2008, 09:42:25 PM
War of Negro Oppression is another name for it of course.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: defe07 on July 08, 2008, 02:15:53 AM
Here's where I stand:

Cultural Issues:

Abortion: Pro-choice with some restrictions, but restrictions should be determined at the state level

Gay Marriage: Pro-gay marriage and civil unions, but decisions should be left at the state level and there should be no federal definition of marriage

Affirmative Action: Oppose AA because it’s reverse discrimination

Gun Control: Oppose gun control at the federal level, respect the 2nd Amendment, but bans on the most dangerous weapons should be controlled at the state level

Death Penalty: Oppose but on a case by case basis for the most serious crimes

Censorship: Oppose because it should be up to each person

Flag Burning: Support because it’s freedom of speech

Hate Crimes/Speech: Neutral but it’s all about free speech, oppose hate crimes though

Smoking: Support leaving smoking bans up to the owners of a place, not the government

Alcohol consumption: Support responsible fines for DUI

Euthanasia: Support because it’s a person’s body

Gambling: Support but it should be up to the states

Prostitution: Support but it should be up to the states

Embryonic Stem-Cell Research: Support stem-cell research with private funds

Sex Education: Support because of teaching teens responsibility

Drug War & Marijuana: Oppose the War on Drugs, legalize medical marijuana and let states control drugs with their own laws

Voting access: Support the paper ballot with a bar code to cast the ballot twice, once in a computer and once in a ballot box

Illegal Immigration: Oppose by getting rid of the welfare state and holding employers accountable, no amnesty but yes to border security and serious immigration law reform

Patriot Act: Oppose because it’s a threat to our constitutional rights

Economic issues

Social Security & Other Entitlements: Support offering alternative accounts for those that want to opt out of the system, SS should be left to the states with some federal funding as a safety-net

Medicare: Support by giving tax credits and vouchers to the lower-income and middle-income people and giving them the choice between public healthcare and private healthcare, minimize Medicare to the state level 

Medicaid: Same as above

Welfare: Support more influence from charities instead of government

Education: Support vouchers and tax credits for the middle-income and lower-income people, let parents decide between private education and public education, federal government should have a smaller role in education (give states more power)

Taxes: Support drastic tax cuts for the middle-class and poor and tax cuts for small businesses, simplify tax code

Spending: Support spending control and accountability with fiscal policies by implementing the BBA

Minimum Wage: It has been shown to be inefficient many times over, including by the Congressional Budget Office. Abolish the Federal Minimum Wage. Expand the Earned Income Tax Credit and support for charities or similar relief instead. Support the EITC and gradually do away with the minimum wage

Eminent Domain: Oppose because it’s not fair to see special interests gaining from this

Infrastructure: Support better building, less funding for massive highways

Energy Independence and the Environment: Support alternative energy for the long term, support letting Alaskans what to do with ANWR but personally don’t favor drilling, alternatives like hemp could get us off oil

Currency: Support the gold standard and maybe silver too

Trade Policy: Support trade between individuals of two countries, not the governments-backed trade of the present; trade agreements need to be reformed and real free trade respected

Foreign Policy

Military Involvement: We must focus on our problems, we shouldn’t be involved

Iraq: It was unconstitutional, troops must be brought back home as soon as possible

Cuba: The embargo is preventing free trade to reach Cubans and it should be abolished, although there should be a brokered deal

Israel: Support a neutral stance between Israel and Palestine; it’s not our fight (thanks Brits!)

Iran: Oppose any military action; trade with them



Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: JSojourner on July 12, 2008, 10:55:29 AM
So Fezzy, outside of foreign policy, where do we disagree?

The War of Northern Agression Southern Illegality Southern stupidity.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Fmr. Pres. Duke on July 12, 2008, 07:14:24 PM


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: dead0man on July 12, 2008, 08:20:50 PM
The Pledge of Allegiance is an interesting issue indeed.  The 'under God' nonsense is a complete political albatross for anyone who dares oppose it, not that anyone in federal office would.

The better question is why we ought to have any pledge in the first place.  Regardless of any religious references it might contain.
It's optional isn't it?


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: DownWithTheLeft on July 19, 2008, 09:00:12 AM
I must add a new one I thought of:

Legalize marijuana and other drugs.  Set high taxes similar to cigarettes, and after one year total the tax money.  Then use some kind of mathematical formula to determine how much money that is in gas taxes, and cut gas tax by that amount.  Legalize pot, save money on gas!  Who would have thought?


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Person Man on July 19, 2008, 10:09:16 AM

Or simple "The War to put down those damned uppity tweakers"


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Albus Dumbledore on July 19, 2008, 10:16:50 AM
No. How about we abolish all sin/excise taxes for drugs/tobacco/booze?


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Person Man on July 19, 2008, 10:22:17 AM
No. How about we abolish all sin/excise taxes for drugs/tobacco/booze?

Hey. That's more taxes there, fewer taxes elsewhere.

I am worried about ending the protection of people idiots with money that don't deserve it.- Legalize Gambling.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Albus Dumbledore on July 19, 2008, 10:22:45 AM
Sin taxes are social engineering and hurt the lower classes.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Verily on July 19, 2008, 10:25:10 AM
The Pledge of Allegiance is an interesting issue indeed.  The 'under God' nonsense is a complete political albatross for anyone who dares oppose it, not that anyone in federal office would.

The better question is why we ought to have any pledge in the first place.  Regardless of any religious references it might contain.
It's optional isn't it?

Generally speaking, but certainly some schools force their students to say it. At least, the pressure to do so is greater than it should be, and the time lost is not worth it.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Person Man on July 19, 2008, 10:26:03 AM
Sin taxes are social engineering and hurt the lower classes.

Good point. In fact, most of these drug control laws have their roots in racism. Especially pot and cocaine.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Albus Dumbledore on July 19, 2008, 10:27:13 AM
Anyone who supports the war on drugs or tobacco bans/restrictions/taxes is a morally disgusting individual.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Ebowed on July 19, 2008, 11:06:25 AM
The Pledge of Allegiance is an interesting issue indeed.  The 'under God' nonsense is a complete political albatross for anyone who dares oppose it, not that anyone in federal office would.

The better question is why we ought to have any pledge in the first place.  Regardless of any religious references it might contain.
It's optional isn't it?

That doesn't explain why there needs to be a Pledge in the first place.

Either way, I can remember quite well the pressure to say the Pledge, particularly in the earlier years of schooling.  One Jehovah's Witness student who stood in respect but stayed silent during the Pledge was the subject of much suspicion and backdoor chatter.
That it would be a good thing that students should have to face this is something I vehemently disagree with.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: RIP Robert H Bork on December 01, 2008, 11:41:02 PM
I am a total social libertarian, with the exception that I am pro-life, oppose hate crime legislation, pro-censorship, anti-drug, anti-prostitution, and I don't support any extreme issues, albeit the separation of church and state, where most would consider me to be very extreme (ie taking "under God" out of the pledge of allegiance, "in God we trust" out of money", and the 10 Commandments off of governmentally-run buildings.)

Economically, however, I am much more complicated.  I am an economic moderate/liberal.  On the liberal side, I oppose the modern privization attempts by Republicans, mostly oppose welfare reform (because I feel that it is my job as a human being to help a person live, even if he will not help him/herself), support labor unions, support agricultural subsidies, am pro-environment, strongly in support of affirmative action, oppose tort reform, and oppose school vouchers.  However, my Conservative economic views are these:  I oppose progressive taxation, support a flatter, more fair tax system, I am a deficit hawk, support tax cuts for all, especially the wealthy, and would have supported Bush's tax cuts had the deficit not been so astronomical; I oppose special interest groups getting funding from the government (NASA, I'm talkin' to you!), oppose the pessimistic comments made by the majority of the Democratic party criminalizing the rich, support school choice in a non-voucher system, support the rights of businesses over ethics, oppose big spending in general, oppose efforts to encourage immigration or lessen the amount of years it takes to immigrate, and support protectionism in trade with other countries.  And I have no official opinion on free/fair trade, embargos on China and Cuba, and health care, among several other economic issues I cannot remember at the moment.

And, foreign policy-wise, I'm a dove.  (Although I don't support UN approval to go to war).  Expanding on this, I don't believe that one can go to war with a non-existing country, such as "Terrorism," but military intervention into terrorist networks is advisable.  Oppose Iraq.  As far as Israel and Palestine go, I support offering military aid to Israel if other nations declare war on them for being the only official Jewish nation.  I also believe that Israel treats Palestine unfairly, and Palestinians have just as much a right to live in that country as the Jewish people; it is, after all, both of our holy lands, and I would suggest a separation of church and state to ease tensions in Israel.

So those are my positions on the issues.  Let's hear some of you.

Now even though I am a staunch conservative, I could support a candidate with positions like yours. Except of course for your position on God in the state, vouchers and affirmative action.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Earth on December 02, 2008, 02:45:14 PM
Anyone who supports the war on drugs or tobacco bans/restrictions/taxes is a morally disgusting individual.

I certainly don't support the war on drugs, but at the same time, I wouldn't go as far as to say those that do are "morally disgusting". It's a ridiculous assertion.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: © tweed on December 02, 2008, 03:01:07 PM


wow I hate myself :(


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Mint on December 02, 2008, 03:14:07 PM
I've advocated worse. Almost as bad as Dole, actually.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Governor PiT on December 03, 2008, 06:53:04 PM
I am mainly a Paleoconservative but I am also against the drug war, support conservation and animal rights. I also support some wealth redistribution against the ultra elites.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Kaine for Senate '18 on December 03, 2008, 07:26:42 PM
Social Issues

General philosophy: Centrist, slight conservative tilt.

Abortion: Support in cases of rape, incest, threat to the mother, and during the first and second trimesters.  Oppose third term trimesters, and supported the partial-birth abortion ban.

Separation of Church and State: There should not be an established religion, although I don’t take it to an extreme level.  There’s nothing wrong with a nativity scene/Christmas Tree, so long as a Chanukah Bush or Kwanza thingy can go up as well.

Marriage: Oppose any changes to the definition of marriage as it stands today.  I would support allowing full marriage benefits to gay/lesbian couples.

Affirmative Action: Oppose for the most part.

Gun Control: Oppose for the most part, support 2nd Amendment.

Death Penalty: Support keeping it legal but there need to be better guidelines for how it is sentenced.

Censorship: Some restrictions on public TV/radio waves, little restriction on pay TV/radio. Support some filtering of the internet at public schools and libraries.

Flag burning: Opposed to a law/amendment to ban flag burning, as it is a 1st Amendment right.

Hate crimes: I support hate crime legislation.

Hate speech: I generally support hate speech legislation.

Smoking: Opposed to laws that restrict where and when a person can smoke. This is a decision to be left up to the owner and the consumer.

Alcohol consumption: Support lowering the age to 18.

Euthanasia: Oppose legalization of euthanasia.

Drugs: Oppose legalization in general.

Gambling: Support its legalization.

Prostitution: Oppose its legalization.

Embryonic Stem Cell Research: I fully support government funding of stem cell research.

Immigration: Oppose increasing the ease with which skilled and unskilled immigrants can enter the country, provided they have no criminal record. Those who enter illegally should be sent back, unless they have a solid job and no criminal record of any kind.


Economic Issues

General Philosophy: Liberal

Taxes: I support cutting taxes on people making under $225,000 per year, and increasing them for everyone else.

Unions: I fully support unions, as well as the repeal of the Slave Labor Act, AKA Taft-Hartley.

Free trade: Oppose in almost every circumstance.

Spending: I support cutting unnecessary spending, such as bridges to nowhere in Alaska, but I oppose cuts in subsidies, Medicare/Medicaid, social security, pensions, etc.

Social Security: Oppose all privatization measures.

Workers' Rights: I support some protection for workers, but I oppose legislation telling people who they can/cannot fire.  If the company had a poor reason, it will come out in court.

Space Program: Would support funding the thing if it was shown there was some use from the program.

Welfare: I support giving temporary welfare, but believe a cap should be put on how long a person can be on welfare, unless they have a disability that prevents them from finding work.

Healthcare: I support a universal health care system, paid for by the government, allowing people to choose any health care provider they want.

Education: I oppose vouchers completely, and support increasing spending on teacher training.


Foreign Issues

General Philosophy: Interventionist

Anti (fill in the blank) Treaty: Generally support

United Nations: I support staying, but we need to find a way to make it more effective.

Iraq: We should begin to withdraw, but maintain troops until it becomes clear that the Iraqi Government is stable and can take of itself and its citizens.

Israel: Strong supporter of Israel.

Iranl: We need to find a way to prevent a nuclear Iran; we cannot meet unconditionally with their leaders, but we should meet with them.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Hash on December 03, 2008, 07:52:08 PM
Abortion: Pro-choice, but a non-issue for me.

Death Penalty: I support it for the most heinous crimes such as high treason in wartime, recidivist rapists and serial murderers

School prayer: Strongly oppose

Separation of church and state: Strongly, strongly, very strongly support.

Embryonic Stem-Cell Research: Strongly support

Gay Marriage: I oppose gay marriage (but I oppose an amendment outlawing it) but support civil unions.

Sex Education: Teach the children what they need to know.

Gun Control:  I support tougher gun controls to prevent former criminals etc. from getting guns.

Drug War & Marijuana: Legalize medicinal marijuana, and that's it. I'm very conservative when it comes to drugs.

Voting access: Uhm, what? I don't see any reason to change current laws. But I'm skeptic about electronic thingee whingees.

Illegal Immigration: I support a path to citizenship, or regularization of status, if that immigrant has learned English, found a job, and has no past criminal record.

Welfare: Increase it a tad, but encourage other options

Education: Provide free, quality, public education to all. CB should be a model for public schools :P

Taxes: Lower taxes a bit for the lowest classes, and increase it for the top classes.

Minimum Wage: Increase, but no need for a timetable or stuff for increasing it

Energy Independence and the Environment: Oppose ethanol fuel, support Kyoto, support renewable energies for cars and so forth. Oppose ANWR drilling and support more public and railway transportation.

Iraq: Phased, timelined withdrawal of troops

Afghanistan: Focus on fighting terrorism in Afghanistan. The problem is there.

United Nations: Support, but reform it.

Iran: Tough stance with Iran, but war as an absolute last resort.



Region-specific issues for France:

35-hours workweek: Strongly oppose. Either scrap it, or depenalize companies with employees working more than 35 hours.

Institutional reform: Support all parts of it, but also support looking into a directly elected Senate. Especially like the initiatives, but I'd prefer a lower number of signatures necessary to actually make it a real thing.

EU: Support it. But oppose bureaucratic tendencies and bureaucratic rules and regulations. Oppose Turkish entry into the EU.

Environment: see above, and support all recommendations of the Grenelle. And apply them too.

Immigration: Oppose mass regularization of all illegals, but support a strict case-by-case system and implement a system to allow only the needed legal immigrants.

Specific to Canada:

Afghanistan: see above

Senate/Electoral reform: Elect Senate by proportional representation and elect Commons by current FPTP. Support referendums on electoral reform modes such as STV or MMP (prefer MMP)

Stephane Dion: Happy birthday Steph! (http://www.amazon.com/English-Easy-Way-Harriet-Diamond/dp/0764119753/ref=pd_bbs_sr_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1228351849&sr=8-2)

Stephen Harper: Is useless, incompetent, and humiliation. Like his cabinet and his party.

Alberta: Sucks and can secede anytime.

Environment: see above


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: SPC on December 03, 2008, 11:10:20 PM
support conservation and animal rights. I also support some wealth redistribution against the ultra elites.

And you say you aren't a National Socialist?


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Person Man on December 05, 2008, 05:07:34 PM
support conservation and animal rights. I also support some wealth redistribution against the ultra elites.

And you say you aren't a National Socialist?

LOL....Nat Soces love animals and fertilized eggs more than the do minorities.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: SPC on December 05, 2008, 06:41:17 PM
support conservation and animal rights. I also support some wealth redistribution against the ultra elites.

And you say you aren't a National Socialist?

LOL....Nat Soces love animals and fertilized eggs more than the do minorities.

Hitler was an environmentalist and an animal rights activist.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Хahar 🤔 on December 05, 2008, 10:15:59 PM

LOL.


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Mint on December 05, 2008, 10:22:52 PM
Ben still thinks he has one?


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: DownWithTheLeft on December 05, 2008, 10:40:16 PM
Changes from July 2007:

Gay Rights: An interesting way of phrasing it as I believe gays should have rights, however, these rights should be extended to the point of marriage or civil unions.  Well I hate the intervention of the federal government, if one state legalizes it, everyone will go there to get married and move back as appears to be happening. Lukewarm support for civil unions and opposed to national ban

Flag burning: I oppose in all circumstances and suppport a constitutional amendment undecided on constitutional amendment

Patriot Act: Neutral, however, I realize it has done a lot of good like stopping the Brooklyn Bridge plot Its overstayed its welcome, strongly opposed[/b]

Taxes: I support shutting down the IRS immediatley and replacing our current system with a Fair or Flat Tax system.  I would also cut massive amount of programs to account for these cuts. Would not support a Fair Tax

Space Program: Keep at current levels Drastic cuts


Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
Post by: Nicodeme Depape on December 11, 2008, 12:59:40 PM
    Social Issues:

    • Abortion: Defend Roe. Ban partial birth abortion except in the case of the life of the mother. Have a 48 eight hour waiting period.
    • Gay Marriage: Total equality from marriage to adoption.
    • Affirmative Action: Make it class/income based.
    • Gun Control: We need strong gun control.
    • Death Penalty: It's barbaric. The justice system is fallible, we cant put life in fallible hands. End it.
    • Euthanasia: Regulated euthanasia to prevent abuse.
    • Prostitution: Regulated brothels. No street walking. Require protection and disease checks.
    • Drug War: End the war on drugs. Legalize soft drugs. Make drug industry government owned. Illegalize dealing.
    • Censorship: Censorship is bad. Simply make sure the audience is informed of any thing that could offend.
    • Civil Liberties: End the Patriot Act. No torture. No wiretaps. Defend Habeas Corpus. " Those who would give up Essential Liberty to purchase a little Temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety. "
    • Immigration: Establish a way for illegal immigrants to attain citizenship. Require proficiency in English and paying a fine.
    • Language: Make English the national language. Require proficiency in English and only promise government documents in English.

      Economic Issues:

      • Healthcare: Move to a single payer system, and establish a National Health Care service.
      • Welfare: Welfare to work programs for able bodied workers. Generous welfare for the disabled.
      • Social Security: Reform it and increase spending. No privatization.
      • Education: No vouchers. Increase spending. Work to make College open to all.
      • Income Tax: Drastically increase taxes on the rich. Maintain status quo on Middle Class. Exempt very poor from taxes.
      • Corporate Tax: Keep corporate tax the same, but weed out loopholes.
      • Spending: Increase spending on Social Services. Increase government efficiency. Implement Pay as you go.
      • Minimum Wage: Establish a living wage.
      • Regulation: Drastically increase regulation in order to level the playing field. Decrease regulation on establish a new business however.
      • Infrastructure: Increase spending and work to renew our transportation systems. Support public transportation.
      • Energy Policy: An Apollo like effort for alternative energy. Increase nuclear based power in the mean time. No drilling.
      • Trade Policy: Scrap all free trade agreements.

      Foreign Policy:
      • Iraq: This is an illegal war. Pull out of Iraq and bring all our troops home. No bases.
      • Cuba: Open trade. Normalize relations. Support democracy in Cuba.
      • Israel: Support a two state plan in Israel, while supporting Israels right to exist.
      • Iran: Ignoring our enemies while making demands is idiotic. Meet with their leaders and normalize relations.
      • China: Work to better relations with China while also trying to end their massive exports to us.
      • Military Involvement: Attack only if attacked. Diplomacy should always be used and war should be a last option. No interventionism, we aren't the worlds police.
      • United Nations: Support the UN. Witholding our funds to the UN is an okay tactic to influence them.
      • Foreign Aid: End foreign aid until governments are established in the recipient nations that won't use it on Palaces.

      Other:
      • NAU: Support a North American Union, with the eventual merge of the US and Canada, and Mexico once its development is up to par.
      • Military: Cut military spending by 40% and reallocate funds to Social programs. Work on diplomacy rather than intimidation. Modernize the army into a smaller but more efficent force meant for self defense rather than intervention.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Fmr. Pres. Duke on March 14, 2009, 09:27:22 PM
      Social Issues

      General philosophy: libertarian/mixed

      Abortion: I support upholding Roe v. Wade. Keep abortion legal but ban partial birth.
      Separation of church and state: support? But I think we are going overboard in removing religion from the public square. It's becoming ridiculous.
      Marriage: State issue. I oppose a constitutional amendment and favor civil unions.
      Affirmative Action: It's a racist policy. Get rid of it.
      Gun rights: Background checks on guns and registration. No waiting periods.
      Death Penalty: Support, but leave it to the states.
      Censorship: Not the government's job. Let people decide on their own.
      Flag burning: Oppose any amendment to ban burning it, but I could care less. I won't be burning our flag.
      Hate crimes: Oppose any legislation. You can't prove any kind of hate...
      Hate speech: How can we deem something is hate speech? It's a slippery slope to censorship.
      Smoking: General support public banning since it can harm others.
      Alcohol consumption: Keep where they are. No need to try to lowering it again.
      Euthanasia: Leave to states. Support.
      Drugs: Oppose legalizing drugs..
      Gambling: Support legalizing.
      Prostitution: Legalize brothels. Street-walking is too hard to regulate and keep clean, so keep it illegal.
      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Support. I would rather it be privately funded, but use government funds if we must.
      Immigration: Path to citizenship, secure borders, allow illegals who are not criminals to register and pay taxes.

      Economic Issues

      General Philosophy: Capitalist

      Taxes: Keep Bush tax cuts but only if we are cutting spending. Do not raise taxes during a recession.
      Employers and Employees: No protection for either side. Striking - legal, firing striking employees - legal.
      Free trade: Strongly Support. Benefits everyone.
      Spending: Cut military and entitlement costs. There is too much waste in the military budget and we do not need to be running a welfare service.
      Social Security: Privatize.
      Space Program: I generally support our space program. We need it to remain a power.
      Welfare: I support the reforms Clinton made in 94. It's a shame they are going away.
      Healthcare: Universal healthcare for children and the poor. Many elderly don't need medicare (why does the government pay for my grandfather's health insurance when he makes $300,000 off dividends?)
      Education: Increase funding, but give states more control over it. Our education system went to hell when the federal government got more involved.


      Foreign Issues

      General Philosophy: Neo-con

      Democracy and Trade: Nations that trade rarely attack each other. It's good diplomacy.
      United Nations: Pull out of the UN. It's a useless organization nowadays.
      Iraq: Supported initially, but oppose now. However, we are winning the war there now and we need to finish it. Not the time for silly timetables and hurried withdrawals.
      Israel: Apathetic.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: All Along The Watchtower on March 14, 2009, 10:06:55 PM
      Social: Libertarian. I believe strongly in individual freedom, including the right for a woman to choose, the right to keep and bear arms, the right for a homosexual couple to marry, the right to practice one's religion, and the right to privacy. I also believe strongly in the separation of church and state.

      Economic: I believe that small businesses and innovative fields like the "green" industry are what stimulate the economy. I believe their autonomy should be protected, and I support free trade. However, I recognize that consumers and small businesses need protection from predatory corporations seeking to create monopolies, so I advocate strong, transparent government regulation of industry.

      Foreign: I am pragmatic when it comes to foreign policy. I believe in a world of shared self-interest. I also believe in spreading democracy, but through the power of votes and reformers, not through the power of bullets and bombs. I think institutions like the U.N. are good experiments but need a lot of reform in order to be effective.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Associate Justice PiT on March 14, 2009, 10:34:01 PM
      Social Issues

      General philosophy: Moderately Liberal

      Abortion: Neutral. Work hard to find medical means by which to render abortion obsolete.
      Separation of church and state: Support unconditionally. The day that an Atheist can be elected President will be a day to be long celebrated.
      Marriage: Support gay marriage. I can accept civil unions in areas that will not accept full marriage yet.
      Affirmative Action: Wronging people to make up for past wrongs is completely unacceptable.
      Gun rights: It's a constitutional right. Limit gun ownership for convicts, though.
      Death Penalty: Support in the most extreme circumstances.
      Censorship: Not under any circumstance. Censorship is slavery.
      Flag burning: Support of course. Non-violent political speech cannot be limited.
      Hate crimes: Oppose. No one person should have greater protection under the law than another.
      Hate speech: Oppose since it's unconstitutional.
      Smoking: Public smoking is annoying, but it should be allowed anyway.
      Alcohol consumption: Same as smoking.
      Euthanasia: Support.
      Drugs: Legalize all drugs.
      Gambling: Completely legalize.
      Prostitution: Legalize & regulate. Keep in brothels.
      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Support, though adult stem cells should be preferred given recent breakthroughs.
      Immigration: Secure borders. Toss out any who commit crimes. If they have children here toss them out too.
      Civil Liberties: These cannot be compromised.
      Language: Making English the official language is pointless. To put things into perspective, it is already the official language of California.

      Economic Issues

      General Philosophy: Strongly Capitalist/Propertarian

      Taxes: Combine with spending cuts to eliminate the deficit. Once the deficit has been eliminated or greatly reduced, cut as much as is possible while staying in the black.
      Employers and Employees: No protection for strikers. If you can get fired any other time, you can get fired then too.
      Free trade: Unconditionally support.
      Spending: Vastly cut spending. Re-evaluate the role of the state.
      Social Security: If people want to privately invest all of their earnings, it should be their right.
      Space Program: Supporting science is necessary to remain a major power. Generally support.
      Welfare: No welfare for anyone who has been unemployed for >2 months. Phase it out.
      Healthcare: Support free-market solutions. Allow unlimited importation of drugs from Canada.
      Education: Greatly reduce funding. Offer vouchers to attend accredited private schools.
      Minimum Wage: Tie to inflation and forget about it. Preferably leave it at a fairly low rate, so as to not inhibit business growth.
      Regulation: Kill all regulations except for those prohibiting abusive business practices (mainly anti-trust/anti-monopoly). Devote the BBB's resources to warning consumers of dangerous business practices.
      Infrastructure: Support. Good infrastructure is necessary for a strong economy in the global market.
      Energy Policy: Favor coal, oil, & nuclear for the time being. Research viable renewable resources.


      Foreign Issues

      General Philosophy: Rooseveltian

      Democracy and Trade: Trade is good. Seek free trade with all other liberal democracies.
      United Nations: Stay in the UN. Do not acquiesce to unreasonable demands, however.
      Iraq: Oppose. Ought to finish it off, but hurry things up.
      Israel: Don't support them so strongly. We are endangering ourselves.
      Military Involvement: Talk softly and carry a big stick. Attack only if attacked, but be ready to demolish any enemy.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Ronnie on March 14, 2009, 11:50:07 PM
      Social Issues

      General philosophy: libertarian/liberal

      Abortion: Keep abortion legal but ban partial birth
      Age of Consent: Reduce to 16 across the board
      Separation of church and state: Support; eliminate the National Day of Prayer, and remove "God" from money and Pledge of Allegiance.
      Marriage: Support gay marriage
      Affirmative Action: Oppose
      Gun rights: I support this measure, but we need to keep this as a state issue.
      Death Penalty: Oppose
      Censorship: Oppose
      Flag burning: Undecided
      Hate crimes: Oppose any legislation. You can't prove any kind of hate...
      Hate speech: ^
      Smoking: I oppose public banning.
      Alcohol consumption: Keep laws like these as lenient as possible
      Euthanasia: Support
      Drugs: Legalize all drugs
      Gambling: Support legalizing across the country
      Prostitution: Support
      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Support
      Immigration: Secure the borders.  We need to make a path to citizenship for those who are illegal.

      Economic Issues

      General Philosophy: moderately capitalist

      Taxes: Cut taxes as much as we can across the board.  I support the flat tax.
      Spending: Cut as much waste as we can.  NO BAILOUTS.
      Social Security: Partially privatize.
      Space Program: It's a nice service.  I'm a bit biased since I love astronomy, but whatever.
      Welfare: I don't favor eliminating welfare, but there needs to be EXTREME amounts of reform.  
      Healthcare: I support medical savings accounts.
      Education: Throw everything over to vouchers and charter schools.  Our system is a disaster and it's the only way I can think of that can actually help the system.  Increased spending won't help this at all.
      Energy: Increased domestic and offshore drilling.  We also need to invest in alternative sources.
      Corporate subsidies: End all of them.


      Foreign Issues

      United Nations: Get out NOW
      Israel: Support
      Military involvement: Slash military spending, remove most military bases abroad


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on March 25, 2009, 04:14:24 PM
      Social:
      Political correctness/Affirmative action: Scrap it immediately, it's reverse discrimination.
      Censorship: Limit it as much as possible.
      Ages of consent: Lower sexual age to 14, raise alcohol to 21.
      Education: Make Modern Foreign Languages compulsory for GCSE options again. Abolish school uniform.
      Healthcare: Increase spending.
      Welfare: Slash unemployment benefits drastically for those who arent proven to be 'seeking work'. End building council houses.
      Minimum wage: Raise it.
      Death penalty: Bring it back for treason, murder, possession of a firearm.
      Drugs: Use harder methods to crack down on it. Shoot drug dealers. Raise cannabis back to Class B.

      Constitutional:
      Devolution: Devolve completely, to make a federal Britain. Scotland, England, Wales, Ulster, Guernsey and Jersey should all have parliaments.
      Democracy: Direct democracy.
      Voting method: Change to D'hondt proportional representation.
      Voting age: Lower to 17

      Economic:
      Industry: Provide incentives for new businesses.
      Regulation: Deregulate to allow a freer market.
      Currency: Look into backing the pound with gold/silver. Reintroduce the Half-penny.

      Foreign:
      Special Relationship: Maintain as long as the US will back British interests.
      Iraq: Withdraw
      Afghanistan: Increase troop levels.
      Military Involvement: Only go to war to defend Britain or British interests.
      Foreign organisations: Quit the EU, join EFTA, strengthen the Commonwealth.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RI on March 29, 2009, 02:15:52 PM
      Social Issues

      General philosophy: Lean libertarian

      Abortion: Oppose after first few weeks, except for the health of the mother. Increase funding and availability of contraception. Increase access to adoption and maternal leave.
      Separation of church and state: Very important for both parties.
      Gay Marriage: Absolutely support, though I would prefer if the government wasn't in the marriage business in the first place.
      Affirmative Action: Oppose. Race should not be a factor in anything. Strongly oppose quotas.
      Age of Consent: Oppose for sex. I support bracket laws of two years if under 18.
      Gun rights: Generally support. Background checks are ok. Violent felons and mentally diminished people should not have guns. No ban on assault weapons.
      Death Penalty: Oppose.
      Censorship: Strongly oppose in all cases.
      Flag burning: Support. A ban would be an encroachment on the first amendment.
      Smoking: Keep legal, but keep out of public places except those specifically made for such.
      Alcohol consumption: Keep legal, but keep out of public places except those specifically made for such.
      Euthanasia: Support. The only person who should decide when it is their time to die is themself.
      Drugs: Legalize, tax, regulate, keep out of public places except those specifically made for such.
      Gambling: Support. If you want to lose your money, that is your problem.
      Prostitution: Support. Legalize, tax, regulate, keep out of public places except those specifically made for such.
      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Support. Especially for those embryos that would otherwise be discarded.
      Immigration: Support. Anyone who wants to come to America should be able to. Make the process easier.
      Illegal Immigration: Provide a path to citizenship for those already here.


      Economic Issues

      General Philosophy: Moderate on trade, fiscally leftist

      Taxes: Support progressive taxation. By living in this country, you implicitly agree to pay to keep this country running. If you don't like it, leave.
      Employers and Employees: No protection for those who strike. If you go on strike, you do so at your own risk.
      Free trade: Generally support.
      Spending: Support, but with much more emphasis on transparency, accountability, efficiency, and routing out wasteful spending.
      Social Security: Remove the cap. Allow those who want to risk it to move their ss to the stock market. No safety net for those who do.
      Space Program: Strongly support. If we had the money, I'd say build a space elevator and terraform Mars. Maybe Venus and the Moon too.
      Welfare: Do not fund those who can work but choose not to. Limit to two years. Focus on getting them back to work.
      Healthcare: Support some sort of universal system. Insurance companies are BS.
      Education: Increase funding for public school system, which should be our first focus. Allow limited vouchers. Put stronger regulations on homeschooling.
      Minimum Wage: Support and raise.
      Regulation: I support environmental, health, and worker regulations. We also must have some sort of oversight of banks and the stock market, but not control of.
      Infrastructure: Support increased spending, but also increase efficiency and reduce waste.
      Energy Policy: Move to alternative energy as soon as possible, including nuclear. However, the emphasis should be on wind, solar, hydro, tidal, geothermal, convection, and others. Also focus on fuel cell vehicles. No off-shore drilling.
      Environment: We must protect the environment. Without it, we could not live. Support conservation efforts.


      Foreign Issues

      General Philosophy: Internationalist/Pacifist

      Democracy and Trade: Trade is good.
      United Nations: Support.
      Iraq: Oppose. Get out as soon as possible.
      Israel: Neutral.
      Patriot Act: Strongly oppose. Repeal now.
      Torture: Oppose.
      Military Involvement: None unless directly attacked. Slash military spending.
      North American Union: Support if like EU. Countries should one day cease to exist. They are artificial boundaries that have come to separate more than just land. We are one species, and one day we must come together as one if we are to survive.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Earth on April 10, 2009, 01:00:04 AM
      Social Issues

      General philosophy: Far Left

      Abortion: Support
      Separation of church and state: Support, doesn't extend far enough
      Gay Marriage: Support, support a federal amendment to allow
      Affirmative Action: Oppose on race, support on economic factors
      Age of Consent: Oppose, support an 'age gap' law in it's place
      Gun rights: Strongly Support, oppose federal assault weapons ban
      Death Penalty: Strongly oppose, the state should not have the option of executing it's prisoners
      Censorship: Strongly oppose, words fail me
      Flag burning: Support
      Smoking: Oppose increased taxation, and public ban
      Alcohol consumption: Support, legal age should be lowered to 18
      Euthanasia: Strongly support
      Drugs: Strongly support complete legalization, no government regulation over sale, or potency
      Gambling: Support, legal age should be lowered to 18, and allowed in all states
      Prostitution: Support complete legalization and unionization, support both brothel and street work
      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Support an increase of federal funds towards research
      Immigration: Support open borders, and massive scaling back of immigration bureaucracy
      Illegal Immigration: Support amnesty, automatic citizenship


      Economic Issues

      General Philosophy: Liberal/leftist

      Taxes: Support progressive income tax, assuming for sake of argument, federal income tax is necessary
      Employers and Employees: Strongly support unionization, and strikers, official and wildcat
      Free trade: Oppose, benefits employer more than employee
      Spending: Support "wise" spending, weasel word
      Social Security: Support it's existence, oppose privatization
      Space Program: Support, although not a priority
      Welfare: Support expansion to include middle class, and reduction in requirements and bureaucracy
      Healthcare: Support universal health care, with caveats
      Education: Oppose mandatory attendance, and current public school curriculum
      Minimum Wage: Strongly Support an increase
      Regulation: Support overall, depends on the situation
      Infrastructure: Apathetic
      Energy Policy: Support the quasi-mystical search for alternative sources of fuel
      Environment: Support genuine efforts, as opposed to current consumer green fad


      Foreign Issues

      General Philosophy: Isolationist/Pacifist

      Democracy and Trade: Isolationist
      United Nations: Oppose, ineffective
      Iraq: Strongly oppose the war
      Israel: Support two state solution, oppose all economic or military aid
      Patriot Act: Strongly Oppose
      Torture: Strongly Oppose
      Military Involvement: Strongly Oppose in almost all circumstances
      North American Union: Strongly Oppose


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RIP Robert H Bork on April 10, 2009, 06:34:04 PM
      - I support civil-unions seperation of marriage and state
      - I strongly support removing "under god" from the pledge.
      - I oppose public schools prayer

      I like this.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mint on April 10, 2009, 06:40:51 PM
      Quote from: I approve this message
      Quote
      - I oppose public schools prayer

      I like this.
      Yeah because obviously giving all kids a chance at an education is bad.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: SPC on April 10, 2009, 08:23:16 PM
      Quote from: I approve this message
      Quote
      - I oppose public schools prayer

      I like this.
      Yeah because obviously giving all kids a chance at an education is bad.

      If it's a crappy education, then yes.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mint on April 10, 2009, 08:25:17 PM
      For all it's flaws universal education is still better than nothing at all. Believe it or not some parents don't have the time to home school their kids or the money to send them to pretty little private academies.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: SPC on April 10, 2009, 08:26:37 PM
      For all it's flaws universal education is still better than nothing at all.

      Whose to say that people wouldn't get educated if they didn't steal from others to get it?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mint on April 10, 2009, 08:40:19 PM
      For all it's flaws universal education is still better than nothing at all.

      Whose to say that people wouldn't get educated if they didn't steal from others to get it?

      Obviously some people wouldn't learn anything, because that's why we established public education in the first place. Before the late 19th century most people worked on the farms or the assembly lines. It's in part due to the establishment of public schools and child labor laws that we enjoy our current standard of living. And even that's struggling, because increasingly you need some sort of post-high school education in order to get most decent paying jobs.

      Besides which, a large part of why private schools tend to be better is that they don't have to accept everyone. They can turn down people and their customer base is somewhat limited. If we privatized education completely instead of, say, implementing moderately free market policies like vouchers then there would still be terrible schools out there. Except they'd be bargain-brand type things which in addition to being sub-par weren't even affordable for everyone.

      Also if we didn't pay taxes to provide for basic things like, say, police or sanitation I'm pretty sure most of us would be dead by now...


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RIP Robert H Bork on April 10, 2009, 08:54:35 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: I reject the idea of abortion on demand, and I would strongly support a ban.
      Separation of church and state: A nonsense term that liberals use to censor religion. While I do believe in freedom of religion, and oppose the idea of a national religion, liberals are going too far here.
      Affirmative action: A euphemism for discrimination (no "reverse discrimination" nonsense), end it.
      Hate crimes: Nonsense legislation, get rid of it.
      Gun control: I reject it, the second amendment is not negotiable. It grants us the right to own firearms, and I oppose increases on firearm/ammunition taxation that try to chip away at that right.
      Death penalty: Keep it as a sentencing option.
      Flag burning: Strongly oppose.
      Euthanasia: I would strongly support a ban.
      Prostitution: Must not be legalized in any way.
      Immigration: Maintain immigration while enforcing against those here illegally and who have no intention to apply for legal immigration.

      Economic Issues

      Taxes: Lower, flatter taxes across the board. Reduce as much as possible for everyone.
      Trade: Generally support free trade.
      Spending: Reduce it as much as possible.
      Welfare: When discussing welfare, we should remember this quote: "Welfare's purpose should be to eliminate, as far as possible, the need for its own existence".
      Education: The public school system is a disaster, and that has nothing to do with money or the lack thereof. I am against mandatory public school attendance, and I support private schools (school vouchers included) and homeschooling.
      Regulations: Significantly reduce.

      Foreign Policy

      Military Involvement: We must have a strong military to defend ourselves and fight the war on terrorism, and we should never put military action off the table.
      United Nations: Negative opinion, but withdrawing is pointless.
      Israel: Strongly support.
      Foreign aid: Reduce it.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mint on April 10, 2009, 09:03:03 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: I reject the idea of abortion on demand, and I would strongly support a ban. The only case in which it should be allowed is when it is necessary to save the life of the mother.
      Separation of church and state: A nonsense term that liberals use to censor religion. While I do believe in freedom of religion, and oppose the idea of a national religion, liberals are going too far here.

      Affirmative action: A euphemism for discrimination (no "reverse discrimination" nonsense), end it.
      Hate crimes: Nonsense legislation, get rid of it. (Neutral)
      Gun control: I reject it, the second amendment is not negotiable. It grants us the right to own firearms, and I oppose increases on firearm/ammunition taxation that try to chip away at that right.
      Death penalty: Keep it as a sentencing option.
      Flag burning: Strongly oppose.
      Euthanasia: I would strongly support a ban.
      Prostitution: Must not be legalized in any way.

      Immigration: Maintain immigration while enforcing against those here illegally and who have no intention to apply for legal immigration.

      Economic Issues

      Taxes: Lower, flatter taxes across the board. Reduce as much as possible for everyone.
      Trade: Generally support free trade.
      Spending: Reduce it as much as possible.
      Welfare: When discussing welfare, we should remember this quote: "Welfare's purpose should be to eliminate, as far as possible, the need for its own existence".
      Education: The public school system is a disaster, and that has nothing to do with money or the lack thereof. I am against mandatory public school attendance, and I support private schools (school vouchers included) and homeschooling.
      Regulations: Significantly reduce. (Mixed)

      Foreign Policy

      Military Involvement: We must have a strong military to defend ourselves and fight the war on terrorism, and we should never put military action off the table.
      United Nations: Negative opinion, but withdrawing is pointless.
      Israel: Strongly support.
      Foreign aid: Reduce it.

      We agree more often than you would think.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Governor PiT on April 10, 2009, 09:32:31 PM
      My views are basically a unique mix of Nader, Buchanan, Paul, and Duke. Can anyone beat that?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RI on April 10, 2009, 10:12:04 PM
      My views are basically a unique mix of Nader, Buchanan, Paul, and Duke.

      You forgot Hitler.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Earth on April 11, 2009, 11:17:28 AM
      My views are basically a unique mix of Nader, Buchanan, Paul, and Duke. Can anyone beat that?

      I know I did. :)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Daniel Z on April 27, 2009, 09:40:34 PM
      Social Issues
      Abortion: Not a major issue for me. Support Roe as precedent. Don't consider abortion in early stages murder.
      Separation of church and state: Government out of religion and religion out of government.
      Affirmative action: A bad idea on a theoretical level, but not the problem whites make it out to be.
      Gun control: Right to bear arms is guaranteed by the 2nd amendment, but restrictions and regulations such as background checks and registration are reasonable.
      Death penalty: oppose
      Flag burning: oppose baning
      Euthanasia: support
      Gay Marriage: support
      Prostitution: legalize
      Immigration: Make immigration process easier, offer amnesty to some immigrants.
      Drugs: Legalize Marijuana and possibly a few other currently illegal drugs.

      Economic Issues
      Taxes: Too poor to pay much taxes :)
      Health Care: Too young to care :)
      Trade: Continue to move towards more free trade.
      Spending: Eliminate or reform ineffective programs and cut military.
      Welfare: Should be strictly a temporary safety net and not a way of life.
      Education: Support mandatory education. Open to reforms, but don't know enough about individual proposals to have an opinion on them.
      Regulations: Support antitrust/ monopoly regulations.

      Foreign Policy
      Military Involvement: Oppose unless there is a clear danger to national security or a coherent plan is written for execution,occupation, and withdrawl is drafted before military engagement (even then only to prevent a massive humanitarian disaster).
      Israel: Support right to exist



      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RIP Robert H Bork on April 28, 2009, 12:10:40 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: I reject the idea of abortion on demand, and I would strongly support a ban. The only case in which it should be allowed is when it is necessary to save the life of the mother.
      Separation of church and state: A nonsense term that liberals use to censor religion. While I do believe in freedom of religion, and oppose the idea of a national religion, liberals are going too far here.

      Affirmative action: A euphemism for discrimination (no "reverse discrimination" nonsense), end it.
      Hate crimes: Nonsense legislation, get rid of it. (Neutral)
      Gun control: I reject it, the second amendment is not negotiable. It grants us the right to own firearms, and I oppose increases on firearm/ammunition taxation that try to chip away at that right.
      Death penalty: Keep it as a sentencing option.
      Flag burning: Strongly oppose.
      Euthanasia: I would strongly support a ban.
      Prostitution: Must not be legalized in any way.

      Immigration: Maintain immigration while enforcing against those here illegally and who have no intention to apply for legal immigration.

      Economic Issues

      Taxes: Lower, flatter taxes across the board. Reduce as much as possible for everyone.
      Trade: Generally support free trade.
      Spending: Reduce it as much as possible.
      Welfare: When discussing welfare, we should remember this quote: "Welfare's purpose should be to eliminate, as far as possible, the need for its own existence".
      Education: The public school system is a disaster, and that has nothing to do with money or the lack thereof. I am against mandatory public school attendance, and I support private schools (school vouchers included) and homeschooling.
      Regulations: Significantly reduce. (Mixed)

      Foreign Policy

      Military Involvement: We must have a strong military to defend ourselves and fight the war on terrorism, and we should never put military action off the table.
      United Nations: Negative opinion, but withdrawing is pointless.
      Israel: Strongly support.
      Foreign aid: Reduce it.

      We agree more often than you would think.

      Indeed, and I am pleasantly surprised.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Deldem on May 06, 2009, 05:25:57 PM
      Social Issues
      Abortion: Minor restrictions, though still pretty much universal access. Also, huge stem cell research grants.
      Separation of church and state: Total. I even want Under God out of the pledge.
      Affirmative action: I would like to see it switch to economics. A wealthy minority has a level playing field with a wealthy white.
      Gun control: Reasonable restraints- safety locks, waiting periods, no armor piercing bullets. I believe assault weapons should have some restrictions.
      Death penalty: Absolutely not. Put 'em in a 6x6 cell their whole life.
      Flag burning: Offends me, but I feel it is legal.
      Euthanasia: Yes, there's a point where people in pain have a right to end it.
      Gay Marriage: Absolutely- it is a civil right.
      Prostitution: Legalize it and tax/regulate it.
      Immigration: No fence, increase immigrants allowed in, aid Mexico so we don't get as many illegals.
      Drugs: Marijuana should be legalized, and taxed like crazy. It also should be a widely available medicine.
      More Civil Liberties: destroy the patriot act. It reads like something from the McCarthy era.

      Economic Issues
      Taxes: Current system, with increase in taxes for wealthy, decrease for middle and working classes. Lower sales tax if possible. Keep estate tax, though perhaps raise the minimum threshold for paying it. Corporate tax should be restored to Clinton levels. On a state level, Texas should create an income tax and lower property and sales taxes.
      Health Care: Universal Health care is a must, unless we somehow can drastically lower costs privately.
      Trade: End outsourcing, but free trade in a few cases.
      Spending: Cut missile defense and other Cold War-era military expenditures that are obsolete. We do, however, need to increase counterterrrorism and raw manpower. Socially, review programs and reform the system to improve it.
      Welfare: I support slightly expanding this system. My philosophy is a leg up, not a hand out or a kick down.
      Education: Remove standardized testing, at least at the high school level, we have finals for this. National curriculum. Incentives for higher learning.
      Regulations: Restore regulations that were removed in the last 30 years. Drastically increase environmental standards. Higher minimum wage.
      Energy: Greatly increase alternative fuel. More nuclear power.
      NASA: Greatly expand, there is a great value to research in space.
      Transportation: Higher fuel economy. Push for subways and other mass transit modes.

      Foreign Policy
      Military Involvement: No preemptive wars. End Iraq, focus on Afghanistan.
      Israel: 2 states desperately needed. Stop giving preference to Israel, they are just as bad as the Palestinians. This should be a top priority.
      Cuba: Open 'er up! This is a missed opportunity.
      North Korea/Iran: Open up a dialogue and see what we can do. It may not be ideal, but it's definitely better than what we've been doing.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: impactreps on May 12, 2009, 08:56:23 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: I'm staunchly pro-life, but support exceptions when the mother's life is in danger.
      Separation of church and state: Those words appear nowhere in the Constitution. I support freedom OF religion and not freedom FROM religion.
      Gay marriage: Marriage should be between a man and a woman. I support civil unions and domestic partnerships, as well as gay adoption rights.
      Affirmative action: Good intentions, but is just a less ugly form of discrimination.
      Hate crimes: I honestly don't know much about this issue, but from what I do know I think the one of the government's few duties is to protect its citizens from violence, foreign or internal.
      Gun control: Make the 2nd Amendment permanent.
      Death penalty: Support it. Some crimes are so vile and ugly that the death penalty is justifiable in those cases.
      Flag burning: I strongly oppose it personally, but whether or not it's a 1st Amendment right is questionable.
      Euthanasia: I have no idea.
      Prostitution: Devalues our society.
      Immigration: I support legal immigration 100%. For illegal immigration: build a wall and let's call it a day.

      Economic Issues

      Taxes: Implement the FairTax ASAP. We will finally hear an end to tax codes that bias those at the top.
      Trade: I believe free trade grows our economy.
      Spending: Gov't. should spend only what is absolutely necessary. Cut spending for welfare (leads into next issue).
      Welfare: If it must exist, make it more efficient. Government's job is not to provide for its citizens, but to protect its citizens.
      Education: Support universal education, but I also believe that school choice should be paramount. Support getting rid of Dept. of Education.
      Regulations: Don't regulate excessively, but make sure that a Madoff scandal doesn't happen again.

      Foreign Policy

      Military Involvement:
      When we are 150% certain we are going to be attack, then attack first (not near-certainty or very likely). Peace through strength.
      United Nations: Definite anti-American bias, but I also believe UN has done some good throughout the past 60 years (I'll give you some examples when I think of them).
      Israel: I support Israel 1000%.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Vepres on May 14, 2009, 09:30:24 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: Personally pro-life, but at the same time I don't believe it is the government's right or responsibility to legislate morality.

      Gay Marriage: Support fully. However, I believe it will be quicker, easier, and more in line with the constitution to leave it up to the states. Look at the wave of gay marriage legalization.

      Flag Burning: Why is this even an issues? Should be legal.

      Illegal Drugs: Legalize and regulate marijuana, keep rest illegal but focus more on rehabilitation than punishment.

      Stem Cell Research: Again, don't legislate morality. It should be legal and receive some government funds.

      Patriot Act: Unconstitutional, repeal it.

      State's Rights: State's Rights have been violated. The federal government should respect them and know it's place. Don't bribe or blackmail states or their Senators

      Gun Control: Background checks are fine as are assault weapons bans. Respect the 2nd amendment however.

      Prayer in Public Schools: Oppose.

      Affirmative Action: Oppose, prosecute discrimination by corporations.

      Electoral College: Support.

      Draft: Oppose except in the most dire of circumstances.

      Death Penalty: Oppose.

      Three Strikes Laws: Oppose.

      Foreign Policy


      Iraq: Oppose. Occupying another country is a bad idea.

      Afghanistan: Would have opposed had I been old enough to care about politics at the time. That said, we have no choice but to follow through on our current course.

      War on Terror: Focus on intelligence and targeted strikes against terrorist leaders instead of the occupation of foreign nations.

      Diplomacy: Always preferable to war.

      Israel: US should remain neutral in the Israeli-Palistinian Conflict, but protect Israel if attack by a foreign country.

      Torture: Stop immediately. Don't prosecute people or release photos however.

      Interventionism: Oppose, unless we're certain we will be attacked unless we intervene in another countries affairs.


      Fiscal/Economic Policy

      Health Care: Reform and modernization is needed. Oppose all forms of government sponsored health care including medicare and medicaid. First of all, it is a states responsibility, and second, they simply cost too much money. Deregulate, but be careful about said deregulation.

      Social Security: Repeal. Replace with 401k's and possibly retirement savings accounts.

      Taxes: Ideally there would be a flat tax, but the poor and middle class deserve preference when taxes are lowered if a flat tax cannot be legislated at the time. When raised, responsibility should be evenly shared.

      Education: I believe that our education system is fine in terms of quality. The so called "failing public schools" don't exist outside of the inner city and very rural areas. Studies done by groups not affiliated with the US show that we are usually in the top 5 (would cite but too lazy). It's simply government propaganda. Another thing to consider is most countries have high stakes tests in middle school to determine whether you go on to high school or a trade school. If only the top 1/3 of students in Germany (don't know the real statistic, this is just for argument's sake) are compared against all US students, who do you think will do better? Why do we have one of the highest per capita college graduation rate in the world if our k-12 schools are so bad? That said, charter schools, merit based pay, and taking on the teachers union would all help.

      Department of Education: Keep states accountable, but other than that remove it.

      Infrastructure: Must be kept well funded and maintained. Outsource to the private sector when appropriate. State responsibility for the most part.

      Environment: Support protections

      Cap-and-Trade: Support, but must be more market friendly than current proposals are. More of a state responsibility, though federal government can have a role.

      Public Finance: Support to an extent, but don't limit free speech in the process.

      General Business Regulation: I go case by case, though I usually oppose. Deregulation in some areas.

      Ballot Access: Remove stupid ballot access laws that hinder independent and third party candidates.

      Debate Access: Allow any candidate in a presidential election in debate if they consistently poll over 5% nationally.

      Trade: Free trade to an extent, remove tax breaks to corporations who send jobs over seas.

      Illegal Immigration: Didn't know where to put this. Anyway, support guest worker program, oppose amnesty.

      Deficit: Support balanced budget amendment.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mint on May 15, 2009, 07:04:55 AM
      We need more people like you.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Franzl on May 15, 2009, 07:17:05 AM

      Indeed, that's a very sensible and reasonable set of views.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Marokai Backbeat on May 15, 2009, 12:19:53 PM

      Abortion: Personally pro-life, but at the same time I don't believe it is the states right or responsibility to legislate morality.

      Gay Marriage: Support fully. However, I believe it will be quicker, easier, and more in line with the constitution to leave it up to the states. Look at the wave of gay marriage legalization.

      Am I the only one here that notices the obvious contradiction there?

      Quote
      Health Care: Reform and modernization is needed. Oppose all forms of government sponsored health care including medicare and medicaid. First of all, it is a states responsibility, and second, they simply cost too much money. Deregulate, but be careful about said deregulation.

      Leaving it to the states is a terrible idea. We've done things like that with certain expenditures in the past and Canada also dumps alot of it's healthcare spending onto the provinces. It always turns out bad because states (or provinces) don't have the ability to bring in revenue like the federal government, and a lot of states are constrained by balanced budget amendments. This either forces states to go into debt or cut other useful services that ends up having negative consequences.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Torie on May 15, 2009, 03:45:47 PM
      I have zero interest in states rights. In a perfect world, the states would be dissolved perhaps, and we would just have the feds and local governments.

      In any event, my point of view is that you use the states to experiment, find what works and doesn't and nationalize what works with federal legislation, superseding state experiments gone bad, and then over time, as things ossify, you start going local again with experiments and repeat the cycle. It is a paradigm of continual centralization and then decentralization, and back again, almost like a beating heart. Without a beating heart, you tend to have a rather sluggish corpus.  Corporations do the same thing, for the same reason.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Vepres on May 15, 2009, 05:27:20 PM

      Abortion: Personally pro-life, but at the same time I don't believe it is the states right or responsibility to legislate morality.

      Gay Marriage: Support fully. However, I believe it will be quicker, easier, and more in line with the constitution to leave it up to the states. Look at the wave of gay marriage legalization.

      Am I the only one here that notices the obvious contradiction there?

      Individual rights are, in my opinion, a federal issue. Now, I believe that ideally gay marriage would be legalized at the federal level, but I just don't see that happening in the current political climate. When I said "...state's right or responsibility to legislate morality," I used state in referencing individual states as well as the country as a whole. Remember, state and country are synonymous in certain contexts.


      Quote
      Quote
      Health Care: Reform and modernization is needed. Oppose all forms of government sponsored health care including medicare and medicaid. First of all, it is a states responsibility, and second, they simply cost too much money. Deregulate, but be careful about said deregulation.

      Leaving it to the states is a terrible idea. We've done things like that with certain expenditures in the past and Canada also dumps alot of it's healthcare spending onto the provinces. It always turns out bad because states (or provinces) don't have the ability to bring in revenue like the federal government, and a lot of states are constrained by balanced budget amendments. This either forces states to go into debt or cut other useful services that ends up having negative consequences.

      Well, I'm not saying that the federal government doesn't have a role in (hopefully minimal) regulation, but that if a safety net must exist it should be a state responsibility. By the way, the federal government should have a balanced budget amendment like states do (obviously if enough members of congress vote to have a deficit for justifiable reasons, then they should be able to). Also, the federal government shouldn't force states to pay for certain programs (if that's what Canada does, I don't have much knowledge of their politics), that is a direct violation (at least in my opinion) of state's rights.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Phony Moderate on May 30, 2009, 11:41:22 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion:I am strongly pro-choice.
      Separation of church and state: Religion and Government must not mix. If they do then it creates Fascism. Legalize same-sex marriage and same-sex adoption.
      Affirmative action: Support it, and would increase it to prevent discrimination aganist minority groups.
      Hate crimes: It helps to tackle racism, homophobia, sexism, etc. Support it.
      Gun control: I would ban them all, guns are not needed, there are other ways to protect yourself. Only the police and the military should be allowed to own guns.
      Death penalty: Abolish it, totally cruel and unneeded. There's something call prisons where criminals should go.
      Flag burning: Everyone has the right to free speech.
      Euthanasia: The government should have no say in when people can or can not die. I support the legalization of it.
      Prostitution:I find it quite disgusting, but everyone should have a right to ruin thier lives or enjoy thier lives or whatever.
      Immigration: I would make immigration easier, and would grant amnesty to illegal immigrants.

      Economic Issues

      Taxes: Raise taxes on the rich and upper middle class, decrease them slightly for everyone else.
      Trade: Support protectionism to prevent jobs from moving from country to country.
      Spending: Decrease defense spending, increase spending on the needed social programs.
      Welfare: Welfare keeps society more fair, and i support increasing funding for Social Security.
      Education: The public school system needs more funding, and i support increasing teacher's wages.
      Regulations: Increase regulations to prevent abuse of workers.

      Foreign Policy

      Military Involvement: We should bring all our troops home from Iraq and Afghanistan as soon as possible.
      United Nations: Support it, it helps create more peace in the world.
      Israel: Don't support it.
      Foreign aid: Increase it for the countries that need it most.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: ChrisJG777 on June 01, 2009, 05:18:11 AM
      My politics in a nutshell

      Social Stances: Social liberal/libertarian

      * Firm supporter of free speech, even if it does yield opinions on finds abhorrent.  Furthermore, I feel that flag burning, even if you do find is undesirable, should remain legal too on civil liberties grounds.
      * Pro-Choice on Abortion, but I feel that steps need to be taken to keep it rare.
      * Anti-Death Penalty, I feel that this form of punishment is an anachronism, not mention I find it rather unethical.
      * Support complete separation of religion and state, religious institutes and the government should keep out of each other's affairs quite frankly.
      *On immigration I feel that we all have the right to move around wherever we want on this planet, afterall in the end if other species of animal can, why not us humans?
      * Fully support same-sex marriage, same-sex adoptions and any other initiative to put Lesbian, Gay & Bisexual people on the same level as heterosexuals.
      * Prostitution, I feel that it would be better to legalise and regulate this activity on public health and safety grounds.


      Economic stances: Left-wing, moderate socialist (sympathies), social-democrat

      * I fully support progressive taxation and feel that those who earn more should and can afford to put a little bit more money back into society, whilst the lower earners should not have to pay more than they can feasibly do so.
      * Healthcare, I feel, is a basic human right, not just some money making ploy.  Therefore, I feel that public healthcare should be free on delivery, paid for in taxes, but I have no objection to private hospitals being set up alongside the public facilities.
      * Social security and welfare by its very design and intentions should be under government control (not privatised- that defeats the whole point then), and that it should be available for those who need it.  I support strict penalties on those who abuse the system, however.
      * Public education needs as much government financial support as possible.  In the long run a well educated population is good for the economy.
      * Military spending should preferably be kept as low as possible, without leaving a country with a shoddy defence system.  The extra money can be put into more worthwhile civilian projects.
      * Utility services like water, gas and electricity should be government owned.  Private companies have no right to profit off other people's needs and necessities like this.  That, and there should be more government accountability for these things.
      * Employers by law should recognise any legitimate and registered trade union, and that during (legal) strikes employees should be immune from being fired.  All trade unions must use secret ballot when making group decisions however.


      Foreign policy stances: As yet un-summarised

      * Getting troops out of Iraq is a must, in the meantime more assistance needs to be given to the troops in Afghanistan.
      * Staying on the topic of Afghanistan, alongside the allied military presence, I feel that other non-military solutions to stabilising the country need some investment as well, ie, the establishment of decent utility and transportation infrastructure and more investment in education facilities for the place.
      * Israel needs more foreign pressure from the USA and European nations to reign in its aggressive tendencies and its unfair treatment of the Palestinian people, who by rights own the land on which Israel lies.



      If there's anything I find I've missed, I will amend this list to rectify those omissions.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: pogo stick on June 05, 2009, 01:01:17 PM
      Social Issues  : Far-right

      Abortion : Pro-Life in all cases. I consider Abortion murder.

      Gay Marrige : Againest it. But have nothing personal againest gays.

      Flag Burning : Ban it. It's not a "Freedom of speech" you are BURNING A flag ,not SPEAKING your hate for America.

      Free Speech : Support it

      Drug War : Support it.

      Affirmative Action : 100% Againest it. No reverse racism for me!!!


      Illegal Immigration : Deport all illegals, close borders.


      Guns : Pro-2nd Amendment. Support no restrictions on guns. SAY NO TO GUN CONTROL

      Death Penalty  : Support it.

      Assisted-Suicide : No. I'm against this. It's immoral and not the way people should die. Die a fighter not a quitter. Jack Kemp died a fighter.



      Foreign Policy : Hawkish ,Far-right , in a liberal's words "A WARZZZ MOUNGERZZZZ LOL"


      War on Terror : Support it 100% , let's end this bullsh**t once and for all. Enough is enough. Kill those Terrorists.

      Israel : Pro-Israel 100000%. Support destroying Palestinians , Netanyahu-Fan!!!! Base my votes on people's position on Israel.


      War on Iraq : Support it. We made it a better nation.

      Iran : Invade ,kick their asses ,take their nukes. Kill their leaders. :)

      North Korea : See Iran.

      Defense : Raise spending. Build up military. FUnd our troops. Fight for more veteran rights.

      PATRIOT Act : Support 100%.

      Intervention : Pro-Intervention

      Fiscal Issues : Moderate, Center-right



      Taxes/ Tariffs : Hate taxes. Lower them as much as possible. Destroy gas ,income, estate, and inheritance tax.


      Welfare : Get rid of it . NOW

      Free trade : Mixed on it. Don't encourage it. Support penalizing Companies on it. Against making tariffs for it.

      Union : Must Balance labor and economic needs. But support it ,but don't like it.

      Spending : Against Pork Barrel spending, hate govt spending. But support defense spending.

      Govt Intervention : Againest it. Mostly.

      Freedom of speech : Support it.

      Environment : It's a state issue ,but don't think it's a important issue, Global Warming is Bullsh**t.

      Universal HillaryCare AKA Healthcare : I'm against this failed policy and this communist policy.

      The Obama Stimulus : Againest it

      Bush Bailouts : Againest

      Obama Bailouts : Againest


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: ChrisJG777 on June 05, 2009, 04:59:23 PM

      Everything else I kinda expected in some way shape or form, but this part sounds very dodgy to me...

      I sincerely hope you're just over-exaggerating there.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Hash on June 05, 2009, 08:26:50 PM
      Oh dear, more quantity.

      And less quality.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: pbrower2a on June 06, 2009, 12:42:38 AM
      Abortion: I don't like it, but Roe v. Wade  is the law of the land. Repealing the SCOTUS decision creates legal anarchy which is even worse.


      Separation of church and state: Keep the churches out of the government and the government out of the churches so that both can have some independence and integrity.

      Affirmative action: Necessary and appropriate as a correction in some places -- overblown issue. Nepotism is bigger.

      Gun control: The "well-regulated militia" clause is often forgotten; that obviously excludes criminals, addicts, lunatics, illegal aliens, and others that one doesn't want as part of a "well-regulated militia"... other than that, firearms are much a part of American life.

      Death penalty: Barbarous!

      Flag burning: Does more harm to the reputations of those who burn Old Glory as a form of protest; better that a$$holes burn a flag than that a$$holes in government burn books that they don't want us to read.

      Euthanasia: Dislike, but I can think of worse.

      Gay Marriage: What's the problem?

      Prostitution: The criminalization of prostitution causes more problems than it solves.l

      Immigration: Fair wages for HB-1A... now!

      Drugs: Legalize Marijuana but crack down on the rest.

      Economic Issues


      Taxes: I'd rather earn more money and pay more taxes -- wouldn't you?
      Health Care: Too old not to care.
      Trade: Our trading partners do not deserve blame for our own faults.
      Spending: Eliminate or reform ineffective programs and cut military.
      Welfare: Should be strictly a temporary safety net. Corporate welfare is a travesty.
      Education: Let's have free (tax-paid) education for anyone who can reasonably derive benefit from it.
      Regulations: Support antitrust/ monopoly regulations.

      Foreign Policy

      Military Involvement: Only if the President can live by an honor code.

      Israel: Support right to exist.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mechaman on June 06, 2009, 04:43:46 AM
      Social issues: Immoral Antigovernment Libertine

      Abortion: Prochoice
      Immigration: Pro-Amnesty
      Marriage: Get the government out of it completely. It shouldn't be you and me and the state of Nevada, it should be you and me and if permitting, about 5 other people. Everybody should be able to marry anyone or anything in multiples if they want to. Love makes people do crazy things, embrace it.
      Flag Burning: Support it, especially if it's cold outside
      Free Speech: Support completely and get rid of all censorship laws. This includes no fines on networks for bad language and "fair speech" laws.
      War on Drugs: End it. We should be throwing in child molesters and wife beaters, not crackheads. Plus, legalize drugs to spur the snack vendor industry.
      Affirmative Action: Endorses collective racism. Reinforces stereotype that some people are collectively stupider than another.
      Gun control: Gun control is a backwards draconian statist policy. Why should I support something the KKK supported to disarm blacks in the late 1800s? The idea that we can still be free when only the coercive arms of government are armed is like saying the sheep would be safer sleeping with wolves.
      Death Penalty: What? Being another dude's butt buddy for the rest of his life isn't enough? If I was a psycho serial killer I think I would rather go to prison for 3 months and then get injected over being butt humped for the next 50 years. That's why I'm against the death penalty, I think the threat of eternal butt rape is alot more of a deterent than "we'll friggin kill you!" Plus, if there are no death penalties it's impossible to accidently kill the wrong man. What the hell? I don't like the death penalty because it's wrong, alright?
      Voluntary Euthanasia: Totally legalize it. If you want to kill yourself it's a voluntary action (there's my answer for suicide). If you want someone else to do it, sign a release waiver on your life and have the ender sign also with a third party witness to prove it's legit for this person to kill you.
      Draft: Get rid of it, NOW.
      Patriot Act, domestic spying, etc.: Get rid of it. The government has no right to be spying our phone lines. There is a correct way to do searches, it's called A WARRANT. All you have to do is fill out a friggin piece of paper to search somebody. Why is the government so lazy it can't even sign a piece of paper before searching somebody?
      Stem Cell Research: We have to use those fetuses for something.....
      States Rights: The power of the states should be a little more respected. For example, if a state passes drug legalization the federal government shouldn't overrule it.
      Three Strikes Law: Against, what if the person in question commits three petty crimes? It's too excessive and broad.
      Prostitution: Legalize, you know what they say: sex sells.
      Separation of Church and State: Stop enforcing your fake god on us! It's called separation of church and state for a reason!! Stop bribing public officials to enforce your backwards social agenda! Now if you just want to preach in your churches or hell even have radio stations or tv stations, fine. Just don't have the government give you any special favors. For it is written "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibit the free exercise thereof."
      Electoral College: I guess we should keep it, but needs reform.

      Foreign Policy: Free Trade monger
      War on Terror: Stop pissing people off and giving them a reason to kill us. Let the Mideast solve it's own problems.
      Palestine: It's really none of our business what happens in Palestine. We should take a neutral role and have free trade relationships with both sides.
      Israel: I hate to sound like an Israel hating bastard but we should let them be. They already got enough of our military technology to ward off full on invasions from 6 different fronts. And if they get wiped off the face of the planet by an Iranian nuke........sorry, shouldn't be our problem. Our support for Israel is what got us in hot water in the Middle East, maybe if we let everyone fight their own battles they won't have a reason to kill us. However, we should have a free trade relationship with them.
      War in Iraq: Get out now and let them destroy themselves. Sadaam was a dick and the world may arguably be a better place with him gone but the people of Iraq need to grow their own balls and learn how to defend themselves without having us baby them.
      Iran: Do you really think Iran would be stupid enough to nuke us? Epic fail. People forget about the concept of Mutually Assured Destruction so quickly. We should stop acting like dicks to them and start a mutual trade relationship with them. The more we trade with nations that don't like us the more they will like us because who doesn't like cable tv?
      North Korea: Like I said, M.A.D. They're probably just freaked out because we're constantly threatening to kick their asses. THis isn't 1952, this is 2009. Things have changed. We should begin a mutual trade relationship with them like we should China which would do way more to destroy authoritarian communism than say an all out invasion that costs hundreds of billions of dollars a year.
      9/11: Not real sure anymore. Could've been the government, could've actually been terrorists. What I do know is that it's gotten us into a lot of s#$t.
      Afghanistan: Get the hell out and sign a free trade agreement.
      Pakistan: Stop harrasing them and sign a free trade agreement.
      Torture: Not necessary and not ethical. Can't we just bribe them? Who can't resist free cable?!
      Diplomacy: Should always be the 1st step and always preferable to war.
      Free Trade Agreement: If Diplomacy works, should always be the 2nd step.
      Military involvement: Should require a damn good reason. Pre-emptive military action is not an option. President doesn't have authority to declare war, only Congress does. This option should be a VERY LAST RESORT.

      Economic Issues: Capitalist Loving Bastard
      Taxes: Eliminate the income tax. There are lots of other taxes out there to pay for stuff.
      Welfare: Get rid of it, gradually. You don't need to be dependent on government, you've got friends and family who'll always be looking out for you..go to them when you're down on your luck. Also, there are charitable organizations that do exist that takes care of people down on their luck and two words: soup kitchen.
      Trade: This protectionist Bulls*$t has got to end. The idea that by antagonizing our fellow trade partners with excessive tariffs and other economically nationalist ideas will somehow juice up our economy is insane. We benefit from trade with other nations, penaltilizing our trade partners is no way to get them to be more open to trading with us.
      Health Care: Leave it up to each individual state to decide what kind of healthcare system they want.
      Spending: Can the military budget, eliminate or reform ineffective programs.
      Education: Start up a voucher program so kids not well off can get into private schools easier to help spurce competition between the schools to provide the best possible education for our nation's children. Keep public schools since competition with private schools for the most kids will encourage public school systems to become better at educating kids instead of teaching them how to pass year end exams that won't mean anything 10 years from now.
      Regulations: Support environmental regulations (but not excessive), I don't want some company's toxic waste in my backyard. Kind of iffy on anti-trust and monopoly regulations.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: pogo stick on June 06, 2009, 07:38:33 AM

      Everything else I kinda expected in some way shape or form, but this part sounds very dodgy to me...

      I sincerely hope you're just over-exaggerating there.
      Not Over exaggerating. If they won't let my religion live in peace ,then they should either die or get a big ass-whooping.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Franzl on June 06, 2009, 07:39:29 AM

      Everything else I kinda expected in some way shape or form, but this part sounds very dodgy to me...

      I sincerely hope you're just over-exaggerating there.
      Not Over exaggerating. If they won't let my religion live in peace ,then they should either die or get a big ass-whooping.

      lol


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: ChrisJG777 on June 06, 2009, 09:10:38 AM

      Everything else I kinda expected in some way shape or form, but this part sounds very dodgy to me...

      I sincerely hope you're just over-exaggerating there.
      Not Over exaggerating. If they won't let my religion live in peace ,then they should either die or get a big ass-whooping.

      Somehow with most of them, I doubt that it's religion that's the main factor in why an awful of Palestinians aren't to accommodating towards Israel and its citizens, but more like the Palestinians see many Israelis as intruders on their land.  You must understand that in 1948 hundreds of thousands of Palestinians were displaced from their homes during the formation of Israel on the land previously knowns as Palestine.  Afterall, if you were forced out of your home by a bunch of strangers, wouldn't you be somewhat upset at that too?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Hash on June 06, 2009, 09:15:09 AM

      Everything else I kinda expected in some way shape or form, but this part sounds very dodgy to me...

      I sincerely hope you're just over-exaggerating there.
      Not Over exaggerating. If they won't let my religion live in peace ,then they should either die or get a big ass-whooping.

      Oh dear, oh dear.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: pogo stick on June 08, 2009, 03:59:22 PM

      Everything else I kinda expected in some way shape or form, but this part sounds very dodgy to me...

      I sincerely hope you're just over-exaggerating there.
      Not Over exaggerating. If they won't let my religion live in peace ,then they should either die or get a big ass-whooping.

      Oh dear, oh dear.

      That's how I roll.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: ChrisJG777 on June 09, 2009, 10:30:30 AM

      Everything else I kinda expected in some way shape or form, but this part sounds very dodgy to me...

      I sincerely hope you're just over-exaggerating there.
      Not Over exaggerating. If they won't let my religion live in peace ,then they should either die or get a big ass-whooping.

      Oh dear, oh dear.

      That's how I roll.

      And it's very disturbing...


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RI on June 09, 2009, 11:27:05 AM

      Everything else I kinda expected in some way shape or form, but this part sounds very dodgy to me...

      I sincerely hope you're just over-exaggerating there.
      Not Over exaggerating. If they won't let my religion live in peace ,then they should either die or get a big ass-whooping.

      Oh dear, oh dear.

      That's how I roll.

      And it's very disturbing...

      Eh... he's 14. He'll outgrow his extremism as he matures (hopefully). When I was younger, I (regrettably) held some extreme views as well. I believe I once said we should kill every gay because they added nothing to society. I hate who I was.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Associate Justice PiT on June 09, 2009, 11:38:27 AM
      Social Issues

      General philosophy: Strongly Leftist

      Abortion: Support legality, oppose use.
      Separation of church and state: Support unconditionally. The day that an Atheist can be elected President will be a day to be long celebrated.
      Marriage: Support gay marriage. I can accept civil unions in areas that will not accept full marriage yet.
      Affirmative Action: Wronging people to make up for past wrongs is unacceptable. Do not infringe on the rights of businesses to engage in affirmative action practices.
      Gun rights: It's a constitutional right. Limit gun ownership for convicts, though, as well as ownership of fully automatic weapons.
      Death Penalty: Oppose.
      Censorship: Not under any circumstance. Censorship is slavery.
      Flag burning: Support of course. Non-violent political speech cannot be limited.
      Hate crimes: Oppose. No one person should have greater protection under the law than another.
      Hate speech: Oppose since it's unconstitutional.
      Smoking: Public smoking is annoying, but it should be allowed by any free society anyway.
      Alcohol consumption: Same as smoking.
      Euthanasia: Support.
      Drugs: Legalize all drugs.
      Gambling: Completely legalize.
      Prostitution: Legalize & regulate. Keep in brothels.
      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Support, though adult stem cells should be preferred given recent breakthroughs.
      Immigration: Open borders. Get rid of illegals with a criminal record.
      Civil Liberties: These cannot be compromised.
      Language: Making English the official language is pointless.

      Economic Issues

      General Philosophy: Strongly Capitalist

      Taxes: Combine with spending cuts to eliminate the deficit. Once the deficit has been eliminated or greatly reduced, cut as much as is possible while staying in the black.
      Employers and Employees: No protection for strikers. If you can get fired any other time, you can get fired then too.
      Free trade: Unconditionally support.
      Spending: Vastly cut spending. Re-evaluate the role of the state.
      Social Security: If people want to privately invest all of their earnings, it should be their right.
      Space Program: Supporting science is necessary to remain a major power. Generally support.
      Welfare: No welfare. Phase it out.
      Healthcare: Support free-market solutions.
      Education: Greatly reduce funding. Offer vouchers to attend accredited private schools.
      Minimum Wage: Tie to inflation and forget about it. Leave it at a fairly low rate, so as to not inhibit business growth.
      Regulation: Kill all regulations except for those prohibiting abusive business practices (mainly anti-trust/anti-monopoly). Devote the BBB's resources to warning consumers of dangerous business practices.
      Infrastructure: Maintain current infrastructure. Do not waste money on expanding it.
      Energy Policy: Favor coal, oil, & nuclear for the time being. Research viable renewable resources.


      Foreign Issues

      General Philosophy: Diplomatic

      Democracy and Trade: Trade is good. Seek free trade with all other liberal democracies.
      United Nations: Stay in the UN. Do not acquiesce to unreasonable demands, however.
      Iraq: Oppose.
      Iran: They are no threat. Ignore them.
      North Korea: Use deterrance-based tactics. Work together with China to dissuade them from further agressive behavior.
      Israel: Don't support them so strongly. We are endangering ourselves.
      Military Involvement: Talk softly and carry a big stick. Attack only if attacked, but be ready to demolish any enemy.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Associate Justice PiT on June 09, 2009, 11:39:29 AM

      Everything else I kinda expected in some way shape or form, but this part sounds very dodgy to me...

      I sincerely hope you're just over-exaggerating there.
      Not Over exaggerating. If they won't let my religion live in peace ,then they should either die or get a big ass-whooping.

      Oh dear, oh dear.

      That's how I roll.

      And it's very disturbing...

      Eh... he's 14. He'll outgrow his extremism as he matures (hopefully). When I was younger, I (regrettably) held some extreme views as well. I believe I once said we should kill every gay because they added nothing to society. I hate who I was.

           You too? I once said that homosexuality was going to be the end of western society.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: pogo stick on June 09, 2009, 11:42:50 AM

      Everything else I kinda expected in some way shape or form, but this part sounds very dodgy to me...

      I sincerely hope you're just over-exaggerating there.
      Not Over exaggerating. If they won't let my religion live in peace ,then they should either die or get a big ass-whooping.

      Oh dear, oh dear.

      That's how I roll.

      And it's very disturbing...

      Eh... he's 14. He'll outgrow his extremism as he matures (hopefully). When I was younger, I (regrettably) held some extreme views as well. I believe I once said we should kill every gay because they added nothing to society. I hate who I was.

      I might more left economically ,but not socially. Though gay marrige is my weakest issue.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: tallguy23 on June 09, 2009, 09:48:54 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: Legalized in the first two trimesters, ban partial-birth abortion
      Separation of church and state: Could care less about this issue. If you wanna worship go ahead, if you don't then don't. This is America and we are a free country of choice. Having said that I don't support prayer in public school classrooms. If you wanna do it in a student group then go right ahead.
      Gay marriage: Fully support it
      Affirmative action: Good intentions, but it's simply reverse racism.
      Gun control: Americans have a right to bear arms but there should be background checks and licensing
      Death penalty: Support it 100%
      Flag burning: I would personally never do it, but it is free speech.
      Euthanasia: Very complicated subject but I suppose I'm more of a libertarian on the issue
      Prostitution: It's going to happen anyways, why not regulate it and ensure proper health standards.
      Immigration: I support legal immigration 100%. Stronger border enforcement and crack down on employers hiring illegal immigrants.

      Economic Issues

      Taxes: I support a free market but the rich do have to pay their fair share. It's unfair that someone like John Kerry only pays about 12% because of all his deductions.
      Trade: I believe free trade grows our economy but we should protect some of our jobs here
      Spending: Gov't. should spend only what is absolutely necessary and should work to reduce the debt.
      Welfare: I agree with a temporary safety net and welfare-to-work
      Education: Support universal education, but I also believe that school choice is important. Support financial aid for college.
      Regulations: Don't regulate excessively, but make sure that common sense measures are taken to avoid another collapse.
      Health Care: Support health care for all

      Foreign Policy

      Military Involvement: Maintain a strong military but use it wisely
      United Nations: Does not work as we planned, but there is no use pulling out now


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mint on June 13, 2009, 07:39:32 AM
      Social Issues

      General Philosophy: Individual Rights

      Abortion: Keep it legal on demand until late term.
      Secularism: We shouldn't have 'faith based initiatives' or faculty led prayer. Or blue laws.
      Marriage: The government shouldn't be involved in 'marriage.' Of course I support gay marriage regardless.
      Affirmative Action: Discriminating for or against minorities is unconstitutional.
      Gun rights: It's a constitutional right.
      Death Penalty: Support.
      Censorship: Abolish the FCC. Also, obscenity laws make no sense.
      Flag burning: Is protected speech, barring safety concerns.
      Hate crimes: Don't really care to be honest.
      Hate speech: Oppose since it's unconstitutional.
      Smoking: Should be legal but kept out of bars and restaurants.
      Alcohol consumption: Get rid of blue laws and the drinking age.
      Euthanasia: Legalize for the terminally ill.
      Drugs: Legalize marijuana and most other drugs. Maintain tight regulations on the use and production of methamphetamine.
      Gambling: I don't want more casinos in my state. Otherwise, I don't care.
      Prostitution: Legalize brothels.
      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Support, especially given recent HIV breakthroughs.
      Immigration: No amnesty. Secure the borders by ramping up ICE presence, use of barriers and reforming the identification process.
      Civil Liberties: Some balance is needed (and I don't care about Guantanamo to be honest), but the sort of spying we've had under the Bush administration is unacceptable. We could use some reform of the Patriot Act as well but the worst of that bill sunsets this year.
      Language: English should be the official language of the US.

      Economic Issues

      General Philosophy: Free Markets

      Taxes: Decrease taxes and move toward a flat tax.
      Employers and Employees: No EFCA.
      Free trade: Expand trade with Colombia, South Korea, and others.
      Spending: Dramatically cut discretionary spending, entitlements, bureaus, subsidies, etc. Basically government should be at least half what it is now.
      Social Security: Privatize through use of annuities.
      Space Program: Privatize space.
      Welfare: Limit to the disabled and recently unemployed. Replace Food Stamps with Food Banks.
      Healthcare: Require private insurance and subsidize the very poor and disabled. Reform regulations to allow for more choice and coverage (e.g. buying across state lines; pre-existing conditions). Enact Tort Reform.
      Education: Expand charter schools and offer vouchers. Abolish Department of Education and No Child Left Behind.
      Minimum Wage: Abolish the minimum wage. Enforce labor contracts.
      Regulation: Simplify and enforce. Regulations should focus primarily on public health and prohibiting wild speculation (e.g. naked derivatives).
      Infrastructure: Scale down highway system and suburbia. Expand public transportation (e.g. bullet trains) and promote new urbanism.
      Energy Policy: Expand use of nuclear energy and domestic drilling. Promote research for renewable resources.

      Foreign Issues

      General philosophy: Country First

      United Nations: Get out of the UN.
      Iraq: We've made progress. I don't want us to jeopardize that through arbitrary time tables.
      Iran: Ramp up economic sanctions. Give Israel the go ahead to do what they want.
      North Korea: Don't give them aid and stop wasting our time with them.
      Israel: Has a right to exist. Period.
      Military Involvement: Is fine if we're directly threatened or attacked.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Tetro Kornbluth on June 13, 2009, 08:05:54 AM
      Country First must be the dumbest international non-policy ever.

      My International policy would be Country last.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mint on June 13, 2009, 08:11:29 AM
      Country First must be the dumbest international non-policy ever.

      My International policy would be Country last.

      I'd say America First but the connotations of that are a bit uglier. Of course I'm going to come off as belligerent regardless so maybe I should have.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Tetro Kornbluth on June 13, 2009, 08:15:44 AM
      Country First must be the dumbest international non-policy ever.

      My International policy would be Country last.

      I'd say America First but the connotations of that are a bit uglier. Of course I'm going to come off as belligerent regardless so maybe I should have.

      I agree that basing one's foreign policy on entirely the socioeconomic benefit of Americans and ignoring everyone else is going to look great to the rest of the world.

      Assuming of course that the rest of the world exist and isn't just a fantasy thought up by bleedin' heart liberals.

      Didn't we have a president just recently who had a policy like that?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mint on June 13, 2009, 08:24:19 AM
      Country First must be the dumbest international non-policy ever.

      My International policy would be Country last.

      I'd say America First but the connotations of that are a bit uglier. Of course I'm going to come off as belligerent regardless so maybe I should have.

      I agree that basing one's foreign policy on entirely the socioeconomic benefit of Americans and ignoring everyone else is going to look great to the rest of the world.

      Assuming of course that the rest of the world exist and isn't just a fantasy thought up by bleedin' heart liberals.

      Didn't we have a president just recently who had a policy like that?

      Unfortunately, I'd say that we're really in a no win situation and have been for decades now. If we project power too much we'll be condemned. If we stick to ourselves, we'll be seen as callous. I'd prefer the latter generally, especially given how transparent our 'moral' justifications tend to be. Obviously the man child we had before disagreed.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Tetro Kornbluth on June 13, 2009, 08:30:12 AM
      Country First must be the dumbest international non-policy ever.

      My International policy would be Country last.

      I'd say America First but the connotations of that are a bit uglier. Of course I'm going to come off as belligerent regardless so maybe I should have.

      I agree that basing one's foreign policy on entirely the socioeconomic benefit of Americans and ignoring everyone else is going to look great to the rest of the world.

      Assuming of course that the rest of the world exist and isn't just a fantasy thought up by bleedin' heart liberals.

      Didn't we have a president just recently who had a policy like that?

      Unfortunately, I'd say that we're really in a no win situation and have been for decades now. If we project power too much we'll be condemned. If we stick to ourselves, we'll be seen as callous. I'd prefer the latter generally, especially given how transparent our 'moral' justifications tend to be. Obviously the man child we had before disagreed.

      How about doing neither and be genuinely internationalist. And no that doesn't mean invading countries for no apparent reason.

      Bush was after all an American Firster too. Just not an isolationist. Anyway it's hardly in America's best economic interest to be protectionist.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mint on June 13, 2009, 08:42:30 AM
      Country First must be the dumbest international non-policy ever.

      My International policy would be Country last.

      I'd say America First but the connotations of that are a bit uglier. Of course I'm going to come off as belligerent regardless so maybe I should have.

      I agree that basing one's foreign policy on entirely the socioeconomic benefit of Americans and ignoring everyone else is going to look great to the rest of the world.

      Assuming of course that the rest of the world exist and isn't just a fantasy thought up by bleedin' heart liberals.

      Didn't we have a president just recently who had a policy like that?

      Unfortunately, I'd say that we're really in a no win situation and have been for decades now. If we project power too much we'll be condemned. If we stick to ourselves, we'll be seen as callous. I'd prefer the latter generally, especially given how transparent our 'moral' justifications tend to be. Obviously the man child we had before disagreed.

      How about doing neither and be genuinely internationalist. And no that doesn't mean invading countries for no apparent reason.

      Historically the US appears incapable of doing so. And even if we did, I see nothing positive that the UN contributes outside of some humanitarian projects which we could easily administer ourselves or with others privately if we really cared to do so. Which we don't outside of the usual not very subtle attempts at buying loyalty (or peonage).

      Quote
      Bush was after all an American Firster too. Just not an isolationist. Anyway it's hardly in America's best economic interest to be protectionist.

      I'm not even sure you can give Bush a coherent foreign policy. It all seems to amount to grudges and graft, more so than usual. Of course we're stuck with the consequences now.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Tetro Kornbluth on June 13, 2009, 11:40:49 AM
      Quote
      Historically the US appears incapable of doing so. And even if we did, I see nothing positive that the UN contributes outside of some humanitarian projects which we could easily administer ourselves or with others privately if we really cared to do so. Which we don't outside of the usual not very subtle attempts at buying loyalty (or peonage).

      Anything positive the UN can contribute? How about Global Co-operation? No matter how corrupt the UN actually is (is it really more corrupt than many governments the US are happy dealing with? Of course not.) it still offers that opportunity under a major institutional umbrella.

      Surely it is in the best interests of the United States to actually be liked.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Governor PiT on July 07, 2009, 10:56:39 PM
      General philosophy: Moderate

      Abortion: oppose but should be leave to states
      Separation of church and state: yes
      Gay Marriage: ok with civil unions, leave to states
      Affirmative Action: Oppose on race, support on economic factors,
      Age of Consent: personally support it at 15(depends on situation and act based on behavior rather than ageism), left to states.
      Gun rights: Strongly Support, oppose federal assault weapons ban
      Death Penalty: leave to states
      Censorship: Strongly oppose, words fail me
      Flag burning: Support
      Smoking: oppose restrictions
      Alcohol consumption: Support, legal age should be lowered to 18
      Euthanasia: oppose
      Drugs: support legalization.
      Gambling: Support, left to states
      Prostitution: leave to states, only if its highly regulated.
      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: oppose public funding, ok with private reaserce
      Immigration: oppose massive immigration should be more selective.
      Illegal Immigration: Strongly Oppose


      Economic Issues

      General Philosophy: Moderate Conservative

      Taxes: Tax Corporations based on how much of their products are produced overseas as well as tariffs, tax speculation on wall street, less taxes on the middle class, more on the elites.
      Employers and Employees: support basic union rights with checks and balanes
      Free trade: Oppose,
      Spending: cut spending
      Social Security: partial privatization.
      Space Program: Support, although not a priority
      Welfare: reduced and reformed.
      Healthcare: oppose
      Education: localized schools, charters and vouchers, abolish federal and state education buracracies
      Minimum Wage: leave to states, keep at current level
      Regulation: depends on the situation
      Infrastructure: depends
      Energy Policy: support incentive for alternative energy
      Environment: Support conservation of remaining open space.


      Foreign Issues

      General Philosophy: Isolationist

      Democracy and Trade: Isolationist
      United Nations: Oppose, ineffective
      Iraq: Strongly oppose the war
      Israel: Support two state solution, oppose all economic or military aid
      Patriot Act: Strongly Oppose
      Torture: Strongly Oppose
      Military Involvement: Strongly Oppose in almost all circumstances
      North American Union: Strongly Oppose


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: pogo stick on July 08, 2009, 01:57:01 PM
      Time to re-do this thing :

      Social Issues (Social Conservative)

      Abortion : Ban it 100%
      Gay Rights : Ban Gay marriage, Legalize Gay adoption. Oh and No civil unions
      Illegal Immigration : Close borders,  make more border fences, deport illegals
      Guns : Legalize all guns, no restrictions
      Flag Burning : Ban it. It's not a constitutional right
      War on Drugs : Continue the war. Ban drugs.
      Smoking : Ban it. I see my dad suffer everyday smoking. Ban it.
      Death Penalty : Support it 100%
      Censorship : Support. A moral society, is a good society
      Prostitution : Ban it. Yea, sorry Las Vegas :p
      Affirmative Action : Oppose it
      Stem Cell Research : Oppose 100%
      Alcohol : Leave it legal. Leave drinking age at 21. But more regulations.
      Assisted-Suicide : No. Just f***ing no.
      Cloning : ^^^^^^^^^^^^

      Foreign Policy (Hawkish, Far-right)

      Israel : Support it's right to exist. Support $$$ Aid and Military Aid. Hate Palestinians
      Intervention : Support. I'm a internationalist 
      North Korea : End all "diplomacy" it's  obvious that war is the only option
      Iran : Support invading, and overthrowing Amandemajad.
      Iraq : Support the war. We did our job.
      PATRIOT Act : Support. National security > Privacy
      Defense Spending : Raise defense Spending.
      Military : Proud supporter of U.S Military.
      Torture : Support, only on terrorists
      War on Terror : Support


      Economic Policy (Center-right)

      Federal Spending : Oppose. Spending will double the the deficit
      Unions : Support. But we need to balance the labor  and corporate needs
      Free Trade : Against Tariffs. against protectionism, but am nuetral over all on free trade
      Porkulus Package : Against it
      Pork Barrel Spending : Against this garbage 100%
      Gas : Support ANWAR and offshore Drilling.
      Environment : The U.S Economy is more important then the environment, no government regulations. Don't believe in the "Climate change" or Global Warming theories.
      Minimum Wage : Against raising it. It will hurt the economy in the long run.
      Social Security : Privatize it, at least partially.
      Taxes : Against riasing taxes on Anyone. Am against income tax, as it's unconstitutional. Support something that would make income taxes illegal or very low. Ban Gas, Estate, Inheritance taxes.
      Education : Support Vouchers. People have the right to pick their own schools!



      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Ban my account ffs! on July 08, 2009, 04:23:02 PM
      General philosophy: Liberal

      Abortion: oppose but should remain legal and constitutionally protected.
      Separation of church and state: Most definitely in both directions
      Gay Marriage: Should be legalized
      Affirmative Action: Can be useful in certain situations, but I generally oppose it today.
      Age of Consent: Age of consent should be 16.
      Gun rights: Generally supportive, though we should have a waiting period and background checks. 
      Death Penalty: Strongly oppose
      Censorship: Strongly oppose.
      Flag burning:  I support your right to burn the flag.  I would only ever do it if I had a very serious grievance with the state as probably the act of protest with the highest symbolism.  It should never be taken lightly or done lightly.
      Smoking:  No smoking in public places, though we should allow for smoking rooms in private businesses (if they're separate). 
      Alcohol consumption: Legal age should be lowered to 16 to purchase wine and beer and 19 to purchase liquor (to keep liquor out of high schools).  Alcohol consumption in the presence of parents should be allowed at any age.  Get rid of public intoxication laws and allow drinking in public.
      Euthanasia: Support in cases of terminal illness.
      Drugs: Support legalization of marijuana and other "soft" drugs with state regulation as with tobacco and alcohol.  Money raised from the taxes should go to support recovery/rehabilitation programs.
      Gambling: I support it, but I recognize the help it has given Native American tribes in lifting many out of abject poverty.
      Prostitution: Leave this to the states.  I support regulated prostitution.
      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Strongly support.
      Immigration:  We need to make legal immigration much easier.  No quotas, though immigration could be reduced if need be.
      Illegal Immigration:  Give them a chance to become legal immigrants through an easier, reformed system.  Those that fail should be sent home.


      Economic Issues

      General Philosophy: Liberal

      Taxes: Keep corporate taxes, but lower the rates.  Cut business taxes for small businesses drastically.  Institute a progressive income tax with the largest chunk of government revenue coming from this source.  Have a highly progressive capital gains tax that taxes excessive capital gains while promoting investment among Americans in general.
      Employers and Employees: I support the right for unions to form without intimidation by either side, overseen and those rights guaranteed by the government.  Unions that strike legitimately and legally should be protected from being fired.
      Free trade: I support fair trade.  We need to hold our trading partners to the same standards that we hold our own workers.
      Spending:  Scrub the budget.  I support pay-go.  Ask each department to find 10% of potential savings and then determine which of that 10% is worth reforming or keeping.  Cut the rest.
      Social Security: End benefits for the rich, raise the retirement age to 70 in a graduated fashion and reduce benefits to cover the rest of the deficit.
      Space Program: Support.  More money should be spent on exploring and potential human colonization of the moon/Mars.
      Welfare:  Full, generous benefits for the disabled and single parents (with dependents in the home, of course).  All abled body workers must either be searching for work or continuing their education (state funded) to receive benefits, which would come in the form of housing assistance, food stamps, utility assistance, and a small cash allowance for personal items.
      Healthcare: I support government funded, single payer health insurance for all children under 18 and college students under 25, and everyone over 65.  Healthy adults must find their own insurance.  The destitute and disabled would be covered under the government system while a second government option with subsidized copays and premiums would be available to the poor, based on income.
      Education: At the federal level:  No unfunded mandates.  Curriculum guidelines at the federal level should be vague with only general educational goals stated (like math and science standards).  Education equalization funding should be handled at the state level with a reliance on income taxes to fund schools rather than property taxes.  (This was, after all, the Minnesota Miracle in 1971)
      Minimum Wage: Have a federal minimum wage, but allow states to adjust it upward for local market differences.
      Regulation:  It really depends.
      Infrastructure: We need to make major investments in our highways, rails, and utilities.  We should have an efficient, environmentally friendly high speed rail network connecting  the major cities of the country with regional lines down the road.  All railroad tracks should be government owned and maintained with leasing to the private freight rails.  Upgrade the rails for freight to travel up to 79mph and passenger rail up to 200mph.
      Energy Policy: Incentives for renewable energy as well as an expansion of nuclear power.  We need to eliminate oil where possible first, then coal.  Find ways to sequester carbon dioxide and store it.
      Environment: I support conservation of public lands as well as beaches/shores and other wetlands.  We need better regulation of our grasslands that support more sustainable grazing techniques, as well as more sustainable forestry practices with selective cutting that leaves a tiny footprint and the use of fire to renew our forests.



      Foreign Issues

      General Philosophy: I don't know.

      Democracy and Trade: I support both, but movements towards democracy should be home grown.  We should assist if they ask.
      United Nations: The idea of an international body is important in today's world.  It should not hold any legal jurisdiction, however.
      Iraq: Strongly opposed to our invasion of Iraq, though if peace and stability can remain in this fledgling democracy, I won't deny the victory there.
      Israel: Support two state proposal.  No economic or military aid except for defense in extreme situations.  We were instrumental in putting them there, we should help them out when they really need it.  Palestinians and Jewish Israelis will have to learn to coexist.
      Patriot Act: Strongly Oppose
      Torture: Strongly Oppose
      Military Involvement:  Oppose in most circumstances.
      North American Union: A union that sets up free trade and free travel amongst the nations is a good idea.  Also, legislation that affects all parties could be promoted by a stronger union, but ultimately these proposed laws would have to be approved by the legislative bodies of each respective country in order to maintain national sovereignty.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Хahar 🤔 on July 10, 2009, 12:40:16 AM
      Country First must be the dumbest international non-policy ever.

      My International policy would be Country last.

      Country last would be just as bad, wouldn't it? Unless I misunderstand you, of course.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mechaman on July 10, 2009, 01:21:04 AM
      Imagine a world with no corporations. Imagine a world with no government. Imagine a world at peace.

      That's my philosophy.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Frodo on July 13, 2009, 07:15:48 PM
      Social/Cultural Hot-Button issues

      Affirmative Action: Strongly oppose affirmative action based on gender, race, and/or ethnic background.  Would support affirmative action on a socio-economic basis, however.

      Abortion: I support the overturning of Roe vs. Wade and Planned Parenthood vs. Casey, and returning the issue back to the states where it rightfully belongs.  Accordingly, I favor the nomination of those justices to create the majority required to overturn the 1973 decision.

      Stem-Cell Research: Strongly support using federal tax-dollars to fund embryonic stem-cell research, and lifting the ban on letting laboratories create new lines of embryonic stem-cells.

      Gay Rights: Favor overturning the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA).  Support extending to gay and lesbian couples rights normally restricted to heterosexual married couples, such as hospital visitation, inheritance of estates and other property, among others.  Also support hate crimes legislation, as well as overturning 'Don't Ask; Don't Tell', and allowing gays and lesbians to serve openly in the military, and without harassment for their sexual orientation.  

      Sex and Prostitution: Favor comprehensive sex education programs, including accurate and up-to-date information regarding safe sex (condoms, contraceptives, etc.), sexually transmitted diseases like HIV-AIDS, as well as abstinence.  Also favor the legalization of brothels.

      Second Amendment: The Second Amendment was intended to be seen as protecting an individual right as with all the other original ten amendments that comprised the Bill of Rights when it was added to the Constitution -given this context it makes little sense to interpret it otherwise.  When it was originally written, 'militia' connoted the entirety of the citizenry, not just a government-created body.  

      Accordingly, I support concealed-carry, 'castle-doctrine' laws, and other liberalizing measures.  Needless to say, I strongly oppose gun-bans at any governmental level, be it municipal, state, or national in scope.  However, as with every other amendment, there are limits that must be recognized, and criminals and those deemed certifiably insane by the medical profession should not have access to firearms, and I support measures (e.g. background checks) to that effect so long as the definitions regarding these groups are narrowly construed.  

      Drug War: Given the results of the past forty years since the 'war on drugs' was first inaugurated by President Nixon, most dramatically seen in Mexico's increasing likelihood of disintegration as it battles drug lords, I now support ending the 'war on drugs', and instead direct our attention and funding towards prevention and treatment of addicts.  

      Election Reform: I support replacing the First-Past-The-Post system with proportional representation with regard to Congress and state legislatures. For presidential elections, I favor having each state assign electoral votes to each presidential nominee based on vote totals they win within each congressional district (similar to Maine and Nebraska), with the precondition that such congressional districts are redrawn not by political parties but by judges within the state they are redistricting.

      I also favor replacing our current front-loaded primary/caucus schedule with a Rotating Regional Primary System (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rotating_Regional_Primary_System).

      llegal Immigration: I would support full amnesty of the 12 million or so illegal aliens in the United States if we focus first on ensuring that our borders would be secured so as to prevent future hordes of Mexicans and other Latin Americans from coming across the border. I also support significant increases in funding for ESL (English-as-a-Second-Language) programs, as well as shifting the emphasis of our immigration policy away from family reunification towards those immigrants who have skills, and are well educated.

      Economic issues

      Tax Code: Favor a wholesale reform of the tax code geared toward encouraging savings and investment, as well as increasing revenue to pay for the social programs that the American people desire.

      Entitlement programs: After long deliberation, I now support President Obama's proposal in reforming the health care system, including a government-supported public health plan.  I support funding his proposal along three main sources: an inflation-adjusted surtax on wealthy households, a tax on health insurance companies, as well as removing congressional authority over Medicare reform & reimbursement rates and shifting that power to an independent panel of medical experts.  To help curb the costs of the program, I also support medical malpractice tort reform so as to cut down on frivolous lawsuits, as well as stripping the health insurance industry of its antitrust exemption.  Ultimately I would like to shift the entire system away from employer-provided health care to one jointly provided and operated solely by the federal government and the private medical insurance industry.  

      With regard to Social Security, I favor raising the retirement age to seventy, raising the payroll tax as well as eliminating the cap on it, preserve as well as raise the estate tax, and indexing Social Security benefits to inflation as opposed to wages.  

      Minimum Wage: Support raising it and having it pegged to inflation, provided there are provisions made for small businesses who can less afford the higher costs involved than a multinational corporation.

      Labor Unions: Strongly support the passage of the Employee Free Choice Act (http://www.aflcio.org/joinaunion/voiceatwork/efca/) to strengthen labor unions.

      Free Trade: Strongly support free trade and I favor the establishment of the Free Trade Area of the Americas (http://www.ftaa-alca.org/Alca_e.asp).  To encourage sub-Saharan Africa's economic development, I also favor reducing and eventually eliminating farm subsidies throughout the developed world to make their agricultural produce more competitive in our markets.  

      Energy Independence and the Environment: To build a more ecologically sustainable society over the long-haul, I favor research into nuclear fusion and hydrogen fuel-cell technologies; increasing investments into alternative renewable energy sources like wind, solar, geothermal, and biomass among others; promoting energy efficiency in government as well as in private industry, using the LEED Green Building Rating System (http://www.usgbc.org/) as a model; tax credits for hybrid vehicles; increasing the fuel economy standards for newer vehicles; as well as the expansion of new nuclear power plants, and updating those already in existence (particularly in areas east of the Mississippi, where the only other viable alternatives to power eastern urban metropolises are coal and oil).  The federal government should also increase investments into mass transit programs in urban areas so as to concentrate population growth in those areas.

      Am also open to imposing mandatory CO2 emissions limits as well as a carbon tax (http://www.carbontax.org/) to combat (anthropocentric) global warming.

      NASA -Space Exploration: Strongly support President Bush's initiative to refocus the space agency away from the International Space Station (instead letting private companies and international space agencies fund the ISS upon its completion) and towards the exploration (and hopeful colonization) of the Moon and Mars.  I also support replacing our ageing space shuttle fleet with newer rockets built as part of the Constellation program (http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/main/index.html), and distributing funding accordingly.  I do not support extending the use of our current space shuttles beyond 2010.    

      Foreign Policy

      Support reshaping our military to better handle the twin challenges of counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency, including a major expansion of the Special Forces.  Also support missile defense to guard against rogue regimes threatening our allies, as well as giving the State Department and USAID back the prominence they once had during the Cold War, and reversing the recent trend of turning our embassies and consulates into fortresses instead of beacons of democracy.  

      Over the longer-term, the United States is not likely to retain its status as the 'sole, remaining superpower' as this century progresses, and our power will decline relative to the continued rise of new great powers like China, India, Brazil, South Africa, and Iran.  It is therefore to our long-term benefit to strengthen international law and institutions to brace the liberal international order that we heralded into existence after the end of the Second World War, and to make more likely that such rising powers assimilate to the existing order rather than create a parallel system that is not so conducive to the spread of free markets, democracy, and liberal norms.    


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mechaman on July 13, 2009, 07:16:53 PM
      I'm an anarcho communist, how the hell do I summarize that?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: pogo stick on July 13, 2009, 09:09:18 PM
      I'm an anarcho communist, how the hell do I summarize that?

      You can't. YOU MUST CHOOSE BETWEEN ANARCHIST OR COMMUNIST! CHOOSE WISELY MY YOUNG PADAWAN!!!


      WagaWaga


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Scam of God on July 13, 2009, 10:44:14 PM
      I'm an anarcho communist, how the hell do I summarize that?

      You can't. YOU MUST CHOOSE BETWEEN ANARCHIST OR COMMUNIST! CHOOSE WISELY MY YOUNG PADAWAN!!!


      WagaWaga

      Why? Anarchism and (small-scale, local, and voluntary) communism are imminently compatible: the word "libertarianism" originally applied to people who today are considered syndicalists and Left Communists. I'm personally an anarcho-capitalist with distributivist tendencies, but I have no problem at all with the idea of anarchic communes.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: ?????????? on July 13, 2009, 11:09:40 PM
      Social Issues

      General philosophy: Conservative

      Abortion: Personally, vehemently oppose. Leave up to the states.
      Separation of church and state: Non-existent. Outside of making sure the congress isn't setting up a state run church it's up to the states.
      Marriage: Civil unions, maybe. Otherwise support benefits for homosexuals that are equivalent to married individuals. Leave up to the individual states.
      Affirmative Action: Reverse racism is completely contrary to the spirit of the constitution. Eliminate and and level the playing field.
      Gun rights: People have the right to own whatever firearm they want. Individuals/municipalities have the right to form militias to defend the US. Eliminate the National Guard.
      Death Penalty: Strongly support. Clear out death row. Expand to repeat rapists as well.
      Censorship: Not under any circumstance.
      Flag burning: Support of course. Non-violent political speech cannot be limited.
      Hate crimes: Oppose. No one person should have greater protection under the law than another.
      Hate speech: Oppose since it's unconstitutional.
      Smoking: Public smoking is annoying, but it should be allowed by any free society anyway.
      Alcohol consumption: Same as smoking.
      Euthanasia: Oppose.
      Drugs: Legalize natural drugs crack down on meth labs and dealers.
      Gambling: Completely legalize. Left to states.
      Prostitution: Left to states. Support keeping it illegal as it's exploitation of women.
      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Adult stem cells only, which have proven to be more fruitful.
      Immigration: We need a new Ellis Island. Support legal immigration, crack down on law violators.
      Civil Liberties: To vague of a question.
      Language: English should be the only language used in federal/state/local governments and in schools. Assimilation of new immigrants should be the goal.

      Economic Issues

      General Philosophy: Strongly Capitalist

      Taxes: Support the income tax for coporations. Support a national sales tax for private citizens.
      Employers and Employees: I believe all states should pass Right to Work laws.
      Free trade: Unconditionally support.
      Spending: Gut the federal government like a fish.
      Social Security: Support making it optional, with the eventual goal of its elimination in favor of money markets, IRAs, bonds and 401ks, all of which are more fruitful.
      Space Program: A noble goal for the government and for humanity, generally support.
      Welfare: Economic slavery is unacceptable, eliminate.
      Healthcare: Not any of the governments business. Most of the problems with healthcare today are due to government intervention.
      Education: Local/state level issue. Eliminate the DoE. Education is best left to the communities as they have a vested interest in teaching their students for their particular region.
      Minimum Wage: Eliminate, wages are an agreement between the employee and the employer.
      Regulation: To vague of an arena. Regulation of what?
      Infrastructure: Favor maintaining and adding on to the interstate system and other major roadways.
      Energy Policy: Favor coal, oil, & nuclear for the time being. Research viable renewable resources.


      Foreign Issues

      General Philosophy: Diplomatic

      Democracy and Trade: Trade is good. Seek free trade with all other liberal democracies.
      United Nations: Eliminate monetary support. Largely sit on the sideline but use it as a tool for good if absolutely necessary.
      Iraq: Saddam was a threat who continually violated the rules of the ceasefire, due to the fact that Saddam could not keep the conditions of the ceasefire which was in place he brought himself and his government to its' end.
      Iran: Stay vigilant. They can not be allowed to have a nuclear weapon due to their ideology being unstable.
      North Korea: Bribe the Chinese into turning their backs, then use special forces to eliminate the upper echelon of the government.
      Israel: Demand reparations for the USS Liberty, treat as any other ally.
      Military Involvement: As the largest and most important nation on Earth we have a duty to protect smaller countries from being pushed around by bully nations. Keep the thugs in check in order to promote our style of Republic across the globe.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: SPC on July 14, 2009, 02:08:03 AM
      I'm an anarcho communist, how the hell do I summarize that?

      You can't. YOU MUST CHOOSE BETWEEN ANARCHIST OR COMMUNIST! CHOOSE WISELY MY YOUNG PADAWAN!!!


      WagaWaga

      Why? Anarchism and (small-scale, local, and voluntary) communism are imminently compatible: the word "libertarianism" originally applied to people who today are considered syndicalists and Left Communists. I'm personally an anarcho-capitalist with distributivist tendencies, but I have no problem at all with the idea of anarchic communes.

      Funny, you are the first "anarcho-capitalist" that associated criticism with the Constitution with "treason". Since the Constitution doesn't support anarcho-capitalism, I am left to assume that you either describe yourself as "treasonous" or are not an anarcho-capitalist. Additionally, you are the first "anarcho-capitalist" who supported tax hikes. Since anarcho-capitalists view taxation as theft, you must not be an anarcho-capitalist.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Scam of God on July 14, 2009, 03:10:30 AM
      I'm an anarcho communist, how the hell do I summarize that?

      You can't. YOU MUST CHOOSE BETWEEN ANARCHIST OR COMMUNIST! CHOOSE WISELY MY YOUNG PADAWAN!!!


      WagaWaga

      Why? Anarchism and (small-scale, local, and voluntary) communism are imminently compatible: the word "libertarianism" originally applied to people who today are considered syndicalists and Left Communists. I'm personally an anarcho-capitalist with distributivist tendencies, but I have no problem at all with the idea of anarchic communes.

      Funny, you are the first "anarcho-capitalist" that associated criticism with the Constitution with "treason". Since the Constitution doesn't support anarcho-capitalism, I am left to assume that you either describe yourself as "treasonous" or are not an anarcho-capitalist. Additionally, you are the first "anarcho-capitalist" who supported tax hikes. Since anarcho-capitalists view taxation as theft, you must not be an anarcho-capitalist.

      Is it anarcho-capitalist to believe that the individual has a right to own the means of production (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Distributivism#Private_property), and use them to create his goods for sale at profit? Of course it is. Is it anarcho-capitalist to reject the supply-side mantra that says that not paying down the deficit (hence raising the price on imported goods) is fine, as long as the masses get their incentive to vote for you in the form of a tax rebate? Of course it is. Don't be a twit; your narrow ideological eyeslits have absolutely no bearing on the actual philosophy.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Countess Anya of the North Parish on July 14, 2009, 04:04:15 AM
      Social Issues
      Abortion: we should have a choice. we have choices on everything else.
      Marriage: totally for. Gays have the same rights and should not be classified as different.
      Affirmative Action: Reverse racism is completely contrary to the spirit of the constitution. Eliminate and and level the playing field.
      Gun rights: I think we should be able to use guns. But we should becarful who we give them to.
      Death Penalty: Against since it wuld only increase crime having it.
      Censorship: under certain things. but very slim.
      Flag burning: Just rude.
      Hate crimes: Oppose.
      Hate speech: Oppose.
      Smoking: Could not care as long as people don't smoke in non smoking areas.
      Alcohol consumption: It is one think to drink, another to get drunk and kill someone.
      Drugs: Mary Jane should be allowed but not harsher drugs.
      Gambling: Don't care how people waiste their money.
      Prostitution: legalized but made to keep indoors. As to keep em off the street.
      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Srongly for. could help lots of people.
      Immigration: let them come but make it harder.
      Language: English and spanish should be the legal lingos.

      Economic Issues
      Taxes: Strongly support. Helps get funding for muc needed things.
      Employers and Employees: I believe all states should pass Right to Work laws.
      Free trade:
      Spending: Try to spend wisly. not like a shop aholic.
      Social Security:
      Space Program: Big supporter of. we need to continue to learn abt our universe.
      Welfare:
      Healthcare: Universal would be best. we should join the rest of the world.
      Education: Should be left to the state.
      Minimum Wage: Good.
      Regulation: good. need to be able to keep your bussness
      Infrastructure: All for. we need it.
      Energy Policy: ok with what we have now but need to find out a better way and fast.


      Foreign Issues
      Democracy and Trade: Trade is good. we rely on that. Give an better deal to democratic nations.
      United Nations:
      Iraq: just stupid and a waiste of time and money.
      Iran: just stupid.
      North Korea:
      Israel: sick of them. I don't give a sh**t.
      Military Involvement: As small a possible.

      (more later. i am tired)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: SPC on July 14, 2009, 10:54:24 AM
      I'm an anarcho communist, how the hell do I summarize that?

      You can't. YOU MUST CHOOSE BETWEEN ANARCHIST OR COMMUNIST! CHOOSE WISELY MY YOUNG PADAWAN!!!


      WagaWaga

      Why? Anarchism and (small-scale, local, and voluntary) communism are imminently compatible: the word "libertarianism" originally applied to people who today are considered syndicalists and Left Communists. I'm personally an anarcho-capitalist with distributivist tendencies, but I have no problem at all with the idea of anarchic communes.

      Funny, you are the first "anarcho-capitalist" that associated criticism with the Constitution with "treason". Since the Constitution doesn't support anarcho-capitalism, I am left to assume that you either describe yourself as "treasonous" or are not an anarcho-capitalist. Additionally, you are the first "anarcho-capitalist" who supported tax hikes. Since anarcho-capitalists view taxation as theft, you must not be an anarcho-capitalist.

      Is it anarcho-capitalist to believe that the individual has a right to own the means of production (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Distributivism#Private_property), and use them to create his goods for sale at profit? Of course it is. Is it anarcho-capitalist to reject the supply-side mantra that says that not paying down the deficit (hence raising the price on imported goods) is fine, as long as the masses get their incentive to vote for you in the form of a tax rebate? Of course it is. Don't be a twit; your narrow ideological eyeslits have absolutely no bearing on the actual philosophy.

      You didn't answer the accusations, but merely gave red herrings and wrapped them up in an ad hominem attack. Anarcho-capitalists don't support taxes, the Constitution, "might makes right", or state ownership of property, yet you are on record for supporting all of these things.

      Here you are stating that taxation is okay when the social contract says it is, a position held by no anarcho-capitalists, and stating that state ownership of property is okay:

      Quote
      You haven't answered how a State can own property when it's income is confiscated from taxpayers?

      When that right is granted to the State in its chartering document, then that State can own property.

      And here you are stating that I could be bound to a contract that I didn't sign, and then you follow it up with stating that the Constitution is legitimate because 'the people' support it. Neither of those positions is held by anarcho-capitalists:

      Quote
      It is not applicable because I have not signed it, just like any contract that I have not signed is inapplicable.

      Hence the concept of popular sovereignty, which you'd know about if you'd actually spent time inside of a classroom.

      Quote
      You use circular logic, the Constitution is legitimate, so suggesting that it is illegitimate is treasonous, so the Constitution is legitimate.

      The Constitution is legitimate because it derives its support from the people. The people continue to support it; ergo, the Constitution is legitimate.

      And surely an anarcho-capitalist would have no problem reading an essay by an anarcho-capitalist, right?:

      [
      Quote
      Why should I care about the Constitution (http://www.lysanderspooner.org/notreason.htm)? It is an void document.

      Hahaha, riiiiiight.

      One doesn't even have to be an anarcho-capitalist to realize that "victor's justice" is wrong. You haven't made that realization, yet:

      Quote
      So would Saddam Hussein have been justified in imposing a Baathist dictatorship in America because we 'attacked "his" property', if he were capable?

      Quite frankly, yes. To the victor goes the spoils.

      And here you are defending statist policies in wartime. Again, one doesn't even have to be an anarcho-capitalist to realize this is wrong:

      So, statist policies are okay during wartime? That's sounds very neo-connish to me.

      Presuming you want to, you know, win a war? Most certainly.

      And here you are stating that secession is treason, a view not held by any anarcho-capitalists or true libertarians:

      You made the claim that the 1861 C.S.A. secession from the U.S. was treason. If this is the case, explain how the 1776 U.S. secession from Britain wasn't.

      The 1776 secession was treason. I don't think anyone ever claimed otherwise.

      And here you are defending tax hikes, not even considering the possibility of lowering spending, the view held by even the most moderate of libertarians:

      If taxes must be raised to keep the nation out of debt, then raise them as much as necessary.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Obnoxiously Slutty Girly Girl on July 14, 2009, 01:29:08 PM
      Why? Anarchism and (small-scale, local, and voluntary) communism are imminently compatible: the word "libertarianism" originally applied to people who today are considered syndicalists and Left Communists. I'm personally an anarcho-capitalist with distributivist tendencies, but I have no problem at all with the idea of anarchic communes.
      You an anarcho-capitalist? Haha, that's a good one, Einzige.

      It's funny the things you people try to call yourselves these days now that "neocon" is a dirty word.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mechaman on July 14, 2009, 02:51:31 PM
      You made the claim that the 1861 C.S.A. secession from the U.S. was treason. If this is the case, explain how the 1776 U.S. secession from Britain wasn't.

      The 1776 secession was treason. I don't think anyone ever claimed otherwise.

      Well in Einzige's defense, he never defined whether said "treason" was justified or not justified. People always assume that "treason" has a negative connotation. Not many people consider that in some cases, "treason" is the moral choice.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: SPC on July 14, 2009, 05:42:32 PM
      You made the claim that the 1861 C.S.A. secession from the U.S. was treason. If this is the case, explain how the 1776 U.S. secession from Britain wasn't.

      The 1776 secession was treason. I don't think anyone ever claimed otherwise.

      Well in Einzige's defense, he never defined whether said "treason" was justified or not justified. People always assume that "treason" has a negative connotation. Not many people consider that in some cases, "treason" is the moral choice.

      If you look later in that thread, he refused to read Lysander Spooner's essay No Treason on the grounds that it was treasonous.

      Also, I find it funny that Einzige invariably abandons the thread once I provide evidence that his claim is bull.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Lahbas on July 22, 2009, 12:16:11 AM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: Personally, I would support a constitutional amendment banning Abortion all, together. Pragmatically, let the states decide on the issue, same as they can on Gay Marriage.
      Separation of church and state: In my opinion, it does not exist. Most laws are based off those that exist with the religious codes. I do not agree in a strict separation as they have today, but I do not believe in a national religion, or infringement upon any religion.
      Affirmative action: No way to make it work. No matter how you try, you will always be discriminating against SOMEONE. In theory, I like it. In practice, not so much.
      Gun control: The Second Amendment guarantees us that right, so I do not believe is heavy controls. However, registration, and also controls on individuals who have used such weapons for illegal purposes I would be okay with.
      Death penalty: Leave it to the states.
      Flag burning: Even though I oppose this, I respect symbolic speech in this case.
      Euthanasia: Only in extreme cases, not on-demand.
      Prostitution: Should be banned completely, but enforcement would be too lacking.
      Immigration: Revamp the immigration programs so they are more up to date. At the same time, complete and effective border fence along Mexico, while also maintaining troops there.
      Gay Rights: I would support Civil Unions, but thru my religion, I find the term of marriage, which I consider to be a sacrament within my church, not applicable in this case. I know they are relatively the same thing.
      Drugs and Alcohol:All illegal drugs should remain illegal. Leave alcohol legislation to the states. Government taxes on cigarettes and cigars should be increased, so as to make it too expensive for 10 and 12 year olds to get from peddlers.
      Censorship:As the law currently states.
      Gambling:In my view the perfect creation by the Devil himself. States should have the right to legalize it, but I personally oppose.
      Language:English is the American language. Immigrants may keep their own, but they cannot expect us to learn theirs. Either they learn English, or they can leave.
      Embryonic Stem Cell Research:Adult Stem Cells only. Religious reasons, and that those tests have been the ones that have got any results.

      Economic Issues

      Taxes: Cut taxes across the board.
      Trade: I would support some tariffs, but I am usually agreeable to free trade.
      Spending: Depends where the money is going. However, the lower numbers tend to be the best.
      Welfare: Welfare should either be completely dismantled, or at least revamped in such a way as to force people off it. Such ways could include proof of trying to find a job, or that they are on their way of being able to stand on their own feet.
      Education: The government should be supporting all the shcools, whether they are private or not. The competition would generate better students in the long run, as they would all battle for government funding.
      Regulations: Significantly reduce.
      Space Program: Strongly Support. We should have set foot on the Martian surface 30 years ago! Manifest Destiny!
      Energy Policy: Nuclear Energy should be set as a priority. In the meantime, research ways to development clean, yet cheap energy.

      Foreign Policy

      Military Involvement: We must have a strong military to defend ourselves and fight the war on terrorism, and we should never put military action off the table.
      United Nations: I hate the organization, but withdrawing would only put us in a weaker postion. It at least allows us the ability to counter Russian and Chinese influence, who already counter our own.
      Israel: Support it in it's cause for maintaining existence.
      Foreign aid: Give only to nations that truly need it, not as a way to improve relations or as a diplomatic bargaining tool.
      Iraq: Disagree with the initial invasion, but we cannot leave now until Iraq is completely stable. Blame Rumsfeld and Cheney for the mess, not Bush.
      Iran: Have the UN operate their nuclear reactors, and make sure that they are not able to produce weapons grade material. However, I must assume that they aim at creating a nuclear weapon, due to the suspicion that Israel itself has one.
      North Korea: If they move another inch, hit them hard.
      Russia: Give monetary support to opposition groups to allow them to bribe their way through the barriers created by the government. From there, force democratization.
      China: See Russia entry.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: FloridaRepublican on July 22, 2009, 12:38:12 AM
      Social ideology:  Conservative

      Abortion:  Illegal except in the case of rape or incest

      Affirmative action:  Get rid of it.  Having an equal number of black and white people doesn't get jobs done.

      Death penalty:  Strongly support

      Gun control:  Pro-second amendment

      Flag burning:  It's more of a personal and ethical thing.  Personally, I think if you're willing to light a match and set the American flag, you have got serious problems.  Personally, if you're willing to do that, you should obviously go to another country because you don't like it here.  It's just a common sense factor.

      Gay marriage:  Should be abolished.  Adam and Eve not Adam and Steve.

      Immigration:  I don't care if someone wants to move here from Asia or wherever.

      Illegal Immigration:  Absolutely oppose.  The word "Illegal" is there for a reason.  And I oppose amnesty for illegals already here.

      Drugs:  Should stay illegal.  They are illegal for a reason, you know.

      Taxes:  Flat tax.  Only fair.

      Welfare:  Get rid of it.  Its people are only bringing the entire country down with them.  Or at least modify it to where only people who are truly trying to look for jobs can use it.  It's become ridiculous nowadays.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Хahar 🤔 on July 22, 2009, 12:48:20 AM
      They are illegal for a reason, you know.

      Why, pray tell?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on July 22, 2009, 03:54:09 PM

      Racism....and with those policy positions, I would probably ask about his positions on eugenics.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: FloridaRepublican on July 22, 2009, 07:54:30 PM
      Racism?  He took that quote from my drugs stance, if you had actually read it.  I must be some Bible-thumping, minority-hating, reactionary, white southerner in your eyes huh?  The reason why "illegal" drugs are "illegal" is because of people's safety.  I think the safety of the American people is more important than making a few bucks off of Mary J.  But obviously other people don't share that thought.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: MASHED POTATOES. VOTE! on July 22, 2009, 08:11:24 PM
      Death Penalty: Strongly oppose, even hate for multiple reasosn

      Abortion rights: Strongly support, no one can force you to have an abortion, so don't take away this right from anyone

      Universal health care: Strongly support

      Any forms of censorship Strongly oppose

      War in Afghanistan: Supports, but this was mess up :(

      War in Iraq: Strongly oppose for multiple reasons

      Drugs: Supports legalize marijuana. This would significantly weak drug lords. Marijunana is not more harmful tham tobacco (I like tobacco :) )

      Same-sex marriages and unions: Strongly support. I really don't know why this is a problem for some? No one force you be be in gay marriage so don't take away this right from anyone

      Gun control: Strongly support

      Taxes: Progressive

      Euthanasia: Allow for terminally ill people who repeatly (and with clear mind) would ask to

      Separation of church and state: Strongly support

      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Strongly support

      Possible intervention in Iran: Strongly oppose, this will not solve any problem, more, would only strenght Khamenei and Co.

      Israel: Strongly support right to exist and being safe, but Israeli government must be, in their best interest, encouraged to push more peaceful solutions
       


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Хahar 🤔 on July 23, 2009, 12:20:11 AM
      Racism?  He took that quote from my drugs stance, if you had actually read it.  I must be some Bible-thumping, minority-hating, reactionary, white southerner in your eyes huh?  The reason why "illegal" drugs are "illegal" is because of people's safety.  I think the safety of the American people is more important than making a few bucks off of Mary J.  But obviously other people don't share that thought.

      I assume you support the banning of tobacco, which is far more dangerous. I also assume you support prohibition.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: pogo stick on August 14, 2009, 01:47:12 PM
      Time to re-do this thing :

      Social Issues (Social Conservative)

      Abortion : Ban it 100% Ban it. Except in cases where mother's life is endangered
      Gay Rights : Ban Gay marriage, Legalize Gay adoption. Oh and No civil unions
      Illegal Immigration : Close borders,  make more border fences, deport illegals
      Guns : Legalize all guns, no restrictions
      Flag Burning : Ban it. It's not a constitutional right
      War on Drugs : Continue the war. Ban drugs.
      Smoking : Ban it. I see my dad suffer everyday smoking. Ban it.
      Death Penalty : Support it 100%
      Censorship : Support. A moral society, is a good society
      Prostitution : Ban it. Yea, sorry Las Vegas :p
      Affirmative Action : Oppose it
      Stem Cell Research : Oppose 100%
      Alcohol : Leave it legal. Leave drinking age at 21. But more regulations.
      Assisted-Suicide : No. Just f***ing no.
      Cloning : ^^^^^^^^^^^^

      Foreign Policy (Hawkish, Far-right)

      Israel : Support it's right to exist. Support $$$ Aid and Military Aid. Hate Palestinians
      Intervention : Support. I'm a internationalist 
      North Korea : End all "diplomacy" it's  obvious that war is the only option
      Iran : Support invading, and overthrowing Amandemajad.
      Iraq : Support the war. We did our job.
      PATRIOT Act : Support. National security > Privacy
      Defense Spending : Raise defense Spending.
      Military : Proud supporter of U.S Military.
      Torture : Support, only on terrorists
      War on Terror : Support


      Economic Policy (Center-right)

      Federal Spending : Oppose. Spending will double the the deficit
      Unions : Support. But we need to balance the labor  and corporate needs Strongly support, but don'tl et unions rule with iron fist
      Free Trade : Against Tariffs. against protectionism, but am nuetral over all on free trade Neutral
      Porkulus Package : Against it
      Pork Barrel Spending : Against this garbage 100%
      Gas : Support ANWAR and offshore Drilling.
      Environment : The U.S Economy is more important then the environment, no government regulations. Don't believe in the "Climate change" or Global Warming theories.
      Minimum Wage : Against raising it. It will hurt the economy in the long run. Also, I'd support a small raise  but anything over 9.00 dollars and you can forget about it
      Social Security : Privatize it, at least partially.
      Taxes : Against raising taxes on Anyone. Am against income tax, as it's unconstitutional. Support something that would make income taxes illegal or very low. Ban Gas, Estate, Inheritance taxes.
      Education : Support Vouchers. People have the right to pick their own schools!



      update time


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on August 14, 2009, 04:31:55 PM
      (I’m basing this on UK issues)

      Social Issues (Social Liberal, with a few notable exceptions)

      Abortion : Leave as it is.
      Gay Rights : Legalise gay marriage.
      Illegal Immigration : Throw them in gaol.
      Guns : Keep guns illegal.
      Flag Burning : Let them do it.
      War on Drugs : Legalise cannabis, keep everything else the same.
      Smoking : Leave it as it is.
      Death Penalty : Execute murderers, terrorists, spies
      Censorship :  End it, altogether. No more banned films, no more censoring swear words on radio.
      Prostitution : Legalise it, altogether.
      Affirmative Action : is reverse discrimination.
      Stem Cell Research : Support 100%
      Alcohol : Raise drinking age to 21
      Assisted-Suicide :  Yes, as long as they are of sound mind.
      Cloning : No.

      Foreign Policy (Isolationist, Commonwealth based)

      Israel : Support it with aid.
      Intervention : Oppose, quit NATO, the EU, and the WTO.
      North Korea : Refuse to speak to them until they disarm their nuclear weapons.
      Iran : As long as they wage nothing against Britain, leave them alone.
      Iraq : Leave.
      Defense Spending : Cut slightly.
      Military : Maintain at current levels.
      Torture : Oppose, in all cases.
      War on Terror : Support, reluctantly.


      Economic Policy (Austrian School)

      Government Spending : Oppose, completely.
      Unions :  Don’t guarantee the rights of strikers.
      Free Trade : Support, completely. No exceptions.
      Environment :  Fight pollution as much as possible, get rid of all these stupid climate change taxes. Global warming is not a threat.
      Minimum Wage : Against raising it.
      Social Security : Privatize it, at least partially.
      Taxes : Abolish inheritance, income, capital gains tax. Increase duties on alcohol, tobacco etc.
      Education : Support Vouchers.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on August 14, 2009, 07:56:01 PM
      Racism?  He took that quote from my drugs stance, if you had actually read it.  I must be some Bible-thumping, minority-hating, reactionary, white southerner in your eyes huh?  The reason why "illegal" drugs are "illegal" is because of people's safety.  I think the safety of the American people is more important than making a few bucks off of Mary J.  But obviously other people don't share that thought.
      ...and you know what stereotype caused pot to become illegal in 1937?

      We tried making alcohol illegal in 1919, but because it was mostly white Catholic immigrants who drank (Bavarians,Irsh,Poles,Italians), people quickly came to their senses.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Alexander Hamilton on September 02, 2009, 01:57:11 AM
      Abortion: Support legality for first trimester, beyond that is up to the states.
      Affirmative Action: Do not support in any way, shape, form, or color. Obviously discriminatory and leaves an impression that our government doesn't think minorities have the capacity to succeed on their own accomplishments.
      Alternative Energy: Support researching new fuel sources and technologies, expanding all means of production, and harnessing solar and wind power, nuclear, geothermal, etc. Kitchen sink approach.
      Death Penalty: Support for serious crimes with concrete evidence.
      Drug Legalization: Personally am not too concerned, leave it up to the states, but I don't think substances like meth, etc. should be allowed. Far too dangerous.
      Education: I have seen the worst (best?) of public schools. Support the construction of additional private schools and allowing parents to have easier access to private schools, regardless of any kind of religious affiliation. Support a charter system for failing schools. Oppose unionization of teachers. Easier access to college educations, vocational training, year-round schooling, advanced courses, reassessment of standardized testing procedures, etc. are all good methods.
      Environmental Issues: Protect biodiversity, reduce pollution, recycle resources (makes sense from a capitalistic viewpoint regardless), reduce waste, clean air, soil, and water, cleaner agricultural technology and reduce dependence on coal/oil. That's the plan.
      Euthanasia: Don't really see the big deal about it.
      Evolution vs. Intelligent Design: I see no intelligence supporting the idea of "intelligent design."
      Gay Marriage: Fine, but I honestly don't get why 14-20 year olds think this is the most important issue, ever, at all, in history.
      Global Warming: Shouldn't even be on this list. Period.
      Guns: Second Amendment is irrevocable.
      Health care: All measures must be taken to reform health care. Reduce costs through tort reform, purchases across state lines. MSAs should be created. There should be a basic public availability to necessary medical resources. Pre-existing conditions can not be a cause for rejection. Insurance companies will not go unregulated. Support the rights of pharmaceutical companies to create and profit from products so that America can continue to develop groundbreaking cures and vaccines.
      Illegal Immigration: What else to say? It's ILLEGAL. No ID card, driver's license, or schooling for their children. Background checks by employers before hiring mandated (good business practice, regardless).
      PATRIOT Act: Needs repealed or modified to prevent this level of government intrusion.
      Stem Cell Research: An opportunity to save more lives. Definitely a positive.
      Spending/Debt: Out of control, needs reigned in. We need to work toward a balanced budget. Continuing to incur massive debt will cause the dollar to devalue seriously out of control.
      Taxes: Even out the tax burden. Make taxes that don't disproportionately affect certain groups.
      Trade: Needs reworked to make sure that we don't take advantage of poorer countries labor, at the expensive of losing our own jobs, all to the benefit of large multinational corporations that don't have the everyday struggle working Americans do. "Free" trade isn't free and it definitely isn't fair.
      War: We don't need to blow up entire nations just because of a disagreement. Unless there is a serious threat to liberty and our nation/allies, we have other methods of diplomacy.
      Welfare: Is not a job. Permanent existence on welfare should only be for the disabled. Limits and restrictions should be placed, along with drug testing.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: ○∙◄☻¥tπ[╪AV┼cVê└ on September 02, 2009, 02:19:59 AM
      Abortion: Between a woman and her doctor

      Affirmative Action: Oppose

      Alternative Energy:  Increase research funding

      Death Penalty: Oppose

      Drug Legalization:  Weakly support

      Education: More funding, less teaching to the test. Make it easier to fire bad teachers.

      Environmental Issues: Increase protection, research technology that will help the environment. Encourage research for naturally occurring medical drugs.

      Euthanasia: Support
      .
      Evolution vs. Intelligent Design: Evolution

      Gay Marriage: Support

      Global Warming: We are certainly in a period of climate change, chiefly from human activity

      Guns: Gun control is useful in places like Oakland

      Health care: Public option to increase competition and bring costs down.

      Illegal Immigration: Crack down on employers

      PATRIOT Act: Oppose

      Stem Cell Research: Support

      Spending/Debt: Raise taxes, cut defense, but obviously deficit spending will continute.

      Taxes: Raise taxes on the rich

      Trade: If the environment and labor is protected fine, otherwise increased protectionism.

      War: Oppose

      Welfare: We are in an era of limits. People should contribute to society.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: bullmoose88 on September 02, 2009, 02:29:47 AM
      Holy sh**t, I mean, I disagree with some of what he put down, but Jfern's outline looks pretty damn reasonable.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mechaman on September 02, 2009, 02:30:30 AM
      Trade: Needs reworked to make sure that we don't take advantage of poorer countries labor, at the expensive of losing our own jobs, all to the benefit of large multinational corporations that don't have the everyday struggle working Americans do. "Free" trade isn't free and it definitely isn't fair.

      You know what's even more unfair? Backwardass Protectionist policies. If we had stayed with the old "Support America businesses" bullsh*t the old GOP wanked off to constantly we would probably be driving heavy ass Chevys. Don't give me that working man vs. multinational corporation crap either, there are many American corporations who would be orgasmic at the thought of the government punishing the hell out of foreign competition for their benefit and they would still screw over their workers. Why is it then that since America started making liberal trade relations with other nations that the overall standard of living kicks the hell out of what it was back in the good ole days when corporations could squash unions relentlessly without reproach? I find it very ironic how you view welfare as a handout yet can't see protectionism as the exact same thing. Maybe if American workers were more productive they wouldn't see their jobs going to China or Thailand, but no we have to let the great benefactorial government make up for the fact that Billy Bob was too much of a lazyass fratboy partier in college to keep his GPA above a 2.3 while his Chinese friend Tan was at the top of all of his classes! Maybe if Americans got off their own asses and competed with foreign labor, instead of asking the government to play daddy and break up the fight, they could get honest results without downgrading our own foreign relations and further destroying any hope for world peace. If you don't want American labor to become more productive, continue supporting backwardass protectionism. It is only by letting American labor face the realities of a global economy that they can become more productive, not by having Big Brother show up to fight their fights for them.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Alexander Hamilton on September 02, 2009, 02:30:44 AM
      Holy sh**t, I mean, I disagree with some of what he put down, but Jfern's outline looks pretty damn reasonable.

      Mine didn't? :( ...


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Alexander Hamilton on September 02, 2009, 02:34:46 AM
      Trade: Needs reworked to make sure that we don't take advantage of poorer countries labor, at the expensive of losing our own jobs, all to the benefit of large multinational corporations that don't have the everyday struggle working Americans do. "Free" trade isn't free and it definitely isn't fair.

      You know what's even more unfair? Backwardass Protectionist policies. If we had stayed with the old "Support America businesses" bullsh*t the old GOP wanked off to constantly we would probably be driving heavy ass Chevys. Don't give me that working man vs. multinational corporation crap either, there are many American corporations who would be orgasmic at the thought of the government punishing the hell out of foreign competition for their benefit and they would still screw over their workers. Why is it then that since America started making liberal trade relations with other nations that the overall standard of living kicks the hell out of what it was back in the good ole days when corporations could squash unions relentlessly without reproach? I find it very ironic how you view welfare as a handout yet can't see protectionism as the exact same thing. Maybe if American workers were more productive they wouldn't see their jobs going to China or Thailand, but no we have to let the great benefactorial government make up for the fact that Billy Bob was too much of a lazyass fratboy partier in college to keep his GPA above a 2.3 while his Chinese friend Tan was at the top of all of his classes! Maybe if Americans got off their own asses and competed with foreign labor, instead of asking the government to play daddy and break up the fight, they could get honest results without downgrading our own foreign relations and further destroying any hope for world peace. If you don't want American labor to become more productive, continue supporting backwardass protectionism. It is only by letting American labor face the realities of a global economy that they can become more productive, not by having Big Brother show up to fight their fights for them.

      The unions YOU SUPPORT make any kind of labor competitiveness impossible. If a job can be done by someone in Mexico at the same rate as in America, it will be done in Mexico- much more efficient and profitable for companies. So basically you support Americans having a standard living wage, but other nations being sh**tcanned. Well, if you really support the benefit of few at the expense of many... You might as well find a home in 1950s era Soviet Union.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: fezzyfestoon on September 02, 2009, 02:56:02 AM
      Holy sh**t, I mean, I disagree with some of what he put down, but Jfern's outline looks pretty damn reasonable.

      It's a shame he spends literally all his time making snide comments about Republicans rather than contributing.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mechaman on September 02, 2009, 03:02:24 AM
      Trade: Needs reworked to make sure that we don't take advantage of poorer countries labor, at the expensive of losing our own jobs, all to the benefit of large multinational corporations that don't have the everyday struggle working Americans do. "Free" trade isn't free and it definitely isn't fair.

      You know what's even more unfair? Backwardass Protectionist policies. If we had stayed with the old "Support America businesses" bullsh*t the old GOP wanked off to constantly we would probably be driving heavy ass Chevys. Don't give me that working man vs. multinational corporation crap either, there are many American corporations who would be orgasmic at the thought of the government punishing the hell out of foreign competition for their benefit and they would still screw over their workers. Why is it then that since America started making liberal trade relations with other nations that the overall standard of living kicks the hell out of what it was back in the good ole days when corporations could squash unions relentlessly without reproach? I find it very ironic how you view welfare as a handout yet can't see protectionism as the exact same thing. Maybe if American workers were more productive they wouldn't see their jobs going to China or Thailand, but no we have to let the great benefactorial government make up for the fact that Billy Bob was too much of a lazyass fratboy partier in college to keep his GPA above a 2.3 while his Chinese friend Tan was at the top of all of his classes! Maybe if Americans got off their own asses and competed with foreign labor, instead of asking the government to play daddy and break up the fight, they could get honest results without downgrading our own foreign relations and further destroying any hope for world peace. If you don't want American labor to become more productive, continue supporting backwardass protectionism. It is only by letting American labor face the realities of a global economy that they can become more productive, not by having Big Brother show up to fight their fights for them.

      The unions YOU SUPPORT make any kind of labor competitiveness impossible. If a job can be done by someone in Mexico at the same rate as in America, it will be done in Mexico- much more efficient and profitable for companies. So basically you support Americans having a standard living wage, but other nations being sh**tcanned. Well, if you really support the benefit of few at the expense of many... You might as well find a home in 1950s era Soviet Union.

      I don't actively support unions, I just don't believe corporations should have full authority to squash them. Also, compared to what those workers in poorer nations were facing before their evil evil American international business job, I say they would take a sweatshop job over say living life as a poor villager with little contact to the outside world. Not that that is justified, but their standard of living is higher than it was in the past. We can not expect for them to get better if we revert to the past, doing so would only discourage foreign workers from seeking jobs in American companies due to the reactionary trade policies their own country would enforce against American companies. Instead of having to work in a sweatshop with a "pathetic" wage, alot of those workers would get fired and released back into their way more sufferable lives before having that American job. Protectionism isn't just one sided: if we enact protectionist policies other countries would retaliate against American products and businesses. Jobs would be lost and our overall trade benefit would go down. Less money would go into the US due to other nation buying less of our stuff.
      If you are suggesting that the US base it's trade policies on working conditions, then yes I could possibly see the light on that. If you are arguing that free trade is all evil and no good and protecitonism is great, I respectfully disagree.

      I bolded that last part to emphasize that my opinion of you hasn't lessened, just that I disagree strongly. I bet most people on here I strongly disagree with on at least a few issues.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Alexander Hamilton on September 02, 2009, 03:06:40 AM
      Trade: Needs reworked to make sure that we don't take advantage of poorer countries labor, at the expensive of losing our own jobs, all to the benefit of large multinational corporations that don't have the everyday struggle working Americans do. "Free" trade isn't free and it definitely isn't fair.

      You know what's even more unfair? Backwardass Protectionist policies. If we had stayed with the old "Support America businesses" bullsh*t the old GOP wanked off to constantly we would probably be driving heavy ass Chevys. Don't give me that working man vs. multinational corporation crap either, there are many American corporations who would be orgasmic at the thought of the government punishing the hell out of foreign competition for their benefit and they would still screw over their workers. Why is it then that since America started making liberal trade relations with other nations that the overall standard of living kicks the hell out of what it was back in the good ole days when corporations could squash unions relentlessly without reproach? I find it very ironic how you view welfare as a handout yet can't see protectionism as the exact same thing. Maybe if American workers were more productive they wouldn't see their jobs going to China or Thailand, but no we have to let the great benefactorial government make up for the fact that Billy Bob was too much of a lazyass fratboy partier in college to keep his GPA above a 2.3 while his Chinese friend Tan was at the top of all of his classes! Maybe if Americans got off their own asses and competed with foreign labor, instead of asking the government to play daddy and break up the fight, they could get honest results without downgrading our own foreign relations and further destroying any hope for world peace. If you don't want American labor to become more productive, continue supporting backwardass protectionism. It is only by letting American labor face the realities of a global economy that they can become more productive, not by having Big Brother show up to fight their fights for them.

      The unions YOU SUPPORT make any kind of labor competitiveness impossible. If a job can be done by someone in Mexico at the same rate as in America, it will be done in Mexico- much more efficient and profitable for companies. So basically you support Americans having a standard living wage, but other nations being sh**tcanned. Well, if you really support the benefit of few at the expense of many... You might as well find a home in 1950s era Soviet Union.

      I don't actively support unions, I just don't believe corporations should have full authority to squash them. Also, compared to what those workers in poorer nations were facing before their evil evil American international business job, I say they would take a sweatshop job over say living life as a poor villager with little contact to the outside world. Not that that is justified, but their standard of living is higher than it was in the past. We can not expect for them to get better if we revert to the past, doing so would only discourage foreign workers from seeking jobs in American companies due to the reactionary trade policies their own country would enforce against American companies. Instead of having to work in a sweatshop with a "pathetic" wage, alot of those workers would get fired and released back into their way more sufferable lives before having that American job. Protectionism isn't just one sided: if we enact protectionist policies other countries would retaliate against American products and businesses. Jobs would be lost and our overall trade benefit would go down. Less money would go into the US due to other nation buying less of our stuff.
      If you are suggesting that the US base it's trade policies on working conditions, then yes I could possibly see the light on that. If you are arguing that free trade is all evil and no good and protecitonism is great, I respectfully disagree.

      It is no surprise that the biggest supporters of "free" trade have also been the most heinous figures in American history- from Southern slaveowners to bastard businessmen, free trade has been their cause. But free trade policies don't help American workers- free trade policies don't help other countries' workers- they enslave them or create unemployment en masse. If all workers were paid the same comparative wage, with the same protections and benefits and regulations, etc. Free trade would work fine. But we don't live in that perfect world, therefore, we must adjust our policies to those which are beneficial to the nation as whole, and fair to those who are voiceless. Free trade is NOT a means of preventing war or creating peace.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mechaman on September 02, 2009, 03:24:01 AM
      Trade: Needs reworked to make sure that we don't take advantage of poorer countries labor, at the expensive of losing our own jobs, all to the benefit of large multinational corporations that don't have the everyday struggle working Americans do. "Free" trade isn't free and it definitely isn't fair.

      You know what's even more unfair? Backwardass Protectionist policies. If we had stayed with the old "Support America businesses" bullsh*t the old GOP wanked off to constantly we would probably be driving heavy ass Chevys. Don't give me that working man vs. multinational corporation crap either, there are many American corporations who would be orgasmic at the thought of the government punishing the hell out of foreign competition for their benefit and they would still screw over their workers. Why is it then that since America started making liberal trade relations with other nations that the overall standard of living kicks the hell out of what it was back in the good ole days when corporations could squash unions relentlessly without reproach? I find it very ironic how you view welfare as a handout yet can't see protectionism as the exact same thing. Maybe if American workers were more productive they wouldn't see their jobs going to China or Thailand, but no we have to let the great benefactorial government make up for the fact that Billy Bob was too much of a lazyass fratboy partier in college to keep his GPA above a 2.3 while his Chinese friend Tan was at the top of all of his classes! Maybe if Americans got off their own asses and competed with foreign labor, instead of asking the government to play daddy and break up the fight, they could get honest results without downgrading our own foreign relations and further destroying any hope for world peace. If you don't want American labor to become more productive, continue supporting backwardass protectionism. It is only by letting American labor face the realities of a global economy that they can become more productive, not by having Big Brother show up to fight their fights for them.

      The unions YOU SUPPORT make any kind of labor competitiveness impossible. If a job can be done by someone in Mexico at the same rate as in America, it will be done in Mexico- much more efficient and profitable for companies. So basically you support Americans having a standard living wage, but other nations being sh**tcanned. Well, if you really support the benefit of few at the expense of many... You might as well find a home in 1950s era Soviet Union.

      I don't actively support unions, I just don't believe corporations should have full authority to squash them. Also, compared to what those workers in poorer nations were facing before their evil evil American international business job, I say they would take a sweatshop job over say living life as a poor villager with little contact to the outside world. Not that that is justified, but their standard of living is higher than it was in the past. We can not expect for them to get better if we revert to the past, doing so would only discourage foreign workers from seeking jobs in American companies due to the reactionary trade policies their own country would enforce against American companies. Instead of having to work in a sweatshop with a "pathetic" wage, alot of those workers would get fired and released back into their way more sufferable lives before having that American job. Protectionism isn't just one sided: if we enact protectionist policies other countries would retaliate against American products and businesses. Jobs would be lost and our overall trade benefit would go down. Less money would go into the US due to other nation buying less of our stuff.
      If you are suggesting that the US base it's trade policies on working conditions, then yes I could possibly see the light on that. If you are arguing that free trade is all evil and no good and protecitonism is great, I respectfully disagree.

      It is no surprise that the biggest supporters of "free" trade have also been the most heinous figures in American history- from Southern slaveowners to bastard businessmen, free trade has been their cause. But free trade policies don't help American workers- free trade policies don't help other countries' workers- they enslave them or create unemployment en masse. If all workers were paid the same comparative wage, with the same protections and benefits and regulations, etc. Free trade would work fine. But we don't live in that perfect world, therefore, we must adjust our policies to those which are beneficial to the nation as whole, and fair to those who are voiceless. Free trade is NOT a means of preventing war or creating peace.

      Yes and in a perfect world Protectionism (at least the kind your hero Hamilton subscribed to) would work. Nowdays such a policy would only discourage friendly trade relations between us and other nations and the US would end up relying total on self-sufficiency to create products. Sure the laborers may still have their jobs (at least in this country) but it wouldn't change the fact that the amount of resource used would be far greater and use up alot more of American land (thus creating environmental degradation) than the other choice. Also, due to lack of competition from foreign markets there would be less incentive for society to technologically advance and we would still have 500 lb refrigerators and 5000 lb Ford Fairlanes.

      There are downsides to everything. Right now it seems like a mixed trade policy would work best, if only until other nations develop reasonable worker rights.
      Believe me, I've already taken two courses over Economics. I don't say alot of this just out of personal bias.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: bullmoose88 on September 02, 2009, 04:38:09 PM
      Holy sh**t, I mean, I disagree with some of what he put down, but Jfern's outline looks pretty damn reasonable.

      It's a shame he spends literally all his time making snide comments about Republicans rather than contributing.

      He's gotten better I think.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Scam of God on September 12, 2009, 12:45:53 AM
      ^ I like you. We need more Republicans like you.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Earth on September 12, 2009, 01:22:23 AM
      Just for shits and giggles, so I can see how I've changed over the last year or so.

      Abortion: Support fully.
      Separation of church and state: Also support fully. We need much more, to be honest.
      Education: More decentralization, support ending federal involvement in curriculum.
      Environmental Issues: Support increased protection, and support more land to be covered as federally protected.
      Affirmative action: Would support if income based, not race.
      Gun control: I oppose increasing gun control. Would like to see an armed, educated populace.
      Death penalty: Vehemently against.
      Flag burning: Support.
      Euthanasia: On demand, like Comcast.
      Prostitution: Also on demand. Just a service like any other. Support brothels, and streetwalking. Support unionization (wishful thinking).
      Immigration: Support open borders. Support illegal immigration. Support amnesty.
      Gay Rights: In favor of gay marriage, and adoption rights.
      Drugs and Alcohol: Support complete, and total legalization. Support legalizing private production, also. Do not support government mandated 'potency' levels.
      Censorship: Extremely oppose. In favor of reducing FCC controls over content.
      Gambling: Support fully.
      Language: No national language. No requirements.
      Health care: Support a universal system.
      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Support fully.
      Warrantless Wiretapping: Disgusting.
      Unions: Support but with reform. Support decentralization, and power given back to members. Propose an anarcho-syndicalist like transformation.

      Economic Issues

      Taxes: Increase taxes on the rich.
      Trade: Oppose free trade. Support protectionism.
      Welfare: Support.
      Regulations: Support increase.
      Space Program: Support, but not a priority. Mars can wait. Neither of us are going anywhere.
      Energy Policy: Support a concerted effort to develop alternate energy production, outside of nuclear. Hell, gimme my anti-gravity device, already.

      Foreign Policy

      War: Vehemently oppose in almost all circumstances.
      United Nations: Generally oppose. A useless insult.
      Israel: Support economic boycott, sanctions, and educational boycotts.
      Foreign aid: Support without 'fine line' demands.
      Iraq: Leave immediately.
      Iran: Leave them be.
      North Korea: Same as above. Support negotiations to release political prisoners, possibly taking them in as refugees, and whoever else would wish to emigrate.   
      China: Reduce trade, open immigration further. 


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: specific_name on September 12, 2009, 02:47:35 AM
      I'll update mine because I'm following Earth around now apparently.  I introduced him to the atlas (sorry guise) and now I feel the need to return the favor...or something else nonsensical.

      Abortion: Support fully
      Separation of church and state: Support fully
      Education: I'm fine with state education. Do not support state post-2ndary education.
      Environmental Issues: Pro-regulation, within reasonable limits.
      Affirmative action: Strongly against, it's racism
      Gun control: Strongly opposed and armed.
      Death penalty: Support, with strong dna proof as a necessity for the sentence to be carried out. Support for 1st degree murder and extension to forcible rape in similar cases.
      Flag burning: I don't care.
      Euthanasia: Strongly support. The individual ought to exercise power over their own life.
      Prostitution: Support, tax.
      Immigration: Against illegal immigration. The states need the ability to deport more easier, especially repeat criminals. No illegal should be living off a single tax dollar. Come here legally or get out.
      Gay Rights: No special rights.
      Drugs and Alcohol: Full legalization and taxation. States should have power to enforce ordinances without fraternization of federal govt.
      Censorship: No
      Gambling: Legal and regulated.
      Language: status quo
      Health care: no state health care
      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: support some state funding
      Warrantless Wiretapping: oppose
      Unions: support

      Economic Issues

      Taxes: lower whenever possible
      Trade: low regulations. anti-protectionist.
      Welfare: unless truly disabled, you should be working.
      Regulations: few
      Space Program: private or not at all
      Energy Policy: shotgun: nuclear, fossil fuel, alt energy, anything else. break dependency on Saudi's and others.

      Foreign Policy

      War: rarely if ever support, if only to maintain status quo
      United Nations: oppose
      Israel: Palestine
      Foreign aid: none unless it is in direct interest of US
      Iraq: get out
      Iran: don't bother
      North Korea: ""
      China: personally I'd like to see China circle down the toilet, but there's nothing we can do about that for now
      Russia: just play along for now


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on September 12, 2009, 06:33:05 AM
      ^ I like you. We need more Republicans like you.

      Totally agreed. NiK is a great poster.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Psychic Octopus on September 12, 2009, 05:08:30 PM
      Civil Liberties:

      Constitutional Ban on Flag Desecration: Do not support. If someone wants to burn the American flag, who is the US government to stop them?

      Assault Weapons Ban: Neutral, I believe that someone should be able to own a firearm, but it should be regulated using background checks.

      Legalization of Drugs: Support, tax and regulate narcotic trafficking. End the war on drugs, but discourage students from using drugs.

      Mandatory Pledge of Allegiance: Support, for cultural reasons. I think all students from K-12 should learn and recite the Pledge of Allegiance once a day in class. If a parent does not want this for their child, they may request not to have their child participate.

      Warrantless Wiretapping: An attack on our freedom and liberty. I oppose wholeheartedly.

      Legalized Abortion: Support a woman's right to choose, It's between a woman and her doctor.

      Courts and Legal Systems:

      Capital Punishment: Do not support. "An eye for an eye" was an evil code. Plus it cost more to have them dead then alive, so incarceration is better.

      Expanding the Prosecutable List of Hate Crimes: Why not? As long as a hate crime isn't defined as speaking out against some one, (i.e. Mormons vs. Gays) i'm fine with expanding coverage.

      Domestic Policy:

      Citizenship for illegal immigrants and the border fence: I do not to adovcate sending them back for risking their life to come here in search of opportunity. That would be cruel. I support ccitizenship. I'd encourage a one-language policy, by teaching immigrants and illegal immigrants how to speak English. I do however, support the border fence, because I think that we need it for protection against terrorism, the drug cartels and population stability.

      Outsourcing and Manufacturing: Depends, I am not very clear on the issue. I support businesses that want to grow and thrive with free trade, but I want to protect American workers. I want the USA to start manufacturing more, I'm sick of seeing "Made in China."

      Affirmative Action: State-sponsored Racism. Oppose.

      Cloning: No. Just No. "You don't mess with mother nature." -70s Era Birth Control Ad.

      Prostitution: Leave it up to the states, if legalized, tax it.

      Seperation of Church and State: Strongly support.

      Assisted Suicide: Oppose

      Gay Marriage: I support civil unions, but not Gay Marriage. I grew up around a family with gay friends, and they are great people.

      Gambling legalization: Support, and heavily tax this business. If people want to throw away their money, who are we to stop them?

      Economic Policy:

      Free Trade: Support in most cases, especially with our allies. It's good for commerce and trade. However I do oppose it in some cases, and I do not think we should rush into Neoliberal heaven and a global state. It will happen when it happens.

      Minimum Wage: Depends on the economic situation.

      Government Spending and the Deficit: After the War in Afghanistan is over, cut military spending by 5%-10%, and focus more on new sciences and infrastructure. I'd recommend a project that is a completed bullet train running all across the country. Cut spending in other departments, as well. Pay back China, although I don't think we will ever be able to pay them back completely as I believe they will collapse and decentralize.

      Taxes: I support lower taxes.

      Social Security Reform: Privatize.

      Space Program: I support President Bush's plan to land on Mars in the 2030s, and although President Obama will scale back the return to the Moon five years, I do not mind much.

      Environment: Support Green technology and getting the USA off foreign oil.

      Foreign Policy:

      Iran: Sanctions, due whatever it takes to stop them from getting nuclear weapons. If they attack Israel, attack Iran. If Israel attacks first, let the Israelis deal with it and don't get involved. A theocracy with nuclear weapons: not safe.

      Israel/Palestine: Support two-state solution.

      North Korea: Strike a deal to allow them to keep their nuclear weapons, as long as they do not start lobbing it over South Korea and the Japan. Avoid antagonizing them. Eventually it will unite with South Korea, and the communist state will collapse.

      United Nations: An awful organization, needs reforms, but do not leave.










      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Amotue on September 20, 2009, 05:01:13 PM
      Ok here we go, all answers are for Canada

      Drugs:

      Pot made legal.  But on thes condishons 1: Special Tax, make that alown prophitable for Ottawa.  2: You need a licance to grow (or selling) it, that involves a test (witch you pay for) and a $300 fee.  3:  If you are cought selling or growing with out a licance thats a $1,000 fee and possible jail time.  Everything else illegal, but detox centers funded by the government should be set up.


      Prostitution:

      Make it leage, make it clean.  That fixes alot of things alown.  Keep the govenrment involved to make sure there is NO abuse at all.


      Abortion:

      Personly I dont like it.  BUT I am pro choce.  People have the rights to decied what to do with thier own bodies and such.


      Gay Marriage:

      Its legal... it should be legal.  If two people love one another why not let them marry?


      Currency:

      Money is pretty much out dated with the creation of Debit Cards.  Some money (paper and coins) should always be kept in cerculation but have most but onto cards.  Its simpler that way.


      Central Banks:

      A Central Bank works as a good anchor for other banks.  But I dont like the idea of just having one bank.


      Welfare:

      Really!  Welfare should exist but be more like Unemployment Insurance.  IF you can work you should be lookng for work.  If you can and your not looking for work you dont get help.  If you cant work then the government helps all they can.  I hate people that are lazy and just mooch and get thier way in life payed for free and they just sit back and drink all day and night never lifting a ing finger.  (sorry....)


      Taxation:

      Simply, the more you make the more you pay.


      NATO:

      Pull out.  Small alliances would be better.


      UN:

      Is now completely useless.  We need to reform it or just go back to nations deailg with one another normally.


      NAFTA:

      Second we have the chance to leave do so.  Free trade is hurting us.  America gives us a hard time about our soft wood lumber... sell it to China and India who want it.


      The British Commonwealth & La Francophonie:

      A statement to Canadian history and heritage.  Good system of friends and allies.  Build off of that (for now) for a stronger Canada.


      Native Policy:

      All extra rights removed.  Make them the same as the rest of Canada.  Its raciest to treat people differently do to their heritage or race, NOT racism is treating every one same.


      Government:

      Democracy is good.  But I still like a more centrally biased and organized government.


      Education:

      Have a stronger stance on Canadian History.  And you can not graduate without speaking both English and French.  You cant get payed more then 8.50 unless you pass gr. 12.  gr. 13 should be a year of boot camp.  So people will know how to defend themselves, and help create a more unified nation.




      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Hash on September 21, 2009, 08:01:44 PM
      Social and Institutional Issues

      Ideology: Social liberal or soft social libertarian

      Abortion: I'm obviously pro-choice, but it's a decision to be made by a woman and only by her. The government has no business telling her what she has to do with her body and so forth. However, I support a kind of 'education' campaign saying that abortion is a tough decision to make, and that it isn't a everyday normal thing to do for fun.
      Death Penalty: I support it for the most heinous crimes such as high treason in wartime, recidivist rapists and serial murderers.
      School prayer: Strongly oppose. The public school is a secular institution.
      Separation of church and state: Strongly, strongly, very strongly support. Religion has no role in the state, and vice-versa. The state has no business funding private religious schools.
      Embryonic Stem-Cell Research: Strongly support
      Gay Marriage: I support gay marriage. People who love each other, regardless of their sex, have the right to get married.
      Euthanasia: Strongly support if patient is of sound mind.
      Prostitution: I support legalization, if only because it would be easier for prostitutes to find and seek help if needed.
      Gun Control: I support tougher gun control to prevent former criminals and the like from getting access guns. I oppose a gun registry due to exorbitant costs attached to such a program.
      Drug War & Marijuana: Legalize medical marijuana and other soft drugs that can be used for medical purposes. That's it.
      Institutional Reform (France and/or Canada): I support further de-centralization in France, as well as the direct election of Senators and the introduction of MMP for elections to the National Assembly. Reform electoral systems for local, regional and European elections. In Canada, I support either an elected Senate or abolishing it pure and simple. I support MMP or PR in elections to the House.

      Economic and Domestic Policies

      Ideology: Centrist

      Illegal Immigration: I support a path to citizenship, or regularization of status, if said immigrant has learned English, found a job, and has no past criminal record (murders, robberies and the like) in his country.
      Welfare: I support welfare, but people should be encouraged to actively search for jobs and welfare should be reformed to be made more efficient.
      Education: I strongly support public education.
      Taxes: The state should lower taxes on the lower classes when it can afford it.
      Minimum Wage: I support increasing it and providing a tax credit for small businesses who find it economically tough to cope with a high minimum wage.
      Energy Independence and the Environment: I oppose the use of ethanol fuel, but I support extensive research immediately in renewable energies. Kyoto has proven generally useless, but I favour global concerted efforts against global warming, which is a major problem and must be addressed seriously. I favour expanding public transit.
      Healthcare: I strongly support universal health-care.
      Unions: They may serve a purpose, but their powers need to be curtailed and their internal structures need democratization and de-centralization.
      Trade: I support free and fair trade with nations that respect solid labour rights and environmental legislation.
      Regulations: I support regulations on financial institutions to prevent abuse as we have seen in this era.
      Affirmative Action: I opposed race-based AA, though I might support it if based more on incomes.
      (35-hour workweek: The length of the workweek is the decision of each business. I support repealing the law.)

      Foreign Policy

      Ideology: Centrist

      Iraq: I support the phased withdrawal of American troops, once and for all.
      Afghanistan: I support Canada's commitment to Afghanistan until 2011, but would favour a phase-out of troops by mid-2010. As attractive as pulling out might look to some, it would throw the whole region down the sh**tter and you would encourage massive geopolitical problems in the region.
      United Nations: I support the UN as an institution, but I disagree with the current structure and I favour a major overhaul.
      Iran: I support imposing sanctions on Iran.
      North Korea: I support the current sanctions. Welcome refugees.



      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Alexander Hamilton on September 21, 2009, 08:12:35 PM
      Centrist isn't a viable option for foreign policy, hash


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Psychic Octopus on September 21, 2009, 08:15:10 PM
      Excellent views on some things, hash. Why did I always consider you a leftist?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Hash on September 21, 2009, 08:15:35 PM
      Centrist isn't a viable option for foreign policy, hash

      Then find a word to describe somebody who isn't an isolationist nor an interventionist.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RIP Robert H Bork on September 21, 2009, 08:22:21 PM
      Social and Institutional Issues

      Ideology: Social liberal or soft social libertarian

      Abortion: I'm obviously pro-choice, but it's a decision to be made by a woman and only by her. The government has no business telling her what she has to do with her body and so forth. However, I support a kind of 'education' campaign saying that abortion is a tough decision to make, and that it isn't a everyday normal thing to do for fun.
      Death Penalty: I support it for the most heinous crimes such as high treason in wartime, recidivist rapists and serial murderers.
      School prayer: Strongly oppose. The public school is a secular institution.
      Separation of church and state: Strongly, strongly, very strongly support. Religion has no role in the state, and vice-versa. The state has no business funding private religious schools.
      Embryonic Stem-Cell Research: Strongly support
      Gay Marriage: I support gay marriage. People who love each other, regardless of their sex, have the right to get married.
      Euthanasia: Strongly support if patient is of sound mind.
      Prostitution: I support legalization, if only because it would be easier for prostitutes to find and seek help if needed.
      Gun Control: I support tougher gun control to prevent former criminals and the like from getting access guns. I oppose a gun registry due to exorbitant costs attached to such a program.
      Drug War & Marijuana: Legalize medical marijuana and other soft drugs that can be used for medical purposes. That's it.
      Institutional Reform (France and/or Canada): I support further de-centralization in France, as well as the direct election of Senators and the introduction of MMP for elections to the National Assembly. Reform electoral systems for local, regional and European elections. In Canada, I support either an elected Senate or abolishing it pure and simple. I support MMP or PR in elections to the House.

      Based on these positions I am surprised that your social political matrix score is not any lower than it is.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Alexander Hamilton on September 21, 2009, 08:22:49 PM
      Better descriptions for your foreign policy would be liberal pragmatist or soft interventionist or non-perfectionist


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Хahar 🤔 on September 22, 2009, 06:56:10 PM
      Centrist isn't a viable option for foreign policy, hash

      Then find a word to describe somebody who isn't an isolationist nor an interventionist.

      Internationalist?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Psychic Octopus on September 22, 2009, 07:24:31 PM
      Centrist isn't a viable option for foreign policy, hash

      Then find a word to describe somebody who isn't an isolationist nor an interventionist.

      Internationalist?

      Perhaps Sepratistism? Do you support an active role in foriegn affairs, but no military alliances?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Alexander Hamilton on September 22, 2009, 07:25:05 PM
      It's called non-perfectionist


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RI on September 22, 2009, 09:21:54 PM
      I've changed some of my views in the past few months, especially with my ongoing conversion to Catholicism.

      Social Issues

      General philosophy: Moderate

      Abortion: Oppose after first few weeks, except when the mother's life is threatened. However, banning abortion must not be our top priority. Increase funding and availability of contraception, though not abortifacients. Increase access to adoption and maternal leave.
      Separation of church and state: Very important for both parties.
      Gay Marriage: Absolutely support, though I would prefer if the government wasn't shouldn't be in the marriage business in the first place. Leave marriage up to the churches. Let the government issue civil unions to everyone who wants one.
      Affirmative Action: Oppose. Race should not be a factor in anything. Strongly oppose quotas.
      Age of Consent: Oppose for sex. I support bracket laws of two years if under 18.
      Gun rights: Generally support. Background checks are ok. Violent felons and mentally diminished people should not have guns. No ban on assault weapons.
      Death Penalty: Strongly oppose, unless there is no way to keep the prisoner from continuing the kill.
      Censorship: Strongly oppose in all cases.
      Flag burning: Support. A ban would be an encroachment on the first amendment.
      Smoking: Keep legal, but keep out of public places except those specifically made for such.
      Alcohol consumption: Keep legal, but keep out of public places except those specifically made for such.
      Euthanasia: Support. The only person who should decide when it is their time to die is themself. Assisted suicide should be legal, but only allowed in situations when the condition is such that pain drugs are completely ineffective.
      Drugs: Legalize, tax, regulate, keep out of public places except those specifically made for such.
      Gambling: Support. If you want to lose your money, that is your problem.
      Prostitution: Support. Legalize, tax, regulate, keep out of public places except those specifically made for such.
      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Support. Especially only for those embryos that would otherwise be discarded.
      Immigration: Support. Anyone who wants to come to America should be able to. Make the process easier.
      Illegal Immigration: Provide a path to citizenship for those already here. Enforce current border laws better.

      Economic Issues

      General Philosophy: Moderate on trade, fiscally leftist

      Taxes: Support progressive taxation. By living in this country, you implicitly agree to pay to keep this country running. If you don't like it, leave.
      Employers and Employees: No protection for those who strike. If you go on strike, you do so at your own risk.
      Free trade: Generally support.
      Spending: Support, but with much more emphasis on transparency, accountability, efficiency, and routing out wasteful spending. No long term debt.
      Social Security: Remove the cap. Allow those who want to risk it to move their ss to the stock market. No safety net for those who do.
      Space Program: Strongly support. If we had the money, I'd say build a space elevator and terraform Mars. Maybe Venus and the Moon too. Alas. :(
      Welfare: Do not fund those who can work but choose not to. Limit to two years. Focus on getting them back to work.
      Healthcare: Strongly support some sort of universal system a public option. Regulate insurance companies heavily. Insurance companies are BS.
      Education: Increase funding for public school system, which should be our first focus. Allow limited vouchers. Put stronger regulations on homeschooling.
      Minimum Wage: Support and raise.
      Regulation: I support environmental, health, and worker regulations. We also must have some sort of oversight of banks and the stock market, but not control of.
      Infrastructure: Support increased spending, but also increase efficiency and reduce waste.
      Energy Policy: Move to alternative energy as soon as possible, including nuclear. However, the emphasis should be on wind, solar, hydro, tidal, geothermal, convection, and others. Also focus on fuel cell vehicles. No off-shore drilling.
      Environment: We must protect the environment. Without it, we could not live. Support conservation efforts.


      Foreign Issues

      General Philosophy: Internationalist/Pacifist

      Democracy and Trade: Trade is good.
      United Nations: Support.
      Iraq: Oppose. Get out as soon as possible.
      Israel: Neutral.
      Patriot Act: Strongly oppose. Repeal now.
      Torture: Oppose.
      Military Involvement: None unless directly attacked. Slash military spending. For humanitarian crises, work through the UN.
      North American Union: Support if like EU. Countries should one day cease to exist. They are artificial boundaries that have come to separate more than just land. We are one species, and one day we must come together as one if we are to survive.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Free Palestine on September 26, 2009, 03:10:40 PM
      National Issues

      I believe that the federal government should be smaller, and in-line with the Constitution.  Important social issues such as abortion and same-sex marriage should be left to the states, as should other things like education.  We should bring the quarter-million troops stationed overseas home, reduce the defense budget, protect our borders, and most of all, stop being the police of the world.

      In addition, the president's power should be reduced.  He (or she) should no longer have unilateral power, and the status of a national preacher and messiah.  The 17th and 22nd Amendments should be repealed, also.

      Social Issues

      Abortion
      I am pro-choice, but I oppose partial-birth abortion.

      Same-Sex Marriage
      Support, but I would like it if all marriages, gay and straight, were legally "civil unions."

      Affirmative Action
      Oppose.

      Prostitution
      Make it safe and legal through regulation by the state.

      Drugs
      Make marijuana legal, but keep all hard drugs blacklisted.  Focus on treatment and rehabilitation of drug addicted criminals.

      Gang Violence
      Gangs are pretty much terrorist organizations.  They commit brutal acts of violence and make innocent people afraid to come out of their homes.  Scale up the fight against gangs.  Make it safe for people in Compton and South-Central to go outside at night.

      Education
      Teach sex-ed and abstinence.  Let the teenagers make their choice about what path they'd prefer.  More elective classes and flexibility with college entry requirements.  Teach in more depth about American government.

      English
      No official language, but public schools should do their best to teach proficiency in the language.

      Economics

      Taxes
      At the federal level, replace the income tax with the "FairTax."  At the state level, I support progressive taxation.

      Spending
      The federal government should stop sending our money overseas.  We should use our money for things that benefit us.

      Health Care
      Unsure.  I support the idea of health care, but I think there needs to be a solution that can respect the rights of states, and bridge the gap between left and right.

      Environment
      The environment should be protected.

      Energy
      We need to cure our addiction to foreign oil.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on September 26, 2009, 03:41:06 PM
      Ok, my final final final summary.

      Constitutional

      Constitution - Create a constitution based partially on the 1689 Bill of Rights. Also include other important elements of modern democracy in it. Lower voting age to 16 or 17.

      Monarchy - Abolish them, they set a bad example to the rest of us.

      Devolution - Continue to devolve powers to Scotland, NI and Wales. Set up Parliament in Northern Ireland and allow all three more power in local rights. Set up an English Parliament too.

      House of Lords - Abolish and replace with a House of Merits, made up of intellectuals approved by referendum. This would help reinforce Britain as a meritocracy

      Separation of Powers - Give the British Supreme Court more power, once it is formed. Create the post of President and give some executive powers to it, while giving other important powers, such as the declaration of war, to the Commons.

      Elections - Set fixed term elections - every 3 years for parliamentary and every 5 years for President, who will also have the power to appoint a Prime Minister from the largest party in Parliament, which approval from Parliament. Look further into either introducing proportional representation, or reforming First Past the Post. Bring back university seats.

      Referenda - To be used for proposed constitutional amendments.

      Secularism - Disestablish the Churches of England and Scotland, like we should have done 100 years ago.

      Economic

      Central Banking - Strip the Bank of England's monopoly on note of issue and allow private banks to issue money, as long as it is backed by gold. Allow the Bank of England to keep a reserve of gold. Also, let each private bank set it's own rate of interest. Encourage full-reserve banking

      Currency - Back with gold. Look into the use of e-gold as well.

      Taxation - Abolish all climate change levies and death duty. Reduce petrol duty while increasing duty on alcohol and cigarettes. Introduce duties on cannabis, coffee, salt. Slash income tax to 10 pence in the pound and gradually reduce it with the aim of eventually abolishing it. Reduce purchase tax to 10%.

      Regulation - Abolish the CDS market, it's a major threat to capitalism. Regulate derivatives somewhat more carefully. Legalise insider trading and relax anti-trust law.

      Private and public sector - Privatise the post office and Social Security. Possibly privatise the NHS.

      National Debt - Work to reduce.

      Social

      Crime - Abolish all victimless crimes (including incest), along with the age of consent and the ages on smoking and alcohol consumption. Bring back the death penalty for murderers.

      Education - Start comittee to look into how to reform the exam system. Raise school starting age to 6 and keep school leaving age at 16.

      Gun Rights - Give everyone over 18 an assault rifle on request.

      Abortion - Keep late term limit at around 6 months.

      Gay rights - Legalise gay marriage, or preferably, stop the state defining marriage altogether.

      Environment - Quit Kyoto Protocol. Push for use of solar and nuclear power over wind power.

      Welfare - Privatise, with the exception of special allowances for the genuinely disabled.

      Immigration - Restrict further. We really need to stop the country getting overpopulated.

      Minimum wage - Abolish.

      Political correctness - Scrap. Freedom of speech is more important.

      Prostitution - Legalise completely.

      Working day - Set limit at 10 hours a day.

      Euthanasia - Legalise voluntary euthanasia. As for involuntary or non-voluntary, it amounts to murder.

      Foreign

      Foreign policy - Quit NATO, the EU and the WTO. Propose a customs union with Ireland. Stay out of other country's affairs generally, but offer mediation in conflicts such as in Israel.

      Nuclear policy - Keep a strong nuclear deterrent.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Хahar 🤔 on September 27, 2009, 12:50:10 PM

      How would you do this?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on September 27, 2009, 03:11:11 PM

      Create new seats the way they were before abolition. And then hold elections for them.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Хahar 🤔 on September 27, 2009, 05:48:54 PM

      Create new seats the way they were before abolition. And then hold elections for them.

      Which universities would have seats?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: WillK on September 30, 2009, 08:43:59 PM
      National Issues
      ...
      Taxes
      At the federal level, replace the income tax with the "FairTax."  At the state level, I support progressive taxation.

      what is "the 'Fair Tax'"?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Alexander Hamilton on September 30, 2009, 08:44:37 PM
      National Issues
      ...
      Taxes
      At the federal level, replace the income tax with the "FairTax."  At the state level, I support progressive taxation.

      what is "the 'Fair Tax'"?

      a flat income tax rate


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: ChrisJG777 on October 01, 2009, 09:46:06 AM
      National Issues
      ...
      Taxes
      At the federal level, replace the income tax with the "FairTax."  At the state level, I support progressive taxation.

      what is "the 'Fair Tax'"?

      a flat income tax rate

      Hardly what I'd call fair if you ask my opinion.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Alexander Hamilton on October 01, 2009, 01:44:31 PM
      National Issues
      ...
      Taxes
      At the federal level, replace the income tax with the "FairTax."  At the state level, I support progressive taxation.

      what is "the 'Fair Tax'"?

      a flat income tax rate

      Hardly what I'd call fair if you ask my opinion.

      Why?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The Age Wave on October 01, 2009, 02:14:29 PM
      I will just list some of my beliefs.

      Universal Health care: SUPPORT!
      Gay marriage: Oppose
      NAFTA: Oppose
      Immigration reform: Support
      Union rights: Support
      Taxes: Lower
      Social Security: Support
      Stimulus/BAILOUTS: sUPPORT
      Abortion: Strongly oppose
      Affirmative action: oppose
      Expanding public universities: Support!
      War in Iraq: oppose
      Drug legalization: HELL NO


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: ChrisJG777 on October 01, 2009, 02:22:17 PM
      National Issues
      ...
      Taxes
      At the federal level, replace the income tax with the "FairTax."  At the state level, I support progressive taxation.

      what is "the 'Fair Tax'"?

      a flat income tax rate

      Hardly what I'd call fair if you ask my opinion.

      Why?

      Well for one thing it'd for all intents and purposes function no differently to regressive taxation, when you think about it closely enough, those in the higher wealth groups might as well be charged a lower rate than those who earn less.  Personally I favour progressive taxation.

      Anyway, that's my opinion in a nutshell.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Alexander Hamilton on October 01, 2009, 02:26:20 PM
      National Issues
      ...
      Taxes
      At the federal level, replace the income tax with the "FairTax."  At the state level, I support progressive taxation.

      what is "the 'Fair Tax'"?

      a flat income tax rate

      Hardly what I'd call fair if you ask my opinion.

      Why?

      Well for one thing it'd for all intents and purposes function no differently to regressive taxation, when you think about it closely enough, those in the higher wealth groups might as well be charged a lower rate than those who earn less.  Personally I favour progressive taxation.

      Anyway, that's my opinion in a nutshell.

      I wasn't arguing that it is preferrable. I am saying that it is more fair. S in, you know, treating everyone equally.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: ChrisJG777 on October 01, 2009, 02:39:24 PM
      National Issues
      ...
      Taxes
      At the federal level, replace the income tax with the "FairTax."  At the state level, I support progressive taxation.

      what is "the 'Fair Tax'"?

      a flat income tax rate

      Hardly what I'd call fair if you ask my opinion.

      Why?

      Well for one thing it'd for all intents and purposes function no differently to regressive taxation, when you think about it closely enough, those in the higher wealth groups might as well be charged a lower rate than those who earn less.  Personally I favour progressive taxation.

      Anyway, that's my opinion in a nutshell.

      I wasn't arguing that it is preferrable. I am saying that it is more fair. S in, you know, treating everyone equally.

      I can see how some people would see it as fair, but personally I don't share that view.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TeePee4Prez on October 02, 2009, 11:22:54 PM
      I will just list some of my beliefs.

      Universal Health care: SUPPORT!
      Gay marriage: Oppose
      NAFTA: Oppose
      Immigration reform: Support
      Union rights: Support
      Taxes: Lower
      Social Security: Support
      Stimulus/BAILOUTS: sUPPORT
      Abortion: Strongly oppose
      Affirmative action: oppose
      Expanding public universities: Support!
      War in Iraq: oppose
      Drug legalization: HELL NO

      Damn.  Take out the Iraq War we gots ourselves a Bob Casey Democrat on our hands.  I thought this state's Democrats have finally turned a new leaf. :P


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Alexander Hamilton on October 03, 2009, 02:20:59 AM
      I will just list some of my beliefs.

      Universal Health care: SUPPORT!
      Gay marriage: Oppose
      NAFTA: Oppose
      Immigration reform: Support
      Union rights: Support
      Taxes: Lower
      Social Security: Support
      Stimulus/BAILOUTS: sUPPORT
      Abortion: Strongly oppose
      Affirmative action: oppose
      Expanding public universities: Support!
      War in Iraq: oppose
      Drug legalization: HELL NO

      Damn.  Take out the Iraq War we gots ourselves a Bob Casey Democrat on our hands.  I thought this state's Democrats have finally turned a new leaf. :P

      With Arlen Specter? :P


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: rebeltarian on October 21, 2009, 04:35:50 PM
      Foreign Policy

      Warfare: War should be reserved for when our nation is in grave, imminent danger. No pre-emptive warfare, unless it is strategically necessary to protect ourselves (the 1983 invasion of Grenada). Marques and reprisals are also sometimes justified (the 1986 Libya air strike). I oppose nation building and would like to see us close several of our overseas bases and stop policing the world.

      Iraq: I opposed the invasion from the start as I believe the war was fought under a false-pretense and bad/manipulated information. We invaded Iraq for oil interests, influence from Israel and some sort of unreasonable idea that we could actually spread freedom to the region. I support a rapid withdrawal of our troops from Iraqi soil.

      Afghanistan: The initial strikes and the hunt for Bin Ladin/Al-Qaeda were justified.  Bin Laden is dead.  We need to stop dicking around with these middle-eastern countries.  It’s time to come home.

      War on Terror: This term is too ambiguous.  I would shut down the department of homeland security and repeal the PATRIOT Act.  There are indeed terrorists in the world, but by giving up our civil liberties, they are accomplishing the number 1 goal on their agenda. 

      United Nations: I strongly support US withdrawal from the UN.  They are a serious threat to our national sovereignty.  America should clean up its own house, remain neutral and let the world emulate us.  Tell the UN to move their damn headquarters off our soil, too.

      Iran/North Korea/Cuba: Open those bad boys up.  Talk and trade with them.  Allow American citizens to visit Cuba.

      Israel/Palestine: Stop sending aid to both sides.  Pursue two-state solution diplomatically.  Israel has an advanced air force, navy and lots of nukes.  They can defend themselves.

      Sudan/Darfur: Let them sort it out.  It’s not America’s job to socially engineer the world.

      Foreign Aid/Debts: Drop the debt on all third-world nations and cut all foreign aid.  The majority of it is being lost to corruption.  Encourage humanitarian institutions and religious missionaries to help disadvantaged communities overseas.

      Defense Budget: Needs to be cut back significantly.  A lot of money can be saved by simply not getting involved in so many foreign entanglements.  Focus on better quality weapons systems and lesser quantity of them.  Pursue a missile defense shield.


      Economic and Domestic Policies


      Illegal Immigration: Tighter border patrols. I don’t support amnesty, but it’s ridiculous to think we can round up 20 million people. Cut federal welfare programs and these people will have no incentive to come/stay in America illegally.


      Taxes: A flat, 10 percent tax from every American’s income should be sufficient to balance the budget and run this country after we scale back the welfare state and stop playing world policeman.

      Minimum Wage: Eliminate all minimum wage laws.

      Energy Independence and the Environment:  I’m all for green energies, but I oppose the government subsidization of them. I support a free-market solution to alternative energies and I support drilling in ANWR and the Pacific. I especially think we need to explore nuclear power as well as the medical benefits of the atom.  I support free market solutions to fostering and improving environmental stewardship.

      Healthcare: I oppose a government takeover.  Tort reform and repealing state restrictions on patient choice of insurance companies is a good place to start with making the free market system more patient-friendly.

      Education: Shut down the department of education.  Let state/local governments handle funding for education.  Allow parents to choose schools via vouchers.  Let local communities decide on the curriculum being taught in classrooms (evolution, creationism, etc), but encourage all students to learn Spanish.

      Unions: Decentralize their power.  I oppose the Employee Free Choice Act.

      Trade: I support free trade with all nations, regardless of their human rights record or philosophy of government.  Trade is the first step towards breaking down authoritarianism and is a valuable tool for people of different cultures to communicate and learn about each other.  However, we don’t have true “free trade” when we’re trading with nations that impose tariffs. We should make every effort to negotiate tariff-free trade on both sides, but if we’re going to trade with nations that impose tariffs, we must also impose a tariff to avoid national debt.  We should withdraw from the WTO, cancel NAFTA, and I strongly oppose the NAU as they all infringe on our sovereignty.

      Regulations and Corporate Welfare: Minimize regulations.  No favoritism and no bailouts.  I want true free markets. 

      Affirmative Action: Oppose.

      Monetary Issues: Audit the FED.  I don’t think we should go back to the gold standard, but something needs to be done to control the rabid printing of fiat currency and manipulation of interest rates.


      Social and Institutional Issues


      Abortion: Oppose, an unborn child has a heartbeat and brain activity; therefore I see abortion as murder and murderers should be punished.

      Death Penalty: I oppose the death penalty for domestic crimes, but I think there are some high-profile political prisoners that we need to put down for our own national security. Saddam Hussein’s execution was justified. Terrorists should be long-drop hanged. Lethal injection is un-dignified and the chair is just barbaric. As for domestic criminals, life without parole is the maximum they should get.  I support their civic rights as well as reforming the whole prison system to emphasize rehabilitation. We should give them jobs to do (provided there’s no chain-gang-style torture involved), so they’re not just sitting around in their cells all day gang-raping each other.

      Separation of church and state: Support. Government should protect the practice of religions and should not try to socially engineer the country towards any religion(s), nor should it discourage the practice thereof.

      Embryonic Stem-Cell Research: I support scientific research as long as it does not involve the destruction of human embryos.

      Gay Marriage: I support civil unions for homosexual couples. As for calling it “marriage”, well, the federal government should not have the authority to define what marriage is anyways. Leave it to churches/houses of worship to define what your “union” with your “partner” is.

      Drug War & Marijuana:  Cut all federal funding for the war on drugs.  Legalize the herb, mon.

      Prostitution: Legalize it.

      Gun Control: CCW with a permit, bitches.

      National ID: It is disgusting that this idea has even come onto the table.  Strongly oppose.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on October 21, 2009, 04:45:05 PM
      I will just list some of my beliefs.

      Universal Health care: SUPPORT!
      Gay marriage: Oppose
      NAFTA: Oppose
      Immigration reform: Support
      Union rights: Support
      Taxes: Lower
      Social Security: Support
      Stimulus/BAILOUTS: sUPPORT
      Abortion: Strongly oppose
      Affirmative action: oppose
      Expanding public universities: Support!
      War in Iraq: oppose
      Drug legalization: HELL NO

      You fail hard.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Kaine for Senate '18 on October 23, 2009, 09:14:28 PM
      Universal Health care: SUPPORT!
      Gay marriage: Oppose
      NAFTA: Oppose
      Immigration reform: Support
      Union rights: Support
      Taxes: Lower
      Social Security: Support
      Stimulus/BAILOUTS: sUPPORT
      Abortion: Strongly oppose
      Affirmative action: oppose
      Expanding public universities: Support!
      War in Iraq: oppose
      Drug legalization: HELL NO

      Except for the bolded ones, I'm with you.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mechaman on October 23, 2009, 10:00:47 PM
      I will just list some of my beliefs.

      Universal Health care: SUPPORT!
      Gay marriage: Oppose
      NAFTA: Oppose
      Immigration reform: Support
      Union rights: Support
      Taxes: Lower
      Social Security: Support
      Stimulus/BAILOUTS: sUPPORT
      Abortion: Strongly oppose
      Affirmative action: oppose
      Expanding public universities: Support!
      War in Iraq: oppose
      Drug legalization: HELL NO

      You fail hard.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on October 25, 2009, 06:32:24 PM
      The Constitution

      The rotten state of our democracy is in urgent need of repair. The power of the state is concentrated too much in the hands of our executive office, in particular that of the Prime Minister. For example, Tony Blair was able to lead us into a war in Iraq without any form of consent from Parliament, had he so wished. I believe that the power to declare war should rest with our legislative body, Parliament, and in particular the House of Commons.

      I favour the abolition of the House of Lords. It is ridiculous that in this day and age, we still have an unelected upper house, which only represents a tiny fraction of our population. It is time to do away with this, and replace it with a nonpartisan House of Merits that represents the most skilled, and the hardest working of our population, to further reinforce the power of the individual in our society. These would be chosen by referendum.

      I also favour the abolition of the monarchy. The era where the few, privileged and lucky individuals who were born into high status rule over the country should end. Instead, we should elect a President every 5 years by popular vote, which would have the power to choose a Prime Minister from the largest party in Parliament, with the consent of the Commons.

      Parliament should be elected every 3 years, and there should be more research done into the possibility of proportional representation, preferably by party list method. I also favour the restoration of university seats to our parliament. The size of our parliament should be set at around approximately 100,000 voters per member.

      I believe in a codified British constitution, partially based on the 1689 Bill of Rights. This should include the right to free speech, freedom of assembly, freedom from censorship, and the right of habeas corpus. In addition, the constitution should protect individuals from harassment by government, whether sexuality, racial, religious, or gender based. Amendments to this constitution should be allowed to be ratified, with the consent of the people via referendum. To enforce this, the judiciary should be strengthened and the plans for a British Supreme Court should go ahead. Felons, the mentally ill and the bankrupt should be enfranchised and the voting age lowered to 16.

      A balanced budget amendment should be contained within the constitution to encourage frugality, and to end serious deficits in budgets.

      Devolution should be continued, and Northern Ireland should be granted a Parliament, as should England. These would have power over many local matters, while a National Parliament in Westminster would continue to deal with major issues like defence, law and order and education. Britain should also encourage the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man to hold a referendum on their status within the British nation.

      The Church of England should be disestablished, as should the Church of Scotland. Secularism should be upheld, and government funding for religious schools of any sect should be curtailed.

      The Privy Council would be abolished and replaced with a British State Council to advise the President on actions to be taken with regards to a Presidential veto in Parliament.

      Social Issues

      The death penalty (by firing squad) should be restored for crimes such as first degree murder, treason, espionage, sabotage and armed robbery. It should be regularly enforced to increase its use as a deterrent. In addition, the prison system should be hardened and the focus should be on deterring future criminals rather than on rehabilitating prisoners who may be mentally inclined towards violence.

      All victimless crimes will be abolished, including the possession of narcotics. Shops and pharmacies will be allowed to apply for a licence to sell narcotics to those who are over 18. However, those who choose to take narcotics and end up suffering ailment or illness from the consumption of drugs will be exempt from NHS care and will have to pay privately. Street dealing will remain illegal and will be punished by prison sentence. Drugs will also be subject to excise duties from the Exchequer.

      The age of consent will be abolished and prostitution will be legalised in brothels, but will require regular health checks to avoid the spread of venereal disease. The abortion late term limit will remain at its status quo.

      The state shall not in any way define marriage, and there shall be no recognition for either heterosexual or homosexual relationships from the government. Adoption shall not be in any way hindered by the state.

      Immigration should be encouraged for skilled workers looking for employment in the UK. However, illegal immigrants and immigrants who refuse to work should not be allowed residence and should be deported immediately.

      All censorship by the government will be abolished and parents will be expected to make their own decisions as to the suitability of material for viewing by those who are of a young age.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on October 25, 2009, 06:32:49 PM
      some more of my views, basically.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Хahar 🤔 on October 25, 2009, 09:36:14 PM
      Those were basically platitudes.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on October 26, 2009, 05:44:49 PM

      Por que no te callas?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Хahar 🤔 on October 26, 2009, 07:16:39 PM

      Partly because you keep making non sequiturs.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: politicaladdict on November 02, 2009, 09:44:39 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: I'm staunchly pro-life, but support exceptions when the mother's life is in danger.
      Separation of church and state: Those words appear nowhere in the Constitution. I support freedom OF religion and not freedom FROM religion.
      Gay marriage: Marriage should be between a man and a woman. I support civil unions and domestic partnerships.
      Affirmative action: Reverse discrimination.
      Hate crimes: Not what the libs pass.
      Gun control: Strongly oppose.
      Death penalty: Support it for 1rst degrees murders, and eve3n serial rapists who emotionally take the lives of others, but not for statutory rape.
      Flag burning: I strongly oppose it personally, but whether or not it's a 1st Amendment right is questionable.
      Euthanasia: Not really.
      Prostitution: Legalize it for the age of 18.
      Immigration: I support legal immigration 100%. For illegal immigration: build a wall and
      Drugs: Against it.
      I support almost all sexuality when it's part of nature and not other preventable addictions  such as drugs.

      Economic Issues

      Taxes: Very low taxes.
      Trade: I believe free trade grows our economy.
      Spending: Gov't. Federal only for national security and states for roads and some other areas that the constitution grants, no more.
      Welfare: Crap.
      Education: Confused on this issue.
      Regulations: Don't regulate excessively, but make sure that a Madoff scandal doesn't happen again.

      Foreign Policy

      Military Involvement:
      Support! Especially if they are undemocratic and are supporting terrorism
      United Nations: Pretty useless.
      Israel: I support Israel 1000%.
      [/quote]


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Alexander Hamilton on November 03, 2009, 11:41:49 PM
      Trade: I believe free trade grows our economy.

      You believe wrong.


      Why in the world?? ???


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on November 04, 2009, 03:12:31 PM


      Actually, sorry to say this, but he's right on both counts.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Хahar 🤔 on November 04, 2009, 04:24:01 PM
      I'd love to know how you can with a straight face "support Israel 100%".


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on November 04, 2009, 04:26:16 PM
      I'd love to know how you can with a straight face "support Israel 100%".

      Because they're the only democracy in the Middle East, and were it not for the constant murdering of Israelis and the election of those subhuman trash Hamas, they would give the Palestinians more autonomy?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: JohnFKennedy on November 04, 2009, 04:40:21 PM
      Public execution? By firing squad? For armed robbery? Really? Also, the return of university constituencies? Why on Earth would you want those back?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: You kip if you want to... on November 04, 2009, 04:46:25 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: I'm staunchly pro-choice. It's the mothers decision what she does with her body.
      Church and state: Keep the two completely separate. If you want to follow a religion, follow it, you don't need the government to "enforce" or "endorse" a religion for you to do that. Get religion out of schools (replace "R.E." with something more productive), abolish state run schools which have religious affiliation.
      Gay Marriage: Legalize
      The Smoking Ban: Keep it and keep it as it is. There's no need to expand it or abolish it.
      Euthanasia: Legalize it.
      Prostitution: Illegal
      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: I don't have a problem with it. The pros far outweigh any cons.
      Immigration: I personally don't have a problem with the current system, although i'd support some stricter rules and regulations simply to put a stop to the rise of the far-right.

      Economic Issues

      Taxes: Tax cuts for those earning less than £150,000 a year
      Welfare: Support
      Healthcare: Increase funding for the NHS.
      Education: Massively increase funding in education. As above, abolish religiously aligned schools. Encourage lessons to develop citizenship. Abolish tuition fees! Keep the Education Maintenance Allowance (E.M.A) and maybe extend the limit to £40,000 income to receive it. Make Sixth Form education compulsory.
      Minimum Wage: Keep it and raise it.
      Infrastructure: Introduce congestion charges in all major cities, but massively cut prices for public transport.
      Energy Policy: Build more wind farms and put up solar panels. Take advantage of tidal power and other renewable resources.

      Foreign Issues

      European Union: Further intergrate with Europe although I oppose a federal "United States of Europe". Oh, and President Blair :D
      Iraq: Withdraw troops now. Blair was stupid for going along with GWB.
      Afghanistan: Increase troop numbers there.
      Military Involvement: Attack only if attacked or directly threatened. Don't blindly follow the US like with Iraq.
      Military Budget: Cut it.

      Domestic Issues

      Devolution: Support the assemblies in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland as long as Scottish, Welsh and Northern Ireland MPs aren't allowed to vote on England-only matters OR form an English Parliment just for England issues and keep the current Houses of Parliment for UK-wide issues.
      Scottish/Welsh Independance: Oppose! Keep the United Kingdom united.
      Voting and elections: Keep the voting age at 18. Allow yearly referenda similar to the US state ballot questions/propositions etc. Keep the FPTP system. Give constituents the ability to re-call their MP. Democratically elect members of the House of Lords. Install a "registered voter" system similar to the US so that party members can elect their party leader.
      Monarchy: Abolish it completely. Become the United Republic and let the public elect the head of state.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on November 04, 2009, 04:49:30 PM
      Surprisingly, I agree with you on alot of those, Change08.

      Your positions on prostitution, minimum wage, elections and EU are pretty poor though.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Хahar 🤔 on November 04, 2009, 06:25:13 PM
      I'd love to know how you can with a straight face "support Israel 100%".

      Because they're the only democracy in the Middle East, and were it not for the constant murdering of Israelis and the election of those subhuman trash Hamas, they would give the Palestinians more autonomy?

      Yes, they would give the Palestinians autonomy, if they elected the right people. That's a great example of democracy right there.

      Do you realize what you're saying?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on November 05, 2009, 03:26:32 PM
      It's hard to give independence to a people who've elected a party who want Israel destroyed.

      I support a two-state solution, and frankly, I think the Palestinians should simply all go on strike and refuse to work to force the Israelis to give them independence. Instead of using violence, they need to learn to use other methods that don't involve killing civilians.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Хahar 🤔 on November 05, 2009, 04:01:21 PM
      Ah, so you believe in democracy only when the right people are elected. Also, I thought you said you support Israel 1000%. Now you're advocating civil disobedience.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on November 05, 2009, 04:02:49 PM
      Ah, so you believe in democracy only when the right people are elected. Also, I thought you said you support Israel 1000%. Now you're advocating civil disobedience.

      I believe in democracy all the time. All I'm saying is, don't be surprised if I don't have much sympathy for Palestine. I've suggested the best method of getting independence, and it would be nice if they could demonstrate peacefully rather than simply killing Israeli civilians and throwing more petrol onto the fire.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Хahar 🤔 on November 05, 2009, 04:10:36 PM
      Going on strike and demonstrating peacefully won't do anything. Israel has power. The Palestinians do not. They cannot divorce themselves from the system.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on November 05, 2009, 04:12:39 PM
      Going on strike and demonstrating peacefully won't do anything. Israel has power. The Palestinians do not. They cannot divorce themselves from the system.

      Yes it will. If the Palestinians refuse to work and stage mass strikes, there will be worldwide coverage, and the Israeli government will have a major crisis on their hands.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Psychic Octopus on November 05, 2009, 07:32:36 PM
      Going on strike and demonstrating peacefully won't do anything.

      Worked for Gandhi and MLK.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Хahar 🤔 on November 05, 2009, 07:39:50 PM
      Going on strike and demonstrating peacefully won't do anything.

      Worked for Gandhi and MLK.

      And guess how many people it didn't work for?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Psychic Octopus on November 05, 2009, 07:40:52 PM
      Going on strike and demonstrating peacefully won't do anything.

      Worked for Gandhi and MLK.

      And guess how many people it didn't work for?

      I'm not, I know it didn't. It was merely an snipet.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Swing Voter on November 08, 2009, 04:14:09 AM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: I'm pro-choice, for the most part. I do support a ban on partial birth abortions.
      Secularism: A clear separation of church and state is necessary for a thriving democracy. That means no creationism in public schools, establishing taxation of churches and other religious organizations, and no school prayer in public schools. Also, no more faith based initiatives.
      Marriage: I do not think government has a place defining any contracts between individuals, only the enforcement of such. However, in absence of that, we must advocate marriage equality under the law.
      Affirmative Action: Not only is it ineffective, it is overwhelmingly discriminatory against all races. End all affirmative action policies endorsed by the government immediately.
      Gun rights: Achieve a reasonable medium. We can't allow the free sale of guns nor can we allow the free carrying of guns. Designate sportsmen zones. Require background checks before all gun purchases. A blanket policy won't work, give states and cities authority to regulate firearms.
      Death Penalty: Completely against. A barbaric punishment no better than the crime likely to have been committed.
      Censorship: Eliminate censorship. An obstruction to access of information and more dangerous to the public than anything that may be censored under such policies.
      Flag burning: Allow, of course, maintaining public safety in the process.
      Hate crimes/speech: Legislate and enforce. Make no distinction between any races, religions, or genders or sexualities protected under such legislation.
      Smoking: Restrict in public places, allow in privacy of home.
      Alcohol consumption: Lower drinking age to 18.
      Euthanasia: No reason not to allow. It is far more humane than the painful deaths many medical problems can cause.
      Drugs: Legalize recreational drugs such as marijuana, cocaine, and LSD. Enforce strict laws against hard drugs like heroin and meth.
      Gambling: A local/state issue.
      Prostitution: A local/state issue.
      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: The government doesn't need to be involved in funding. Private companies will invest in research, they will be the ones profiting from it anyways.
      Immigration: Create a path to citizenship for those who have not broken any other laws. Enforce stricter border patrols, and work to rebuild Mexico so that the border problem is less of a threat.
      Civil Liberties: Eliminate all provisions of the PATRIOT Act, end wiretapping.
      Language: English as the official language.

      Economic Issues

      Taxes: Decrease taxes when possible. Do NOT cut taxes in strong economic times without cutting spending (Bush tax cuts). Direct tax cuts to working families.
      Employers and Employees: Weaken organized labor's vice grip on American industry. Enforce strong work safety standards and inspections of workplaces regularly.
      Free trade: Free trade is good for the economy and for freedom.
      Spending: Cut spending where possible. Eliminate waste. Cut military spending. Attempt to balance budget every year, or even achieve a surplus. Focus spending on the issues that most affect Americans, not political pet projects and overseas intervention.
      Social Security: Abolish. The system is unsustainable and the income cap is useless in ensuring effectiveness of the program.
      Space Program: Explore and fund.
      Welfare: A safety net is required. Streamline welfare programs for efficiency. Drug testing for recipients. Scale back benefits over prolonged periods of time.
      Healthcare: Public option, tort reform, MSAs, and allowing purchases across state lines will all contribute to making health care less expensive, more effective, and much more accessible.
      Education: Increase funding, expand opportunities for public education. Stricter requirements for teachers to ensure a quality education for our youth.
      Minimum Wage: Keep at a reasonable level.
      Regulation: Enforcement is key. Also, government oversight of working conditions and making sure tax fraud is not committed.
      Infrastructure: Use infrastructure projects to create public jobs for the unemployed.
      Energy Policy: Move towards "alternative" energy. Decrease dependence on foreign oil. Allow off-shore drilling. Encourage stricter EPA standards for automobiles.

      Foreign Issues

      United Nations: I don't like the UN, but we must remain there to retain our influence.
      Iraq & Afghanistan: Withdrawal on an incremental basis.
      Iran: Work to rebuild relations with Iran. Sit down at the negotiating table.
      North Korea: Stand our ground.
      Israel: There is no reason for us to support Israel. Let Israel support themselves.
      Military Involvement: Attack only if attacked or provoked in manner that requires immediate and decisive action.
      Military Budget: Cut spending, increase efficiency.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mint on November 08, 2009, 07:55:13 AM
      Added a few things people really shouldn't ignore.

      Ideology: Paleoconservatism.

      Social Issues

      Basic Ideas: Federalism, Civil Libertarianism

      Civil Liberties: End the Patriot Act, DHS, the Anti Terrorism Act of '96, National Security Letters, etc.
      Abortion: Abolish Roe v Wade. Personally I don't think abortion should be allowed for elective reasons but I have no problem with the morning after pill.
      Gay Rights: I think this has been framed wrongly because rights belong to individuals not groups. Now of course I support gay adoption, military service, etc. there's no reason not to besides ignorance and bigotry.
      Secularism: I don't support blue laws or teaching creationism. On the other hand people should be able to express their religious views/faith how the want and removing things like religious icons that have been near public buildings for decades is stupid.
      Marriage: The government shouldn't be involved in 'marriage.' Let individuals draw up their own contracts and stop favoring one group or another on taxes.
      Affirmative Action: Discriminating for or against minorities is unconstitutional.
      Gun rights: Repeal all gun control legislation enacted since 1934.
      Death Penalty: I'm not really comfortable with any government having that kind of power. Of course individuals should have the right to use lethal force if necessary, none of this 'duty to retreat' nonsense.
      Censorship: The FCC and 'obscenity' laws make no sense. Abolish them.
      Flag burning: Is protected speech.
      Hate crimes: Oppose. The whole concept just encourages further 'group' division and resentment. Besides, all violent crimes demonstrate contempt towards the victim. Why treat one 'group' better than another?
      Hate speech: Oppose restricting since that's unconstitutional and sets a horrendous precedent.
      Smoking: State Issue. Personally I support smoking restrictions for public places.
      Alcohol consumption: State Issue. Stop denying states highway funding if they don't accept the ridiculous 21 year age restriction.
      Euthanasia: State Issue. I could see allowing active euthanasia in the case of wasting diseases like AIDS.. Passive is pretty much already legal thankfully.
      Drugs: State issue. Now ideally, I think pretty much everything should be legal, given how much drug prices have gone down and prison populations have skyrocketed since the 'War on Drugs.' But we shouldn't tolerate things like meth production or people that are obviously out of their minds wandering the streets either.
      Gambling: State issue. I don't want more casinos in my state personally but don't really care about a few people playing poker or something fairly trivial like that.
      Prostitution: State issue. However, I am personally against legalizing this right now.. While I feel people's sexual behavior is generally their business, the data I've seen on this shows that societies that have legalized prostitution have actually seen the criminal element of that trade (trafficking, rackets, etc.) increase.
      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Don't have a problem with research.
      Immigration: No amnesty, no 'guest worker programs.' Secure the borders by ramping up ICE presence, use of barriers and reforming the identification process.
      Language: English should be the official language of the US.

      Economic Issues

      Basic Ideas: Free Markets, anti-Corporatism.

      Taxes: Decrease taxes enormously. Abolish AMT, Payroll, etc. Ideally we'd have no federal income tax whatsoever but I'd settle for a flat tax (5-10%). We can spend (or save, we need a higher savings rate!) our own money far more effectively.
      Bailouts: Absolutely not. Stop encouraging bad behavior and rewarding the politically connected at tax payer (and the dollar's) expense. Besides we call assets 'toxic' for a reason...
      Employers and Employees: Unions and striking should be allowed, but regulated. No one should be forced to join a union.
      Free trade: No NAFTA, WTO, etc. and no MFN for China. That does not mean however I oppose low tariffs - quite the opposite. What I oppose unaccountable, secretive bureaucracy and corporate welfare masquerading as 'free trade.'
      Spending: End discretionary spending, bureaus, subsidies, etc. Cut back at nearly all levels.
      Social Security: Privatize through use of annuities, private saving accounts, etc. and phase out the old system. Your retirement should really be your concern.
      Space Program: We have a lot to gain from this potentially. Open space up to the market more and allow for some mining of resources like Helium-3.
      Welfare: Should be left to the states. The Department of Health and Human Services shouldn't exist.
      Healthcare: Phase out medicare, medicaid, etc. and offer up vouchers and real benefits for the un-insurable. Abolish subsidies and other favoritism to the insurance companies. Reform regulations to allow for more choice and coverage (e.g. buying across state lines). Tax healthcare benefits as wages and enact deductions to reduce overuse and offer real savings opportunities. Enact Tort Reform.
      Education: We spend more on education and have more federal involvement than ever.. And we have almost nothing to show for it. Abolish the Department of Education and No Child Left Behind. Establish internship and apprenticeship programs. Expand charter schools and allow for school choice, be it through private school vouchers, home school, or other alternative programs.
      Minimum Wage: This can be counter productive, but at this point I think we might as well just tie it to inflation and forget about it. It's already at a fairly low rate historically anyway.
      Regulation: Simplify and enforce. Regulations should focus primarily on public health and prohibiting wild speculation (e.g. naked derivatives). In general small business is vastly over regulated. If anything, maybe regulation is less necessary than simply realizing just how much power 'charters' give the government over abusive corporations...
      Infrastructure: Scale down highway system and suburbia. Expand public transportation (e.g. bullet trains) and promote new urbanism.
      Energy Policy: Expand use of nuclear energy and domestic drilling. Promote research for renewable resources.

      Foreign Issues

      Basic Ideas: Nationalism, Non-interventionism.

      United Nations: Get out of the UN.
      Iraq & Afghanistan: This is a disaster, we need to begin pulling out immediately. Focus on the borders, our occupation is a waste of time and breeds resentment.
      Iran: Let Israel and co deal with it if they're so worried.
      North Korea: Phase out troops at the border and end all aid. We've been there for over 50 years, and the majority of South Koreans want us out. It's time to go.
      Israel: Shouldn't get any aid either. Beyond that, Israel for better or worse is a sovereign nation now.
      Military Involvement: Attack only if attacked or directly threatened.
      Military Budget: Massive cuts. End no bid contracts, introduce far greater transparency, close down hundreds of bases. 'National Defense' should be just that, defensive.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: CatoMinor on November 08, 2009, 02:24:37 PM
      Social Issues


      Abortion: Roe V. Wade should be overturned
      Gay Rights: should be allowed to marry
      Marriage: The government shouldn't be involved in marriage.
      Affirmative Action: is counter productive when the more qualified people might not get a job based on their race or social status.
      Gun rights: "shall not be infringed"
      Death Penalty: Only should be used when their is DNA evidence or several eye witnesses.
      Censorship: The FCC is a group of nazis.
      Flag burning: is free speech.
      Hate speech: is bad but thats where parents should step in not the government.
      Alcohol consumption: should be a state by state issue.
      Drugs: should be state by state
      Gambling: the government should stay out of.
      Immigration: Everyone should remember that texas came to be from a bunch of southerners illegaly immigrating into Mexico.
      Language: It seems un-American to say in a country that is supposed to accept all cultures that English should be our official language.

      Economic Issues

      Taxes: Taxes should be flatter and lower.
      Spending: We need a Balanced budget amendment.
      Social Security: should partialy privatize.
      Space Program: should focus on reaching Mars.
      Welfare:heart is in the right place but in many cases takes away incentives to get out of poverty.
      Healthcare: Need tort reform. No government run Health care, the debt form that would crush our economy.
      Education: Abolish Dept of Education..
      Minimum Wage: hurts more than it helps.
      Energy: use all options to get off forign oil.



      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mint on November 11, 2009, 10:28:18 AM
      Death Penalty: Only should be used when their is DNA evidence or several eye witnesses.

      Eye witness testimony is actually fairly unreliable a lot of the time. (http://scienceblogs.com/cortex/2007/05/unreliable_eyewitness_testimon.php)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on November 11, 2009, 10:31:43 AM
      I'm pretty much neutral over the death penalty now.. I don't know whether it's really used effectively.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: MASHED POTATOES. VOTE! on December 08, 2009, 04:15:54 PM
      Abortion: Support full right to choose at early stages, but oppose late-term abortions without medical reasons

      Death penalty: Oppose without any exceptions

      Euthanasia: Support with strong regulations to prevent any abuse (uncureable diease must be confirmed and patient have to request this with a clear mind)

      Gay rights: Support gay marriage, unions, anti-discriminatory laws and adoption rights

      Sexual freedom: Age of contest should be 14

      Taxes: Support progressive taxation

      Budget: Balanced budget is a damn blind myth

      Health care: Universal like in civilizied Europe :P

      Energy: Support alternative sources as well as nuclear

      Social security: Support

      Gun rights: Heavy restrictions

      Stem cell: Supports

      Drugs: Marijuana should be legalized and be distributed under state control. It's much less harmful and, beside, legalization would hurt narcobusiness

      Prostitution: Legalize; reasoning as above


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on December 08, 2009, 04:21:20 PM
      Abortion: Support full right to choose at early stages, but oppose late-term abortions without medical reasons

      Death penalty: Oppose without any exceptions

      Euthanasia: Support with strong regulations to prevent any abuse (uncureable diease must be confirmed and patient have to request this with a clear mind)

      Gay rights: Support gay marriage, unions, anti-discriminatory laws and adoption rights

      Sexual freedom: Age of contest should be 14 abolished

      Taxes: Support progressive taxation

      Budget: Balanced budget is a damn blind myth

      Health care: Universal like in civilizied Europe :P

      Energy: Support alternative sources as well as nuclear

      Social security: Support

      Gun rights: Heavy restrictions

      Stem cell: Supports

      Drugs: Marijuana should be legalized and be distributed under state control. It's much less harmful and, beside, legalization would hurt narcobusiness

      Prostitution: Legalize; reasoning as above

      Needs work.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Vepres on January 09, 2010, 01:34:53 PM
      As I've done a lot of rethinking of my views the past few days, I figured I'd update this.

      Quote
      Social Issues

      Abortion: Personally pro-life, but at the same time I don't believe it is the government's right or responsibility to legislate morality.

      Gay Marriage: Support fully. However, I believe it will be quicker, easier, and more in line with the constitution to leave it up to the states. Look at the wave of gay marriage legalization.

      Flag Burning: Why is this even an issues? Should be legal.

      Illegal Drugs: Legalize and regulate marijuana, keep rest illegal but focus more on rehabilitation than punishment.

      Stem Cell Research: Again, don't legislate morality. It should be legal and receive some government funds.

      Patriot Act: Unconstitutional, repeal it.

      State's Rights: State's Rights have been violated. The federal government should respect them and know it's place. Don't bribe or blackmail states or their Senators

      Gun Control: Background checks are fine as are assault weapons bans. Respect the 2nd amendment however.

      Prayer in Public Schools: Oppose.

      Affirmative Action: Oppose, prosecute discrimination by corporations.

      Electoral College: Support.

      Draft: Oppose except in the most dire of circumstances.

      Death Penalty: Oppose.

      Three Strikes Laws: Oppose.

      Foreign Policy


      Iraq: Oppose. Occupying another country is a bad idea.

      Afghanistan: Would have opposed had I been old enough to care about politics at the time. That said, we have no choice but to follow through on our current course. Generally, I like how Obama is handling it.

      War on Terror: Focus on intelligence and targeted strikes against terrorist leaders instead of the occupation of foreign nations.

      Diplomacy: Always preferable to war.

      Israel: US should remain neutral in the Israeli-Palistinian Conflict, but protect Israel if attack by a foreign country.

      Torture: Stop immediately. Don't prosecute people or release photos however.

      Interventionism: Oppose, unless we're certain we will be attacked unless we intervene in another countries affairs.


      Fiscal/Economic Policy

      Health Care: Reform and modernization is needed. Oppose all forms of government sponsored health care including medicare and medicaid. First of all, it is a states responsibility, and second, they simply cost too much money. Deregulate, but be careful about said deregulation. Protect those with preexisting conditions, subsidize the insurance of those below the poverty line, remove all forms of community ratings, drastic reform of Medicare, support SCHIP, and such. However, I believe states should be responsible for most regulation, but to keep them honest allow people to buy insurance over state lines.


      Social Security: Repeal. Replace with 401k's and possibly retirement savings accounts.

      Taxes: Ideally there would be a flat tax, but the poor and middle class deserve preference when taxes are lowered if a flat tax cannot be legislated at the time. When raised, responsibility should be evenly shared.

      Education: I believe that our education system is fine in terms of quality. The so called "failing public schools" don't exist outside of the inner city and very rural areas. Studies done by groups not affiliated with the US show that we are usually in the top 5 (would cite but too lazy). It's simply government propaganda. Another thing to consider is most countries have high stakes tests in middle school to determine whether you go on to high school or a trade school. If only the top 1/3 of students in Germany (don't know the real statistic, this is just for argument's sake) are compared against all US students, who do you think will do better? Why do we have one of the highest per capita college graduation rate in the world if our k-12 schools are so bad? That said, charter schools, merit based pay, and taking on the teachers union would all help. I do like Obama's ideas, we'll see if he implements them.

      Department of Education: Keep states accountable, but other than that remove it.

      Infrastructure: Must be kept well funded and maintained. Outsource to the private sector when appropriate. State responsibility for the most part.

      Environment: Support protections; I don't mind a carbon tax (though it isn't ideal).

      Cap-and-Trade: Support, but must be more market friendly than current proposals are. More of a state responsibility, though federal government can have a role.

      Public Finance: Support to an extent, but don't limit free speech in the process.

      General Business Regulation: I go case by case, though I usually oppose. Deregulation in some areas, more in the financial sector. If it increases competition, I support regulation.

      Ballot Access: Remove stupid ballot access laws that hinder independent and third party candidates.

      Debate Access: Allow any candidate in a presidential election in debate if they consistently poll over 5% nationally. Same goes for Senate and Gubernatorial elections.

      Trade: Free trade to an extent, remove tax breaks to corporations who send jobs over seas, tariffs on countries with poor human's rights records, though not to the extent that is completely hinders trade.

      Illegal Immigration: Didn't know where to put this. Anyway, support guest worker program, oppose amnesty. I support amnesty and want to greatly reduce the difficulty of legally immigrating here, but after the process has been made far easier, illegals should not receive amnesty.

      Deficit: Support balanced budget amendment.

      Welfare/Poverty: Despite my very cold, evil rhetoric :P, I do not hate the poor. Rather, I hate the liberals who baby them. The government should provide opportunities to people and help the working poor, but save a short unemployment system and food stamps, welfare is a drain on the budget (not to mention a violation of state's rights on a national level. Welfare programs have to potential to hurt the middle-class at times and if they do they shouldn't even be proposed.

      The Stimulus Package: In hindsight, I support it, though it is not a very good bill by any means.

      Auto Bailouts: Let GM and Chrysler go under, Ford was a far superior company and the other two should've dealt with the consequences of their inferiority.

      Tax Loopholes: Taxes should be very simple, doing this would make dodging taxes far more difficult.

      General Philosophy: Individual autonomy is crucial. It creates and environment where creativity and human ingenuity can thrive. Government, big labor, and businesses are all threats, thought the former two are larger threats at the moment.

      Crossed out means I no longer believe that, bold things are new.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mint on January 09, 2010, 01:40:01 PM
      This is internally contradictory on so many levels. How can you support a massive stimulus but oppose progressive income tax, for example?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Vepres on January 09, 2010, 01:43:14 PM
      This is internally contradictory on so many levels. How can you support a massive stimulus but oppose progressive income tax, for example?

      It was a necessary evil. I think it should have been far smaller and spent far quicker. Plus it was bloated with pet projects :(


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mint on January 09, 2010, 01:46:57 PM
      Besides the obvious revenue issues supporting government stimulus implies some underlying belief in keynesian economics working... None of which supports the general economic structure you otherwise want. I think.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Obnoxiously Slutty Girly Girl on January 09, 2010, 02:17:51 PM
      As I've done a lot of rethinking of my views the past few days, I figured I'd update this.

      Quote
      Social Issues

      Abortion: Personally pro-life, but at the same time I don't believe it is the government's right or responsibility to legislate morality.

      Gay Marriage: Support fully. However, I believe it will be quicker, easier, and more in line with the constitution to leave it up to the states. Look at the wave of gay marriage legalization.

      Flag Burning: Why is this even an issues? Should be legal.

      Illegal Drugs: Legalize and regulate marijuana, keep rest illegal but focus more on rehabilitation than punishment.

      Stem Cell Research: Again, don't legislate morality. It should be legal and receive some government funds.

      Patriot Act: Unconstitutional, repeal it.

      State's Rights: State's Rights have been violated. The federal government should respect them and know it's place. Don't bribe or blackmail states or their Senators

      Gun Control: Background checks are fine as are assault weapons bans. Respect the 2nd amendment however.

      Prayer in Public Schools: Oppose.

      Affirmative Action: Oppose, prosecute discrimination by corporations.

      Electoral College: Support.

      Draft: Oppose except in the most dire of circumstances.

      Death Penalty: Oppose.

      Three Strikes Laws: Oppose.

      Foreign Policy


      Iraq: Oppose. Occupying another country is a bad idea.

      Afghanistan: Would have opposed had I been old enough to care about politics at the time. That said, we have no choice but to follow through on our current course. Generally, I like how Obama is handling it.

      War on Terror: Focus on intelligence and targeted strikes against terrorist leaders instead of the occupation of foreign nations.

      Diplomacy: Always preferable to war.

      Israel: US should remain neutral in the Israeli-Palistinian Conflict, but protect Israel if attack by a foreign country.

      Torture: Stop immediately. Don't prosecute people or release photos however.

      Interventionism: Oppose, unless we're certain we will be attacked unless we intervene in another countries affairs.


      Fiscal/Economic Policy

      Health Care: Reform and modernization is needed. Oppose all forms of government sponsored health care including medicare and medicaid. First of all, it is a states responsibility, and second, they simply cost too much money. Deregulate, but be careful about said deregulation. Protect those with preexisting conditions, subsidize the insurance of those below the poverty line, remove all forms of community ratings, drastic reform of Medicare, support SCHIP, and such. However, I believe states should be responsible for most regulation, but to keep them honest allow people to buy insurance over state lines.


      Social Security: Repeal. Replace with 401k's and possibly retirement savings accounts.

      Taxes: Ideally there would be a flat tax, but the poor and middle class deserve preference when taxes are lowered if a flat tax cannot be legislated at the time. When raised, responsibility should be evenly shared.

      Education: I believe that our education system is fine in terms of quality. The so called "failing public schools" don't exist outside of the inner city and very rural areas. Studies done by groups not affiliated with the US show that we are usually in the top 5 (would cite but too lazy). It's simply government propaganda. Another thing to consider is most countries have high stakes tests in middle school to determine whether you go on to high school or a trade school. If only the top 1/3 of students in Germany (don't know the real statistic, this is just for argument's sake) are compared against all US students, who do you think will do better? Why do we have one of the highest per capita college graduation rate in the world if our k-12 schools are so bad? That said, charter schools, merit based pay, and taking on the teachers union would all help. I do like Obama's ideas, we'll see if he implements them.

      Department of Education: Keep states accountable, but other than that remove it.

      Infrastructure: Must be kept well funded and maintained. Outsource to the private sector when appropriate. State responsibility for the most part.

      Environment: Support protections; I don't mind a carbon tax (though it isn't ideal).

      Cap-and-Trade: Support, but must be more market friendly than current proposals are. More of a state responsibility, though federal government can have a role.

      Public Finance: Support to an extent, but don't limit free speech in the process.

      General Business Regulation: I go case by case, though I usually oppose. Deregulation in some areas, more in the financial sector. If it increases competition, I support regulation.

      Ballot Access: Remove stupid ballot access laws that hinder independent and third party candidates.

      Debate Access: Allow any candidate in a presidential election in debate if they consistently poll over 5% nationally. Same goes for Senate and Gubernatorial elections.

      Trade: Free trade to an extent, remove tax breaks to corporations who send jobs over seas, tariffs on countries with poor human's rights records, though not to the extent that is completely hinders trade.

      Illegal Immigration: Didn't know where to put this. Anyway, support guest worker program, oppose amnesty. I support amnesty and want to greatly reduce the difficulty of legally immigrating here, but after the process has been made far easier, illegals should not receive amnesty.

      Deficit: Support balanced budget amendment.

      Welfare/Poverty: Despite my very cold, evil rhetoric :P, I do not hate the poor. Rather, I hate the liberals who baby them. The government should provide opportunities to people and help the working poor, but save a short unemployment system and food stamps, welfare is a drain on the budget (not to mention a violation of state's rights on a national level. Welfare programs have to potential to hurt the middle-class at times and if they do they shouldn't even be proposed.

      The Stimulus Package: In hindsight, I support it, though it is not a very good bill by any means.

      Auto Bailouts: Let GM and Chrysler go under, Ford was a far superior company and the other two should've dealt with the consequences of their inferiority.

      Tax Loopholes: Taxes should be very simple, doing this would make dodging taxes far more difficult.

      General Philosophy: Individual autonomy is crucial. It creates and environment where creativity and human ingenuity can thrive. Government, big labor, and businesses are all threats, thought the former two are larger threats at the moment.

      Crossed out means I no longer believe that, bold things are new.

      So you are done claiming to be a libertarian, right?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mechaman on January 09, 2010, 02:28:16 PM
      As I've done a lot of rethinking of my views the past few days, I figured I'd update this.

      Quote
      Social Issues

      Abortion: Personally pro-life, but at the same time I don't believe it is the government's right or responsibility to legislate morality.

      Gay Marriage: Support fully. However, I believe it will be quicker, easier, and more in line with the constitution to leave it up to the states. Look at the wave of gay marriage legalization.

      Flag Burning: Why is this even an issues? Should be legal.

      Illegal Drugs: Legalize and regulate marijuana, keep rest illegal but focus more on rehabilitation than punishment.

      Stem Cell Research: Again, don't legislate morality. It should be legal and receive some government funds.

      Patriot Act: Unconstitutional, repeal it.

      State's Rights: State's Rights have been violated. The federal government should respect them and know it's place. Don't bribe or blackmail states or their Senators

      Gun Control: Background checks are fine as are assault weapons bans. Respect the 2nd amendment however.

      Prayer in Public Schools: Oppose.

      Affirmative Action: Oppose, prosecute discrimination by corporations.

      Electoral College: Support.

      Draft: Oppose except in the most dire of circumstances.

      Death Penalty: Oppose.

      Three Strikes Laws: Oppose.

      Foreign Policy


      Iraq: Oppose. Occupying another country is a bad idea.

      Afghanistan: Would have opposed had I been old enough to care about politics at the time. That said, we have no choice but to follow through on our current course. Generally, I like how Obama is handling it.

      War on Terror: Focus on intelligence and targeted strikes against terrorist leaders instead of the occupation of foreign nations.

      Diplomacy: Always preferable to war.

      Israel: US should remain neutral in the Israeli-Palistinian Conflict, but protect Israel if attack by a foreign country.

      Torture: Stop immediately. Don't prosecute people or release photos however.

      Interventionism: Oppose, unless we're certain we will be attacked unless we intervene in another countries affairs.


      Fiscal/Economic Policy

      Health Care: Reform and modernization is needed. Oppose all forms of government sponsored health care including medicare and medicaid. First of all, it is a states responsibility, and second, they simply cost too much money. Deregulate, but be careful about said deregulation. Protect those with preexisting conditions, subsidize the insurance of those below the poverty line, remove all forms of community ratings, drastic reform of Medicare, support SCHIP, and such. However, I believe states should be responsible for most regulation, but to keep them honest allow people to buy insurance over state lines.


      Social Security: Repeal. Replace with 401k's and possibly retirement savings accounts.

      Taxes: Ideally there would be a flat tax, but the poor and middle class deserve preference when taxes are lowered if a flat tax cannot be legislated at the time. When raised, responsibility should be evenly shared.

      Education: I believe that our education system is fine in terms of quality. The so called "failing public schools" don't exist outside of the inner city and very rural areas. Studies done by groups not affiliated with the US show that we are usually in the top 5 (would cite but too lazy). It's simply government propaganda. Another thing to consider is most countries have high stakes tests in middle school to determine whether you go on to high school or a trade school. If only the top 1/3 of students in Germany (don't know the real statistic, this is just for argument's sake) are compared against all US students, who do you think will do better? Why do we have one of the highest per capita college graduation rate in the world if our k-12 schools are so bad? That said, charter schools, merit based pay, and taking on the teachers union would all help. I do like Obama's ideas, we'll see if he implements them.

      Department of Education: Keep states accountable, but other than that remove it.

      Infrastructure: Must be kept well funded and maintained. Outsource to the private sector when appropriate. State responsibility for the most part.

      Environment: Support protections; I don't mind a carbon tax (though it isn't ideal).

      Cap-and-Trade: Support, but must be more market friendly than current proposals are. More of a state responsibility, though federal government can have a role.

      Public Finance: Support to an extent, but don't limit free speech in the process.

      General Business Regulation: I go case by case, though I usually oppose. Deregulation in some areas, more in the financial sector. If it increases competition, I support regulation.

      Ballot Access: Remove stupid ballot access laws that hinder independent and third party candidates.

      Debate Access: Allow any candidate in a presidential election in debate if they consistently poll over 5% nationally. Same goes for Senate and Gubernatorial elections.

      Trade: Free trade to an extent, remove tax breaks to corporations who send jobs over seas, tariffs on countries with poor human's rights records, though not to the extent that is completely hinders trade.

      Illegal Immigration: Didn't know where to put this. Anyway, support guest worker program, oppose amnesty. I support amnesty and want to greatly reduce the difficulty of legally immigrating here, but after the process has been made far easier, illegals should not receive amnesty.

      Deficit: Support balanced budget amendment.

      Welfare/Poverty: Despite my very cold, evil rhetoric :P, I do not hate the poor. Rather, I hate the liberals who baby them. The government should provide opportunities to people and help the working poor, but save a short unemployment system and food stamps, welfare is a drain on the budget (not to mention a violation of state's rights on a national level. Welfare programs have to potential to hurt the middle-class at times and if they do they shouldn't even be proposed.

      The Stimulus Package: In hindsight, I support it, though it is not a very good bill by any means.

      Auto Bailouts: Let GM and Chrysler go under, Ford was a far superior company and the other two should've dealt with the consequences of their inferiority.

      Tax Loopholes: Taxes should be very simple, doing this would make dodging taxes far more difficult.

      General Philosophy: Individual autonomy is crucial. It creates and environment where creativity and human ingenuity can thrive. Government, big labor, and businesses are all threats, thought the former two are larger threats at the moment.

      Crossed out means I no longer believe that, bold things are new.

      So you are done claiming to be a libertarian, right?
      A WINNER IS YOU! In other words I agree and you, despite what I perceive as not quite libertarian positions, are probably ten times the libertarian Vepres is
      (not sarcasm by the way)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Vepres on January 09, 2010, 02:55:33 PM
      Besides the obvious revenue issues supporting government stimulus implies some underlying belief in keynesian economics working... None of which supports the general economic structure you otherwise want. I think.

      Keynesian economics are useful in times of extraordinary crisis. Generally, the only two instances I would have supported stimulus are the 1929 and 2008 crashes, respectively. I would not have supported stimulus in, say, 2003 or 1982 (though Reagan's tax cuts were in and of themselves a good thing).

      Of course, Bush's use of Keynesian economics contributed to the crisis. However, an infusion of capital into the economy was, ironically, necessary to prevent a complete collapse. Now, though, reform is needed or else we'll fall into the same pattern.

      As I've done a lot of rethinking of my views the past few days, I figured I'd update this.

      Quote
      Social Issues

      Abortion: Personally pro-life, but at the same time I don't believe it is the government's right or responsibility to legislate morality.

      Gay Marriage: Support fully. However, I believe it will be quicker, easier, and more in line with the constitution to leave it up to the states. Look at the wave of gay marriage legalization.

      Flag Burning: Why is this even an issues? Should be legal.

      Illegal Drugs: Legalize and regulate marijuana, keep rest illegal but focus more on rehabilitation than punishment.

      Stem Cell Research: Again, don't legislate morality. It should be legal and receive some government funds.

      Patriot Act: Unconstitutional, repeal it.

      State's Rights: State's Rights have been violated. The federal government should respect them and know it's place. Don't bribe or blackmail states or their Senators

      Gun Control: Background checks are fine as are assault weapons bans. Respect the 2nd amendment however.

      Prayer in Public Schools: Oppose.

      Affirmative Action: Oppose, prosecute discrimination by corporations.

      Electoral College: Support.

      Draft: Oppose except in the most dire of circumstances.

      Death Penalty: Oppose.

      Three Strikes Laws: Oppose.

      Foreign Policy


      Iraq: Oppose. Occupying another country is a bad idea.

      Afghanistan: Would have opposed had I been old enough to care about politics at the time. That said, we have no choice but to follow through on our current course. Generally, I like how Obama is handling it.

      War on Terror: Focus on intelligence and targeted strikes against terrorist leaders instead of the occupation of foreign nations.

      Diplomacy: Always preferable to war.

      Israel: US should remain neutral in the Israeli-Palistinian Conflict, but protect Israel if attack by a foreign country.

      Torture: Stop immediately. Don't prosecute people or release photos however.

      Interventionism: Oppose, unless we're certain we will be attacked unless we intervene in another countries affairs.


      Fiscal/Economic Policy

      Health Care: Reform and modernization is needed. Oppose all forms of government sponsored health care including medicare and medicaid. First of all, it is a states responsibility, and second, they simply cost too much money. Deregulate, but be careful about said deregulation. Protect those with preexisting conditions, subsidize the insurance of those below the poverty line, remove all forms of community ratings, drastic reform of Medicare, support SCHIP, and such. However, I believe states should be responsible for most regulation, but to keep them honest allow people to buy insurance over state lines.


      Social Security: Repeal. Replace with 401k's and possibly retirement savings accounts.

      Taxes: Ideally there would be a flat tax, but the poor and middle class deserve preference when taxes are lowered if a flat tax cannot be legislated at the time. When raised, responsibility should be evenly shared.

      Education: I believe that our education system is fine in terms of quality. The so called "failing public schools" don't exist outside of the inner city and very rural areas. Studies done by groups not affiliated with the US show that we are usually in the top 5 (would cite but too lazy). It's simply government propaganda. Another thing to consider is most countries have high stakes tests in middle school to determine whether you go on to high school or a trade school. If only the top 1/3 of students in Germany (don't know the real statistic, this is just for argument's sake) are compared against all US students, who do you think will do better? Why do we have one of the highest per capita college graduation rate in the world if our k-12 schools are so bad? That said, charter schools, merit based pay, and taking on the teachers union would all help. I do like Obama's ideas, we'll see if he implements them.

      Department of Education: Keep states accountable, but other than that remove it.

      Infrastructure: Must be kept well funded and maintained. Outsource to the private sector when appropriate. State responsibility for the most part.

      Environment: Support protections; I don't mind a carbon tax (though it isn't ideal).

      Cap-and-Trade: Support, but must be more market friendly than current proposals are. More of a state responsibility, though federal government can have a role.

      Public Finance: Support to an extent, but don't limit free speech in the process.

      General Business Regulation: I go case by case, though I usually oppose. Deregulation in some areas, more in the financial sector. If it increases competition, I support regulation.

      Ballot Access: Remove stupid ballot access laws that hinder independent and third party candidates.

      Debate Access: Allow any candidate in a presidential election in debate if they consistently poll over 5% nationally. Same goes for Senate and Gubernatorial elections.

      Trade: Free trade to an extent, remove tax breaks to corporations who send jobs over seas, tariffs on countries with poor human's rights records, though not to the extent that is completely hinders trade.

      Illegal Immigration: Didn't know where to put this. Anyway, support guest worker program, oppose amnesty. I support amnesty and want to greatly reduce the difficulty of legally immigrating here, but after the process has been made far easier, illegals should not receive amnesty.

      Deficit: Support balanced budget amendment.

      Welfare/Poverty: Despite my very cold, evil rhetoric :P, I do not hate the poor. Rather, I hate the liberals who baby them. The government should provide opportunities to people and help the working poor, but save a short unemployment system and food stamps, welfare is a drain on the budget (not to mention a violation of state's rights on a national level. Welfare programs have to potential to hurt the middle-class at times and if they do they shouldn't even be proposed.

      The Stimulus Package: In hindsight, I support it, though it is not a very good bill by any means.

      Auto Bailouts: Let GM and Chrysler go under, Ford was a far superior company and the other two should've dealt with the consequences of their inferiority.

      Tax Loopholes: Taxes should be very simple, doing this would make dodging taxes far more difficult.

      General Philosophy: Individual autonomy is crucial. It creates and environment where creativity and human ingenuity can thrive. Government, big labor, and businesses are all threats, thought the former two are larger threats at the moment.

      Crossed out means I no longer believe that, bold things are new.

      So you are done claiming to be a libertarian, right?

      I've finally fit into the perfect spot where both libertarians and non-libertarians hate me ;D


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Vepres on January 09, 2010, 02:59:25 PM
      Vepres can't claim he doesn't hate the poor yet support amnesty at the same time. One of the claims he made must be a lie.

      I can't have compassion for non-American poor too?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mint on January 09, 2010, 03:32:26 PM
      Vepres can't claim he doesn't hate the poor yet support amnesty at the same time. One of the claims he made must be a lie.

      Do I hate the poor? :P


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mint on January 09, 2010, 03:41:12 PM
      Keynesian economics are useful in times of extraordinary crisis. Generally, the only two instances I would have supported stimulus are the 1929 and 2008 crashes, respectively. I would not have supported stimulus in, say, 2003 or 1982 (though Reagan's tax cuts were in and of themselves a good thing).

      It either works or it doesn't. Either you want a robust public sector to weather the economy, or you don't because you find that counterproductive. I may totally disagree with people like beet, lief, jfern, marokai, etc. on this matter but at least they hold consistent views in regards to what sort of economic model they want.

      Quote
      Of course, Bush's use of Keynesian economics contributed to the crisis. However, an infusion of capital into the economy was, ironically, necessary to prevent a complete collapse. Now, though, reform is needed or else we'll fall into the same pattern.
      Ok.. why?

      I've already stated before why I think a complete collapse is inevitable - quadrillion derivatives market going bust (not just real estate), open talk of the dollar being dropped as a reserve currency by OPEC and brazil/russia/china/etc., zombie banks being allowed to grow thanks to the bail outs, etc. but I'd like to see your reasoning here.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Marokai Backbeat on January 09, 2010, 03:54:20 PM
      Vepres, you really need to make your mind up what you are here.

      This is probably the only time we'll agree on something.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Marokai Backbeat on January 09, 2010, 03:57:05 PM
      Vepres, you really need to make your mind up what you are here.

      This is probably the only time we'll agree on something.

      You mean apart from gay marriage? And abortion?

      You know what I meant. :P


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mint on January 09, 2010, 04:01:00 PM
      Vepres can't claim he doesn't hate the poor yet support amnesty at the same time. One of the claims he made must be a lie.

      Do I hate the poor? :P

      Since when do you support amnesty?

      I haven't pulled a Lou Dobbs yet.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Obnoxiously Slutty Girly Girl on January 09, 2010, 04:11:49 PM
      Vepres, you really need to make your mind up what you are here.

      This is probably the only time we'll agree on something.

      You mean apart from gay marriage? And abortion?

      You support state recognition of marriage and government fundings for abortion?

      Our PRINCIPLES are the same. Maybe not our method.

      You can't have the same principles as someone who lacks them altogether.

      Indeed, the individual in question acts only out of an instinctive self-interest, not due to possessing anything resembling principles.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Obnoxiously Slutty Girly Girl on January 09, 2010, 04:21:09 PM
      Keynesian economics are useful in times of extraordinary crisis. Generally, the only two instances I would have supported stimulus are the 1929 and 2008 crashes, respectively. I would not have supported stimulus in, say, 2003 or 1982 (though Reagan's tax cuts were in and of themselves a good thing).

      It either works or it doesn't. Either you want a robust public sector to weather the economy, or you don't because you find that counterproductive. I may totally disagree with people like beet, lief, jfern, marokai, etc. on this matter but at least they hold consistent views in regards to what sort of economic model they want.

      Quote
      Of course, Bush's use of Keynesian economics contributed to the crisis. However, an infusion of capital into the economy was, ironically, necessary to prevent a complete collapse. Now, though, reform is needed or else we'll fall into the same pattern.
      Ok.. why?

      I've already stated before why I think a complete collapse is inevitable - quadrillion derivatives market going bust (not just real estate), open talk of the dollar being dropped as a reserve currency by OPEC and brazil/russia/china/etc., zombie banks being allowed to grow thanks to the bail outs, etc. but I'd like to see your reasoning here.

      Still waiting for a response I see.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mint on January 09, 2010, 04:29:10 PM
      Well, I don't mind if Vepres takes his time here. Normally I never question peoples views given what this thread is but I'm honestly sort of confused.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Obnoxiously Slutty Girly Girl on January 09, 2010, 04:30:27 PM
      Well, I don't mind if Vepres takes his time here. Normally I never question peoples views given what this thread is but I'm honestly sort of confused.

      Indeed, aren't we all?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: SvenssonRS on January 12, 2010, 10:32:37 PM
      Social: Mostly Libertarian

      Abortion: Pro-choice.

      Gay marriage: Personally support, and support keeping it a state issue.

      Flag burning: Support banning it. Anyone who hates the country that much, I feel, should just leave it.

      Illegal drugs: Support marijuana as a medical remedy. Believe in rehabilitation over punishment.

      Stem-Cell Research: Support fully, but believe in holding off funding until better economic times.

      Patriot Act: Repeal it like repealing is going out of style.

      State's Rights: Support fully and without question.

      Gun Control: Entirely against, with the exception of background checks.

      Prayer in Public Schools: Oppose personally, but again, state issue. If Alabama and Oklahoma want it, let them have it.

      Electoral College: Support.

      Draft: Only when absolutely necessary.

      Death Penalty: Support in extreme cases. If we'd just fried Manson when we first had the chance, taxpayers would be all the wealthier.

      Three Strikes Laws: Oppose.

      Foreign Policy - Fairly Leftist

      Iraq: Shouldn't have even gone there.

      Afghanistan: Is becoming a disaster. We're still not winning, Mr. President.

      Iran: Should not be negotiated with so long as Amadinejad is in power. Support the protesters to...somewhat scary extents. Another story.

      War on Terror: Is a very poor term, really. Intelligence and targeted strikes on leaders should prevail.

      Diplomacy and Trade: Support working diplomacy and trade with friendly nations.

      Torture: Stop waterboarding, without question.

      Interventionism: Oppose unless the country is in immediate danger of attack.

      Fiscal/Economic Policy: Centrist

      Health Care: Reform is needed, but a government-run system would be crushingly costly in the end. However, we do need to protect those with preexisting conditions.

      Social Security: Support as is, because it works.

      Taxes: Lower and simplify taxes, plain and simple. The latter would make loopholes much more difficult.

      Business: Support small, independent business. Corporations can fend for themselves and if they go under, frankly, who cares.

      Welfare: Support efforts to help the working poor, so long as they don't start sinking the budget.

      Stimulus and Bailouts: Were an absolute disaster despite good intentions. Support not repeating the mistake.

      Deficit: Support balanced budget.

      Other: Centrist

      Education: Needs some reform, but the current system isn't as terrible as some say. Support homeschooling without question or doubt, due to being homeschooled.

      Dept. of Education: Needs to actually do something useful.

      Infrastructure: Keep funded and maintained; mainly the state and local government's job.

      Environment: Support wildlife protections, and a practical approach to global warming.

      Illegal Immigration: Support efforts to make legal immigration more accessible.

      Ballot Access: Support allowance of access to all major third parties.

      Debate Access: Allow any candidate - Presidential or Congressional - full debate access if they poll more than 15% in their respective race.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Sam Spade on January 17, 2010, 01:54:53 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: I'm staunchly pro-life, but support exceptions when the mother's life is in danger.
      Separation of church and state: Those words appear nowhere in the Constitution. I support freedom OF religion and not freedom FROM religion.
      Gay marriage: Marriage should be between a man and a woman. I support civil unions and domestic partnerships.
      Affirmative action: Reverse discrimination.
      Hate crimes: Not what the libs pass.
      Gun control: Strongly oppose.
      Death penalty: Support it for 1rst degrees murders, and eve3n serial rapists who emotionally take the lives of others, but not for statutory rape.
      Flag burning: I strongly oppose it personally, but whether or not it's a 1st Amendment right is questionable.
      Euthanasia: Not really.
      Prostitution: Legalize it for the age of 18.
      Immigration: I support legal immigration 100%. For illegal immigration: build a wall and
      Drugs: Against it.
      I support almost all sexuality when it's part of nature and not other preventable addictions  such as drugs.

      Economic Issues

      Taxes: Very low taxes.
      Trade: I believe free trade grows our economy.
      Spending: Gov't. Federal only for national security and states for roads and some other areas that the constitution grants, no more.
      Welfare: Crap.
      Education: Confused on this issue.
      Regulations: Don't regulate excessively, but make sure that a Madoff scandal doesn't happen again.

      Foreign Policy

      Military Involvement:
      Support! Especially if they are undemocratic and are supporting terrorism
      United Nations: Pretty useless.
      Israel: I support Israel 1000%.

      You forgot to include:

      Quote
      Rape: Support!  Especially when it involves fat women and tapioca pudding!!!


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mint on January 17, 2010, 03:33:48 PM
      lol


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: fezzyfestoon on January 18, 2010, 04:02:00 AM
      1. Stop taking the game of politics so seriously.
      2. Stop trying to control everyone's lives.
      3. Spend tax-payers' money as if it were your own.

      That's pretty much the gist of it.  There are of course some nuances, but none that are significant enough to note.  They fall within those three pretty well.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The Age Wave on January 28, 2010, 07:25:25 PM
      Abortion: Pro-life
      Affirmative action: Oppose in most cases
      Alternative Energies: Strongly, strongly, strongly support.
      Social Security: Needs to be privatized. I think personal savings that can be stored in banks, earn interest, and help provide credit to others will work to stabilize the financial systems and social security is impossible to stabilize.
      Bailouts: I oppose them on principle.
      Unions: I support unions, but there needs to be a fair balance struck.
      Gay marriage: Support.
      Gays in the military: Support.
      Taxes: Raise taxes to pay off the debt. Don't raise taxes and spend more.
      Healthcare: Public option, please.
      Free trade: Support with Canada and Mexico and the EU. Oppose with China and other rogue nations.
      Iran: Economic sanctions.
      Israel: Don't support their militarism, but also oppose any attempts to divide Israel.
      Education: School vouchers, increased spending and construction of more public universities.
      Iraq: Leave. Now.
      Afghanistan: Get in and out as quickly as we can. We don't need to spend a century there.
      Death penalty: Support.
      Drug legalization: Only marijuana.
      Illegal immigration: Build a wall. Enforce existing laws. No amnesty.
      Prostitution: Oppose brothels and organized prostitution. If two people that know each other pay for sex, though, I don't really see how that is different from buying the girl dinner (well, it is, but it's still spending money to get the sex).
      Guns: 2nd amendment forever.

      That's all I can think of right now :P


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The Age Wave on January 28, 2010, 07:28:07 PM
      I do feel pretty estranged from the current Democratic party.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on January 29, 2010, 03:49:12 AM
      Abortion: Pro-life
      Affirmative action: Oppose in most cases
      Alternative Energies: Strongly, strongly, strongly support.
      Social Security: Needs to be privatized. I think personal savings that can be stored in banks, earn interest, and help provide credit to others will work to stabilize the financial systems and social security is impossible to stabilize.
      Bailouts: I oppose them on principle.
      Unions: I support unions, but there needs to be a fair balance struck.
      Gay marriage: Support.
      Gays in the military: Support.
      Taxes: Raise taxes to pay off the debt. Don't raise taxes and spend more.
      Healthcare: Public option, please.
      Free trade: Support with Canada and Mexico and the EU. Oppose with China and other rogue nations.
      Iran: Economic sanctions.
      Israel: Don't support their militarism, but also oppose any attempts to divide Israel.
      Education: School vouchers, increased spending and construction of more public universities.
      Iraq: Leave. Now.
      Afghanistan: Get in and out as quickly as we can. We don't need to spend a century there.
      Death penalty: Support.
      Drug legalization: Only marijuana. Everything.
      Illegal immigration: Build a wall. Enforce existing laws. No amnesty.
      Prostitution: Oppose brothels and organized prostitution. If two people that know each other pay for sex, though, I don't really see how that is different from buying the girl dinner (well, it is, but it's still spending money to get the sex).
      Guns: 2nd amendment forever.

      That's all I can think of right now :P

      Not too bad.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Jensen on January 30, 2010, 02:58:36 PM
      Ideology: Moderate to liberal

      Social Issues

      Basic Ideas: Libertarianish, pro-freedom

      Civil Liberties: End the Patriot Act, DHS, the Anti Terrorism Act of \'96, National Security Letters, etc.
      Abortion: Keep legal under all circumstances except partial-birth.
      Gay Rights: I think this has been framed wrongly because rights belong to individuals not groups. Now of course I support gay adoption, military service, etc. there\'s no reason not to besides ignorance and bigotry.
      Secularism: I don\'t support blue laws or teaching creationism. On the other hand people should be able to express their religious views/faith how the want and removing things like religious icons that have been near public buildings for decades is stupid.
      Marriage: The government shouldn\'t be involved in \'marriage.\' Let individuals draw up their own contracts and stop favoring one group or another on taxes.
      Affirmative Action: Discriminating for or against minorities is unconstitutional.
      Gun rights: Repeal all gun control legislation enacted since 1934.
      Death Penalty: Entirely against, even for \'enemy combatants\'.
      Censorship: The FCC and \'obscenity\' laws make no sense. Abolish them.
      Flag burning: Is not speech, and should be banned. There are other, more effective ways to get that point across without starting needles fires.
      Hate crimes: Support stronger legislation.
      Hate speech: Oppose restricting since that\'s unconstitutional and sets a horrendous precedent.
      Smoking: I support smoking restrictions for public places.
      Alcohol consumption: Keep at 21 for purchasing. Make consumption legal at 18.
      Euthanasia: Legal when patient is of sound mind.
      Drugs: Legalize marijuana and crack down on the rest.
      Gambling: Illegal. Gambling serves only to hurt the poor financially.
      Prostitution: Illegal for brothels and organized prostitution. Legalize if it is in a casual setting.
      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Increase funding.
      Immigration: Create a guest worker program but make sure our laws are enforced on both borders.
      Language: English should be the official language of the US.

      Economic Issues

      Basic Ideas: Moderate and responsible

      Taxes: Never raise taxes unless accompanied by spending cuts. Do not give tax breaks to the ultrawealthy.
      Bailouts: Against.
      Employers and Employees: Unions and striking should be allowed, but regulated. No one should be forced to join a union.
      Free trade: Make sure American industries are competitive on a global scale. No free trade with nations whose regulations are insufficient and labor and environmental standards are subpar.
      Spending: Keep spending under control, pay off debt, and cut waste.
      Social Security: Privatize through use of annuities, private saving accounts, etc. and phase out the old system. Your retirement should really be your concern.
      Space Program: We have a lot to gain from this potentially. Open space up to the market more and allow for some mining of resources like Helium-3.
      Welfare: There needs to be a safety net, but make sure the funding  is getting to those who actually need it.
      Healthcare: We need universal health care.
      Education: End NCLB. Allow local districts more authority.
      Minimum Wage: Keep as is.
      Regulation: Simplify and enforce. Regulations should focus primarily on public health and prohibiting wild speculation (e.g. naked derivatives). In general small business is vastly over regulated. If anything, maybe regulation is less necessary than simply realizing just how much power  \'charters\' give the government over abusive corporations...
      Infrastructure: Modernize and invest in new methods.
      Energy Policy: End dependence on foreign oil. Promote research for renewable resources.

      Foreign Issues

      Basic Ideas: Non-interventionism

      United Nations: Stay in the UN.
      Iraq & Afghanistan: Pull out immediately.
      Iran: Let Israel and co deal with it if they\'re so worried.
      North Korea: Phase out troops at the border and end all aid. We\'ve been there for over 50 years, and the majority of South Koreans want us out. It\'s time to go.
      Israel: Shouldn\'t get any aid either. Beyond that, Israel for better or worse is a sovereign nation now.
      Military Involvement: Attack only if attacked or directly threatened.
      Military Budget: Massive cuts. End no bid contracts, introduce far greater transparency, close down hundreds of bases. \'National Defense\' should be just that, defensive.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on January 30, 2010, 03:09:22 PM
      Why do you support a flag burning ban? Surely that is freedom of expression.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Jensen on January 30, 2010, 03:13:06 PM
      Why do you support a flag burning ban? Surely that is freedom of expression.

      No, flag burning is just as stupid as leaf burning or arson. There is no need to burn things. The fumes are dangerous, the potential for a fire spreading is not worth the risk, and it's just another way for people to make a big deal out of something that isn't speech or expression.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Хahar 🤔 on February 02, 2010, 08:33:26 PM
      So, you support banning the lighting of fires?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Ban my account ffs! on February 04, 2010, 08:58:19 PM
      General philosophy: Liberal

      Abortion: Should be legal during the first two trimesters.  Only to save the life of the mother thereafter.  Schools should have comprehensive sex ed. that includes education about contraceptives and alternatives to abortions.
      Separation of church and state: Just as the state has no business meddling with church affairs, the church has no business meddling in state affairs.
      Gay Marriage: Gays should enjoy the same benefits and responsibilities of traditional marriage as recognized by the state; however, no church should be forced to marry anybody they don't want to.  The opposite holds true as well.
      Affirmative Action: The best affirmative action is to reduce educational inequalities in our public schools so that every child has the skills needed to compete for good jobs.  Direct affirmative action was appropriate at one time, but I think we're beyond that in most situations.
      Age of Consent: Age of consent should be 16.
      Gun rights: Generally supportive, though we should have a waiting period and background checks.  
      Death Penalty: Strongly oppose
      Censorship: Strongly oppose, though I do support rating systems so that parents and people in general know exactly what they're buying/seeing/hearing/etc.  But it should be no more than that:  A rating system.
      Flag burning:  Should be legal in all cases.  I don't see flag burning as treachery, but a symbolic airing of grievances against the state.  It shouldn't be done lightly.
      Smoking:  No smoking in public places, though we should allow for smoking rooms in private businesses (if they're separate).  
      Alcohol consumption: Legal age should be lowered to 16 to purchase wine and beer and 19 to purchase liquor (to keep liquor out of high schools).  Alcohol consumption in the presence of parents should be allowed at any age.  Get rid of public intoxication laws and allow drinking in public.
      Euthanasia: Support in cases of terminal illness.
      Drugs: Support legalization of marijuana and other "soft" drugs with state regulation as with tobacco and alcohol.  Money raised from the taxes should go to support recovery/rehabilitation programs.
      Gambling: I support it, but I recognize the help it has given Native American tribes in lifting many out of abject poverty.
      Prostitution: Leave this to the states.  I support regulated prostitution.
      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Strongly support.
      Immigration:  We need to make legal immigration much easier.  No quotas, though immigration could be reduced if need be.
      Illegal Immigration:  Give them a chance to become legal immigrants through an easier, reformed system.  Those that fail should be sent home.


      Economic Issues

      General Philosophy: Liberal

      Taxes: Keep corporate taxes, but lower the rates.  Cut business taxes for small businesses drastically.  Institute a progressive income tax with the largest chunk of government revenue coming from this source.  Have a highly progressive capital gains tax that taxes excessive capital gains while promoting investment among Americans in general.
      Employers and Employees: I support the right for unions to form without intimidation by either side, overseen and those rights guaranteed by an objective mix of union and business.  Unions that strike legitimately and legally should be protected from being fired as long as negotiations are made in good faith and the strike doesn't seriously harm the public in general.
      Free trade: I support fair trade.  We need to hold our trading partners to the same standards that we hold our own workers.
      Spending:  Institute pay-go.  Cut non-personnel and war related defense expenditures by 10% across the board.  Scrub the rest of the budget.  Ask each department to come up with 10% savings.  Identify any programs among those 10% that could be reformed and cut the rest.
      Social Security: Lift the cap on payroll taxes.  Increase the retirement age to 70 over a period of years.  Increase benefits for the poorest while reducing them for the richest.
      Space Program: Support.  The government should partner with private interests with the government focusing on research and initial training.  Allow private enterprise to take over non-close orbit space travel with government subsidies to begin.
      Welfare:  Full, generous benefits for the non-working disabled and single parents with young children.  Give rent/mortgage assistance to the needy and utility aid as well.  Make cash benefits dependent on searching for work or furthering your education.  Fully subsidize tuition for the poor at public colleges and universities.
      Healthcare: We need strong regulation of the private insurance industry when it comes to paperwork.  There should be simplified procedures that are uniform across the industry.  There should be a cap on overhead costs as well.  All children under 18 and college students under 25 as well as the disabled and indigent and those over 65 should be covered by a single payer government run insurance program.  Leave private coverage to healthy, working adults.  Insurance exchanges should be part of the answer as well with community insurance co-ops an option like credit unions vs. banks.
      Education: At the federal level:  Uniform basic standards of learning for the entire nation.  This includes math and science standards and applicable social studies and english/grammar.  The states reserve the right to fine tune and change these standards where deemed necessary.  The federal government should provide equalization money among states as well as funding for special education.  I support an equalization system in the states funded by income taxes so that property poor school districts have the resources to give their students a world class education.  Give ultimate authority to the local school districts when it comes to how they spend money.
      Minimum Wage: We need a federal minimum wage that is tied to the cost of living.  States reserve the right to go above and beyond the federal minimum.
      Regulation:  In some markets, regulation is a must.  We need a well regulated banking industry as well as food and drug safety.  We also need strong environmental protection.  In most cases, the freer the market, the freer the people is sound... but basic necessities need to be regulated as to promote the health and wellbeing of the public.
      Infrastructure: First and foremost we need to rethink how we do transportation in this country.  Gas taxes need to reflect a percentage of the gas price per gallon.  We need to bring our roads and bridges into good condition, replacing the outdated, and expanding and providing transit alternatives for congestion relief.  We need to invest heavily into a world class high speed rail system that connects all of the major cities in this country at speeds up to 220mph.  While it is not feasible to take a train from NY to LA, it would make sense to take a train from NY to Cleveland or Cleveland to Chicago or Atlanta to DC or Miami to Charlotte.  Once we've got a national high speed network, we can focus on regional and local lines.  The federal government needs to undertake this.  We should also be funding local transit projects in cities.  We also need to update and expand our energy infrastructure.  It is clearer and clearer that electric cars are going to be the future.  We don't have the capacity in our power grid to charge cars for everybody in the nation.  We need to be prepared.  We also need to heavily invest in revamping our dams and other infrastructure so we don't have failures that can cost lives.
      Energy Policy: We need to massively increase nuclear power.  This must be the backbone of our energy requirements while we phase out coal and natural gas and develop wind, solar, and biomass technologies.  While nuclear isn't renewable and it has its dangers, it is incredibly efficient.  Old coal stations should be replaced with nuclear and newer, cleaner coal plants should be used as peak use plants.
      Environment:  We need sustainability.  We need to require sustainable forestry practices that promote healthy forests for wildlife while meeting our demands for wood products.  We also need sustainable grassland programs.  If people would eat more buffalo/bison and less beef, it would greatly improve the prairies.  This is because the diet of Bison are different than cattle and the American prairie has evolved with bison so that they coexist nicely.  Eating bison instead of beef is also healthier as bison is lower in fat and cholesterol, so it's a win-win.. while bison is still very flavorful.  We also need to strictly regulate our fisheries so they are sustainable as well.  End bottom trawling.  Government should lower subsidies on corn and soybeans and raise them on fresh fruits and vegetables so that everybody can afford healthier food choices.  Also, for every ounce of meat you forego, you could eat 10 ounces of vegetables and have the same environmental impact.  

      We need to focus on having the smallest impact possible while maintaining a high quality of life.  We need to realize that quality of life isn't borne out of "bigger is always better" and "More is always better"... but that we should focus on family and community as the foundations of good quality of life.  If we can do this, the environment will greatly benefit.




      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Ban my account ffs! on February 04, 2010, 08:59:09 PM
      Foreign Issues

      General Philosophy: I don't know.

      Democracy and Trade: I support both, but movements towards democracy should be home grown.  We should assist if they ask.
      United Nations: The idea of an international body is important in today's world.  It should not hold any legal jurisdiction, however.
      Iraq: Strongly opposed to our invasion of Iraq, though if peace and stability can remain in this fledgling democracy, I won't deny the victory there.
      Israel: Support two state proposal.  No economic or military aid except for defense in extreme situations.  We were instrumental in putting them there, we should help them out when they really need it.  Palestinians and Jewish Israelis will have to learn to coexist.
      Patriot Act: Strongly Oppose
      Torture: Strongly Oppose.  It is inhumane and ineffective.
      Military Involvement:  Oppose in most circumstances.  We need to focus more on our own defense.  Return the National Guard to being the national guard... so they can respond to domestic crises when needed.
      North American Union: A union that sets up free trade and free travel amongst the nations is a good idea.  Also, legislation that affects all parties could be promoted by a stronger union, but ultimately these proposed laws would have to be approved by the legislative bodies of each respective country in order to maintain national sovereignty.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: hawkeye59 on February 04, 2010, 09:33:39 PM
      Abortion: Pro-Choice
      Iraq: Anti-War
      Israel: Gotta agree with Snowguy.
      Gay Marraige: Pro.
      Flag Bruning: Legal in all cases.
      Death Penalty: Strongly Oppose.
      Health Care: Pro-Public Option.
      Environment: Strong legislation to lower pollution and stop global warming.
      Gun Control: Pro.
      Patriot Act: STRONGLY oppose.
      Social Security: Support.
      Stem Cell Research: Support




      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Jensen on February 04, 2010, 09:34:29 PM
      So, you support banning the lighting of fires?

      No.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Psychic Octopus on February 04, 2010, 09:38:33 PM
      Gerald Ford 76, why are you a Republican?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Хahar 🤔 on February 04, 2010, 10:17:32 PM

      I see no difference.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Jensen on February 05, 2010, 01:21:01 AM
      Gerald Ford 76, why are you a Republican?

      I am a renegade. :)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on February 24, 2010, 05:54:48 PM
      Free trade is 'yucky'? I think you'd find a majority of economicists disagree with you there.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mechaman on February 25, 2010, 12:04:26 AM
      Social issues: Immoral Antigovernment Libertine

      Abortion: Prochoice
      Immigration: Pro-Amnesty
      Marriage: Get the government out of it completely. It shouldn't be you and me and the state of Nevada, it should be you and me and if permitting, about 5 other people. Everybody should be able to marry anyone or anything in multiples if they want to. Love makes people do crazy things, embrace it.
      Flag Burning: Support it, especially if it's cold outside
      Free Speech: Support completely and get rid of all censorship laws. This includes no fines on networks for bad language and "fair speech" laws.
      War on Drugs: End it. We should be throwing in child molesters and wife beaters, not crackheads. Plus, legalize drugs to spur the snack vendor industry.
      Affirmative Action: Endorses collective racism. Reinforces stereotype that some people are collectively stupider than another.
      Gun control: Gun control is a backwards draconian statist policy. Why should I support something the KKK supported to disarm blacks in the late 1800s? The idea that we can still be free when only the coercive arms of government are armed is like saying the sheep would be safer sleeping with wolves.
      Death Penalty: What? Being another dude's butt buddy for the rest of his life isn't enough? If I was a psycho serial killer I think I would rather go to prison for 3 months and then get injected over being butt humped for the next 50 years. That's why I'm against the death penalty, I think the threat of eternal butt rape is alot more of a deterent than "we'll friggin kill you!" Plus, if there are no death penalties it's impossible to accidently kill the wrong man. What the hell? I don't like the death penalty because it's wrong, alright?
      Voluntary Euthanasia: Totally legalize it. If you want to kill yourself it's a voluntary action (there's my answer for suicide). If you want someone else to do it, sign a release waiver on your life and have the ender sign also with a third party witness to prove it's legit for this person to kill you.
      Draft: Get rid of it, NOW.
      Patriot Act, domestic spying, etc.: Get rid of it. The government has no right to be spying our phone lines. There is a correct way to do searches, it's called A WARRANT. All you have to do is fill out a friggin piece of paper to search somebody. Why is the government so lazy it can't even sign a piece of paper before searching somebody?
      Stem Cell Research: We have to use those fetuses for something.....
      States Rights: The power of the states should be a little more respected. For example, if a state passes drug legalization the federal government shouldn't overrule it.
      Three Strikes Law: Against, what if the person in question commits three petty crimes? It's too excessive and broad.
      Prostitution: Legalize, you know what they say: sex sells.
      Separation of Church and State: Stop enforcing your fake god on us! It's called separation of church and state for a reason!! Stop bribing public officials to enforce your backwards social agenda! Now if you just want to preach in your churches or hell even have radio stations or tv stations, fine. Just don't have the government give you any special favors. For it is written "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibit the free exercise thereof."
      Electoral College: I guess we should keep it, but needs reform.

      Foreign Policy: Free Trade monger
      War on Terror: Stop pissing people off and giving them a reason to kill us. Let the Mideast solve it's own problems.
      Palestine: It's really none of our business what happens in Palestine. We should take a neutral role and have free trade relationships with both sides.
      Israel: I hate to sound like an Israel hating bastard but we should let them be. They already got enough of our military technology to ward off full on invasions from 6 different fronts. And if they get wiped off the face of the planet by an Iranian nuke........sorry, shouldn't be our problem. Our support for Israel is what got us in hot water in the Middle East, maybe if we let everyone fight their own battles they won't have a reason to kill us. However, we should have a free trade relationship with them.
      War in Iraq: Get out now and let them destroy themselves. Sadaam was a dick and the world may arguably be a better place with him gone but the people of Iraq need to grow their own balls and learn how to defend themselves without having us baby them.
      Iran: Do you really think Iran would be stupid enough to nuke us? Epic fail. People forget about the concept of Mutually Assured Destruction so quickly. We should stop acting like dicks to them and start a mutual trade relationship with them. The more we trade with nations that don't like us the more they will like us because who doesn't like cable tv?
      North Korea: Like I said, M.A.D. They're probably just freaked out because we're constantly threatening to kick their asses. THis isn't 1952, this is 2009. Things have changed. We should begin a mutual trade relationship with them like we should China which would do way more to destroy authoritarian communism than say an all out invasion that costs hundreds of billions of dollars a year.
      9/11: Not real sure anymore. Could've been the government, could've actually been terrorists. What I do know is that it's gotten us into a lot of s#$t.
      Afghanistan: Get the hell out and sign a free trade agreement.
      Pakistan: Stop harrasing them and sign a free trade agreement.
      Torture: Not necessary and not ethical. Can't we just bribe them? Who can't resist free cable?!
      Diplomacy: Should always be the 1st step and always preferable to war.
      Free Trade Agreement: If Diplomacy works, should always be the 2nd step.
      Military involvement: Should require a damn good reason. Pre-emptive military action is not an option. President doesn't have authority to declare war, only Congress does. This option should be a VERY LAST RESORT.

      Economic Issues: Capitalist Loving Bastard
      Taxes: Eliminate the income tax gradually. Enact across the board tax cuts on a "progressive scale" on par with reduced spending.. There are lots of other taxes out there to pay for stuff.
      Welfare: Get rid of it, gradually. You don't need to be dependent on government, you've got friends and family who'll always be looking out for you..go to them when you're down on your luck. Also, there are charitable organizations that do exist that takes care of people down on their luck and two words: soup kitchen.
      Trade: This protectionist Bulls*$t has got to end. The idea that by antagonizing our fellow trade partners with excessive tariffs and other economically nationalist ideas will somehow juice up our economy is insane. We benefit from trade with other nations, penaltilizing our trade partners is no way to get them to be more open to trading with us.
      Health Care: Leave it up to each individual state to decide what kind of healthcare system they want.
      Spending: Can the military budget, eliminate or reform ineffective programs.
      Education: Start up a voucher program so kids not well off can get into private schools easier to help spurce competition between the schools to provide the best possible education for our nation's children. Keep public schools since competition with private schools for the most kids will encourage public school systems to become better at educating kids instead of teaching them how to pass year end exams that won't mean anything 10 years from now.
      Regulations: Support environmental regulations (but not excessive), I don't want some company's toxic waste in my backyard. Kind of iffy on anti-trust and monopoly regulations. Against anti-trust.

      Update
      Changes are in bold.
      Funny how I seem to be where I was when I first got on here.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on February 25, 2010, 04:13:51 AM
      I <3 your views Mech.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Obnoxiously Slutty Girly Girl on February 25, 2010, 04:53:28 AM
      Abortion: Staunchly pro-life. Abortion is murder. Exception granted to save the life of the mother.

      War: Opposed to all war except in self-defense against imminent attack or invasion. Oppose both Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

      Taxes: Abolish income taxes. Replace as much taxation as possible with voluntary user contributions.

      Spending: Spend on nothing except to provide essential services to society. No spending to interfere with the economy as with bailouts or subsidies. Abolish nearly all government agencies and departments.

      Healthcare: Go for all-or-nothing approach to healthcare. No half-assed corporatist schemes like Obamacare.

      Gun control: Opposed completely. No restrictions whatsoever on concealed carry. Vermont is a good model for other states to follow.

      Death Penalty: Opposed, though it is not on the same plane as abortion, which is far worse.

      War on Drugs: The government has no right to dictate to anyone what they may choose to consume that would affect only their own body. End the war on drugs. Also abolish all restrictions on alcohol and tobacco, such as age limits.

      PATRIOT Act/Homeland Security: Repeal it completely. Abolish the FBI, CIA, BATF and DHS.

      Foreign Policy: Non-interventionism.

      Palestine: Free Palestine from Zionist occupation. End all aid to the state of "Israel".


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on February 25, 2010, 04:57:35 AM
      Abortion: Staunchly pro-life. Abortion is murder. Exception granted to save the life of the mother.

      War: Opposed to all war except in self-defense against imminent attack or invasion. Oppose both Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

      Taxes: Abolish income taxes. Replace as much taxation as possible with voluntary user contributions.

      Spending: Spend on nothing except to provide essential services to society. No spending to interfere with the economy as with bailouts or subsidies. Abolish nearly all government agencies and departments.

      Healthcare: Go for all-or-nothing approach to healthcare. No half-assed corporatist schemes like Obamacare.

      Gun control: Opposed completely. No restrictions whatsoever on concealed carry. Vermont is a good model for other states to follow.

      Death Penalty: Opposed, though it is not on the same plane as abortion, which is far worse.

      War on Drugs: The government has no right to dictate to anyone what they may choose to consume that would affect only their own body. End the war on drugs. Also abolish all restrictions on alcohol and tobacco, such as age limits.

      PATRIOT Act/Homeland Security: Repeal it completely. Abolish the FBI, CIA, BATF and DHS.

      Foreign Policy: Non-interventionism.

      Palestine: Free Palestine from Zionist occupation. End all aid to the state of "Israel".


      Not too bad. You need to drop the pro-life stuff and the generic anti-Israel stuff though.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Obnoxiously Slutty Girly Girl on February 25, 2010, 05:10:28 AM
      Abortion: Staunchly pro-life. Abortion is murder. Exception granted to save the life of the mother.

      War: Opposed to all war except in self-defense against imminent attack or invasion. Oppose both Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

      Taxes: Abolish income taxes. Replace as much taxation as possible with voluntary user contributions.

      Spending: Spend on nothing except to provide essential services to society. No spending to interfere with the economy as with bailouts or subsidies. Abolish nearly all government agencies and departments.

      Healthcare: Go for all-or-nothing approach to healthcare. No half-assed corporatist schemes like Obamacare.

      Gun control: Opposed completely. No restrictions whatsoever on concealed carry. Vermont is a good model for other states to follow.

      Death Penalty: Opposed, though it is not on the same plane as abortion, which is far worse.

      War on Drugs: The government has no right to dictate to anyone what they may choose to consume that would affect only their own body. End the war on drugs. Also abolish all restrictions on alcohol and tobacco, such as age limits.

      PATRIOT Act/Homeland Security: Repeal it completely. Abolish the FBI, CIA, BATF and DHS.

      Foreign Policy: Non-interventionism.

      Palestine: Free Palestine from Zionist occupation. End all aid to the state of "Israel".


      Not too bad. You need to drop the pro-life stuff and the generic anti-Israel stuff though.

      No, I maintain consistency in my views. I think you need to drop the pro-death and pro-imperialism stuff. ;)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on February 25, 2010, 07:54:56 AM
      Abortion: Staunchly pro-life. Abortion is murder. Exception granted to save the life of the mother.

      War: Opposed to all war except in self-defense against imminent attack or invasion. Oppose both Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

      Taxes: Abolish income taxes. Replace as much taxation as possible with voluntary user contributions.

      Spending: Spend on nothing except to provide essential services to society. No spending to interfere with the economy as with bailouts or subsidies. Abolish nearly all government agencies and departments.

      Healthcare: Go for all-or-nothing approach to healthcare. No half-assed corporatist schemes like Obamacare.

      Gun control: Opposed completely. No restrictions whatsoever on concealed carry. Vermont is a good model for other states to follow.

      Death Penalty: Opposed, though it is not on the same plane as abortion, which is far worse.

      War on Drugs: The government has no right to dictate to anyone what they may choose to consume that would affect only their own body. End the war on drugs. Also abolish all restrictions on alcohol and tobacco, such as age limits.

      PATRIOT Act/Homeland Security: Repeal it completely. Abolish the FBI, CIA, BATF and DHS.

      Foreign Policy: Non-interventionism.

      Palestine: Free Palestine from Zionist occupation. End all aid to the state of "Israel".


      Not too bad. You need to drop the pro-life stuff and the generic anti-Israel stuff though.

      No, I maintain consistency in my views. I think you need to drop the pro-death and pro-imperialism stuff. ;)

      I don't hold either of those :(


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on February 25, 2010, 08:04:25 AM
      Ok, my final final final summary.

      Constitutional

      Constitution - Create a constitution based partially on the 1689 Bill of Rights. Also include other important elements of modern democracy in it. Lower voting age to 16 or 17.

      Monarchy - Abolish them, they set a bad example to the rest of us.

      Devolution - Continue to devolve powers to Scotland, NI and Wales. Set up Parliament in Northern Ireland and allow all three more power in local rights. Set up an English Parliament too. Set up regional assemblies with some local powers also.

      House of Lords - Abolish and replace with a House of Merits, made up of intellectuals approved by referendum. This would help reinforce Britain as a meritocracy

      Separation of Powers - Give the British Supreme Court more power, once it is formed. Create the post of President and give some executive powers to it, while giving other important powers, such as the declaration of war, to the Commons.

      Elections - Set fixed term elections - every 3 years for parliamentary and every 5 years for President, who will also have the power to appoint a Prime Minister from the largest party in Parliament, which approval from Parliament. Look further into either introducing proportional representation, or reforming First Past the Post. Bring back university seats. Introduce STV.

      Referenda - To be used for proposed constitutional amendments.

      Secularism - Disestablish the Churches of England and Scotland, like we should have done 100 years ago.

      Economic

      Central Banking - Strip the Bank of England's monopoly on note of issue and allow private banks to issue money, as long as it is backed by gold. Allow the Bank of England to keep a reserve of gold. Also, let each private bank set it's own rate of interest. Encourage full-reserve banking

      Currency - Back with gold. Look into the use of e-gold as well.

      Taxation - Abolish all climate change levies and death duty. Reduce petrol duty while increasing duty on alcohol and cigarettes. Introduce duties on drugs, coffee, salt. Slash income tax to 10 pence in the pound and gradually reduce it with the aim of eventually abolishing it. Reduce purchase tax to 10%. Introduce LVT

      Regulation - Abolish the CDS market, it's a major threat to capitalism. Regulate derivatives somewhat more carefully. Legalise insider trading relax anti-trust law.

      Private and public sector - Privatise the post office and Social Security pensions. Possibly privatise the NHS. reform the NHS to a multi payer system

      National Debt - Work to reduce.

      Social

      Crime - Abolish all victimless crimes (including incest), along with the age of consent and the ages on smoking and alcohol consumption. Bring back the death penalty for murderers. Make life imprisonment MEAN life

      Education - Start comittee to look into how to reform the exam system. Raise school starting age to 6 and keep school leaving age at 16.

      Gun Rights - Give everyone over 18 an assault rifle on request.

      Abortion - Keep late term limit at around 6 months. Raise the week limit to 28 weeks.

      Gay rights - Legalise gay marriage, or preferably, stop the state defining marriage altogether. Legalise gay adoption too.

      Environment - Quit Kyoto Protocol. Push for use of solar and nuclear power over wind power.

      Welfare - Privatise, with the exception of special allowances for the genuinely disabled. Create a means-tested system

      Immigration - Restrict further. We really need to stop the country getting overpopulated. Open borders.

      Minimum wage - Abolish.

      Political correctness - Scrap. Freedom of speech is more important.

      Prostitution - Legalise completely.

      Working day - Set limit at 10 hours a day.

      Euthanasia - Legalise voluntary euthanasia. As for involuntary or non-voluntary, it amounts to murder.

      Foreign

      Foreign policy - Quit NATO, the EU and the WTO. Propose a customs union with Ireland. Stay out of other country's affairs generally, but offer mediation in conflicts such as in Israel.

      Nuclear policy - Keep a strong nuclear deterrent. End British nuclear armaments.

      Made some amendments.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mechaman on February 25, 2010, 11:00:32 AM
      Abortion: Staunchly pro-life. Abortion is murder. Exception granted to save the life of the mother.

      War: Opposed to all war except in self-defense against imminent attack or invasion. Oppose both Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

      Taxes: Abolish income taxes. Replace as much taxation as possible with voluntary user contributions.

      Spending: Spend on nothing except to provide essential services to society. No spending to interfere with the economy as with bailouts or subsidies. Abolish nearly all government agencies and departments.

      Healthcare: Go for all-or-nothing approach to healthcare. No half-assed corporatist schemes like Obamacare.

      Gun control: Opposed completely. No restrictions whatsoever on concealed carry. Vermont is a good model for other states to follow.

      Death Penalty: Opposed, though it is not on the same plane as abortion, which is far worse.

      War on Drugs: The government has no right to dictate to anyone what they may choose to consume that would affect only their own body. End the war on drugs. Also abolish all restrictions on alcohol and tobacco, such as age limits.

      PATRIOT Act/Homeland Security: Repeal it completely. Abolish the FBI, CIA, BATF and DHS.

      Foreign Policy: Non-interventionism.

      Palestine: Free Palestine from Zionist occupation. End all aid to the state of "Israel".


      Not too bad. You need to drop the pro-life stuff and the generic anti-Israel stuff though.

      No, I maintain consistency in my views. I think you need to drop the pro-death and pro-imperialism stuff. ;)

      I'm sorry Libertas (and I really want to start a clean slate this time, really I do) but how does wanting to free Palestine work with your supposedly "non-interventionist" foreign policy?
      It is called "non-interventionist" for a reason.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Obnoxiously Slutty Girly Girl on February 25, 2010, 04:11:48 PM
      Abortion: Staunchly pro-life. Abortion is murder. Exception granted to save the life of the mother.

      War: Opposed to all war except in self-defense against imminent attack or invasion. Oppose both Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

      Taxes: Abolish income taxes. Replace as much taxation as possible with voluntary user contributions.

      Spending: Spend on nothing except to provide essential services to society. No spending to interfere with the economy as with bailouts or subsidies. Abolish nearly all government agencies and departments.

      Healthcare: Go for all-or-nothing approach to healthcare. No half-assed corporatist schemes like Obamacare.

      Gun control: Opposed completely. No restrictions whatsoever on concealed carry. Vermont is a good model for other states to follow.

      Death Penalty: Opposed, though it is not on the same plane as abortion, which is far worse.

      War on Drugs: The government has no right to dictate to anyone what they may choose to consume that would affect only their own body. End the war on drugs. Also abolish all restrictions on alcohol and tobacco, such as age limits.

      PATRIOT Act/Homeland Security: Repeal it completely. Abolish the FBI, CIA, BATF and DHS.

      Foreign Policy: Non-interventionism.

      Palestine: Free Palestine from Zionist occupation. End all aid to the state of "Israel".


      Not too bad. You need to drop the pro-life stuff and the generic anti-Israel stuff though.

      No, I maintain consistency in my views. I think you need to drop the pro-death and pro-imperialism stuff. ;)

      I'm sorry Libertas (and I really want to start a clean slate this time, really I do) but how does wanting to free Palestine work with your supposedly "non-interventionist" foreign policy?
      It is called "non-interventionist" for a reason.

      How does Palestine being free from occupation conflict with a non-interventionist U.S. foreign policy? ???


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mechaman on February 25, 2010, 04:46:46 PM
      Abortion: Staunchly pro-life. Abortion is murder. Exception granted to save the life of the mother.

      War: Opposed to all war except in self-defense against imminent attack or invasion. Oppose both Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

      Taxes: Abolish income taxes. Replace as much taxation as possible with voluntary user contributions.

      Spending: Spend on nothing except to provide essential services to society. No spending to interfere with the economy as with bailouts or subsidies. Abolish nearly all government agencies and departments.

      Healthcare: Go for all-or-nothing approach to healthcare. No half-assed corporatist schemes like Obamacare.

      Gun control: Opposed completely. No restrictions whatsoever on concealed carry. Vermont is a good model for other states to follow.

      Death Penalty: Opposed, though it is not on the same plane as abortion, which is far worse.

      War on Drugs: The government has no right to dictate to anyone what they may choose to consume that would affect only their own body. End the war on drugs. Also abolish all restrictions on alcohol and tobacco, such as age limits.

      PATRIOT Act/Homeland Security: Repeal it completely. Abolish the FBI, CIA, BATF and DHS.

      Foreign Policy: Non-interventionism.

      Palestine: Free Palestine from Zionist occupation. End all aid to the state of "Israel".


      Not too bad. You need to drop the pro-life stuff and the generic anti-Israel stuff though.

      No, I maintain consistency in my views. I think you need to drop the pro-death and pro-imperialism stuff. ;)

      I'm sorry Libertas (and I really want to start a clean slate this time, really I do) but how does wanting to free Palestine work with your supposedly "non-interventionist" foreign policy?
      It is called "non-interventionist" for a reason.

      How does Palestine being free from occupation conflict with a non-interventionist U.S. foreign policy? ???

      The point of a "non-interventionist" foreign policy is that we don't intervene, that is why it is called the non-interventionist policy. Assisting Palestine would be interventionist (just like we do with Israel), pulling all funding to the Middle East and favoring neither Palestine or Israel is non-interventionist.
      Favoring one side (with actual aid) in a conflict that doesn't involve us is not non-interventionist.
      So both you and Winston are wrong.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Obnoxiously Slutty Girly Girl on February 25, 2010, 04:50:10 PM
      Abortion: Staunchly pro-life. Abortion is murder. Exception granted to save the life of the mother.

      War: Opposed to all war except in self-defense against imminent attack or invasion. Oppose both Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

      Taxes: Abolish income taxes. Replace as much taxation as possible with voluntary user contributions.

      Spending: Spend on nothing except to provide essential services to society. No spending to interfere with the economy as with bailouts or subsidies. Abolish nearly all government agencies and departments.

      Healthcare: Go for all-or-nothing approach to healthcare. No half-assed corporatist schemes like Obamacare.

      Gun control: Opposed completely. No restrictions whatsoever on concealed carry. Vermont is a good model for other states to follow.

      Death Penalty: Opposed, though it is not on the same plane as abortion, which is far worse.

      War on Drugs: The government has no right to dictate to anyone what they may choose to consume that would affect only their own body. End the war on drugs. Also abolish all restrictions on alcohol and tobacco, such as age limits.

      PATRIOT Act/Homeland Security: Repeal it completely. Abolish the FBI, CIA, BATF and DHS.

      Foreign Policy: Non-interventionism.

      Palestine: Free Palestine from Zionist occupation. End all aid to the state of "Israel".


      Not too bad. You need to drop the pro-life stuff and the generic anti-Israel stuff though.

      No, I maintain consistency in my views. I think you need to drop the pro-death and pro-imperialism stuff. ;)

      I'm sorry Libertas (and I really want to start a clean slate this time, really I do) but how does wanting to free Palestine work with your supposedly "non-interventionist" foreign policy?
      It is called "non-interventionist" for a reason.

      How does Palestine being free from occupation conflict with a non-interventionist U.S. foreign policy? ???

      The point of a "non-interventionist" foreign policy is that we don't intervene, that is why it is called the non-interventionist policy. Assisting Palestine would be interventionist (just like we do with Israel), pulling all funding to the Middle East and favoring neither Palestine or Israel is non-interventionist.
      Favoring one side (with actual aid) in a conflict that doesn't involve us is not non-interventionist.
      So both you and Winston are wrong.

      Eh, what? Show me where I said anything about intervening in any other country's affairs.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mechaman on February 25, 2010, 04:54:42 PM
      Abortion: Staunchly pro-life. Abortion is murder. Exception granted to save the life of the mother.

      War: Opposed to all war except in self-defense against imminent attack or invasion. Oppose both Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

      Taxes: Abolish income taxes. Replace as much taxation as possible with voluntary user contributions.

      Spending: Spend on nothing except to provide essential services to society. No spending to interfere with the economy as with bailouts or subsidies. Abolish nearly all government agencies and departments.

      Healthcare: Go for all-or-nothing approach to healthcare. No half-assed corporatist schemes like Obamacare.

      Gun control: Opposed completely. No restrictions whatsoever on concealed carry. Vermont is a good model for other states to follow.

      Death Penalty: Opposed, though it is not on the same plane as abortion, which is far worse.

      War on Drugs: The government has no right to dictate to anyone what they may choose to consume that would affect only their own body. End the war on drugs. Also abolish all restrictions on alcohol and tobacco, such as age limits.

      PATRIOT Act/Homeland Security: Repeal it completely. Abolish the FBI, CIA, BATF and DHS.

      Foreign Policy: Non-interventionism.

      Palestine: Free Palestine from Zionist occupation. End all aid to the state of "Israel".


      Not too bad. You need to drop the pro-life stuff and the generic anti-Israel stuff though.

      No, I maintain consistency in my views. I think you need to drop the pro-death and pro-imperialism stuff. ;)

      I'm sorry Libertas (and I really want to start a clean slate this time, really I do) but how does wanting to free Palestine work with your supposedly "non-interventionist" foreign policy?
      It is called "non-interventionist" for a reason.

      How does Palestine being free from occupation conflict with a non-interventionist U.S. foreign policy? ???

      The point of a "non-interventionist" foreign policy is that we don't intervene, that is why it is called the non-interventionist policy. Assisting Palestine would be interventionist (just like we do with Israel), pulling all funding to the Middle East and favoring neither Palestine or Israel is non-interventionist.
      Favoring one side (with actual aid) in a conflict that doesn't involve us is not non-interventionist.
      So both you and Winston are wrong.

      Eh, what? Show me where I said anything about intervening in any other country's affairs.

      "Free Palestine from Zionist occupation"?
      Needs more clarification, more sauce. To me it sounded like you were saying WE should FREE Palestine.
      If you're saying that Palestine needs to be freed from unjust rule (not by us), then disregard this.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Obnoxiously Slutty Girly Girl on February 25, 2010, 04:56:10 PM
      Abortion: Staunchly pro-life. Abortion is murder. Exception granted to save the life of the mother.

      War: Opposed to all war except in self-defense against imminent attack or invasion. Oppose both Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

      Taxes: Abolish income taxes. Replace as much taxation as possible with voluntary user contributions.

      Spending: Spend on nothing except to provide essential services to society. No spending to interfere with the economy as with bailouts or subsidies. Abolish nearly all government agencies and departments.

      Healthcare: Go for all-or-nothing approach to healthcare. No half-assed corporatist schemes like Obamacare.

      Gun control: Opposed completely. No restrictions whatsoever on concealed carry. Vermont is a good model for other states to follow.

      Death Penalty: Opposed, though it is not on the same plane as abortion, which is far worse.

      War on Drugs: The government has no right to dictate to anyone what they may choose to consume that would affect only their own body. End the war on drugs. Also abolish all restrictions on alcohol and tobacco, such as age limits.

      PATRIOT Act/Homeland Security: Repeal it completely. Abolish the FBI, CIA, BATF and DHS.

      Foreign Policy: Non-interventionism.

      Palestine: Free Palestine from Zionist occupation. End all aid to the state of "Israel".


      Not too bad. You need to drop the pro-life stuff and the generic anti-Israel stuff though.

      No, I maintain consistency in my views. I think you need to drop the pro-death and pro-imperialism stuff. ;)

      I'm sorry Libertas (and I really want to start a clean slate this time, really I do) but how does wanting to free Palestine work with your supposedly "non-interventionist" foreign policy?
      It is called "non-interventionist" for a reason.

      How does Palestine being free from occupation conflict with a non-interventionist U.S. foreign policy? ???

      The point of a "non-interventionist" foreign policy is that we don't intervene, that is why it is called the non-interventionist policy. Assisting Palestine would be interventionist (just like we do with Israel), pulling all funding to the Middle East and favoring neither Palestine or Israel is non-interventionist.
      Favoring one side (with actual aid) in a conflict that doesn't involve us is not non-interventionist.
      So both you and Winston are wrong.

      Eh, what? Show me where I said anything about intervening in any other country's affairs.

      "Free Palestine from Zionist occupation"?
      Needs more clarification, more sauce. To me it sounded like you were saying WE should FREE Palestine.
      If you're saying that Palestine needs to be freed from unjust rule (not by us), then disregard this.

      I didn't say the U.S. should do anything, I just said "Free Palestine".


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Electric Feel on February 25, 2010, 04:58:40 PM
      It's only right that we undo our interventionist damage by kicking the Jews out of the land they have no rightful claim to.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on February 25, 2010, 04:59:40 PM
      It's only right that we undo our interventionist damage by kicking the Jews out of the land they have no rightful claim to.

      ...Apart from the fact they were there for years before the Canaanites arrived. Yeah...


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Electric Feel on February 25, 2010, 05:00:22 PM
      It's only right that we undo our interventionist damage by kicking the Jews out of the land they have no rightful claim to.

      ...Apart from the fact they were there for years before the Canaanites arrived. Yeah...

      Don't lie, prude


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Earth on February 25, 2010, 05:01:59 PM
      It's only right that we undo our interventionist damage by kicking the Jews out of the land they have no rightful claim to.

      ...Apart from the fact they were there for years before the Canaanites arrived. Yeah...

      O Rly? This might have some grounding if we were talking about the same people.

      Claims to the land, culturally, are the same as claims to the land, politically. (And no, I don't support forcing anyone out of Israel)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on February 25, 2010, 05:02:36 PM
      It's only right that we undo our interventionist damage by kicking the Jews out of the land they have no rightful claim to.

      ...Apart from the fact they were there for years before the Canaanites arrived. Yeah...

      Don't lie, prude

      Did you just call someone with a -9 social score a prude in a thread which has nothing to do with morality?

      .....lol.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Electric Feel on February 25, 2010, 05:08:20 PM
      It's only right that we undo our interventionist damage by kicking the Jews out of the land they have no rightful claim to.

      ...Apart from the fact they were there for years before the Canaanites arrived. Yeah...

      Don't lie, prude

      Did you just call someone with a -9 social score a prude in a thread which has nothing to do with morality?

      .....lol.

      The score means nothing if you support the Israeli war agenda


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on February 25, 2010, 05:10:21 PM
      It's only right that we undo our interventionist damage by kicking the Jews out of the land they have no rightful claim to.

      ...Apart from the fact they were there for years before the Canaanites arrived. Yeah...

      Don't lie, prude

      Did you just call someone with a -9 social score a prude in a thread which has nothing to do with morality?

      .....lol.

      The score means nothing if you support the Israeli war agenda

      I don't support either side, believe me. I used to be a Zionist nut, but these days, I can't be bothered with either of them.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Electric Feel on February 25, 2010, 05:11:26 PM
      It's only right that we undo our interventionist damage by kicking the Jews out of the land they have no rightful claim to.

      ...Apart from the fact they were there for years before the Canaanites arrived. Yeah...

      Don't lie, prude

      Did you just call someone with a -9 social score a prude in a thread which has nothing to do with morality?

      .....lol.

      The score means nothing if you support the Israeli war agenda

      I don't support either side, believe me. I used to be a Zionist nut, but these days, I can't be bothered with either of them.

      Good


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: justW353 on March 06, 2010, 07:58:38 PM
      Abortion:  While I am personally opposed in most cases, I support early term abortions politically.  Of course, at the same time adoption should be presented as an option.  I am opposed to late term abortion.

      War:  Oppose War in Iraq.  Support War in Afghanistan, as well as troop surge there.  Use of Predator Drones should increase throughout Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan (yes, Pakistan).

      Israel:  Support Israel, but also support creation of Palestinian state in West Bank and Gaza.

      Regulation:  Increase regulation on businesses.  Give substantial tax breaks to companies that employ American workers, and raise taxes on companies that do not.  Oppose bailouts.  Let them fail.

      Healthcare:  Support single-payer system, but not at current date.  As of now, put in measures to increase competition while also lowering costs.  Support public option, but only in areas where there is not enough competition, or where employer supplied healthcare is too expensive.  Support mandated healthcare.

      Gun Control:  Support concealed weapons with permit.  At the same time, make registration process more difficult.  Support ban on assault rifles (why the hell would you need an assault rifle?).

      Death Penalty:  Support in the worst crimes.  However, if you give someone the death penalty, speed up the process.  Don't make them rot in solitary confinement for 20 years before they finally get pumped with chemicals.

      Drugs:  Support legalization of marijuana.  Lower drinking age to 18.  Step up attempts to stop smugglers.

      Gay Marriage:  See abortion.  I personally have questionable thoughts on the subject, but it does not effect me.  I support a legalization of it, but do not force Churches to marry Gay couples.  I oppose adoption by gay couples (Do it for the children!1!11!!!)

      Environment:  Sign the freaking Kyoto Protocol.  

      Welfare:  Needs definite reforms.  Put limits on time you can stay on welfare, require users to show where their money is going, and do more to stop people from getting on Welfare.  Support new version of Public Works Administration, which would allow small businesses to employ unemployed workers for free, as the workers would be payed by the government.

      Immigration:  Support a clear path to citizenship.  At the same time, work to stop companies that employ illegal immigrants.  Work to stop illegal immigration, but not legal immigration.

      Prostitution:  Very restricted.  Do not legalize federally, but do not ban federally.  

      Euthanasia:  Legalize voluntary euthanasia.

      In summary, I support regulation, I support capitalism, but I also have certain socialist tendencies.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mos Definite on March 07, 2010, 09:17:04 AM
      Socially libertarian, economically centrist-left-center.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: segwaystyle2012 on March 14, 2010, 10:00:58 PM
      Well, I don't mind if Vepres takes his time here. Normally I never question peoples views given what this thread is but I'm honestly sort of confused.

      Indeed, aren't we all?

      With respect to recent events, I never found in answer in this thread. Speak up Vepres.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The Age Wave on April 05, 2010, 06:27:56 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: I'm pro-life, for the most part.
      Secularism: A separation of church and state is necessary for a thriving democracy. That means no creationism in public schools and no forced school prayer in public schools. Faith-based initiatives are an entirely different matter. I have no problem treating an organization with a religious affiliation the same as I would any other charitable organization.
      Marriage: We must advocate marriage equality under the law.
      Affirmative Action: Not only is it ineffective, it is overwhelmingly discriminatory against all races. End all race-based affirmative action policies endorsed by the government immediately. Repeal all affirmative action laws that affect private businesses.
      Gun rights: Allow states the authority to create a "Can Not Carry" list for felons and the mentally disabled. Use negative checks instead of positive checks and allow sale to anyone not on the list.Allow concealed carry.
      Death Penalty: Keep only for the most extreme circumstances and repeat felons.
      Censorship: Eliminate public censorship. An obstruction to access of information and more dangerous to the public than anything that may be censored under such policies. Allow private companies to display the forms of speech they want, whether strictly controlled or liberally allowed.
      Flag burning: Allow for native-born citizenry only.
      Hate crimes/speech: No restrictions on hate speech. No hate crimes legislation. The motive of the crime doesn't increase the significance of the crime any.
      Smoking: Tax cigarettes, allow private establishments to create their own restrictions.
      Alcohol consumption: Lower drinking age to 18.
      Euthanasia: No reason not to allow. It is far more humane than the painful deaths many medical problems can cause.
      Drugs: Legalize marijuana but keep more dangerous, addictive, and uncontrollable substances regulated.
      Gambling: Tax them. Discourage cities from legalizing it. Regulate heavily internet gambling.
      Prostitution: Crack down on the human trafficking aspect and maintain strong regulation of the pornography industry. Decriminalize informal payments for sexual endeavors.
      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: The government doesn't need to be involved in funding. Private companies will invest in research, they will be the ones profiting from it anyways.
      Immigration: Enforce stricter border patrols. Crack down on, especially, those who commit felonies.
      Civil Liberties: Repeal most of the PATRIOT Act. Protect privacy.
      Language: English as the official language.

      Economic Issues

      Taxes: Decrease taxes when possible. Do NOT cut taxes in strong economic times without cutting spending (for example, the Bush tax cuts). Direct tax cuts to working families.
      Employers and Employees: Weaken organized labor's vice grip on American industry. Enforce strong work safety standards and inspections of workplaces regularly.
      Free trade: Leave NAFTA and other free trade agreements.
      Spending: Cut spending where possible. Eliminate waste. Cut military spending. Attempt to balance budget every year, or even achieve a surplus. Focus spending on the issues that most affect Americans, not political pet projects and overseas intervention.
      Social Security: Reform the system. Remove the cap for the wealthy. Force government employees to give up their pensions and accept Social Security.
      Space Program: Explore and fund.
      Welfare: A safety net is required. Streamline welfare programs for efficiency. Drug testing for recipients. Scale back benefits over prolonged periods of time.
      Healthcare: Public option, tort reform, MSAs, and allowing purchases across state lines will all contribute to making health care less expensive, more effective, and much more accessible. No mandates, though.
      Education: Increase funding, expand opportunities for public education. Stricter requirements for teachers to ensure a quality education for our youth.
      Minimum Wage: Keep at a reasonable level.
      Regulation: Enforcement is key. Also, government oversight of working conditions and making sure tax fraud is not committed.
      Infrastructure: Use infrastructure projects to create public jobs for the unemployed.
      Energy Policy: Move towards "alternative" energy. Decrease dependence on foreign oil. Allow off-shore drilling. Encourage stricter EPA standards for automobiles. Increase gasoline taxes or keep them the same.

      Foreign Issues

      United Nations: I don't like the UN, but we must remain there to retain our influence.
      Iraq & Afghanistan: Withdrawal on an incremental basis.
      Iran: Work to rebuild relations with Iran. Sit down at the negotiating table.
      North Korea: Stand our ground.
      Israel: There is no reason for us to support Israel. Let Israel support themselves.
      Military Involvement: Attack only if attacked or provoked in manner that requires immediate and decisive action.
      Military Budget: Cut spending, increase efficiency.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: perdedor on April 06, 2010, 10:05:36 AM
      Social Issues:
      Abortion - Completely pro-choice, including partial birth and all three trimesters. The government should not have a hand in regulating women's reproductive organs and no, I do not believe that a fetus is life. Sorry (not really).

      Gay Rights - I support completely removing the states from the issue and taking steps to ensure equality for the GLBT community. A comprehensive (Yeah, I know. This word makes me chuckle too) anti-discrimination bill ought to be passed. However, just as a note, I only support gay marriage because I know that the state will never stop recognizing marriages, which is the position I support.

      Gun Control - The current regulations are fine. I will say that I do not think that gun ownership should be designated a 'god given' right and I would be perfectly content with abolishing the second amendment.

      Drugs - Full legalization/regulation/taxation across the entire drug spectrum. The government should not be in the business of regulating what people do to their own bodies. This would also do considerable damage to underground drug market that is becoming increasingly violent. You could apply this same logic to prostitution.

      Censorship - This goes against a core principle of mine regarding the act of covering one's eyes and shutting one's ears. People should view the world as it is naturally and not look for versions that are more comfortable.

      Immigration - Serious crackdown on employers who are capitalizing on the plight of less fortunate nations/races of people. One should have to provide a valid birth certificate which the employer must verify through a federal database to recieve employment/social services. Strict penalties should be enforced against these agencies including large fines and potential jail time depending upon how many undocumented workers there are employed by the company. All of that said, legal immigration desperately needs to be simplified and citizenship easier to achieve. FWIW, I think both 'the wall' and establishing english as the national language are both stupid, nationalistic ideas.

      Civil Liberties - We have them. Unfortunate a truth as it may be sometimes (teabaggers) you can't simply send the National Guard after protesters that disagree with you. Abolishing the Patriot Act and Department of Homeland Security would be a good starting point. Furthermore, ending the War on Terror would be the deathnail to most of the nationalistic propaganda that floats around this country like a foul smell.

      Education - I would prefer a federal system of education that is properly funded and is actually designed to build an intelligent populace with a good sense of culture and common sense. Abolish NCLB/standardized testing, raise educational standards to be met by both teachers and students, and potentially create a mandatory two year college program to follow high school. Our people (at least on the large scale) are stupid and culturally inept. I'm left to believe that the initial failure starts with our educational system that puts more focus on sports and memorizing test answers than actual education.

      Economic Issues:

      Nationalization - I support nationalizing a wide array of industries including: utilities (electric, water, etc), heavy industry, mass transit, insurance (one general, universal plan), banking, health care, and energy. In addition to this, I would be completely behind universal internet access. While I could understand arguments against this, we live in a world which is almost entirely operated via the internet and it seems almost wrong to me to think that some people are denied such a tool.

      Taxes - Increase them across the board in order to install new social programs. Deficit reduction is another potential benefit of this, though it is certainly a smaller priority to me than social programs. In addition to this, I believe that we should introduce new taxes on industries that are harmful to the public well being such as fast food and inefficient vehicles. I also believe that we should remove tax exempt status for religious institutions and that we should double corporate, estate, and capital gains taxes.

      Minimum Wage - Should be a living wage that is adjusted for inflation and taxation. I'm thinking around 15$ an hour.

      Trade - Abolish NAFTA/GATT, and install various tariffs to protect and promote American made goods.

      Social Services - We need a vast overhaul of programs that are designed to help the less fortunate. This would include doubling welfare payments, making food stamps more available to the general populace, extending and increasing unemployment benefits, and establishing a state run employment agency to employ people until they are able to find another job (should they want to). You'll notice that I don't mention medicaid, this is because I am a supporter of single-payer, nationalized health care.

      Foreign Issues:

      War(s)/Military Intervention - Unless directly threatened with military activity, the United States should not involve its military in international disputes. The one exception I could make is the situation in Africa. If ever there was an opprtunity to truly free and bettert the lives of a people through military expedition, it would be the African continent.

      Military Funding - Reduce by 75% across the board excluding pay and post-service benefits.

      Foreign Aid - To be reduced.

      UN - I oppose U.S. involement.

      Nuclear Arms - Until the U.S. disarms and requests the same of its allies, it should stay out of the business of North Korea and Iran.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Хahar 🤔 on April 06, 2010, 08:44:58 PM

      Explain.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on April 07, 2010, 04:57:50 PM
      Pro-choice in all three trimesters?! Jesus.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RIP Robert H Bork on April 07, 2010, 05:26:41 PM

      Of course. He is crazy.

      Anyway, that's surprising coming from you. Aren't you too pro-choice in all three trimesters?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on April 07, 2010, 05:39:21 PM

      Of course. He is crazy.

      Anyway, that's surprising coming from you. Aren't you too pro-choice in all three trimesters?

      No, only the first two.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RIP Robert H Bork on April 07, 2010, 06:05:06 PM

      Of course. He is crazy.

      Anyway, that's surprising coming from you. Aren't you too pro-choice in all three trimesters?

      No, only the first two.

      What?! Fake libertarian! :P

      Seriously, your social score would suggest otherwise.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on April 07, 2010, 06:07:23 PM

      Of course. He is crazy.

      Anyway, that's surprising coming from you. Aren't you too pro-choice in all three trimesters?

      No, only the first two.

      What?! Fake libertarian! :P

      Seriously, your social score would suggest otherwise.

      A foetus can feel pain after the first two trimesters.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RIP Robert H Bork on April 07, 2010, 06:12:51 PM

      Of course. He is crazy.

      Anyway, that's surprising coming from you. Aren't you too pro-choice in all three trimesters?

      No, only the first two.

      What?! Fake libertarian! :P

      Seriously, your social score would suggest otherwise.

      A foetus can feel pain after the first two trimesters.

      Fair enough. I did not know that that was your position, though.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: wdecker1 on April 09, 2010, 12:15:57 AM
      Social Issues:
      Abortion - Completely pro-choice

      Gay Rights - Support fully

      Gun Control - Maintain current levels.

      Drugs - Legalize Marijuana, but not the hard-core drugs like heroin.

      Censorship - Against it

      Civil Liberties - protect them

      Education - everyone should have the opportunity to receive an education

      Economic Issues:

      Nationalization - unsure about

      Taxes - Implement a much stronger progressive income tax.

      Minimum Wage - Living Wage

      Trade - against free trade, would prefer greater environmental and worker protections

      Social Services - support food stamps, social security, unemployment insurance, universal health care

      Foreign Issues:

      War(s)/Military Intervention - should only go to war if facing a direct threat

      Military Funding-Maintain near current levels, or decrease slightly.

      Foreign Aid - To be reduced.

      UN - Support

      Nuclear Arms - support disarmament


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: perdedor on April 09, 2010, 11:01:07 AM

      That's pretty self-explanitory. I personally am not fond of the idea of a globalized pseudo-government meddling in the affairs of independent nations. I feel largely the same way about U.S. foreign policy.


      Is it really that troubling to read? A fetus is not a human life, it is the potential for human life. Until we are born, we are the physical property of our mothers. This could be argued sure, but it seems more ridiculous to me for a governing body to differentiate between certain segements of the birth cycle as if they should have such authority over a women's body at any given stage of her pregnancy.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on April 10, 2010, 08:59:04 AM
      If something has feelings, it is a living sentient being. A foetus cannot feel until 28 weeks.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: You kip if you want to... on April 11, 2010, 12:17:20 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: I'm staunchly pro-choice. It's the mothers decision what she does with her body.
      Church and state: Keep the two completely separate. If you want to follow a religion, follow it, you don't need the government to "enforce" or "endorse" a religion for you to do that. Get religion out of schools (replace "R.E." with something more productive), abolish state run schools which have religious affiliation.
      Gay Marriage: Legalize
      The Smoking Ban: Keep it and keep it as it is. There's no need to expand it or abolish it.
      Euthanasia: Legalize it.
      Prostitution: Illegal
      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: I don't have a problem with it. The pros far outweigh any cons.
      Immigration: I personally don't have a problem with the current system, although i'd support some stricter rules and regulations simply to put a stop to the rise of the far-right. Maybe like the Australian system.

      Economic Issues

      Taxes: I favour the LibDems' approach to taxation.
      Welfare state: Support it.
      Healthcare: Increase funding for the NHS.
      Education: Massively increase funding in education. As above, abolish religiously aligned schools. Encourage lessons to develop citizenship. Abolish tuition fees! Keep the Education Maintenance Allowance (E.M.A) and maybe extend the limit to £40,000 income to receive it. Make Sixth Form education compulsory. Abolish single-sex schools.
      Minimum Wage: Keep it and raise it.
      Infrastructure: Introduce congestion charges in all major cities, but massively cut prices for public transport.
      Energy Policy: Build more wind farms and put up solar panels. Take advantage of tidal power and other renewable resources.

      Foreign Issues

      European Union: Further intergrate with Europe although I oppose a federal "United States of Europe".
      Iraq: Withdraw troops now. Blair was stupid for going along with GWB.
      Afghanistan: Increase troop numbers there.
      Military Involvement: Attack only if attacked or directly threatened. Don't blindly follow the US like with Iraq.
      Military Budget: CUTCUTCUT!

      Domestic Issues

      Devolution: Support the assemblies in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland as long as Scottish, Welsh and Northern Ireland MPs aren't allowed to vote on England-only matters OR form an English Parliment just for English issues and keep the current Houses of Parliament for UK-wide issues.
      Scottish/Welsh Independance: Oppose! Keep the United Kingdom united.
      Voting and elections: Keep the voting age at 18. Introduce a Proportional Representation electoral system, similar to the German system. NOT AV. Give constituents the ability to re-call their MP. Democratically elect members 100% of the House of Lords, no appointments or hereditary peers or bishops or anyone who isn't accountable to an electorate. Allow party members to elect their party's leader.
      Monarchy: Abolish it completely. Become the United Republic and let the public elect the head of state.

      Changes in italics.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on May 08, 2010, 10:02:56 AM
      Constitutional Issues

      Summary - Radicalism

      Monarchy - Abolish and replace with an elected head of state who would have powers somewhat similar to those of the US president. The head of state would be elected every 3 years in separate presidential elections.

      Second chamber - Abolish the House of Lords by flooding it with friendly peers and leave the Commons as the only body able to create legislation. However, increase the size of the Commons so for every 100,000 people in Britain, there is a representative.

      Fixed elections - Hold Commons elections biannually. The party with the most seats in the Commons would form the new legislative government and have Prime Minister. The Prime Minister would have somewhat less power than now.

      Constitution - Create a Bill of Rights to protect British liberties, and empower the Supreme Court to defend them. Also, codify the constitution. Amendments would be approved first by a vote of over 60% in the Commons and then by a national referendum.

      Devolution - Every region shall be granted an assembly with Swiss canton style powers. The regions shall be roughly drawn up along traditional county lines. Elections to the Assembly would be held annually. Each Assembly would also have a constitution.

      Local government - Abolish the confusing current system and instead create one type of Local Authority. Municipal elections are to be held annually, as they are now.

      Voting system - Saint-Lague proportional representation for the Commons and Assemblies. Local government to be elected via FPTP. Voting age to be lowered to 16 for general and Assembly elections and 14 for municipal elections. Those serving under 20 years in prison or those who are mentally ill shall be granted suffrage.

      Church of England - Disestablish and create a secular Britain.

      Criminal code - Create one.

      Moral issues

      Summary - Broadly communitarian

      Gay marriage - Get the state out of marriage, preferably. If not, then simply legalise gay marriage along the same sort of lines as normal marriage. While we're at it, legalise polygamy. Finally, end the ban on MSM's giving blood.

      Abortion - Leave week limit as it is. Partial-birth abortion should be banned however. Allow abortion on request.

      Smoking ban - Everyone has the right to clean air. Keep it.

      Fox hunting - Keep illegal and possibly extend the ban to all hunting. It is simply cruelty in the name of 'sport'

      Euthanasia - Legalise, I don't see any reasons for forcing people to live if they are of sound mind and have expressed their wish to end their life.

      Prostitution - I have no problem with call girls etc., but pimping, brothels and street prostitution should all remain illegal and be punished harshly.

      Death penalty - Restore for murder, treason and terrorism. Method of execution should be firing squad. Also, make sure those serving life sentences cannot be released before 40 years have elapsed.

      Drugs - Legalise soft drugs (i.e., cannabis, amphetamines, LSD) and tax them at a rate similar to tobacco. The War on Drugs has been an utter failure.

      Age of consent - Lower to 14. The current laws are pretty ridiculous to be quite honest.

      Gun control - Keep all guns banned. They're a menace.

      Civil liberties - Scrap the ID card scheme, lower the detention without trial limit to 7 days, stop keeping innocent people's fingerprints etc.

      Censorship - The new constitution would prevent the government banning anything it does not like.

      Sunday trading - Oppose.

      Economic issues

      Summary - Socialist

      Ministry - Abolish the Treasury etc. and create a huge Department for Economic Planning and Reconstruction with one superminister and many subministers.

      Public ownership - My most important issue. All of the following should be taken completely under national control: Coal, railways, iron and steel, electricity, oil, aerospace, sugar, cement, insurance, land, textiles, road haulage (involved in haulage of publicly owned goods), telecoms, civil aviation, ports and shipbuilding. The following should be municipally controlled: water, gas and buses. Some banking should also be nationalised. Finally, all formerly British car manufacturers should be nationalised and reorganised. Re-privatisation of the auto industry could possibly take place later. Bus, truck, motorbike and van manufacture should also be nationalised. A National Economic Planning Council should be established to organise co-operation between nationalised industry. Commence MASSIVE reconstruction of British manufacturing - paper and cotton industries should also be revived under national control.

      Trade - Tariffs on coal, iron, steel, cotton and automobiles to protect British industry. Possibly extend elsewhere later on. In particular, focus on raising quality standards thus keeping out mass produced Asian goods and allowing British businesses with higher wage rates to compete.

      Taxation - Introduce land value taxation. Abolish income tax for those earning under £20,000 per annum and levy a top rate of 90% on those who earn over £1,000,000 per annum. Income redistribution should be a primary aim. Abolish inheritance tax except on the very rich. Introduce some carbon taxes to encourage cleaner and more efficient industry. Make National Insurance a progressive rather than flat tax.

      Healthcare - Abolish prescription charges and renationalise health services such as cleaning which are privately owned. Launch a new campaign to stamp out venereal disease and offer free contraception in high schools and colleges. Take up Labour's pledge to allow people to see a cancer specialist within a week. Nationalise all private healthcare. I'm largely indifferent to polytechnics.. let the community decide.

      Education - Add Finance to the high school curriculum and remove R.E. Require ALL schools to teach sex education. Nationalise religious and private schools. Bring back free school milk and ensure free, healthy school meals for primary school children. Raise EMA limit and drastically lower tuition fees. End single-gender schools.

      Minimum Wage - Raise to £8.50 in 2010 pounds and fix it to inflation. Equalise the 18-21 rate with this. The 16-17 rate should be raised and tied to inflation at £5.50

      Welfare - Introduce month long paternity leave. Create a 'national care service' for the elderly. Legislate to enforce an 8 hour working day for blue-collar workers and introduce a workfare system for unemployment benefits.

      Energy - Focus on solar and hydro-electric power. Use wind or nuclear power only if absolutely neccesary.

      Environment - Invest heavily in home insulation and clean electricity. Introduce a system of polluter permits for industry.

      Immigration - Keep as it is pretty much, maybe an Australian style system.

      Pensions - Restore average earnings link.

      Equal pay - Sign into law an act requiring all companies with over 100 employees to issue reports annually related to men and women's pay. Prosecute businesses that clearly discriminate on basis of gender. Also, create a new act ensuring that equal pay extends also to racial, disability, sexuality grounds.

      Affirmative action - Support on class and gender basis. Oppose on racial basis.

      Unions - Repeal ALL Thatcher and Major legislation that restricted trade union action. Work for collective bargaining.

      Anti-trust law - Enforce vigorously. Large supermarket chains and agribusiness to be broken up into smaller, more competitive parts.

      Global warming - Doesn't exist.

      Foreign Policy

      Summary - Socialism in one country

      Europe - Second most important issue. QUIT! NOW!!!!!!!!

      International organisations - Quit NATO, the IMF, the World Bank and the WTO

      Afghanistan - Withdraw troops immediately.

      War - Only get involved in wars if we are directly attacked.

      Nuclear policy - Third most important issue. Disarm all our nuclear weapons. We have no right to preach to other countries about nuclear weapons until we have  gotten rid of our own.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Хahar 🤔 on May 10, 2010, 01:30:44 AM
      However, increase the size of the Commons so for every 100,000 people in Britain, there is a representative.

      !!!

      The Commons is already huge.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on May 10, 2010, 04:17:32 AM
      However, increase the size of the Commons so for every 100,000 people in Britain, there is a representative.

      !!!

      The Commons is already huge.

      This would mean the Commons would have about 610 members at present. Which is less.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mechaman on May 10, 2010, 09:49:51 AM
      God when did Winston become such a protectionist?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: ComeAndTakeIt53 on May 29, 2010, 10:08:53 PM
      Abortion: Against, unless in the case of rape or if the woman's life is on the line.
      Separation of church and state: Garbage term that liberals use to make Christian's leave the religion.
      Affirmative action:
      Hate crimes: They're obviously bad...
      Gun control: Worst idea in history....may I mind you that Hitler was the first leader to make you register your guns....You should have to register to own a gun and be 18 and also be 18 and register for conceal and carry, other special licenses, etc.. But registering each individual gun is WAY too much and it's none of the government's business. There has to be some form of gun control, though, what am I just going to go out and buy a missile launcher?
      Death penalty: For it. It's not cruel and unusual at all because if you're getting it chances are what you did was cruel and unusual.
      Flag burning: Obviously, against it.
      Euthanasia: Against it.
      Prostitution: Against it.
      Immigration: Fine with it as long as they do it legall.
      Taxes: Even though we need them, the lower the better. Abolish income tax and the Federal Reserve, though.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: President Mitt on June 03, 2010, 11:19:24 AM
      may I mind you that Hitler was the first leader to make you register your guns

      So, based on this logic, since Hitler was a vegetarian, should we start burning down forests and slaughtering every animal on sight without hesitation?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on June 03, 2010, 04:55:14 PM
      Yay godwin's law.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mint on June 07, 2010, 10:30:39 PM
      Looks like we agree on abortion (well honestly, I'd go further), gun control (ditto), drugs, elections, farm subsidies, transportation and NASA.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Swedish Rainbow Capitalist Cheese on June 08, 2010, 06:04:23 AM
      Economic Issues:

      Budget: No man is free if he's in debt, as Göran Persson said. Defecits should never be allowed except as a last desperate resorte in times of crisis.
      Income Tax: Keep income tax on a reasonable level. Support a progressive  income tax, but not to the extent of the current Swedish one.
      Property Taxes: The rates were a horribly unfair system that hurt middleclass homeowners, and should not be reinstated.
      Inheritance Tax: We should not tax people because their loved ones die, and have some of their property transferred.
      Green Taxes: Support to some extent, but some of them are simply stupid.
      Privatisation: Mostly in favour. The Swedish goverment should not be in the business of running corporations. (Support them maintaining control over Swedish Railroads though)

      Domestic Issues:

      Lower Education: Support stricter disipline in Swedish Schools. A new grading system is needed.
      Higher Education: Free education is important in order for people to be able to advance in society. No College or University fees. Accessability to a school should be based on a person's knowledge, not their economic background.   
      Labour Unions: Swedish Labour Unions are outdated and undemocratic. They should be forced to reform, and their power should be diminished radicly.
      Law and Order: Harsher punishments for rapists, murderers, and people who commit other violent crimes. Stop treating offenders like victims, and victims like offenders.
      Public transport: Prices should be kept at a low level. Pensioners should get free travel.
      Immigration: Stricer rules and stricter enforcement. More efforts to help immigrants intergrate into Swedish Society is needed so they don't get stuck in the million-project suburbs forever. Higher requirments for Swedish Citizenship.   
       
      Social Issues:

      Gay Rights: Strongly support same-sex marriage and adoption.
      Euthanasia: There should be a legal option for you to end your life in certain situations.
      Abortion: Moderatly Pro-life. Regulation should be kept very strict, but a total ban would only lead women to commit illegal abortions instead.   
      Drinking Age: People should have the right to purchase alcohol when they turn 18.

      Foregin Issues:

      European Union: Eurosceptic. The EU's power needs to be decreased, and given back to the national legislators.
      The Euro: Has proven to be a bad idea. Keep the own Swedish currency.
      NATO: Swedish Military should continue to co-operate with Nato, but not become a full member.

      Constituional Issues:

      Decentralisation: Strongly support. More power to local goverment.
      New regions: Support merging the current counties into regions in theory, although I hate the idea of Skåne being forced together with Blekinge.
      Monarchy: The benefits of maintaining the monarchy outnumbers the benefits of abolishing it. The kingship is more of a symbol than a political office anyway, so to me electing it would be like having a vote on the Swedish Flag every four years. 







      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on June 08, 2010, 04:22:32 PM

      European Union: Eurosceptic. The EU's power needs to be decreased, and given back to the national legislators.
      The Euro: Has proven to be a bad idea. Keep the own Swedish currency.

      <3 <3 <3


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: So rightwing that I broke the Political Compass! on June 09, 2010, 04:38:51 PM
      Constitutional Issues

      Summary – Public empowerment+meritocracy


      •   Campaign finance reform: Donations of more then a $1000 from any single individual forbidden. Church/business/union role in campaign financing or organization forbidden. Attempts to circumvent this sneakily forbidden.

      •   Political representation: The Tasmanian system. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Government_of_Tasmania)

      •   Constitution: A fairly standard set of negative and positive rights(ie. Freedom of speech, entitlement to healthcare/water/food and so on). Distinctively I advocate a greater emphasis on freedom of association then most people embrace, and “freedom of community”(as opposed to the current system of mandatory individualism). Also I see very little value in the right of privacy from the government, so long a checks and balances exist to prevent abuses.

      •   Local government – If the citizens took local government seriously, I would support significant Swiss-style devolution. They do not, however. The obvious remedy would be mandatory turnout at elections +making local government more important, but that could backfire.

      •   Meritocracy: In many countries, the judiciary has very significant de facto legislative power. Given that precedent, I think the most learned individuals should play a greater role(albeit perhaps not a direct legislative role) in the political system. It is a travesty for example that scientists have not been able to exert more pressure on the political system to act against global warming.



      Societal issues

      Summary – Progressive communitarianism(as opposed to progressive individualism which goes by the name of “liberalism”)


      •   Civil unions: Marriage is a symbolic/religious term and the state need not define it, consensus is unnecessary. Civil unions should not discriminate based upon sexuality. Civil unions should be separated into two distinct forms, childless CU’s and CU’s responsible for children. The standard pre-nuptial agreement of each partner receiving approximately what they have earned rather then arbitrary 50-50 split should be the default settlement in cases of divorce.

      •   Demographics: Structure social engineering policies upon two main goals: firstly bringing the birthrate up to something approximating 2(replacement level), and secondly balancing the class imbalance(birthrates correlating with poverty) which hinders government’s push to reduce poverty rates. This to be achieved through using tax and welfare policies as leverage, as well as maternal entitlements.


      •   Abortion/contraception – Free and encouraged amongst those judged unlikely to be fit parents(ie. Teenagers/drug abusers etc). Should also be encouraged in the case of fetuses determined to suffer serious genetic disorders. If sociopathy turns out to have a genetic component, would support mandatory abortion of fetuses found to have it(probably the only case I would support mandatory abortion). 


      •   Addictive substances/prostitution: Legalize(on account of undeniable failure) but push out of the public sphere through public smoking bans and the like. If at some point surveillance technologies advance to the point that prohibition of such activities can be successfully enforced, I would support renewal of bans.

      •   Environmentalism: Passionately consider combating of global warming to be the great test of my generation’s worth, if not its raison d’être. IF it was politically viable I would support the transition of global society to Vegetarianism(with the possible exception of meats which cause the least in the way of environmental burden), on account of animal farming being so much more environmentally burdensome then agriculture and the immense strain fishing as imposed upon our oceans. Emphasis on conservation. Emphasis on urban/suburban environments being “greened” to a greater extent.   

      •   Crime: Petty criminals(such as those leading to sentences of less then 1 year/6 months) should not be immersed in criminal culture, as they often leave more criminal then they entered- I’m not sure what the best alternative is. Paedophiles and rapists should be chemically castrated. I’m ambivalent about the death penalty- though I would support it being applied in severe cases of political or corporate corruption, as well as perhaps serial killers.

      •   Gun control: Support ban, though would be supportive of investigation into the viability of public access to defensive tasers.

      •   Civil Liberties vs Civil Securities: I come down in favour of the latter almost every single time. The idiotic objections(sorry to be blunt but its true) to keeping the DNA of innocent people on a government database strikes me as particularly ludicrous- what possible harm could come of that? Modern surveillance and ID card strategies I am currently ambivalent about not from a civil liberties standpoint but rather because the technology has not progressed enough to be particularly useful. Once ID cards can be replaced with high-tech ID chips(mandatory, ideally), security dividends will truly manifest themselves.

      •   Multiculturalism/Immigration: I am ambivalent about multiculturalism for multiculturalism’s sake(the odd idea that diversity correlates with success seems disproven when one looks at homogenous societies like South Korea and Japan), sympathetic to calls for higher degree of assimilation and Western cultural assertiveness. Also, most immigration policies seem tailored to deprive developing countries of their most productive citizens. However the threat posed by demographic and skills gaps will take a generation at least to fix, therefore necessitating high rates of immigration to counterbalance them until they stabilize. Government should reject anti-refugee silliness currently pervading my country, rather than pander to it as it currently is. 

      •   Government should do what it can to encourage secularism and intellectualism.



      Economic issues

      Summary – Democratic Socialist


      •   Taxation: Land Value tax should be a core basis of tax revenue. Also carbon taxes should be implemented. Income tax should become more progressive. Sin taxes should be expanded to the least healthy foods.

      •   Public ownership: Public control(or in certain cases semi-control) of national resources, infrastructure and healthcare system is vital. A public bank should be established with preferential loans to particular causes(ie. Student loans, first time home buyers and renewable energy/energy efficiency loans)

      •   Renewable energy/energy efficiency: Stimulate economy primarily through investment in renewable energy technologies and public transport. There are countless ways to expand renewable energy capacity and energy efficiency, to numerous to mention. Through use of the public bank’s preferential loans, the government could increase the pace- in exchange for those loans, the government would keep half the financial gain resultant from increased energy efficiency, which could be dedicated towards financing further renewable/efficiency investment.

      •   Trade: Ambivalent on free trade. A fair trade strategy to help bolster the economies of developing countries, coupled with common sense trade restrictions to counter mercantilist strategy from countries such as China, would be most desirable- coupled with an attempt to shift our economy towards less reliance on natural resource exports.

      •   Education: Free university in exchange for… say 5/7 hours of public service in the community per week. Beyond that I’m not well informed enough to propose anything.

      •   Institute a workfare system modeled on Denmark’s.

      •   Protect pensions and extend government care for the elderly.

      •   Strengthen anti-trust laws

      •   Cease agricultural subsidies towards large agribuisiness.

      •   Exploit the water supplies of Australia’s North and consider exploiting its agricultural capacity.

      •   Oppose affirmative action based on race, favour it on a socioeconomic basis.



      Foreign Policy

      Summary – Standard egalatarian internationalism.


      •   Military budget: As “a future fair for all” said, “CUTCUTCUT!”
      •   Implement fair trade policies and expand aid to third world countries conditional on those countries taking serious action regarding their greenhouse gas emissions.
      •   Iraq and Afghanistan: Withdraw from former, stay in latter until the deadline Obama proclaimed(if it drags on past that, leave).
      •   Iran: Would support bombing if all else fails.
      •   Play as cooperative and active a role as a nation of our minor importance can in matters requiring international cooperation for global benefit.






      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RI on June 10, 2010, 04:39:40 PM
      Constitutional Issues

      Summary – Public empowerment+meritocracy


      •   Campaign finance reform: Donations of more then a $1000 from any single individual forbidden. Church/business/union role in campaign financing or organization forbidden. Attempts to circumvent this sneakily forbidden.

      •   Political representation: The Tasmanian system. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Government_of_Tasmania)

      •   Constitution: A fairly standard set of negative and positive rights(ie. Freedom of speech, entitlement to healthcare/water/food and so on). Distinctively I advocate a greater emphasis on freedom of association then most people embrace, and “freedom of community”(as opposed to the current system of mandatory individualism). Also I see very little value in the right of privacy from the government, so long a checks and balances exist to prevent abuses.

      •   Local government – If the citizens took local government seriously, I would support significant Swiss-style devolution. They do not, however. The obvious remedy would be mandatory turnout at elections +making local government more important, but that could backfire.

      •   Meritocracy: In many countries, the judiciary has very significant de facto legislative power. Given that precedent, I think the most learned individuals should play a greater role(albeit perhaps not a direct legislative role) in the political system. It is a travesty for example that scientists have not been able to exert more pressure on the political system to act against global warming.



      Societal issues

      Summary – Progressive communitarianism(as opposed to progressive individualism which goes by the name of “liberalism”)


      •   Civil unions: Marriage is a symbolic/religious term and the state need not define it, consensus is unnecessary. Civil unions should not discriminate based upon sexuality. Civil unions should be separated into two distinct forms, childless CU’s and CU’s responsible for children. The standard pre-nuptial agreement of each partner receiving approximately what they have earned rather then arbitrary 50-50 split should be the default settlement in cases of divorce.

      •   Demographics: Structure social engineering policies upon two main goals: firstly bringing the birthrate up to something approximating 2(replacement level), and secondly balancing the class imbalance(birthrates correlating with poverty) which hinders government’s push to reduce poverty rates. This to be achieved through using tax and welfare policies as leverage, as well as maternal entitlements.


      •   Abortion/contraception – Free and encouraged amongst those judged unlikely to be fit parents(ie. Teenagers/drug abusers etc). Should also be encouraged in the case of fetuses determined to suffer serious genetic disorders. If sociopathy turns out to have a genetic component, would support mandatory abortion of fetuses found to have it(probably the only case I would support mandatory abortion).  


      •   Addictive substances/prostitution: Legalize(on account of undeniable failure) but push out of the public sphere through public smoking bans and the like. If at some point surveillance technologies advance to the point that prohibition of such activities can be successfully enforced, I would support renewal of bans.

      •   Environmentalism: Passionately consider combating of global warming to be the great test of my generation’s worth, if not its raison d’être. IF it was politically viable I would support the transition of global society to Vegetarianism(with the possible exception of meats which cause the least in the way of environmental burden), on account of animal farming being so much more environmentally burdensome then agriculture and the immense strain fishing as imposed upon our oceans. Emphasis on conservation. Emphasis on urban/suburban environments being “greened” to a greater extent.  

      •   Crime: Petty criminals(such as those leading to sentences of less then 1 year/6 months) should not be immersed in criminal culture, as they often leave more criminal then they entered- I’m not sure what the best alternative is. Paedophiles and rapists should be chemically castrated. I’m ambivalent about the death penalty- though I would support it being applied in severe cases of political or corporate corruption, as well as perhaps serial killers.

      •   Gun control: Support ban, though would be supportive of investigation into the viability of public access to defensive tasers.

      •   Civil Liberties vs Civil Securities: I come down in favour of the latter almost every single time. The idiotic objections(sorry to be blunt but its true) to keeping the DNA of innocent people on a government database strikes me as particularly ludicrous- what possible harm could come of that? Modern surveillance and ID card strategies I am currently ambivalent about not from a civil liberties standpoint but rather because the technology has not progressed enough to be particularly useful. Once ID cards can be replaced with high-tech ID chips(mandatory, ideally), security dividends will truly manifest themselves.

      •   Multiculturalism/Immigration: I am ambivalent about multiculturalism for multiculturalism’s sake(the odd idea that diversity correlates with success seems disproven when one looks at homogenous societies like South Korea and Japan), sympathetic to calls for higher degree of assimilation and Western cultural assertiveness. Also, most immigration policies seem tailored to deprive developing countries of their most productive citizens. However the threat posed by demographic and skills gaps will take a generation at least to fix, therefore necessitating high rates of immigration to counterbalance them until they stabilize. Government should reject anti-refugee silliness currently pervading my country, rather than pander to it as it currently is.  

      •   Government should do what it can to encourage secularism and intellectualism.



      Economic issues

      Summary – Democratic Socialist


      •   Taxation: Land Value tax should be a core basis of tax revenue. Also carbon taxes should be implemented. Income tax should become more progressive. Sin taxes should be expanded to the least healthy foods.

      •   Public ownership: Public control(or in certain cases semi-control) of national resources, infrastructure and healthcare system is vital. A public bank should be established with preferential loans to particular causes(ie. Student loans, first time home buyers and renewable energy/energy efficiency loans)

      •   Renewable energy/energy efficiency: Stimulate economy primarily through investment in renewable energy technologies and public transport. There are countless ways to expand renewable energy capacity and energy efficiency, to numerous to mention. Through use of the public bank’s preferential loans, the government could increase the pace- in exchange for those loans, the government would keep half the financial gain resultant from increased energy efficiency, which could be dedicated towards financing further renewable/efficiency investment.

      •   Trade: Ambivalent on free trade. A fair trade strategy to help bolster the economies of developing countries, coupled with common sense trade restrictions to counter mercantilist strategy from countries such as China, would be most desirable- coupled with an attempt to shift our economy towards less reliance on natural resource exports.

      •   Education: Free university in exchange for… say 5/7 hours of public service in the community per week. Beyond that I’m not well informed enough to propose anything.

      •   Institute a workfare system modeled on Denmark’s.

      •   Protect pensions and extend government care for the elderly.

      •   Strengthen anti-trust laws

      •   Cease agricultural subsidies towards large agribuisiness.

      •   Exploit the water supplies of Australia’s North and consider exploiting its agricultural capacity.

      •   Oppose affirmative action based on race, favour it on a socioeconomic basis.



      Foreign Policy

      Summary – Standard egalatarian internationalism.


      •   Military budget: As “a future fair for all” said, “CUTCUTCUT!”
      •   Implement fair trade policies and expand aid to third world countries conditional on those countries taking serious action regarding their greenhouse gas emissions.
      •   Iraq and Afghanistan: Withdraw from former, stay in latter until the deadline Obama proclaimed(if it drags on past that, leave).
      •   Iran: Would support bombing if all else fails.
      •   Play as cooperative and active a role as a nation of our minor importance can in matters requiring international cooperation for global benefit.

      You certainly have a more interesting set of views than most around here. It's a rare occurence to see someone who actually has something of a communitarian ideology on this forum.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on June 10, 2010, 04:44:08 PM
      Constitutional Issues

      Summary – Public empowerment+meritocracy


      •   Campaign finance reform: Donations of more then a $1000 from any single individual forbidden. Church/business/union role in campaign financing or organization forbidden. Attempts to circumvent this sneakily forbidden.

      •   Political representation: The Tasmanian system. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Government_of_Tasmania)

      •   Constitution: A fairly standard set of negative and positive rights(ie. Freedom of speech, entitlement to healthcare/water/food and so on). Distinctively I advocate a greater emphasis on freedom of association then most people embrace, and “freedom of community”(as opposed to the current system of mandatory individualism). Also I see very little value in the right of privacy from the government, so long a checks and balances exist to prevent abuses.

      •   Local government – If the citizens took local government seriously, I would support significant Swiss-style devolution. They do not, however. The obvious remedy would be mandatory turnout at elections +making local government more important, but that could backfire.

      •   Meritocracy: In many countries, the judiciary has very significant de facto legislative power. Given that precedent, I think the most learned individuals should play a greater role(albeit perhaps not a direct legislative role) in the political system. It is a travesty for example that scientists have not been able to exert more pressure on the political system to act against global warming.



      Societal issues

      Summary – Progressive communitarianism(as opposed to progressive individualism which goes by the name of “liberalism”)


      •   Civil unions: Marriage is a symbolic/religious term and the state need not define it, consensus is unnecessary. Civil unions should not discriminate based upon sexuality. Civil unions should be separated into two distinct forms, childless CU’s and CU’s responsible for children. The standard pre-nuptial agreement of each partner receiving approximately what they have earned rather then arbitrary 50-50 split should be the default settlement in cases of divorce.

      •   Demographics: Structure social engineering policies upon two main goals: firstly bringing the birthrate up to something approximating 2(replacement level), and secondly balancing the class imbalance(birthrates correlating with poverty) which hinders government’s push to reduce poverty rates. This to be achieved through using tax and welfare policies as leverage, as well as maternal entitlements.


      •   Abortion/contraception – Free and encouraged amongst those judged unlikely to be fit parents(ie. Teenagers/drug abusers etc). Should also be encouraged in the case of fetuses determined to suffer serious genetic disorders. If sociopathy turns out to have a genetic component, would support mandatory abortion of fetuses found to have it(probably the only case I would support mandatory abortion).  


      •   Addictive substances/prostitution: Legalize(on account of undeniable failure) but push out of the public sphere through public smoking bans and the like. If at some point surveillance technologies advance to the point that prohibition of such activities can be successfully enforced, I would support renewal of bans.

      •   Environmentalism: Passionately consider combating of global warming to be the great test of my generation’s worth, if not its raison d’être. IF it was politically viable I would support the transition of global society to Vegetarianism(with the possible exception of meats which cause the least in the way of environmental burden), on account of animal farming being so much more environmentally burdensome then agriculture and the immense strain fishing as imposed upon our oceans. Emphasis on conservation. Emphasis on urban/suburban environments being “greened” to a greater extent.  

      •   Crime: Petty criminals(such as those leading to sentences of less then 1 year/6 months) should not be immersed in criminal culture, as they often leave more criminal then they entered- I’m not sure what the best alternative is. Paedophiles and rapists should be chemically castrated. I’m ambivalent about the death penalty- though I would support it being applied in severe cases of political or corporate corruption, as well as perhaps serial killers.

      •   Gun control: Support ban, though would be supportive of investigation into the viability of public access to defensive tasers.

      •   Civil Liberties vs Civil Securities: I come down in favour of the latter almost every single time. The idiotic objections(sorry to be blunt but its true) to keeping the DNA of innocent people on a government database strikes me as particularly ludicrous- what possible harm could come of that? Modern surveillance and ID card strategies I am currently ambivalent about not from a civil liberties standpoint but rather because the technology has not progressed enough to be particularly useful. Once ID cards can be replaced with high-tech ID chips(mandatory, ideally), security dividends will truly manifest themselves.

      •   Multiculturalism/Immigration: I am ambivalent about multiculturalism for multiculturalism’s sake(the odd idea that diversity correlates with success seems disproven when one looks at homogenous societies like South Korea and Japan), sympathetic to calls for higher degree of assimilation and Western cultural assertiveness. Also, most immigration policies seem tailored to deprive developing countries of their most productive citizens. However the threat posed by demographic and skills gaps will take a generation at least to fix, therefore necessitating high rates of immigration to counterbalance them until they stabilize. Government should reject anti-refugee silliness currently pervading my country, rather than pander to it as it currently is.  

      •   Government should do what it can to encourage secularism and intellectualism.



      Economic issues

      Summary – Democratic Socialist


      •   Taxation: Land Value tax should be a core basis of tax revenue. Also carbon taxes should be implemented. Income tax should become more progressive. Sin taxes should be expanded to the least healthy foods.

      •   Public ownership: Public control(or in certain cases semi-control) of national resources, infrastructure and healthcare system is vital. A public bank should be established with preferential loans to particular causes(ie. Student loans, first time home buyers and renewable energy/energy efficiency loans)

      •   Renewable energy/energy efficiency: Stimulate economy primarily through investment in renewable energy technologies and public transport. There are countless ways to expand renewable energy capacity and energy efficiency, to numerous to mention. Through use of the public bank’s preferential loans, the government could increase the pace- in exchange for those loans, the government would keep half the financial gain resultant from increased energy efficiency, which could be dedicated towards financing further renewable/efficiency investment.

      •   Trade: Ambivalent on free trade. A fair trade strategy to help bolster the economies of developing countries, coupled with common sense trade restrictions to counter mercantilist strategy from countries such as China, would be most desirable- coupled with an attempt to shift our economy towards less reliance on natural resource exports.

      •   Education: Free university in exchange for… say 5/7 hours of public service in the community per week. Beyond that I’m not well informed enough to propose anything.

      •   Institute a workfare system modeled on Denmark’s.

      •   Protect pensions and extend government care for the elderly.

      •   Strengthen anti-trust laws

      •   Cease agricultural subsidies towards large agribuisiness.

      •   Exploit the water supplies of Australia’s North and consider exploiting its agricultural capacity.

      •   Oppose affirmative action based on race, favour it on a socioeconomic basis.



      Foreign Policy

      Summary – Standard egalatarian internationalism.


      •   Military budget: As “a future fair for all” said, “CUTCUTCUT!”
      •   Implement fair trade policies and expand aid to third world countries conditional on those countries taking serious action regarding their greenhouse gas emissions.
      •   Iraq and Afghanistan: Withdraw from former, stay in latter until the deadline Obama proclaimed(if it drags on past that, leave).
      •   Iran: Would support bombing if all else fails.
      •   Play as cooperative and active a role as a nation of our minor importance can in matters requiring international cooperation for global benefit.

      You certainly have a more interesting set of views than most around here. It's a rare occurence to see someone who actually has something of a communitarian ideology on this forum.

      :'(


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: So rightwing that I broke the Political Compass! on June 11, 2010, 02:54:53 AM
      You certainly have a more interesting set of views than most around here. It's a rare occurence to see someone who actually has something of a communitarian ideology on this forum.
      Sadly yes, my ideology is a fringe one... even the libertarians have more of a following then we communitarians do :(

      Well that's not entirely true, fundamentalist communitarians("conservative communitarians") have a large folloWing. But secular communitarians like me("progressive communitarians") have very little presence anywhere- or to be more accurate, very little voice. Our views, in my experience, are quite common amongst the Australian populace(then again, my perception's biased)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: ?????????? on June 11, 2010, 11:10:51 AM
      Wow, mandatory abortion? If you were the leader of my nation I'd openly call for a military coup of your dictatorship.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: So rightwing that I broke the Political Compass! on June 11, 2010, 11:57:32 AM
      Dictatorship? Did you read the "constitutional issues" part? The part specifying a more potent democracy then currently exists anywhere? *smirk*

      If I was the leader of your nation, their would be no need for a coup, you could immigrate to a sociopath-allowing country if you so wanted. Meanwhile citizens of my country would enjoy a sociopath-free society(well, a few generations down the line). Compared to a society suffering sociopaths(as the well as the "race to the bottom" effect they have on the morality of non-sociopaths) it would be veritably utopian.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RIP Robert H Bork on June 11, 2010, 12:00:05 PM
      Wow, mandatory abortion? If you were the leader of my nation I'd openly call for a military coup of your dictatorship.

      ^^^^


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: So rightwing that I broke the Political Compass! on June 11, 2010, 12:02:29 PM
      I'm curious: do you think the (mainland)Chinese people should stage a coup against their government on account of the one-child policy enforced(often through forced abortions) there?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: You kip if you want to... on June 11, 2010, 12:12:15 PM
      However, increase the size of the Commons so for every 100,000 people in Britain, there is a representative.

      !!!

      The Commons is already huge.

      If there was an MP to every 100,000 people, that'd be 440 MPs for 44,000,000 eligible voters, so the commons would actually lose 210 MPs...


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Phony Moderate on June 11, 2010, 01:02:16 PM
      Economic Issues:

      Budget: We need to cut wasteful spending on, for example, the military and defence, and increase on things like the NHS, education and pensions.

      Income Tax: Cut taxes for the poor and working class. Increase on the rich.

      Green Taxes: I support them.

      Privatisation: Against. We should re-nationalize everything that Labour and the Tories have privatised since 1979.

      Domestic Issues:

      Education: Abolish student top-up fees. Increase teacher's pay and abolish unneeded testing. Reduce class sizes. 
       
      Labour Unions: I support them. Give them more power.

      Law and Order: I strongly oppose the death penalty. I think that law and order is an area where spending can be reduced.

      Public transport: Re-nationalize British Rail.

      Immigration: End all restrictions. Grant amnesty to illegal immigrants.
       
      Social Issues:

      Gay Rights: Strongly support same-sex marriage and adoption.

      Euthanasia: There should be a legal option for you to end your life in any situation.
       
      Abortion: Strongly pro-choice.   

      Drinking Age: Abolish drinking age limit.

      Foregin Issues:

      European Union: Has it's good points and bad points. I support staying in.
      Iraq and Afghanistan: Withdraw from both countries as soon as possible.

      Constituional Issues:

      Voting Reform: I support either a PR, AV or IRV system to replace FPTP. I also support a registered voting system like the USA have, and i also support Primaries, like in the USA.

      Monarchy: I support abolishing the Monarchy. After that, we should put in place Presidential Elections every four years, on a fixed date. We should keep the House of Commons (but use one of the alternative voting systems that i mentioned above), and the Leader of the biggest party should be the Prime Minister. We should make the House of Lords into an elected Senate (again, using one of the alternative voting systems that i mentioned above).



      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on June 11, 2010, 01:08:02 PM

      Privatisation: Against. We should re-nationalize everything that Labour and the Tories have privatised since 1979.

      +road haulage


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: ?????????? on June 11, 2010, 01:41:10 PM
      Yes rockingham. The Chinese govt is a horribly repressive body which should be destroyed by actual believers in freedom, unlike you.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on June 11, 2010, 02:02:33 PM
      Constitutional Issues

      Summary - Radicalism

      Monarchy - Abolish and replace with an elected head of state who would have powers somewhat similar to those of the US president. The head of state would be elected every 3 years in separate presidential elections.

      Second chamber - Abolish the House of Lords by flooding it with friendly peers and leave the Commons as the only body able to create legislation. However, increase the size of the Commons so for every 100,000 people in Britain, there is a representative.

      Fixed elections - Hold Commons elections biannually. The party with the most seats in the Commons would form the new legislative government and have Prime Minister. The Prime Minister would have somewhat less power than now.

      Constitution - Create a Bill of Rights to protect British liberties, and empower the Supreme Court to defend them. Also, codify the constitution. Amendments would be approved first by a vote of over 60% in the Commons and then by a national referendum.

      Devolution - Every region shall be granted an assembly with Swiss canton style powers. The regions shall be roughly drawn up along traditional county lines. Elections to the Assembly would be held annually. Each Assembly would also have a constitution.

      Local government - Abolish the confusing current system and instead create one type of Local Authority. Municipal elections are to be held annually, as they are now.

      Voting system - Saint-Lague proportional representation for the Commons and Assemblies. Local government to be elected via FPTP. Voting age to be lowered to 16 for general and Assembly elections and 14 for municipal elections. Those serving under 20 years in prison or those who are mentally ill shall be granted suffrage.

      Church of England - Disestablish and create a secular Britain. Disestablish the Church of Scotland too

      Criminal code - Create one.

      Moral issues

      Summary - Broadly communitarian

      Gay marriage - Get the state out of marriage, preferably. If not, then simply legalise gay marriage along the same sort of lines as normal marriage. While we're at it, legalise polygamy. Finally, end the ban on MSM's giving blood.

      Abortion - Leave week limit as it is. Partial-birth abortion should be banned however. Allow abortion on request.

      Smoking ban - Everyone has the right to clean air. Keep it.

      Fox hunting - Keep illegal and possibly extend the ban to all hunting. It is simply cruelty in the name of 'sport'

      Euthanasia - Legalise, I don't see any reasons for forcing people to live if they are of sound mind and have expressed their wish to end their life.

      Prostitution - I have no problem with call girls etc., but pimping, brothels and street prostitution should all remain illegal and be punished harshly.

      Death penalty - Restore for murder, treason and terrorism and gun ownership. Method of execution should be firing squad. Also, make sure those serving life sentences cannot be released before 40 years have elapsed.

      Drugs - Legalise soft drugs (i.e., cannabis, amphetamines, LSD) and tax them at a rate similar to tobacco. The War on Drugs has been an utter failure.

      Age of consent - Lower to 14 13. The current laws are pretty ridiculous to be quite honest.

      Gun control - Keep all guns banned. They're a menace.

      Civil liberties - Scrap the ID card scheme, lower the detention without trial limit to 7 days, stop keeping innocent people's fingerprints etc.

      Censorship - The new constitution would prevent the government banning anything it does not like.

      Sunday trading - Oppose.

      Economic issues

      Summary - Socialist

      Ministry - Abolish the Treasury etc. and create a huge Department for Economic Planning and Reconstruction with one superminister and many subministers.

      Public ownership - My most important issue. All of the following should be taken completely under national control: Coal, railways, iron and steel, electricity, oil, aerospace, sugar, cement, insurance, land, textiles, road haulage (involved in haulage of publicly owned goods), telecoms, civil aviation, ports and shipbuilding. The following should be municipally controlled: water, gas and buses. Some banking should also be nationalised. Finally, all formerly British car manufacturers should be nationalised and reorganised. Re-privatisation of the auto industry could possibly take place later. Bus, truck, motorbike and van manufacture should also be nationalised. A National Economic Planning Council should be established to organise co-operation between nationalised industry. Commence MASSIVE reconstruction of British manufacturing - paper and cotton industries should also be revived under national control.

      Trade - Tariffs on coal, iron, steel, cotton and automobiles to protect British industry. Possibly extend elsewhere later on. In particular, focus on raising quality standards thus keeping out mass produced Asian goods and allowing British businesses with higher wage rates to compete.

      Taxation - Introduce land value taxation. Abolish income tax for those earning under £20,000 per annum and levy a top rate of 90% on those who earn over £1,000,000 per annum. Income redistribution should be a primary aim. Abolish inheritance tax except on the very rich. Introduce some carbon taxes to encourage cleaner and more efficient industry. Make National Insurance a progressive rather than flat tax.

      Healthcare - Abolish prescription charges and renationalise health services such as cleaning which are privately owned. Launch a new campaign to stamp out venereal disease and offer free contraception in high schools and colleges. Take up Labour's pledge to allow people to see a cancer specialist within a week. Nationalise all private healthcare. I'm largely indifferent to polytechnics.. let the community decide.

      Education - Add Finance to the high school curriculum and remove R.E. Require ALL schools to teach sex education. Nationalise religious and private schools. Bring back free school milk and ensure free, healthy school meals for primary school children. Raise EMA limit and drastically lower tuition fees. End single-gender schools.

      Minimum Wage - Raise to £8.50 in 2010 pounds and fix it to inflation. Equalise the 18-21 rate with this. The 16-17 rate should be raised and tied to inflation at £5.50

      Welfare - Introduce month long paternity leave. Create a 'national care service' for the elderly. Legislate to enforce an 8 hour working day for blue-collar workers and introduce a workfare system for unemployment benefits.

      Energy - Focus on solar and hydro-electric power. Use wind or nuclear power only if absolutely neccesary.

      Environment - Invest heavily in home insulation and clean electricity. Introduce a system of polluter permits for industry.

      Immigration - Keep as it is pretty much, maybe an Australian style system.

      Pensions - Restore average earnings link.

      Equal pay - Sign into law an act requiring all companies with over 100 employees to issue reports annually related to men and women's pay. Prosecute businesses that clearly discriminate on basis of gender. Also, create a new act ensuring that equal pay extends also to racial, disability, sexuality grounds.

      Affirmative action - Support on class and gender basis. Oppose on racial basis.

      Unions - Repeal ALL Thatcher and Major legislation that restricted trade union action. Work for collective bargaining.

      Anti-trust law - Enforce vigorously. Large supermarket chains and agribusiness to be broken up into smaller, more competitive parts.

      Global warming - Doesn't exist.

      Foreign Policy

      Summary - Socialism in one country

      Europe - Second most important issue. QUIT! NOW!!!!!!!!

      International organisations - Quit NATO, the IMF, the World Bank and the WTO

      Afghanistan - Withdraw troops immediately.

      War - Only get involved in wars if we are directly attacked.

      Nuclear policy - Third most important issue. Disarm all our nuclear weapons. We have no right to preach to other countries about nuclear weapons until we have  gotten rid of our own.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: President Mitt on June 11, 2010, 02:08:05 PM

      ()


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on June 11, 2010, 02:14:10 PM

      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cumbria_shootings


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Obnoxiously Slutty Girly Girl on June 11, 2010, 02:28:30 PM

      Death penalty for gun ownership? lol


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RIP Robert H Bork on June 11, 2010, 07:52:47 PM

      ()


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Derek on June 11, 2010, 08:44:12 PM
      Haha Guess what mine are:

      abortion: Life begins at conception.

      Gays: gays in scouts is ok, but scouts have the right to discriminate. Gay marriage is ok, but states should have the right to vote on that. Gays in the military is ok as long as it's not a distraction. Gay adoptions aren't natural.

      In God We Trust shall always remain on the penny and the same goes for UNDER GOD!

      Death Penalty: strongly AGAINST believe it or not

      Affirmative Action: strongly IN FAVOR OF believe it or not

      Flag burning is an American's right but that doesn't stop me from getting in someone's way of that.

      Health Care: no denial for preexisting conditions
                           allow people to remain on insurance until age 25
                           allow companies to compete across state lines
                           cap of $1,000,000 on frivolous law suits
                           health and medical savings accounts that work like social security

      Social Security: Retirement age remains 66.
                               Lock box where congress can't touch it
                               no penalties for recipients regardless of income
                               Invest 20% of it into the private sector so it can gain interest.
                               Money paid into social security in 1965 isn't worth as much now.

      Medicare: Protect seniors at all costs. Keep medicare protected like social security.

      Welfare: 6 month term limits for recipients
                    must choose between welfare and unemployment
                    Medicaid is ok even for illegal immigrants. (Yes I said that, same Derek as always.)

      Unions: Fundamental Right to Work in all 50 states.
                   A good cause has turned into socialism with government ties.

      Taxes: 23% VAT on all goods other than food and clothes
                  increase user fees to pay off deficit
                  REPEAL THE 16TH AMENDMENT!!!
                  End all excess taxes; marriage, death, liquor, cigarettes, tobacco, etc.

      Trade: Keep NAFTA, CAFTA, and GATT
                 Thumbs up to the free market
                 Tariffs on imports by water are unconstitutional.
                 Reduce tariffs to the lowest possible level but keep what must be kept.

      Environment: Cap and trade was a step in the RIGHT direction.
                            I'm all for green jobs.
                            Increase and expand mercury clean up.
                            Keep Alaska wild.
                            Go further to protect endangered species.

      Government: Ban soft money to federal campaigns.
                           End tax breaks for campaign donations.
                           Corporations and unions don't vote in elections, people do.
                           Six 2 year terms for the House and Two 6 year terms in the Senate.
                           Constitutional Amendment requiring a balanced budget each year.
                           Cap of $200,000,000 can be spent in a campaign and no one can opt out.
                           I support McCain/Fiengold.

      Education: School vouchers in every county of the U.S.
                        Parents choose schools for their children, not politicians like Ted Kennedy.
                        Build more schools with smaller classes.
                        Teachers unions are a monopoly that has lost it's ways.
                        School prayer is ok, but not teacher led.
                        School uniforms are boring.

      Guns: fundamental right to gun ownership with no exceptions

      Immigration: Illegal immigrants are God's children too.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: So rightwing that I broke the Political Compass! on June 11, 2010, 09:26:50 PM
      Nice to see you lay of the far-right trolling act for just one post Derek. Paticularly amusing to see you supporting affirmative action "strongly" yet, in another thread, you said you'd vote for George Wallace in 1968.

      Yes rockingham. The Chinese govt is a horribly repressive body which should be destroyed by actual believers in freedom, unlike you.
      Look genius, allow me to repost part of my self description, thus proving myself a true believer in freedom. Did it not occur to you that people might be willing to vote for a party which supported the elimination of sociopathy, that it would not require tyranny? Probably not now I admit, but sometime in the future.

      Quote
      Constitutional Issues

      Summary – Public empowerment+meritocracy

      •   Campaign finance reform: Donations of more then a $1000 from any single individual forbidden. Church/business/union role in campaign financing or organization forbidden. Attempts to circumvent this sneakily forbidden.

      •   Political representation: The Tasmanian system. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Government_of_Tasmania)

      •   Constitution: A fairly standard set of negative and positive rights(ie. Freedom of speech, entitlement to healthcare/water/food and so on). Distinctively I advocate a greater emphasis on freedom of association then most people embrace, and “freedom of community”(as opposed to the current system of mandatory individualism). Also I see very little value in the right of privacy from the government, so long a checks and balances exist to prevent abuses.

      •   Local government – If the citizens took local government seriously, I would support significant Swiss-style devolution. They do not, however. The obvious remedy would be mandatory turnout at elections +making local government more important, but that could backfire.

      •   Meritocracy: In many countries, the judiciary has very significant de facto legislative power. Given that precedent, I think the most learned individuals should play a greater role(albeit perhaps not a direct legislative role) in the political system. It is a travesty for example that scientists have not been able to exert more pressure on the political system to act against global warming.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Derek on June 12, 2010, 02:58:37 AM
      Nice to see you lay of the far-right trolling act for just one post Derek. Paticularly amusing to see you supporting affirmative action "strongly" yet, in another thread, you said you'd vote for George Wallace in 1968.

      Yes rockingham. The Chinese govt is a horribly repressive body which should be destroyed by actual believers in freedom, unlike you.
      Look genius, allow me to repost part of my self description, thus proving myself a true believer in freedom. Did it not occur to you that people might be willing to vote for a party which supported the elimination of sociopathy, that it would not require tyranny? Probably not now I admit, but sometime in the future.

      Quote
      Constitutional Issues

      Summary – Public empowerment+meritocracy

      •   Campaign finance reform: Donations of more then a $1000 from any single individual forbidden. Church/business/union role in campaign financing or organization forbidden. Attempts to circumvent this sneakily forbidden.

      •   Political representation: The Tasmanian system. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Government_of_Tasmania)

      •   Constitution: A fairly standard set of negative and positive rights(ie. Freedom of speech, entitlement to healthcare/water/food and so on). Distinctively I advocate a greater emphasis on freedom of association then most people embrace, and “freedom of community”(as opposed to the current system of mandatory individualism). Also I see very little value in the right of privacy from the government, so long a checks and balances exist to prevent abuses.

      •   Local government – If the citizens took local government seriously, I would support significant Swiss-style devolution. They do not, however. The obvious remedy would be mandatory turnout at elections +making local government more important, but that could backfire.

      •   Meritocracy: In many countries, the judiciary has very significant de facto legislative power. Given that precedent, I think the most learned individuals should play a greater role(albeit perhaps not a direct legislative role) in the political system. It is a travesty for example that scientists have not been able to exert more pressure on the political system to act against global warming.

      I'm for the states deciding most of these issues. It's called pragmatism. Believe it or not, I'm really not all that far to the right. What is rightwing about having open borders and cap and trade?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: So rightwing that I broke the Political Compass! on June 12, 2010, 07:56:47 AM
      You're really not all that far to the right?

      Derek on Ragheads:
      Quote
      I'd love to see Israel wipe out the middle east except for Iraq because we're working hard to rebuild it.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Derek on June 12, 2010, 10:52:57 PM
      You're really not all that far to the right?

      Derek on Ragheads:
      Quote
      I'd love to see Israel wipe out the middle east except for Iraq because we're working hard to rebuild it.

      Haha I'm not going to comment on that. You're calling them ragheads? I'm not stopping you from saying that.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Derek on June 12, 2010, 10:54:30 PM
      Nice to see you lay of the far-right trolling act for just one post Derek. Paticularly amusing to see you supporting affirmative action "strongly" yet, in another thread, you said you'd vote for George Wallace in 1968.

      Yes rockingham. The Chinese govt is a horribly repressive body which should be destroyed by actual believers in freedom, unlike you.
      Look genius, allow me to repost part of my self description, thus proving myself a true believer in freedom. Did it not occur to you that people might be willing to vote for a party which supported the elimination of sociopathy, that it would not require tyranny? Probably not now I admit, but sometime in the future.

      Quote
      Constitutional Issues

      Summary – Public empowerment+meritocracy

      •   Campaign finance reform: Donations of more then a $1000 from any single individual forbidden. Church/business/union role in campaign financing or organization forbidden. Attempts to circumvent this sneakily forbidden.

      •   Political representation: The Tasmanian system. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Government_of_Tasmania)

      •   Constitution: A fairly standard set of negative and positive rights(ie. Freedom of speech, entitlement to healthcare/water/food and so on). Distinctively I advocate a greater emphasis on freedom of association then most people embrace, and “freedom of community”(as opposed to the current system of mandatory individualism). Also I see very little value in the right of privacy from the government, so long a checks and balances exist to prevent abuses.

      •   Local government – If the citizens took local government seriously, I would support significant Swiss-style devolution. They do not, however. The obvious remedy would be mandatory turnout at elections +making local government more important, but that could backfire.

      •   Meritocracy: In many countries, the judiciary has very significant de facto legislative power. Given that precedent, I think the most learned individuals should play a greater role(albeit perhaps not a direct legislative role) in the political system. It is a travesty for example that scientists have not been able to exert more pressure on the political system to act against global warming.

      Oh sorry you're saying lay off. I misread what you meant. I'm the type of politician that will take a side if it's a short gain and if I have to adjust my position to advance conservatism I'll do it. Not sure if I made sense there. I consider myself a centrist.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: So rightwing that I broke the Political Compass! on June 13, 2010, 03:11:52 AM
      You're really not all that far to the right?

      Derek on Ragheads:
      Quote
      I'd love to see Israel wipe out the middle east except for Iraq because we're working hard to rebuild it.

      Haha I'm not going to comment on that. You're calling them ragheads? I'm not stopping you from saying that.
      What? NO, I said "ragheads" sarcastically, on account of your complete disregard for their life.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mechaman on June 13, 2010, 07:12:51 AM

      LOL indeed.
      This makes him way worse than the average pro-gun control hack.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: President Mitt on June 13, 2010, 07:32:24 AM

      yeah, srsly.

      I thought you were anti-death penalty too Winston?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on June 13, 2010, 11:02:34 AM
      Briefly.

      I never really could stomach being anti-death penalty too much though.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: #CriminalizeSobriety on June 14, 2010, 09:11:58 PM
      General Philosophy: Green Conservatism.

      //Abortion

      Pro life; ban abortion in all trimesters with the exception of the mother's life.

      //Marriage & Families

      Get government out of marriage. Reform CPS, they are out of control and the foster family system is often abusive and dehumanizing.

      //Gun Control

      Eliminate all gun control legislation since 1934. Eliminate the 'duty to retreat.'

      //Immigration

      No guest worker program, amnesty, etc. Focus immigration on skilled workers. If necessary impose a moratorium while we root out fraud and abuse.

      //Terrorism

      Repeal the Patriot Act, it erodes our rights and freedoms (e.g. probable cause). Repeal the anti-Terrorism Act of '96. Close down DHS. Close down Guantanamo and secret prisons. Terrorism should be treated in much the same way other organized crime is, not as a pretext for highly questionable and seemingly never ending military actions.

      //Debt

      End the federal reserve. Return all its functions to the treasury. Break up the 'too big to fails.' Drastically reduce federal spending and require balanced budget.

      //Personal Tax

      Implement Flat tax and perhaps a VAT. Eliminate payroll tax, property tax, marriage tax, and taxes on food/clothing.

      //Business Tax

      Decrease business taxation and eliminate costly loopholes. Current rates put small business at a competitive disadvantage and allow large corporations to game the system.

      //Education

      Eliminate No Child Left Behind. Increase Teacher Salaries in exchange for less job security. Expand vouchers; move towards Charter school-based system. Implement more internships and apprenticeships. Implement Uniforms.

      //Energy

      Invest in alternative energy financed through moderate carbon taxation (re: coal) and simplified write-offs/incentives. Cut back on federal highway system in favor of high speed rail. End oil company subsidies. Explore moon for Helium-3 and other potential resources. Cut oil use significantly by 2025.

      //Environment

      Commit more funds to toxic waste disposal and regulate use of pesticides more, encouraging alternatives such as biological pest controls or composted yard waste. Eliminate subsidies to factory farms. Promote sustainable urbanism.

      //Health Care

      Replace entitlements with voucher system and implement market reforms such as full portability, personal deductions, increased transparency, allowing just catastrophic coverage, etc.

      //Social Security

      Abolish. Replace with tax free savings accounts and means tested benefits for the elderly.

      //Labor

      Curb disproportionately high CEO incomes by making raises subject to shareholder review. Break up abusive corporations. Co-Ops are a good idea.

      //Trade

      Exit NAFTA, GATT, WTO, etc. Equalize tariffs with nations that meet environmental and labor standards. End tax incentives for companies sending jobs overseas, encourage investment here.

      //Military Intervention

      Exit Iraq and Afghanistan. No 'surgical strike' or additional penalties for Iran. Exit NATO.

      //Military Funding

      Close down foreign bases. Cut military budget by more than 75% excluding pay and benefits.

      //United Nations

      Withdraw from the United Nations.

      You're like a pro-life Mike Gravel. :P


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RI on June 14, 2010, 11:27:44 PM
      Rockingham and Derek should both take the Political Matrix test. I think it would be interesting.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Obnoxiously Slutty Girly Girl on June 14, 2010, 11:47:23 PM
      Rockingham and Derek should both take the Political Matrix test. I think it would be interesting.

      What would you predict their scores to be?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: #CriminalizeSobriety on June 15, 2010, 12:34:02 AM
      Rockingham and Derek should both take the Political Matrix test. I think it would be interesting.

      What would you predict their scores to be?

      I'll guestimate Derek's would be something along the lines of E: 6 S: 4.5.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Derek on June 15, 2010, 01:21:21 AM
      Rockingham and Derek should both take the Political Matrix test. I think it would be interesting.

      What would you predict their scores to be?

      How do I take it?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Psychic Octopus on June 15, 2010, 01:31:55 AM

      I possess a gun. Should I get the death penalty?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RI on June 15, 2010, 02:39:42 AM
      Rockingham and Derek should both take the Political Matrix test. I think it would be interesting.

      What would you predict their scores to be?

      How do I take it?

      https://uselectionatlas.org/TOOLS/POLMTX/thetest.php (https://uselectionatlas.org/TOOLS/POLMTX/thetest.php)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Derek on June 15, 2010, 02:46:13 AM
      How do I post my results?

      Economic Score +5.68
      Social Score -3.13

      Those were the most vague questions that could've been asked. That's why I'm posting my views in the individual politics section. So far I've posted education, foreign, defense, economics, and government reform.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Derek on June 15, 2010, 02:47:01 AM
       Economic score: +5.68
      Social score: -3.13Note your scores and Login to your Atlas Account to Save your Scores

      Your score pegs you as economically capitalist and socially moderately libertarian.

      Capitalists generally support an open free market and lower taxes, but also support government restrictions on blatantly abusive industry. Capitalists also often differ from their more extreme peers in that, while they may support significantly lower taxes, they are less apt to support complete elimination of taxation or near-complete elimination of government.

      Moderate social libertarians generally favor a hands-off approach to social legislation. They may believe that the government has no right to enforce morals, but may support certain controls on individual rights to avoid crime, drug use, or similar social ills.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: So rightwing that I broke the Political Compass! on June 15, 2010, 07:22:37 AM
      Rockingham and Derek should both take the Political Matrix test. I think it would be interesting.
      The test sucks, it called me a moderate social libertarian... and it said that I was was libertarian(-3.3) to A GREATER EXTENT then I am economically leftist(-2.2)!!!

      I'm not surprised, the test after all wasn't built to take into account fringe ideologies like progressive communitarianism.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: So rightwing that I broke the Political Compass! on June 15, 2010, 07:43:08 AM
      It's not really that good either, but the 4-line political quiz is at least slightly better.

      Conservative/Progressive score: 8
      Capitalist Purist/Social Capitalist score: 10
      Libertarian/Authoritarian:10
      Pacifist/Militarist: 4


      Close enough, though I'd prefer at least a fifth(and probably more) categories so that it could pick upon my communitarianism.



      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Derek on June 15, 2010, 09:44:52 AM
      And how do you measure conservatism and liberalism? Obviously I come off as a right wing extremist in my words, but in my policies and writing I'm alot more in the middle. I try not to go by words because sometimes words are big and hard to understand.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: #CriminalizeSobriety on June 15, 2010, 02:33:55 PM
      Economic score: +5.68
      Social score: -3.13Note your scores and Login to your Atlas Account to Save your Scores

      Your score pegs you as economically capitalist and socially moderately libertarian.

      Capitalists generally support an open free market and lower taxes, but also support government restrictions on blatantly abusive industry. Capitalists also often differ from their more extreme peers in that, while they may support significantly lower taxes, they are less apt to support complete elimination of taxation or near-complete elimination of government.

      Moderate social libertarians generally favor a hands-off approach to social legislation. They may believe that the government has no right to enforce morals, but may support certain controls on individual rights to avoid crime, drug use, or similar social ills.

      I see I wasn't too far off on the economic score. :P


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RIP Robert H Bork on June 15, 2010, 02:38:56 PM

      Well, obviously. Winston made it clear that he wants gun owners lined up and shot, what makes you think you're any different?

      :P


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Free Trade is managed by the invisible hand. on June 15, 2010, 02:50:04 PM
      And how do you measure conservatism and liberalism? Obviously I come off as a right wing extremist in my words, but in my policies and writing I'm alot more in the middle. I try not to go by words because sometimes words are big and hard to understand.

      depends on wether or not you wish government to enact new legislation in order to address the moral claims of society. For example conservatives normally oppose gay marriage and want government to stay out of the issue, and thus they want a social system that preserves the older moral claims.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on June 15, 2010, 03:08:30 PM

      Well, obviously. Winston made it clear that he wants gun owners lined up and shot, what makes you think you're any different?

      :P

      I would ban guns and compensate owners. Anyone found to be breaking the law after that would face the penalty.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Derek on June 15, 2010, 03:10:19 PM
      And how do you measure conservatism and liberalism? Obviously I come off as a right wing extremist in my words, but in my policies and writing I'm alot more in the middle. I try not to go by words because sometimes words are big and hard to understand.

      depends on wether or not you wish government to enact new legislation in order to address the moral claims of society. For example conservatives normally oppose gay marriage and want government to stay out of the issue, and thus they want a social system that preserves the older moral claims.

      No kidding. I'm saying how do you measure how conservative or liberal someone is?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mechaman on June 15, 2010, 03:24:32 PM

      Well, obviously. Winston made it clear that he wants gun owners lined up and shot, what makes you think you're any different?

      :P

      I would ban guns and compensate owners. Anyone found to be breaking the law after that would face the penalty.

      Somehow I knew you would be in the BATSH*T INSANE quadrant by this time, but this is just crazy.  Gun bans are one thing, but THE MOTHERF***ING DEATH PENALTY WINSTON!?
      (bangs head against wall in shock of your totalitarianism)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Deldem on June 17, 2010, 01:06:32 AM

      Well, obviously. Winston made it clear that he wants gun owners lined up and shot, what makes you think you're any different?

      :P

      I would ban guns and compensate owners. Anyone found to be breaking the law after that would face the penalty.
      So you'll punish people with guns... by shooting them with guns? You don't see anything at all ironic or contradictory about that?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Free Trade is managed by the invisible hand. on June 20, 2010, 05:58:03 PM

      General philosophy: Liberal

      Abortion: Supportive because it is scientifically proven that particular functions to support human life do not occur until after the 5th month.

      Separation of Church and State: Political candidates should not be allowed to expressed their
      religious views, but more importantly churches should be taxed.

      Marriage: anyone no matter what gender or sexual preference should be allowed to mary.

      Affirmative Action: Support because companies should voluntary hire quallified minorities while conducting searches done in good faith. every company has to have an ethical code of conduct, and thus every company should also wrote their own affirmative action policy as well.

      Gun Control: gotta have a permit, and must meet soft standards to own a gun.

      Death Penalty Immoral and violates basic modern ethical principles,but should be allowed on an international level.

      Smoking can be done on your own personal property.

      Embryonic Stem Cell Research support.

      USA PATRIOT Act Support various provisions in the law,but I disagree with the more contraversial aspects of the bill.
      [
      b]Immigration[/b] open borders.

      Taxes current system is too low, and I think we should enter a multilateral agreement with canada ,and mexico in order to establish a tobin-tax. re-enstate the estate tax.

      Spending Spend to increase demand, and therfore bring in more tax revenues.

      Health care Public option

      trade Supportive of free trade, and low tariffs. Wouldn't mind the establishment of a tobin tax,but it must be done on a multilateral level in order to work.

      foreign policy Seems like obama is doing pretty good, and i agree with his flexible doctrine up to now.

      Economic issues: Tobin Tax system to prevent potential future bailout of third world countries like mexico, breaking up the banks isn't going to do anything unless we institute structural reforms. Strengthen anti-trust laws, and reverse many of the deregulation, and funding cuts that have been going on since the end of carter's first term.

      poverty: We are the richest nation in the world, and the biggest economy....we should spend trillions on the poor. The wealthy can go cry about it after the problem is eliminated.
       


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Free Trade is managed by the invisible hand. on June 21, 2010, 11:01:38 AM
      Make love not war.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Derek on June 21, 2010, 12:11:03 PM

      I've seen that bumper sticker too.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: So rightwing that I broke the Political Compass! on July 02, 2010, 11:06:59 AM
      Changes Italicized

      Constitutional Issues

      Summary – Public empowerment+meritocracy


      •   Campaign finance reform: $50 "patriot dollars" voucher to be distributed to all voters to allocate 6 months prior to a primary/election,  to be distributed as the voters please(can be split into chunks and given to candidate outside the voter's region). Come in two waves, pre-primary Patriot dollars and post-primary Patriot dollars. Each set of vouchers expires after the election/primary it was dedicated to.

      Campaign funds from sources other then this forbidden


      •   Political representation: The Tasmanian system. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Government_of_Tasmania)

      •   Constitution: A fairly standard set of negative and positive rights(ie. Freedom of speech, entitlement to healthcare/water/food and so on). Distinctively I advocate a greater emphasis on freedom of association then most people embrace, and “freedom of community”(as opposed to the current system of mandatory individualism). Also I see very little value in the right of privacy from the government, so long a checks and balances exist to prevent abuses. A fundamental responsobility of the government is to impose proper incentives/disincentives on externalities

      •   Local government – If the citizens took local government seriously, I would support significant Swiss-style devolution. They do not, however. The obvious remedy would be mandatory turnout at elections +making local government more important, but that could backfire.

      •   Meritocracy: In many countries, the judiciary has very significant de facto legislative power. Given that precedent, I think the most learned individuals should play a greater role(albeit perhaps not a direct legislative role) in the political system. It is a travesty for example that scientists have not been able to exert more pressure on the political system to act against global warming.



      Societal issues

      Summary – Progressive communitarianism(as opposed to progressive individualism which goes by the name of “liberalism”)


      •   Civil unions: Marriage is a symbolic/religious term and the state need not define it, consensus is unnecessary. Civil unions should not discriminate based upon sexuality. Civil unions should be separated into two distinct forms, childless CU’s and CU’s responsible for children. The standard pre-nuptial agreement of each partner receiving approximately what they have earned rather then arbitrary 50-50 split should be the default settlement in cases of divorce.

      •   Demographics: Structure social engineering policies upon two main goals: firstly bringing the birthrate up to something approximating 2(replacement level), and secondly balancing the class imbalance(birthrates correlating with poverty) which hinders government’s push to reduce poverty rates. This to be achieved through using tax and welfare policies as leverage, as well as maternal entitlements.


      •   Abortion/contraception – Free and encouraged amongst those judged unlikely to be fit parents(ie. Teenagers/drug abusers etc). Should also be encouraged in the case of fetuses determined to suffer serious genetic disorders. If sociopathy turns out to have a genetic component, would support mandatory abortion of fetuses found to have it(probably the only case I would support mandatory abortion). 


      •   Environmentalism: Passionately consider combating of global warming to be the great test of my generation’s worth, if not its raison d’être. IF it was politically viable I would support the transition of global society to Vegetarianism(with the possible exception of meats which cause the least in the way of environmental burden), on account of animal farming being so much more environmentally burdensome then agriculture and the immense strain fishing as imposed upon our oceans. Emphasis on conservation. Emphasis on urban/suburban environments being “greened” to a greater extent.   

      Support a "cap and dividend" system rather then a cap and trade/carbon tax

      •   Crime: Petty criminals(such as those leading to sentences of less then 1 year/6 months) should not be immersed in criminal culture, as they often leave more criminal then they entered- I’m not sure what the best alternative is. Paedophiles and rapists should be chemically castrated. I’m ambivalent about the death penalty- though I would support it being applied in severe cases of political or corporate corruption, as well as perhaps serial killers.

      •   Gun control: Support ban, though would be supportive of investigation into the viability of public access to defensive tasers.

      •   Civil Liberties vs Civil Securities: I come down in favour of the latter almost every single time. The idiotic objections(sorry to be blunt but its true) to keeping the DNA of innocent people on a government database strikes me as particularly ludicrous- what possible harm could come of that? Modern surveillance and ID card strategies I am currently ambivalent about not from a civil liberties standpoint but rather because the technology has not progressed enough to be particularly useful. Once ID cards can be replaced with high-tech ID chips(mandatory, ideally), security dividends will truly manifest themselves.

      •   Multiculturalism/Immigration: I am ambivalent about multiculturalism for multiculturalism’s sake(the odd idea that diversity correlates with success seems disproven when one looks at homogenous societies like South Korea and Japan), sympathetic to calls for higher degree of assimilation and Western cultural assertiveness. Also, most immigration policies seem tailored to deprive developing countries of their most productive citizens. However the threat posed by demographic and skills gaps will take a generation at least to fix, therefore necessitating high rates of immigration to counterbalance them until they stabilize. Government should reject anti-refugee silliness currently pervading my country, rather than pander to it as it currently is. 

      •   Government should do what it can to encourage secularism and intellectualism.



      Economic issues

      Summary – Democratic Socialist


      •   Taxation: Land Value tax should be a core basis of tax revenue. Also carbon taxes should be implemented. Income tax should become more progressive. Sin taxes should be expanded to the least healthy foods.

      •   Public ownership: Public control(or in certain cases semi-control) of national resources, infrastructure and healthcare system is vital. A public bank should be established with preferential loans to particular causes(ie. Student loans, first time home buyers and renewable energy/energy efficiency loans)

      •   Renewable energy/energy efficiency: Stimulate economy primarily through investment in renewable energy technologies and public transport. There are countless ways to expand renewable energy capacity and energy efficiency, to numerous to mention. Through use of the public bank’s preferential loans, the government could increase the pace- in exchange for those loans, the government would keep half the financial gain resultant from increased energy efficiency, which could be dedicated towards financing further renewable/efficiency investment.

      •   Trade: Ambivalent on free trade. A fair trade strategy to help bolster the economies of developing countries, coupled with common sense trade restrictions to counter mercantilist strategy from countries such as China, would be most desirable- coupled with an attempt to shift our economy towards less reliance on natural resource exports.

      •   Education: Free university in exchange for… say 5/7 hours of public service in the community per week. Beyond that I’m not well informed enough to propose anything.

      •   Institute a workfare system modeled on Denmark’s.

      •   Protect pensions and extend government care for the elderly.

      •   Strengthen anti-trust laws

      •   Cease agricultural subsidies towards large agribuisiness.

      •   Exploit the water supplies of Australia’s North and consider exploiting its agricultural capacity.

      •   Oppose affirmative action based on race, favour it on a socioeconomic basis.



      Foreign Policy

      Summary – Standard egalatarian internationalism.


      •   Military budget: As “a future fair for all” said, “CUTCUTCUT!”
      •   Implement fair trade policies and expand aid to third world countries conditional on those countries taking serious action regarding their greenhouse gas emissions.
      •   Iraq and Afghanistan: Withdraw from former, stay in latter until the deadline Obama proclaimed(if it drags on past that, leave).
      •   Iran: Would support bombing if all else fails.
      •   Play as cooperative and active a role as a nation of our minor importance can in matters requiring international cooperation for global benefit.







      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: USSP on July 07, 2010, 10:50:06 AM
      Socially: I'm a libertarian. Moral issues are not the place of the federal government to rule on. Give people their freedom to do what they please as long as it is not harmful and don't take it away.

      Economically: I'm a border line socialist. I believe in a progressive tax system. I believe in a single payer health care system like medicare expanded to cover the entire US population. I believe in allowing workers to unionize. I believe public universities should be nationalized and tuition made free for US citizens. I believe in nationalizing the major utilities and natural resources of the country to bring them under public control and eliminate the for-profit nature of the pricing and selling of the necessities of life. I believe that one of the most important things we can do is eliminate lobbying in Washington so we can pass legislation that is in the interest of the people, not the special interests(the health care bill). It's also time to end "too big to fail". Break up the BIG banks or let them collapse.

      Foreign Policy: I believe in self defense and the defense of allies. The war in Iraq was not a war of defense and therefor was absolutely wrong. The war in Afghanistan was justified to eliminate Al Quaeda, but has degenerated into a war of occupation. If the United States or it's allies are attacked I believe war is justified, and if not I believe that it is not.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Ban my account ffs! on July 07, 2010, 10:59:23 PM
      An update on mine:

      General philosophy: Liberal

      Abortion: Should be available upon request during the first two trimesters.  Only to save the life of the mother thereafter.  Schools should have comprehensive sex ed. that includes education about contraceptives and alternatives to abortions.  Parents should be notified of the sex education courses and should have an opt-out option.
      Separation of church and state: Just as the state has no business meddling with church affairs, the church has no business meddling in state affairs.  If a church decides to take a strong political stance and uses its capacity as a church to promote certain candidates, its tax exemption should be removed and taxes collected immediately. 
      Gay Marriage: Gays should enjoy the same benefits and responsibilities of traditional marriage as recognized by the state; however, no church should be forced to marry anybody they don't want to.  Since the government basically recognizes marriage as a civil contract, there is no reason that two women or two men should be prevented from entering such a civil contract.
      Affirmative Action: The best way to help lift minorities and women into all professions is by expanding their ability and opportunity to do so through education.  Various education policies need to change to help children in impoverished areas thrive like anybody else.  Direct affirmative action can be useful if discrimination is obvious, but has, for the most part, outlived its usefulness.
      Age of Consent: Age of consent should be 16.
      Gun rights: Generally supportive, though we should have a waiting period, licensure, and background checks.  
      Death Penalty: Strongly oppose.  Life imprisonment is a more appropriate punishment for the worst crimes.
      Censorship: Strongly oppose.  I do support an independent rating system that can be voluntarily applied to various media.  But it should remain that:  A voluntary rating system. 
      Flag burning:  Should be legal in all cases.  Flag burning is not a form of treachery.  It is a symbolic form of protest that people use to air strong grievances with the state.  It shouldn't be taken lightly, either.
      Smoking:  No smoking in public places, though we should allow for smoking rooms in private businesses (if they're separate).  
      Alcohol consumption: Legal age should be lowered to 16 to purchase wine and beer and 19 to purchase liquor (to keep liquor out of high schools).  Alcohol consumption in the presence of parents should be allowed at any age.  Get rid of public intoxication laws and allow drinking in public.  Increase public programs that promote responsible drinking.  Campaigns like "stop at buzzed" are much more effective than "DON'T DRINK AT ALL OMG!"
      Euthanasia: I support voluntary euthanasia in cases of terminal illness.
      Drugs: I support the legalization of marijuana and other "softer" drugs.  They should be allowed for sale in licensed establishments that are subject to inspection.  They should also be regulated and taxed by the government.  The revenue should first and foremost go to addiction/recovery programs.
      Gambling:  I recognize the positive benefits of allowing casinos on Indian reservations.  I also support initiatives between states and Native American tribes to place casinos on state land outside of the reservation with revenue sharing.  I think a portion of all gambling profits should be dedicated to addiction programs.
      Prostitution: Leave this to the states.  The federal government shouldn't have any say one way or the other, except in cases of forced or underage prostitution.  I support legalized prostitution as long as prostitutes are regularly tested for STDs, are STD free, and the industry is regulated to remove the common "pimp/ho" relationships.
      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Strongly support.
      Immigration:  We need to make legal immigration much easier.  We should have no quotas based on race or nationality, but we could have an expedited process for skilled or educated immigrants.
      Illegal Immigration:  Secure the border by placing more border security teams along the border.  Try repeat offenders.  Allow current illegal immigrants amnesty if they agree to begin the process of legal immigration.  They should be granted a visa to remain and work in the country as long as they are in the process of becoming citizens.  Those who do not begin the process of legal immigration by a certain date should be considered criminals and deported upon arrest.




      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Ban my account ffs! on July 07, 2010, 10:59:46 PM
      Economic Issues

      General Philosophy: Liberal

      Taxes: Lower corporate taxes and close loopholes.  Reduce taxes drastically for small businesses and encourage owners not to file as individuals.  Make the income tax significantly more progressive and raise them to close the majority of the deficit.  States should have progressive income taxes and should shy away from sales taxes, or should at least make necessities tax exempt.  States should provide equalization funding to schools and poorer cities and counties to keep property taxes uniformly low.
      Employers and Employees: The right of employees to form a union should be aggressively protected by the local, state, and federal governments.  The punishment for union busting and union prevention should be harsh.  Intimidation by employers should also be harshly punished, and employers should only have a say in the process through an official, impartial arbiter once the process of unionization has begun.  The right of employees not to join a union should also be protected, and no union dues should be paid by non-union employees.  Employers should not be able to force potential employees into stating their preference to join the union until after they have been hired.
      Free trade: I support fair trade.  We need to hold our trading partners to the same standards that we hold our own workers.  This also goes for environmental standards.
      Spending:  Defense spending is out of control and needs to be curtailed.  Cut non-troop and non-war related expenditures by 10% immediately and institute growth caps on future spending to inflation for 10 years.  Ask all departments to identify 15% of potential savings.  Ask each department to find better efficiencies that reduce costs and cut up to 10% of the budget.  Stimulus funding would not be affected by this and could provide extra funding to such programs in times of economic recession.
      Social Security: Lift the cap on payroll taxes.  Increase the retirement age to 70 over a period of years.  Increase benefits for the poorest while reducing them for the richest.
      Space Program: Support.  The government should partner with private interests with the government focusing on research and initial training.  Allow private enterprise to take over non-close orbit space travel with government subsidies to begin.
      Welfare:  Have a guaranteed minimum income for the disabled and single working parents.  Provide food and cash assistance to the poor.  Make benefits after a certain period dependent on at least part-time work or job seeking.
      Healthcare: We need strong regulation of the private insurance industry.  Make a second opinion the right of every patient, and make the coverage for 2nd opinions mandatory.  Limit malpractice benefits to the potential economic loss taken by the patient plus a small amount for general pain and suffering.  The government should either expand medicare or create a single payer insurance program for all children and young adults under 26 and people over 65 as well as the poor and disabled.  The standards for this program should be standard and binding across the industry to lower administrative costs and redundancies.  Allow medical practitioners to prescribe basic non-narcotic drugs to patients for simple, common ailments to reduce costs for visits for common ailments (sprains, colds, flu, etc.).  Set up a national database and allow more drugs, in lower doses, to be available over a pharmacy counter without a prescription at the discretion of a trained pharmacist upon review of your history in the national database.
      Education: At the federal level:  Uniform basic standards of learning for the entire nation.  This includes math and science standards and applicable social studies and english/grammar.  The states reserve the right to fine tune and change these standards where deemed necessary.  The federal government should provide equalization money among states as well as funding for special education.  I support an equalization system in the states funded by income taxes so that property poor school districts have the resources to give their students a world class education.  Give ultimate authority to the local school districts when it comes to how they spend money.
      Minimum Wage: We need a federal minimum wage that is tied to the cost of living.  Tipped employees should earn the same minimum wage, though businesses have the right to pool tips and share them among other non-management employees.  States reserve the right to go below the national minimum for small, wholly state-bound businesses and have the right to raise the minimum wage above the national minimum and make it binding to all businesses.
      Regulation:  In some markets, regulation is a must.  We need a well regulated banking industry as well as food and drug safety.  We also need strong environmental protection.  In most cases, the freer the market, the freer the people is sound... but basic necessities need to be regulated as to promote the health and wellbeing of the public.
      Infrastructure: First and foremost, we need to increase public transportation in our cities and in rural areas.  Metropolitan areas should promote denser, transit-oriented growth through tax incentives.  We should focus on freeway expansion where it is necessary, but also focus on better maintenance standards and better paving standards, which, while more expensive at the outset, reduce maintenance costs and last much longer.  We also need to focus on our power grid.  It needs to be expanded to handle massive spikes in usage during heatwaves and cold waves.  Also, with the likely massive increase in home-charged electric cars, the demand will increase greatly.  While gas stations will likely become "battery exchange stations" in the future (much like propane tanks for your grill), people will still charge their cars at home if they can.  We also need to focus on making our dams safe and flood prevention infrastructure needs to be upgraded in flood prone areas like New Orleans or along flood prone rivers.
      Energy Policy: We need to massively increase nuclear power.  This must be the backbone of our energy requirements while we phase out coal and natural gas and develop wind, solar, and biomass technologies.  While nuclear isn't renewable and it has its dangers, it is incredibly efficient.  Old coal stations should be replaced with nuclear and newer, cleaner coal plants should be used as peak use plants.  We can also develop geothermal electricity where it is feasible, especially in the western U.S. where temperatures at the normal range of geothermal plants is nearly 200˚C.
      Environment:  We need sustainability.  We need to require sustainable forestry practices that promote healthy forests for wildlife while meeting our demands for wood products.  We also need sustainable grassland programs.  If people would eat more buffalo/bison and less beef, it would greatly improve the prairies.  This is because the diet of Bison are different than cattle and the American prairie has evolved with bison so that they coexist nicely.  Eating bison instead of beef is also healthier as bison is lower in fat and cholesterol, so it's a win-win.. while bison is still very flavorful.  We also need to strictly regulate our fisheries so they are sustainable as well.  End bottom trawling.  Government should lower subsidies on corn and soybeans and raise them on fresh fruits and vegetables so that everybody can afford healthier food choices.  Also, for every ounce of meat you forego, you could eat 10 ounces of vegetables and have the same environmental impact.  

      We need to focus on having the smallest impact possible while maintaining a high quality of life.  We need to realize that quality of life isn't borne out of "bigger is always better" and "More is always better"... but that we should focus on family and community as the foundations of good quality of life.  If we can do this, the environment will greatly benefit.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Ban my account ffs! on July 07, 2010, 11:00:46 PM
      Foreign Issues

      General Philosophy: I don't know.

      Democracy and Trade: I support both, but movements towards democracy should be home grown.  We should assist if they ask.
      United Nations: The idea of an international body is important in today's world.  It should not hold any legal jurisdiction, however.
      Iraq: Strongly opposed to our invasion of Iraq, though if peace and stability can remain in this fledgling democracy, I won't deny the victory there.
      Israel: Support two state proposal.  No economic or military aid except for defense in extreme situations.  We were instrumental in putting them there, we should help them out when they really need it.  Palestinians and Jewish Israelis will have to learn to coexist.
      Patriot Act: Strongly Oppose
      Torture: Strongly Oppose.  It is inhumane and ineffective.
      Military Involvement:  Oppose in most circumstances.  We need to focus more on our own defense.  Return the National Guard to being the national guard... so they can respond to domestic crises when needed.
      North American Union: A union that sets up free trade and free travel amongst the nations is a good idea.  Also, legislation that affects all parties could be promoted by a stronger union, but ultimately these proposed laws would have to be approved by the legislative bodies of each respective country in order to maintain national sovereignty.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Хahar 🤔 on July 08, 2010, 03:33:18 PM
      If people would eat more buffalo/bison and less beef, it would greatly improve the prairies.  This is because the diet of Bison are different than cattle and the American prairie has evolved with bison so that they coexist nicely.  Eating bison instead of beef is also healthier as bison is lower in fat and cholesterol, so it's a win-win.. while bison is still very flavorful.

      It may be flavorful, but the flavor isn't good.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Ameriplan on July 08, 2010, 06:38:41 PM
      Right-wing


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mint on July 08, 2010, 08:01:38 PM
      It may be flavorful, but the flavor isn't good.

      Totally disagree. Bison is amazing. It's almost always a better cut of meat in my experience, especially when you're making burgers.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Chili on July 10, 2010, 10:12:35 AM
      General Philosophy: Communitarian

      Taxes: Ought to be low on individuals and high on their employers. This notion that low taxes attracts industry is self-evidently false, or else the Western states would be bastions of business.

      Employers and Employees: The right to unionize is inherent in the right to peaceable assembly and as such is guaranteed to us in our Constitution. Now, there are times when unions can be harmful to the public good, as was the case during the 1970s and 1980s, and their excess and corruption need to be systematically stemmed. But when they work, unions are the greatest guarantors of economic equality conceivable, and we need more of them, not less.

      Free trade: I am a fair-trader. It is hypocritical for the Western world to rely upon Third World goods for raw material without first paying them enough to purchase the goods then produced.

      Social Security: There needs to be an income cap on eligibility - those who made, say, over two hundred thousand dollars a year while employed ought to be prohibited from being fully eligible for social security.

      Space Program: I oppose it. Too often the space program serves as little more than government pork.

      Welfare:  Has been decimated by three decades of neo-liberalism. When the social safety net is re-established in this nation, however, its benefits ought to go to rural and urban citizen alike.

      Healthcare: Is an issue I'm not familiar enough with to comment on. My 'gut instinct', however, is for greater Federal involvement.

      Education: Is too often neglectful of local desires. I fully support Federal funding of education, but at the same time would like to see a greater emphasis on those values that all Americans share be made part of the curriculum.

      Minimum Wage: Needs to be much higher than at present. How do companies expect their goods to be sold if there's nobody around to purchase them?

      Regulation:  I reject entirely the perversion of the free-market ideal offered by modern conservatives. In its place I prefer to see an economy centered around human need, rather than individual want. Where corporations have destroyed local thrift, it ought to be made to pay for it. Where it destroys God's Earth, it ought to feel its pain.

      Infrastructure: Has been entirely destroyed by previous Administrations, and while I'm supportive of Obama's efforts to repair our highways, it will only contribute to our dependency on oil in the long term. What we need now is a massive public project to not only restore but to revolutionize our current mode of transport.

      Energy Policy: Nuclear, geo-thermal, solar -- I favor all of it, dependent upon local conditions.

      Environment:  God created the world and takes pleasure in it (Psalm 104). He has left it up to humanity to rule over it and take care of all creation (Gen. 1:28). The Psalms tell us that creation is not only given for our use, but that all creation--animals, plants, hills and sky--is intended to praise and glorify the Lord (Psalm 148). When humanity, through greed and short-sightedness, weakens and damages the earth, we are guilty of wasting not only a precious resource, but of defacing a beautiful work that God has made. These "Christians" - and let me assure you that they are not - who scoff at environmentalism scoff at God Himself, and will be punished accordingly for it.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Chili on July 10, 2010, 10:19:29 AM
      Social Isuses: Communitarian

      Abortion: Oppose on all grounds. Even the much-vaunted "life of the mother" argument carries no water with me.

      Separation of Church and State: Is a shield used by those who would corrupt America to foist their nihilism on an unsuspecting people.

      Marriage: Is subject natural law, like all of man's activities.

      Affirmative Action: I wholeheartedly support Affirmative Action. We cannot sit by idly while our fellow man is constantly diminished by others.

      Gun Control: Ought to vary based upon regional needs.

      Death Penalty: Sadistic and anti-Christianity barbarism. One of the basic tenets of the faith is "let he who is without sin cast the first stone". In this instance that prescript is literally applicable.

      Smoking: Is a pollution of the temple of the Holy Spirit.

      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: I oppose the destruction of all life.

      USA PATRIOT Act: I feel does not go far enough in securing our safety from Islamic extremism.

      Immigration: We ought to greatly liberalize our existing immigration laws. It is our duty - yes, our duty - to give aid and succor to our fellow men.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on July 10, 2010, 10:36:00 AM
      O_O


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: xavier110 on August 12, 2010, 05:36:05 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: Support, although I do support parental notification for those under 18
      Separation of church and state: Support
      Gay Marriage: Support
      Affirmative Action: Support for socio-economic backgrounds, not race
      Gun rights: I believe in some gun control (background checks, etc.)
      Death Penalty: Strongly oppose
      Censorship: Strongly oppose
      Flag burning: Strongly support
      Smoking: Oppose public bans, support taxes
      Alcohol consumption: Support, legal age should be lowered to 18
      Euthanasia: Strongly support
      Drugs: Strongly support complete legalization
      Gambling: Support, legal age should be lowered to 18
      Prostitution: Strongly support legalization
      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Strongly support
      Immigration: Support open borders
      Illegal Immigration: Support amnesty

      Economic Issues

      Taxes: Progressive tax
      Employers and Employees: Support unions, strikes, etc.
      Free trade: Oppose
      Spending: Stupid buzz word

      Social Security: Oppose privatization
      Space Program: Don't care
      Welfare: Support
      Healthcare: Support socialized medicine
      Education: Support vouchers
      Minimum Wage: Support an increase
      Regulation: Strongly support
      Energy Policy: Support alternative energy research, oppose nuclear plants
      Environment: Generally support

      Foreign Issues

      United Nations: Support
      Iraq: Strongly oppose
      Israel: Oppose
      Patriot Act: Strongly Oppose
      Torture: Strongly Oppose
      Military Involvement: Varies by circumstance


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Bo on August 12, 2010, 05:44:10 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: Oppose except when it comes to rape and to protect a mother's life and health
      Separation of church and state: Support
      Gay Marriage: Oppose, but I support giving gay couples all the same rights as married couples
      Affirmative Action: Support for financial status. Oppose for race.
      Gun rights: I believe in some gun control (background checks, etc.) everywhere. However, call me hypocritical, but I support more restrictions on guns in areas with low crime rates (but not in areas with high crime rates).
      Death Penalty: Support only when a criminal confesses to a particular crime and is judged mentally sane.
      Censorship: Strongly oppose
      Flag burning: Strongly oppose
      Smoking: Support public bans and high taxes
      Alcohol consumption: Support, legal age should be kept at 21
      Euthanasia: Support in some, but not all, cases.
      Drugs: Oppose legalization right now. However, when weed becomes legalized, I would support legalizing certain other drugs and placing very high taxes on them.
      Gambling: Support, legal age should be kept at 21.
      Prostitution: Support legalization
      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Strongly support
      Immigration: Support open borders and increasing quotas.
      Illegal Immigration: Oppose amnesty

      Economic Issues

      Taxes: Progressive tax
      Employers and Employees: Support unions, strikes, etc.
      Free trade: Oppose
      Spending: Support when it comes to social welfare

      Social Security: Oppose privatization
      Space Program: Support
      Welfare: Support
      Healthcare: Support socialized medicine and a public option
      Education: Support vouchers
      Minimum Wage: Support an increase
      Regulation: Strongly support
      Energy Policy: Support alternative/renewable energy research and nuclear plants
      Environment: Generally support

      Foreign Issues

      United Nations: Support
      Afghanistan: Support
      Iraq: Strongly oppose
      Israel: Support
      Iran: Favor military strikes if diplomacy fails
      North Korea: Favor multilateral approach
      Patriot Act: Strongly Oppose
      Torture: Strongly Oppose
      Military Involvement: Varies by circumstance



      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Goldwater on August 13, 2010, 01:04:21 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: Should be left to the states, but at the state level I'm pro-choice except for late term abortions.
      Separation of church and state: Support
      Gay Marriage: Ass long as heterosexual couples receive federal benefits, so should homosexual ones.
      Affirmative Action: Strongly oppose.
      Gun rights: Against.
      Death Penalty: Should be left to the states, but at state level I support.
      Censorship: Strongly oppose
      Flag burning: Is free speech.
      Smoking bans: Oppose, it should be up to each person whether or not smoking is allowed on their private property.
      Drinking: Should be lowered to 18.
      Euthanasia: Legalize it.
      Drugs: Should be left to the states, & at the state level I'm completely neutral.
      Gambling: Should be left to the states, & at the state level I'm completely neutral.
      Prostitution: Should be left to the states, & at the state level I'm completely neutral.
      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Oppose federal funding for it, but I would also oppose banning it.
      Economic Issues

      Taxes: I think the best thing would be a mixture of a flat income tax & a national sales tax, because having just one one would make it too high.
      Employers and Employees: I basically take all of the "pro business" stances.
      Free trade: Strongly support.
      Spending: Limited & spent mostly on military.
      Social Security: Support privatization
      Welfare: Ideally, it would be eliminated, but I support reforming it as a first step there.
      Healthcare: Oppose socialized medicine and a public option
      Education: I think vouchers for private schools  would be a better alternative to public schools, strongly support homeschooling, & strongly oppose making education mandatory.
      Minimum Wage: Support abolishing it.
      Regulation: Very little.

      Foreign Issues

      United Nations: Oppose.
      Afghanistan: Support, but I'm undecided on if we're still needed there.
      Iraq: Undecided.
      Israeli–Palestinian conflict: Support a two state solution.
      Iran: Favor military strikes if diplomacy fails
      North Korea: Favor multilateral approach
      Patriot Act: Oppose
      Torture: Undecided, but leaning towards oppose.
      Military Involvement: Varies by circumstance



      I might think of more issues later.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: feeblepizza on August 13, 2010, 03:22:25 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: Should be left to the states (oppose)
      Separation of church and state: To some degree
      Gay Marriage: Should be left to the states (oppose)
      Affirmative Action: STRONGLY oppose
      Gun rights: For
      Death Penalty: Should be left to the states (oppose)
      Censorship: Oppose
      Flag burning: I don't enjoy burning flags, but people can do it if they wish
      Smoking bans: Oppose, because people can decide if they want to slowly kill themselves or not. It is not of out concern to stop them
      Drinking: Should be lowered to 19
      Euthanasia: Should be left to the states (oppose)
      Drugs: Should be left to the states (legalize them)
      Gambling: Should be left to the states (support)
      Prostitution: Should be left to the states (keep it illegal)
      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Should be left to the states (support use of adult stem cells, but definitely not embryos)

      Economic Issues

      Taxes: National sales tax
      Employers and Employees: Pro-business
      Free trade: Oppose
      Spending: Cut all non-military spending
      Social Security: Support privatization
      Welfare: Ideally, it would be eliminated, but I support reforming it as a first step there
      Health-care: Use the lottery
      Education: Support vouchers, support homeschooling, and oppose mandatory schooling
      Minimum Wage: Should be left to the states (keep it at the normal level ($7.25 in Indiana)
      Regulation: Very little

      Foreign Issues

      United Nations: Oppose
      Afghanistan: Oppose (hopeless)
      Iraq: Oppose (we won in 2008)
      Israeli–Palestinian conflict: Support a two state solution
      Iran: Favor military strikes if diplomacy fails
      North Korea: Favor multilateral approach
      Patriot Act: Support
      Torture: Support
      Military Involvement: Varies by circumstance


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Phony Moderate on August 13, 2010, 08:39:02 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: Should be legal in all circumstances
      Separation of church and state: Strongly support
      Gay Marriage: Not only legalize same-sex marriage, but all other marriages as well, whether they be polygamous, incestuous, etc
      Affirmative Action: Support to a certain extent
      Gun rights: Against
      Death Penalty: Against. The state has no right to kill.
      Censorship: Oppose in most cases
      Flag burning: If anything, it should be encouraged
      Smoking bans: Support in public places. Smoking can damage the health of others.
      Drinking: Abolish the drinking age limit
      Euthanasia: Everyone should have the liberty to end their lives, anywhere, anytime
      Drugs: Legalize all drugs. Everyone should have the liberty to harm themselves.
      Gambling: Should be legal
      Prostitution: Should be legal
      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Support

      Economic Issues

      Taxes: High tax rate on the rich, low tax rate on the poor. Lower "middle-class" taxes to an extent.
      Employers and Employees: Pro-unions.
      Free trade: Support fair trade. Oppose NAFTA, and the like.
      Spending: Cut military and defense spending, and spending on police state programs. Increase on public services which are needed.
      Social Security: Increase spending
      Welfare: Support the welfare state
      Health-care: Support the NHS. Increase funding.
      Education: Support the public school system. Increase funding and teacher's pay. Abolish unneeded testing and cut class sizes.
      Minimum Wage: Increase it
      Regulation: More of it

      Foreign Issues

      United Nations: Support, but it has it's faults
      Afghanistan: Oppose
      Iraq: Oppose
      Israeli-Palestinian conflict: Support a two state solution
      Iran: Don't go to war with them. Be diplomatic.
      North Korea: As above.
      Patriot Act: Oppose
      Torture: Oppose
      Military Involvement: Oppose


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: fezzyfestoon on August 13, 2010, 11:43:11 PM
      I've really fallen away from taking specific positions.  It's not at all a realistic or even rational approach to politics that we've unfortunately become culturally fixated on.  All it does is perpetuate the game that is our political world and for some reason I'd expect others here to similarly reject the notion.  Then again, like 90% of the people here are under the delusion that they're perpetually running for office, so it makes sense.  Really, political beliefs should be broken down into philosophical priorities rather than specific positions on the issue of the day.  I guess I shouldn't talk since my positions are about as consistent as Paula Abdul's state of consciousness.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Vepres on September 15, 2010, 05:41:03 PM
      Here I'll take a different approach, explaining my core philosophy (no, this was not inspired by Fezzy's post above).

      Economic

      Core Philosophy: An economy grows best when individuals are as free as possible to flesh out their ideas and be creative. Still, this must be balanced with the basic needs of society. A limited welfare state is good, but the key word is limited, for too much welfare is like a drug, one becomes dependent on it and they lose the ability to function without it. Welfare programs should be few, limited, targeted and effective. Despite some posts I made when I was frustrated with other posters, I really do care about the economically disadvantaged.

      Some industries need somewhat heavier regulation (k-12 schooling, healthcare, water, electricity, etc) as a totally free market would be counterproductive to the ultimate goals a society would have for these industries. Ideally, these "regulated" (I put it in quotes because I don't think many existing regulations on these industries should be there) industries would take the best of both the public sector and the private sector. Still, many of these industries have unnecessary regulations that don't really help achieve the goals of a society. Hopefully many government programs can be replaced by this.

      Other industries need less regulation, and even in "heavily regulated" industries, the regulations should be relatively simple, consolidated, and without redundancies. Take a laissez-faire approach whenever it is reasonable.

      Taxes should be as low as possible. Progressive taxation is okay (though not ideal, I am realistic about the math and such), but only to a point. Taxes should be simple and consolidated.

      Social

      Core philosophy: As long as you don't harm another, government should stay out of it. Maybe banning or regulation of certain victimless things, such as the really hard drugs like meth, and background checks for firearms.

      Foreign Policy

      Core Philosophy: I am dovish to the core. The US must be humble and friendly. Over seas bases should be reduced if not eliminated, and the military budget cut significantly and its budgetary priorities shifted to intelligence and counter terrorism.

      Environment

      Core Philosophy: The Environment is very important to me. The government should be aggressive here, but not excessive either.

      Size of Government

      Core Philosophy: For the most part, government should be small and limited, and when it needs to exert its power, it should be as decentralized as possible.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Хahar 🤔 on September 16, 2010, 01:32:43 AM
      Economic Issues

      Taxes: I think the best thing would be a mixture of a flat income tax & a national sales tax, because having just one one would make it too high.
      Employers and Employees: I basically take all of the "pro business" stances.
      Free trade: Strongly support.
      Spending: Limited & spent mostly on military.
      Social Security: Support privatization
      Welfare: Ideally, it would be eliminated, but I support reforming it as a first step there.
      Healthcare: Oppose socialized medicine and a public option
      Education: I think vouchers for private schools  would be a better alternative to public schools, strongly support homeschooling, & strongly oppose making education mandatory.
      Minimum Wage: Support abolishing it.
      Regulation: Very little.

      Wow, that's really terrible.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Dr. Cynic on September 16, 2010, 01:58:20 AM
      I dunno if I did this or not already. I lose track in threads like this, but I might as well update it.

      Social issues: Left-leaning Civil Libertarian

      Abortion: Pro-Choice within the first two trimesters.
      Immigration: I support a guest worker program and generally open border with some exceptions.
      Marriage: Marraige is generally just a tax benefit. Allow marraige liscenses to be issued, but leave blood testing requirements up to the states. Support same-sex marraige.
      Flag Burning: Support the right of protestors to burn the flag non-violently.
      Free Speech: Lenny Bruce was a martyr. Complete free speech on television and the internet that is not libel. Don't like it. Don't watch. Leave content up to individual producers.
      War on Drugs: The War on Drugs is a waste of public dollars. Scale back restrictions on private use. Completely decriminalize marijuana. However, do not allow foreigners to import hard drugs such as cocaine.
      Affirmative Action: Unnecessary in this day and age. Economic affirmative action would be fairer.
      Gun control: Support the right to carry a gun of any type. However, require special liscensing and training. Refuse to allow anyone with any kind of criminal offense to purchase a weapon.
      Death Penalty: A waste of tax dollars and time. Multiple studies show it's cheaper to provide life imprisonment for the worst offenders than to use lethal deterrent.
      Voluntary Euthanasia: Legalize it. Require MD's to recieve special liscensing to perform the task of euthanasia. Only patient or patient's family may ask for euthanasia, a doctor is prohibited from suggesting it apart from listing it in options.
      Draft: No draft. Military service should be completely voluntary.
      Patriot Act, domestic spying, etc.: Illegal unless a warrant is obtained from a federal judge.
      Stem Cell Research: Continue funding stem cell research in hopes that they may help lead to medical breakthroughs.
      States Rights: States may pass their own laws and have their own systems, but be subserviant to federal law.
      Three Strikes Law: Rediculous yardstick that hinders justice more than helps it.
      Prostitution: Completely legalize. Hold yearly VD checks. Any prostitute with VD should be disallowed from working.
      Separation of Church and State: Freedom of religion, but federal and state governments are prohibited from passing laws to favor or injure one religion over the expense of another. Complete secularism in the public sector.
      Electoral College: Completely discard in favor of popular vote.

      Foreign Policy: Fair trade. Maintain our trading partnerships with countries we have special relationships with (Canada, Britain, Australia, New Zealand, etc.)
      War on Terror: Continue to use Spec Ops to hunt for terrorist leaders. Stop treating a political problem with military medication.
      Palestine: Support the rights of Palestinians to create their own homeland or be represented in the Israeli government as long as they pay Israeli taxes. Condemn terror and war crimes on both sides.
      Israel: Maintain a moderately friendly relationship with them. Fair trade and pressure to allow Palestinians self-determination.
      War in Iraq: Wrong-headed in the first place. Continue troop withdrawl at fastest practical pace.
      Iran: Pressure Iran to discontinue nuclear technology, peacefully. Failing that, flex the muscle as they say. War, final resort.
      North Korea: See Iran. Flex the muscle where peaceful pressuring fails.
      9/11: Continue investigating causes and effects. Modify our foreign policy to reflect earnest friendliness with the middle eastern world.
      Afghanistan: Leave as soon as practically possible.
      Pakistan: Maintain a neutral friendship with them. Moderate between them and India to prevent a war or catastrophic nuclear war.
      Torture: A ineffective war crime.
      Diplomacy: Preferable to war in all cases unless we are physically threatened or attacked.
      Free Trade Agreement: Support Fair Trade. Disallow companies to layoff American workers to employ cheap foreign labor. If tax incentives don't work, sue them.
      Military involvement: Should always be the last resort unless we are physically attacked. Support nuclear disarmamant.

      Economic Issues: Social Democrat

      Taxes: Progressive income tax. Eliminate income taxes on those making less than $50,000 per yr. States may continue to set Sales Tax.
      Welfare: Provide government welfare for those with no place to go. Having been homeless with no family relations made it very difficult to rely on private charity. Expand foodbank and foodstamps, health care, and set a living wage. Provide incentives for small businesses to compete. Add national competition to essential industries. (Airlines being the big one right now)
      Trade: Fair trade excepting countries with special relationships. Threaten to bust corporations that attempt to lay off American workers for cheap labor.
      Health Care: Universal Coverage. Demand hospitals treat patients and subsidize those patients who cannot afford insurance.
      Spending: Cut unnecessary spending where possible but do not jeopardize any programs that benefit the poor or middle class. A lean and efficent military.
      Education: Raise public education standards. Support stronger science, math, and language programs.
      Regulations: Allow private industry to continue with government regulation. Mixed economy with competition where possible. Prevent companies from laying off American workers for cheap foreign labor.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Globus Cruciger on September 28, 2010, 07:15:09 PM
      General philosophy: Monarchism, but in America that has little practical impact...

      Social issues: Right-wing fanatic, I guess.

      Abortion: Toss Roe v. Wade into the rubbish pit – should be illegal with no exceptions.
      Affirmative Action: Strongly oppose when done on racial grounds. Economically, I've much less problem with it. 
      Alcohol: Lower drinking age to 18. Send drunk drivers to the galleys for life.
      Capital Punishment: Don't think it's wrong in principle, but today would say mercy is the better way to go unless under wartime or similar necessity.   
      Church & State: Constitution says no particular denomination can be made official religion, no more. Railing against mangers on town squares or "under God" in the Pledge is ridiculous in a three-quarters Christian and nine-tenths religious country.   
      Education: Abolish Department of Education, let states do whatever they want. I'm a tad biased, being homeschooled myself, but strongly support home education, and, by extension, private schools. Don't teach "alternative theories" in science classes, but religious instruction should be provided, from a neutral POV. 
      Elections: Abolish the Electoral College per se, and enshrine into law our current unwritten convention of having all of a state's electoral votes going to the candidate who won the state.
      Euthanasia: Strongly oppose. Murder is murder, no matter who consents to it. But no one should be forced to undergo any medical procedure they do not desire.
      Free Speech: Strongly support. Flag burning, though I despise it, should be legal. The notion of 'hate speech' and 'hate crimes' is repulsive.
      Homosexuality: Marriage is between a man and a woman, the law shouldn't pretend it can change that. Support “civil unions” for any couple – man and women, man and man, brother and sister, whatever – which would have every right of marriage save adopting children.
      Immigration: Mixed. We shouldn't punish people for wanting a better life, but we need to secure our borders. Bilingualism creates an permanent underclass – encourage learning English.
      Prostitution: Since we're not exactly arresting fornicators anymore, it's very strange to ban intimate congress when money happens to be involved. But soliciting in public should be strictly banned.
      Second Amendment: Generally in favor of personal gun ownership.
      Term limits: Strongly support. Limit (just tossing out numbers here, not sure in the details) senators to two terms, and representatives to six. I want citizen-legislators, not professional politicians.   

      Economic issues: Not very interested in them, but pretty liberal.  Don't think what's good for the billionaire is necessarily good for the common man.
      Space program: Strongly support. Let's get to Mars before the Ruskies!
      Public transportation: Strongly support. It's a crying shame we don't have supersonic trains linking every city in the Union.
       
      Foreign Policy:
      United Nations: Stay in it, but it very much needs reform.
      China: Recognize the Republic of China (Taiwan) instead of the Marxist mob currently occupying the mainland.   
      Israel: Strongly support the "Zionist regime".   
      United Kingdom: Support the "special relationship". Join the Commonwealth of Nations.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Sewer on September 28, 2010, 07:35:07 PM
      Troll alert!


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Obnoxiously Slutty Girly Girl on September 28, 2010, 07:37:03 PM
      Is Einzige back again?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Globus Cruciger on September 28, 2010, 07:53:31 PM
      Oh dear, what a nice welcome. :)

      But I guess here is where I say I am perfectly sincere, and not at all trollish, in what I said. Well except for that part about galley slaves, as I do hope you realized.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RIP Robert H Bork on September 28, 2010, 07:56:12 PM
      Welcome to the forum. Admittedly, I too dislike much of your "platform"*, but welcome anyways.

      *Well, you do have the right idea on social issues and foreign policy (except for the commonwealth of nations; though I too support the special relationship, I absolutely oppose joining the commonwealth)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on October 17, 2010, 07:29:08 AM
      Oh dear. The reactionaries have gathered in this thread :P Nah, I doubt it's Einzige.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: reagan84 on November 07, 2010, 09:33:22 PM
      Just took the Compass test.  It came back as Economic +3.77  Social +5.22
      Sounds about right for me and pretty mainstream for Alabama.  I consider myself a "common sense conservative"  I know that's a phrase that many people hate but I think it applies well to me.  I lean right on about 90% of the issues but few of my positions would be called "extreme."
      Social issues:
      Abortion- pro-life with exceptions for rape, incest, life of mother
      Gay rights- no marriage but civil unions okay.
      Race- end affirmative action, enforce laws against racial discrimination. color blind.
      Immigration-strongly support border enforcement first, path to legal residence but no chance for citizenship for illegals already here unless they go home and re-apply, punish employers who hire illegals. No mass deportations.
      Education- support vouchers  
      Crime- tough on serious crime, softer approach for petty offenses.  Keep marijuana ban but treat it like a speeding ticket.  Death penalty only for mass murder and extremely gruesome situations (eg. dragging death of a black man)
      Health care- no government takeover, vouchers for poor, agreed with Obama about allowing those under 26 to remain on parent's plan.  

      Economic:
      -favor significant  tax cuts across the board as well as reduction in spending
      -no more nation building, not an isolationist but more non-intervention in foreign policy though I am a supporter of Israel.
      -strongly opposed to national sales tax, would hurt young people and lower class very much.
      -favor progressive taxes but it should be flatter and lower
      -generally support free trade but don't surrender national sovereignty.
      -favor more regulations on business than most fiscal conservatives to protect human rights with "reasonable" environmental protection. Would probably oppose cap and trade.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mint on November 07, 2010, 10:47:02 PM
      ()


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Yelnoc on November 10, 2010, 09:49:29 PM
      Social Issues
      My personal views and views on the stance the government should take are too completely different things.  On the one hand, everyone is irresponsible and stupid to various degrees and shouldn't make important decisions because of their negative impact on society.  For instance, guns should be banned because people leave them out for their kids to get to or do a number of other idiotic things with them.  On the other hand, the government is just as stupid and irresponsible and cannot be trusted with the super-tight regulation I envision in my utopia.  Because of that, I tend to prefer a government more libertarian then my values, though my stance on the issues would still probably be considered authoritarian.  Here are my stances on some hotbutton issues:
      • Abortion: Should be illegal in 2nd and 3rd trimester because a child can survive prematurely outside of the womb after those points.  1st trimester should still be illegal, though restricted.  In the words of Bill Clinton "Legal (1st trimester), Safe, and Rare".
      • Education: Don't abandon public schools.  Keep teacher salaries high to attract the best.  Don't place too much of a focus on standardized testing.
      • Healthcare: Institute a Public Healthcare system along the French model


      Domestic Issues
      This is basically the same as social issues (in fact the two sections could probably be combined).
      • Drug Legalization: No.  Hard drugs like meth and cocaine have obvious negative effects on society.  Marijuana, the most talked about drug, is like tobaccco + halucigens.  I don't want my lungs or my kids lungs getting poisoned by the filthy smoke and I don't want to have to deal with blazed people driving or doing the stupid stuff high people do.  Part I of that is why I think that cigarettes should be gradually phased out by higher taxes na dthen after a generation made illegal.  Alcohol, in an ideal world, would be made illegal because it causes hundreds of thousands of deaths a year (car crashes, domestic violence, etc.) but it is too ingrained in our society as the prohibition of the 1920's demonstrated.
      • Gun Control: Ban assault weapons and make concealed weapons illegal.  Private citizens only need guns for hunting and protection.  Substantial background checks should be required before the purpose of any weapon.
      • Environment: There is no evidence that man is causing climate change on a large scale (AKA Global Warming) at the rate the whistleblowers would like you to believe.  Regardless, pollution should be cut down on through regulation and taxes in the name of sanitation.  I don't want my children to develop asthma because they lived in a city or other area with a high pollutant count.  Also, preserve the forest for the next generation; In the spirit of Theodore Roosevelt.


      Economic Issues
      Balanced Budget is at the core of my economic philosophy.  I don't care about the size of government so much; so long as it is streamlined to prevent waste I am ok with a lot of government programs.  Taxes should be raised or lower to insure that the government has enough money to pay its expenditures.  If you don't like seeing your taxes raised suck it up; you can't have your cake and eat it.  I say no to the flat tax.  Chaining our government's income reliant on the performance of the economy is a bad thing.  Social Security needs to be restructured; I don't have anything to lose because at the rate things are ghoing now it will be insolvent long before I retire.


      International Issues
      On the Issues:
      • Free Trade: Is a net good thing.  However, free trade should not be conducted with countries that practice human rights abuses or nations that cause undue harm to the environment.
      • Immigration: Legal immigration is great and should be made easier.  Current illegal immigrants that are here currently should be given a path to citizenship; military service or a work program should grant them and their dependants citizenship.  The borders need to be clamped down on and security needs to be amped to stop terrorists and drug smugglers.
      • Energy: Start investing in alternative energy now.  Put a lot of money into NASA to develop solar and fusion power.  Space-based solar power is the future.

      After reading all of that, what US party do you think I belong in or should I stay an independent?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: tpfkaw on November 10, 2010, 09:50:12 PM
      Social issues: Libertarian

      Abortion: Pro-choice, ban partial birth abortion.  Roe v. Wade should be overturned and the issue left to the states.
      Immigration: Interpret 14th Amendment correctly (children of foreign citizens do not qualify for birthright citizenship, as the authors of the amendment made quite clear - Chinese immigration being a major political issue of the time).  Allow free movement across the border, but people must apply for citizenship normally.  End all quotas.
      Marriage: Has absolutely nothing to do with government.  Any two consenting adults should be allowed to legally designate each other as next of kin regardless of their relation or genetic attributes, or to file a joint tax return.
      Flag Burning: A fundamental right.
      Free Speech: A fundamental right.  End all government censorship initiatives immediately.
      War on Drugs: Legalize all drugs, pardon all non-violent drug "offenders."
      Affirmative Action: Private entities should be allowed to discriminate as they see fit, but government should not.  (Neither should government funds be provided to institutions that discriminate).
      Gun control: Mandatory background checks for everyone.  Otherwise, people should be encouraged to carry guns.  There'd be a lot less gun violence (although the vast majority of it would already be done away with along with the War on Drugs),
      Death Penalty: Against.  Dozens of innocents have likely perished already.
      Voluntary Euthanasia: If a person is of sound mind and not under duress, it absolutely should be legal.
      Draft: No draft except in times of absolute necessity.
      Patriot Act, domestic spying, etc.: 4th amendment rights must be respected in all instances, including electronic spying.
      Stem Cell Research: Stem cell research of all kinds should be completely legal, including cloning, but it should not be funded by the federal government.
      States Rights: Allow nullification.  State national guards should be under state control.  Secession is out of line without a constitutional amendment.
      Three Strikes Law: Awful.  Get rid of, and commute sentences of victims who didn't commit egregious violent crimes.
      Prostitution: Completely legalize (at ages above the consent level), with requirements that sex workers undergo regular STD testing.
      Separation of Church and State: Government should be secular, but that doesn't mean that federal funds can't go to anything religious or that the currency can't say "In God we trust" etc.  I'm an atheist, FWIW.
      Electoral College: Archaic relic that should be abolished in favor of nationwide approval voting.
      Foreign Policy: Humble, do not interfere in things that are not our business.  End the wars immediately.  Bring the troops home from Germany, Japan, South Korea etc.  Focus on free trade agreements and maintaining friendship.
      War on Terror: End.
      Palestine: None of our business.
      Israel: Maintain cordial relations.  No foreign aid to Israel or any other country.
      War in Iraq: End now.
      Iran: Ignore.
      North Korea: Ignore.
      9/11: An unfortunate event.
      Afghanistan: End now.
      Pakistan: Maintain cordial relations.  Ignore.
      Torture: Something we absolutely should not do.
      Diplomacy: No poking around in things that aren't our business, just try to be nice without asking for or giving anything.
      Free Trade Agreement: Should be allowed with all countries where people are not enslaved.
      Military involvement: Should never happen.

      Economic Issues: Libertarian

      Taxes: Should be a consumption tax w/ rebate, and as low as possible.
      Welfare: "Workfare" in which people would perform community service in return for guaranteed employment would be okay, if it were made a voluntary program for each state.
      Trade: See above.
      Health Care: Free market.  End licensing monopolies that artificially restrict supply and jack up prices, as well as public-private boondoggles that boost prices exponentially.  In the short term a voucher program like Paul Ryan's suggestion would be helpful.
      Spending: Should be vastly lower than it is now.
      Education: Should be handled at the local level only.
      Regulations: Should only be for reasonable safety purposes or environmental necessity.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: InquilineKea on November 11, 2010, 05:16:08 PM
      For the record, I read blogs like ParaPundit, FuturePundit, Gene Expression, Bryan Caplan, and Overcoming Bias. So many of my ideas may come across as radical to the mainstream. My biggest gripe is the equation between legality and morality. Let people privately enforce moral standards, rather than force taxpayers to subsidize prison time for actions others may disapprove with. And let people choose who they want to associate with.

      At the same time, I also have a gripe with how some libertarians moralize welfare. Yes, laziness is genetically inherited to *some* degree. Okay, so don't condemn it as a moral problem - find creative ways to make people do work even when they feel like they're having fun - the crowdsourcing/data-mining capabilities of the Internet might help with that.

      Social issues: Quite libertarian (however, I can be more authoritarian on some of the more "hidden" issues).
      Abortion: Pro-Choice but not passionate. Far more important to subsidize birth control (lots of people, especially teens, don't like condoms) so that # of abortions can be reduced.
      Immigration: Canada's policy is good (give preference to educated immigrants)
      Marriage: Abolish it and leave it as a private arrangement
      Flag Burning: Decriminalize. Criminalizing it won't do anything other than waste resources
      Free Speech: Completely support.
      War on Drugs: Decriminalize all drugs (it's a complete utter waste to punish people for victimless crimes). It's not going to make society turn into chaos.
      Affirmative Action: Unnecessary discrimination, repeal it
      Gun control: No passion on issue (but yeah, punishing people for guns is irrational in the same way as punishing people for drugs), research shows that more guns *don't* lead to more crime.
      Death Penalty: No opinion
      Voluntary Euthanasia: Probably legalize
      Draft: No draft except under dire circumstances (if the US is threatened *and* the threat was truly "evil")
      Patriot Act, domestic spying, etc.: Illegal unless a warrant is obtained from a federal judge.
      Stem Cell Research: Continue funding stem cell research in hopes that it may help lead to medical breakthroughs.
      States Rights: Generally support. Let people choose what laws they want to live under. This might lead to interesting natural experiments too/
      Three Strikes Law: When people commit repeat crimes, it's a neurological problem related to lack of self-control, not a moral problem. Get neuroscientists to draft proposals on how to treat repeat offenders (will probably involve some creative solution involving dopaminergic neurons).
      Prostitution: Legalize; it's irrational to punish
      Separation of Church and State: Support
      Electoral College: No opinion
      Foreign Policy: Free trade, foreign aid should only be used as an investment
      War on Terror: the U.S. has overreacted. it's not going to do anything since new independent groups will simply form up again.
      Palestine: No opinion
      Israel: No opinion; don't know enough.
      War in Iraq: Waste of taxpayer dollars, withdraw
      Iran: Not a threat to us
      North Korea: Not a threat to us
      9/11: Overreaction on part of US. Try to find ways to make it so that people won't be so resentful at the US (actually, a stronger China might reduce unique animosity towards the most powerful country)
      Afghanistan: Leave as soon as practically possible.
      Pakistan: Don't know enough
      Torture: No opinion. Probably doesn't work right now.
      Diplomacy: No opinion
      Free Trade Agreement: Leaning towards free trade.
      Military involvement: Usually unnecessary

      Economic Issues: also quite libertarian (not in the same way as the libertarian party)

      Taxes: Don't know enough. Progressive income tax might maximize net utility/happiness. But recognize that private individuals can fund philanthropic pursuits that are better targeted than what the government can fund (do find a creative ways to make the rich happy with donating their money).
      Welfare: Don't know enough. But definitely reduce benefits if people are using it for their large families.
      Trade: Don't know enough; leaning towards free trade
      Health Care: Leaning towards privatization, give vouchers to those who don't have enough money, subsidize health care for catastrophic conditions. But regulations are still completely compatible with a free market - strictly enforce regulations on health care providers (including regulations that make nurses/doctors wash their hands - which they frequently don't do)
      Spending: Huge cuts to defense and entitlement spending. Increase spending on scientific research and other investments (this money would still account for a very small fraction of defense spending)
      Education: The current educational system is a complete mess that holds back the gifted/talented, and forces weaker students through agonizing years of repeated material, much of it that they won't remember. Privatize it, give vouchers to those who don't have enough money, fund research into alternative educational systems (like computer-aided learning) that might work more efficiently both for gifted and weaker students. Allow vouchers to be spent on educational materials so that competition can reduce the cost of textbooks (and promote homeschooling/unschooling as a completely viable alternative). Allow private corporations to set up their own educational systems and regulate them to make sure they're not too specialized.
      Regulations: Privatization can work with regulations. With regulations, we don't have to risk the worst effects of privatization. Environmental regulations are completely necessary (due to tragedy of the commons), but pollution credits might work more than firm limits (I don't know enough yet - definitely fund research to see if it works)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on November 14, 2010, 02:14:14 PM
      Economic

      Nationalization/Privatization: Nationalize every company with over 20 employees.
      Government Intervention: Begin a massive drive to open new coal mines, factories, steelmills, ironworks, shipyards etc. to restore British manufacturing. Begin roadbuilding and renovation projects to restore the British road system, as well as a new railway building program to replace rail closed down under the Beeching Axe. Aim to reduce unemployment to under 500,000.
      Pensions: Maintain pension age at 65
      Taxation: Massive redistribution of wealth and heavily progressive taxation.
      Trade: High protective tariffs against foreign manufactured goods.
      Healthcare: Nationalize all private hospitals & services, abolish prescription charges and begin a hospital building program.
      Education: Nationalize all private schools, abolish tuition fees and maintain the school leaving age at 16. Abolish school uniforms and standardize the testing system.
      Finance: Private banks are inefficient, illogical and greedy - nationalize all of them and create a small group of state banks for different requirements. Re-introduce foreign exchange controls. Abolish the Stock Exchange.

      Social

      Abortion: Allow on request
      Gay marriage: Legalize and make equal with existing heterosexual marriage laws.
      Death penalty: Restore for treason and murder
      Euthanasia: Support I guess
      Drugs: Legalize soft drugs
      Immigration: We're a crowded country - make sure there are clear controls on borders.

      Foreign

      War on Terror: Get out of it, it is nothing to do with us.
      Alliances: Support communist movements in other countries
      Military involvement: Unneccesary except in self defence.
      NATO: Leave
      EU: Leave
      Nuclear disarmament: Multilateral if possible. If not, unilateral.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RIP Robert H Bork on November 14, 2010, 10:28:14 PM
      Economic

      Nationalization/Privatization: Nationalize every company with over 20 employees.
      Government Intervention: Begin a massive drive to open new coal mines, factories, steelmills, ironworks, shipyards etc. to restore British manufacturing. Begin roadbuilding and renovation projects to restore the British road system, as well as a new railway building program to replace rail closed down under the Beeching Axe. Aim to reduce unemployment to under 500,000.
      Pensions: Maintain pension age at 65
      Taxation: Massive redistribution of wealth and heavily progressive taxation.
      Trade: High protective tariffs against foreign manufactured goods.
      Healthcare: Nationalize all private hospitals & services, abolish prescription charges and begin a hospital building program.
      Education: Nationalize all private schools, abolish tuition fees and maintain the school leaving age at 16. Abolish school uniforms and standardize the testing system.
      Finance: Private banks are inefficient, illogical and greedy - nationalize all of them and create a small group of state banks for different requirements. Re-introduce foreign exchange controls. Abolish the Stock Exchange.

      Social

      Abortion: Allow on request
      Gay marriage: Legalize and make equal with existing heterosexual marriage laws.
      Death penalty: Restore for treason and murder
      Euthanasia: Support I guess
      Drugs: Legalize soft drugs
      Immigration: We're a crowded country - make sure there are clear controls on borders.

      Foreign

      War on Terror: Get out of it, it is nothing to do with us.
      Alliances: Support communist movements in other countries
      Military involvement: Unneccesary except in self defence.
      NATO: Leave
      EU: Leave
      Nuclear disarmament: Multilateral if possible. If not, unilateral.

      You're insane! Although I guess you have one bright spot in the EU....


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on November 15, 2010, 07:49:08 AM
      Economic

      Nationalization/Privatization: Nationalize every company with over 20 employees.
      Government Intervention: Begin a massive drive to open new coal mines, factories, steelmills, ironworks, shipyards etc. to restore British manufacturing. Begin roadbuilding and renovation projects to restore the British road system, as well as a new railway building program to replace rail closed down under the Beeching Axe. Aim to reduce unemployment to under 500,000.
      Pensions: Maintain pension age at 65
      Taxation: Massive redistribution of wealth and heavily progressive taxation.
      Trade: High protective tariffs against foreign manufactured goods.
      Healthcare: Nationalize all private hospitals & services, abolish prescription charges and begin a hospital building program.
      Education: Nationalize all private schools, abolish tuition fees and maintain the school leaving age at 16. Abolish school uniforms and standardize the testing system.
      Finance: Private banks are inefficient, illogical and greedy - nationalize all of them and create a small group of state banks for different requirements. Re-introduce foreign exchange controls. Abolish the Stock Exchange.

      Social

      Abortion: Allow on request
      Gay marriage: Legalize and make equal with existing heterosexual marriage laws.
      Death penalty: Restore for treason and murder
      Euthanasia: Support I guess
      Drugs: Legalize soft drugs
      Immigration: We're a crowded country - make sure there are clear controls on borders.

      Foreign

      War on Terror: Get out of it, it is nothing to do with us.
      Alliances: Support communist movements in other countries
      Military involvement: Unneccesary except in self defence.
      NATO: Leave
      EU: Leave
      Nuclear disarmament: Multilateral if possible. If not, unilateral.

      You're insane! Although I guess you have one bright spot in the EU....

      Yeah, the EU is an important issue to me as well.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: MyRescueKittehRocks on November 18, 2010, 01:22:55 AM
      Economic

      Taxation: Abolish Income Tax and replace it with with 15% national sales tax
      Abolish IRS and let the states handle it. Reduce Corporate Income Tax by 90%

      Unions: Support right to work. Unions in some ways have overstepped their purpose

      Social Security: let those under 35 opt out and create their own medical savings account

      Trade: free trade with sharp opposition to NAFTA CAFTA and GATT due to their corruption of American sovereignty

      Education: free market system, defend rights of homeschoolers, let students study all competitive worldviews

      Budget and Debt: Support line item veto and Balanced Budget Amendments. Consider return to commodity based currency

      Social

      Abortion: End it. Emphasize adoption. States are the best way to do this not the Federal government

      Marriage: States Rights  but support gay marriage bans. Teach "covenant  love" abstinence should be taught

      Gun rights: Full Support of them. It's the best defense should the government go rogue

      Drugs: Keep hard drugs illegal, we need further dialoge on marijuana

      Privacy: Abolish Patriot Act and all related legislation. 4th Amendment Doesn't allow invasive searches just to fly.

      Reparations: No

      Antifa and BLM are to be designated as terrorist organizations. While I support the protests I oppose the violent destruction of lives and property.

      Monuments and flags depicting Confederates in a positive light must be left as they are and if defaced,
      I support the Trump administrations plan of 10 years in prison and community service to clean up and restore the monument.

      Foreign Policy


      I believe in a firm stand of noninterventionism. It is not right that America has been pursuing an agenda of empire. No entangeling alliances

      Foreign Aid: eliminate all foreign aid

       Israel: The Jewish people had an indelible impact in the founding of the United States. The existence of Israel as a modern country was politically fought for by the United States.

      In light of recent unrest in the Middle East as well as protestings in Wisconsion and Indiana:
      I oppose the Muslim Brotherhood as an enemy to the peace process. Why didn't Reagan deal with that evil dictator Quadaffi I don't know. However, we need to stay out of this and let their people handle their own internal affairs. But if one of those nations attacks the US, you would feel what level of military action in compliance with Christian Just War teaching

      Regarding the protests in Madison and Indianapolis:
      The actions of the Democrats in both cases are nothing short of deplorable. We all know that the unions are in bed with the Democrat Party and that is why they walked out in both cases. Both pieces of legislation in question are needed and must be passed.

      Political Reforms:

      Rank Choice voting (Purpose is to break the party duopoly)
      Preserve, protect, and defend the electoral college
      All 50 states adopt Maine/Nebraska model
      Adopt Cube Root Rule to increase congressional representation to account for the new parties being in congress


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: You kip if you want to... on December 02, 2010, 07:35:32 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: I'm staunchly pro-choice. It's the mothers decision what she does with her body.
      Church and state: Keep the two completely separate. If you want to follow a religion, follow it, you don't need the government to "enforce" or "endorse" a religion for you to do that. Get religion out of schools (replace "R.E." with something more productive), abolish state run schools which have religious affiliation. Get rid of the Lords Spiritual.
      Gay Marriage: Legalize
      The Smoking Ban: Keep it and keep it as it is. There's no need to expand it or abolish it.
      Euthanasia: Legalize it.
      Prostitution: Illegal
      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: I don't have a problem with it. The pros far outweigh any cons.
      Immigration: I personally don't have a problem with the current system, although i'd support some stricter rules and regulations simply to put a stop to the rise of the far-right. Maybe like the Australian system.
      Fox hunting: Keep it banned, obviously.

      Economic Issues

      Taxes: I favour the LibDems' approach to taxation. Hardline progressive taxation
      Welfare state: Support it.
      Healthcare: Increase funding for the NHS.
      Education: Massively increase funding in education. As above, abolish religiously aligned schools. Encourage lessons to develop citizenship. Abolish tuition fees! Keep tuition fees at a current rate and freeze the cost to students over the lifetime of the parliament. Keep the Education Maintenance Allowance (E.M.A) and maybe extend the limit to £40,000 income to receive it. Make Sixth Form education compulsory. Abolish single-sex schools.
      Minimum Wage: Keep it and raise it.
      Infrastructure: Introduce congestion charges in all major cities, but massively cut prices for public transport.
      Energy Policy: Build more wind farms and put up solar panels. Take advantage of tidal power and other renewable resources.

      Foreign Issues

      European Union: Further intergrate with Europe although I oppose a federal "United States of Europe". Stay in our current situation. Don't bail out Ireland, we can't afford it apparently. Don't join the Euro.
      Iraq: Withdraw troops now. Blair was stupid for going along with GWB.
      Afghanistan: Increase troop numbers there.
      Military Involvement: Attack only if attacked or directly threatened. Don't blindly follow the US like with Iraq.
      Military Budget: CUTCUTCUT!

      Constitutional Issues

      Devolution: Support the assemblies in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland as long as Scottish, Welsh and Northern Ireland MPs aren't allowed to vote on England-only matters OR form an English Parliment just for English issues and keep the current Houses of Parliament for UK-wide issues.
      Scottish/Welsh Independance: Oppose! Keep the United Kingdom united.
      Voting and elections: Keep the voting age at 18. Introduce a Proportional Representation electoral system, similar to the German system. NOT AV. Give constituents the ability to re-call their MP.
      House of Lords: Democratically elect members 100% of the House of Lords, no appointments or hereditary peers or bishops or anyone who isn't accountable to an electorate. Allow party members to elect their party's leader, Labour should keep its electoral system, but the party leader (whether in government or opposition) should be subjected to a confidence vote by the PLP upon election and every year there after.
      Monarchy: Abolish it completely. Become the United Republic and let the public elect the head of state. William and Kate shouldn't be given a penny of taxpayers money to pay for their wedding.
      Fixed terms: Stupid idea.

      Changes in italics.
      Changes in italics.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on December 03, 2010, 08:36:18 AM
      Glad to see you're moving towards a saner EU policy :) ;)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: You kip if you want to... on December 03, 2010, 11:34:01 AM
      Glad to see you're moving towards a saner EU policy :) ;)

      The whole "500,000 jobs to go, but we still have enough for Ireland" thing has really got to me.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RIP Robert H Bork on December 03, 2010, 05:19:56 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: Ban.
      Affirmative action: It's discrimination. Abolish.
      "Hate crimes" legislation: Abolish.
      Gun control: Strongly oppose.
      Death penalty: Keep it as a sentencing option.
      Euthanasia: Do not legalise.
      Prostitution: Ban.

      Economic Issues

      Taxes: Should be as low and flat as possible.
      Spending: Reduce.
      Welfare: When discussing welfare, we should remember this quote: "Welfare's purpose should be to eliminate, as far as possible, the need for its own existence".
      Education: I don't like public schools, and I support private schools/homeschooling, but don't abolish public schools.
      Regulations: Reduce significantly.
      Obamacare: Abolish.

      Foreign Policy

      Military: We should not cut it.
      United Nations: I'm hostile to the UN, but I strongly oppose withdrawal.
      Israel: Maintain our current position.
      North Korea: Firmly oppose the Communist regime. The North may launch an actual war at any moment, and we need to be prepared for it.
      Foreign aid: Reduce.

      And finally, UK Issues (if I were British, these would be my positions on UK-specific issues):

      NHS: Abolish.
      EU: No further integration, no to adopting the euro.
      AV: Oppose.
      Monarchy: Ideally, it would be abolished. Not a penny of taxpayer money should be used to fund William's wedding. While we're at it, abolish the Church of England and the Act of Settlement.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: courts on December 03, 2010, 06:50:50 PM
      I notice you don't mention medicare or social security.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Phony Moderate on December 17, 2010, 07:17:51 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: Completely legal.
      Affirmative action: Neutral.
      "Hate crimes" legislation: Support.
      Gun control: Support.
      Death penalty: Opposed.
      Euthanasia: Legalize it.
      Prostitution: Legalize it.

      Economic Issues

      Taxes: Abolish income tax for those earning less than $100,000, increase for those earning $100,000 or more.
      Spending: Cut wasteful spending.
      Welfare: Support.
      Education: Support public education.
      Regulations: Increase on industries.
      Obamacare: Abolish it. Replace with an American NHS.

      Foreign Policy

      Military: Abolish it.
      United Nations: I'm not too pleased with the UN, but I strongly oppose withdrawal.
      Israel: Stop supporting.
      North Korea: Be diplomatic.
      Foreign aid: It depends.

      And finally, UK Issues:

      NHS: Increase funding.
      EU: Further integration, but no to adopting the Euro.
      AV: Support.
      Monarchy: Ideally, it would be abolished. Not a penny of taxpayer money should be used to fund William's wedding.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on January 10, 2011, 11:00:34 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: I'm staunchly pro-life, but support exceptions when the mother's life is in danger.
      Separation of church and state: Those words appear nowhere in the Constitution. I support freedom OF religion and not freedom FROM religion.
      Gay marriage: Marriage should be between a man and a woman. I support civil unions and domestic partnerships.
      Affirmative action: Reverse discrimination.
      Hate crimes: Not what the libs pass.
      Gun control: Strongly oppose.
      Death penalty: Support it for 1rst degrees murders, and eve3n serial rapists who emotionally take the lives of others, but not for statutory rape.
      Flag burning: I strongly oppose it personally, but whether or not it's a 1st Amendment right is questionable.
      Euthanasia: Not really.
      Prostitution: Legalize it for the age of 18.
      Immigration: I support legal immigration 100%. For illegal immigration: build a wall and
      Drugs: Against it.
      I support almost all sexuality when it's part of nature and not other preventable addictions  such as drugs.

      Economic Issues

      Taxes: Very low taxes.
      Trade: I believe free trade grows our economy.
      Spending: Gov't. Federal only for national security and states for roads and some other areas that the constitution grants, no more.
      Welfare: Crap.
      Education: Confused on this issue.
      Regulations: Don't regulate excessively, but make sure that a Madoff scandal doesn't happen again.

      Foreign Policy

      Military Involvement:
      Support! Especially if they are undemocratic and are supporting terrorism
      United Nations: Pretty useless.
      Israel: I support Israel 1000%.

      You forgot to include:

      Quote
      Rape: Support! Especially when it involves fat women and tapioca puddingEspecially when it involves the roxy-addicted neices of aging celebrites. Hell, those bitches do anything for teh blues, yellows and purples, anyways. In fact, despite the fact that she probably has access to millions of dollars, you can be their sugah daddy on like eleven bucks an hour. No chance in hell that they will report you and risk violating their misdemeanor probation for that DUI outside of the local resort's bar or that Simple Domestic Battery against that bisexual stripper she was seeing as well...not to mention that she would lose her supply.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on January 11, 2011, 01:00:52 AM
      This is poorly written but I believe it is well thought out-

      Social Agenda:
      What's a better motto?

      A More Perfect Union For A Proud, But Less-Than-Perfect People.

      Or

      Practical Values For America's Future

      Civil Rights and Liberties: Agree with Progressive Democrats in protecting and expanding Civil Rights and Liberties, except when Pro-Republican Conservatives advocate for greater protection of Civil Rights and Liberties.

      Civil Rights, Liberties and First Amendment issues in Public Schools: Allow student-lead prayer on school grounds but oppose any form of faculty supported prayer. Defend current jurisprudence; Keep the Lemon Test, but allow parents receiving public vouchers for the schooling of their children, if they so choose, send their children to parochial schools that would
      otherwise qualify for voucher funding.

      Domestic Relations: I think that adultery (having sex with someone who you are not in a relationship with when you are in a relationship with another person) and fornication(having sex with a person who is in a relationship with another) are serious civil issues when dealing with a divorce. Though no-fault divorces should be maintained, a spouse/very significant other should have the right to sue a fornicator for common law relationship interference and adultery is and should be considered in any divorce decree.


      Substantive Due Process and Civil Rights and Liberties in Bioethics: Pro-Choice; Support current Federal Jurisprudence but will entertain any idea to promote live child birth that is not designed to invalidate any current Jurisprudence. Furthermore, I oppose any Executive actions that are designed to discriminate for or against the performance of abortions. Publically funded sex-ed programs are  important and should simply intend on preventing teen pregnancy, family/dating violence and the spread of sexually transmitted infections. The right to any birth control and privacy should not be abridged. Biomedical and bioethical research and funding policy should not be used as an improper venue for trying to change current abortion or birth control policy.      

      Equal Rights in Bioethics: I support the legal protection and recognition of homosexual relations and relationships or in the alternative, an end to the state recognition of sectarian marriage. Beyond this, efforts to honestly promote live child birth should include granting the right of adopting children to homosexual couples and the administrative requirements to the recent repeal of DADT should be expedited.  

      Church/State: See above. The current Jurisprudence is sufficient lest we become a country where religion controls government (see Iran, Iraq or any other impoverished or any significant emerging nation that is not India or China) or vice versa (see France’s banning of burqas and crosses).  

      Regarding the Regulation of Intoxicating Substances: Do more with less and protect the rights of responsible adults.  Maintain current drug war policies but let states opt out of federal drug control schedules. The State of Florida and other states should use this new power to decriminalize marijuana. The current federal case law on this issue of the Commerce Clause and the drug war was wrongly decided and should be overruled.  Allow misdemeanants convicted of drug charges to use Federal Financial Aid. Furthermore, Congress should waive the requirement that states must set their minimal drinking age to 21 to receive federal road construction funding. Current DUI laws are sufficient.

      Affirmative Action: Neutral on issue and its a states' rights issue. Current federal jurisprudence should be respected on this issue. Consider a more race neutral way of promoting social mobility for underprivileged people. A mind is a terrible thing to waste and poverty and social disenfranchisement damage both individuals and communities and we should also be mindful that a disproportionate number of such individuals are non-Europeans, disabled or have mental illnesses.

      Immigration: I support the current status quo on the issue and favor enforcing current laws. The United States is not an old world European nation trying to protect its ancient culture; support the DREAM Act. However, perhaps we should start consider more aggressive ways of stopping illegal immigration that do not involve cruel or unusual methods. Illegal immigrants already residing in the United States should be allowed to a path to legitimize their presence if they are otherwise eligible for various degrees of naturalization that may or may not rise to the level of citizenship. Otherwise, non eligible illegals should be deported in ways that are not cruel and unusual. English should be accepted by Congress as a “common and unifying language”, though Spanish and indigenous languages should be considered “languages of local importance”.

      2nd Amendment: Continue to support current Supreme Court trends. Legalize assault weapons and conceal carry. Support "Make My Day" laws. Background checks are necessary, but no permanent loss of gun rights for misdemeanants (see Student Aid).
      .
      Euthanasia: Support Oregon's Law. “Euthanasia", by definition, is letting someone die or hastening someone’s death without their consent. This is indefensible homicide in itself. Physician Assisted Suicide should be a choice for ethical doctors and responsible adults that are non under duress as an end of life treatment plan under strict guidelines.

      Death Penalty: Oppose with exception to terrorism or in war time. A Death Penalty policy similar to Italy or Israel’s seems to be a good model. This could be accomplished on the state level, congressional level or through the courts.

      Prostitution: Legalize in its most casual and carefree forms inasmuch as it does not involve lewd or licentious behavior/solicitation outdoors or in a place where there is likely children. Otherwise continue to enforce the Mann Act and its prohibition against sex trafficking and pimping.

      Freedom of Speech, Obscenity and Lewdness: So long as children are not involved and no other crime is committed, pornography and reasonable expressions of human sexuality should go un-harassed. Furthermore, there should be designated places for public nudity with current laws enforced everywhere else. All other speech should only be restricted when it is likely to be encountered by minors  and legislation regarding violent video games should be a matter for the states only. I am still really confused on campaign finance and ethics reform.

      Tort Reform: The 7th,8th and 11th amendments are suitable for this need. Generally support current Tort Reform laws that keep medical malpractice caps above $1,500,000, punitive damages at one and one half treble or $500,000, whichever is greater and torts against the sovereign above $500,000.

      Gambling: Laws against this seem unreasonable given that when one invests, one is gambling.
       
      Patriot Act: Strongly Oppose. We all must understand that 9/11 was a once in a lifetime event and that the suspension of Probable Cause and prospects of suspension of Habeas Corpus are unreasonable.

      Hate Laws: I oppose hate speech (I would consider flag burning hate speech) restrictions, but a violent crime done clearly in the name of hate should be aggravated (much in the way it is when one batters or assaults a police officer). However, judges should  be more open to instruct juries about an assault or battery being considered “consented” to if there is a sufficient taunting or hostile audience, much in the way it is a partial defense to homicide.
       
      Rapists/Pedophiles: Perhaps we should try physical, not chemical,castration and use them as eunuchs. Naw, just kidding. It would be pretty funny though. Who doesn’t like genital mutilation jokes? However, I think its reasonable and could be used to get a sentence time or treatment or registry plan reduced.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on January 11, 2011, 02:14:09 AM
      Economic Issues: Moderate Liberal

      Taxes: Restore the Clinton Tax Code after the current Tax Holiday and reassess the Federal revenues at that time.

      Unions: Supportive. As companies buy labor, there should be companies that sell it by selling themselves. The Employer Free Choice Act seems to be the best way to go about redistributing some selling power back to those who perform services and produce goods.

      Free trade: Ask me next year. The question depends on whether the United States has enough unique and profitable industries to naturally maintain high enough wages for the welfare of its work force. At this point, I would say “no” and that there should be tariffs on goods from emerging manufacturers. However, these emerging markets might stop growing as fast as the US’s economy begins to see substantial growth. In this circumstance, the US’s high wage  market can simply exist on the fact that India and China just aren’t producing enough to cheap goods to fuel American or European growth. Otherwise, the US will have to find some way of protecting out of date industries until the American businessman can find a new way to make money that involves the American worker.

      Spending: Levels of spending should be pinned to inflation until their associated program’s internal finances and administrative structures are reviewed and waste identified. Where cuts in spending can be made they should be made.

      Social Security: Let’s face it- The elderly simply aren’t voting for Democrats anymore. My generation is likely to see Social Security canceled by the time we are old to start receiving it and those that are currently receiving it apparently don’t want it. I think we should start entertaining plans to start privatizing Social Security in a way that allows those born before 1960 to still have their Title II retirement benefits. That being said, I’m pretty open minded though it would be great that we found some viable alternatives. A lot of people are talking about some sort of Government buyout program for aging workers funded the same way traditional Title II programs are. People say “just let us have our money”.  

      Space Program: Support the Obama plan of retiring the Space Shuttle, Privatizing U.S. involvement in LEO and ISS manned activities and the commitment of all our man-rated space development into a heavy lift launcher that will get a man or woman out of the Earth-Moon system by 2029.  This really isn’t about exploration anymore. Its about finally finding a large scale use of for space that can improve our standard of living down here on Earth beyond creating a supply of $300 pillows, $2 science museum ice cream or $20,000 watches. That’s not going to be found if we simply focus on turning low-earth orbit into a junk yard, parking lot and perhaps a $750,000.00 a night motel complex that caters to the average eccentric metro schpuppel (the Family Guy game with the balloons played by nidicolous people from Scandinavian Countries) star from Finland (or some other country that, at least in theory is really white, nerdy, liberal and whose women are supposed to make sex with anyone else seem more boring than touching yourself) or common closeted Russian mobster.

      Welfare: This issue is a bit confusing. The ultimate goal is to provide a way to keep people alive who may be productive in the future, but at a level where work is considered a palpable alternative to receiving welfare.  

      Health-care: I support all of the major parts of the AHCAA of 2010. However, I am willing to drop the insurance mandate and see if we can get to 5% uninsured without it. If not, we should just go with it. Eventually, we should put in some type of limited public option with good supplemental plans when Republicans  up again. Single payer just seems like it would be a bitch to do. Its probably already enough that we help people buy their own insurance. We should do that with car insurance. hardy har har.  

      Education: Allow Republicans to introduce pilot voucher systems and up-or-out teach merit pay systems, but do not use either as an excuse to cut per capita funding to public schools, student to teacher rations, extracurricular programs or scholarship programs. I’m going the “Paris Hilton” route on this- “do a little bit of everything”. I think that’s the Obama route as well sans his misgivings about vouchers.

      Environment- Human-caused Global Warming is probably, but not certainly a severe problem. However, the political will behind addressing it appears to be dead even amoungst the democras on this forum. It appears that the best we can do is simply adapt to it if and when it starts causing sustained and serious damage and death. However, there is still a lot of political will behind saving money and not throwing it away to people who don't even like us half way across the world...nevermind creating jobs when we have nine four unemployment.  I think the solution is to pursue an aggresive war against the use of fossil fuels that creates more jobs than it eleminates....ways of doing this could include fighting for higher CAFE standards, financing more projects like ITER and various solar experiments. Issuing more permits for nuclear plants could be a good start as well.

      Foreign Policy Issues- Multilateral, but relatively hawkish

      START Treaty- Support

      2011 Defense Budget- Support

      Democracy and Trade: Don't punish the citizens of a country because its government is destructive to the common good or its people; Oppose sanctions and foreign aid.

      Afghanistan: Support the President.

      United Nations: Strongly support. We must work with other nations to 'lock out' dubious undemocratic nations from key posts. The UN can be used as an instrument to secure America's leadership.  

      Rogue States: Agree with current tactics; Prepare for war with NK and Iran, but don’t attempt to instigate it. That usually works, whether or not there’s ever a war.

      Israel: Strongly support Israel and its defense of it's people and territory. Support establishment of Palestinian State under democratic leadership. Propose that East Jerusalem become a joint administered 'free city' under the UN. Allow Israel to deal with Gaza in whatever way it sees fit. The ultimate objective is simply a way to secure Israel’s future with as little suffering as possible.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Redalgo on January 11, 2011, 07:45:30 AM
      Economic:

      Government should enjoy primacy over the economy in a mixed, social democratic system. Cradle-to-grave welfare benefits and social rights should be generous and provided by the state... these benefits funded by and provided universally to the citizenry. This would include state aid for caring after children and dependent seniors, more paid parental and sick leave from work, substantial assistance for students interested in tertiary education, nationalization of the health insurance industry to achieve universal coverage, and a state-guaranteed, survivable minimum standard of living. People should essentially be entitled to basic human needs and equality of opportunity so that they may more fairly compete in the market for better qualities of life. I oppose class warfare and am not anti-business but believe everyone deserves some dignity, rights, and social justice.

      Rather that focusing on robust expansion of GDP I am more concerned about controlling the rates of inflation and unemployment. The state should embrace conservationist policies that prioritize long-term sustainability of development over short-term market demands. I favor nuclear energy, renewables, aggressive reductions in carbon emissions, fair trade, the right of workers to safely unionize, allowing Third World trade partners to engage in limited forms of protectionism to shelter vulnerable parts of their developing economies, and oppose a return to the gold standard. In terms of taxation I would want the corporate income tax reduced by at least 10%, payroll taxes hiked, and progressive income taxes adjusted so that they reach a top bracket in excess of 50%.
        

      Social:

      My stance on social issues is mostly progressive. I support freedoms of assembly, association, free expression, lifestyle, and religion - the line I draw being that if ones actions are not harming or putting in substantive danger anyone else it really shouldn't be any of the government's business to oppose. I believe marijuana, prostitution, and physician assisted suicide should be legalized but regulated. In regards to separation of church and state all public institutions and national symbols should be secular. God ought to be removed from the national motto, official oaths, and Pledge of Allegiance. Funding for the arts should promote creativity, expression, and preserve the rich cultural and historic traditions of our nation. Support for scientific research should also be expanded on a number of fronts. NASA's budget in particular I want to see substantially boosted for progress towards manned Mars missions and other publicly-backed achievements in space.

      I support affirmative action, a woman's right to choose (with some limits on 3rd trimester abortion), civil marriage laws that treat hetero and homosexuals equally, stem cell research, campaign finance reform, electoral reform, tort reform, harbor some animal rights concerns, and believe welfare policies should promote gender equality. I oppose torture, capital punishment, mandatory minimums, the Patriot Act, domestic espionage, warrant-less searches or seizures, unrestricted gun ownership, smoking in most public areas, most forms of censorship, abstinence only sex ed., and regulation of what goes on between consenting adults in the privacy of the home. There are a few "victimless" crimes I consider ridiculous. Many other minor stances have likely slipped my mind. Anyway, I am generally fond of diversity and have an accepting, multicultural attitude.


      Foreign Policy

      Fundamentally, in terms of foreign policy I think the promotion of national interests does not have to create zero-sum conflicts among countries. It is difficult but important to balance concerns for freedom with equality, human rights with self-determination, and idealism with pragmatism. I favor generous aid for lesser-developed countries and some policies that do not strictly serve our own interests. A world government should - along with other things - regulate economic globalization. Potential member states such as the United States should be a part of this union even if it means becoming only semi-autonomous within it. Militarily, I am somewhat pacifist. Wars ought to be waged only in defense, to intervene in cases of egregious human rights violations (e.g. genocide) when diplomacy has failed, and whenever possible should be multilateral in nature. I would also like more arms reduction treaties with Russia, the eventual whittling down of WMD stockpiles around the world until they can finally be abolished outright, and deep cuts to defense spending.

      In the Israeli-Palestinian conflict a two-state solution in which the Palestinian capital becomes East Jerusalem is appealing. I lean moderately Palestinian on what ought to be done and feel that the U.S. has been supporting Israel too unconditionally, but can still sympathize with their grievances and concerns on the other side of the dispute. Iran and North Korea present even thornier problems. For now it is difficult to say what else could be done that is not already. Putting that aside, I would prefer the War on Drugs end and the embargo on Cuba be lifted. Immigration reform and a pathway to citizenship for those already here is much desired. To some extent my perspective is cosmopolitan... yet at the same time morally relativist. I want states to cooperate, become interdependent, defuse conflicts, celebrate their diversity, promote international solidarity, and pool their assets for the sake of human development and advancing other common goals.

      Edited for grammatical slips that flipped a few of my opinions inside out. :p


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: FEMA Camp Administrator on January 11, 2011, 06:10:10 PM
      Economic

      Taxes and Spending: Government should take as little of people's money as possible, and not saddle people with more taxes just because the government decide to start a new program
      Gold Standard: In Favor of making our currency worth something.
      NAFTA: Undecided, though leaning protectionist.
      Unions: Unions have the right to collectively bargain, but should not have a monopoly on the employment of a certain area or industry.
      Poverty: Believe in reducing poverty through free market forces, like Jack Kemp.

      Overall: Jack Kemp with a distrust of Free Trade

      Social

      Abortion: If not for the tenth amendment, I would support a federal government ban on abortion. However, with the tenth amendment, I support a Right to Life amendment as well as all of the states banning abortion.
      Gay marriage: Not in favor of, but because of the tenth amendment again, should be delegated to the states where hopefully it will be struck down.
      Illegal Immigration: Ship 'em back to wherever they came from, make them come in legally. Secure both borders.
      Drugs: Not in favor of, but states once again.
      Patriot Act: Unsure, though I used to lean in favor.

      Overall: Basic constitutionalist social conservative.

      Foreign Policy

      Iraq: I don't know how true the evidence was of WMD's, however if I had been told that Iraq had WMD's, I would have invaded.
      Afghanistan: Glad that Petreaus is in charge. Hopefully we can fix Afghanistan, however it is not likely. I do not support withdrawal because that means the reversing of ten years of fighting and over 1'000 soldiers dead for nothing.
      Israel: Not sure if I would have supported its creation, however it's there, it's a Democracy, and we should support them. However, there should be a two state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian dispute, if that's possible.
      North Korea: If they decide they want to fight, bring it.
      Iran: Let Israel do what is in its national interests and take out the nuclear sites. Also, see North Korea.

      Overall: Neo-Conservative hawk. Though it doesn't show, I do have a more cautious side however the issues of the day don't allow this to be shown.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: President Mitt on January 12, 2011, 03:47:18 PM
      Just some minor points that need to be made...

      Quote
      Taxes and Spending: Government should take as little of people's money as possible, and not saddle people with more taxes just because the government decide to start a new program

      Typical vague phrase. Something I would usually see on a platform on one of the parties. Maybe some expansion on this? What programs are 'waste'? What programs are worth me being saddled with taxes?

      Quote
      NAFTA: Undecided, though leaning protectionist.

      Corporate welfare. Lovely. Protectionism is one of the most disgusting policies any government could possibly implement. Not to say I support NAFTA, but I definitely would prefer it to the state propping up industry.

      Quote
      Unions: Unions have the right to collectively bargain, but should not have a monopoly on the employment of a certain area or industry.

      So, would you support breaking up corporate monopolies as well? Or are you one of those conservatives who think Unions are the only corrupt bureaucratic monolitic organizations in the workplace?

      Quote
      Poverty: Believe in reducing poverty through free market forces, like Jack Kemp.

      lol

      Quote
      Abortion: If not for the tenth amendment, I would support a federal government ban on abortion. However, with the tenth amendment,

      No exceptions? Rape? Incest? If the mother might die because of it?

      Quote
      I support a Right to Life amendment as well as all of the states banning abortion.

      This doesn't make any sense. Why do unborn babies have some sort of 'right' to life?

      Quote
      Gay marriage: Not in favor of, but because of the tenth amendment again, should be delegated to the states where hopefully it will be struck down.

      I could get into a long and lengthy philosophical debate on this, but these sorts of debates never really get anywhere. So instead, I'll just point out some typical conservative hypocrisy. Should states have the right to ban churches from performing gay marriages even if they choose to do so?

      Quote
      Illegal Immigration: Ship 'em back to wherever they came from, make them come in legally. Secure both borders.

      Of course, disgusting protectionism is nothing without a dose of xenophobic talk about protecting Americans from those evil foreigners. I'm sure you had nothing against the Know-Nothings doing the same thing in the 1850s to your fellow Catholics?

      Quote
      Drugs: Not in favor of, but states once again.

      Why would you protect the 'rights' of states over, you know, actual people?

      Quote
      Patriot Act: Unsure, though I used to lean in favor.

      BLASPHEMY!!11! You're infringing on the rights of the states!

      Quote
      Overall: Basic constitutionalist social conservative.

      Bleh. Constitutionalism is a idiotic thing.

      Quote
      Afghanistan: Glad that Petreaus is in charge. Hopefully we can fix Afghanistan, however it is not likely. I do not support withdrawal because that means the reversing of ten years of fighting and over 1'000 soldiers dead for nothing.

      The fact that 1000 soldiers have died is not a valid reason to stay the course. If the war was a mistake (which I am not saying it was, necessarily) then that mistake should be ended, regardless of the costs associated with that mistake.

      Quote
      North Korea: If they decide they want to fight, bring it.

      lol Let's see, how has that 'bring it' attitude worked for us from 2000-2008?

      Quote
      Iran: Let Israel do what is in its national interests and take out the nuclear sites. Also, see North Korea.

      How is starting a war with Iran in Israeli's interest? Don't you see the many possible implications of an Israeli attack on Iran? Do you see the possibility that maybe such an attack might fail? An Israeli war with Iran means an Iranian war with us. Do we really need that sort of commitment while we're policing two countries that are neighboring Iran?





      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RI on January 12, 2011, 04:11:06 PM
      I was more saddened by his deference to the Constitution over Catholic teaching. Alas, most Catholic don't care about the Church's social teaching.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: feeblepizza on January 17, 2011, 01:31:36 AM
      Economic
      Taxes and Spending: Institute a flat tax of 10% for the bottom 80% of earners and of 20% for the top 20% of earners; pass a Balanced Budget Amendment to the Constitution
      Gold Standard: I'd like to back our currency up with something of value, so yes
      NAFTA: Repeal it ASAP
      Unions: Get rid of card check, and prevent federal employees from joining unions
      Poverty: The best way to reduce poverty is through the free market
      Overall: A supply sider with protectionist trade policies

      Social
      Abortion: In favor of state bans, not a federal ban
      Gay marriage: I support the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA)
      Illegal Immigration: Secure our borders, and ship em out of our country
      Drugs: End the federal War on Drugs and let states handle the issue (on that level, I'm all for decriminalization)
      Patriot Act: Vigorous supporter
      Overall: Constitutionalist and strong supporter of states' rights

      Foreign Policy
      Iraq: Partition it and then leave
      Afghanistan: Hopeless quagmire. We'd be better off out of there
      Israel: If possible, I will always support a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinian Authorty
      North Korea: If they nuke us, then nuke back
      Iran: Try to steer clear of confronation until absolutely necessary. When that point comes, only bomb government/military facilites and their nuclear bases
      Overall: Diplomacy works best, but we should always be ready for a battle


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Хahar 🤔 on January 17, 2011, 02:33:37 AM
      That's almost universally terrible.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Frink on January 17, 2011, 05:28:13 AM
      Quote
      Patriot Act: Vigorous supporter
      Overall: Constitutionalist and strong supporter of states' rights

      lol


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: MyRescueKittehRocks on January 19, 2011, 03:19:54 AM
      Good views overall feeblepizza. My economics are closer to the Austrian School but you do have some good points. I like the gold standard and a flat/fair tax and a balanced budget amendment, but the protectionism is a bit puzzling. I'm against NAFTA, CAFTA,GATT but I'm in favor of free trade.

      Socially I agree whole heartedly minus the Patriot Act.

      Foreign Policy, We should just leave Iraq and Afganistan. I oppose a two state solution with regards to Israel and the Palestinans. They already have one. It's called Jordan. Besides in the long run Israel is gonna be much more important issue in the coming generations. North Korea will be part of South Korea before 2020.. You can bank on the Korea statement. Iran is more of a wait and see approach.



      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RI on January 23, 2011, 01:33:24 AM
      It's been well over a year since I've posted in this thread, so I think it's about time to do so again.

      Overall Philosophy: Though there are a number of things I could be labeled as, I like to describe myself as an “amoristic communitarian”. This ideology primarily combines aspects of Christian democracy and Catholic social teaching with a secular underpinning focused on the morality and primacy of love for the purpose of pursuing happiness, self-fulfillment, and spiritual growth. I believe that love, in both the broadest and in the most specific senses, is the quality that we as individuals and we as a society must embody, and I believe it to be the core moral value. I reject the core conceit of libertarianism—that people are self-sufficient—and believe that, as well as the individual, communities and society must also be equally looked after, for no action occurs in isolation, and social interaction serves as both the catalyst and conduit for achieving self-fulfillment, and presents the stage for love to blossom. I have a much longer discussion on this idea and how it relates to political issues, but for the purposes of this post, I am going to keep it brief.

      Social Issues:

      Abortion: Strongly oppose, except in the case of a direct and immediate threat to the life of the mother to which there is no other remedy. I believe that the life of a person starts at conception.

      Affirmative Action: Generally oppose, though there are some exceptions when talking about income-based affirmative action. I oppose race or gender based affirmative action as unjust and discriminatory in most situations.

      Death Penalty: Strongly oppose in virtually all circumstances. I generally oppose killing in anything short of immediate and direct self-defense or defense of another.

      Drugs and Alcohol: I believe that we should treat drug usage as a disease and seek to rehabilitate users rather than imprison them. However, usage should be actively discouraged as it is detrimental to the individual and society.

      Euthanasia: Oppose, as it is unfair to ask a doctor to kill another person, the very antithesis of their profession. I do believe in extremely limited circumstances that provisions could be made, however.

      Gun Rights: I believe that any type of gun can be responsibly handled if it is in the hands of the right person. As such, I believe that we should control who can purchase guns, but I do not favor limits on which guns they can purchase.

      Immigration: I do not believe in the concept of an illegal person. I believe we must actively seek to welcome all individuals who seek to join our society, both legally and socially. I do believe that conditions should be met, such as back tax payment and proficiency in English for illegal immigrants to earn citizenship, if at all possible.

      Marriage: I believe that marriage and the family are vital and foundational aspects of society and community. I believe that marriage is the highest form of romantic love, and should be revered, encouraged, and protected, but it is also something that must be earned in order to be appreciated. To this end, I support covenant marriage laws with, among other things, mandatory marriage counseling and safeguards against divorce.

      Prostitution: Similar to drug users, we should treat prostitutes as victims of circumstance rather than as criminals. We should actively help impoverished women who view prostitution as their own option, but prostitution should not be condoned or encouraged. Those who profit from this exploitation should face repercussions, however.

      Separation of Church and State: While religion should not be actively enforced by the government, the State should not rebuke the ability of many churches to help fighting poverty, homelessness, disease, and other societal issues. Anyone who has the ability to help others should be embraced, not denied.

      Stem Cell Research: Oppose new embryonic stem cell research, but actively support adult and umbilical cord research along with induced pluripotency procedures.

      Economic Issues:

      Education: I support the public education system, but believe that there are major improvements necessary to bring it up to what it should be. One main improvement is that education funding should serve to counteract the cycle of poverty by centralizing funding and by basing it on need and improvement rather than on pure ability.

      Energy: For the sake of ourselves, our future generations, and our planet, I believe we must immediately take steps to move to an alternative energy-based infrastructure that runs on an regionally-focused mix of wind, solar, hydroelectric, tidal, geothermal, convection, nuclear, hydrogen fuel cell, and other sustainable technologies. Vehicles should run on hydrogen or electricity.

      Environment: I believe that, in order to protect and cultivate life, we must protect and sustain our environment to best of our ability. Humanity must serve as faithful stewards of the Earth, as we are the only ones capable of doing so.

      Fiscal Policy: I believe in New Keynesian economic theory and the modern macroeconomic consensus. I support countercyclical fiscal and monetary policies that actively rectify market failures and excesses.

      Health Care: I support a form of single-payer universal health care as my ideal health care system that provides for basic care, with additional care available for purchase on the open market. I believe that market-based basic health care an intrinsically flawed and immoral system that does not treats people in a loving manner, but rather profits on suffering.

      Social Justice: One of the most loving actions is to help another in need without regard for the result on yourself. Society too should embrace this concept. We must extend ourselves to help those in need through any means possible. Although government programs are the most effective in this area, the work of charities and religious organizations should be encouraged and embraced.

      Social Security: I do not support the privatization of social security. We must protect this social program for the sake of those who need it the most. In order to safeguard the promise that is social security, we must raise or lift entirely the cap of social security contributions on high-income earners.

      Taxation: I believe in a system of taxation that places a fair burden on all members of society. The only system of taxation that I know of that I believe is capable of doing so is a progressive income taxation system. I favor other forms in addition to this system, such as progressive corporate taxes, sin taxes, a limited sales tax on high price items, and some others.

      Foreign Issues

      General Philosophy: We must embrace humility and love on the world stage.

      United Nations: The United Nations is a valuable element of global diplomacy that should be embraced and strengthened with the ultimate, far-off goal of a federal world government that recognizes the unity of life and the human race.

      War: War, which has been and continues to be the greatest threat to human life and  the world itself, should be avoided at almost all costs. The only just war is one in immediate and direct self-defense, or the immediate and direct self-defense of another nation or people. Diplomacy should always be our main weapon. When war is necessary, it is important to continue to respect human rights and dignity for enemy prisoners and combatants to the extent possible.

      Weapons of Mass Destruction: To the extent possible, all chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear weapons should be eradicated; however, I acknowledge the necessity of keeping a limited nuclear arsenal for deterrence purposes only. The use of such weapons is never moral.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Dunce on January 31, 2011, 05:39:34 PM
      AndrewJackson111's Complicated Political Views!

      Economic: Libertarian, Conservative, Goldwaterite.  
      Unions: Abolish, and ban. They hurt the economy immensely, and really have no use in this country. Workers aren't forced to work.

      Taxation: Lower taxes for all brackets. Eliminate estate, excise, gas, and other useless taxes. I am Pro-Taxpayer, and Anti-Tax increases.

      Shipping off jobs: Oppose the outsourcing of U.S. Jobs, would support taxes, and tariffs on outsourcing.

      Education: Support Private Vouchers, encourage Private schooling, homeschooling, get rid of DOE, let the education system be taken over at the local levels.

      Healthcare: Oppose Obamacare, and other forms of leftist healthcare. Oppose Universal Healthcare, and Single payer.

      Environment: Don't believe in Climate Change, or Global warming. Sorry Al Gore. Also, want to abolish the EPA, and most regulations on companies.

      Illegal Immigration: I support SB 1070, I oppose amnesty, and Want our borders closed! Now!

      Energy: Drill baby drill! I support Offshore drilling in Alaska, California, and Florida.

      War on Poverty: Oppose it, and it is a failed war.

      Affirmitive Action: I oppose this stupid policy, and would support repealing it.


      Social Issues: Moderately Liberal, Moderately Libertarian, States rights
      Abortion: Strongly Pro-Life. I would support overturning Roe v. Wade, and letting the states decide on the issues.

      Gay Rights: I support Gay Marriage, gay adoption, and other gay rights issues.

      Gun Rights: I support the 2nd Amendment. I oppose almost all regulations on guns. I oppose the automatic handgun ban.

      War on Drugs and Marijuana: I support the war on drugs, and I oppose Marijuana legalization. It's an odd position for a libertarian to hold but I stand by my position on these issues.

      Prostitution: Strongly support, and hopefully it'll become a national private business in the future.

      Death Penalty: Strongly support. This is a needed form of punishment in today's society.

      Stem Cell Research: Support for adult stem cells, oppose for fetus stem cells.

      Euthanasia: Support. I am a moral man, on some issues :P Families need to have this right!

      Foreign Policy: Dove, Libertarian, Pro-Israel Libertarian.
      Israel: Support strongly, but oppose military funding.

      War on Terror: Mixed. I support it, but it was heavily mismanged. Thanks Dubya...

      Iraq: Oppose. Never should've been here.

      Afghanistan: Oppose. We have been there waaaaaay to long!

      Iran: Oppose any type of sanction against Iran. Would not support war.

      North Korea: Oppose going to war with the Koreans.

      Defense spending: Cut! CUT! CUT!.....by a lot, it's a bloated beast!

      United Nations and NATO: Leave both organizations, no point of being in these idiotic groups.



      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: wilji1090 on February 18, 2011, 10:09:30 PM
      Social Issues:

      Abortion: Pro-Choice at the Federal level. I don't have a say in what my girlfriend can do with her body, so I believe it should be a matter of choice.

      Marriage/Family: I'm for same-sex marriage. It won't devalue the marriage of a heterosexual couple any more than the Drive-Thru Chapels in Las Vegas.

      Homeland Security: Pfft....what security? Break up the Department of Homeland Security into the agencies it absorbed and allow them to function independently of each other. End the TSA group so no one is forcefully groped against their will ever again. End the PATRIOT Act entirely.

      Affirmative Action: For it to an extent; however, eliminate racial quotas as that has the damaging effect in race-relations.

      Death Penalty: I'm not anti-Death Penalty. I AM anti-the wrong guy getting killed. It's not perfect, so let's end it until it can be perfected.

      Drugs and Alcohol: If I can vote, smoke a pack of cigarettes, and go to fight in a war at the age of 18 should I not be allowed to drown my troubles in booze at that point as well? The War on Drugs is also equally useless, $37.2 billion of our tax payer dollars wasted. Legalize and tax marijuana and I promise it would have a good effect in deterring cannabis users.

      Euthanasia: I'm not sure really. I support State rulings I suppose.

      Gun Rights: I'm in favor of a moderate gun-control policy. Obviously you don't want military weapons being used by gangs, but at the same time I respect the 2nd Amendment and cherish it.

      Immigration: I think what we should do is do like the United Kingdom.

      Prostitution: You ever go to the Bunny Ranch in Vegas? The women there are protected and tested for STDs regularly. Why not do something like that? Women are protected by bouncers and so forth, they aren't subjected to the possibility of being brutally raped by someone. If the customer breaks the rules, they aren't welcome there anymore. Pure and simple.

      Separation of Church and State: This is kinda odd for one growing up on the Constitution; however, I've noticed in Western European countries that have a nationalized church, that attendance is actually lower and the politics are less influenced by religion there than it is here. Now obviously that probably wouldn't work so well here, but I think it should be made apparent we don't let religion influence politics.

      Education: This country has in it, the ability to surpass all countries in education. End the No Child Left Behind act, and while we're at it, RADICALLY refine how the system works. Look at other countries that rank higher in their education than we do and see how we can do it better than them. How about an amendment from FDR's Second Bill of Rights? The Right to a Good Education? First four years of college free, though you still have to pay for books and supplies.

      Stem Cell Research: Legalize it. The benefits are definitely there.

      Economic Issues:

      Banking: If we cannot end the Federal Reserve, put it under the direct control of the Congress, since Congress is in charge of the nation's purse/wallet/whatever.

      Fiscal Policy: How about a balanced budget amendment?

      Energy: Let's get into the alternative fuel game and expand upon it!

      Environment: Look at Theodore Roosevelt's idea and go from there.

      Universal Health Care: Ralph Nader's idea of single payer healthcare has it down, free medicare/medicaid for all.

      Social Security: Roll it back to what Franklin Roosevelt originally created it for, the elderly and the genuinely disabled.

      Free Trade: End NAFTA and get out of the World Trade Organization.

      Foreign Issues

      Foreign Aid: I believe the United States needs to help others when they ask for it, namely like Haiti or something.

      Military: Scale back on the number of bases we have. Namely getting out of nations like Germany. I do support the idea of protecting other nations from others, namely Israel being protected from Iran and keeping Pakistan and India off of each other.

      War: How about this, if the United States is attacked we go to war. Otherwise, we shouldn't be attacking other nations.

      UN/NATO/Etc.: As useless as I see the United Nations, I think it is beneficial we stay there. NATO however, I see as incredibly useful so we should stay.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Hash on February 19, 2011, 12:34:42 PM
      I'm bored, so I'll do this baby again.

      Overall Philosophy: Ideologically, a mix of social libertarianism and economic moderate Keynesianism influenced by the liberal and radical tradition. Ironically and paradoxically, however, I happen to have a more pessimistic Marxist and Weberian analysis of history.

      Social Issues:

      General Philosophy: A dangerous and evil social libertarian. I like to rehash Trudeau's quote, and thus I believe that the state has no place in regulating personal lives. Persons should be free to do whatever they wish as long as it doesn't infringe on other people's liberties, security and wellbeing and they should also suffer the consequences of their actions.

      Abortion: Strongly support, pro-choice and all. It's a women's choice and the government should have no say in this kind of stuff. But the government could and should do public campaigns to educate people about the issue and what it represents.

      Affirmative Action: Generally oppose, especially in the case of race or gender though I might support income-based affirmative action.

      Death Penalty: I support the death penalty as a rare and absolute last resort for the most heinous of crimes such as mass murder, recidivist child rapists and so forth.

      Drugs and Alcohol: Legalize, regulate and tax medical marijuana and other soft drugs. They're similar to alcohol and regulating it would make it far easier to control.

      Euthanasia: Fully support and all. People of sane mind should do whatever they want with themselves.

      Gun Rights: I support some sort of gun control and background checks. I support the long-gun registry.

      Immigration: I support a path to citizenship or legal regularization of an illegal immigrant's status on the condition that they speak the language, have a job and have no past criminal record on universally-recognized crimes such as murder in his/her country. Deportation of illegals who have jobs, have a family and have settled down is vile and inhuman. However, there needs to be stricter guidelines for legal immigration.

      Gay Marriage: Fully support. People who love each other, regardless of their sex, should be able to get married. Once again, this is a personal issue and the government should have absolutely no say in this issue. Moralfags who insist on shoving their heads in everybody's private life disgust me.

      Prostitution: Prostitution should be legalized if only because prostitutes should be treated as victims of circumstances and not criminals, and legalizing it would make it easier to regulate and control.

      Separation of Church and State: I fully support the separation of Church and State and I am deeply attached to the tradition of laïcité. The state should fund or support no particular religion, and no religion should be allowed to play a major or special role in any state. In France, I support the abrogation of the 1805 Concordat in Alsace-Moselle and, by consequence, the extension of the 1905 law to Alsace-Moselle. In Ontario, I oppose provincial funding of Catholic schools. I obviously strongly oppose school prayer in public schools, which should be secular institutions.

      Stem Cell Research: I support embryonic stem cell research and all that stuff.

      Economic Issues:

      General Philosophy: An economic centrist. I believe that the state has a role to play in economic and fiscal issues, but it should not be overarching and should serve largely to right wrongs and control those who ought to be controlled. I oppose excessive spending and state intervention; but also neoliberalism's savage slashing-and-cutting dogma and 'small government' rhetoric.

      Education: I strongly support public education. I support increased funding for education, but it's not an issue I know that much about. Obviously, I support lowering university tuition fees :)

      Energy and Environment: For our own sake and that of our planet, we must take urgent steps to move to alternative energy-based infrastructures such as wind, solar, nuclear, hydrogen, geothermal and so forth. Regardless of consensus on global warming, I believe it's undeniable that mass exploitation of the earth is destructive in the long term and that continued exploitation of environment-destroying things like oil sands are wrong and should be strongly controlled.

      Fiscal Policy: I'm largely a moderate Keynesian. Some privatizations in the 1980s and 1990s were useful and good for the economy, but government should still play an important role in controlling market excesses and during economic recessions. While I believe running up large deficits is bad, I don't support the neoliberal dogma of cutting and slashing at every living thing and, by consequence, hurting our healthcare, education and other essential services. We've seen what Mike Harris' ridiculous ultraliberal policies and privatizing everything under the sun led to - Walkerton.

      Health Care: In the American context, and largely influenced by my nationality, I support some sort single-payer universal health care. At any rate, insurance companies and pharmaceutical companies are largely rackets and crooks who need to be strictly controlled lest they a) charge exorbitant rates and b) sell us a load of sh**t (eg: the H1N1 fraud, the Mediator in France).

      Social Justice: I strongly believe that government should provide to those in need through various welfare programs. At the same time, I believe that those leeches who are happy to live off welfare while not doing jack are destructive to the system and should be fought through measures which make welfare payments conditional on active job search or active participation in government training and vocational programs.

      Taxation: I support the progressive income tax as the best tax system to place a proportional burden on all levels of society. I support corporate taxes but also sin taxes and taxes on big polluters.

      Foreign Issues

      General Philosophy: As much as they're cute, broad declarations of love, peace, democracy and human rights are in reality extremely hard to follow through. The world is a bad place, with lots of bad people who in a perfect world would be fried on a barbecue but in reality we need to come to some sort of agreement that the world has always been and will always be screwed up. I suppose I prescribe to a realist or Marxist view of international relations, though with an appreciation of some aspects of liberalism. Aside from that, while I support an active and internationalist view towards foreign policy I'm largely non-interventionist.

      United Nations: The United Nations is in need of major reform, but it remains a valuable part of global diplomacy which should be encouraged and strengthened, not mocked and ignored.

      War: War is wrong and should be avoided at all costs. The only justified wars are wars of direct self-defense when attacked and wars of direct defense of other people, in cases such as flagrant humanitarian crises such as genocides.

      Weapons of Mass Destruction: To the extent possible, all chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear weapons should be eradicated; however, I acknowledge the necessity of keeping a limited nuclear arsenal for deterrence purposes only. The use of such weapons is never moral.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Xandal on April 20, 2011, 07:58:36 PM
      Libertarian on social issues and civil liberties, leftwing on the environment, populist economic views very anti-corporate and anti-globalization, non-interventionist foreign policy, and right wing on immigration.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: They put it to a vote and they just kept lying on April 20, 2011, 08:22:10 PM
      Economic Issues:

      I am a Laissez-faire Capitalist and I believe the Government should not interfere at ALL with the economy. If a large corporation is failing, it is not the Government's job to keep them afloat. I support lower taxes on ALL income brackets and I also support deregulation of all corporations. While I believe most corporate CEOs are inherently evil, I believe that business is not inherently evil.

      Social Issues (Domestic):

      I am a huge social Libertarian. I support a woman's right to choose, I support legalizing gay marriage and all drugs. I am also a huge supporter of the Separation of Church and State as well as the abolition of the death penalty. I do not support Affirmative Action programs nor do I support neo-Environmentalist policies. I believe our Earth is precious but protection of our planet only goes so far in the name of stopping progress. Society was built to progress. I am an avid supporter of stem cell research and I even participated in a pro stem cell research rally. I supporter tighter boarders and the promotion of legal immigration.

      Social Issues (Foreign):

      I am a major pacifist. After I lost two cousins in Iraq and my ex-girlfriend lost her older brother, I refused to accept a militarist foreign policy for any longer. I am an advocate for diplomacy and believe that talking and trading with other countries is a far better means of communication than killing said country's people.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Atlas Has Shrugged on April 21, 2011, 03:22:42 PM
      Overall Philosophy-Libertarian, Goldwaterite. I also hold several other views, mainly leaning towards the far right. I am a "Powellite" too.

      Abortion-Its a states right, with each state setting its own policy. However, I do support a Federal ban on citizens getting abortions across state lines, and parental notification.

      Affirmative Action-All "equality" laws take the issue and flip it. Multiculturalism is a failure, and as long as the Jim Crow laws are gone, nothing else should be changed. Whites are no better then Blacks and vice-versa.

      Death Penalty support it on a state level, not on a Federal Level. As a Floridian, I think the state should only kill murderers of Women, and Children. I support death for serial rapists, though that should not be a actual law. On a Federal level, only foreign (not even domestic) terrorist should receive it.

      Drugs-Marijuana can be legal on a state level. Taxed too.

      Euthanasia-If you want to kill yourself, swallow a bunch of aspirins or something. I cant believe this is a serious issue.

      Gun Rights-Any one should be able to own a gun, no questions asked. And I support private militias, as long as they do not engage in terrorism.

      Immigration-Amnesty to all Illegals who join the army, lived here 5 years, have no criminal record and speak English. Those who dont, should be deported. Illegals caught in the country, or attempting to enter the country, should be turned back. Those caught on our side, should be detained and released. Put the Army on the border.

      Gay Marriage personally oppose it, but its a State Right that should be decided by referendum.

      Prostitution-State Right, but I wouldn't oppose it being legal. Its not relevant anyway.

      Separation of Church and State-I believe everyone should be allowed to practice any religion, freely, though I stress that American IS a Christian country, and that "Under God" should remain in the Pledge, on the Money, and in the courts. Remeber, "Under God" can be anyones God...

      Stem Cell Research- I dont support abortion, and I wish babies didnt have to get aborted, but I want their lives to be worth something if they are, so Stem Cell research is only fair. If it can cure Cancer, and my little brothers Autism, then I support it 100%

      Education support abolishing the Department of Education, and laying it out among the states. I support public education.

      Energy-America needs to get off foreign oil, and drill our own. Even though I am Libertarian, I am not opposed to a state run oil company, so we dont get robbed at the pump. Then again, we could buy cheap gas from friendly countries like Brazil, and if they try to screw us, we just pull a Teddy Roosevelt and send a couple of battleships......Also, Global Warming is a total myth.

      Economy-a flat tax on all income brackets, and raised tariffs. We need to pull out of NAFTA, stop handing out money to failing corporations, abolish the IRS and Federal Reserve, and even go back to the Gold Standard. Maybe then our money will be worth something.

      Healthcare- I support a basic form of Universal Healthcare, but it cant be like Canada or Britains systems. I wouldnt mind seeing a more successful (and altered) form of Romneycare. Obscure is a watered down peace of garbage. The Individual mandate is forcing people to buy Health Insurance. That doesn't do anything! Maybe we could have UHC if we decided to stop treating illegals for free.....

      Social Justice-Unemployment checks on a State level, perhaps, but those recipients should receive drug test (not through that crook Scotts company though)..I support Social Security, Medicaid, and Medicare, though they need reform.

      Taxation-Flat Tax on all income brackets. Tariffs on imports.

      United Nations-Pull out, now! They cause problems, and expect the US to clean it up.

      War-Avoid it at all cost, be non-interventionist as much as possible. Still, its necessary sometimes.

      WMDS-The US should have a nuclear arsenal, and it is every countries choice to have them, if they can afford it. Now, Iran, and NK, they need to be controlled. They wont use there nukes for defensive purposes.




























      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Wisconsin+17 on April 21, 2011, 04:21:42 PM
      Realistic/Idealist:

      Agree with your social positions 100 percent. Do not agree with much of your economic beliefs.

      Overall Philosophy:

      Austrian economics + Catholic social teachings.

      Social Issues:

      Abortion: Strongly oppose, except in the case of a direct and immediate threat to the life of the mother to which there is no other remedy. I believe that the life of a person starts at conception.

      Affirmative Action: Generally oppose, though there are some exceptions when talking about income-based affirmative action. I oppose race or gender based affirmative action as unjust and discriminatory in most situations.

      Death Penalty: Strongly oppose in virtually all circumstances. I generally oppose killing in anything short of immediate and direct self-defense or defense of another.

      Drugs and Alcohol: I believe that we should treat drug usage as a disease and seek to rehabilitate users rather than imprison them. However, usage should be actively discouraged as it is detrimental to the individual and society.

      Euthanasia: Oppose, as it is unfair to ask a doctor to kill another person, the very antithesis of their profession. I do believe in extremely limited circumstances that provisions could be made, however.

      Gun Rights: I believe that any type of gun can be responsibly handled if it is in the hands of the right person. As such, I believe that we should control who can purchase guns, but I do not favor limits on which guns they can purchase.

      Immigration: I do not believe in the concept of an illegal person. I believe we must actively seek to welcome all individuals who seek to join our society, both legally and socially. I do believe that conditions should be met, such as back tax payment and proficiency in English for illegal immigrants to earn citizenship, if at all possible.

      Marriage: I believe that marriage and the family are vital and foundational aspects of society and community. I believe that marriage is the highest form of romantic love, and should be revered, encouraged, and protected, but it is also something that must be earned in order to be appreciated. To this end, I support covenant marriage laws with, among other things, mandatory marriage counseling and safeguards against divorce.

      Prostitution: Similar to drug users, we should treat prostitutes as victims of circumstance rather than as criminals. We should actively help impoverished women who view prostitution as their own option, but prostitution should not be condoned or encouraged. Those who profit from this exploitation should face repercussions, however.

      Separation of Church and State: While religion should not be actively enforced by the government, the State should not rebuke the ability of many churches to help fighting poverty, homelessness, disease, and other societal issues. Anyone who has the ability to help others should be embraced, not denied.

      Stem Cell Research: Oppose new embryonic stem cell research, but actively support adult and umbilical cord research along with induced pluripotency procedures.

      Economic Issues:

      Education: I support the public education system, but believe that there are major improvements necessary to bring it up to what it should be. One main improvement is that education funding should serve to counteract the cycle of poverty by centralizing funding and by basing it on need and improvement rather than on pure ability.

      Disagree I believe that the state should not require education and that education is the responsibility of the family. You can't teach unwilling pupils, education must be a voluntary endeavour.

      Energy: For the sake of ourselves, our future generations, and our planet, I believe we must immediately take steps to move to an alternative energy-based infrastructure that runs on an regionally-focused mix of wind, solar, hydroelectric, tidal, geothermal, convection, nuclear, hydrogen fuel cell, and other sustainable technologies. Vehicles should run on hydrogen or electricity.

      Disagree

      Non-mobile electrical generation should be done through nuclear. Mobile power generation (cars, etc), should be done through gasoline. Use what works best and try to mitigate the side effects.

      Environment: I believe that, in order to protect and cultivate life, we must protect and sustain our environment to best of our ability. Humanity must serve as faithful stewards of the Earth, as we are the only ones capable of doing so.

      Fiscal Policy: I believe in New Keynesian economic theory and the modern macroeconomic consensus. I support countercyclical fiscal and monetary policies that actively rectify market failures and excesses.

      Disagree

      I'm an Austrian. Let the people make market decisions and the state will profit through the efficient allocation of capital.

      Health Care: I support a form of single-payer universal health care as my ideal health care system that provides for basic care, with additional care available for purchase on the open market. I believe that market-based basic health care an intrinsically flawed and immoral system that does not treats people in a loving manner, but rather profits on suffering.

      Disagree

      I support a fully privatized system where private health charities provide for the indigent, and the people purchase the full cost of their care. For 30 percent of your paycheck, don't you think you could buy quite a bit of health care?

      Social Justice: One of the most loving actions is to help another in need without regard for the result on yourself. Society too should embrace this concept. We must extend ourselves to help those in need through any means possible. Although government programs are the most effective in this area, the work of charities and religious organizations should be encouraged and embraced.

      Disagree

      Government organizations are the most inefficient means to distribute charity. Admin overhead eats up most of the dollars.

      Social Security: I do not support the privatization of social security. We must protect this social program for the sake of those who need it the most. In order to safeguard the promise that is social security, we must raise or lift entirely the cap of social security contributions on high-income earners.

      Disagree

      The choice is enslaving the young or getting rid of social security altogether.

      Taxation: I believe in a system of taxation that places a fair burden on all members of society. The only system of taxation that I know of that I believe is capable of doing so is a progressive income taxation system. I favor other forms in addition to this system, such as progressive corporate taxes, sin taxes, a limited sales tax on high price items, and some others.

      Disagree

      I want to see fair/flat taxes across the board, and the elimination of income taxes altogether.

      Foreign Issues


      United Nations: The United Nations is a valuable element of global diplomacy that should be embraced and strengthened with the ultimate, far-off goal of a federal world government that recognizes the unity of life and the human race.

      Disagree

      We have a world body that does just this, the Vatican. Gravely disagree with a one world government. The government that governs least governs best.

      War: War, which has been and continues to be the greatest threat to human life and  the world itself, should be avoided at almost all costs. The only just war is one in immediate and direct self-defense, or the immediate and direct self-defense of another nation or people. Diplomacy should always be our main weapon. When war is necessary, it is important to continue to respect human rights and dignity for enemy prisoners and combatants to the extent possible.

      Weapons of Mass Destruction: To the extent possible, all chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear weapons should be eradicated; however, I acknowledge the necessity of keeping a limited nuclear arsenal for deterrence purposes only. The use of such weapons is never moral.




      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: tpfkaw on April 26, 2011, 05:57:37 PM
      Everything: Abolish government.

      I'll just go through my "disputed among libertarians" positions then:

      Gays should not be allowed to join the military.  Neither should women.  Neither should men.

      Abolish the Federal Reserve but go to a Friedmanite system (full-reserve banking and fixed monetary base but no gold standard); abolish legal tender laws.

      Democracy should be abolished.

      Government tyranny should be abolished in all cases, but if it must be prioritized it should be destroyed in the following order of importance:

      1. Domestic wars.
      2. Foreign wars.
      3. "Helping" people in foreign countries.
      4. "Helping" people in this country. (welfare for the rich can be abolished before welfare for the poor, though both are bad)

      So-called "right-to-work" laws are a tyrannical infringement of the right to freely assemble.  Instead states should nullify the Wagner Act.

      School vouchers are an improvement over government schools, as are healthcare vouchers over the present system, although healthcare and eduction tax deductions like Ron Paul has proposed would be still better (though not nearly "good").


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Wisconsin+17 on May 08, 2011, 02:44:20 PM
      Interesting. The Wagner Act is pure trash, and I agree with you that it should be eliminated.

      However, I think that Right to Work is a great step forward. Every state with Right to Work is doing better than they would without the legislation, because employers are more willing to relocate to these states. It gives states a built-in competitive advantage, all else being equal. 


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: JewCon on May 10, 2011, 06:44:35 PM
      Everything: Abolish government.

      I'll just go through my "disputed among libertarians" positions then:

      Gays should not be allowed to join the military.  Neither should women.  Neither should men.

      Abolish the Federal Reserve but go to a Friedmanite system (full-reserve banking and fixed monetary base but no gold standard); abolish legal tender laws.

      Democracy should be abolished.

      Government tyranny should be abolished in all cases, but if it must be prioritized it should be destroyed in the following order of importance:

      1. Domestic wars.
      2. Foreign wars.
      3. "Helping" people in foreign countries.
      4. "Helping" people in this country. (welfare for the rich can be abolished before welfare for the poor, though both are bad)

      So-called "right-to-work" laws are a tyrannical infringement of the right to freely assemble.  Instead states should nullify the Wagner Act.

      School vouchers are an improvement over government schools, as are healthcare vouchers over the present system, although healthcare and eduction tax deductions like Ron Paul has proposed would be still better (though not nearly "good").

      My God. O_O


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: World politics is up Schmitt creek on May 11, 2011, 12:09:53 AM
      I've made a few posts on the forum before but I have not really properly introduced myself and I figured that this is as good a place to do it as any, since I'm a bit shy with formal introductions.

      Social Issues

      General: Center-left, some communitarian tendencies but that's not really the most determinative strain in my positions in this realm.

      Abortion: Somewhat conflicted feelings. Both my personal beliefs and medical ethics dictate that somewhere after conception but between birth certain lines should be drawn but I would rather leave where to draw them and what kind of lines they should be up to people who know more about bioethics than I do. I would probably counsel my loved ones against abortion except in case of risk to their life, rape, or incest, but I have less than no desire to see that legislated.
      Gay marriage/adoption/families: Very strongly support. I also support covenant marriage, including for same-sex couples. I am aware that this is a very unusual position but I stand by it.
      Affirmative action: I support socioeconomic affirmative action rather than race-based affirmative action, which I think is actually constitutionally questionable at worst.
      Hate crimes legislation: Support.
      Gun control: I think that it's important to keep in mind that to an extent there's an urban-rural divide on this issue. States should set minimum registration standards, which local governments should be allowed to add to. I do however support federal bans on certain types of military-grade weapons for civilians.
      Death penalty: Abolish completely, except possibly in times of domestic war or for uniformed personnel directly involved in theaters of combat overseas.
      Euthanasia: Do not legalise but do not prosecute except in cases of obvious abuse of authority on the part of doctors.
      Drugs: Legalise and tax marijuana cultivation and possession but keep heavy limits on transport and a ban on importation; deliberately put and keep other 'soft' drugs (a term which should be defined by medical professionals working on commission rather than career bureaucrats) in a legal grey area by lightening sentences and not aggressively prosecuting. Maintain heavy sentences and aggressive prosecution for trafficking of harder drugs; equalise sentences for crack and powder cocaine; offer mandatory supervised rehab as an alternative to imprisonment for addicts.
      Prostitution: Maintain bans on soliciting the services of a prostitute. Vigorously prosecute current laws against the human trafficking end of the business. Decriminalise actually being a prostitute, so that prostitutes who are being victimised can safely go to the law for help.

      Economic Issues

      General: Left-communitarian

      Taxes: Maintain a progressive income tax but aggressively eliminate almost all loopholes and deductibles other than for spouses, dependents, and charitable donations. Investigate the feasibility of a cap or tax on total personal wealth.
      Spending: Radically cut spending on old Cold War projects that no longer do anything. Avoid long-term structural deficits if possible but running deficits in individual years is not the end of the world.
      Welfare: Maintain and strengthen.
      Education: Radically increase support for public education up to the university level.
      Regulations: Increase significantly on financial services, transit, natural resources, and likely some other industries I'm forgetting. Loosen on small businesses, especially hospitality and retail.
      Labour: Repeal Taft-Hartley. Mandatory bargaining for all unionised industries, and all companies must allow free votes on unionisation.
      Free trade: I oppose omnibus free-trade pacts but support low or nonexistent tariffs for many if not most things. We must, however, maintain the ability to adjust tariffs to protect our own businesses.
      Health care: Keep PPAC Act for the time being but lay the groundwork for a bigger push for a more universal system.

      Foreign Policy

      General: Internationalist but non-militarist.

      Military: Streamline and smarten. Get out of useless land bases in places like Germany and Japan; maintain air and sea capabilities worldwide.
      United Nations: Strengthen it by strategically undermining the positions of authoritarian regimes within it.
      Israel: Take a harder line in favour of a two-state solution with an internationalised Jerusalem.
      Alliances: Ramp up commitments to other democracies.
      China: Take a much, MUCH harder line. Demand major and meaningful reforms in the areas of minority rights, local government, freedom of conscience, freedom of expression, labour relations, and environmental protection in exchange for our continued favoured trade arrangements.

      Constitutional

      Implement IRV for Congressional elections
      Restore rules requiring floor filibusters in the Senate
      Devolve partisan functions to House Majority Leader and require two-thirds vote to elect the Speaker
      Directly elect the President via nationwide IRV


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RI on May 15, 2011, 06:55:32 PM
      I've made a few posts on the forum before but I have not really properly introduced myself and I figured that this is as good a place to do it as any, since I'm a bit shy with formal introductions.

      Social Issues

      General: Center-left, some communitarian tendencies but that's not really the most determinative strain in my positions in this realm.

      Abortion: Somewhat conflicted feelings. Both my personal beliefs and medical ethics dictate that somewhere after conception but between birth certain lines should be drawn but I would rather leave where to draw them and what kind of lines they should be up to people who know more about bioethics than I do. I would probably counsel my loved ones against abortion except in case of risk to their life, rape, or incest, but I have less than no desire to see that legislated.
      Gay marriage/adoption/families: Very strongly support. I also support covenant marriage, including for same-sex couples. I am aware that this is a very unusual position but I stand by it.
      Affirmative action: I support socioeconomic affirmative action rather than race-based affirmative action, which I think is actually constitutionally questionable at worst.
      Hate crimes legislation: Support.
      Gun control: I think that it's important to keep in mind that to an extent there's an urban-rural divide on this issue. States should set minimum registration standards, which local governments should be allowed to add to. I do however support federal bans on certain types of military-grade weapons for civilians.
      Death penalty: Abolish completely, except possibly in times of domestic war or for uniformed personnel directly involved in theaters of combat overseas.
      Euthanasia: Do not legalise but do not prosecute except in cases of obvious abuse of authority on the part of doctors.
      Drugs: Legalise and tax marijuana cultivation and possession but keep heavy limits on transport and a ban on importation; deliberately put and keep other 'soft' drugs (a term which should be defined by medical professionals working on commission rather than career bureaucrats) in a legal grey area by lightening sentences and not aggressively prosecuting. Maintain heavy sentences and aggressive prosecution for trafficking of harder drugs; equalise sentences for crack and powder cocaine; offer mandatory supervised rehab as an alternative to imprisonment for addicts.
      Prostitution: Maintain bans on soliciting the services of a prostitute. Vigorously prosecute current laws against the human trafficking end of the business. Decriminalise actually being a prostitute, so that prostitutes who are being victimised can safely go to the law for help.

      Economic Issues

      General: Left-communitarian

      Taxes: Maintain a progressive income tax but aggressively eliminate almost all loopholes and deductibles other than for spouses, dependents, and charitable donations. Investigate the feasibility of a cap or tax on total personal wealth.
      Spending: Radically cut spending on old Cold War projects that no longer do anything. Avoid long-term structural deficits if possible but running deficits in individual years is not the end of the world.
      Welfare: Maintain and strengthen.
      Education: Radically increase support for public education up to the university level.
      Regulations: Increase significantly on financial services, transit, natural resources, and likely some other industries I'm forgetting. Loosen on small businesses, especially hospitality and retail.
      Labour: Repeal Taft-Hartley. Mandatory bargaining for all unionised industries, and all companies must allow free votes on unionisation.
      Free trade: I oppose omnibus free-trade pacts but support low or nonexistent tariffs for many if not most things. We must, however, maintain the ability to adjust tariffs to protect our own businesses.
      Health care: Keep PPAC Act for the time being but lay the groundwork for a bigger push for a more universal system.

      Foreign Policy

      General: Internationalist but non-militarist.

      Military: Streamline and smarten. Get out of useless land bases in places like Germany and Japan; maintain air and sea capabilities worldwide.
      United Nations: Strengthen it by strategically undermining the positions of authoritarian regimes within it.
      Israel: Take a harder line in favour of a two-state solution with an internationalised Jerusalem.
      Alliances: Ramp up commitments to other democracies.
      China: Take a much, MUCH harder line. Demand major and meaningful reforms in the areas of minority rights, local government, freedom of conscience, freedom of expression, labour relations, and environmental protection in exchange for our continued favoured trade arrangements.

      Constitutional

      Implement IRV for Congressional elections
      Restore rules requiring floor filibusters in the Senate
      Devolve partisan functions to House Majority Leader and require two-thirds vote to elect the Speaker
      Directly elect the President via nationwide IRV

      With a few little exceptions, your positions are remarkably similar to mine. Yay. :)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Cincinnatus on May 15, 2011, 08:00:23 PM
      SOCIAL ISSUES:

      Abortion:  While I don't like to push my morality directly on others, I still can't
      deny that a fetus after a certain period of time is a life.  This is one of those
      issues where I'd be inclined to support the rights to life over the right to choose.

      Gay Marriage:  I don't personally support gay marriage.  However, I don't think it's
      the duty of the government to decide what marriage is.  This is an issue to be left to
      religions, civil unions, and not the federal government.  In the argument of
      for/against adoption, I have no problem with a child being adopted by such a couple.  
      If America allowed adoptions to be more accessible, and not as expensive as it
      currently is, I believe more children would grow up in a stable home.  That being
      said, I would hope any parent wouldn't try to push an anti-traditional or anti-"gay"
      view on a child.

      Gun Control:  I am a very strong supporter in second amendment rights :P  I believe
      that the founders recognized that the government needed to be aware that the citizens
      it serves, have the ability to usurp their power.  This may sound radical but, I
      believe this was the mentality the writers of the constitution had during the time period they lived in.  I do support waiting periods, background checks, and the forfeiting of this right to criminals.  However, in most cases, I will support the right to bear arms.

      Death Penalty: Under no circumstances.  I can't morally support the right to life on
      the abortion issues, yet deny that same right to a criminal.  Besides the fact that I
      don't think we should kill off "undesirables", it's also not cost-effective to our
      judicial system.  The appeals of a capital trial cost quite a large sum.

      Drugs: Legalize drugs.  The Federal government should not be in the business of
      telling me I can't take some drug.  Ron Paul actually made sense in saying, "I don't
      know anyone who would go out and shoot up a needle tomorrow if the Federal government
      legalized drugs." (Something to that effect).  All the people I know who would be
      susceptible to taking a drug, already do. To much money has been wasted on an issue
      that can never be controlled.

      Prostitution:  I have no problem legalizing prostitution.  However, I'd be worried
      about sexual safety so something would have to be done there.  As long as prostitutes
      aren't flaunting in the public square, it's not my business.

      Immigration:  Protect the borders.  End random lotteries.  This goes without saying,
      but these stupid "citizenship tests" are ridiculous and flawed, reform the process!  
      Finally, offer those overseas who are currently enrolled in our Universities the
      opportunity to become productive citizens.  

      Euthanasia:  If someone wants doctor-assisted suicide, I have no problem granting
      their wish under certain circumstances.  However, I can't say I could force a doctor
      into participation.



      ECONOMIC ISSUES:

      Taxes:  Reform the tax code.  If wealthier people couldn't con the system so easily,
      perhaps there wouldn't be a problem.  I'm interested in the "Fair tax" but, there's no
      general consensus over what the sale tax rate would have to be (22-33%)

      Spending:  Domestic spending must be reduced.  Tax revenue alone can't fix our
      deficit.  The military MUST be examined for possible spending cuts.  Further, social
      programs can't be sustained indefinitely under the current conditions.

      Education:  Give the states money to fund their education.  The Federal government
      can't blanket educational reform or funding across the nation.

      Unions:  I have no problem with people getting together to assemble.  What I do have a
      problem with, is the necessity of joining a Union.  Also, Union funding for outside
      functions is not acceptable.  

      Tariffs:  No, simply no.



      FOREIGN POLICY:

      Military:  Look at spending cut opportunities.  Find the most cost-effective route,
      and take it.  

      Iraq:  Useless war that should never have been an issue.  Not to mention they could
      have distracted Iran for us.

      Israel: Work for talks of a Palestinian state.  Both nations have a right to exist.

      Intervention:  Generally, the fact that we need bases in South Korea, Germany, Japan,
      ect is ridiculous.  How much money are we spending to maintain these?  No, we
      shouldn't completely isolate ourselves.  However, isolation isn't the same concept as non
      -interventionism.


      That's my general 5 minute mock-up.  Yes, I did reference Ron Paul :P .  I got a bit lazy when I got to foreign policy so that's why it's shorter.  I've certainly missed something, and not fully
      developed my points but, what do you want for a summary?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: SmokingCricket on May 15, 2011, 08:55:45 PM
      Overall Philosophy: Minimal to No Regulation of Social Activities, Unknown Overall Economic Stance, Non-Interventionist Foreign Policy. Government should not regulate morality and should only be concerned with protecting liberties in the social sphere. Government in the economic sphere is something I have not quite figured out yet.


      Social Issues:
      Abortion: Legalized. Federal funding may or may not be available for subsidizing the procedure, but the option should be on the table for those who seek it.

      Affirmative Action: End. Not so much on the grounds that it is counter-racist, but more on the grounds that it is an act by the government to regulate the practices of various institutions in hiring practices and whatnot. Such is inconsistent with my overall philosophy of government involvement in the social arena.

      Death Penalty: Abolish. Death is less of a penalty than life.

      Drugs and Alcohol: Legalize the sale, use, possession, and transport of all drugs. Consider taxing them at low rates.

      Euthanasia: This is one of the few things I would rather not permit. Death is permanent. If someone is suffering, then the right to pull the plug should be on the table. However, a healthy person who is otherwise fully capable should not take their own life.

      Homosexuality: If that is what you want, have at it.

      Gun Rights: So long as you are a US Citizen, not a felon, and have no record of mental illness, you may own whatever firearm you desire.

      Immigration: Relax immigration restrictions/quotas. Require all current illegals to report themselves to a center for documentation or face deportation. This documentation will only ask for an address/contact, purpose for being in the US, and intent to become a US Citizen. Not asking for much, but we do want to know who you are and why you are here. That is all.

      Marriage: Marriage permitted between any willing persons. If you want a marriage with 2 men and 5 women, have at it. End all "special benefits" for all married persons.

      Prostitution: Legalized. Have at it.

      Separation of Church and State: "One may change his religion. However, he may not change the law" - Somali Xeer Proverb. Church is to remain separate from the State, and the State is to stay out of the affairs of the Church unless threat to liberty.

      Stem Cell Research: Government funding may or may not be available for you, but have at it if you really want to engage in Stem Cell Research.



      Economic Issues:
      Education: End NCLB and Race to the Top. End the crisis in higher education budget problems by cutting the bloated administrative staff. Unsure after that.

      Energy: No drilling in ANWR. Promote non-fossil-fuel energy sources as much as possible. Promote mass transit for local areas and trains for long-distance trips to help conserve energy.

      Environment: Promote recycling. Seek to protect critical habitats from harm. Seek to redesign cities to sprawl less and be more compact/walkable.

      Fiscal Policy: Balanced Budgets just make sense. Require that the budget be balanced. If you want more services, you need more taxes. If you want low taxes, you get fewer services. Take your pick.

      Health Care: Tort reform to restructure healthcare litigation. Unsure after that.

      Social Security: Unsure, but something has got to change.

      Subsidies: None. No more subsidies or tax breaks to businesses for any reason.

      Taxation: Does not matter to me what the rate/policy is, but needs to be consistent. More taxes and I expect more services.

      Unions: Unsure, but support the idea so long as they work with business to provide a balance between business and labor.


      Foreign Issues:
      United Nations: Unsure. The organization is important, but highly corrupt.
      War: No. Withdraw immediately from Iraq, Afghanistan, and any other sovereign nation our military is currently deployed in.
      Weapons of Mass Destruction: Decommission all WMDs.
      Foreign Aid: Restructure foreign aid programs to better target and assist those in need.




      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Teddy (IDS Legislator) on May 15, 2011, 09:37:54 PM
      SOCIAL ISSUES:

      Abortion:  While I don't like to push my morality directly on others, I still can't
      deny that a fetus after is certain period of time is life.  This is one of those
      issues where I'd be inclined to support the rights to life over the right to choose.

      Gay Marriage:  I don't personally support gay marriage.  However, I don't think it's
      the duty of the government to decide what marriage is.  This is an issue to be left to
      religions, civil unions, and not the federal government.  In the argument of
      for against adoption, I have no problem with a child being adopted by such a couple.  
      If America allowed adoptions to be more accessible, and not as expensive as it
      currently is, I believe more children would grow up in a stable home.  That being
      said, I would hope any parent wouldn't try to push an anti-traditional or anti-"gay"
      view on a child.

      Gun Control:  I am a very strong supporter in second amendment rights :P  I believe
      that the founders recognized that the government needed to be aware that the citizes
      it serves, have the ability to usurp their power.  This may sound radical but, I
      believe this was the mentality the writers of the constitution had.  I do support
      waiting periods, background checks, and the forfeiting of this right to criminals.  
      However, in most cases, I will support the right to bear arms.

      Death Penalty: Under no circumstances.  I can't morally support the right to life on
      the abortion issues, yet deny that same right to a criminal.  Besides the fact that I
      don't think we should kill off "undesirables", it's also not cost-effective to our
      judicial system.  The appeals of a capital trial cost quite a large sum.

      Drugs: Legalize drugs.  The Federal government should not be in the business of
      telling me I can't take some drug.  Ron Paul actually made sense in saying, "I don't
      know anyone who would go out and shoot up a needle tomorrow if the Federal government
      legalized drugs." (Something to that effect).  All the people I know who would be
      susceptible to taking a drug, already do. To much money has been wasted on an issue
      that can never be controlled.

      Prostitution:  I have no problem legalizing prostitution.  However, I'd be worried
      about sexual safety so something would have to be done there.  As long as prostitutes
      aren't flaunting in the public square, it's not my business.

      Immigration:  Protect the borders.  End random lotteries.  This goes without saying,
      but these stupid "citizenship tests" are ridiculous and flawed, reform the process!  
      Finally, offer those overseas who are currently enrolled in our Universities the
      opportunity to become productive citizens.  

      Euthanasia:  If someone wants doctor-assisted suicide, I have no problem granting
      their wish under certain circumstances.  However, I can't say I could force a doctor
      into participation.



      ECONOMIC ISSUES:

      Taxes:  Reform the tax code.  If wealthier people couldn't con the system so easily,
      perhaps there wouldn't be a problem.  I'm interested in the "Fair tax" but, there's no
      general consensus over what the sale tax rate would have to be (22-33%)

      Spending:  Domestic spending must be reduced.  Tax revenue alone can't fix our
      deficit.  The military MUST be examined for possible spending cuts.  Further, social
      programs can't be sustained indefinitely under the current conditions.

      Education:  Give the states money to fund their education.  The Federal government
      can't blanket educational reform or funding across the nation.

      Unions:  I have no problem with people getting together to assemble.  What I do have a
      problem with, is the necessity of joining a Union.  Also, Union funding for outside
      functions is not acceptable.  

      Tarrifs:  No, simply no.



      FOREIGN POLICY:

      Military:  Look at spending cut opportunities.  Find the most cost-effective route,
      and take it.  

      Iraq:  Useless war that should never have been an issue.  Not to mention they could
      have distracted Iran for us.

      Israel: Work for talks of a Palestinian state.  Both nations have a right to exist.

      Intervention:  Generally, the fact that we need bases in South Korea, Germany, Japan,
      ect is ridiculous.  How much money are we spending to maintain these?  No, we
      shouldn't completely isolate ourselves.  However, isolation isn't the concept as non
      -interventionism.


      That's my general 5 minute mock-up.  Yes, I did reference Ron Paul :P .  I got a bit lazy when I got to foreign policy so that's why it's shorter.  I've certainly missed something, and not fully
      developed my points but, what do you want for a summary?


      I agree with the end result of all of your values, but not your methods of getting there.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mopsus on May 16, 2011, 02:29:08 PM
      Social issues: I am a social libertarian, except that I oppose legalizing prostitution in most circumstances, support criminalizing abortion after the fetus becomes viable, support restricting what offensive content can be said and shown on television and radio to after a certain time (when most children go to bed), support government funding for religious charitable organizations (as long as they don't use that funding to promote their religion), support hate-crime legislation, and support commonsense gun control measures. Otherwise, I support same-sex marriage and adoption, oppose capital punishment, oppose the PATRIOT Act, support ending the 'war on drugs', support comprehensive immigration reform, and support drastically reforming the immigration system.

      Economic issues: On economic issues, I'm more moderate. I believe that the government should protect consumers and workers, including the right to collectively bargain, should provide basic needs for its citizens, and should implement strict antitrust legislation, in order to prevent monopolization and promote competition. I also support limiting the influence of money in politics, and strongly oppose implementing a flat tax or a fair tax, because doing so would place an undo burden of taxation upon those who can least afford it. However, I support free trade with most countries, support returning control of the education system to local communities and away from teachers unions, and support abolishing tax breaks and subsidies to special interest groups, including oil companies and farmers.

      Foreign-policy issues: I'm progressive on foreign policy. I oppose the war in Iraq, support the creation of a Palestinian state, and believe that the United States should not act unilaterally in military intervention, unless we were attacked first. However, I do not oppose military intervention in order to promote humanitarian goals. I also believe that the focus of foreign economic assistance should be shifted away from foreign governments and toward directly aiding citizens and communities.     


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Snowstalker Mk. II on May 16, 2011, 02:53:25 PM
      Social Issues:

      Abortion: Legal until after the fetus is viable, at which point it is only legal to save the woman's life.

      Affirmative Action: Support, but base it on income rather than race.

      Death Penalty: Abolish--revenge is unhumanlike, and the true punishment is living with your misdeed.

      Drugs and Alcohol: Legalize and regulate alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana. Hard drugs are decriminalized, similar to what's done in portugal.

      Euthanasia: Only with the informed consent of both the patient and the doctor. If the patient is in a coma, leave it up to the family until the patient indicated earlier on that they want something to be done or not done.

      Homosexuality: Legal and treated the same way as heterosexuality.

      Gun Rights: Minus nukes or rocket launchers, any weapon should be legal as long as the customer is an adult, a U.S. resident or citizen, and has no record of serious violent crime.

      Immigration: Allow amnesty for illegal immigrants already in the country and only deport those in the middle of crossing the border. Relax quotas for legal immigration.

      Marriage: Between 2 people of any gender--not sure about polygamy.

      Prostitution: Legal for a woman to sell her own body, but brothels must be very strictly regulated.

      Separation of Church and State: Is good.

      Stem Cell Research: Some government sponsorship is allowed.



      Economic Issues:

      Education: No voucher systems, and ideally few to no charter schools. Standardized testing is failing; serious changes are needed to No Child Left Behind.

      Environment: End oil subsidies and increase subsidies on alternative energy sources, including nuclear power. Keep environmental policies the same or increase regulations in some cases (where land can be developed)

      Fiscal Policy: Balanced budgets are nice, but creating jobs is priority #1.

      Health Care: A single-payer health care system, with some extra parts run by the private sector.

      Social Security: Keep the same.

      Subsidies: End most subsidies, with the exception of farm subsidies for smaller farms and aid to some small businesses.

      Taxation: End Bush tax cuts on the rich and raise them to Reagan-era levels.

      Unions: Support labor's rights, and oppose firing employees during a strike; strikes are unlimited with the exception of some public workers. Right to work is worse than it sounds.

      Foreign Issues:
      United Nations: Stay in, and require both U.N. and congressional approval to enter military conflict.

      War: Withdraw from Iraq and Afghanistan minus limited strike forces, focus on toppling the regime in Libya and capturing or killing Qaddafi before leaving.

      Weapons of Mass Destruction: Reduce nuclear weapon stockpiles as mandated in New START.

      Foreign Aid: End or severely limit aid for weapons, otherwise keep the same.


      Overall: A progressive, left-wing populist and supporter of the New Deal/Great Society. Though my social views are probably further to the left, I mostly focus on economic issues.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: MAINEiac4434 on May 31, 2011, 09:02:17 AM
      Social issues

      Abortion: I support limiting the rights of a woman to have an abortion to 1-2 abortions per year, with a maximum of seven per decade.

      Gay Rights: Strongly oppose the proposed Federal Marriage Amendment and favor overturning the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) as a violation of personal liberty on the 1st Amendment of the US Constitution. Believes in advancing marriage rights to LGBT couples. Opposes "sodomy laws". Oppose states declaring marriage to be between one man and one woman as a violation of the 14th Amendment.

      Religion: As an Atheist, I oppose all attempts by Conservatives to put prayer in public schools, to place any religious icons on public property, to use religion as a means for decreasing personal rights, or using religion to justify legislation that will decrease personal rights. "It's in the bible" should not be a valid explanation to why a law should be passed.

      Illegal Immigration: I support full amnesty of the millions of illegal immigrants in the United States. I also support making immigrating to the United States much easier than it is currently.

      I also support significant increases in funding for ESL (English-as-a-Second-Language) programs and the reintroduction and passage of the DREAM Act.

      I strongly oppose calls by so-called "nativists" for mass deportations and denying birthright citizenship.  

      Sex Ed: Favor mandatory comprehensive sex education programs, including accurate and up-to-date information regarding safe sex (condoms and other contraceptives), sexually transmitted diseases like HIV-AIDS, and all other STDs.

      Second Amendment: I support the right for an individual to own a firearm (I am from Maine after all), but I believe in certain restrictions on how many, which kinds and at which age you can purchase weapons. I also oppose allowing people to own overly-powerful or fast-firing weapons, as well as allowing convicted felons and people with known mental illnesses to own firearms.

      Drug War: I strongly support the legalization of marijuana and other "soft" outlawed substances. Other decidedly harmful drugs, such as crack cocaine, heroin and ecstasy should remain illegal.

      Economic issues

      Education: Favor a major expansion in after-school tutoring programs as well as universal pre-school education; smaller class sizes; and changing the system by which teachers are hired, paid, and promoted from one based on seniority to merit-based pay (with test scores emphasis on the NAEP).

      Tax Code: Oppose extending Bush's 2001 and 2003 tax cuts. Support ending "corporate welfare". Would love "Eisenhower era" taxes, but "Clinton era" is good too.

      Entitlement programs: I support a single-payer healthcare system for all Americans, similar to NHS in Britain.

      In Social Security, I oppose raising the retirement age to seventy, raising the payroll tax as well as eliminating the cap, while raising the estate tax.

      I strongly oppose putting payroll taxes into private retirement accounts subject to the whims of the free market.

      Minimum Wage: Support raising it and strongly oppose any attempts to lower it, or eliminate it.

      Free Trade: Strongly oppose free trade and support replacing it with fair trade.

      Environmental Issues and Energy: I oppose nuclear fusion as an energy technology. I support research into hydrogen fuel-cell technologies, as well as increasing investments into alternative renewable energy sources like wind, solar, geothermal, and biomass among others; promoting energy efficiency in government as well as in private industry; tax credits for hybrid vehicles; increasing the fuel economy standards for newer vehicles; fully eliminating taxpayer subsidies for the fossil fuel and ethanol industries; implementing a carbon tax to further spur these changes in energy usage.

      Transportation: The federal government should also create a national transportation infrastructure for the 21st century comparable in scope to President Eisenhower's Interstate Highway System, beginning with increasing investments into mass transit programs in urban areas so as to concentrate population growth in those areas. I also support a high-speed rail system throughout the country, similar to that in European nations.

      Foreign Policy

      Support reshaping our military to better handle the twin challenges of counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency, including an expansion of the Special Forces.  Also support missile defense to guard against rogue regimes threatening our allies. I oppose increasing funding to the State Department and USAID. I support opening up diplomatic relations with Cuba. I support small military operations in nations with tyrannical dictators in order to depose them, but oppose large, many-year wars with nations just because they look at us funny.

      Democracy-Related Issues

      Election Reform: I support replacing the current electoral college vote system to one more similar to those systems used in Maine and Nebraska, so as each congressional district, whose political views may be completely different than the rest of the state, will also have their voice heard in a presidential election.

      District of Columbia: I support full statehood for the District of Columbia as the state of Columbia.  

      Puerto Rico: I support full statehood for Territory of Puerto Rico as the State of Puerto Rico.

      Thanks to the Atlasian Frodo (https://uselectionatlas.org/FORUM/index.php?action=profile;u=1371 (https://uselectionatlas.org/FORUM/index.php?action=profile;u=1371)) whose post in this topic provided the template for my post.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on May 31, 2011, 01:02:43 PM
      SOCIAL ISSUES:

      Abortion:  While I don't like to push my morality directly on others, I still can't
      deny that a fetus after a certain period of time is a life.  This is one of those
      issues where I'd be inclined to support the rights to life over the right to choose.

      Gay Marriage:  I don't personally support gay marriage.  However, I don't think it's
      the duty of the government to decide what marriage is.  This is an issue to be left to
      religions, civil unions, and not the federal government.  In the argument of
      for/against adoption, I have no problem with a child being adopted by such a couple.  
      If America allowed adoptions to be more accessible, and not as expensive as it
      currently is, I believe more children would grow up in a stable home.  That being
      said, I would hope any parent wouldn't try to push an anti-traditional or anti-"gay"
      view on a child.

      Gun Control:  I am a very strong supporter in second amendment rights :P  I believe
      that the founders recognized that the government needed to be aware that the citizens
      it serves, have the ability to usurp their power.  This may sound radical but, I
      believe this was the mentality the writers of the constitution had during the time period they lived in.  I do support waiting periods, background checks, and the forfeiting of this right to criminals.  However, in most cases, I will support the right to bear arms.

      Death Penalty: Under no circumstances.  I can't morally support the right to life on
      the abortion issues, yet deny that same right to a criminal.  Besides the fact that I
      don't think we should kill off "undesirables", it's also not cost-effective to our
      judicial system.  The appeals of a capital trial cost quite a large sum.

      Drugs: Legalize drugs.  The Federal government should not be in the business of
      telling me I can't take some drug.  Ron Paul actually made sense in saying, "I don't
      know anyone who would go out and shoot up a needle tomorrow if the Federal government
      legalized drugs." (Something to that effect).  All the people I know who would be
      susceptible to taking a drug, already do. To much money has been wasted on an issue
      that can never be controlled.

      Prostitution:  I have no problem legalizing prostitution.  However, I'd be worried
      about sexual safety so something would have to be done there.  As long as prostitutes
      aren't flaunting in the public square, it's not my business.

      Immigration:  Protect the borders.  End random lotteries.  This goes without saying,
      but these stupid "citizenship tests" are ridiculous and flawed, reform the process!  
      Finally, offer those overseas who are currently enrolled in our Universities the
      opportunity to become productive citizens.  

      Euthanasia:  If someone wants doctor-assisted suicide, I have no problem granting
      their wish under certain circumstances.  However, I can't say I could force a doctor
      into participation.



      ECONOMIC ISSUES:

      Taxes:  Reform the tax code.  If wealthier people couldn't con the system so easily,
      perhaps there wouldn't be a problem.  I'm interested in the "Fair tax" but, there's no
      general consensus over what the sale tax rate would have to be (22-33%)

      Spending:  Domestic spending must be reduced.  Tax revenue alone can't fix our
      deficit.  The military MUST be examined for possible spending cuts.  Further, social
      programs can't be sustained indefinitely under the current conditions.

      Education:  Give the states money to fund their education.  The Federal government
      can't blanket educational reform or funding across the nation.

      Unions:  I have no problem with people getting together to assemble.  What I do have a
      problem with, is the necessity of joining a Union.  Also, Union funding for outside
      functions is not acceptable.  

      Tariffs:  No, simply no.



      FOREIGN POLICY:

      Military:  Look at spending cut opportunities.  Find the most cost-effective route,
      and take it.  

      Iraq:  Useless war that should never have been an issue.  Not to mention they could
      have distracted Iran for us.

      Israel: Work for talks of a Palestinian state.  Both nations have a right to exist.

      Intervention:  Generally, the fact that we need bases in South Korea, Germany, Japan,
      ect is ridiculous.  How much money are we spending to maintain these?  No, we
      shouldn't completely isolate ourselves.  However, isolation isn't the same concept as non
      -interventionism.


      That's my general 5 minute mock-up.  Yes, I did reference Ron Paul :P .  I got a bit lazy when I got to foreign policy so that's why it's shorter.  I've certainly missed something, and not fully
      developed my points but, what do you want for a summary?


      Pretty moderate, actually. 


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on May 31, 2011, 01:19:56 PM
      Social issues: I am a social libertarian, except that I oppose legalizing prostitution in most circumstances, support criminalizing abortion after the fetus becomes viable, support restricting what offensive content can be said and shown on television and radio to after a certain time (when most children go to bed), support government funding for religious charitable organizations (as long as they don't use that funding to promote their religion), support hate-crime legislation, and support commonsense gun control measures. Otherwise, I support same-sex marriage and adoption, oppose capital punishment, oppose the PATRIOT Act, support ending the 'war on drugs', support comprehensive immigration reform, and support drastically reforming the immigration system.

      Economic issues: On economic issues, I'm more moderate. I believe that the government should protect consumers and workers, including the right to collectively bargain, should provide basic needs for its citizens, and should implement strict antitrust legislation, in order to prevent monopolization and promote competition. I also support limiting the influence of money in politics, and strongly oppose implementing a flat tax or a fair tax, because doing so would place an undo burden of taxation upon those who can least afford it. However, I support free trade with most countries, support returning control of the education system to local communities and away from teachers unions, and support abolishing tax breaks and subsidies to special interest groups, including oil companies and farmers.

      Foreign-policy issues: I'm progressive on foreign policy. I oppose the war in Iraq, support the creation of a Palestinian state, and believe that the United States should not act unilaterally in military intervention, unless we were attacked first. However, I do not oppose military intervention in order to promote humanitarian goals. I also believe that the focus of foreign economic assistance should be shifted away from foreign governments and toward directly aiding citizens and communities.     



      There's a place for you in the Democratic Party. Take it or leave it. Offer's on the table.



      Though what do you mean "oppose prostitution in most circumstances" when its already a zero-tolerrance issue. Maybe you just think that things should be kept the same, but we should leave kids alone who finds a stripper who thinks he's "kinda cute" in the club and ends up having sex with him in the champagne room?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: phk on May 31, 2011, 01:32:45 PM
      A few bullet points:

      1.) Family structure drives social welfare.

      2.) Entrepreneurship is good, support easing restrictions on start-ups.

      3.) Support for a "pax-Americana" foreign policy, a tempered PNAC.

      4.) No racial quotas.

      5.) Skeptical of multiculturalism.

      6.) Skeptical of non-skilled immigration in an era of skill-biased technological change. Generous "super-immigrants" such as doctors, engineers, Nobel Prize Laureates, Billionaires. Generally allow pro-American foreigners to receive asylum.

      7.) No catering or special privileges to any religious group through the state. The US is a Christian-majority country, not a "Christian nation". Oppose teaching creationism and intelligent design as science.

      8.) Support general drug legalization, with hefty sin taxes.

      9.) Free trade with as many nations as possible as a default policy, to be revoked for diplomatic reasons in the future.

      10.) Support countercyclical taxation policy, rates increased as economy performs better, and reduced when it performs badly. A smoother business cycle. Higher taxes than Clinton had in the 1990s and lower than Bush had in the 2000s.

      11.) Embrace new emerging technologies in biotechnology, nanotechnology, information technology, etc.

      12.) Hostile to unions.

      13.) Abortion after first heart-beat should be heavily discouraged.

      14.) Block people with criminal records and mental health issues from buying guns. Otherwise....

      15.) Infosocialism

      16.) Technological Determinism

      17.) Humanist

      18.) Subsidies to basic research can yield very high returns, as they have done for the computer, the internet, and through NIH.  

      19.) "Nudging"

      20.) Death penalty should be an option for violent criminals.



      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mopsus on May 31, 2011, 01:50:54 PM
      Social issues: I am a social libertarian, except that I oppose legalizing prostitution in most circumstances, support criminalizing abortion after the fetus becomes viable, support restricting what offensive content can be said and shown on television and radio to after a certain time (when most children go to bed), support government funding for religious charitable organizations (as long as they don't use that funding to promote their religion), support hate-crime legislation, and support commonsense gun control measures. Otherwise, I support same-sex marriage and adoption, oppose capital punishment, oppose the PATRIOT Act, support ending the 'war on drugs', support comprehensive immigration reform, and support drastically reforming the immigration system.

      Economic issues: On economic issues, I'm more moderate. I believe that the government should protect consumers and workers, including the right to collectively bargain, should provide basic needs for its citizens, and should implement strict antitrust legislation, in order to prevent monopolization and promote competition. I also support limiting the influence of money in politics, and strongly oppose implementing a flat tax or a fair tax, because doing so would place an undo burden of taxation upon those who can least afford it. However, I support free trade with most countries, support returning control of the education system to local communities and away from teachers unions, and support abolishing tax breaks and subsidies to special interest groups, including oil companies and farmers.

      Foreign-policy issues: I'm progressive on foreign policy. I oppose the war in Iraq, support the creation of a Palestinian state, and believe that the United States should not act unilaterally in military intervention, unless we were attacked first. However, I do not oppose military intervention in order to promote humanitarian goals. I also believe that the focus of foreign economic assistance should be shifted away from foreign governments and toward directly aiding citizens and communities.     



      There's a place for you in the Democratic Party. Take it or leave it. Offer's on the table.



      Though what do you mean "oppose prostitution in most circumstances" when its already a zero-tolerrance issue. Maybe you just think that things should be kept the same, but we should leave kids alone who finds a stripper who thinks he's "kinda cute" in the club and ends up having sex with him in the champagne room?
      What I mean is, I generally oppose legalizing prostitution because I'm wary of the potential of impoverished women becoming prostitutes because they have no other choice. However, I would support legalizing prostitution under two circumstances: 1) poverty has been sufficiently reduced so that the chance of the above scenario occurring is extremely low, or 2) criminalization has obviously failed, so the only way to prevent further abuse is to legalize and regulate it. 


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RIP Robert H Bork on May 31, 2011, 07:35:21 PM
      13.) Abortion after first heart-beat should be heavily discouraged.

      If I'm not mistaken, this position is quite different from the one I read last time.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RI on June 01, 2011, 01:13:36 PM
      So phk, do you only support countercyclical taxation policy and not full countercyclical fiscal policy?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on June 04, 2011, 08:56:11 PM
      So phk, do you only support countercyclical taxation policy and not full countercyclical fiscal policy?

      You mean, "cool off" hot economies with raising central bank rates, welfare and general spending and vice versa?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on June 04, 2011, 08:58:07 PM
      13.) Abortion after first heart-beat should be heavily discouraged.

      If I'm not mistaken, this position is quite different from the one I read last time.

      Though, I have heard numbers from 2 weeks to 7 weeks for when it starts. I am guessing the best way to achieve such a policy would be to outlaw surgical abortion but still allow non-surgical abortion.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RI on June 04, 2011, 11:14:00 PM
      So phk, do you only support countercyclical taxation policy and not full countercyclical fiscal policy?

      You mean, "cool off" hot economies with raising central bank rates, welfare and general spending and vice versa?

      That would be contractionary countercyclical fiscal policy, yes, though to cool off an economy, you would need to cut spending, not raise it.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Del Tachi on June 04, 2011, 11:15:42 PM
      Overall Philosophy: I consider myself a staunch Republican, but I hold more liberal, “socialist” positions than that of many mainstream Republicans.  I like to say that I’m one of last “Northeastern Republicans” who just happens to be stuck in the heart of the Bible Belt.  The Tea Party and other extremist elements of the GOP frighten me, and if the Tea Party continues to more or less take over the Republican party I may become a pretty reliable Democratic voter in the near future.  However, enough about that…here we go:

      SOCIAL ISSUES (Ugh…the most boring):

      Abortion:  While I would never encourage anyone I know to have an abortion, I’m pretty satisfied with Roe v. Wade.  I believe that every woman should have a right to terminate her pregnancy according to the laws in her state.  However, I do not advocate the allocation of federal funds to abortion providers nor do I think that Medicaid funds ought to be used to pay for abortion services.

      Affirmative Action:  As far as I know, “affirmative action” isn’t really a political issue because I don’t think the federal government actually encourages or discourages any form of it.  If businesses and private universities want to use it when selecting applicants, more power to them--it’s their right.  However, I am philosophically opposed to the idea of elevating certain ethnic groups and races based on something other than merit.

      Death Penalty:  Should be a state issue.  I personally believe that if you commit the ultimate crime, you should pay the ultimate price.  However, the system does need to be reformed to protect taxpayers.  Surprisingly, the death penalty is a very expensive thing…and I really can’t imagine why…maybe it’s time to bring back firing squads?

      Alcohol:  The drinking age should remain at 21.  Too many young college kids are not responsible enough to make good decisions regarding their health.  Alcohol consumption is not a right, it is a privilege.  I believe; however, that regulations placed on the advertising of alcohol should be lifted and I do not think that alcoholic beverages should be subject to any additional taxation.

      War on Drugs:  I favor the United States’ current drug policy.  However, the states should be allowed to devise their own drug policy without federal intervention.  As long as it doesn’t cross state boundaries, its no concern of Uncle Sam’s.  I do believe that we need tougher penalties for drug violators, longer prison sentences. 

      Gay Marriage:  Marriage should be a purely state issue.  For tax reasons, the federal government should recognize any legal marriage performed by any state--but only if the married persons are still legal residents of the state in which their marriage was performed.  So, no getting a gay marriage in California and then moving to Arkansas and claiming federal tax benefits associated with marriage…ok?  Moreover, states should not be forced to recognize any marriage performed in another state.

      Pornography: I see this a Freedom of the Press issue.  Pornography should be able to be legally possessed by any adult.  Child pornography regulations should be strengthened and sentences made more harsh.

      Euthanasia: Once again, a state issue.  However, I personally believe that if we allow one human life to be intentionally taken then the value of all human life is diminished. 

      Gun Rights:  Strong proponent of the Second Amendment.  Handgun bans are the most unconstitutional laws in American history.  The right to keep and bear arms is critical to the prevention of tyranny, both domestic and abroad.  However, background checks and mental health assessments ought to be required by state governments.  Also, illegalize the purchase of firearms via the Internet or by mail-order catalogs. 

      Immigration:  Set up a guest-worker program for those seeking to enter the United States for work.  Its time to realize that those who are in this country illegally are doing illegal.  Favor deportation for all illegals, even children.  However, the immigration process does need to be modernized and streamlined.

      Tobacco: I am probably the most pro-tobacco person you’ll ever encounter in your entire life.  No joke.  For some reason it just really irks me when people single-out smokers for additional taxes.  I understand smoking is bad for one’s health, but the government should not dictate my lifestyle.  Public smoking bans enrage me!  Since when can I not consume a perfectly legal product in public?  SMOKER’S RIGHTS!!!

      Prostitution, legalization of: Should be a state issue.  However, I don’t want whores hanging around my house, school, office, etc.  If it is legalized, it needs to be heavily regulated and there needs to be a system in place to make sure than women are not taken advantage of and “gamed” so to speak.

      Stem Cell Research: The United States federal government should subsidy stem cell research.  Period.

      ECONOMIC POLICY (Ugh, these are the most over-discussed…)

      Taxation, general: Taxes need to be low in order to encourage private enterprise and allow for business growth.  However, taxes do seem a bit low nowadays…

      Income tax: Rates are pretty good where they are now.  However, I think the burden needs to be shifted back towards the top-income earners.  But I could live with the current tax rates.

      Corporate tax: Needs to be lowered drastically to prevent off-shoring.  Favor a flat income tax for businesses.

      Sales tax: I have flirted with the idea of a low 1-2% national retail sales tax--exempting groceries and gasoline.  I think it would work wonders for our budget and the effect on consumer spending would be minimal I believe.

      Estate tax: Estate tax, at the federal level, should be done away with. 

      Spending, general: Spending needs to be reined-in in-order to prevent complete financial meltdown.  However, I see Republican’s proposals for spending reduction as pretty outrageous and based on shaky mathematics (i.e., the Ryan Plan).  When it comes to the national debt, I believe that we have reached the point of no return.  America will never be a debt-free nation ever again.  The best we can done is to stop the debt from ballooning like it’s been doing the past few years.  By focusing on economic growth we can shrink the effect of the debt, also.

      Spending cuts, domestic: I say target entitlement programs like Medicaid/Medicare, S-CHIP, and Social Security.  These are our government’s largest expenditures.  However, we cannot afford to cut education and infrastructure--these things lay the foundation for our future economic success as a nation. 

      Spending cuts, military: Our military is a Cold War relic.  The U.S. accounts for almost half of the world’s total defense expenditures.  The days of huge, standing armies are behind us.  It’s time to modernize, synchronize, and digitize our military and intelligence agencies.  Also, it’s a lot cheaper that way.   

      Education: If you want to get serious about education reform, first you need to tackle the unions.  Teacher unions have repeatedly stood in the way of meaningful education reform for decades.  Also, I like the idea standardized education reform.  The DoE should establish national benchmark standards for every grade and require students to pass standardized tests in order to advance to the next grade.  Secondary education is a mess.  High school students who aren’t “academic all-stars” should be allowed to drop “19th Century English Literature” for “Plumbing 101”--more emphasis on vocational education.  Increase investment in four-year university programs: Universities should be the backbone of our nation‘s research facilities.  I like the idea of vouchers, but think that they should be a state issue.   

      Unions: I think that unions have outlived their usefulness.  Employers should reserve the right to terminate the employment of striking workers.  If you hire them, you should be allowed to fire them whenever you want.  Also, we need a national “right to work law”--the payment of union dues shouldn’t be a prerequisite of employment (Right of Assembly?).   

      Free Trade:  I LOVE free trade.  Seriously, I think that it is a great idea; it means cheaper goods for American consumers and gives American products a chance in new, untapped markets like Eastern Europe (which is the greatest unexploited economic market on earth, BTW).  However, we shouldn’t engage in free trade with nations who aren’t willing to return the favor…

      FOREIGN POLCY (My favorite!)

      Iraq:  Favor continued U.S. presence in Iraq.  In hindsight I think the ‘03 invasion was an uninformed decision, but we can’t just run-away from the mess we made.

      Afghanistan: It’s getting pretty nightmarish, but the current situation is workable.  Escalate the number of troops.

      Israel: I do not find the current level of U.S. support for Israel outrageous.  I believe that Israel is morally superior to Palestine.  Objectively, Israel has served to create peace in the Middle East--not threaten it--thus, I think they deserve our current support.  I oppose the creation of a Palestinian state.   

      Nuclear Weapons--Like ‘em.  Deterrence theory all day long baby.

      United Nations--Unsupportive.  The UN serves as a forum for undemocratic, dictators to spread their message of oppression and hate around the world.  Only democratic states should have say-so in international political affairs.  The U.S. should withdraw from the U.N. (it can stay in NYC though, I find that kinda ironic) and establish a similar association with similar goals for only states with democratic governments.

      Intervention, general--As the world’s sole superpower, I believe that the U.S. has a moral responsibility to promote democracy and human rights across the globe.  If that means military intervention in foreign conflicts, so be it.

      After righting this…I’m pretty confused.  I don’t really know what I am.  Conservative?  Liberal?  Libertarian?  Authoritian?  Neoconservative?

      What do you think…cause I really don’t know.   Help me!  I’m having a political identity crisis!!!


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RI on June 04, 2011, 11:27:17 PM
      Your statements on euthanasia, the death penalty, and abortion (among other things) are contradictory.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Frodo on June 04, 2011, 11:28:58 PM
      Republican95: your positions on the issues are really not that far off from mine.  If I can fit into the Democratic Party (which I do), then so can you.  


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Del Tachi on June 04, 2011, 11:41:37 PM
      Republican95: your positions on the issues are really not that far off from mine.  If I can fit into the Democratic Party (which I do), then so can you.  

      Yeah, I know that I'm more liberal than most Republicans.  But I just can't bring myself to be referred to as a "democrat"--because I don't think I've met any Democrat in my life that I particularly liked personally.  Too me, they all just come off as cosmopolitan, latte drinking, metrosexual, elitist douchebags.  Being a townie stuck in a college town doesnt help either. I guess for me it's much more personal than it is political...but I think I'd feel pretty out of place in both parties...so oh well...


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Del Tachi on June 04, 2011, 11:56:21 PM
      Your statements on euthanasia, the death penalty, and abortion (among other things) are contradictory.

      I was a bit worried someone would point that out, I noticed it too.  The conclusions may seem contradictory, but I don't think the reasoning is.  To me, abortion is about the rights of the mother--it's not a moral issue because a fetus isn't a person.  Euthanasia is, to me, a moral issue because it involves a actual person's life.  Death penalty is a completely different story, the value of one's life is erased when one willinging takes the life of another.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RI on June 05, 2011, 12:36:12 AM
      Your statement was:

      Quote
      if we allow one human life to be intentionally taken then the value of all human life is diminished

      That seems like a pretty big statement to me. It implies that human life is something that should be protected and promoted whenever possible, or else we ‘devalue all human life’. To me, I think that would put that issue—protecting human life—somewhere high on the priority list.

      We can argue until we’re blue in the face about the personhood of a fetus and get nowhere (generally), but I would have to think that even if you don’t think a fetus is a person, it would be recognized that a fetus, left to its own devices, will relatively quickly grow into a person with its own claim in that category of ‘all human life’. As such, to terminate a fetus is, under such definitions, the destruction of a human life pre facto, or rather, the preemptive diminishment of the quantity and variety of summated human life, when we already established protecting human life as something of a priority. I personally don’t find that to be intellectually congruent.

      As for the death penalty, your statement about the value of a person’s life being erased if they kill another person seems completely arbitrary to me. Can a person who has killed another never again contribute to the good of humanity? It would seem to me that you are yourself intentionally reducing the value (and quantity) of human life under such a designation by claiming it reflexively.

      In the death penalty case, we started with 2 people. When one is murdered, we are left with 1 person. You are claiming that there are now actually 0 people (and in fact you seek to imprint that on to objective reality) because the one left living lost their personhood by virtue of your definition. You have yourself intentionally taken a life. To me, I have to wonder, in what world is the intentional loss of two human lives, especially by edict, better than the loss of only one if you, as you said, believe the intentional loss of even one human life to hurt all human life?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Swedish Rainbow Capitalist Cheese on June 05, 2011, 01:09:14 AM
      Your positions on tobacco and alcohol seem to be a bit contradictory. You seem like a moderate Republican (or a raging liberal RINO if you ask Free Republic) but I don't think you need to feel a big identity crisis. Actually you would probably fit quite well in with a European Liberal-Conservative party like the German CDU, or the Swedish Moderates. 


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Swedish Rainbow Capitalist Cheese on June 05, 2011, 01:14:15 AM
      Quote
      European liberal conservatism combines current conservative policies with more liberal stances on social issues.[1] Most centre-right political parties in Europe are usually liberal conservative. Compared to a different group of centre-right parties, such as Christian democratic parties, liberal conservatism is less traditionalist, and usually more libertarian economically, favouring low-taxes and "small government".

      Sounds like you, eh?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Ebowed on June 05, 2011, 01:19:29 AM
      I'm not sure I've written anything about my political philosophy in a while.

      On social issues, I would be considered far-left.  I am very weary of undue religious influence on government and am generally skeptical of preserving policies if I perceive the only basis for their continued existence to be tradition.  I believe in equal rights, including on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity, and I think affirmative action can still be an appropriate tool, when used judiciously, to alleviate some of the inherent discrimination that some members of society are more likely to face.  I see any efforts to limit access to abortion or euthanasia as an affront to privacy, and oppose providing contradictory definitions of the fetus in the law (think 'Unborn Victims of Violence Act') and various other political tricks that seem to be hurled at this issue by conservative legislators.  Capital punishment should never be practiced.  Prison conditions are neglected and the fact that abuse and rape are tolerated is a tragedy.  Felons should be allowed to vote.  Nobody should be imprisoned for recreational substance abuse, and the double standard that exists with alcohol and other drugs is ridiculous.  I am also generally opposed to restrictions on alcohol or tobacco (public smoking bans, sin taxes, Sunday/late-night sales laws, etc.) as well as gambling and prostitution.

      The government should guarantee a minimum living income for all of its citizens.  Workers are not provided with reasonable protections and benefits; we should be looking at a 35-hour work week, mandating businesses to provide maternal and paternal leave, guaranteeing adequate paid holidays for full time workers, better pensions, etc.  Wealth is far too concentrated and recent actions by the United States government have only accelerated this trend.  The entire system of health maintenance organizations and endless trails of subsidies and red tape should be removed entirely and replaced with a single-payer system, which would cover optional preventative health care services as well as other basics like dental.  I believe in funding abortions for low-income women as a means of offering greater access to equality.  I am highly skeptical of selective education and would be open to its banishment; certainly no government assistance should be provided to private schools whatsoever.

      A perfect world would have no borders.  My foreign policy is very idealistic, with a pacifist lean, and it stems from the inescapable observation that people are largely the same wherever you may go, motivated by the same joys and concerns, and that the average person has no influence on the actions of their government or military.  Obviously, the Cuban embargo is nonsense.  Nobody should be producing nuclear weapons.  The very concept of 'illegal immigrants' or, for that matter, illegal people strikes me as intrinsically offensive.  I believe in free trade.  Every willing government should be engaging in an active and united effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

      Bearing all of this in mind, I am also realistic about what sort of progress can be accomplished, so I approach my political support pragmatically (that is, for the do-nothing dirtbags residing in the Democratic Party, and the generic left-wing equivalent everywhere else). ;)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RIP Robert H Bork on June 05, 2011, 11:56:42 AM
      Your statements on euthanasia, the death penalty, and abortion (among other things) are contradictory.

      I was a bit worried someone would point that out, I noticed it too.  The conclusions may seem contradictory, but I don't think the reasoning is.  To me, abortion is about the rights of the mother--it's not a moral issue because a fetus isn't a person.  Euthanasia is, to me, a moral issue because it involves a actual person's life.  Death penalty is a completely different story, the value of one's life is erased when one willinging takes the life of another.

      Ah, of course, the old canard about how someone can be a human and yet not a person.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Del Tachi on June 05, 2011, 01:16:58 PM
      Your statements on euthanasia, the death penalty, and abortion (among other things) are contradictory.

      Whoop-de-doo!  Not all of political beliefs are internally consistent with one another...that makes me just like 95 percent of all other Americans...


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Del Tachi on June 05, 2011, 01:18:18 PM
      Quote
      European liberal conservatism combines current conservative policies with more liberal stances on social issues.[1] Most centre-right political parties in Europe are usually liberal conservative. Compared to a different group of centre-right parties, such as Christian democratic parties, liberal conservatism is less traditionalist, and usually more libertarian economically, favouring low-taxes and "small government".

      Sounds like you, eh?

      That sounds very much like me, thanks!  However, I'm not European and I don't plan on being one anytime soon.  American politics are so "shallow" and dumb to me...nothing like they have in Europe!


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on June 05, 2011, 01:42:42 PM
      Your statements on euthanasia, the death penalty, and abortion (among other things) are contradictory.

      I was a bit worried someone would point that out, I noticed it too.  The conclusions may seem contradictory, but I don't think the reasoning is.  To me, abortion is about the rights of the mother--it's not a moral issue because a fetus isn't a person.  Euthanasia is, to me, a moral issue because it involves a actual person's life.  Death penalty is a completely different story, the value of one's life is erased when one willinging takes the life of another.

      Ah, of course, the old canard about how someone can be a human and yet not a person.
      This isn't that good of an argument. A lot of things are human and not persons. I mean, our various parts are human, but are not persons. I have been reading in scientific magazines and it appears that  more scientists are begining to criticize classical Mandelian-Darwinian evolution and begining to the theorize that we and all complex life may have evolved from communities of individual simple life forms in a symbiotic relationship. Perhaps the evolution of life on Earth is more like Spore than Mr/s. Garrison's "retarded fish frog". So, this isn't as good as an argument and may lose even more steam as our society's understanding of life changes..but then again, evolution may once again be controversial in the future, but not in the way you may think.


      Quote
      European liberal conservatism combines current conservative policies with more liberal stances on social issues.[1] Most centre-right political parties in Europe are usually liberal conservative. Compared to a different group of centre-right parties, such as Christian democratic parties, liberal conservatism is less traditionalist, and usually more libertarian economically, favouring low-taxes and "small government".

      Sounds like you, eh?

      That sounds very much like me, thanks!  However, I'm not European and I don't plan on being one anytime soon.  American politics are so "shallow" and dumb to me...nothing like they have in Europe!
      You can be a "Southern" Democrat or a blue dog....or simply an Anti-Republican Independent.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Stoneberg on June 05, 2011, 01:47:01 PM
      I would generally describe myself as some form of a social liberal but not entirely. Non-interventionist foreign policy, Strong opposition to anything that violates personal freedom or privacy. Support for the lowest in society but not to the point of a welfare state. A help up but not a hand out. Low to moderate taxation.


      Social Issues:


      Abortion: Pro choice. Everyone should have a choice. While I personally do not like abortion, it is the individual's moral choice and not the government's. The individual must decide.

      Affirmative Action:
      Oppose. It is pointless and counter-productive.

      Death Penalty: Support but only for extreme cases. (Serial killers/war criminals etc). People who cannot be rehabilitated.

      Drugs. Alcohol and Tobacco: Abolish the minimum purchase/drinking age and decriminalise lesser drugs. Repeal any anti-smoking ban enforce.

      Euthanasia: 100% support for Euthanasia. The right to die IMO is a fundamental human right.

      Gay Marriage: 100% support as it is again the individual's choice.

      Gun Rights:
      Hmm.. I think you have the right to defend yourself and should have the right to have a firearm for protection in the house but I think there should be stronger regulation on firearms.

      Immigration: Hmm.. moderate to open immigration. I really don't have a position for or against this.

      Prostitution: I reject the idea of legalising prostitution. I think this is too far.

      Separation of Church and State: 100% Secular.

      Stem Cell Research: 100% Support for Stem Cell research.



      Economic Issues:

      Education: Education should be one of the main areas of reform and funding. Support all kinds of additional funding for the education system.

      Environment: Encourage tax breaks for those companies who significantly reduce pollution levels. No punitive taxes and the people should be left to make up their own minds about environmentalist issues.

      Fiscal Policy: Less taxes simple ha. I am not too sure really. Lower taxes and a smaller government but not to the point of crippling the poor.

      Health Care: Universal healthcare. (I am British after all)

      Social Security: A total Reform is needed.

      Taxation: Flat tax and a low tax.

      Unions: Neither support nor oppose.



      Foreign Issues:

      British:

      Non-Interventionist policy: I generally oppose the idea of getting into other countries affairs unless it directly concerns us (Europe).

      European Union:
      The people must be given a vote on the issue of Europe. In or out.

      European Union reform:
      Assuming we remain in the EU then it must be made more democratic.

      Afghanistan: Support and possibly increase our armed forces there.

      United States:
      Neutral policy towards the United States. Oppose any American involvement in European affairs (reverse Monroe Doctrine). I'd push for a policy of reducing the American military in Europe.

      NATO: Reform NATO. Possibly leave it. Create some kind of European military alliance in its place.

      Falklands:
      Support the Falklander's self-determination and only enter into discussions if the Argentine's agree to recognise the Falklander's right to self determination.

      Nuclear weapons:
      I am all for the greatest defence is the greatest offence. Support Nuclear weapons.


      Overall:

      I think all social issues such as abortion/euthanasia/Gay marriage is down to the individual and not the state and therefore should be legal. Individual moral choice not an authoritarian government telling people what they cannot do all of the time.

      Strong/neutral foreign policy. Build bridges with Europe but the EU membership issue needs to dealt with first.

      Economy: Social Liberal economic stance with a little Libertarian.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on June 05, 2011, 01:53:36 PM
      I would generally describe myself as some form of a social liberal but not entirely. Non-interventionist foreign policy, Strong opposition to anything that violates personal freedom or privacy. Support for the lowest in society but not to the point of a welfare state. A help up but not a hand out. Low to moderate taxation.


      Social Issues:


      Abortion: Pro choice. Everyone should have a choice. While I personally do not like abortion, it is the individual's moral choice and not the government's. The individual must decide.

      Affirmative Action:
      Oppose. It is pointless and counter-productive.

      Death Penalty: Support but only for extreme cases. (Serial killers/war criminals etc). People who cannot be rehabilitated.

      Drugs. Alcohol and Tobacco: Abolish the minimum purchase/drinking age and decriminalise lesser drugs. Repeal any anti-smoking ban enforce.

      Euthanasia: 100% support for Euthanasia. The right to die IMO is a fundamental human right.

      Gay Marriage: 100% support as it is again the individual's choice.

      Gun Rights:
      Hmm.. I think you have the right to defend yourself and should have the right to have a firearm for protection in the house but I think there should be stronger regulation on firearms.

      Immigration: Hmm.. moderate to open immigration. I really don't have a position for or against this.

      Prostitution: I reject the idea of legalising prostitution. I think this is too far.

      Separation of Church and State: 100% Secular.

      Stem Cell Research: 100% Support for Stem Cell research.



      Economic Issues:

      Education: Education should be one of the main areas of reform and funding. Support all kinds of additional funding for the education system.

      Environment: Encourage tax breaks for those companies who significantly reduce pollution levels. No punitive taxes and the people should be left to make up their own minds about environmentalist issues.

      Fiscal Policy: Less taxes simple ha. I am not too sure really. Lower taxes and a smaller government but not to the point of crippling the poor.

      Health Care: Universal healthcare. (I am British after all)

      Social Security: A total Reform is needed.

      Taxation: Flat tax and a low tax.

      Unions: Neither support nor oppose.



      Foreign Issues:

      British:

      Non-Interventionist policy: I generally oppose the idea of getting into other countries affairs unless it directly concerns us (Europe).

      European Union:
      The people must be given a vote on the issue of Europe. In or out.

      European Union reform:
      Assuming we remain in the EU then it must be made more democratic.

      Afghanistan: Support and possibly increase our armed forces there.

      United States:
      Neutral policy towards the United States. Oppose any American involvement in European affairs (reverse Monroe Doctrine). I'd push for a policy of reducing the American military in Europe.

      NATO: Reform NATO. Possibly leave it. Create some kind of European military alliance in its place.

      Falklands:
      Support the Falklander's self-determination and only enter into discussions if the Argentine's agree to recognise the Falklander's right to self determination.

      Nuclear weapons:
      I am all for the greatest defence is the greatest offence. Support Nuclear weapons.


      Overall:

      I think all social issues such as abortion/euthanasia/Gay marriage is down to the individual and not the state and therefore should be legal. Individual moral choice not an authoritarian government telling people what they cannot do all of the time.

      Strong/neutral foreign policy. Build bridges with Europe but the EU membership issue needs to dealt with first.

      Economy: Social Liberal economic stance with a little Libertarian.

      You are probably a very moderate libertarian Independent. My guess is that if you were voting in the US in 2008, you would have been getting ready to vote for McCain until he tapped Palin and then you would have voted for Obama or wouldn't have voted. Now, you are in the same situation. If someone like Huntsman or Johnson gets it, you will vote against Obama. If a Romney or Pawlenty gets it, you might consider voting for them and then not vote or you might vote for Obama because of Obamacare. If someone like Palin or Bachmann get it, you would probably vote for Obama.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Stoneberg on June 05, 2011, 02:11:22 PM
      You are probably a very moderate libertarian Independent. My guess is that if you were voting in the US in 2008, you would have been getting ready to vote for McCain until he tapped Palin and then you would have voted for Obama or wouldn't have voted. Now, you are in the same situation. If someone like Huntsman or Johnson gets it, you will vote against Obama. If a Romney or Pawlenty gets it, you might consider voting for them and then not vote or you might vote for Obama because of Obamacare. If someone like Palin or Bachmann get it, you would probably vote for Obama.

      Thank you. That was incredibly informative. I knew I was somewhere between a libertarian and social liberal but I wasn't sure. Thanks for clearing that up for me.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RIP Robert H Bork on June 05, 2011, 02:44:17 PM
      Your statements on euthanasia, the death penalty, and abortion (among other things) are contradictory.

      I was a bit worried someone would point that out, I noticed it too.  The conclusions may seem contradictory, but I don't think the reasoning is.  To me, abortion is about the rights of the mother--it's not a moral issue because a fetus isn't a person.  Euthanasia is, to me, a moral issue because it involves a actual person's life.  Death penalty is a completely different story, the value of one's life is erased when one willinging takes the life of another.

      Ah, of course, the old canard about how someone can be a human and yet not a person.

      This isn't that good of an argument. A lot of things are human and not persons. I mean, our various parts are human, but are not persons. I have been reading in scientific magazines and it appears that  more scientists are begining to criticize classical Mandelian-Darwinian evolution and begining to the theorize that we and all complex life may have evolved from communities of individual simple life forms in a symbiotic relationship. Perhaps the evolution of life on Earth is more like Spore than Mr/s. Garrison's "retarded fish frog". So, this isn't as good as an argument and may lose even more steam as our society's understanding of life changes..but then again, evolution may once again be controversial in the future, but not in the way you may think.

      Well, that's the other problem with this point of view. A fetus is not an organ or part of the body, but a separate life, a separate body, with its own genetic makeup. I'll rephrase: no individual can be both a human being and not a person. A person is a human being, especially as distinguished from an animal or thing. If it's a human (which it is), it must be a person also.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on June 05, 2011, 03:22:04 PM
      Yes...but I do not see how a person is in existence when there is nothing yet to fully constitute a basic person. A potential person is not a person as a potential anything else is not that thing. I mean, someone can say that "I am a potential millionaire", but that's not enough for me to give him a loan.  If you want to attack abortion, I think claiming that it is dishonest is a better plan of attack than saying its unjustifiable violence. I think South Park really animates this distinction as they make fun of the idea that abortion is a violent or unjustfiable act (Merry Critter Christmas, when they try to fight the antichrist with an abortion) but repeatedly denounces abortion as an act of dishonesty (when Cartman teaches an inner city school and he tells a pregnant girl that to be succesful she must cheat and that abortion is an ultimate form of cheating)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RIP Robert H Bork on June 05, 2011, 04:20:08 PM
      Yes...but I do not see how a person is in existence when there is nothing yet to fully constitute a basic person. A potential person is not a person as a potential anything else is not that thing. I mean, someone can say that "I am a potential millionaire", but that's not enough for me to give him a loan.  If you want to attack abortion, I think claiming that it is dishonest is a better plan of attack than saying its unjustifiable violence. I think South Park really animates this distinction as they make fun of the idea that abortion is a violent or unjustfiable act (Merry Critter Christmas, when they try to fight the antichrist with an abortion) but repeatedly denounces abortion as an act of dishonesty (when Cartman teaches an inner city school and he tells a pregnant girl that to be succesful she must cheat and that abortion is an ultimate form of cheating)

      ...

      There is no such thing as a "potential person".


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RI on June 05, 2011, 06:01:18 PM
      Your statements on euthanasia, the death penalty, and abortion (among other things) are contradictory.

      Whoop-de-doo!  Not all of political beliefs are internally consistent with one another...that makes me just like 95 percent of all other Americans...

      Hooray for cognitive dissonance? I think that's the first time I've seen someone on here try to justify holding mutually exclusive thoughts simultaneously. And comparing yourself to the politically uneducated masses? Way to lower the bar for yourself...


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on June 05, 2011, 06:28:40 PM
      Your statements on euthanasia, the death penalty, and abortion (among other things) are contradictory.

      Whoop-de-doo!  Not all of political beliefs are internally consistent with one another...that makes me just like 95 percent of all other Americans...

      Hooray for cognitive dissonance? I think that's the first time I've seen someone on here try to justify holding mutually exclusive thoughts simultaneously. And comparing yourself to the politically uneducated masses? Way to lower the bar for yourself...

      Well, some people believe that "respecting life" could mean supporting a moratorium on the Death Penalty and protecting Roe v. Wade on the grounds that protecting all realised life that isn't a direct threat to another life needs protecting but that protecting potential life would lower the value of human life to the level of the chemical reaction that is human conception. A person could say that life is more than a simple chemical reaction lest people be a commodity to be bought and sold.

      Conversely a person could be opposed to abortion and PAS yet be supportive of preemptive war and the death penalty on the grounds that even the most simple chemical reaction that starts human life is holy but the power of the state, when legitimized by constitutional due process and powers, is more powerful than any one human life.

      R95 might simply think that human life should be respected within the frame of current legal tradition. That tradition is that life starts at birth or sometime during pregnancy and after conception and that the Federal Government and the states have the right to take a life if they legitimately meet their substantive and procedural burdens.  

      Tradition might not be abstract enough for people, but some people think things are the way they are for a reason.


      Yes...but I do not see how a person is in existence when there is nothing yet to fully constitute a basic person. A potential person is not a person as a potential anything else is not that thing. I mean, someone can say that "I am a potential millionaire", but that's not enough for me to give him a loan.  If you want to attack abortion, I think claiming that it is dishonest is a better plan of attack than saying its unjustifiable violence. I think South Park really animates this distinction as they make fun of the idea that abortion is a violent or unjustfiable act (Merry Critter Christmas, when they try to fight the antichrist with an abortion) but repeatedly denounces abortion as an act of dishonesty (when Cartman teaches an inner city school and he tells a pregnant girl that to be succesful she must cheat and that abortion is an ultimate form of cheating)

      ...

      There is no such thing as a "potential person".
      Sounds more like a belief than a fact...is there a potential anything?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RI on June 05, 2011, 07:57:47 PM
      Your statements on euthanasia, the death penalty, and abortion (among other things) are contradictory.

      Whoop-de-doo!  Not all of political beliefs are internally consistent with one another...that makes me just like 95 percent of all other Americans...

      Hooray for cognitive dissonance? I think that's the first time I've seen someone on here try to justify holding mutually exclusive thoughts simultaneously. And comparing yourself to the politically uneducated masses? Way to lower the bar for yourself...

      Well, some people believe that "respecting life" could mean supporting a moratorium on the Death Penalty and protecting Roe v. Wade on the grounds that protecting all realised life that isn't a direct threat to another life needs protecting but that protecting potential life would lower the value of human life to the level of the chemical reaction that is human conception. A person could say that life is more than a simple chemical reaction lest people be a commodity to be bought and sold.

      So we protect something as fundamental as life by making the number of phenomena the category applies to arbitrarily limited because to be inclusive would diminish the whole? That’s a pretty nasty and regressive attitude if you ask me, and one that’s at the root of a whole host of terrible things. In what world does declaring someone ‘not a person’ ever improve the dignity and value of life? Additionally, describing a fetus as merely a ‘simple chemical reaction’ is pretty baseless, and, worse, a moot point altogether unless you can show me the point in which a fetus/baby/person becomes more than a ‘simple chemical reaction’.

      Quote
      Conversely a person could be opposed to abortion and PAS yet be supportive of preemptive war and the death penalty on the grounds that even the most simple chemical reaction that starts human life is holy but the power of the state, when legitimized by constitutional due process and powers, is more powerful than any one human life.

      What kind of a person believes that something that is wrong magically becomes right if it is enshrined by the law of a government? Certainly not someone who actually cares about human life as an issue.

      Quote
      R95 might simply think that human life should be respected within the frame of current legal tradition. That tradition is that life starts at birth or sometime during pregnancy and after conception and that the Federal Government and the states have the right to take a life if they legitimately meet their substantive and procedural burdens. 

      Tradition might not be abstract enough for people, but some people think things are the way they are for a reason.

      This argument makes even less sense than arguing against abortion from the standpoint of ‘tradition’, whatever that means.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TJ in Oregon on June 05, 2011, 09:28:44 PM
      I am very socially conservative and that more or less defines my political outlook. However, if I ever were to run for office I would not run on social issues because I think running for office should be treated more as a job interview than a place for grandstanding. Rather, I would emphasize a center-right economic approach of balancing the budget and seeking consensus whenever possible. My foreign policy views are more vague and I am still seeking out an identity on that front.

      Social Issues:
      Abortion: I am pro-life, even in the case or rape or incest. I believe abortion is murder. This is the single greatest issue I base my vote on for national elections.

      Death Penalty: I believe it is only morally justifiable to take a life if doing so it required to ensure the health and safety of others. In virtually all cases in the US, I believe capital punishment is an instrument of revenge rather than justice.

      Drugs: I vehemently oppose any further legalization efforts because I think doing so will just cause more people to use drugs. I would like to see the drinking age either changed or enforced.

      Euthanasia: I believe that human life has a certain value that cannot be compromised out of depression and selfishness. I do not accept the idea that other people are not harmed by a suicide. The legality is largely unimportant but I would like to see it remain illegal in all forms.

      Gay Marriage: I think the entire reason marriage has a place in civil society is because it is the traditional environment to produce and raise children. I think legal recognition of marriage is a form government social intervention for the purpose of promoting an environment to produce and raise children. Gay relationships are clearly incapable of producing children, so no governmental recognition is necessary. That being said, I don’t think the government should go around and look for sterile people or anything of that sort.

      Gun Rights: I think people should be allowed to own and carry guns with proper background checks. I think it should be illegal to carry a gun under the influence of alcohol.

      Immigration: We are a nation of immigrants and immigration should be encouraged by raising the number of people we let into this country legally. I support a pathway to citizenship for illegal immigrants current in the US, provided they have no criminal background and have a job while giving preferential treatment to those with families. However, I don’t believe this alone is enough without better border enforcement in the future.

      Prostitution: It is disgusting and should remain illegal where it is currently illegal. It is not the answer to economic desperation.

      Separation of Church and State: I believe that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof” should be taken to mean that Congress cannot favor one religion over another or force people to join a particular religion. I think this is an area where the government should not be very involved, but that the level of secularization currently being discussed (ie. Deleting “Under God” from the Pledge of Alligence) is asinine.

      Stem Cell Research: I support adult stem cell research and oppose embryonic as it is currently practiced. A professor (who does embryonic stem cell research) told me once that we could get embryonic stem cells from live embryos inside their mother rather than aborted embryos if we really wanted to but that this is not the way research is currently conducted. If this practice was changed to remove abortion from the equation, I would support it. Just to note, I do not support outlawing embryonic stem cell research as practiced, but would not like to see government funding of it. This is a funding issue, not a law issue.



      Economic Issues:
      Affirmative Action: I consider this an economic issue rather than a social one and am more or less neutral on it.

      Education: Education is mainly a state issue and one that no blanket nation policy can be effective on. I think that classroom size has a greater effect on quality and success than does technology or textbook quality, or the building itself. The necessary components to a good education are: parent who discipline their children, students who want to learn, and a qualified teacher who cares.

      Environment: The environment can best be approached by researching better, more cost-effective technologies to address environment problems. The strictness of the EPA is both a blessing and a curse, since it helps to improve American quality of life but also hurts businesses.

      Fiscal Policy: I think that Ricardian Equivalence is correct, such that increased spending today is just a way of stealing from tomorrow.

      Health Care: I support a fully private healthcare system with a safety net for those who cannot afford it.

      Social Security: Something that will end long before I see a dime.

      Taxation: Taxes should be kept as low as reasonably possible to promote economic growth; however, they must be raised now, in addition to spending cuts, to avoid budgetary disaster.

      Unions: This is a personal issue for me since my mother is a union member who went on strike when I was in high school. Thus, I do think union have an important place in American society although I dislike the way most of them serve as blanket funneling organizations for socially liberal agendas.



      Foreign Issues:
      Iraq: It was a poor decision to enter but we must stay to make sure a stable government that doesn’t completely hate us can be formed. It’s almost over now, anyways.

      Israel: A part of me deeply respects Israel because they quite frankly don’t care what the world will think when they do something. They aren’t trying to be popular; the world already hates them. That being said, the only possible answer to their issues with Palestine is a two-state solution.

      Military: I greatly respect all the sacrifices made by our soldiers and support them. I do agree that the military is not above our budget problems but that special care should be taken to ensure the safety of our service men and women.

      Intervention: If I’ve learned anything from the Iraq mess, it’s that great care must be taken when making a decision to go to war. Still, I almost always oppose withdrawal in the middle of a war.

      Nuclear Weapons: I don’t like nuclear weapons a whole lot and would oppose using them in just about any circumstances I can see happening. But, I also think a worldwide disarmament is a fairy tale because there really are evil people out there who want to kill us.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on June 05, 2011, 10:47:06 PM
      Your statements on euthanasia, the death penalty, and abortion (among other things) are contradictory.

      Whoop-de-doo!  Not all of political beliefs are internally consistent with one another...that makes me just like 95 percent of all other Americans...

      Hooray for cognitive dissonance? I think that's the first time I've seen someone on here try to justify holding mutually exclusive thoughts simultaneously. And comparing yourself to the politically uneducated masses? Way to lower the bar for yourself...

      Well, some people believe that "respecting life" could mean supporting a moratorium on the Death Penalty and protecting Roe v. Wade on the grounds that protecting all realised life that isn't a direct threat to another life needs protecting but that protecting potential life would lower the value of human life to the level of the chemical reaction that is human conception. A person could say that life is more than a simple chemical reaction lest people be a commodity to be bought and sold.

      So we protect something as fundamental as life by making the number of phenomena the category applies to arbitrarily limited because to be inclusive would diminish the whole? That’s a pretty nasty and regressive attitude if you ask me, and one that’s at the root of a whole host of terrible things. In what world does declaring someone ‘not a person’ ever improve the dignity and value of life? Additionally, describing a fetus as merely a ‘simple chemical reaction’ is pretty baseless, and, worse, a moot point altogether unless you can show me the point in which a fetus/baby/person becomes more than a ‘simple chemical reaction’.

      Quote
      Conversely a person could be opposed to abortion and PAS yet be supportive of preemptive war and the death penalty on the grounds that even the most simple chemical reaction that starts human life is holy but the power of the state, when legitimized by constitutional due process and powers, is more powerful than any one human life.

      What kind of a person believes that something that is wrong magically becomes right if it is enshrined by the law of a government? Certainly not someone who actually cares about human life as an issue.

      Quote
      R95 might simply think that human life should be respected within the frame of current legal tradition. That tradition is that life starts at birth or sometime during pregnancy and after conception and that the Federal Government and the states have the right to take a life if they legitimately meet their substantive and procedural burdens. 

      Tradition might not be abstract enough for people, but some people think things are the way they are for a reason.

      This argument makes even less sense than arguing against abortion from the standpoint of ‘tradition’, whatever that means.


      Easy. Should animals be treated the same as people? What about robots and computers that have very good AI? What if those robots use some human tissue to operate in the future? ..and its a good point to question what makes a person a person if its not just self-replicating DNA...but is it really a good idea to make that the sole criteria?

      ...and a lot of people base tradition off of what's right and wrong. For example, what was the father of conservatism, Edmound Burke's philosophy in the application of tradition? What is the role of tradition?

      If someone is just going to get upset and call someone "cognitively dissonant", "nasty" and "regressive" because other people may think a certain way or other people think other people think a certain way, what is that person really trying to say?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TJ in Oregon on June 05, 2011, 10:56:34 PM
      TJ proves how useless the political matrix really is once again.

      In what way? I think my matrix scores are about right: social conservative, economic center-right.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TJ in Oregon on June 05, 2011, 11:13:40 PM
      Perhaps part of it is that being from Ohio, immigration is pretty much irrelevent as a political issue. I honestly don't think I've ever even considered it when voting. We haven't had significant immigration to this state in over 50 years, especially in Northern Ohio where I am from.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on June 05, 2011, 11:21:25 PM
      Well, that's what I would give TJ, anyway. He's probably a 2,7.  He's definitely right-of-center, economically ...but there are several caveats. Socially, he's right-wing (zero tolerance, but not over intense), but he isn't far-right. A far-right person would be interested in denying any form of seperation of church and state and be a tad xenophobic. He's a tad to the right of Bush (Bush "wasn't ready" for a total zero tolerance abortion policy), but not quite at Palin levels.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: specific_name on June 05, 2011, 11:25:47 PM
      TJ proves how useless the political matrix really is once again.

      In what way? I think my matrix scores are about right: social conservative, economic center-right.

      Your scores seem about right. Maybe more of S +5, hardly matters. A critical check on the abortion issue could push it more positive. The PM could use some improvement as a mentioned in the PM scores thread, but it's far better than the Political Compass which used to be the standard.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RI on June 06, 2011, 12:00:34 AM
      Easy. Should animals be treated the same as people? What about robots and computers that have very good AI? What if those robots use some human tissue to operate in the future? ..and its a good point to question what makes a person a person if its not just self-replicating DNA...but is it really a good idea to make that the sole criteria?

      ...and a lot of people base tradition off of what's right and wrong. For example, what was the father of conservatism, Edmund Burke's philosophy in the application of tradition? What is the role of tradition?

      If someone is just going to get upset and call someone "cognitively dissonant", "nasty" and "regressive" because other people may think a certain way or other people think other people think a certain way, what is that person really trying to say?

      I can’t say I have a terribly high opinion of Edmund Burke’s philosophy of traditional authority because it doesn’t do what you said in “basing tradition off of what’s right and wrong” but rather he bases right and wrong off of what is tradition, and even then, he does so incredibly selectively.

      As for defining the boundaries of human life, yes, there does need to be a boundary, but such a boundary should be firm and determinate, rather than the fuzzy ‘sometime after conception but before birth, but I really don’t know when” spiel that often gets thrown around, for the simple reason that such a determination is necessary to sufficiently establish morally legitimate action. But as I said in my first post on the subject, this is a conversation that is rarely satisfactorily concluded for either side, and it is not the point of what I was getting after initially.

      I don’t know what you’re getting at with the last paragraph, but I legitimately believe that Republican95 has a contradiction in his line of thought, demonstrating a lack of firm underlying principles, and I believe that he should attempt to create a coherent philosophy based on more than arbitrarily selecting positions that sound ‘right’. Not only did R95 acknowledge this, but then he attempted to justify his gap in logic, which is not something I personally understand, but whatever.

      If you want to debate abortion, that’s fine, but that’s not what my point was.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on June 06, 2011, 12:37:57 AM
      Everyone, apparently including myself, wants to make everything about abortion.

      Law school lecture? Try to answer a professor's question with something that do with "life", "human life", "personal autonomy" or just make it about Roe altogheter. Amazingly, out of six times of frustratingly, semi-jokingly using it, it actually was very productive two or three times.

      Anyways, thank you for correcting me on Burke....he believed that tradtion was the path to knowing what was right and wrong. His principles would involve the "legal science" of the late 1800s as people would justify the law by saying that new decisions are based on the way things always were and that they are that way for a indeterminable but profoundly important reason.   

      The point is that people have their own reasons for believing what they believe, even if it sounds hypocritical to you. "So, we wait til their born to kick their ass" or "Only if you show babies the same compassion you show their murderers and the murderers of others..." are statements that show a lack of understanding of why people think the way they do. That's all I am trying to get across. Nothing more. Nothing less.



      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Elyski on July 10, 2011, 11:54:12 AM
      Social Issues

      Overall Ideology: A mix of Social Libertarianism and Conservatism.

      Abortion: Pro-Life.

      Marriage: I don't have a problem with gay marriage.

      Homeland Security: Another useless department. It should be trashed along with all the other money and resorce wasting departments.

      Death Penalty: All for it. If a person is a no good killer, why should our tax dollars keep them alive.

      Drugs: Legalize Marajuana, continue the war on drugs for more serious types of drugs, like Crystal Meth and "Crocodile".

      Euthenasia: If the person is in a lot of pain, and is of sound mind, why ignore them?

      Gun Rights: I'm for very little gun control. I do draw the linde at machine guns, like M60's and the like.

      Immigration: We need LEGAL immigration reform. Have a shorter waiting period and don't make employment compulsory for citizenship. As for illegal immigration, no amnesty.

      Prostitution: Legalize it. Just make sure that the prostitutes have no STDs, are protected by bouncers, and have organized "pimping" be made illegal.

      Education: Are country has really fallen behind intellect wise. The U.S.A. ranks behind most of Eastern Europe in math and Science, and is only number 27 in the world for reading. Also with most of Eastern Europe. This could end with the dismantaling of the NCLBA (No Child Left Behind Act), bad teachers being fired so good ones coulld be hired, and the introduction of a voucher system (especialy in low income areas).

      Stem Cell Reaserch: I don't have a problem with it, I do have a problem with the government funding it.

      Economic Issues

      Overall Ideology: Fiscal Conservatism.

      The Bailout: Wow, all that government money going to favored buissness so that they won't face banruptcy. That sure sounds illegal to me.

      Welfare: I have no problem with unemployed getting money from the government. I have a problem with the lazy f***s who abuse the system and just sit around wathcing American Idol on their flat screen TV waiting for their next check from the government.

      Debt: We dug ourselves in a hole we can't climb out of. And the government just keeps digging. Game Over man.....

      Taxation:
      T.axed
      E.nough
      A.lready

      Foreign Issues

      War: A nessecary evil that should be used as a last resort.

      United Nations: What have they done for us besides use our resources and disagree with everything we say.

      WMDs: They should all be destroyed. If Russia dosen't agree with that, then we should build more ABM's. Also give Israel ABM's. If Iran gets a nuke, you'll know what they'll do first.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Torie on July 10, 2011, 12:26:43 PM
      Pragmatism. The end.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Хahar 🤔 on July 12, 2011, 10:04:12 AM
      Welfare: I have no problem with unemployed getting money from the government. I have a problem with the lazy f***s who abuse the system and just sit around wathcing American Idol on their flat screen TV waiting for their next check from the government.

      I'm sure you know a lot of people like that.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Username MechaRFK on July 12, 2011, 10:46:18 AM
      Social issues:

      Get rid of the FCC and all ratings system

      Pro-same sex marriage

      Pro-choice

      End the war on drugs

      Backchuck people in guns shows/shops and prevent some guns to people. Some guns can stay for the hunting and stuff that don't harm people.

      Anti-death penatly

      Teach sex-education and birth control

      Oppose all wars unless there a perpose to the war like the Civil War or World War 2.

      Teach evolution in schools


      Ecomincs:

      More regulations on big business

      Less taxes for the middle class and poor

      Single Payer health care


      Try and spend carefully


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: courts on July 13, 2011, 03:41:53 AM
      Alright, last time I'm doing this in a long time. I'm bored, way too awake and feel like ranting...

      Abortion: Pretty anti-abortion outside of particular life threatening instances, although given public opinion this being a state issue is the best pro-lifers can really hope for unfortunately.

      Marriage/Family: Government shouldn't be involved with marriage licensing or doing the sort of social engineering it does now in taxes, it's discriminatory towards all sorts of people. Also CPS and family court should be much more restrained than now, they are out of control and in a lot of cases send kids to even worse living situations under foster care.

      Civil Liberties: Repeal the Patriot Act and similar legislation and abolish TSA, DHS, etc... The incredibly lax/non-existent standards for probable cause and ability for the government to spy on us are pretty ridiculous in general.

      Guns: Very important issue to me. End all federal gun control legislation passed since 1934 and generally get government out.

      Religion: I don't care if you pray in school or want a government grant for your charity (like all the others) just PLEASE leave me alone. Thank you.

      Foreign Policy: We should have a non-interventionist foreign policy. Massively cut the military (>75%) and close down all foreign bases and withdraw from all current 'conflicts' immediately.

      Economics: End the federal reserve, break up the banks/firms that caused this mess, ban further bail outs, significantly scale back most regulations (especially for small business), massively scale back the federal government in general. Also no more NAFTA/CAFTA/etc. type deals, we should trade with countries that are similar to us in standard of living and/or basic regulatory burden. As for the debt it's not going to be paid, sooner or later the US is going to default and whatever bond holders are left are going to get a haircut scalping IMO.. We're just delaying the inevitable at this rate. That's just how SamSpade I see it, sorry.

      Taxes: Drastically reduce and simplify federal taxation. We should have consumption based taxes (gas tax and maybe VAT/National Sales tax).
       
      Healthcare: Repeal Obamacare, the HMO act of 1973 and at least scale back EMTLA. I have mixed feelings here though, I support public healthcare at the state level but I don't really trust the federal government to handle this even putting aside possible constitutional issues... They can't even manage what we have now competently and lobbyists infect every step of the process as we've seen with all these waivers and special deals. This is one of those rare moments I really wish I was Canadian, at least they're not as stupid as us on this issue.

      Energy: The government should stop subsidizing industries and avoid creating new carbon taxes or emissions trading.. Basically I think the market will handle it. I'm not a fan of fracking though.

      Agriculture: End farm subsidies. Stop letting factory farms game the system like they do now.

      Education: Repeal No Child Left Behind and scrap the Department of Education. I think we should move towards a charter school based system complete with uniforms, but it should pretty much be left to individual districts to decide things unless they're creationist or something equally stupid.

      Crime: The drug war is a failure and we should abolish the federal death penalty and generally incarcerate way less people, it doesn't really make us any better off and costs us way too much. We should relax home defense laws in general and move towards a more restitution and/or rehab based system because that would be less expensive and be less invasive and counterproductive in general IMO.
        
      Euthanasia: Should be allowed in terminal cases but leaving this to the states is for the best right now.
       
      Freedom of Speech: For it especially in terms of political speech even if it's 'hateful' although some minor regulations (i.e. vchip or scrambling or something) are OK with me as a compromise as long as they don't ban or severely restrict access to 'offensive' content.
        
      Foreign Aid: End, we have serious financial problems and really, it does a lot of harm quite a lot of the time even when not lost or squandered (e.g. local agricultural markets being harmed; cost of foreign loans). People can donate out of their own pocket or give blood or something if they want, I know I do.
       
      Immigration: I think we should basically have a moratorium.. At least until the economy improves and we've done SOMETHING about our illegal immigration problem, although obviously I'd prefer we simply deported people here illegally.

      Minimum wage: Abolish at federal level.

      Nuclear disarmament: The US really doesn't need to spend the enormous amounts of money it does maintaining its arsenal these days, assuming it ever really did.
       
      Voting system: IRV + scrapping the electoral college + either scrapping the senate or ending the practice of electing senators (they really are pretty useless). Maybe we should add up the popular vote per state to make things fairer, but idk.. Almost anything would be better than now though.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: CARLHAYDEN on July 13, 2011, 04:27:03 AM
      Ghostwhite,

      Seems to me to generally be a pretty sensible post.

      Two points of disagreement:

      First, I believe that legal immigration of up to one quarter of one per cent of the United States population per annum (say, about 770,000) should be allowed.

      If we give preference to those who will add to our economy (investors and those with critical job skills), this will be a net plus.

      Second, the political system (you call it the voting system) is designed to prevent a number of insanities.  While the present system has defects, let me suggest you consider not throwing out the baby with the bathwater.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: #CriminalizeSobriety on July 17, 2011, 12:08:40 AM
      Damn, Mint is pretty centrist for a Democrat.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Misoir on July 25, 2011, 09:01:26 PM
      Social Policy:  I believe in Federalism on this issue allowing states to make their individual choices without interruption by the federal government so long as they do not violate any principles of the Bill of Rights. On the state level however I am culturally moderate with liberal views on gun restriction, drug laws, abortion, gay marriage, evolution, and stem cell research while holding conservative views on crime/punishment, language laws, immigrant assimilation, and school prayer.

      Foreign Policy:  On this issue I break with both parties. Overall I am an Isolationist believing in no intervention abroad unless we are facing an immediate and direct threat, a strong military which does not require massive spending, closing all foreign military bases, exiting all international organizations, ending free-trade in favor of import tariffs which equalize the cost of production between our country and the country which we enter a trade agreement with, and drastically reducing immigration until we have assimilated all current immigrants into our society (learn English, pay taxes, do not commit crimes, excluded from welfare benefits until 3 years taxes are paid).

      Fiscal Policy:  Balance the budget which includes raising taxes and cutting spending, reform the disability benefits system to check on recipients every few years and give rewards for turning in those committing fraud, strengthening Social Security and Medicare, creating a system of Medicare for all, reduce taxes on corporations to a flat 27% rate, end all tax loopholes, make the income tax more progressive, eliminate several federal departments which would be better handled at the state level (EPA, Transportation, Education), support labor unions right to collectively bargain, spend more on infrastructure development, set a cap for the size of all banks and bust up the ‘too big to fail’ banks.

      Government Philosophy:  I support the power of the judiciary, elimination of 17th amendment, strengthen rights of states, believe in strict interpretation of the constitution, favor a very weak executive with a strong judiciary and legislature.

      Overall I would say my philosophy is hard to understand but is similar to the Republican Party to the early 20th century with some notable differences. Overall I consider myself an Economic nationalist and Conservative Federalist.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Bo on July 28, 2011, 04:05:40 PM
      Social Issues:
      Abortion: I am pro-life in most cases. Abortion should be banned expect in cases of maternal life, maternal health, rape, and fetal abnormalities.

      Death Penalty: If abolishing the death penalty saves money, I'm all in favor of abolishing it.

      Drugs: Weed and possibly some other less harmful drugs should be legalized. As for hard drugs, legalization/decriminalization should be done on a cases by case basis.

      Euthanasia: It should be allowed if someone is critically ill and mentally sane. Otherwise, it should not be allowed.

      Gay Marriage: Oppose gay marriage, support civil unions with all the benefits of married couples.

      Gun Rights: There should be strict background checks and waiting periods for everyone before getting guns. Possessing guns while high/drunk should be illegal. As for overall gun policy, I would favor having strict gun control everywhere except in areas/cities with high crime rates (where gun control should be looser).

      Immigration: There should be strict border controls. I would favor some kind of amnesty for illegals without criminal records as long as they wait behind those immigrants that came here legally and as long as they back all the taxes that they owe.

      Prostitution: It should be legal and regulated. If someone wants to have sex for money, they should be entitled to.

      Separation of Church and State: Creationism should not be taught in public schools. Other than that, the status quo should be maintained, I guess.

      Stem Cell Research: I wholeheartedly support non-embryonic stem-cell research. As for embryonic stem-cell research, I would support it if the embryos were going to be thrown away or destroyed anyway, and I guess I would oppose it otherwise. Still, this is an issue that I'll need to think about a little more.



      Economic Issues:
      Affirmative Action: Favor affirmative action by income, oppose affirmative action by race or gender.

      Education: We should focus more on math and science and get more qualified teachers, I guess.

      Environment: Support cap-and-trade and other efforts to help the environment.

      Fiscal Policy: Support drastically reducing or eliminating deficits in the long term. I support tax raises on the wealthy and spending cuts on defense and other sectors to reduce the deficit. Deficits should be okay during recessions, as long as they are not too large. Also, I would prefer it if "entitlement programs" for the poor and middle class don't get cut (or at least, don't get cut that much).

      Health Care: Support a public option and possibly single-payer healthcare as well.

      Social Security: Favor cutting benefits for wealthy retirees. Benefit cuts for poor and middle class Americans should be either small or nonexistent, though.

      Taxation: Support higher taxes on the wealthy. If absolutely necessary, I might be willing to support some tax hikes on the middle class as well.

      Unions: Neutral. I don't really care one way or the other.



      Foreign Issues:
      Iraq: We should withdraw most or all of our troops out of there as soon as possible. Invading Iraq was a large mistake and the country seems to be recovering now.

      Israel: The U.S. should strongly support Israel but also work towards creating a two-state solution in the region.

      Military: Support the servicemembers of the military. However, military spending should be significantly cut after we withdraw from Iraq and Afghanistan.

      Intervention: Support intervention to protect national interests and/or human life. Otherwise, I generally oppose intervention.

      Nuclear Weapons: The U.S. should jointly pursue partial disarmament along with Russia and the other nuclear weapons-states. The U.S. should keep some nukes until all other nuclear weapons-states agree to completely disarm, though.


      What do you guys think of my political positions?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TNF on July 29, 2011, 02:09:11 AM
      Abortion: Pro-choice with minimal restrictions. We should focus on reducing the number of abortions performed by investment in young mothers and our health care system, rather than trying to stamp out abortion with a doomed-to-fail prohibitory policy.

      Marriage/Family: Same-sex marriage ought to be legal.

      Civil Liberties: Status quo.

      Guns: Status quo.

      Religion: Status quo.

      Foreign policy: Realism tempered with liberalism. End the ongoing conflicts in Afghanistan and in Libya, and reduce American military commitments abroad.

      Economics: Realist trade policy combined with a national industrial policy, heavy Keynesian stimulation of the economy, and universal social insurance programs.

      Healthcare: Medicare should be expanded to the whole of the population.

      Energy: Massive investment in nuclear power and expansion of drilling for oil and natural gas in non-protected areas. TVA-style arrangements to harness hydroelectric power. Make clean energy cheap rather than making dirty energy expensive. No Cap and Trade, no Carbon Tax.

      Taxes: Close loopholes, increase progressivity.

      Education: Greater emphasis on vocational education for those who shouldn't go to college and who simply don't want to. Increase power of teachers' unions to help with policymaking, end the use of charter schools and vouchers. Abolish tuition at public universities and ban any private educational institution from operating as anything other than a non-profit.

      Crime: End use of the death penalty. Reform the prison system to focus on rehabilitation and teach prisoners trades.

      Euthanasia: Legalize.

      Freedom of Speech: Status quo.

      Immigration: Regional points-based system.

      Minimum wage: Increase to $10 an hour.

      Voting system: FPTP with IRV.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: specific_name on July 31, 2011, 01:37:55 AM
      Wow a Democrat from Kentucky. ;)  Welcome to the forum TNF


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TNF on July 31, 2011, 09:57:21 AM
      Wow a Democrat from Kentucky. ;)  Welcome to the forum TNF

      Thanks! We're actually the majority here. I'm just an out-and-out liberal while most of my fellow Kentucky Democrats are socially conservative economic populists.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The world will shine with light in our nightmare on July 31, 2011, 06:36:04 PM
      PHILOSOPHY ON GOVERNMENT:
      Government has a role in society to be as small as possible, but also helpful to the people it represents.  It is not the role of government to legislate on personal and moral issues, such as marriage, drugs, and abortion, and government should never monitor its citizens for security reasons.  Ultimately, the citizens themselves should be the biggest factor in the growth and prosperity of a country.  However, government should also work as a tool for people in need, and never turn away from those who need a hand-up, not just a hand-out.

      I describe myself as a "New Democrat".

      ECONOMY:
      • Supports fair, but free trade
      • Supports fair regulations on large corporations
      • Supports new negotiations on trade policies with China and Mexico
      • Supports democratic-capitalism
      • Supports a single-payer health care system or public option
      • Supports auditing the Fed and making the chairmanship an electable position
      • Supports fighting plutocracy
      • Supports the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act
      • Supports budget cuts to ineffective government projects
      • Opposes cuts to Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, and education

      TAXES:
      • Supports tax cuts for small businesses and families making under $250,000 a year
      • Supports cutting the Payroll Tax
      • Supports abolishing the Estate Tax for middle-class families
      • Supports cutting the Corporate Tax, so that the US can continue to be competitive in a global economy
      • Supports ending loopholes
      • Supports progressive taxation
      • Supports raising the Capital Gains Tax
      • Supports a tax on marijuana
      • Opposes the Bush tax cuts
      • Opposes the Flat Tax

      FOREIGN:
      • Supports complete withdrawal from Afghanistan
      • Supports complete withdrawal from Iraq
      • Supports diplomatic approaches to preventing Iran from creating nuclear weapons
      • Supports closing military bases in countries where they are not needed, such as Germany
      • Supports cutting military funding at least by half
      • Opposes foreign aid to China
      • Opposes nation building

      SOCIAL:
      • 100% Pro-choice; supports Roe v. Wade, and want it to be made federal law
      • Supports gay marriage in all states and territories
      • Supports marijuana legalization
      • Supports the Equal Rights Amendment
      • Opposes TSA scans
      • Opposes the PATRIOT ACT
      • Supports affirmative action to an extent; Opposes quotas

      GUNS:
      • Supports the Brady Law
      • Supports background checks
      • Supports concealed guns
      • Leans against bans on semi-automatic weapons
      • Opposes the presence of guns in schools, college campuses, and bars

      CRIME:
      • Supports the Three Strikes Law
      • Supports more police on the streets in high crime areas
      • Opposes the death penalty

      ENVIRONMENT:
      • Supports hands-on solutions to combating greenhouse gasses
      • Supports transitioning the country and the economy to more environmentally friendly fuel sources
      • Opposes Cap-and-Trade (ineffective, indirect, unable to solve the problem while banks benefit more than the environment)

      CHURCH AND STATE:
      • Supports a constitutional amendment allowing non-led prayer in public schools
      • Opposes laws that pertain to religion
      • Opposes removing "In God We Trust" from money
      • Opposes removing God from the Pledge
      • Opposes The Ten Commandments being posted on walls of courthouses


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: specific_name on August 02, 2011, 12:22:40 AM
      Wow a Democrat from Kentucky. ;)  Welcome to the forum TNF

      Thanks! We're actually the majority here. I'm just an out-and-out liberal while most of my fellow Kentucky Democrats are socially conservative economic populists.

      Oh, yes.... I remember the big conversation about the Democratic registration advantage which was supposed to hurt Rand Paul. I imagine that, it's kind of like West Virginia to a degree - economic populism going back awhile - but still uberconservative.

      This reminds I last filled this out in 2007 when I was on the right, time to get cracking on a new version so everyone can know what a communist I've become.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Хahar 🤔 on August 02, 2011, 01:07:41 AM

      That's an interesting position. I'd be interested to hear your reasoning.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Torie on August 02, 2011, 09:39:15 PM
      A summary of mine - it depends.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: You kip if you want to... on August 06, 2011, 06:54:43 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: I'm staunchly pro-choice. It's the mothers decision what she does with her body.
      Church and state: Keep the two completely separate. If you want to follow a religion, follow it, you don't need the government to "enforce" or "endorse" a religion for you to do that. Get religion out of schools (replace "R.E." with something more productive), abolish state run schools which have religious affiliation. Get rid of the Lords Spiritual.
      Gay Marriage: Legalize
      The Smoking Ban: Keep it and keep it as it is. There's no need to expand it or abolish it.
      Euthanasia: Legalize it.
      Prostitution: Illegal
      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: I don't have a problem with it. The pros far outweigh any cons.
      Immigration: I personally don't have a problem with the current system, although i'd support some stricter rules and regulations simply to put a stop to the rise of the far-right. Maybe like the Australian system.
      Fox hunting: Keep it banned, obviously.

      Economic Issues

      Taxes: I favour the LibDems' approach to taxation. Hardline progressive taxation. Cut VAT to 15% to stimulate consumer spending and to renew consumer confidence.
      Welfare state: Support it. Expand it. Invest in it.
      Healthcare: Increase funding for the NHS. No "competition" in the health service.
      Education: Massively increase funding in education. As above, abolish religiously aligned schools. Encourage lessons to develop citizenship. Abolish tuition fees! Keep tuition fees at a current rate (as of 2011-12) and freeze the cost to students over the lifetime of the parliament. Keep the Education Maintenance Allowance (E.M.A) and maybe extend the limit to £40,000 income to receive it. Make Sixth Form education compulsory. Abolish single-sex schools. Abolish faith schools.
      Minimum Wage: Keep it and raise it.
      Infrastructure: Introduce congestion charges in all major cities, but massively cut prices for public transport. Nationalise railways.
      Energy Policy: Invest in nuclear power - it's clean, it's powerful - we just need to research into ways to improve safety. Build more wind farms and put up solar panels. Take advantage of tidal power and other renewable resources.

      Foreign Issues

      European Union: Further intergrate with Europe although I oppose a federal "United States of Europe". Stay in our current situation. The single currency has failed the European people, go back to pre-Euro situation. It's more than clear that the Union needs more accountability. Oppose expansion until the EU has weathed the current storm, but i'd be open to it afterwards.
      Afghanistan: Increase troop numbers there.
      Military Involvement: Attack only if attacked or directly threatened. Don't blindly follow the US like with Iraq. Get out of Libya.
      Military Budget: CUTCUTCUT!

      Constitutional Issues

      Devolution: Support the assemblies in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland as long as Scottish, Welsh and Northern Ireland MPs aren't allowed to vote on England-only matters OR form an English Parliment just for English issues and keep the current Houses of Parliament for UK-wide issues.. Establish regional assemblies (North West, North East, Anglia, etc).
      Scottish/Welsh Independance: Oppose! Keep the United Kingdom united. I could never support the nationalist government in Scotland, although I suppose it's not my place.
      Voting and elections: Keep the voting age at 18. Introduce an Additional Member or an AV+ system. NOT AV. Give constituents the ability to re-call their MP.
      House of Lords: Democratically elect members 100% of the House of Lords, no appointments or hereditary peers or bishops or anyone who isn't accountable to an electorate. Allow party members to elect their party's leader, Labour should keep its electoral system, but the party leader (whether in government or opposition) should be subjected to a confidence vote by the PLP upon election and every year there after.
      Monarchy: Abolish it completely. Become the United Republic and let the public elect the head of state.
      Fixed terms: Stupid idea.

      Changes in italics.
      Changes in italics.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: All Along The Watchtower on August 07, 2011, 02:20:38 PM
      Social: Libertarian. I believe strongly in individual freedom, including the right for a woman to choose, the right to keep and bear arms, the right for a homosexual couple to marry, the right to practice one's religion, and the right to privacy. I also believe strongly in the separation of church and state.

      Economic: I believe that small businesses and innovative fields like the "green" industry are what stimulate the economy. I believe their autonomy should be protected, and I support free trade. However, I recognize that consumers and small businesses need protection from predatory corporations seeking to create monopolies, so I advocate strong, transparent government regulation of industry.

      Foreign: I am pragmatic when it comes to foreign policy. I believe in a world of shared self-interest. I also believe in spreading democracy, but through the power of votes and reformers, not through the power of bullets and bombs. I think institutions like the U.N. are good experiments but need a lot of reform in order to be effective.


      Alright, my modified political views...

      Social: Pretty liberal in general. I believe that freedom of religion should be protected, but I also believe strongly in the separation of church and state. I think a woman should have the right to choose, gay couples should have the right to marry, with all of the legal protections that straight couples have. I believe in the right to privacy and that the USA Patriot Act is in violation of that right. However, I believe in the right to bear arms. Drugs should be legalized, except for really dangerous drugs like methamphetamine, and the War on Drugs should be ended; nonviolent offenders should be released from prison. I think money spent on social programs for the poor could be better spent on education, and that a favorable and more egalitarian tax code for the lower and middle classes would greatly level the playing field.

      Economic: As said above, a fair tax code is crucial to a healthy, thriving working and middle class society. Taxes should be steeply progressive, with 70 percent being the highest marginal rate for incomes of over $2,000,000 a year, and on incomes of less than $25,000 a year, there should be no income tax. The cap on Social Security taxes should be lifted. Taxes on capital gains, dividends, interest,  estates, and gifts should also be quite high. Corporate taxes should be lowered for small businesses. On the spending side, I believe that military spending should be cut in terms of wars, foreign bases, procurements, and intelligence operations, and the move towards streamlining the military into a more effective defense force should be initiated. On the domestic discretionary spending side, more federal money should be spent on education, infrastructure, and public transportation. I believe a single-payer health care system is the best option for medical care.

      Foreign policy: As said above, military spending should be streamlined into what is necessary for defense and what is effective. More money should be spent on foreign aid and on the Peace Corps. I believe in democracy, spread through an assertive but not aggressive example by the United States. I think that the United Nations should be viewed not as a necessary evil, but a necessary good that can do much good if the United States helps lead the way.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TJ in Oregon on October 14, 2011, 09:03:57 PM
      It’s been a while since anyone has used this thread but I'd like to revive it and add some detail to what I posted back in June when I was really new to this site. I mostly changed the economic and foreign policy parts since those were skimpy:


      Social Issues:

      Abortion: I am pro-life, even in the case or rape or incest. I believe abortion is murder. This is the single greatest issue I base my vote on for national elections.

      Death Penalty: I believe it is only morally justifiable to take a life if doing so it required to ensure the health and safety of others. In virtually all cases in the US, I believe capital punishment is an instrument of revenge rather than justice.

      Drugs: I vehemently oppose any further legalization efforts because I think doing so will just cause more people to use drugs. I would like to see the drinking age either changed or enforced. I also do not believe that drug legalization would lead to a reduction in violence because most violent drug dealers aren’t in it to express an act of civil disobedience, they’re in it for a greed that cannot be satiated by their capacity to earn money otherwise.

      Euthanasia: I believe that human life has a certain value that cannot be compromised out of depression and selfishness. I do not accept the idea that other people are not harmed by a suicide. The legality is largely unimportant since it is not likely a major concern of anyone considering suicide but I would like to see it remain illegal in all forms.

      Gay Marriage: I think the entire reason marriage has a place in civil society is because it is the traditional environment to produce and raise children. I think legal recognition of marriage is a form government social intervention for the purpose of promoting an environment to produce and raise children. Gay relationships are clearly incapable of producing children, so no governmental recognition is necessary. That being said, I don’t think the government should go around and look for sterile people or anything of that sort.

      Gun Rights: I think people should be allowed to own and carry guns with proper background checks. I think it should be illegal to carry a gun under the influence of alcohol.

      Immigration: We are a nation of immigrants and immigration should be encouraged by raising the number of people we let into this country legally. I support a pathway to citizenship for illegal immigrants current in the US, provided they have no criminal background and have a job while giving preferential treatment to those with families. However this alone is meaningless without better border enforcement in the future.

      Prostitution: It is disgusting and should remain illegal where it is currently illegal. It is not the answer to economic desperation.

      Separation of Church and State: I believe that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof” should be taken to mean that Congress cannot favor one religion over another or force people to join a particular religion. I think this is an area where the government should not be very involved, but that the level of secularization currently being discussed (ie. Deleting “Under God” from the Pledge of Alligence) is asinine.

      Stem Cell Research: I support adult stem cell research and oppose embryonic as it is currently practiced. A professor (who does embryonic stem cell research) told me once that we could get embryonic stem cells from live embryos inside their mother rather than aborted embryos if we really wanted to but that this is not the way research is currently conducted. If this practice was changed to remove abortion from the equation, I would support it. Just to note, I do not support outlawing embryonic stem cell research as practiced, but would not like to see government funding of it. This is a funding issue, not a law issue.



      Economic Issues:

      Affirmative Action: I consider this an economic issue rather than a social one and am more or less neutral on it. On one hand, I want the best person available to get the job. On the other, I find it irritating that many white kids use affirmative action as an excuse for their own failures. Every person should strive to not only meet the standards of acceptance (if to colleges) but to exceed them.

      Education: Education is mainly a state issue and one that no blanket nation policy can be effective on. I think that classroom size has a greater effect on quality and success than does technology or textbook quality, or the building itself. The necessary components to a good education are: parent who discipline their children, students who want to learn, and a qualified teacher who cares. I do believe standardized testing has a place in education but that place is not the central purpose.

      Environment: The environment can best be approached by researching better, more cost-effective technologies to address environment problems. The strictness of the EPA is both a blessing and a curse, since it helps to improve American quality of life but also hurts businesses.

      Fiscal Policy: In general I think that Ricardian Equivalence is correct, such that increased spending today is just a way of stealing from tomorrow. There are some circumstances where increased government spending over a short period of time can provide a needed boost to the economy. I oppose the hijacking of fiscal stimulus to serve ulterior motives such as funneling resources to environmental causes that are not a cost effective means of job creation.

      Health Care: I support a fully private healthcare system with a safety net for those who cannot afford it. I am not necessarily opposed to an individual mandate though I have some question about its constitutionality. In any case, the government needs to look carefully at whatever proposal enacted to ensure it does not force small businesses to cut employees’ healthcare by making the minimum standards so high that a fee is cheaper. I oppose a single-payer system because I believe such a system will inevitably lead to euthanasia in the mid-to-distant future.

      Monetary Policy: I mainly take the side of the Rational Expectations school of economics, thus placing me primarily on the side of the Republican establishment and somewhat opposed to the Tea Party. I am opposed to an audit of the Fed on the grounds that doing so would lead to a loss in the fiduciary trust in our current system. I am also opposed to the idea of Congress running the Federal Reserve. I also oppose the gold standard because the purpose of it is that gold supposedly has an “objective value” when it really doesn’t and it’s worth is decided by the market just like anything else.

      Social Security: In many ways, this is the key budgetary issue set between the US and long-term fiscal sustainability. The system was created for an era where the average person had four children and lived just past the retirement age. Now, the average person has 1.8 kids and lives to be 77. We have a few tough options: dramatically increase the retirement age, privatize the system, cut it, increase the payments demanded, or cut the benefits received.  Social security may be politically untouchable but we will soon face the reality that it must be reformed.

      Taxation: Taxes should be kept as low as reasonably possible to promote economic growth; however, they must be raised now, in addition to spending cuts, to avoid budgetary disaster. I am not necessarily opposed to a flat tax, but would rather see something along the lines of an exponential decay function used to eliminate discontinuities in the derivative of the overall tax rate.

      Unions: This is a personal issue for me since my mother is a union member who went on strike when I was in high school. Thus, I do think union have an important place in American society although I dislike the way most of them serve as blanket funneling organizations for socially liberal agendas. I do, however, support right to work legislation.



      Foreign Issues:

      American Exceptionalism: In short, I do not accept the idea of American exceptionalism that the US is somehow morally superior to other nations or that we are predestined for some kind of greatness as the world’s last superpower. I see the US as a country looking out for its interests like any other country would do. Many policies the US enacts will be the right thing to do and many will be wrong.

      China: There are some serious issues remaining in the relationship between the US and China from currency manipulation to religious freedom, but I still see China as an odd sort of ally to the US in the long term. Too much of our economic futures are linked to each other’s success to become enemies.

      Diplomacy: Unlike many in the GOP, I have no problem with the president talking with terrorists, or anyone else for that matter. If President Obama wanted to meet with the Kim Jong Il or any of the various rouge Middle East dictators, I’m not sure what he could possibly have to say that will make a difference, but I don’t mind them talking.

      Iran: This is an incredibly tough situation because the United States cannot afford another military conflict at the moment and our “sanctions” don’t seem to be doing very much. This is a common theme throughout our handling of the Middle East.

      Israel: A part of me deeply respects Israel because they quite frankly don’t care what the world will think when they do something. They aren’t trying to be popular; the world already hates them. That being said, the only possible answer to their issues with Palestine is a two-state solution.

      Military: I greatly respect all the sacrifices made by our soldiers and support them. I do agree that the military is not above our budget problems but that special care should be taken to ensure the safety of our service men and women.

      Intervention: If I’ve learned anything from the Iraq mess, it’s that great care must be taken when making a decision to go to war. Still, I almost always oppose withdrawal in the middle of a war.

      Nuclear Weapons: I don’t like nuclear weapons a whole lot and would oppose using them in just about any circumstances I can see happening. But, I also think a worldwide disarmament is a fairy tale because there really are evil people out there who want to kill us.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RI on October 14, 2011, 09:32:19 PM
      Outside of most (but not all) of the economic issues and maybe gay marriage (and a couple other tiny things), I largely agree with you, TJ.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Marokai Backbeat on October 15, 2011, 12:05:00 AM
      Overall philosophy: I have for many years, and continue to, consider myself a Democratic Socialist (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democratic_Socialism) in most respects. That being said, I also place a very heavy emphasis on empirical evidence when determining policy. "Principles" and "freedom" tend to take a backseat, for the most part, when I consider what policy is the best or worst. I do not believe people can govern themselves, and that is why we have a representative democracy, and cannot be trusted to directly make decisions on their own, which is why I oppose any referendum/initiative systems.

      In the economic realm, I don't care whether it's the private sector or the public sector handling something, so long as it is fair, efficient, and cheap. I just so happen to think the public sector often does the better job, and that heavy regulation on the private sector is necessary to keep them in check. As for social issues, I tend to take the position of, "If it does not harm other people, there is no reason to prohibit it" with a few exceptions.

      Social Issues.

      Abortion: Abortion should be entirely legal until the third trimester, all birth control should be entirely legal, and it should be freely provided by the state. I oppose parental notification laws. People who consider this more important than economic issues have their priorities wrong, to say the least.

      Drugs/Legalization: I support legalization of marijuana and other soft drugs. The drug war is one of the most idiotic policies we have ever implemented and has been an obvious, objective failure. It is an undeniable waste of money, allows criminal elements to thrive, and clearly clogs up our justice system. The drinking age should also be reduced to 18. It's retarded to have it at 21, as plenty of other countries have it lower than we do and have no problems. Creating forbidden fruit is dumb policy.

      Euthanasia: I believe people should have control over their own bodies, so yes, I believe people have the right to doctor-assisted suicide in the case of terminal illness or severe pain and suffering.

      Gay Rights: There is no rational, secular argument for opposing gay rights. Seriously, none. If you do, shame on you.

      Gun Control: This doesn't have to be an either/or issue. You don't have to take one extreme side or another. I like to think I occupy the pragmatic middle ground. Background checks should be strict, gun-show loopholes should be closed, waiting periods are reasonable, limits on clip size are completely acceptable and empirically make a difference. Nobody needs machine guns, and certainly not explosives or artillery. A registry also makes perfect sense, as does engraving serial numbers on bullets and firearms to be able to track them. The gun lobby hates all of these ideas. Because they're bad people.

      Immigration: Illegal immigration is not getting worse, and the effects of it that it has in areas like crime, or highly exaggerated. If our immigration system worked better and more quickly, and we had proper border security, we wouldn't have this problem anyway. Grant a path to citizenship, or hell, even blanket amnesty at this point. Catching all of the illegals is an unrealistic fool's errand supported only by simple minded politicians more interested in a talking point than an effective policy. The DREAM Act is the absolute very least we can do. That being said, once you stop the immediate problems, you have to crack down.

      Prostitution: Once again, this is a "in control of your own body" issue. Stop and think for a moment; People like TJ in Cleveland are arguing that taking your own body and having sex with someone else, and being given a bit of money for it, should be illegal. Is that not an insane notion? If legal, it could be more tightly regulated and the health of all involved could be better ensured. Keeping prostitution illegal is anti-woman, full stop.

      Separation of Church and State: I support subjecting churches to the same taxes any other property or property owner would be subjected to.

      Stem Cell Research: Of course it should be legal and encouraged. Good lord. The amount of possible breakthroughs far outweigh the "moral consequences" of a few frozen slabs of goo. Sorry.

      Smoking Bans: Here's where I differ from idiot libertarians who are hell-bent on freedom at all costs. Smoking is a scientifically proven harmful activity to everyone around you. Smoking bans have also been implemented in numerous countries and cities around the world, and they have been proven to lead to improved health and happiness. What you want to do with your own body is fine. But smoking is not an activity that just harms you, it harms other people too. Which is why there is absolutely no argument for opposing public smoking bans if you actually believe in a "it's your own body!" philosophy. Other people should not be punished because of your own vices.

      Affirmative Action: I oppose affirmative action on the basis of race, and instead prefer a system of affirmative action on the basis of class.

      Miscellaneous:
      • I support the Equal Rights Amendment.
      • I support repealing the Patriot Act.
      • I support Network Neutrality.
      • I support lowering the sexual age of consent to 14, with some age restrictions for huge disparities in partners.
      • I oppose the death penalty and three-strikes laws.
      • I support comprehensive sex education for all kids in public school. Abstinence should be a footnote.

      Economic Issues.

      Taxes: I generally support increasing taxes on those making more than $200,000, as well as creating additional marginal income tax brackets to ensure a more progressive bent to our tax rates. A top income tax rate of 60% on extreme incomes is reasonable, to me. I support the full reintroduction of the estate tax. I support the introduction of a national internet sales tax, and am neutral on a carbon tax. I also support increasing, or eliminating, the payroll tax cap going into Social Security, as it's ridiculously regressive. First and foremost, I at least support letting all Bush tax cuts expire.

      Education: I support increasing teacher pay, as well as devoting more money to renovating or rebuilding entirely, old schools, particularly in urban areas. I also support limited subsidization of tuition fees for middle and lower class students, as well as increasing a focus on public universities, community colleges, and trade schools. I oppose voucher programs, they're a waste of time.

      Environment: I support cap & trade, strict EPA regulations in regard to tobacco and carbon emissions as pollutants, and very high goals in gas mileage standards. Public transportation funding should be considered a top priority, as well.

      Social Security: Social Security is a crucial program that keeps millions of people out of poverty and should be considered a bare-bones necessity in any welfare state. The payroll tax going into SS should be uncapped, or the cap dramatically raised. I do not support raising the retirement age. The fact that we haven't fixed this problem by now is embarrassing, as it's one of the simplest and easiest fixes imaginable. I once supported means testing the program at a top level, but no longer do.

      Unions: First of all, if you support right-to-work legislation, you are not pro union. I think unions were one of the crucial elements that built the middle class in America and are an incredibly important component in our economy that help keep businesses accountable. I support the Employee Free Choice Act, (Opposing it makes no sense whatsoever) and support the ability for unions to form in any business they choose to. I also support temporary striker protection laws. I also don't believe any strike should be "illegal." Businesses and governments certainly feel free to break contracts willy-nilly.

      Health Care: I personally believe that allowing the profit motive into healthcare is sickening (no pun intended), and support a single payer healthcare system, while also allowing for private healthcare alternatives. It is cheaper, more efficient, and covers more people. Having a half dozen patchwork healthcare programs and subsidies is an insanely inefficient system, and the private healthcare market is ridiculously expensive and inefficient, not to mention blatantly immoral/amoral.

      Energy: I oppose further deepwater drilling for oil, as well as drilling in wildlife refuges. Further oil drilling will not reduce the price of gas. I think we should be investing a huge amount of money and organizing energy in solar panels, windmills, and hydroelectric energy, as well as requiring that all new buildings in major cities have solar panels built along with them. I also take a very simple and practical view of the issue of solar and wind energy: We have huge swaths of land in the plains and desert west going completely unused. Let's set up shop and have the government acquire miles and miles of land in the plains for nothing but huge solar and wind farms. If the private sector can't do things in large enough scale, the government should.

      Miscellaneous:
      • I support bring our rail transit up to European standards, with an increased focus on bringing rail to more parts of the country than just the coasts.
      • I support the introduction of state-owned banks across the country, in the model of North Dakota's, as well as on the national level.
      • I support the creation of a national public electricity utility, designed to compete with the private sector, as well as price caps on electricity on a regional basis. Public power is cheaper than private power.
      • I support a 20% interest rate cap on credit cards.
      • I support raising the full-time minimum wage to at least $9.00 an hour. For all the right-wing scaremongering over the minimum wage, Canada's wages are doing just fine with higher rates than that.
      • I support banning payday loans, and other predatory loan practices.
      • I support equal pay laws, further protection of maternity leave, and an expansion of vacation days per year for all workers.
      • I support repealing Clinton's welfare reform, as well as Bush's bankruptcy law.
      • I support banning drug advertising.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Marokai Backbeat on October 15, 2011, 12:05:28 AM
      Foreign Issues.

      Military Spending: The current level of "defense" spending is insane and has gotten completely out of control. Our defense budget has doubled since 9/11, and we spend an absurd amount of money on programs that have long outlived their usefulness. We could dramatically cut back on defense spending and still far-and-away be the largest military power on the planet. I certainly support closing down half or more of our bases overseas and bringing home most of our troops abroad.

      Iraq: Complete withdrawal, limited foreign aid.

      Afghanistan: Complete withdrawal, limited foreign aid.

      Libya: I support our current level of intervention in Libya.

      Diplomacy/Sanctions: Talking to people is a good thing, and our leaders should do more of that, than bluster. I'm generally of the mind that sanctions are a very cruel and ineffective policy for getting our way, as they don't punish leaders, just innocent people who live there.

      Miscellaneous:
      • My general approach to dealing with terrorism is pretty much what Obama has been doing; targeted military strikes, intelligence gathering, and a law enforcement focus.
      • I very strongly believe in a two-state solution in Israel, but Israel needs to stop thinking they can do everything they want with no consequences.
      • I support ending most military aid for middle-eastern countries. It's done far more harm than good.
      • I support getting rid of the trade embargo on Cuba.
      • I very very very strongly oppose any sort of doctrine of "pre-emptive war."
      • I support banning the use of private military contractors, or at the very least, dramatically increasing oversight and ensuring accountability when their members inevitably do stupid things.

      Electoral Issues/Government.

      Voting Regulations: I support automatic voter registration, and oppose photo-ID laws, as they are mostly used as political tools to disadvantage young people, poor people, and minorities. I also support making election day a federal holiday, to increase turnout as much as possible.

      Elections: America has some of the lowest average voter turnout in elections among other modern democracies. I believe this is one of the root causes of our government's paralysis and inability to tackle issues, and if it continues, it will lead to nothing good. I support implementing an STV voting system as well as making voting compulsory.

      The Senate: I support abolishing the filibuster, as it's increasingly making legislating an impossibility. More overall, though, I support abolishing the Senate entirely. It's a useless anachronism that serves no purpose since we made them democratically elected. It slows down all legislating and has hurt our ability to compete with other modern democracies that follow the crazy idea of "If you get the majority, you govern freely." I also believe it's insane that Wyoming recieved an equal number of Senators as California. The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few. Sorry, Wyoming.

      Referenda: I do not believe that individuals can be trusted to make good decisions directly. I also do not believe that issues like minority rights are something we should put on a ballot. Human rights are not up for a popular vote. I support saving the people from themselves, by banning all voter initiatives nation-wide, as well as limiting, or abolishing outright, recall elections. People make decisions, they should learn to live with them, or be smart enough not to make them the next time.

      Electoral College: Though up until recently I actually continued to defend the electoral college, recent events have brought me around. It's an insane undemocratic system that should be done away with. The popular vote should reign as the determining factor in electing a president.

      Miscellaneous:
      • I oppose the idea of a line-item veto for the President, or any state Governors.
      • I oppose electing judges. They should all be appointed.
      • I oppose allocating electoral votes by congressional district, it's insanely undemocratic and by far disproportionately benefits rural areas.
      • I support independent redistricting boards for all states. No gerrymandering!
      • In addition to abolishing the Senate, I support increasing House terms to 4 years. Most other countries do not have elections with the frequency we do, for good reason.
      • I very strongly support abolishing most county governments, consolidating them into a more region-based system of local government. Devolution of powers is good, just not taken to the current extreme.
      • I support an Amendment requiring a Supreme Court Justice to step down once they reach a certain age.
      • I support any efforts to make all election campaigns entirely publicly financed.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RI on October 15, 2011, 12:57:31 AM
      Can we just sticky this thread?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Rochambeau jk I'm Hamilton on October 15, 2011, 09:04:51 PM
      Social Issues:

      Abortion: I am pro-life, except in the case when a mother's life's in danger.

      Death Penalty: Oppose!!!!!!!!!!!

      Drugs: Legalize marijuana! FREE THE WEED! FREE THE WEED! Oh, and oppose war on drugs.

      Euthanasia: Legalize it.

      Gay Rights: I support gay rights, all of it. Marriage, adoption, pillow fights etc. I go both ways occasionally, don't like labels! Stick it to the fundies!

      Gun Rights: I support the 2nd amendment.

      Immigration: Deport the illegals, and would support SB 1070 but it needs to be more clarified.

      Prostitution: Legalize it! Legalize it! It'd be safer for them just to do it legally...like fo reals.


      Separation of Church and State: Go away fundies. I will eat your souls.

      Stem Cell Research: I'm Pro-Life, therefore oppose stem cell research of any kind.


      Economic Issues:

      Affirmative Action: Oppose.

      Education: Idc about this issue.

      Environment: Screw the hippies. Economy > Hippies

      Fiscal Policy: I am a follower of Coolidge, Taft, etc....


      Health Care: I oppose government healthcare.



      Social Security: Privatize it, completely. KTHANXBAI

      Taxation: I want a flat 10% income tax rate. I want to illegalize estate, gas, and other small useless taxes.

      Unions: I oppose the unions. Screw them, and screw their bosses.



      Foreign Issues:

      I don't care at all about foreign policy, but I'm somewhat neoconservative, eh.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Cincinnatus on October 15, 2011, 09:35:54 PM
      You had me thinking you were another Paultard until you described yourself as a neo-con.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Rochambeau jk I'm Hamilton on October 15, 2011, 09:38:37 PM
      You had me thinking you were another Paultard until you described yourself as a neo-con.

      Nah, Ron Paul's too much for me. He cares about the wrong issues imho. I only care about two things: 1. Capitalism being King 2. Weed.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: All Along The Watchtower on October 15, 2011, 10:17:08 PM
      You had me thinking you were another Paultard until you described yourself as a neo-con.

      Nah, Ron Paul's too much for me. He cares about the wrong issues imho. I only care about two things: 1. Capitalism being King 2. Weed.

      You'll fit in well here.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: courts on October 15, 2011, 10:21:44 PM
      You had me thinking you were another Paultard until you described yourself as a neo-con.

      His initials wouldn't happen to be JC, would they?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Lucius Quintus Cincinatus Lamar on October 17, 2011, 10:02:24 PM
      It’s been a while since anyone has used this thread but I'd like to revive it and add some detail to what I posted back in June when I was really new to this site. I mostly changed the economic and foreign policy parts since those were skimpy:


      Social Issues:

      Abortion: I am pro-life, even in the case or rape or incest. I believe abortion is murder. This is the single greatest issue I base my vote on for national elections.

      Death Penalty: I believe it is only morally justifiable to take a life if doing so it required to ensure the health and safety of others. In virtually all cases in the US, I believe capital punishment is an instrument of revenge rather than justice.

      Drugs: I vehemently oppose any further legalization efforts because I think doing so will just cause more people to use drugs. I would like to see the drinking age either changed or enforced. I also do not believe that drug legalization would lead to a reduction in violence because most violent drug dealers aren’t in it to express an act of civil disobedience, they’re in it for a greed that cannot be satiated by their capacity to earn money otherwise.

      Euthanasia: I believe that human life has a certain value that cannot be compromised out of depression and selfishness. I do not accept the idea that other people are not harmed by a suicide. The legality is largely unimportant since it is not likely a major concern of anyone considering suicide but I would like to see it remain illegal in all forms.

      Gay Marriage: I think the entire reason marriage has a place in civil society is because it is the traditional environment to produce and raise children. I think legal recognition of marriage is a form government social intervention for the purpose of promoting an environment to produce and raise children. Gay relationships are clearly incapable of producing children, so no governmental recognition is necessary. That being said, I don’t think the government should go around and look for sterile people or anything of that sort.

      Gun Rights: I think people should be allowed to own and carry guns with proper background checks. I think it should be illegal to carry a gun under the influence of alcohol.

      Immigration: We are a nation of immigrants and immigration should be encouraged by raising the number of people we let into this country legally. I support a pathway to citizenship for illegal immigrants current in the US, provided they have no criminal background and have a job while giving preferential treatment to those with families. However this alone is meaningless without better border enforcement in the future.

      Prostitution: It is disgusting and should remain illegal where it is currently illegal. It is not the answer to economic desperation.

      Separation of Church and State: I believe that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof” should be taken to mean that Congress cannot favor one religion over another or force people to join a particular religion. I think this is an area where the government should not be very involved, but that the level of secularization currently being discussed (ie. Deleting “Under God” from the Pledge of Alligence) is asinine.

      Stem Cell Research: I support adult stem cell research and oppose embryonic as it is currently practiced. A professor (who does embryonic stem cell research) told me once that we could get embryonic stem cells from live embryos inside their mother rather than aborted embryos if we really wanted to but that this is not the way research is currently conducted. If this practice was changed to remove abortion from the equation, I would support it. Just to note, I do not support outlawing embryonic stem cell research as practiced, but would not like to see government funding of it. This is a funding issue, not a law issue.



      Economic Issues:

      Affirmative Action: I consider this an economic issue rather than a social one and am more or less neutral on it. On one hand, I want the best person available to get the job. On the other, I find it irritating that many white kids use affirmative action as an excuse for their own failures. Every person should strive to not only meet the standards of acceptance (if to colleges) but to exceed them.

      Education: Education is mainly a state issue and one that no blanket nation policy can be effective on. I think that classroom size has a greater effect on quality and success than does technology or textbook quality, or the building itself. The necessary components to a good education are: parent who discipline their children, students who want to learn, and a qualified teacher who cares. I do believe standardized testing has a place in education but that place is not the central purpose.

      Environment: The environment can best be approached by researching better, more cost-effective technologies to address environment problems. The strictness of the EPA is both a blessing and a curse, since it helps to improve American quality of life but also hurts businesses.

      Fiscal Policy: In general I think that Ricardian Equivalence is correct, such that increased spending today is just a way of stealing from tomorrow. There are some circumstances where increased government spending over a short period of time can provide a needed boost to the economy. I oppose the hijacking of fiscal stimulus to serve ulterior motives such as funneling resources to environmental causes that are not a cost effective means of job creation.

      Health Care: I support a fully private healthcare system with a safety net for those who cannot afford it. I am not necessarily opposed to an individual mandate though I have some question about its constitutionality. In any case, the government needs to look carefully at whatever proposal enacted to ensure it does not force small businesses to cut employees’ healthcare by making the minimum standards so high that a fee is cheaper. I oppose a single-payer system because I believe such a system will inevitably lead to euthanasia in the mid-to-distant future.

      Monetary Policy: I mainly take the side of the Rational Expectations school of economics, thus placing me primarily on the side of the Republican establishment and somewhat opposed to the Tea Party. I am opposed to an audit of the Fed on the grounds that doing so would lead to a loss in the fiduciary trust in our current system. I am also opposed to the idea of Congress running the Federal Reserve. I also oppose the gold standard because the purpose of it is that gold supposedly has an “objective value” when it really doesn’t and it’s worth is decided by the market just like anything else.

      Social Security: In many ways, this is the key budgetary issue set between the US and long-term fiscal sustainability. The system was created for an era where the average person had four children and lived just past the retirement age. Now, the average person has 1.8 kids and lives to be 77. We have a few tough options: dramatically increase the retirement age, privatize the system, cut it, increase the payments demanded, or cut the benefits received.  Social security may be politically untouchable but we will soon face the reality that it must be reformed.

      Taxation: Taxes should be kept as low as reasonably possible to promote economic growth; however, they must be raised now, in addition to spending cuts, to avoid budgetary disaster. I am not necessarily opposed to a flat tax, but would rather see something along the lines of an exponential decay function used to eliminate discontinuities in the derivative of the overall tax rate.

      Unions: This is a personal issue for me since my mother is a union member who went on strike when I was in high school. Thus, I do think union have an important place in American society although I dislike the way most of them serve as blanket funneling organizations for socially liberal agendas. I do, however, support right to work legislation.



      Foreign Issues:

      American Exceptionalism: In short, I do not accept the idea of American exceptionalism that the US is somehow morally superior to other nations or that we are predestined for some kind of greatness as the world’s last superpower. I see the US as a country looking out for its interests like any other country would do. Many policies the US enacts will be the right thing to do and many will be wrong.

      China: There are some serious issues remaining in the relationship between the US and China from currency manipulation to religious freedom, but I still see China as an odd sort of ally to the US in the long term. Too much of our economic futures are linked to each other’s success to become enemies.

      Diplomacy: Unlike many in the GOP, I have no problem with the president talking with terrorists, or anyone else for that matter. If President Obama wanted to meet with the Kim Jong Il or any of the various rouge Middle East dictators, I’m not sure what he could possibly have to say that will make a difference, but I don’t mind them talking.

      Iran: This is an incredibly tough situation because the United States cannot afford another military conflict at the moment and our “sanctions” don’t seem to be doing very much. This is a common theme throughout our handling of the Middle East.

      Israel: A part of me deeply respects Israel because they quite frankly don’t care what the world will think when they do something. They aren’t trying to be popular; the world already hates them. That being said, the only possible answer to their issues with Palestine is a two-state solution.

      Military: I greatly respect all the sacrifices made by our soldiers and support them. I do agree that the military is not above our budget problems but that special care should be taken to ensure the safety of our service men and women.

      Intervention: If I’ve learned anything from the Iraq mess, it’s that great care must be taken when making a decision to go to war. Still, I almost always oppose withdrawal in the middle of a war.

      Nuclear Weapons: I don’t like nuclear weapons a whole lot and would oppose using them in just about any circumstances I can see happening. But, I also think a worldwide disarmament is a fairy tale because there really are evil people out there who want to kill us.


      ^^^ This.  Though I am probably a little more conservative on the affirmative action section.  I am also not sure a two state solution is the only workable solution for Israel, but am not necessarily against such a solution.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Atlas Has Shrugged on October 18, 2011, 04:40:53 PM
      Referenda: I do not believe that individuals can be trusted to make good decisions directly. I also do not believe that issues like minority rights are something we should put on a ballot. Human rights are not up for a popular vote. I support saving the people from themselves, by banning all voter initiatives nation-wide, as well as limiting, or abolishing outright, recall elections. People make decisions, they should learn to live with them, or be smart enough not to make them the next time.

      With all due respect, thats the reason Socialism is not common among the blue collar workers of this country. People feel insulted. I can easily see a place like West Virginia being a Socialist stronghold, if the leadership of the various movements. I agree with you on Human Rights issues, though our definitions maybe a little differant.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Marokai Backbeat on October 18, 2011, 05:01:17 PM
      Referenda: I do not believe that individuals can be trusted to make good decisions directly. I also do not believe that issues like minority rights are something we should put on a ballot. Human rights are not up for a popular vote. I support saving the people from themselves, by banning all voter initiatives nation-wide, as well as limiting, or abolishing outright, recall elections. People make decisions, they should learn to live with them, or be smart enough not to make them the next time.

      With all due respect, thats the reason Socialism is not common among the blue collar workers of this country. People feel insulted. I can easily see a place like West Virginia being a Socialist stronghold, if the leadership of the various movements. I agree with you on Human Rights issues, though our definitions maybe a little differant.

      I'm surprised you think so, since it's a decidedly not-left-wing position to take, or, at least, used to be not left wing.

      Both the Progressive Party (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Progressive_Party_%28United_States,_1912%29#The_Progressive_convention_and_platform) and the Socialist Party (http://www3.niu.edu/~td0raf1/history498/Socialist%20Party%20Platform%201912.htm) in 1912 were running on implementing wide-ranging direct democracy measures. Such things were opposed by the more Conservative establishment. My positions on these things have nothing to do with doctrinaire Socialism, merely my own personal belief that referenda rarely turn out well. They're not historically very left-wing at all.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Filuwaúrdjan on October 18, 2011, 05:06:10 PM
      Well, not within an American context, anyway, referendums being a big part of the radical democratic tradition in the U.S (and even the SPA - with all it's Yiddish speaking Marxists - was a reflection of that almost as much as anything else) and all that. Elsewhere, not so much, usually.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: MyRescueKittehRocks on October 18, 2011, 05:36:23 PM
      @ Free the Weed: Why do you hate fundies so much? Most of the founders were fundies.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Phony Moderate on October 18, 2011, 05:37:28 PM
      @ Free the Weed: Why do you hate fundies so much? Most of the founders were fundies.

      It's interesting that you use the term "fundies" without scare quotes or quotation marks.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on October 18, 2011, 10:29:42 PM
      @ Free the Weed: Why do you hate fundies so much? Most of the founders were fundies.

      It's interesting that you use the term "fundies" without scare quotes or quotation marks.

      Well, they ran the gamut in terms of how orthadox or devout they were...probably in a way that well reflects modern American society, with about a quarter to third being fundies, a tenth being deists, a couple being atheists and the rest being devout yet moderate or casual protestants.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: MyRescueKittehRocks on October 19, 2011, 06:07:04 PM
      @ Free the Weed: Why do you hate fundies so much? Most of the founders were fundies.

      It's interesting that you use the term "fundies" without scare quotes or quotation marks.

      Because I am one.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Fmr President & Senator Polnut on October 19, 2011, 08:00:23 PM
      @ Free the Weed: Why do you hate fundies so much? Most of the founders were fundies.

      You really are clueless aren't you?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Rochambeau jk I'm Hamilton on October 19, 2011, 08:50:58 PM
      @ Free the Weed: Why do you hate fundies so much? Most of the founders were fundies.

      it's not obvious? lol. I'm a libertarian on domestic issues. I'm only fundie on abortion, and immigration.

      Otherwise, I'm very much so a social libertarian and oppose the ideology of ignorance.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Хahar 🤔 on October 19, 2011, 09:38:19 PM
      I oppose a single-payer system because I believe such a system will inevitably lead to euthanasia in the mid-to-distant future.

      I don't understand the reasoning here.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: LastVoter on October 20, 2011, 03:25:52 AM
      @ Free the Weed: Why do you hate fundies so much? Most of the founders were fundies.

      it's not obvious? lol. I'm a libertarian on domestic issues. I'm only fundie on abortion, and immigration.

      Otherwise, I'm very much so a social libertarian and oppose the ideology of ignorance.

      Mind blown


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Oakvale on October 20, 2011, 07:47:56 AM
      @ Free the Weed: Why do you hate fundies so much? Most of the founders were fundies.

      it's not obvious? lol. I'm a libertarian on domestic issues. I'm only fundie on abortion, and immigration.

      Otherwise, I'm very much so a social libertarian and oppose the ideology of ignorance.

      Mind blown


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TJ in Oregon on October 20, 2011, 09:32:43 AM
      I oppose a single-payer system because I believe such a system will inevitably lead to euthanasia in the mid-to-distant future.

      I don't understand the reasoning here.

      In the US today, most people will oppose the legalization of things like physicial-assisted suicide. I suspect that if the government is paying for healthcare, it will provide an incentive for more people to support physicial-assisted suicide because it saves them money. This is purely speculation on my part; I don't pretend to know the future. But, I think most people view things a bit differently if there is a financial incentive to do so. Of course you can make the argument that it already is more expensive for everyone to keep people alive, but the perception is more important than the effect in determining how it shapes public opinion. Having the government pay for healthcare would make it inherently obvious that the government would be shelling out money to keep patients alive against their wishes.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TJ in Oregon on October 20, 2011, 09:41:24 AM
      @ Free the Weed: Why do you hate fundies so much? Most of the founders were fundies.

      it's not obvious? lol. I'm a libertarian on domestic issues. I'm only fundie on abortion, and immigration.

      Otherwise, I'm very much so a social libertarian and oppose the ideology of ignorance.

      It seems to me you picked a strange issue to be a “fundie” on while calling “fundies” an “ideology of ignorance”. (I use quotes around “fundie” because I don’t know what a “fundie” is, nor do I particularly care.) How far are you going here as a “fundie” on immigration? What does it even mean to be a “fundie” on immigration? Does it mean loving your neighbor even if he’s here illegally? Does it mean believing that the US is divinely ordained to rule the world and only Americans born here legally are entitled to a part in that vision? Something in between?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: LastVoter on October 20, 2011, 11:55:20 AM
      I oppose a single-payer system because I believe such a system will inevitably lead to euthanasia in the mid-to-distant future.

      I don't understand the reasoning here.

      In the US today, most people will oppose the legalization of things like physicial-assisted suicide. I suspect that if the government is paying for healthcare, it will provide an incentive for more people to support physicial-assisted suicide because it saves them money. This is purely speculation on my part; I don't pretend to know the future. But, I think most people view things a bit differently if there is a financial incentive to do so. Of course you can make the argument that it already is more expensive for everyone to keep people alive, but the perception is more important than the effect in determining how it shapes public opinion. Having the government pay for healthcare would make it inherently obvious that the government would be shelling out money to keep patients alive against their wishes.
      http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18923323/ns/health-health_care/t/americans-still-split-doctor-assisted-suicide/#.TqBSLd6a9tM

      No exactly.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TJ in Oregon on October 20, 2011, 02:39:41 PM
      I oppose a single-payer system because I believe such a system will inevitably lead to euthanasia in the mid-to-distant future.

      I don't understand the reasoning here.

      In the US today, most people will oppose the legalization of things like physicial-assisted suicide. I suspect that if the government is paying for healthcare, it will provide an incentive for more people to support physicial-assisted suicide because it saves them money. This is purely speculation on my part; I don't pretend to know the future. But, I think most people view things a bit differently if there is a financial incentive to do so. Of course you can make the argument that it already is more expensive for everyone to keep people alive, but the perception is more important than the effect in determining how it shapes public opinion. Having the government pay for healthcare would make it inherently obvious that the government would be shelling out money to keep patients alive against their wishes.
      http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18923323/ns/health-health_care/t/americans-still-split-doctor-assisted-suicide/#.TqBSLd6a9tM

      No exactly.

      Okay then, even more reason why I would want to oppose a single payer system. If most people think it should be legal, making healthcare tax payer funded will only increase their desire to legalize it in more places.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: LastVoter on October 20, 2011, 05:44:18 PM
      I oppose a single-payer system because I believe such a system will inevitably lead to euthanasia in the mid-to-distant future.

      I don't understand the reasoning here.

      In the US today, most people will oppose the legalization of things like physicial-assisted suicide. I suspect that if the government is paying for healthcare, it will provide an incentive for more people to support physicial-assisted suicide because it saves them money. This is purely speculation on my part; I don't pretend to know the future. But, I think most people view things a bit differently if there is a financial incentive to do so. Of course you can make the argument that it already is more expensive for everyone to keep people alive, but the perception is more important than the effect in determining how it shapes public opinion. Having the government pay for healthcare would make it inherently obvious that the government would be shelling out money to keep patients alive against their wishes.
      http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18923323/ns/health-health_care/t/americans-still-split-doctor-assisted-suicide/#.TqBSLd6a9tM

      No exactly.

      Okay then, even more reason why I would want to oppose a single payer system. If most people think it should be legal, making healthcare tax payer funded will only increase their desire to legalize it in more places.
      Good example of strawman argument.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TJ in Oregon on October 20, 2011, 06:52:36 PM
      I oppose a single-payer system because I believe such a system will inevitably lead to euthanasia in the mid-to-distant future.

      I don't understand the reasoning here.

      In the US today, most people will oppose the legalization of things like physicial-assisted suicide. I suspect that if the government is paying for healthcare, it will provide an incentive for more people to support physicial-assisted suicide because it saves them money. This is purely speculation on my part; I don't pretend to know the future. But, I think most people view things a bit differently if there is a financial incentive to do so. Of course you can make the argument that it already is more expensive for everyone to keep people alive, but the perception is more important than the effect in determining how it shapes public opinion. Having the government pay for healthcare would make it inherently obvious that the government would be shelling out money to keep patients alive against their wishes.
      http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18923323/ns/health-health_care/t/americans-still-split-doctor-assisted-suicide/#.TqBSLd6a9tM

      No exactly.

      Okay then, even more reason why I would want to oppose a single payer system. If most people think it should be legal, making healthcare tax payer funded will only increase their desire to legalize it in more places.
      Good example of strawman argument.

      How would you test that argument then?  Let me know when you've perfected the art of time travel.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Fmr President & Senator Polnut on October 20, 2011, 09:21:04 PM
      Right... I like you TJ... but this is REALLY flawed logic.

      Doctor-assisted Euthanasia happens every single day in hospitals in the US and in every other country, the difference is it's about assisting someone to pass who is going to anyway, but is suffering - it's not called that, but that's what it is.

      There is NO correlation between euthanasia and the type of health system you are part of.

      Also, consider that in the current US system your care is based far more around costs than more public-based systems.

      I would recommend reading up on how the health care systems ACTUALLY work in France, the UK, Australia and Canada - because they aren't subsidy schemes for private insurance companies their per-head cost of GDP on healthcare is lower and produce better healthcare outcomes.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Fmr President & Senator Polnut on October 20, 2011, 10:13:44 PM
      * I based this on Marokai's ... sorry for stealing some parts, but if I agree with it... why type it again?

      Overall philosophy: From the time I became fascinated with politics (around 8-9) until I was 16-17 I was pretty conservative person – but that’s largely due to the influence of my grandmother.

      My overall philosophy has evolved over the last decade, with life experience, to make me more of an economic moderate (supports low-ish taxation, a progressive tax system) and a social liberal/libertarian. I suppose in many ways, I may well be a latte liberal.

      I support the role of government in society, as someone who has worked for government and continues to work in that sphere, I know how efficient is actually is and believe that the size of government is not the issue, its how effective it is.
      Social Issues.

      Abortion: I support unrestricted abortion rights in the first trimester. However with each trimester there should be medically valid reason for the termination. I don’t support abortion at the point of viability unless for medical reasons – at that point, allow the option for adoption.

      Drugs/Legalization: I support marijuana legislation and regulation, but continue to oppose any other attempts at legalisation.

      Euthanasia: I support euthanasia for people with terminal illnesses, with medical approval and clear suffering.

      Gay Rights: Gays and lesbians deserve protection from discrimination and unions should be given full legal equality with marriage. Churches can do whatever they like.

      Gun Control: Licences, clip restrictions, mandated ownership limits,  and ammunition controls. Ban all automatic weapons for private purchase, most semi-automatics. Gun ownership is also a responsibility, it does not undermine the right to be expected to abide by reasonable controls.

      Immigration: A fool’s errand. Provide an amnesty and path to citizenship to those already in place. Crack down on those hiring illegal immigrants. Don’t punish the children of illegal immigrants by denying them an education.

      Prostitution: Support legalisation and STRICT regulation.

      Separation of Church and State: I support subjecting churches to the same taxes any other property or property owner would be subjected to. The Churches views should be considered, but only as they would with any other stakeholder. Religious viewpoints should never be of primary concern in policy making in a Western liberal democracy.

      Stem Cell Research: Of course it should be legal and encouraged. Good lord. The amount of possible breakthroughs far outweigh the "moral consequences" of a few frozen slabs of goo. Sorry.

      Smoking Bans: Support bans in public spaces and in enclosed private businesses without proper ventilation systems.

      Affirmative Action: I’m honestly ambivalent

      Miscellaneous:
      •   I oppose the death penalty in ALL cases
      •   Mandatory minimum sentences are idiotic.

      Economic Issues.

      Taxes: I oppose flat-taxes fervently. Income taxes should encourage work and achievement, while at time same time reflecting the ability to pay and real-time effects of taxes on high-income individuals. I oppose personal income tax rates of above 50% on anyone. Support a crackdown on personal and corporate loopholes. Support a graduated set in estate taxes from $3m in value and up.

      Education: Voucher systems would be a white-flag from public education. Education is probably the most important investment we make as a society. Teachers deserve pay on par with the service they deliver. No subsidies for private schools or Universities… you want to send your child to a private school… pay for it all yourself. Direct that funding to boost public education.

      Environment: I support Cap and Trade as well as other programs to create carbon offsets. I support strong environmental regulation as well as the creation of additional national parks. 

      Social Security: Social Security should remain out of the stock market’s reach. Incomes of over $250,000 per year should receive a reduced level of support, up until $1,000,000 when it cuts out. Increase the age of applicants.

      Unions: Unions are a key in building the middle-class and the workplace benefits we all enjoy today. They must be monitored to avoid corruption, which only undermines the Union movement in the eyes of many people. 

      Health Care: A ‘single-payer’ system – with a private system for elective and non-essential medical services. Government subsidies of prescriptions – no prescription should cost more than $50.

      Energy: I support nuclear energy, providing the infrastructure is sound. But longer-term support significant investment in renewables, with 50% of power coming from renewables by 2040. Support a 5year moratorium on drilling.

      Miscellaneous:
      •   I support bring rail transit up to European standards, with an increased focus on bringing rail to more parts of the country than just heavily populated areas.
      •   I support a 20% interest rate cap on credit cards.
      •   I support raising the full-time minimum wage to move towards a functional living wage.
      •   I support banning payday loans, and other predatory loan practices.
      •   I support equal pay laws, further protection of maternity leave, and an expansion of vacation days per year for all workers.
      •   I support banning drug advertising.

      Foreign Issues.

      Military Spending: Close overseas bases, cut defence spending by 25% immediately, with the aim of a 45% cut within a decade.

      Iraq: Complete withdrawal, limited foreign aid.

      Afghanistan: Withdrawal over the next year, with close monitoring and support.

      Libya: Support for the NTC to establish stability.

      Diplomacy/Sanctions: Sanctions CAN be effective, but rarely have the desired effect. Diplomacy should be default setting for international relations, however contentious.

      Miscellaneous:
      •   My general approach to dealing with terrorism is pretty much what Obama has been doing; targeted military strikes, intelligence gathering, and a law enforcement focus.
      •   I very strongly believe in a two-state solution in Israel, but Israel needs to stop thinking they can do everything they want with no consequences.
      •   I support getting rid of the trade embargo on Cuba.
      •   Private military contractors should be controlled and regulated.

      Electoral Issues/Government.

      Voting Regulations: I support automatic voter registration, and oppose photo-ID laws, as they are mostly used as political tools to disadvantage young people, poor people, and minorities. I also support making election day a federal holiday, to increase turnout as much as possible.

      Elections: I support compulsory voting – it’s a civic responsibility.

      The Senate: The filibuster is a joke – if you have 51 votes, you should be able to pass something.

      Referenda: Again ambivalent 

      Electoral College: It’s an anachronism.

      Miscellaneous:
      •   I oppose electing judges. They should be appointed on merit.
      •   I oppose allocating electoral votes by congressional district, it's insanely undemocratic and by far disproportionately benefits rural areas.
      •   I support independent redistricting boards for all states. No gerrymandering!
      •   2 year House terms are an utter joke!
      •   I support any efforts to make all election campaigns entirely publicly financed.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Marokai Backbeat on October 20, 2011, 10:23:14 PM
      You're a dirty Socialist, Polnut. :P


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Fmr President & Senator Polnut on October 20, 2011, 10:32:24 PM

      Curses! Sprung!!


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RI on October 21, 2011, 12:11:59 AM
      I'm revamping the positions I posted in January, but I used a lot of the same wording as I rather liked it. :) Also, I co-opted a view of the stylistic choices Marokai made. Finally, I obviously don't expect anyone to agree completely with my platform. Chances are, you'll like half of it but not the other. :P

      Overall Philosophy: Though there are a number of things I could be labeled as, I like to describe myself as an “amoristic communitarian”. This ideology primarily combines aspects of Christian democracy and Catholic social teaching with a secular underpinning focused on the morality and primacy of love for the purpose of pursuing happiness, self-fulfillment, and spiritual growth. I believe that love, in both the broadest and in the most specific senses, is the quality that we as individuals and we as a society must embody, and I believe it to be the core moral value. I reject the core conceit of libertarianism—that people are self-sufficient—and believe that, as well as the individual, communities and society must also be equally looked after, for no action occurs in isolation, and social interaction serves as both the catalyst and conduit for achieving self-fulfillment and presents the stage for love to blossom.

      Overarching Themes: I am pro-life in all cases possible; I believe that all human lives everywhere are inherently valuable, precious, and sacred. I believe in the promotion and protection of love, especially in its truest form of marriage, but also in the proliferation of agapic love, charity, and social justice through all the tools at the disposal of humanity, including but not limited to government. I support technocratic government centered on the accumulated knowledge of experts in each field in the pursuit of policies that can be objectively demonstrated to best serve the goals outlined above.

      Social Issues:

      Abortion: As stated above, I am pro-life to the extent possible. I strongly oppose abortion, except in the case of a direct and immediate threat to the life of the mother to which there is no other remedy. I believe that the life of a person starts at conception, and that such can be scientifically demonstrated. Additionally, the government should take a more proactive role in supporting adoption services and universal maternity leave to reduce the demand for abortion as well.

      Affirmative Action: Generally oppose, though there are some exceptions when talking about income-based affirmative action. I oppose race or gender based affirmative action as unjust and discriminatory in most situations.

      Death Penalty: I strongly oppose in virtually all circumstances. I believe that the death penalty is rooted in the concept of vengeance and the absolute denial of forgiveness, which has no place in a loving society. I generally oppose killing in anything short of immediate and direct self-defense or defense of another. I am also against mandatory minimum sentencing.

      Drugs and Alcohol: I believe that we should treat drug usage as a disease and seek to rehabilitate users rather than imprison them; I do not support the legalization of any hard drug, but I do support their decriminalization for the purpose of rehabilitation. However, usage should be actively discouraged as it is detrimental to the individual and society. I support restricting smoking, drinking, and other legal drug usage from public spaces to better protect others from the external consequences of these actions.

      Euthanasia: Oppose, as it is unfair and immoral to ask a doctor to kill another person, the very antithesis of their profession. I do believe in extremely limited circumstances that provisions could be made; however, everything possible should be done to limit suffering, and in the vast majority of cases this is fully possible.

      Gun Rights: I believe that any type of gun can be responsibly handled if it is in the hands of the right person. As such, I believe that we should control who can purchase guns, but I do not favor limits on which guns they can purchase. This isn’t an issue that I have deep feelings about, though.

      Immigration: I do not believe in the concept of an illegal person. I believe we should actively seek to welcome all individuals who seek to join our society, both legally and socially. I do believe that conditions should be met, such as back tax payment and proficiency in English for illegal immigrants to earn citizenship, if at all possible. In general, the immigration process should be more much streamlined than it is. Children of illegal immigrants born in the US should under no circumstances be denied the rights of American citizens.

      Marriage: I believe that marriage and the family are vital and foundational aspects of society and community, and that our culture continues to denigrate it. I believe that marriage is the highest form of romantic love, and should be revered, encouraged, and protected, but it is also something that must be earned in order to be appreciated. To this end, I support covenant marriage laws with, among other things, mandatory marriage counseling and safeguards against divorce; additionally, no fault divorce should be banned. The current movement for temporary marriage is an assault on the very concept of commitment and should under no circumstances be allowed. I have no problem inherently with gays marrying; I believe that this issue is a red herring when it comes to the actual threats to marriage.

      Prostitution: Similar to drug users, we should treat prostitutes as victims of circumstance rather than as criminals. We should actively help impoverished women who view prostitution as their only option through, but prostitution should not be condoned nor encouraged nor legalized. Those who profit from this exploitation should face criminal repercussions, however.

      Separation of Church and State: While religion should not be actively enforced by the government, the State should not rebuke the ability of many churches to help fighting poverty, homelessness, disease, and other societal issues. Anyone who has the ability to help others should be embraced, not denied; that is, I actively support faith-based initiatives when practical.

      Stem Cell Research: Oppose new embryonic stem cell research, as I believe such destroys life in the hope of saving other life, but actively support adult and umbilical cord research along with induced pluripotency procedures.

      Economic Issues:

      Education: I support the public education system, but believe that there are major improvements necessary to bring it up to what it should be. One main improvement is that education funding should serve to counteract the cycle of poverty by centralizing funding and by basing it on need and improvement rather than on pure ability. Standardized testing and No Child Left Behind should be done away with. I would look into the creation of nationalized tuition for post-secondary education, but at the very least would like to see more Pell Grants and public scholarships available, especially for high achieving students.

      Energy: For the sake of ourselves, our future generations, and our planet, I believe we must immediately take steps to move to an alternative energy-based infrastructure that runs on a regionally-focused mix of wind, solar, hydroelectric, tidal, geothermal, convection, nuclear, hydrogen fuel cell, and other sustainable technologies. Vehicles should run on hydrogen or electricity. I do not support further exploratory oil drilling or ‘fracking’.

      Environment: I believe that, in order to protect and cultivate life, we must protect and sustain our environment to best of our ability. Humanity must serve as faithful stewards of the Earth, as we are the only ones capable of doing so. I do not support cap-and-trade or a carbon tax, however, as I am not convinced that these are the proper methods to handling global warming, if it exists. If it does, a conversion to alternative energy as stated above would be more than sufficient.

      Fiscal Policy: I generally believe in New Keynesian economic theory and the modern macroeconomic consensus, but I am open to hearing other viewpoints and testing these methods through an objective process. I generally support countercyclical fiscal and monetary policies that actively rectify market failures and excesses. I believe that these policies should be conducted independent of political processes; that is, I support either the creation of a Federal Reserve-type institution for overseeing economic stability and growth run by a council of economists, or the folding of these duties into a revamped Federal Reserve.

      Health Care: I support a form of single-payer universal health care as my ideal health care system that provides for basic care, with additional care available for purchase on the open market. I believe that market-based basic health care an intrinsically flawed and immoral system that does not treats people in a loving manner, but rather profits on suffering. At the very least, I support a public option.

      Social Justice: One of the most loving actions is to help another in need without regard for the result on yourself. Society too should embrace this concept. We must extend ourselves to help those in need through any means possible. Although government programs are the most effective in this area, the work of charities and religious organizations should be encouraged and embraced.

      Social Security: I do not support the privatization of social security. We must protect this social program for the sake of those who need it the most. In order to safeguard the promise that is social security, we must raise or lift entirely the cap of social security contributions on high-income earners. We should also means test benefits, and raise the retirement age no more than 10 years over the next 20.

      Taxation: I believe in a system of taxation that places a fair burden on all members of society. The only system of taxation that I know of that I believe is capable of doing so is a progressive income taxation system. I favor other forms in addition to this system, such as progressive corporate taxes, sin taxes, a limited sales tax on high price items, and some others.

      Miscellaneous:
      • I support reimplementing Glass-Steagal and regulation of derivatives trading.
      • I support the banning of payday loans and other predatory lending.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RI on October 21, 2011, 12:13:54 AM
      Foreign Issues

      General Philosophy: We must embrace humility and love on the world stage.

      United Nations: The United Nations is a valuable element of global diplomacy that should be embraced and strengthened with the ultimate, far-off goal of a federal world government that recognizes the unity of life and the human race.

      War: War, which has been and continues to be the greatest threat to human life and the world itself, should be avoided at almost all costs. The only just war is one in immediate and direct self-defense, or the immediate and direct self-defense of another nation or people. Diplomacy should always be our main weapon. When war is necessary, it is important to continue to respect human rights and dignity for enemy prisoners and combatants to the extent possible.

      Weapons of Mass Destruction: To the extent possible, all chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear weapons should be eradicated; however, I acknowledge the necessity of keeping a limited nuclear arsenal for deterrence purposes only. The use of such weapons is never moral.

      Miscellaneous:
      • I support a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine. Both nations have acted incredibly poorly, and neither deserves our active support.
      • I support heavier regulations on military-defense contractors.

      Electoral/Government Issues

      Electoral College: I support the abolition of the Electoral College and the institution of a national popular vote system that uses instant-runoff voting.

      Government Construction: I believe that more power should be in the hand of the more educated when it comes to the construction of policy rather than in the uneducated masses.  However, when elections are necessary, they should be as widely accessible as possible.

      Redistricting: Redistricting should be done entirely by independent commission, and should be done nationally. Such commissions should be made up of uninterested individuals who have never been elected who should be directed to focus on community preservation and electoral competitiveness.

      Referenda: I do not support direct democracy, and I believe referenda to be a tool to give uneducated and easily swayed populations the ability to unilaterally decide policy without any regard to expertise and study. As a resident of Washington, I have experienced firsthand the inanity of continuous referenda.

      The Senate: The standard for invoking cloture should be dropped from 60 senators to 55.

      Term Limits: I strongly oppose all term limits, especially harm limits that potentially remove knowledgeable individuals from positions of policymaking.

      Voting: I support instant-runoff voting for all single elected positions. A mixed-member proportional system would be ideal. I support compulsory voting and automatic voter registration for American citizens. I believe that general elections should be federal holidays in order to allow everyone who desires to the opportunity to vote.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Yelnoc on December 12, 2011, 06:41:19 PM
      Nihilist?  I dunno.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Hash on December 13, 2011, 07:50:02 PM
      Overall Philosophy: I have rarely taken the time to try and define my beliefs under the name of broad, overarching ideology. From a simple, straight-forward point of view I am a centrist or centre-left progressive liberal. I am an individualist when it comes to social 'moral' issue. On economic issues, I believe in the free-market and the free exchange of goods and ideas, but I shy away from any dogmatic ideology on either end of the spectrum. In this sense, I am centrist who believes in a free, fair and equal economy if such a thing can exist in reality. I am not an individualist if economic individualism is interpreted to mean a certain type of greediness which does not realize the reality and implications of living in society.

      From a philosophical point of view, I have a Marxist view of world history and, to a certain extent, politics; but I do not share Marx's political philosophy. I am not afraid to call myself an elitist as is so often derided. Intelligence in all senses of the term is something necessary in politicians, balanced with intelligence on issues and the means to the ends. I have only scorn for politicians who seek to appeal to the masses by idiotic vote-winning scams, faux populism and dumb-it-down talk which ignores the realities. Society has become driven far too much by greed, greedy individualism, sound-bites, artificial constructions and stupidity which stifles sound, intelligent independent thought and philosophy in favour of whatever is quicker and whatever is simplest. To that extent, I am elitist and allergic to Western society as it is currently structured.

      In a certain philosophical sense, I have deep affection and common ideas with European Radicalism.

      Economic Issues:

      Education: Education is fundamental to the construction and maintenance of a strong liberal democratic society. I support public education and public schools should receive more funding when and where necessary. I am wary of standardized testing and No Child Left Behind, but there should be some vague standards set about what one is expected to know, and there should be no shame in forcing a child to re-do a school year. I oppose merit-based teacher pay.
      Debt and tuition fees are major concerns for higher education. I support reducing tuition fees as a short-term measure, but in a long-term perspective tuition would ideally be progressive and based on family income and ability to pay. The availability of scholarships and grants should be increased, especially for lower-income students. Student loans only encourage more debt, and any reform based solely on increasing student loan availability is ridiculous and an affront to students.

      Energy: For our sake, for our children's sake and for our planet's sake, it is primordial that we immediately take steps to move to away from resource-based energy towards alternative energies including a mix, based on local circumstances, of wind, solar, hydroelectric, tidal, geothermal and other sustainable technologies. I am wary of natural energy but recognize it superiority to coal or dirty oil-based energy. There should be major public investment into research and promotion of electric or hybrid cars, and there should be a tax credit or discredit based on the type of vehicle purchased.
      Subsidies to oil companies are disgusting and a waste of public monies that needs to be spent on alternative energies. The Alberta tar sands are destroying the natural environment for materialistic greedy short-term goals which will be of no use to our children and grandchildren.

      Environment: We are treating the earth as if it cannot be destroyed and we are exploiting it like if it were our slave. Our natural environment must be protected and preserved for humanity's sake. Climate change exists, and merely delaying decisions to later will not help and neither will ridiculous short-term 'measures'. I support strict targets on carbon dioxide and fossil fuel emissions. I support cap-and-trade or a carbon tax.

      Fiscal Policy: I am a Keynesian in the sense that I believe that a state's role in the economy should be to regulate and tame the free market, promote competition and break monopolies, and work to ensure that the free market works in concord with democratic values such as equality, fairness, representativeness and equity. Government spending and intervention is necessary and desirable to a certain extent to work towards those broad aims. Deficits are not sustainable in the long-term, and deficits should be reduced and government budgets should be balanced. At the same time, deficits in this day and age are almost inevitable and I am opposed to dogmatic crusades for the "golden rule".
      I have no problems with the principle of austerity as defined by harsh short-term measures which ensure long-term and future economic prosperity. In Hashpipe's utopia, social programs should not instinctively be the first target of austerity, rather government spending should all be laid out on the table and balanced with the goal of efficiency, quality and value for money. My main qualms are with austerity in practice, which turns out to be making the poor pay for being poor by dogmatically attacking social programs as useless and wasteful spending. In Hashpipe's utopia, austerity should be progressive whereby it is an effort shared proportionally by all in society.

      Health Care: From a foreign perspective, I have a natural affection for single-payer universal health care. Single-payer universal health care allows all to receive medical treatment without discrimination based on their ability to pay and thus one's income. It is morally wrong, in my mind, that somebody should have to suffer because he cannot bear the costs of seeking treatment. I oppose two-tiered health care and am wary of private health care, but if the case can be made to me, I am open to a dose of private participation.

      Social Justice: We live in a society, and we live in a world which is unequal. To a reasonable extent, we have a duty and the state has a duty to help those in need and those who cannot reasonably help themselves. Governments have the largest role to play in offering social justice, but the role of charities and NGOs should not be discounted.

      Social Security: I am pretty uneducated on this issue, but social security is crucial and privatization of social security is a horrible idea propounded by irresponsible ideologues. It must be protected for those in need. Raising the retirement age is, to a certain extent, a necessity of the times we find ourselves in. Clinging to concepts of pensions and retirement age established in the 'fat cow' years of the 60s is quixotic and irresponsible.
      I support welfare reform to the extent that it fights those 'welfare leeches' who as greedy individuals seek to draw out personal benefits for being lazy at the expense of others. Welfare reform should be carried out carefully and not as a dogmatic attack on broad abstract concepts and groups of people. Those who receive welfare should be reasonably expected to make efforts to find employment which is open to them and which respects their dignity.

      Taxation: Taxation is a necessary part of civilization and it is a desirable thing if its aim is to provide and ensure a "public good". Those who complain like maniacs about taxes are, for the most part, greedy individualists who want to pay nothing but still get all the benefits in return. Their irresponsible, crazy and demagogic ideas are a cancer on modern political life. I support the progressive income tax as the fairest system placing a fair burden on all members of society. I support corporate taxes and sale taxes.

      Trade: Protectionism, in my mind, is a tried and failed idea. I support the free exchange of goods and ideas, therefore I support free trade. But free trade to a controlled and reasonable extent which does not destroy national identities and culture, local communities and their economies and especially the environment and labour standards.

      Miscellaneous:
      • I support a cap on interest rates for credit cards at something like 20%.
      • North American rail transit should be a major priority and be brought up to European standards.
      • I support an equal pay for equal work law.
      • A public broadcaster, funded by the state and providing balanced news coverage is an asset and a safeguard against the rise of biased media empires which stifle the free information of the public.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Hash on December 13, 2011, 08:13:34 PM
      Social Issues:

      Abortion: I am passionately pro-choice and am a staunch defender of a women's right to choose. While abortion should perhaps not be legal in the final trimesters and while I fully support public efforts to spread the message that abortion isn't a random or innocent choice; it really isn't my business and thus shouldn't be the business of the state to decide what the hell a women capable of rational choice does with her body. In my utopia, it would be a non-issue.

      Affirmative Action: I generally oppose it, except perhaps in certain areas of the public sector where representativeness of society is a necessary aim. In other cases, I oppose it.

      Death Penalty: I support the death penalty only for the most heinous crimes where rehabilitation is clearly a pipe dream and a waste of public monies more than anything else.

      Drugs and Alcohol: While usage of drug and alcohol should be discouraged, it should be an individual's own decision whether or not to use drugs and alcohol and he should live with the consequences of his action. Therefore, I support the decriminalization and taxation of soft drugs, just like alcohol. Individual use of drugs should be seen as a disease rather than a serious criminal offence. I support restricting smoking and legal drug usage in public spaces to protect individuals who do not use these drugs from the (poor) decisions of those who do.

      Euthanasia: If a person is of sound and rational mind, that person should be allowed to ask for whatever kind of treatment they want, or lack of treatment if that is their choice. Euthanasia should be a legal option for those patients.

      Gun Rights: I support mandatory background checks and banning assault rifles. The Canadian gun registry was perhaps mishandled, but it was spun out of proportion and served a real purpose to prevent crime and help law enforcement. I'm sorry to see it go.

      Immigration: I support immigration, and I believe that the right immigration can be great and has proven to be great for our societies. Illegal immigration is wrong and should not be encouraged, but it is morally outrageous that human beings - illegal or not - who have settled in a country, made their life there and have proven otherwise good citizens should be viciously expelled. I support a selective path to regularization of illegal migrants based on employment, language capacities, integration into society and family reasons. Those with no criminal record, decent knowledge of the official language(s) and capacity to find employment should be welcomed as legal immigrants. I support deporting those non-naturalized immigrants who have committed serious crimes or proven to be behaving in a way contrary to what is expected of normal citizens. I am shaky on the issue of removing one's acquired nationality even on the basis of a serious criminal offence.

      Marriage: Marriage is an outdated and fairly ridiculous concept. You don't need to be married to love another. From this view, I really don't care if two people who love each other want to get married and it is authoritarian and intrusive if a government or politician think that they have a right to meddle in somebody's private romantic life. I thus support same-sex marriage and I fail to see what is so morally outrageous about two loving individuals marrying each other. One's life is not my business, and it certainly isn't the state's.

      Prostitution: Prostitution should not be encouraged or treated as a banality, but it is wrong to treat prostitutes as criminals rather than as victims of circumstance or poverty. While legalizing prostitution could lead it to be seen as a banal thing, I believe that legalization of prostitution would allow us to treat prostitutes as victims rather than criminals and would allow for a more efficient regulation.

      Separation of Church and State: I am deeply attached to the complete separation of Church and State. Religion is a private choice, and should never interfere with the politics of a secular state. Religious institutions are actors like all others, and they have their right to opinion on political issues. But a political decision should never be guided primarily by a particular religious doctrine, especially that of a single faith, in this day and age in liberal societies. The 1905 Law of Separation was a milestone in the story of human progress and freedom, and it is an inspiration for my political beliefs.

      Stem Cell Research: The scientific benefits of stem cell research far outweigh any 'moral implications' that it may raise. I don't particularly care or know a lot about the issue, but I fully support it.

      Foreign Issues

      Military Intervention: War is a destructive threat to human life and all societies, and should never be an end and only rarely be a mean to an end. A 'just war' are those fought in self-defense or aiding in the direct self-defense of an oppressed people in revolt or threatened by mass murder and genocide. Intervention to prevent genocides and for other humanitarian purposes is fair, but unilateral intervention with the aim of regime-change is wrong. In cases of war, at home and abroad, it is important to protect civil liberties against abuse and respect the human rights and dignity of enemy prisoners and combatants.

      United Nations: The United Nations is a valuable actor in global diplomacy which should be embraced rather than mocked, derided or opposed. The UN should be strengthened and reform. Certain institutions like the Security Council should be revamped entirely.

      Weapons of Mass Destruction: To the extent possible, all chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear weapons should be eradicated; however, I acknowledge the necessity of keeping a limited nuclear arsenal for deterrence purposes only. The use of such weapons is never moral.

      Miscellaneous:
      • Terrorism should be dealt with by targeted military strikes, intelligence gathering, and a law enforcement focus. The root causes of terrorism must be addressed seriously and talk of their importance should not attacked as 'unpatriotic'
      • I support a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine. Both states have made terrible decisions and have done far more harm on their own than good. Israel needs to stop behaving erratically and with impunity. In an ideal world, Hamas should stop being retarded hotheads and terrorists.
      • I support regulating military-defense contractors and limiting the use of private military contractors.

      Electoral/Government Issues

      Electoral College: It should be abolished and replaced by a national popular vote system using IRV.

      Electoral Reform: FPTP is an aberration which is unfair and undemocratic. It should be scrapped everywhere where it is currently used and replaced, ideally, with an MMP system using IRV for single-member constituencies and party-list PR with the possibility of open lists used for the proportional seats. The proportional component should be on a separate ballot and account for no less than 50% of all seats. I support STV where smaller regional multi-member districts are used.

      Redistricting: Gerrymandering is disgusting. It should be up to an independent commission which draws districts on the basis of communities and regions. The commission should be made up of individuals with no political or personal interest in the results of the process.

      Referenda: The use of referendum in the United States is far too common. Certain issues concerning human rights and fundamental democratic values should not be in the hands of the people. But I support the use of referendum when constitutions are amended and in certain other cases. Being unaccustomed to its use in practice, I favour to an extent the use of recall, but with strict rules and guidelines.

      Miscellaneous:
      • Judges should not be elected.
      • Allocating votes by CD in the United States is wrong and would only reward gerrymandering.
      • I support the rights of all people to self-determination and believe that devolution of powers is to be encouraged. Centralization in our day and age in Western liberal democracies is archaic and wrong.
      • Local government in France is a ridiculous mess and needs to be completely re-invented. This is an issue I feel strongly about.
      • The set process for calling a by-election should be set in statute and not be in the hands of any elected political actor.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on December 15, 2011, 04:45:09 PM
      Overall philosophy: I consider myself, at heart, to be a socialist. When I say 'socialist', I refer to the belief in a narrowing of the class boundaries, and a strong state in the economy to aid the disadvantaged and help lessen the destructive impact of the boom/bust cycle. This also means the state management and nationalization of the commanding heights of the economy. The closest any party has ever come to my views is probably the 1983 Labour manifesto (yes, THAT one)

      I'm also heavily influenced by liberal and democratic theories - I generally believe in the harm principle on social issues, and that it's no business of the state to regulate the personal choices of its citzens.

      Social Issues.

      Abortion: Very very strongly pro-choice up until 24 weeks. There should be no further decreases in the limit and all abortions should be performed on the NHS, by request. A collection of cells in your womb is not a human being. Sorry.

      Drugs/Legalization: The Misuse of Drugs Act is one of the most idiotic, misguided and stupid pieces of legislation ever passed in this country, and that's saying something. ALL drugs should immediately be completely legalized and taxed. Production of these drugs should be put under the same regulation as current food/drug laws to ensure the product is pure and as safe as is possible.

      Euthanasia: Legalize. No-one should be put through pain simply because they can't take their own life.

      Gay Rights: Privatize marriage altogether and let people make their own contracts (so this would also legalize polygamy etc.) and remove the ban on blood donations - more heterosexuals carry the HIV virus than homosexuals now, so it's based on a myth anyway. Complete equality is the only way to go.

      Hunting: It was quite right to ban fox hunting as it's a senseless, cruel and obsolete institution that should have been done away with long ago. I'd seriously consider extending the ban to all hunting.

      Immigration: Keep immigration controls much as they are, I suppose. If I were an American, I'd be fully in support of open borders but the fact is that Britain is becoming heavily overcrowded and it's neccesary, as much as I wish it wasn't.

      Prostitution: Once again, legalize, tax and regulate. No-one benefits from the current system except the pimps, and police time should be spent fighting real crime instead of victimless ones. Nationalize the brothels, much as Turkey does.

      Separation of Church and State: Disestablish the Church of England, completely sever every link between the church and the state. Should have been done years ago.

      Stem Cell Research: Goes back to my abortion argument. Legalize please.

      Smoking Bans: I support the ban on indoor smoking though I'm very strongly against it being extended to cover outdoor areas, as I've heard is now being proposed. Keep as is basically. Marijuana smoking should be legal in public.

      Affirmative Action: I oppose affirmative action on the basis of race, and instead prefer a system of affirmative action on the basis of class.

      Miscellaneous:
      • I'd strongly support the establishment of an Equal Pay Agency to make sure equal pay is more correlated with equal work.
      • All anti-terror legislation should be repealed.
      • I support copyleft and the decriminalization of peer-to-peer filesharing.
      • I support abolishing the age of consent and replacing it with a tier system.
      • I'd support the death penalty for extremely serious crimes such as terrorism. Aside from that, no.
      • Sex education for all.

      Economic Issues.

      Taxes: Increase the top rate to 95% but only use that rate for those earning absolutely ludicrous amounts of money. Otherwise, the top rate should be 90% - a much more progressive system aimed at wealth re-distribution in other words. I'd reduce VAT gradually to maybe 5% because I dislike regressive taxes. I'd also support the introduction of a Tobin tax and LVT. I'm neutral on the idea of carbon taxes. Hike corporation tax.

      Education: Abolish tuition fees, bring back the EMA and nationalize all private schools. Abolish faith and single-sex schools. Everyone should be equal in terms of education. I'd also add finance to the National Curriculum.

      Environment: Nationalize airways, rail, trams and buses and begin developing a unified transport policy to increase capacity and reduce our reliance on cars. Re-open railways closed by the Beeching Axe. I'd also nationalize what's left of the automotive industry and begin massive expansion - Britain needs a strong motor industry, and the opportunity is there for us to develop a high tech, green car industry from scratch.

      Industry: Nationalize steel, automotives and other major manufacturing industries and begin an expansion of these industries, the aim being to provide as much of our own industrial resources as we can. Create vast public works programs to fix Britain's infrastructure and create full employment. Nationalize coal and re-open the mines closed by the Tories.

      Trade: Absolute free trade has failed Britain, and should be abandoned. A program of industrial tariffs should be levied to protect infant industries and to bring about fair trade against countries without sufficient environmental/worker standards.

      Welfare: Undo all Tory welfare cuts. Raise the minimum wage to a 'living wage'

      Unions: The unions are a vital component of British society and all anti-union legislation passed since 1979 should be repealed. Unions should play a key role and provide a check to both State and Business where needed, as well as seeking to defend workers rights.

      Health Care: Nationalize all private healthcare and all private services within the NHS and end 'competition' within it. Abolish prescription charges. Our health system should based on that of Cuba/Canada's.

      Energy: Nationalize electricity, oil, gas and water and immediately drop prices that have been enforced by the monopoly companies. Immediately begin the construction of large wind and wave farms in the North Sea and heavily subsidize the installation of solar panels on every home in Britain. Nuclear power should eventually be phased out, but only when there is a viable alternative.

      Miscellaneous:
      • I support the creation of a state owned banking sector and the nationalization of insurance. Derivatives should be heavily regulated, and all legislation repealed in the Big Bang should be restored.
      • A maximum interest rate of 48% should be re-introduced.
      • School meals should be free once again, and provided by local government.
      • I support banning payday loans, and other predatory loan practices.
      • A 30 hour day week should be introduced, as should equality between maternity and paternity leave. The eventual aim should be a 20 hour workweek.
      • I support banning drug advertising.
      • I strongly support a huge trust busting campaign to break up all the big monopolies and create a dynamic and competitive market.
      • I support strong French-style regulations on supermarket construction to protect small business and encourage a diverse economy


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on December 15, 2011, 05:20:54 PM
      Foreign Issues.

      Military Spending: Reduce the British Army to 100,000 and focus on making it a high tech efficient defence force. Keep the RN and RAF at a large size as they're the most vital component of Britain's military.

      Iran: Stay the hell out of their affairs? It really is none our business.

      Afghanistan: Complete withdrawal, limited foreign aid.

      European Union: The EU is a neoliberal institution which encourages social dumping, wasteful spending and bureaucracy. We should leave and sign up to a free trade agreement along much the same lines as Norway/Switzerland have. Aim to sign treaties that will create a unified Europe, outside of EU auspices.

      Other Organizations: Quit NATO and close all foreign military bases in Britain. Quit the WTO, the IMF and the World Bank. Encourage UN reform and play a larger role there.

      Diplomacy/Sanctions: No entangling alliances or wars. We should only fight in self-defence. We should seek close relations with Europe, Russia and other emerging markets.

      Miscellaneous:
      • Keep foreign aid at 0.7% of the British budget
      • I support a three state solution for Israel/Palestine. The best solution would be for Jordan to annex West Bank and Egypt to annex Gaza, as this would be the best way to ensure a good standard of living and safety for the Palestinian people.
      • Northern Ireland and the dependencies are British and should remain so as long as they support British control.
      • I very very very strongly oppose any sort of doctrine of "pre-emptive war."
      • Strongly oppose Scottish and Welsh independence.
      • Unilateral nuclear disarmament. Yes please.

      Electoral Issues/Government.

      Voting Regulations: Lower the voting age to 16.

      Elections: Reduce the House of Commons to 300 members, to be elected proportionally using party lists. Fix parliamentary elections so they take place every 3 years.

      The House of Lords: Abolish!

      Constitution: Create a written constitution and bill of rights along American lines. It should also include many of the provisions that were included in the 'Second Bill of Rights'.

      Referenda: Referenda should be held for any major change to the constitution or signing of a treaty that gives powers to international bodies.

      Monarchy: Abolish the monarchy and replace it with a 'Warden' to be elected every 7 years in a 2 round presidential election system. The Warden's powers would resemble those of the American President.

      Federalism: Turn Britain into a federal system with provinces of about 1 million people each. Provincial elections would replace much of local government and would take place annually.

      Miscellaneous:
      • Strengthen the Supreme Court.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: greenforest32 on December 15, 2011, 05:54:44 PM
      I like a lot of what I read from this Winston guy but one thing I've always struggled with is unitary (states) vs federal states. Specifically, the idea of having increased local/regional government power through increased federalism and having a unicameral national legislature by abolishing the upper legislative chamber. I have no problem with unicameral unitary states (I'd love to see all the U.S. state legislatures become unicameral).

      I really hate the U.S. Senate's absurd rules and while the idea of balancing out the legislative process between small and big federal states by having one chamber based on population and one based on equal representation of the states sounds good in theory (the populous states cannot override the least populous states and the least populous states cannot override the populous states thus leading to compromise), it does seem to benefit the smaller states much more substantially.

      I've heard of other proposals to diminish the power of the upper chamber by weighting the vote of each member according to the population of their region/state/etc or giving the lower chamber the ability to override the upper chamber (think this is what they do in Japan) but that just makes the upper chamber seem redundant.

      Does it make sense to have a unicameral legislature in a regionally diverse country like the U.S. with its federal system?

      Does it make sense and is it fair to have a legislative chamber representing land or sub-national governments instead of people?

      Bleah :P


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on December 15, 2011, 06:00:09 PM
      I like a lot of what I read from this Winston guy but one thing I've always struggled with is unitary (states) vs federal states. Specifically, the idea of having increased local/regional government power through increased federalism and having a unicameral national legislature by abolishing the upper legislative chamber. I have no problem with unicameral unitary states (I'd love to see all the U.S. state legislatures become unicameral).

      I really hate the U.S. Senate's absurd rules and while the idea of balancing out the legislative process between small and big federal states by having one chamber based on population and one based on equal representation of the states sounds good in theory (the populous states cannot override the least populous states and the least populous states cannot override the populous states thus leading to compromise), it does seem to benefit the smaller states much more substantially.

      I've heard of other proposals to diminish the power of the upper chamber by weighting the vote of each member according to the population of their region/state/etc or giving the lower chamber the ability to override the upper chamber (think this is what they do in Japan) but that just makes the upper chamber seem redundant.

      Does it make sense to have a unicameral legislature in a regionally diverse country like the U.S. with its federal system?

      Does it make sense and is it fair to have a legislative chamber representing land or sub-national governments instead of people?

      Bleah :P

      Admittedly, I wrote my platform mainly for the UK :P In the US, I'd probably have different views on the constitution etc. I also sacked some issues such as gun rights that aren't issues in Britain and replaced them with hunting, which is :P


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: greenforest32 on December 15, 2011, 06:04:35 PM
      Admittedly, I wrote my platform mainly for the UK :P In the US, I'd probably have different views on the constitution etc. I also sacked some issues such as gun rights that aren't issues in Britain and replaced them with hunting, which is :P

      I understand, I wasn't asking anyone specifically, just writing down a thought I had.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on December 15, 2011, 06:12:37 PM
      Admittedly, I wrote my platform mainly for the UK :P In the US, I'd probably have different views on the constitution etc. I also sacked some issues such as gun rights that aren't issues in Britain and replaced them with hunting, which is :P

      I understand, I wasn't asking anyone specifically, just writing down a thought I had.

      Ahhh fair enough :)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Hash on December 15, 2011, 06:18:14 PM
      Electing any legislature to a one-year term is an awful idea. Nothing would get done and congresscritters would think about reelection even more than they currently do.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on December 15, 2011, 06:23:50 PM
      Electing any legislature to a one-year term is an awful idea. Nothing would get done and congresscritters would think about reelection even more than they currently do.

      I think it could potentially work at a local level, though not at national.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Hash on December 15, 2011, 07:11:10 PM
      Electing any legislature to a one-year term is an awful idea. Nothing would get done and congresscritters would think about reelection even more than they currently do.

      I think it could potentially work at a local level, though not at national.

      Why would local politicians care any less about their reelection prospects?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Хahar 🤔 on December 15, 2011, 07:25:41 PM
      I really hate the U.S. Senate's absurd rules and while the idea of balancing out the legislative process between small and big federal states by having one chamber based on population and one based on equal representation of the states sounds good in theory (the populous states cannot override the least populous states and the least populous states cannot override the populous states thus leading to compromise), it does seem to benefit the smaller states much more substantially.

      Why shouldn't populous states override less populous states?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: greenforest32 on December 15, 2011, 07:45:27 PM
      I really hate the U.S. Senate's absurd rules and while the idea of balancing out the legislative process between small and big federal states by having one chamber based on population and one based on equal representation of the states sounds good in theory (the populous states cannot override the least populous states and the least populous states cannot override the populous states thus leading to compromise), it does seem to benefit the smaller states much more substantially.

      Why shouldn't populous states override less populous states?

      It is exactly what I'm thinking about. Bicameralism undermines equal representation of the people.

      Either we're going to have an upper legislative chamber that represents the state governments equally regardless of their population or we're not. If not, the Senate should be abolished no?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: There Is A Song For You on December 21, 2011, 11:56:59 PM
      I'm new here and thought this would be as good a place to introduce myself as any.

      Overall Philosophy: Democratic-socialist, social-anarchist.

      Social:

      Abortion: Solidly believe in a women's right to choose, strongly oppose any attempt to infringe on this basic right.

      Gay Rights: Strongly oppose DADT, strongly support letting same-sex couples adopt, strongly support legalizing same-sex marriage, strongly oppose DOMA, believe same-sex marriage should be legalized at the federal level (having the validity of your marriage vary by state is ridiculous).

      Sex: Believe in legalizing and regulating prostitution, comprehensive sex education and proper information regarding safe sex, strongly oppose Sebelius's attempt to stop the sale of the morning after pill to those under 18, believe in legalizing incest as practiced among consensual adults.

      Death Penalty/Prison Reform/War on Drugs: Strongly oppose the Death Penalty and mandatory minimum sentences, support drastic overhaul focusing on rehabilitation, legalize Marijuana, end the war on drugs, drastically reduce sentences for possessing illicit substances of all variety, refocus on rehabilitation of junkies.

      Immigration Reform: Support full amnesty for all so-called illegal immigrants and passage of the DREAM Act. The rise of the standard of living in Mexico has lead to a natural tapering off of illegal immigration, the issue is primarily manipulated by white supremacists.

      Second Amendment: I support the right to carry small arms for self-defense, favor concealed-carry, however I also support the ban on assault weapons and favor criminalizing hunting (it's barbaric).

      Economic:

      Education: Trash No Child Left Behind, fire Arne Duncan, pro-project based learning, for legalizing home-schooling and removing government interference, completely overhaul school system, kill voucher programs, kill the standardized test.

      Health Care Reform: I favor a government run single payer system.

      Trade: I tend to favor protectionist trade policy, I oppose NAFTA the TTP and all similar deals and  believe we should follow the example of the high tariffs that led Japan to it's post-WWII economic boom.

      Tax: I believe we should raise the corporate tax rate by 10%, institute a financial transactions tax, create a new tax bracket for those making upward of $500,000 a year that is 10% higher than the current top tax rate, and make social security solvent by ending the social security payroll tax cap on those making over $250,000 a year and end the bush tax cuts.

      Labor Unions: I support the Employee Free Choice Act and "corporations are not people" constitutional amendment (although not necessarily in the language put forth by Mr. Sanders), also strongly oppose "Right to Work" laws.

      Minimum Wage: Replace with living wage.

      Energy Independence/Environmental: Support increases in funding for Wind and Solar, further increasing the fuel standards for new vehicles, eliminating taxpayer subsidies of fossil fuels, and implementing a steep "carbon tax", support increasing funding for national parks and expanding hiking trails within parks.

      Infrastructure/Transportation: Support building 5,000 km of 200+ km/h high-speed rail over the next 30 years.

      Government Regulation: Reinstate Glass-Steagal, repeal the Depository Institutions Deregulation and Monetary Control Act of 1980, repeal the Financial Services Modernization Act of 1999 (Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act).

      Foreign Policy:

      Support ending war in Afghanistan, closing all military bases world wide, bringing all troops home, slashing the Pentagon's budget in half, kill the unnecessary Dept. of Homeland Security, repeal the PATRIOT Act and make continued foreign aid to Israel dependent on return to 1967 borders.

      Election Reform:

      Term Limits: As has been demonstrated by California term limits lead to corrupt, lobbyist-written legislation and are inherently unconstitutional. Strongly Oppose.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The world will shine with light in our nightmare on December 24, 2011, 05:08:35 PM
      I'm new here and thought this would be as good a place to introduce myself as any.

      Overall Philosophy: Democratic-socialist, social-anarchist.

      Social:

      Abortion: Solidly believe in a women's right to choose, strongly oppose any attempt to infringe on this basic right.

      Gay Rights: Strongly oppose DADT, strongly support letting same-sex couples adopt, strongly support legalizing same-sex marriage, strongly oppose DOMA, believe same-sex marriage should be legalized at the federal level (having the validity of your marriage vary by state is ridiculous).

      Sex: Believe in legalizing and regulating prostitution, comprehensive sex education and proper information regarding safe sex, strongly oppose Sebelius's attempt to stop the sale of the morning after pill to those under 18, believe in legalizing incest as practiced among consensual adults.

      Death Penalty/Prison Reform/War on Drugs: Strongly oppose the Death Penalty and mandatory minimum sentences, support drastic overhaul focusing on rehabilitation, legalize Marijuana, end the war on drugs, drastically reduce sentences for possessing illicit substances of all variety, refocus on rehabilitation of junkies.

      Immigration Reform: Support full amnesty for all so-called illegal immigrants and passage of the DREAM Act. The rise of the standard of living in Mexico has lead to a natural tapering off of illegal immigration, the issue is primarily manipulated by white supremacists.

      Second Amendment: I support the right to carry small arms for self-defense, favor concealed-carry, however I also support the ban on assault weapons and favor criminalizing hunting (it's barbaric).

      Economic:

      Education: Trash No Child Left Behind, fire Arne Duncan, pro-project based learning, for legalizing home-schooling and removing government interference, completely overhaul school system, kill voucher programs, kill the standardized test.

      Health Care Reform: I favor a government run single payer system.

      Trade: I tend to favor protectionist trade policy, I oppose NAFTA the TTP and all similar deals and  believe we should follow the example of the high tariffs that led Japan to it's post-WWII economic boom.

      Tax: I believe we should raise the corporate tax rate by 10%, institute a financial transactions tax, create a new tax bracket for those making upward of $500,000 a year that is 10% higher than the current top tax rate, and make social security solvent by ending the social security payroll tax cap on those making over $250,000 a year and end the bush tax cuts.

      Labor Unions: I support the Employee Free Choice Act and "corporations are not people" constitutional amendment (although not necessarily in the language put forth by Mr. Sanders), also strongly oppose "Right to Work" laws.

      Minimum Wage: Replace with living wage.

      Energy Independence/Environmental: Support increases in funding for Wind and Solar, further increasing the fuel standards for new vehicles, eliminating taxpayer subsidies of fossil fuels, and implementing a steep "carbon tax", support increasing funding for national parks and expanding hiking trails within parks.

      Infrastructure/Transportation: Support building 5,000 km of 200+ km/h high-speed rail over the next 30 years.

      Government Regulation: Reinstate Glass-Steagal, repeal the Depository Institutions Deregulation and Monetary Control Act of 1980, repeal the Financial Services Modernization Act of 1999 (Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act).

      Foreign Policy:

      Support ending war in Afghanistan, closing all military bases world wide, bringing all troops home, slashing the Pentagon's budget in half, kill the unnecessary Dept. of Homeland Security, repeal the PATRIOT Act and make continued foreign aid to Israel dependent on return to 1967 borders.

      Election Reform:

      Term Limits: As has been demonstrated by California term limits lead to corrupt, lobbyist-written legislation and are inherently unconstitutional. Strongly Oppose.

      I agree with you on most of these things.  Except, if we criminalize hunting, then how will we get our meat?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Atlas Has Shrugged on December 24, 2011, 08:56:48 PM
      I'm new here and thought this would be as good a place to introduce myself as any.

      Overall Philosophy: Democratic-socialist, social-anarchist.

      Social:

      Abortion: Solidly believe in a women's right to choose, strongly oppose any attempt to infringe on this basic right.

      Gay Rights: Strongly oppose DADT, strongly support letting same-sex couples adopt, strongly support legalizing same-sex marriage, strongly oppose DOMA, believe same-sex marriage should be legalized at the federal level (having the validity of your marriage vary by state is ridiculous).

      Sex: Believe in legalizing and regulating prostitution, comprehensive sex education and proper information regarding safe sex, strongly oppose Sebelius's attempt to stop the sale of the morning after pill to those under 18, believe in legalizing incest as practiced among consensual adults.

      Death Penalty/Prison Reform/War on Drugs: Strongly oppose the Death Penalty and mandatory minimum sentences, support drastic overhaul focusing on rehabilitation, legalize Marijuana, end the war on drugs, drastically reduce sentences for possessing illicit substances of all variety, refocus on rehabilitation of junkies.

      Immigration Reform: Support full amnesty for all so-called illegal immigrants and passage of the DREAM Act. The rise of the standard of living in Mexico has lead to a natural tapering off of illegal immigration, the issue is primarily manipulated by white supremacists.

      Second Amendment: I support the right to carry small arms for self-defense, favor concealed-carry, however I also support the ban on assault weapons and favor criminalizing hunting (it's barbaric).

      Economic:

      Education: Trash No Child Left Behind, fire Arne Duncan, pro-project based learning, for legalizing home-schooling and removing government interference, completely overhaul school system, kill voucher programs, kill the standardized test.

      Health Care Reform: I favor a government run single payer system.

      Trade: I tend to favor protectionist trade policy, I oppose NAFTA the TTP and all similar deals and  believe we should follow the example of the high tariffs that led Japan to it's post-WWII economic boom.

      Tax: I believe we should raise the corporate tax rate by 10%, institute a financial transactions tax, create a new tax bracket for those making upward of $500,000 a year that is 10% higher than the current top tax rate, and make social security solvent by ending the social security payroll tax cap on those making over $250,000 a year and end the bush tax cuts.

      Labor Unions: I support the Employee Free Choice Act and "corporations are not people" constitutional amendment (although not necessarily in the language put forth by Mr. Sanders), also strongly oppose "Right to Work" laws.

      Minimum Wage: Replace with living wage.

      Energy Independence/Environmental: Support increases in funding for Wind and Solar, further increasing the fuel standards for new vehicles, eliminating taxpayer subsidies of fossil fuels, and implementing a steep "carbon tax", support increasing funding for national parks and expanding hiking trails within parks.

      Infrastructure/Transportation: Support building 5,000 km of 200+ km/h high-speed rail over the next 30 years.

      Government Regulation: Reinstate Glass-Steagal, repeal the Depository Institutions Deregulation and Monetary Control Act of 1980, repeal the Financial Services Modernization Act of 1999 (Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act).

      Foreign Policy:

      Support ending war in Afghanistan, closing all military bases world wide, bringing all troops home, slashing the Pentagon's budget in half, kill the unnecessary Dept. of Homeland Security, repeal the PATRIOT Act and make continued foreign aid to Israel dependent on return to 1967 borders.

      Election Reform:

      Term Limits: As has been demonstrated by California term limits lead to corrupt, lobbyist-written legislation and are inherently unconstitutional. Strongly Oppose.
      Your views are interesting (Im a Paleoconservative for Ron Paul), but I agree with Scott--Hunting is very important.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Snowstalker Mk. II on December 26, 2011, 01:03:35 PM
      Social issues:

      Abortion:
      Though I dislike abortion, the consequences of banning it would be far worse than the current legal status. Banning things doesn't reduce the rate of usage; it only drives it underground. Abortion must be safe and legal. Those who are truly pro-life like myself realize that slowing the abortion rate comes not from taking away a woman's right to her body, but from funding anti-poverty programs and through comprehensive sex education in schools as opposed to abstinence-only programs.

      Same-sex marriage: Allow it.

      Death Penalty/Euthanasia: Due to the costs of the appeals process and the underlying possibility that any innocent person may have been executed, I oppose the death penalty under all circumstances. Life in prison without parole should be the highest punishment.

      Euthanasia: Having seen two family members deteriorate in hospices for months until they finally died in agony, I find that forcing these people to stay alive is far more barbaric than letting them choose their own fate. Allow patients to end their own lives, be it passively (cutting off life support) or actively (injection)

      Drugs: The War on Drugs has been a costly and authoritarian failure. Legalize soft drugs, decriminalize hard drugs. Focus on rehabilitation instead of punishment--drug users have no place with murderers and rapists. Once again, support anti-poverty and job training programs so that people don't have to resort to dealing drugs (fun fact: most dealers don't actually make much money)

      Prostitution: Like drugs, banning it doesn't work. Legalize and regulate using the same system as Nevada; require the use of protection, weekly STD tests.

      Gun Control: I believe in the right to keep and bear arms. Other than some limitations (no firearms for those with certain mental illnesses, 1-day waiting period, no guns in public institutions, allow private institutions to decide whether they want to allow guns or not), I oppose gun control. I support allowing concealed weapons with a permit and oppose the assault weapons ban.

      Education: Standardized testing teaches conformity and forces curriculums to focus on teaching the test. Merit-based pay and voucher schools are terrible ideas. Require schools to provide healthy options at lunch but allow some junk food (with a calorie cap). Allow student-run prayer in school, but it can't be led by a teacher (i.e. the current policy).

      Immigration: Maintain border security, but don't build a fence. At most, create an "electronic fence". Support a guest-worker program towards citizenship while simplifying the process of legal immigration.

      Voter ID laws: They're a terrible idea and are inevitably intended to suppress voting rights. Support automatic registration on the condition that you have taken the same citizenship test that residents have to take (it would be a required high-school test, the only exception to my opposition to standardized testing).

      Economic stuff next.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: FloridaRepublican on December 26, 2011, 10:17:17 PM
      Overall Philosophy: I am a very conservative traditionalist to the point of reactionary.

      Social:


      Abortion: 100% pro-life in all cases. Should not be nearly as accessible or accepted as it is nowadays. However, there's no way of preventing back-alley coat-hangers. If people really want to do something illegal, a law won't hinder them.
      Affirmative Action: Strongly oppose. It's counterproductive, and it's reverse discrimination in the guise of "equality."
      Gay marriage/rights, etc.: 100% oppose all legal recognition of any relationship other than that of one man and one woman.
      "Separation of church and state": Mentioned nowhere in the constitution and has nothing to do with the religion clause in the 1st Amendment. Should not even be an issue.
      Death penalty: Support for murder, rape, and treason. Not just from a retribution stance, but it's also a preventative measure to stop the person from committing the same crime again anywhere else.
      2nd Amendment: 100% support with as little restrictions as possible.
      Drugs: If they get legalized, yay. If they stay the way they are, yay. Don't care.
      Euthanasia: I personally oppose it, but it's of low priority to me. Should be a states' rights issue.
      Electoral College: I'm one of the very few people who strongly supports the Electoral College.
      Immigration: 100% support LEGAL immigration. All governments need to make it a point to deport any and every person here illegally. It's called illegal immigration for a reason. 100% support Arizona's SB1070.

      Economic:

      Obamacare: I bet you can guess by now. Completely oppose.
      Welfare: Very glad Welfare Reform was passed in the 90s. The original intent of welfare has been completely swept under the rug. Now there's almost no incentive to better oneself, especially in the lower class.
      Education: Actually pretty liberal on this issue (I think this is liberal). It's completely ridiculous and unfair to even suggest merit-based pay. They should be paid based on how well they teach, not based on what the kids have or haven't learned. Some kids just refuse to learn or see it as pointless. (See Welfare)
      Minimum wage: Let the states decide.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: H.E. VOLODYMYR ZELENKSYY on February 27, 2012, 08:29:26 PM
      In short, I believe that government exists to give people a better life. Socialist, civil libertarian, moderate dove.

      Economics:

      Welfare: Gov't should help the unemployed by both giving them money to get them out of the hole and finding them jobs to keep them out.

      Education: Pay teachers based on how they affect student performance. I support good, funded public schools.

      Health care: Universal and free.

      Trade/Outsourcing: Fair trade. Generally oppose outsourcing.

      Wages: No 'working poor'. Wages should be high enough that if you work your 40 hours a week, you should make a good living.

      Social:

      Gay rights: I'm gay. Figure it out.

      Abortion/contraception: Fully legal. Oppose forcing religiously-affiliated institutions to provide abortions (not contraception).

      Crime, Drugs, Prostitution and such: Sex offenders get LWOP if over 16, rehab if under. Death penalty only for murder. Oppose 'war on drugs', support legalization, taxation. Legalize, heavily regulate prostitution

      Guns: Support right to keep, but not bear in public. Only small arms. No hunting.

      Immigration: Fully support legalized immigration. Oppose illegal immigration, but think we should just force everyone through legally.

      Euthanasia: Support.

      Foreign Policy:

      Support war only to directly defend America or to support freedom from tyranny (e.g. Syria). Friendly with free countries. Support Palestinian state.







      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: HST1948 on February 28, 2012, 07:08:51 PM
      Economics:

      Welfare: Government subsidies to the unemployed should focus more on in-kind benefits that can only be used for specific designated purposes. Conditions of welfare should include the recipients to find a job or begin some sort of education program with in a set time of receiving their first welfare payment. Education and job placement should be the main focus of welfare programs.

      Education: Teachers should awarded based on performance, which should be measured based on a combination of teachers evaluations and student test scores. Should should not be funded primarily on property tax because puts children in poor neighborhoods at a systemic disadvantage. In addition school voucher should be an option presented to parents in failing school districts.

      Health care: I support a universal health care system, however I recognize that a true universal system is unattainable in the short term.  Medicare and Medicaid Programs should be made secondary insurance (instead of the current system where medicare/medicaid money is used first and remaining costs are covered by other methods) for anyone who already has insurance.  Doing this saves government money and doesn't change the quality of care for anyone.

      Trade/Outsourcing: Support fair trade

      Economy:
      Support the government bail-out of the auto-industry.
      Support lowering the corporate tax rate while closing loopholes
      Support financial regulation of wall street, without crippling it

      Energy
      Support investing more in offshore drilling
      Support investing in nuclear drilling
      Support Keystone Pipeline
      Support giving initiatives to companies that use alternative fuel sources.
      Long term goal is to be energy independent

      Wages: The minimum wage should be high enough that if a person works full time they should be able to afford the costs of living like rent, day care, and food.

      Social:

      Gay rights: I'm gay, so I don't think I really need to explain this one.

      Abortion: I support abortion up to week 24 for any reason. Beyond that I think abortion should be restrained to health of the mother, rape, incest and other extenuating situations.

      Crime:Support the death penalty only in cases with extenuating factors and aggregating factors.

      Drugs: Oppose 'war on drugs' and support the decriminalization of marijuana.

      Prostitution: Support the legalization and regulation of prostitution.

      Guns: Support the right to own guns in the home, but not the right to bear in public.  Support rifle rights for hunting purposes.

      Immigration: Support the dream act, support revamping the immigration system to make legal immigration easier.  Oppose illegal immigration.

      Euthanasia: Support with proper regulatory and consent mechanisms in place.

      Foreign Policy/ Military:
      Support wars directly involved in the defense of the United States and operations involved in supporting human rights.

      Support a separate Palestinian state.

      Oppose the Cuban trade embargo.

      Support training a smaller more specialized and modern military.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: H.E. VOLODYMYR ZELENKSYY on February 28, 2012, 08:09:32 PM
      My God, Harry, are we the same person?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Atlas Has Shrugged on February 28, 2012, 11:49:41 PM
      Overall Philosophy-Libertarian, Goldwaterite. I also hold several other views, mainly leaning towards the far right. I am a "Powellite" too.

      Abortion-Its a states right, with each state setting its own policy. However, I do support a Federal ban on citizens getting abortions across state lines, and parental notification.

      Affirmative Action-All "equality" laws take the issue and flip it. Multiculturalism is a failure, and as long as the Jim Crow laws are gone, nothing else should be changed. Whites are no better then Blacks and vice-versa.

      Death Penalty support it on a state level, not on a Federal Level. As a Floridian, I think the state should only kill murderers of Women, and Children. I support death for serial rapists, though that should not be a actual law. On a Federal level, only foreign (not even domestic) terrorist should receive it.

      Drugs-Marijuana can be legal on a state level. Taxed too.

      Euthanasia-If you want to kill yourself, swallow a bunch of aspirins or something. I cant believe this is a serious issue.

      Gun Rights-Any one should be able to own a gun, no questions asked. And I support private militias, as long as they do not engage in terrorism.

      Immigration-Amnesty to all Illegals who join the army, lived here 5 years, have no criminal record and speak English. Those who dont, should be deported. Illegals caught in the country, or attempting to enter the country, should be turned back. Those caught on our side, should be detained and released. Put the Army on the border.

      Gay Marriage personally oppose it, but its a State Right that should be decided by referendum.

      Prostitution-State Right, but I wouldn't oppose it being legal. Its not relevant anyway.

      Separation of Church and State-I believe everyone should be allowed to practice any religion, freely, though I stress that American IS a Christian country, and that "Under God" should remain in the Pledge, on the Money, and in the courts. Remeber, "Under God" can be anyones God...

      Stem Cell Research- I dont support abortion, and I wish babies didnt have to get aborted, but I want their lives to be worth something if they are, so Stem Cell research is only fair. If it can cure Cancer, and my little brothers Autism, then I support it 100%

      Education support abolishing the Department of Education, and laying it out among the states. I support public education.

      Energy-America needs to get off foreign oil, and drill our own. Even though I am Libertarian, I am not opposed to a state run oil company, so we dont get robbed at the pump. Then again, we could buy cheap gas from friendly countries like Brazil, and if they try to screw us, we just pull a Teddy Roosevelt and send a couple of battleships......Also, Global Warming is a total myth.

      Economy-a flat tax on all income brackets, and raised tariffs. We need to pull out of NAFTA, stop handing out money to failing corporations, abolish the IRS and Federal Reserve, and even go back to the Gold Standard. Maybe then our money will be worth something.

      Healthcare- I support a basic form of Universal Healthcare, but it cant be like Canada or Britains systems. I wouldnt mind seeing a more successful (and altered) form of Romneycare. Obscure is a watered down peace of garbage. The Individual mandate is forcing people to buy Health Insurance. That doesn't do anything! Maybe we could have UHC if we decided to stop treating illegals for free.....

      Social Justice-Unemployment checks on a State level, perhaps, but those recipients should receive drug test (not through that crook Scotts company though)..I support Social Security, Medicaid, and Medicare, though they need reform.

      Taxation-Flat Tax on all income brackets. Tariffs on imports.

      United Nations-Pull out, now! They cause problems, and expect the US to clean it up.

      War-Avoid it at all cost, be non-interventionist as much as possible. Still, its necessary sometimes.

      WMDS-The US should have a nuclear arsenal, and it is every countries choice to have them, if they can afford it. Now, Iran, and NK, they need to be controlled. They wont use there nukes for defensive purposes.
      I am horrified at myself regarding some of my old views. I went through a semi White Nationalist phase for a while, yet, I never recognized it. I mean, seriously, WTF at this post? I cannot believe I was ever as bad as I am now, but, apparently I was.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Pingvin on February 29, 2012, 01:46:38 AM
      On the Issues: (using American issues)
      Abortion: Life is given us by the God. Only allow abortion in cases where the mother's life is at risk. Ban partial-birth abortion.

      Goverment Spending: Deficit spending should be outlawed as overall government spending is reduced to minimal levels. Use less - receive more.

      Education: School vouchers for everybody. Get the federal government out of education completely!

      Energy: Reduce dependence from oil and coal, especially foreign. More research on alternate energy sources.

      Enviroment: The environment is very important. Find market based solutions to environmental problems so our children can live in a clean and safe country.

      Gun control: Any gun control legislation is an attack to safety of people. No restrictions on firearms!

      Healthcare: The health care system should be completely private, it isn't a responsibility of the federal government.

      Immigration: Stop all immigration completely. Deport illegal aliens and build massive security fence on Mexican and Canadian borders. Accept a detailed plan to fight illegal border crossing.

      Defense Spending: Defense spending should be reduced so as to focus on other things. No overseas deployments without a reason.

      Iran: We should prepare to attack Iran but be sure that we have the proper intelligence. Current regime is too radical and dangerous to own nuclear programme.

      Military Intervention: We should intervene when our national interests are threatened. NO to resource wars!

      Role of Goverment: The smaller and less activist the Government, the better the country. Government can run the military, the police, and the courts - that's it.

      Trade: We need to encourage businesses to do whatever is necessary to generate profit, but consider new free trade deals VERY carefully and create incentives to keep jobs at home.

      Tax Rates: A single rate flat tax for citizens, and a very low tax rate for corporations, but eliminate all loopholes and remove all small hidden taxes.

      Marriage: Marriage is between a man and a woman. Support a constitutional ban on same-sex marriages.

      Social Security: Let workers privately invest all retirement payments. Social Security System as now is a complete joke and should be reformed.

      Unions: Unions are undermining our economy by blackmailing companies to overpay their workers. Find a solution to balance labor demands with business concerns.

      War at Terror: We should not hesitate to use military force against terrorism, but NO to limiting civil liberties at home.
      Also I agree with Pat Buchanan and european nationalists on a Islamofascism and Culture War.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: World politics is up Schmitt creek on February 29, 2012, 10:20:54 AM
      I am horrified at myself regarding some of my old views. I went through a semi White Nationalist phase for a while, yet, I never recognized it. I mean, seriously, WTF at this post? I cannot believe I was ever worst then I am now, but, apparently I was.

      It's okay. I definitely think you've changed in positive ways even since I've been here, and I've only been here for a little under a year.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Хahar 🤔 on February 29, 2012, 11:35:03 AM
      I'm not going to list out a bunch of positions like I'm some candidate for elective office, because that's silly and pointless. In terms of my political beliefs, Lewis Trondheim's characterization of me as an Islamic socialist seems entirely accurate, and everything I believe springs logically from that. The most direct application of religion is in the fight against avarice; there is a pressing religious duty to oppose those who would redefine greed as a positive good in gross violation of the Word of God. I am an internationalist, of course; American exceptionalism as a belief is thoroughly repulsive. I am for democracy and against imperialism in all its forms, both direct and indirect. It happens that the gospel of neoliberalism has massively broadened the appeal thereof; it is imperialism for everyone, and it allows everyone to wet their beaks at the expense of far-off lesser peoples. Of course, it too is founded upon the idea that greed is good. Perhaps it is an immovable force that shall drag all of us in its wake; yet we must stand against the tide of history if that is so, that we may halt or slow it if only for a moment.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Is Totally Not Feeblepizza. on March 01, 2012, 10:20:04 AM
      Abortion: Overturn Roe v. Wade and allow the states legislate abortion as they see fit.

      Government Spending: Cut cut cut cut cut. And, furthermore, cut. We need to add a Balanced Budget Amendment to the Constitution.

      Education: Significantly revamp or do away with the federal Department of Education and hand education back to states/school districts. Promote vouchers, charter schools, etc.

      Energy: Drill, baby, drill. Also, we need to find a way to promote market-based investment in alternative fuels. Maybe a carbon tax?

      Environment: Again, we need to find market based solutions to keep our environment clean. The EPA needs to be significantly revamped, if not done away with entirely.

      Gun control: "A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed."

      Healthcare: Repeal ObamaCare, allow interstate competition between companies, etc., etc.

      Immigration: Build border fences, but give illegals a chance to assimilate.

      Defense Spending: Focus on our own defense, and not on that of fully competent allies like Germany. Root out as much waste as possible.

      Iran: We definitely need to be prepared if need be.

      Military Intervention: Intervention should occur only when our nation's security is threatened directly by the actions of another nation.

      Role of Goverment: To keep the people safe, basically.

      Trade: Free trade is definitely a good thing, but outsourcing should be discouraged.

      Tax Rates: A flat tax rate of 10% for those making under $250,000/year, and 20% for those making above $250,000/year.

      Marriage: Marriage is fundamentally a legal covenant, and should be between any two individuals who love each other. However, it shouldn't be a national issue. States should be able to define marriage as they see fit.

      Social Security: Let people opt out, or hold private accounts if they so choose.

      Unions: I suppose right-to-work. Also, government employees should have no right to unionize.

      War at Terror: At this point...no.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: I'm JewCon in name only. on March 11, 2012, 03:07:36 AM
      Social Issues: Socially Conservative, Traditional Mindset.

      Abortion: I support overturning Roe v. Wade, and believe Abortion should be banned federally in all cases, except when a mother's life is endangered. Life is truly of G-d's sacred gifts to humanity, and I refuse to believe it's a woman's "right to choose."

      Gay Rights: I oppose the legalization of gay marriage on a federal (or any) level. I am a supporter of traditional marriage (man and woman), but I am very wary of the "Gays will destroy the family" crap. I just don't see marriage as a right, it's a religious tradition. In fact, I do not believe marriage should be a government issue. I believe only atheists or agnostics should receive marriage licenses from the federal government (as they aren't believers of G-d, obviously.) I believe we need to give marriage decisions up to the churches, and synagogues, and mosques, etc... (However, if a federal ban was proposed in Congress or a state ban in a state legislature, I'd vote for it.) Also, a federal ban does not need to be a constitutional amendment! I would oppose a constitutional amendment!)

      I oppose the federal legalization of gay adoption. This is a state issue.

      I long supported DADT, but I would've voted to repeal it because after further analysis, I believe that a dishonorable discharge is not an acceptable form of punishment for one's sexuality.

      Drugs: I support the War on Drugs, and oppose the legalization of marijuana (medical or causal use) on any level. I do think that DEA and FDA need to be reformed, aswell as the overall concept of the War on Drugs. There are clear failures that NEED to be addressed, and fixed.

      Prostitution: I oppose the legalization of prostitution. I would support a federal ban, as I believe this practice is obscene, and just plain wrong. Not from a moral angle, but from a health angle.

      Separation of Church and State: Look, there should be a reasonable separation from religion and government. Like, there shouldn't be a "Federal church" or a "official religion". But, G-d shouldn't be shunned from American politics or society. America was built on Judeo-Christian values (not through the Constitution, but through the thoughts, and beliefs of the masses), and that shouldn't be considered a negative. I support the inclusion of G-d in our pledge of allegiance, and the inclusion of "In G-d we trust" on currency, and license plates. I believe the religious minorities, and the non-religious have rights, but so does the majority. If you don't believe in G-d, that's fine, but the use of G-d in our pledge or the discussion of G-d in society will not force you to. I'm Jewish, and the large impact that Christianity has in my society does NOT impact me or make me feel uncomfortable. Freedom OF religion is NOT Freedom FROM religion.

      Contraception and Sex: I support the use of contraception in American society. It's better to have safe sex, then to abort. Sex's main purpose is to reproduce, but it's also meant to have fun as well. (I know I just made the Abstinence lobby flip a sh**). Live free, Party hard I say. However, my support for contraception DOES NOT extend to President Obama's ridiculous order that forces religious institutions to provide contraception. Religion shouldn't dominate government, but government shouldn't dominate religion either! Also, buy the contraception yourself! Seriously! People think abortion is ok, but believe it's an "outrage" for someone to buy their own condom, or birth control pills. That's like saying Big Brother should provide free beer.

      Immigration/ Language Issues: I support legal immigration, as my sister, and I are children of immigrants. However, I strongly oppose illegal immigration. Amnesty is immoral. My parents worked extremely hard to become citizens. I support SB 1070, and oppose most of the DREAM Act. I oppose the section of the DREAM Act that allowed illegals to go to college or get gov't aid for college. There are Americans who can't get aid for college, and Americans should always come before noncitizens. However, I do support that part that would allow Illegals to become citizens by joining and serving in the U.S. Military. I also oppose the Guest Worker program for only one reason, it creates this group of "second class citizens." Also, I oppose loosing requirements (as a whole) for becoming a legal citizen. Lots of other countries have much stricter guidelines than we do, just look at Mexico itself! Also, I support making English the official language of the USA.

      Crime/ Death Penalty: I strongly support the death penalty, but I am not hungry for death! We need to use it only when we are certain of someone's guilt, and for serious crimes! (Murder, Rape, Molestation, Treason, Terrorism etc..). I don't get how the DP is still an issue...

      The 2nd Amendment: I am a strong supporter of the NRA, and gun rights. Only type of Gun Control I support is to ban felons from getting weapons. I oppose the semi automatic hand gun ban.

      Alcohol: Um...I'm going to be a college student starting August, so...can we lower it to 18? :P No, but seriously, I'd support making it 18 on a state level.

      Stem Cell Research: I support adult stem cell research, but oppose embryonic stem cell research.

      Non Physician-Assisted Suicide: Yea, I oppose this. It's still murder even if someone gives you permission. This is immoral.

      Euthanasia: This is a state issue. I honestly, and personally do not support it, but...if someone is on life support and has no chance of recovering...well, than...I don't know. It violates a physicians' Hippocratic oath, and it's immoral, so I guess I'd oppose if I was a state legislator. I just don't see it as a humane option.

      Economics, and Fiscal Issues: Very Conservative, Pro-Capitalist.

      Taxes: I oppose FairScam (FairTax), it just wouldn't work! I'm not a fan of the 16th amendment, but come on guys! I support a Flat Tax system of either 10% or 15%, anything above that I would oppose strongly. I would exempt certain people from this of course, like the very very very poor (less than $30,000 would be like 5%-9%, and no taxes for anyone making less than $20,000? I don't know. I'd have to do some math on this.) I oppose the estate, and luxury taxes. They should be pretty much eliminated. I also oppose the corporate tax (national and state) and think it should be drastically lowered or eliminated completely.

      Healthcare: I oppose Obamacare or any form of Universal Healthcare/ Single payer system. I want Obamacare repealed in nearly in it's entirety. The only portion of it that I like is, that fast food joints have to show their ingredients. My sister has allergies  to milk and diary products, and having those ingredients shown are a big help for us when we eat out. Also, I believe in a private health care system except when it comes to medicare, and the really poor.

      Energy/Oil: As others have said: Drill, Drill, Drill! I support offshore drilling AND the Keystone Pipeline. I want us to get away from foreign oil! Let's start by drilling in Alaska! Let's create GREAT alliances with our allies like Canada!

      The Environment: I support a great economy over environmentalism. I don't believe in man made global warming/ climate change or even non-man made global warming or climate change. If I were an elected official I would not punish businesses with ridiculous regulations. Also, either eliminate the EPA, or smack the sh** out of it so it wouldn't continue to be such a bureaucratic mess. Economic productivity > a endangered snowy owl. Nuff said.

      Labor Unions and Teachers Unions: Enough with this corrupt spending spree that the Unions have been enjoying for the last few decades. They destroyed cities like Detroit with their power hunger. I support Right-To-Work laws, and I support allowing companies to De-Unionize. However, I don't support banning unions. I don't think Strikes should be treated as if they are untouchable. After a certain period productivity needs to return...Also, teachers' unions need to be shut up. They have to much power, and make it almost IMPOSSIBLE to fire teachers who are just not fit for their jobs!

      Affirmative Action: I oppose it, it's reverse discrimination and just useless. Businesses don't care about prejudices (well, most of them don't lol), they care about making money and hiring the BEST candidate for their vacant positions.

      Government Spending: Cut, Cut, and CUT! The government's credit card needs to be taken away and locked up! It's as simple as that.

      Trade: I oppose protectionism, but I also oppose letting our jobs leave our shores. I say cut or eliminate national or state corporate taxes, and any other taxes that Uncle Sam created.   Remove pointless regulations, and reining the unions.

      Education: Hey, here's an idea! Let's let the state governments deal with their education systems more! We keep funneling funds to our schools, yet nothing really changes...I'm not completely for destroying the Department of Education yet, but I believe their  role needs to be minimized as much as possible. I support private vouchers, and zoning laws.

      Balanced Budget Amendment: I support this strongly. We really need to stop the fed from spending so much, it's just scary to see how much we really spend on CRAP.

      Social Security: Let people opt out, or hold private accounts if they so choose.

      Foreign Policy: Hawkish.

      War on Terror: I support it strongly. Terrorism is a real threat to our country, and to the world.

      Afghanistan: I support this war, but Obama's mishandling of the war (especially the whole Koran burning incident) have made me lose faith in it...

      Iraq: We did what we came to accomplish, now let's go home.

      Iran: I really wish we could invade them or just smack 'em around, but not right now. Let Israel handle them.

      Israel-Palestinian Conflict: I'm  a strong supporter of Israel, and oppose any two state solutions right now. The Palestinians clearly don't want peace while Israel still exists. That, and they are run by Hamas...sooooo....yea, No...

      Israel: I support Israel strongly, and support our ally in any of their pursuits.

      Defense: We need to cut our defense department, and make it more efficient. (By cut I mean get rid of useless programs in it.) I support a VERY STRONG national defense.

      U.S. Military: I love our men and women in Uniform!

      Thats all for now.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: They put it to a vote and they just kept lying on March 11, 2012, 11:29:17 AM
      Overall: Anarchist-leaning Libertarian Capitalist

      Social Issues: Far Left Liberal/Hardcore Libertarian

      Abortion: I believe abortion should be legal until the beginning of the third trimester. I oppose "Partial Birth" abortions and I oppose federal funding to abortion. I believe I, as a man, have no place to tell a woman what to do with her body, but if she does not choose to have an abortion before her third trimester, she's waited too long. Sometime in the third trimester is when I believe the baby is a living being, and therefore is protected under the Constitution.

      Gay Rights: I oppose legislating gay rights issues on a federal level, as I believe it is up to the individual states. I am a fervent supporter of gay rights and would love to see gay marriage legal in all 50 states. I believe anyone who says "gay marriage would destroy the sanctity of marriage" is an idiot, as straight couples are doing just that while gay marriage is still illegal in a majority of states. The straight people that cheat on their spouses are the ones that are ruining the sanctity of marriage and ruining the "traditional" family, not the gay couples who want to be treated equally. I believe gay adoption is a state issue. I also oppose DADT.

      Drugs: I support decriminalizing every drug on federal level. This is where I believe the 10th Amendment is null and void. A single state cannot have a "war on drugs" while others do not. I  support the federal Government regulating, taxing and controlling the sales of all drugs (marijuana, cocaine, meth, heroin, etc.) just like alcohol and cigarettes are controlled. This way, people can buy drugs that they know are not laced with other dangerous things. The drug war is racist towards minorities.

      Prostitution: I support legalizing prostitution on a state level. I believe it is one's choice to have sex with whomever they please.

      Separation of Church and State: This country was founded on the idea of separating church and state. Religion and politics do not coincide, as not everyone in this country is of the same religion. To involve religion in politics terrifies me, especially with fundamentalist Christians running amok trying to return us to the 1500's with our social policy.

      Contraception: I support a woman's right to use birth contraception. If you don't like birth control, don't use it. Simple as that.

      Immigration: I support legal immigration. I have a soft spot in my heart for immigrants who want to live in this country, but have to come here illegally because the process takes too long, but I cannot say that I support allowing anyone to break the law. I support making the immigration process simpler and quicker, allowing for an easier path to citizenship. I support guest worker programs as well.

      Death Penalty: I strongly oppose the death penalty. State-sanctioned killing is wrong and should not be allowed. People who use the old "having a criminal sit in jail for life costs so much money out of my pocket to pay for their meals blah blah blah" argument don't understand that when a criminal gets executed, the amount of appeals made afterward are enough to cost you as much, if not more tax dollars to pay for legal fees.

      2nd Amendment: As a Constitutionalist, I strongly support the 2nd Amendment, but with some restrictions. I don't believe the founding fathers would support the idea of allowing anyone to own a gun, especially if they saw our crime rates. I support background checks before buying guns and outlawing certain bullets that would cause fatal harm to another human being. I also support putting safety locks on every gun to prevent accidents.

      Alcohol: Should be legislated on a state level, but I support lowering the drinking age to 18.

      Stem Cell Research: I support embryonic stem cell research, as well as adult stem cell research. This research could lead to curing diseases such as cancer, AIDS, etc.

      Physician Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia: If a person chooses to be "put to sleep," to end their suffering, so be it. I believe it is one's right to choose whether or not to continue fighting.

      Education: Legislate education on the state level. I believe increasing federal education spending has done nothing to improve test scores, therefore, I oppose it. I support a voucher system, with slight bias towards public schools to keep them afloat. Also allow states to write their own curriculum and allow parents to opt into a different class if they don't want their child in a specific class.

      Affirmative Action: I believe Affirmative Action is a noble cause, but is reverse discrimination. I don't support giving someone more of an opportunity than anyone else, regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, etc.

      Economic Issues: Lasseiz-Faire/Anarchocapitalist

      Taxes: In my perfect world, there would be a 0% tax rate across the board. However, this can't happen in the "real" world, therefore I support taxes being as low as physically possible. I support a Flat Tax rate across the board, this being the only tax we'd pay (other than "sin" taxes.) No sales tax.

      Healthcare: Repeal Obamacare and allow for competition over state lines. A Government takeover of healthcare is an even larger intrusion into the lives of personal citizens.

      Energy: I support drilling domestically for oil whilst also finding more energy-efficient resources. I love my fluorescent light bulb in my room, so I'd support using more of those, but without the mandate. People should be allowed to buy incandescent light bulbs as well. I support using nuclear and solar energy as well. Free market competition will drive down costs and jobs will be created. We have to ween ourselves off of foreign oil.

      The Environment: I support protecting our environment (see energy policy) but I do not believe that Global Warming is an imminent threat, nor is it man made. The rise in temperatures are normal as per weather maps over the past 100 years.

      Unions: I support one's right to be in a union, but I do not support unions having the amount of power they have now. Unions exist only to protect worker safety and negotiate reasonable pay. I also don't support protecting worker's jobs during strikes. The jobs have to be done. This is especially true in terms of schools. If teachers decide to go on strike, someone has to teach the kids.

      Government Spending: The amount of money the federal Government spends is far too high. Cuts must be made across the board and we must introduce a Balanced Budget Amendment to make sure spending doesn't get out of control. When I say I support cuts across the board, I mean everywhere. Defense included.

      Free Trade: I support protectionism in some cases, but I believe free trade is a better way to go. Trading with countries is good, as it improves relations and diplomacy outlets. Economic globalization is good. Fair trade coffee is really good, though.

      Social Security: Privatize it. Government doesn't handle things well to begin with.

      Bailouts: I oppose Corporate Welfare. Allow businesses to fail if they can't balance their own budget. Failure is a potential consequence of starting a business. Government is prone to mess these things up, anyway.

      Foreign Policy: Hardcore Dove/Non-Interventionist

      War on Terror: You cannot fight a war against an idea.

      War in general: Almost always a bad idea. Leads to big Government, un-needed military causalities and causes animosity between the countries involved.

      Iraq: We never should've gotten involved.

      Iran: We should not get involved.

      Afghanistan: See Iraq.

      Israel: Israel is a big boy and can fight it's own battles.

      Nation-building: No.

      Defense Spending: Cut it.

      Other Issues

      Role of Government: I am a fervent supporter of Government being as small as physically possible. Government should only exist to legislate on behalf of the people and should be viewed as the servant of the people, not the master. In my ideal world, there would be no Government. Individuals would have power over the individual, but the society at large would work together. No, that is not a component of "Pure Communism," because humans are naturally inclined to help each other. If both Pure Anarchy and Pure Communism were to be enacted, one would never be able to tell the difference between the societies.

      Anything else?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Redalgo on March 11, 2012, 04:17:49 PM


      Basic Foundations:

      The state is a tool for promoting the long-term happiness of its subjects, a role requiring management of interpersonal and intergroup forms of conflict (namely over strategically advantageous, privilege-conveying capital) in accordance to the moral values of society. Those values are rooted in human evolution, manifest as intuitive feelings about what is right or wrong, and are subject to some variation from person to person due to our diverse environments, experiences, perceptions of reality, and - as a contributing factor - genes.

      I prefer to conceptualize the state as a person who citizens consul to adopt their own sets of virtues and vices, with the cumulative result of their influences exerted representing a fair equilibrium of values worthy of being described as the country’s moral character. If regimes stray too far from the ideal character of the nation, the masses will feel oppressed no matter how supportive of “freedom,” “equality,” or “justice” their leaders claim to be. In contrast, most folks will not feel oppressed by rules if their contents are deemed moral.

      If everybody tries to project their moral values onto the state using institutions considered legitimate the results should be respected - even if the outcomes involve policies based on perceptions of righteousness that diverge from ones own. I do my part by embracing and promoting the one political attitude and five ideologies I believe would best regulate our conflicts of interest so as to ethically resolve emerging problems and bring about a better future for all members of society. Although I am not truly a paragon of the virtues I most value, habitualizing them to serve as guides for my behavior is an important goal of mine.



      Attitudinal Conflict:

      This is a conflict of interest concerning how countries should evolve.

      As a vanguard, I believe those citizens who best understand matters of who should get what in society and why should provide an elite tier of leadership for folks who do not - advancing a righteous ideological agenda by teaching it to other people and replacing the current, prevailing moral system with a new, visionary, superior replacement as swiftly and pragmatically as possible without in the process resorting to corrupt, unnecessarily violent, or otherwise vicious conduct. This approach is courageous yet also intemperate.

      Otherwise, I could be fairly labeled a hard progressive or soft radical.



      Structural Conflict:

      This is a conflict of interest about how to mediate political disputes.

      My take on solidarism is to establish political institutions which promote constitutional republicanism, secular government, and interdependency betwixt people while lowering the threat of anomie via overt state support for social cohesion. The game that is politics should be open for all to safely partake in, and individuals should enjoy a broad array of social rights, but we must also be careful not to allow pervasive individualism to threaten the bonds that hold us together. A moderate balance of vigilance and discipline is proper.

      Using more familiar terms, I am a republican, liberal, and corporatist.



      Productive Conflict:

      This is a conflict of interest regarding resource trade and distribution.

      To me, socialism is having a market economy that rewards merit in proportion to ones contributions to society, allows for enough state intervention to account for externalities, features workplace democracy in the form of worker-owned cooperatives, and distributes resources in such a way as to enshrine human dignity, decrease inequality of opportunity, and resolve material disputes with moral integrity. Selfishness and competitiveness have important roles to play in business but so, too, should fairness, cooperation, and kindness. Some ambition will end up sacrificed in the pursuit of compassion.

      Consider me either a hard social democrat or soft democratic socialist.



      Generational Conflict:

      This is a conflict of interest about sustainable economic development.

      Within my interpretation of personism, humans are not an exceptional species meriting special treatment. All creatures and machines deserve rights according to their degrees of personhood. Resources should be managed with our own interests in mind but long-term goals take precedent, because the needs of other critters and future generations of human beings trump in importance our often needlessly impulsive, exploitative, and extravagant short-term desires. Nature is sacred and responsibility more important than magnificence.

      I.e., I extend humanist reasoning to all critters and am a “bright green.”



      Conventional Conflict:

      This conflict of interest concerns social values, norms, and diversity.

      I am a multiculturalist insofar as I think people should be able to develop identities and engage in customs that do not wrong others without their consent. Instead of encouraging assimilation or partaking in cultural imperialism the state should accommodate, celebrate, and show respect for diverse groups, beliefs, and lifestyles. Rather than taking this line of thought to an individualist extreme, I reckon we should emphasize civic nationalism and stress that out of a diverse many we are one. This is more about modesty than reverence.

      Alternatively, I could be described as a hardline “cultural pluralist.”



      Extraterritorial Conflict:

      This conflict of interest is centered wholly on international relations.

      Cosmopolitanism holds that all people are part of a single, extended moral community even though many of our customs, beliefs, and national interests differ. The wellbeing of people in ones own nation is not more important than that of people in others, and with this recognition comes a duty to honor human rights and fight in their defense whenever and wherever they are imperiled. States should empathetically weigh and act to advance the interests of all, and aim to gradually, peacefully coalesce into a globalized country. It's about setting aside some national assertiveness to be nice neighbors.

      It would also be fair to call me a world federalist and constructivist.




      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: morgieb on April 03, 2012, 08:03:08 AM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: Basically support Roe v. Wade as it is - abortions fully legal up to a point of viability - probably around the 3rd trimester. However, I'm very skeptical in killing babies if they survive abortion. Put them up for adoption or something if they do survive.

      Gay Rights: Basically should have the same rights as heterosexuals. Those that don't support it are idiots, or worse. It's discrimination at it's finest.

      Drugs: Support legalising 'soft' drugs such as cannabis. In reality however it's the dealers, not the users that are the problem. Drugs really should be decriminalised, and people charged with drug offences should take rehab rather than being thrown in jail.

      Prostitution: Legalised. I don't care what someone wants to do in their spare time.

      Separation of Church and State: A solid democracy must be secular. Having religion involved in it can lead to some very bad things!

      Contraception: Anyone wanting to ban this needs to go back to the 18th Century.

      Immigration: Mostly legal. Illegal immigration is a problem, but not an extremely serious one, and there is no real way to prevent this from happening. So as long as they perform background checks, there should be no major way from preventing someone into the country.

      Death Penalty:
      Illegal except in very extreme circumstances. A lot of executions are done without the premise of "beyond any doubt". "Beyond reasonable doubt" is fine for other sentences, but you shouldn't kill anyone unless they committed a terrorist act or genocide, and you know they did it. I support 3 strikes, but not mandatory sentences.

      2nd Amendment: Banning guns altogether is unconstitutional, but there should be restrictions. People with mental health issues or criminal records regarding violent crime should not be allowed to hold guns, and there needs to be background checks on this.

      Alcohol: Australia's laws are fine. In America, the drinking age should be 18.

      Stem Cell Research: Access, access, access! It can lead to cures to major diseases!

      Physician Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia
      : Should be legal. I don't see why people should be refused to end their lives if they don't want to live anyone and can't do it themselves. I would, however, restrict to people with disabilities or terminal illnesses, as everyone else just commits suicide anyway.

      Affirmative Action: Don't support it on gender based grounds or racial based grounds. But I do support it on socio-economic grounds.

      Smoking Bans: Support in public places and bans for under 18's.

      Economic issues

      Education: A healthy education is an important part of society. While private schools have their place, all education up to high-school level should be free and compulsory. Ideally I'd make university free too, or at least subside to some extent, too. Vouchers should not be accessible to the wealthy at least, but I do support merit-based pay, so as long as schools are on an equal playing field, and it is done by socio-economic status rather than by full performance, as that favours wealthy areas by default.

      Taxes: Very progressive tax system. The poor should pay little tax (like 10%), the rich should pay a lot (like 60%). Get rid of a lot of loopholes too, and introduce things like capital gains and assets taxes, which are probably better for improving income inequity.

      Environment: If we don't act now, by the time I die, this world may be ****ed. Policies such as cap-and-trade and strong environmental legislation are good policies.

      Social Security: Should still exist and be kept in government hands, but also introduce superannuation and increase the retirement age up to 70.

      Unions: Right-to-work laws are stupid. Without unions, imagine how horrible work would be?

      Health Care: Something like Canada's system, where the government pays for health care, but the doctors work privately (is this single-payer) would go good. In fact, this would be helpful for businesses, as they don't need to provide health care plans for their workers.

      Energy: Invest in renewable energy, and try and move away from coal and oil. I would consider nuclear power, but put plants away from areas with a lot of people.

      Welfare: Make sure that welfare recipients are actively looking for work, but if they are, give them a wage where they can live off, even if uncomfortably.

      Free Trade: Strongly support it. Protectionism is stupid. However, I would make sure that the countries interests are first.

      Space Exploration: Research whether terraforming another planet or finding more livable planets is feasible. Allow private companies, assuming they want to, to help with this though.

      Foreign Issues

      Military Spending: Reduce it. That sector is way bloated.

      Diplomacy/Sanctions: Should be our main option for resolving international conflicts. War should be a last resort.

      Israel: Make a two-state solution and stop Israel from having the same power as they have now.

      Syria: Offer assistance to the rebellion. Don't go to war in Syria though - Russia and China are too dangerous.

      Afghanistan: Withdraw combat troops but keep some there to maintain stability.

      Terrorism: Support what Obama is doing now.

      Electoral Issues/Government

      Voting Regulations: Felons should be allowed to vote if they are out of jail. Voter ID laws are stupid, and are mostly used to disenfranchise Democrat voters (I know I'm exaggerating, but it seems like the truth). Move election day to a weekend so that voter turnout can reach a maximum.

      The Senate: Get rid of the filibuster.

      Electoral College: Don't really mind it actually, though the popular vote would be better, or even by congressional district.

      Gerrymandering: Should be illegal. Districts should be drawn as fairly as possible, without any form of partisan influence.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Vosem on April 03, 2012, 08:12:26 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: I think abortion should be legal in the United States; I'm not sure I buy the 'it's part of the mother' argument; but I certainly buy the 'it isn't a person' argument.

      Gay Rights: I really think what someone does in the bedroom is none of my business. When it comes to marriage, I would probably support gay marriage on a referendum or something if it came to that, but I would rather the government not be involved in such things.

      Drugs: Depends on the individual drug in question; some rather incongruous views on this topic. I totally support legal marijuana, but conversely I think tobacco should be totally illegalized. I would probably support a general amnesty of those with no history of felonies other than drug usage (and marijuana dealership), but not dealership of dangerous drugs (heroin, cocaine -- tobacco should be added to this list) is a real crime that hurts real people that deserves real jail time. Those who are caught using such dangerous drugs would be made to go through some sort of rehab, though I haven't weighed this issue in the spectre of 'how much would all this s**t cost' -- maybe the government should just let them be.

      Prostitution: It should be legal, but there should be some significant government oversight to ensure abuse doesn't happen and prostitutes don't spread STDs.

      Separation of Church and State: A very solid secularist.

      Contraception: Should be legal, of course.

      Immigration: As the child of recent immigrants, I'm a big fan of legal immigration, but if you are here illegally you're also probably committing Social Security fraud; it's not good that some of your first acts in the US are illegal. Legal immigration should be more widely available, however - basically anyone who wants to come, has no history of serious criminal activity, and a reasonable knowledge of American history (modern American citizenship test BOO-YAH!) should be allowed to come.

      Death Penalty:[/b] Should be the penalty for murder beyond reasonable doubt.

      2nd Amendment: A strong supporter. Guns are used by ordinary citizens to protect themselves from criminals; when you ban or severely restrict guns, ordinary citizens don't have any, but the criminals still do. (If you're a member of a gang, for example, what's breaking another law and getting yourself an illegal gun?)

      Alcohol: Drinking age should be lowered to 16-ish.

      Stem Cell Research: This sort of thing can potentially cure many now-uncurable diseases, and should be very legal.

      Physician Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia[/b]: This should be restricted to people of terminal illness but sound mind, but otherwise should be legal. While I don't think it's important enough for the country to debate about it, but back in '05 I would've called for Terri Schiavo's continued survival.

      Affirmative Action: No. Educational institutions and hirers should accept and hire based solely on merit and no other qualification.

      Smoking Bans: As I mentioned up on drugs, totally support.

      Economic issues

      Education: Everyone deserves the right to a reasonably high-quality education coming from a public school system. Those with money who can afford to go to a private school (which would still have to adhere to certain federal standards; for example, all children should have to be taught about evolution), should be allowed to go ahead. Home schooling should be banned.

      Taxes: I support a flat tax; I've never understood how it's fair for the poor to pay, say, 10% and for the rich to pay, say, 60% (as in the poster above me's views). That said, I am a real supporter of lowering the deficit, eventually creating a surplus, so I understand American taxes would have to be raised, though I wouldn't like it.

      Environment: While the existence of global warming is certain, I've always been something of a skeptic regarding most of the policies people propose to 'fix' it. I've always liked the concept (I came up with it myself one day, though I'm sure it's been proposed elsewhere and I never noticed  -- it always turns out someone else comes up with my good ideas before me, harrumph) of using conventional bombs to set off volcanoes, which would then lower global temperature; in 1991, when Mount Pinatubo blew, scientists estimated the ash it scattered everywhere lowered global temperature by 1 degree (I can't recall Celsius of Fahrenheit). That said, we should take real steps to protect endangered species and beautiful landscapes. In the Cold War, the USSR totally trashed what had once been a beautiful country. We shouldn't let that happen to us.

      Social Security: I'm not an expert, but I like the concept of privatization in general. I don't think I'm anywhere close to sufficiently knowledgeable to say anything, though.

      Unions: I'm a supporter of right-to-work; if you don't want to be part of a union, why should you have to?

      Health Care: Not a supporter of Obamacare; you shouldn't be forced to buy any product, even if it one any reasonable, sane person should have. I really don't think any system of universal healthcare or nationalization of the industry should be put in place.

      Energy: Certainly, our coal is dirty and our oil keeps getting us into conflicts, but there are no reasonable alternatives. Wind and solar are fads - keep researching (research of everything should totally be encouraged) but I'm not hopeful. The idea of building dams and getting power out of those is a good one, but it can't be done everywhere. So there's one thing I can't stress enough: NUCLEAR POWER, ESPECIALLY PEBBLE BED REACTORS. Then put the waste in Yucca Mountain; it's as good a place as any other and we've already built a facility to store nuclear waste there anyway.

      Welfare: While people are searching for a job, go ahead, but make sure they provide proof they're searching for a job and that welfare only lasts for a very limited period of time. Make sure that no one can just live off of welfare.

      Free Trade: Very much depends on the situation. I think governments should have the right to impose tariffs or subsidies if they want to.

      Space Exploration: I'm a big supporter of space exploration, but I am of the opinion that robotic explorers have done much more than actual people have - people just stand around and say, "Look, we're in space!" Then everyone says, "Wow," and very little of scientific value is accomplished. This is the future. Probably a very distant future, but still the future. We can't let America fall behind.

      Foreign Issues

      Military Spending: Make it more efficient. Pay for things the military needs. Just this simple thing would lower military spending dramatically. However, make sure the military is ready for war with anyone at any moment.

      Diplomacy/Sanctions: We should use this instead of going to war, but many American doves seem to think that war is completely avoidable and diplomacy can replace it in all cases. This is not true and is in fact very blockheaded.

      Israel: Israel is a staunch ally of the United States. Palestine is a staunch enemy of the United States. Even if you would want to change this (which a reasonable person wouldn't), a Palestine-US partnership would never work because Palestinians don't trust the US (almost at all), and Americans don't trust the Palestinians (vast majority), as opposed to the Israeli-American relationship, which has been going strong since the 1960s and should be at the very least maintained and in a best case scenario strengthened.

      Syria: We could've militarily interfered instead of going to Libya (which was a blockheaded move), but the window for serious assistance to the rebels has passed.

      Afghanistan: Uncertain about this one. On the one hand, 'the mission' (to end the Neotaliban guerilla war) is incomplete, but a much bigger threat to the US exists at Afghanistan's western border. Iran and the Taliban nearly went to war in 1998 -- the world would've been so much better today if they had...:(

      Terrorism: Obama's policy is pretty good for the most part, but there's no use to treating passengers like dangerous criminals, the way they are at airports. Just make sure airport and airplane staff are heavily armed; other than that pre-9/11 airport security levels are sufficient.

      Electoral Issues/Government

      Voting Regulations: Using ID cards seems reasonable to limit fraud, but it's not something I could get excited over because much fraud doesn't exist in the US. I honestly think moving voting day to a weekend would decrease turnout -- voting day has been a Tuesday since the 18th century, and I think it would just confuse voters. Voting should be quick, easy, painless, and free from corruption, fraud, and miscounting.

      The Senate: The Senate is very inefficient, but I'm uncertain whether removing the filibuster is really the best option - after all, we shouldn't let a 50-50 with VP tiebreaking majority radically change public policy. Requiring 60 votes for everything is also bullsh**t. Maybe keep the filibuster, but lower the number of votes it takes to break one (down to, say, 55).

      Electoral College: The US is a federal country and not a unitary state. Every state deserves its own, individual voice. Keep the present system. Not a fan of that thing that says states should cast their electoral votes for the national popular vote winner either.

      Gerrymandering: Gerrymandering is bad. To fix it, I personally like shortest-splitline; even a neutral commission can't be really neutral, because after all they are people and have opinions (calling an area a 'community of interest' is, after all, an opinion - I might say it isn't). But mathematics is truly and completely neutral.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: General White on April 04, 2012, 06:03:40 PM
      Social:Conservative-Oppose Gun Control Support Death Penalty Pro-Life Opposes Patriot act Supports Gay Marriage.

      Economic:Progressive-Strongly favor a Progressive tax the rich should pay 60-70% Poor like 5-10% Middle Class 20-25% along with a strong Corporate Tax.Strongly favor Universal Health Care & oppose Welfare Reform.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The world will shine with light in our nightmare on April 10, 2012, 08:56:27 PM
      New here, so figure this is as good a place to start as any...

      Socially: Libertarian, pro-choice, pro-drug legalization, anti-censorship, pro-gay marriage, anti-death penalty, pro-prostitution legalization, pro-wall of separation of church and state, anti-affirmative action racially (though not economically), anti-hate crime (a crime is a crime), pro-more legal immigration, anti-illegal immigration, pro-stem cell research, anti-PATRIOT Act, anti-religious currencies, anti-gun control, pro-legal physician-assisted suicide, pro-legal gambling, anti-term limits, anti-public school prayer, pro-ACLU, pro-lower voting age, pro-campaign finance reform, pro-proportional representation, pro-DC statehood, anti-gerrymandering, pro-voter ID (don't really see how showing your driver's license disenfranchises anyone),

      Economically: Moderate, anti-welfare, pro-union, pro-environment, pro-privatization (though not education), anti-subsidies, anti-voucher, pro-fair tax, anti-deficit, pro-tax cuts (but equally, not just the wealthy), anti-pork, anti-embargo, pro-free trade, anti-healthcare mandate, pro-minimum wage increase, anti-ANWR drilling, anti-Keystone, anti-drilling, pro-NASA,

      Foreign Policy: Non-interventionist, no wars except in self-defense, bring the troops home, pro-three state solution in Palestine, anti-draft, anti-military spending, pro-UN membership, pro-reduction (not elimination) of US nuclear arsenal,

      Generally reasonable positions.  Welcome to the forum.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: They put it to a vote and they just kept lying on April 11, 2012, 05:24:59 AM
      Yes, welcome :)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: © tweed on April 11, 2012, 06:01:48 AM


      I'd take nothing else to be a higher insult


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The world will shine with light in our nightmare on April 11, 2012, 02:29:41 PM

      Whether it's insulting really depends on whether it means you have generally reasonable positions, or that you have enough agreeable positions and enough disagreeable ones that it averages out to reasonable.

      :P It wasn't meant to be insulting.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: courts on May 05, 2012, 04:50:16 PM
      social conservatism. anti abortion, anti-gay marriage (any state marriage really but the whole concept personally annoys me), anti-gun control, anti-immigration, anti-cultural marxism and 'individualism' in general. the 1960s murdered this country.

      third position economics. smash the fed and international financial parasites, credit unions are better. end 'free trade.' replace income tax with some sort of national sales tax (this doesn't have to be regressive). some deregulation and spending cuts would actually make sense but i'm very much in favor of nationalizing large portions of healthcare and oil, coal and natural gas. also i really don't like environmentalism, we need more nuclear power and i want to avoid any 'green' tax hikes or subsidization schemes to fight alleged global warming. we need more industry in general in this country.

      isolationism. bring our troops home and put them at the border. we don't need to spend 6 x more than china as a country and police a bunch of countries for no reason. also we get nothing out of our 'friendship' with israel, they are a burden on the tax payers and war criminals. i consider the neocons to be israeli firsters and un-american, more so than a lot of left wingers.

      against universal suffrage. there need to at least be safeguards like voter testing to screen out the incompetent and lazy. as it is democracy is a highly flawed concept even taking that into account. i don't have a very high opinion of liberal values in general, not everyone is created equal. sorry.

      oh and last but not least end the stupid wars on concepts that don't do anything positive for the country like the war on drugs. the whole fake rambo mentality is pretty nauseating coming from ex-coke heads like bush and obama. not that i like drugs they are disgusting. i hate being surrounded by drug users.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: They put it to a vote and they just kept lying on May 05, 2012, 04:59:51 PM
      Odd philosophy...interesting :P


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on May 05, 2012, 05:03:17 PM
      social conservatism. anti abortion, anti-gay marriage (any state marriage really but the whole concept personally annoys me), anti-gun control, anti-immigration, anti-cultural marxism and 'individualism' in general. the 1960s murdered this country.

      Eh, i think this is our main difference. I'm generally quite libertarian except on gun rights and I think it's kinda misguided to think "cultural Marxism" has any impact left other than attempts at forcing equality

      third position economics. smash the fed and international financial parasites, credit unions are better. end 'free trade.' some deregulation and spending cuts would actually make sense but i'm very much in favor of nationalizing large portions of healthcare and oil, coal and natural gas. also i really don't like environmentalism, we need more nuclear power and i want to avoid any 'green' tax hikes or subsidization schemes to fight alleged global warming. id also be in favor of the fair tax or a vat so long as it was somewhat progressive. i don't want to screw over the poor.

      I agree with most of this except for promoting nuclear power which I think is good as a temporary solution but in the long term unsustainable and risky. I don't like flat taxes either.

      isolationism. bring our troops home and put them at the border. we don't need to spend 6 x more than china as a country and police a bunch of countries for no reason. also we get nothing out of our 'friendship' with israel, they are a burden on the tax payers and war criminals. i consider the neocons to be israeli firsters and un-american, more so than a lot of left wingers.

      Agree, though obvs. we differ on how we percieve Israel.

      against universal suffrage. there need to at least be safeguards like voter testing to screen out the incompetent and lazy. as it is democracy is a highly flawed concept even taking that into account. i don't have a very high opinion of liberal values in general, not everyone is created equal. sorry.

      I support democracy as a check against tyranny, but if a better system came along, sure. It'd be too dangerous to support a limited franchise again imo.

      oh and last but not least end the stupid wars on concepts that don't do anything positive for the country like the war on drugs. the whole fake rambo mentality is pretty nauseating coming from ex-coke heads like bush and obama.

      Agree.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Oakvale on May 05, 2012, 05:05:06 PM
      I'm glad Mint posted here, because instead of having to write a post myself you can just invert every position and voila, you've got my beliefs. :P


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: courts on May 05, 2012, 05:09:53 PM
      I'm glad Mint posted here, because instead of having to write a post myself you can just invert every position and voila, you've got my beliefs. :P
      i thought you liked to enjoy things other than what the liquor store had to offer every so often.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The world will shine with light in our nightmare on May 05, 2012, 05:10:26 PM
      social conservatism. anti abortion, anti-gay marriage (any state marriage really but the whole concept personally annoys me), anti-gun control, anti-immigration, anti-cultural marxism and 'individualism' in general. the 1960s murdered this country.

      third position economics. smash the fed and international financial parasites, credit unions are better. end 'free trade.' replace income tax with some sort of national sales tax (this doesn't have to be regressive). some deregulation and spending cuts would actually make sense but i'm very much in favor of nationalizing large portions of healthcare and oil, coal and natural gas. also i really don't like environmentalism, we need more nuclear power and i want to avoid any 'green' tax hikes or subsidization schemes to fight alleged global warming. we need more industry in general in this country.

      isolationism. bring our troops home and put them at the border. we don't need to spend 6 x more than china as a country and police a bunch of countries for no reason. also we get nothing out of our 'friendship' with israel, they are a burden on the tax payers and war criminals. i consider the neocons to be israeli firsters and un-american, more so than a lot of left wingers.

      against universal suffrage. there need to at least be safeguards like voter testing to screen out the incompetent and lazy. as it is democracy is a highly flawed concept even taking that into account. i don't have a very high opinion of liberal values in general, not everyone is created equal. sorry.

      oh and last but not least end the stupid wars on concepts that don't do anything positive for the country like the war on drugs. the whole fake rambo mentality is pretty nauseating coming from ex-coke heads like bush and obama.

      ()


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on May 05, 2012, 05:11:01 PM
      social conservatism. anti abortion, anti-gay marriage (any state marriage really but the whole concept personally annoys me), anti-gun control, anti-immigration, anti-cultural marxism and 'individualism' in general. the 1960s murdered this country.

      third position economics. smash the fed and international financial parasites, credit unions are better. end 'free trade.' replace income tax with some sort of national sales tax (this doesn't have to be regressive). some deregulation and spending cuts would actually make sense but i'm very much in favor of nationalizing large portions of healthcare and oil, coal and natural gas. also i really don't like environmentalism, we need more nuclear power and i want to avoid any 'green' tax hikes or subsidization schemes to fight alleged global warming. we need more industry in general in this country.

      isolationism. bring our troops home and put them at the border. we don't need to spend 6 x more than china as a country and police a bunch of countries for no reason. also we get nothing out of our 'friendship' with israel, they are a burden on the tax payers and war criminals. i consider the neocons to be israeli firsters and un-american, more so than a lot of left wingers.

      against universal suffrage. there need to at least be safeguards like voter testing to screen out the incompetent and lazy. as it is democracy is a highly flawed concept even taking that into account. i don't have a very high opinion of liberal values in general, not everyone is created equal. sorry.

      oh and last but not least end the stupid wars on concepts that don't do anything positive for the country like the war on drugs. the whole fake rambo mentality is pretty nauseating coming from ex-coke heads like bush and obama.

      ()

      Most Republicans would balk at nationalization.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The world will shine with light in our nightmare on May 05, 2012, 05:15:05 PM
      social conservatism. anti abortion, anti-gay marriage (any state marriage really but the whole concept personally annoys me), anti-gun control, anti-immigration, anti-cultural marxism and 'individualism' in general. the 1960s murdered this country.

      third position economics. smash the fed and international financial parasites, credit unions are better. end 'free trade.' replace income tax with some sort of national sales tax (this doesn't have to be regressive). some deregulation and spending cuts would actually make sense but i'm very much in favor of nationalizing large portions of healthcare and oil, coal and natural gas. also i really don't like environmentalism, we need more nuclear power and i want to avoid any 'green' tax hikes or subsidization schemes to fight alleged global warming. we need more industry in general in this country.

      isolationism. bring our troops home and put them at the border. we don't need to spend 6 x more than china as a country and police a bunch of countries for no reason. also we get nothing out of our 'friendship' with israel, they are a burden on the tax payers and war criminals. i consider the neocons to be israeli firsters and un-american, more so than a lot of left wingers.

      against universal suffrage. there need to at least be safeguards like voter testing to screen out the incompetent and lazy. as it is democracy is a highly flawed concept even taking that into account. i don't have a very high opinion of liberal values in general, not everyone is created equal. sorry.

      oh and last but not least end the stupid wars on concepts that don't do anything positive for the country like the war on drugs. the whole fake rambo mentality is pretty nauseating coming from ex-coke heads like bush and obama.

      ()

      Most Republicans would balk at nationalization.


      () or (), perhaps, then.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Oakvale on May 05, 2012, 05:17:20 PM
      I don't think (?) Mint would object to me characterising his positions as generally fascist, so O-MA might indeed be the proper choice.

      I'm glad Mint posted here, because instead of having to write a post myself you can just invert every position and voila, you've got my beliefs. :P
      i thought you liked to enjoy things other than what the liquor store had to offer every so often.

      Indeed, it's good to know we're not literally opposites on every issue. :P


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: They put it to a vote and they just kept lying on May 05, 2012, 05:30:49 PM
      Now that I've shifted a bit:

      Economic issues: Capitalist. Some regulations on business are necessary. Support mostly free trade agreements, but fair trade is cool too. There are days when I support a flat tax, and there are days when I support a slightly progressive tax system. Overall, if the rich are to pay a higher tax rate, I believe it should be only slightly higher, not extremely higher.

      Social issues: Social Libertarian. States Rights. Marriage for all, legalize drugs, yadda yadda yadda.

      Foreign Policy: Non-interventionist. Decrease foreign aid. See: Ron Paul's foreign policy.

      Domestic policy: Health care should be left to the free market. Immigrant sympathizer, but not necessarily supportive of amnesty. I oppose gun control. Etc.

      Overall: Moderate Libertarian Conservative. I identify as a Republican and will register as such when I'm old enough.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Oakvale on May 05, 2012, 05:33:25 PM
      I identify as a Republican and will register as such when I'm old enough.

      :(


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Marokai Backbeat on May 05, 2012, 05:37:27 PM
      Nothing has changed for me since I posted here in early October (https://uselectionatlas.org/FORUM/index.php?topic=18844.msg3056359#msg3056359), aside from no longer supporting the means testing of Social Security and and turning very very slightly tougher on immigration. As usual I'm just the same as I always am save for occasional minor tweaks and changing in emphasis depending on the time.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: They put it to a vote and they just kept lying on May 05, 2012, 05:38:29 PM
      Mint and I had this discussion some time ago:



      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: They put it to a vote and they just kept lying on May 05, 2012, 05:39:01 PM
      I identify as a Republican and will register as such when I'm old enough.

      :(

      :(


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Oakvale on May 05, 2012, 05:45:23 PM
      ()


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: They put it to a vote and they just kept lying on May 05, 2012, 05:57:53 PM

      ?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The world will shine with light in our nightmare on May 05, 2012, 06:20:06 PM

      'Fascist-Massachusetts', I presume. :P


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Redalgo on May 05, 2012, 06:28:17 PM

      Fascism, though a change of avatar unless to independent would be silly in my opinion since there are no sensible fascist parties to support in the States if one were so inclined to do so. I'm alright with Mint though; we just don't see eye to eye on a lot of issues. :]


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: They put it to a vote and they just kept lying on May 05, 2012, 06:30:27 PM

      Ahhhhhhh.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: greenforest32 on May 05, 2012, 06:32:08 PM
      Nothing has changed for me since I posted here in early October (https://uselectionatlas.org/FORUM/index.php?topic=18844.msg3056359#msg3056359)

      Lots of FF beliefs though I tend to disagree that there shouldn't be any initiatives/referendums:

      Quote
      I do not believe people can govern themselves, and that is why we have a representative democracy, and cannot be trusted to directly make decisions on their own, which is why I oppose any referendum/initiative systems.

      I can definitely see why people would be opposed to an initiative system when you look at some of the stupid crap passed in states (we have plenty of that here :P) but I do think it is a useful destructive power at the moment when you consider that the legislators of most any party in this country are bought off and ultimately represent the people who fund their campaigns and thus will never pass certain economic legislation supported by the supermajority but opposed by the campaign funders.

      In that absence of legitimate representation, I think going to the people directly to pass through the corruption is useful though it does enable the special interests to pass all sorts of other bad legislation (super-majority requirements, term limits, etc) through uninformed voters but it's not like they couldn't pass these things legislatively...

      And veto referendums (citizens contesting laws passed by the legislature) aren't as bad as initiatives either I think. They seem like a good way to counter overreach (Ohio utilized this recently I believe), though I don't think it's a good idea to have veto referendums on civil rights/liberties or on judicial decisions.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Oakvale on May 05, 2012, 06:49:59 PM

      Fascism, though a change of avatar unless to independent would be silly in my opinion since there are no sensible fascist parties to support in the States if one were so inclined to do so. I'm alright with Mint though; we just don't see eye to eye on a lot of issues. :]

      Yeah, I should make clear that  I quite like Mint and we get along fairly well, I think.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: perdedor on May 05, 2012, 07:31:44 PM
      domestic.
      abortion-- i'm opposed to all restrictions on abortion. drug war-- end it immediately. legalize and tax marijuana. decriminalize all other drugs. grant clemency to all non-violent "drug offenders". gun control-- i'm for background checks and mandatory safety locks. i'm generally opposed to everything else. prostitution-- this industry, much like the drug industry, could be safer for both the seller and their clientele if it were legalized. immigration-- i support a guest work program for current illegal immigrants and a path to citizenship. no mass deportation, border moats, or other silly things. lbgt-- i support a constitutional amendment legalizing gay marriage on the federal level. crime-- first nationalize the prison system (no private prisons) and slowly reform it into a community service system of various degrees, the most severe of which would be an arduous labor camp. i'm completely opposed to the death penalty and i don't believe that protesting in a street that you paid for is an arrestable offense. national health-- i like the idea of a flat "health tax" of 5-10% on items such as alcohol, cigarettes, fast food, and soft drinks. there should also be a national standard  by which it's determined what products are given this additional tax, so as to help companies improve their products to avoid the tax. public transit-- i support a national public transit program that works with city governments to improve the quality of local bus and rail services. the ultimate goal being to achieve universal transportation, which could add more versatility and flexibility to the economy. environment-- the most progress we've had in protecting the environment is at the grassroots, market level. it's what we buy and consume that pollutes the environment, naturally. i'm for more environmentally friendly tax incentives and funding of national environmental awareness campaign (as well as a water conservation campaign for drought states such as Texas). energy-- i agree with continuing  clean energy funding in the hopes of eventually finding a realistic, large scale alternative to fossil fuels. education-- i support nationally standardized curriculum (which would include art, foreign language, and elective physical education) and a ban on financially rewarding school districts for standardized test results. the internet-- i oppose any legislative attempt by the government or legal attempt by corporations whose aim is to decrease internet freedom. campaign finance-- i support banning corporations and organizations from donating to campaigns, individual donations only.

      economic.
      employment-- i support a national jobs program that coordinates with state and local governments to put the unemployed to work on rebuilding national infrastructure such as highways, bridges and the previously proposed national transit. this would be a federal program, not a subsidy to state or local government. create a variety of jobs that are easily accessible to the unemployed. favor the currently unemployed in  the hiring process. taxes-- i support a negative-income tax  that ensures a base income of 10,000$ a year to every citizen over the age of 21; this would replace all welfare and government assistance programs. i support a top earners rate of 45%. corporate tax-- eliminate all deductions and loopholes and ensure full participation. keep top rate at 35%. health care-- i am for nationalizing the health care industry and ensuring universal access. trade-- i believe in leveling the playing field and protecting american labor from cheaper, foreign competitors. i support tariffs as a means to raise revenue and believe trade should be dependent on human rights records and environmental standards. minimum wage for tying the minimum wage to inflation and raising it to 10.00$/hr. banking-- i support nationalizing the banking industry and the federal reserve,

      national security/foreign policy.
      i am generally for using the military in a humanitarian capacity. i would be for liberating and industrializing the african continent before i would support going to war with iran over nuclear energy, though even the former would not be an immediate priority. i am for cutting the military budget in half, mostly be reducing our presence around the world.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: courts on May 07, 2012, 06:19:42 AM
      I don't think (?) Mint would object to me characterising his positions as generally fascist, so O-MA might indeed be the proper choice.
      there are some common threads. nationalism, a leeriness towards modern democracy, anti-egalitarianism, desire for independence from international finance, anti-marxism. but classical fascism was imperialist, conflict loving, all encompassing in its goals. it criticized the democratic state for being too weak. if anything i share many of the criticisms of anti-democratic libertarians like hans-herman (http://www.lewrockwell.com/hoppe/hoppe4.html) hoppe (http://www.lewrockwell.com/orig/hermann-hoppe2.html) and bryan caplan. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Myth_of_the_Rational_Voter)

      then again certain developments in the west i view as undesirable (such as the bank bail outs) would be unlikely to have occurred under direct democracy as iceland and other countries have shown us. we can see also that when put entirely to a vote, a lot of modern liberalism fails. hence the modern right's love for referenda and initiatives and constant bleating about activism here in the states. i could go on about the left/liberal drive towards criminalizing 'hate speech' and enacting 'speech codes,' but you get the idea. on some level i feel that a bit of turn around is fair play.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: tpfkaw on May 07, 2012, 10:38:30 PM
      Minty also wants to abolish the tyranny of capitalization. :P


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Marokai Backbeat on May 07, 2012, 11:45:30 PM
      Minty also wants to abolish the tyranny of capitalization. :P

      One of the worst, most pointless, making-a-statement affectations in the world.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: courts on June 02, 2012, 07:16:17 PM
      moderate hero, away!


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RI on June 02, 2012, 07:31:08 PM
      I've generally about where I've been for the past couple of years, but I've grown more anti-democratic and more technocratic in the past few months. Additionally, I find the notion of federalism and devolved power increasinly quaint and undesirable.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on June 02, 2012, 07:44:13 PM
      Ten economic points, because i cant be bothered rewriting everything yet

      1. A new Bretton Woods system and the fixing of exchange rates. Bank of England powers taken back into government hands. Quit the EU, WTO, IMF, World Bank.
      2. Nationalization of key banks, utilities, transport, energy, shipbuilding, steel, automobiles and a large scale reindustrialization program. Use a national champions policy to promote nation over profit. Form a nationally owned mutual bank to give low interest loans to business for development.
      3. Repeal of trade union laws, with co-determination signed into place and state/business/unions to act as checks and balances. Abolition of the minimum wage in favour of collective bargaining.
      4. Heavy regulation on finance to make sure capital serves the nation and not the elites, including a ban on payday loans and a limit of 48% on interest rates.
      5. Introduction of industrial tariffs to protect British industries against unfair competition from countries with little worker/environmental regulation.
      6. Move towards a 30 hour workweek by 2020, combined with huge subsidies for solar power & wind/wave farms in the North Sea.
      7. Merge income tax and National Insurance, re-introduce the 10% rate for lower earners and make tax more progressive - top rate of 80%. Reduce VAT gradually. Introduce Tobin tax and LVT.
      8. Strongly enforce anti-monopoly laws and introduce regulation on supermarkets to decentralize and promote small business.
      9. Move towards a corporatist welfare model, including Japanese style "shataku" housing. Decentralize the NHS and give municipal needs more weight.
      10. Slash military spending, end Trident, legalize and tax drugs/prostitution. Introduce copyleft.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Simfan34 on June 02, 2012, 08:20:43 PM

      Goodness gracious.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: They put it to a vote and they just kept lying on June 02, 2012, 08:49:12 PM

      What?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Simfan34 on June 02, 2012, 08:53:04 PM

      You keep on contradicting yourself!


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TJ in Oregon on June 02, 2012, 10:20:05 PM
      Social Issues:

      Abortion: I do not morally support abortion, however, I believe it should remain legal. I do not support having taxpayer money go to abortion and believe it should only be legal for cases of rape, incest, mother's life or severe deformity.

      :D


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The world will shine with light in our nightmare on June 02, 2012, 10:29:57 PM
      Quote
      Stimulus Spending: Government spending on the economy does not solve economic struggles. However, some spending can help at certain times.

      Quote
      Abortion: I do not morally support abortion, however, I believe it should remain legal. I do not support having taxpayer money go to abortion and believe it should only be legal for cases of rape, incest, mother's life or severe deformity.

      Quote
      Welfare: I do not support a federal welfare program, instead leaving it up to private charity. I support drug testing for all welfare recipients.

      Yeah, these three are in need of serious revision/clarification.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: They put it to a vote and they just kept lying on June 03, 2012, 08:31:37 AM
      Quote
      Stimulus Spending: Government spending on the economy does not solve economic struggles. However, some spending can help at certain times.

      Quote
      Abortion: I do not morally support abortion, however, I believe it should remain legal. I do not support having taxpayer money go to abortion and believe it should only be legal for cases of rape, incest, mother's life or severe deformity.

      Quote
      Welfare: I do not support a federal welfare program, instead leaving it up to private charity. I support drug testing for all welfare recipients.

      Yeah, these three are in need of serious revision/clarification.

      On stimulus spending I said it cannot solve economic struggles, but can help. Putting duct tape on a broken heart doesn't make it not broken.

      The other two I really did contradict myself. Sorry. I'm absolutely awful at construing my thoughts.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Incipimus iterum on June 03, 2012, 11:59:33 AM
      Abortion: Pro-Choice but i favor banning partial-Birth Abortions with the exception of the life of the mother
      Budget; i Support a Balanced Budget Amendment To the U.S Constitution, i support the PAYGO rule
      Gun-Control: i support the right to bear arms but i support a background check on people who buy a gun
      Crime: I'm For the Death Penalty
      Foreign policy: I'm a Internationalist, i believe that we need to defend Israel, and we must promote freedom and democracy abroad, overall im a Scoop Jackson Democrat when it Comes to Foreign policy
      Taxes; I support getting rid of the loopholes in the tax code and making the tax code more simple, and taxes should be simple Lower but fair
      Energy; I support a all of the above Energy policy, i believe we must drill oil safely and make sure that if we Drill in places like Alaska we must make sure the locals approve
      Same-Sex marriage- i support Civil unions, and i support the repeal of DADT       


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Simfan34 on June 03, 2012, 12:02:35 PM
      Simfan clearly has been hitting the bottle again.

      Also, don't try to make fun of me by putting my fucking post in here as your "platform." I've gotten enough shit about it, I don't need more of it from somebody who thinks Jon Huntsman is the saviour of the universe.

      Look man, I might have been a bit tough on you, but realize you're on a Political forum discussing political issues. Any change you make in your positions is going to be scrutinized, picked apart, and ridiculed. Now, you're 15, and to give you credit, my political views were nowhere near as well-defined as yours are now, contradictions aside. I followed the news and all, but I didn't have any set of core values. You've got to realize your views will change, and they're likely to form and erode rapidly at least until you get into college.

      There's no shame in admitting you're changing your views. It was, to a degree, unfair to accuse you of changing your positions for the purposes of Atlasia. But if you truly believe in what you've written, then perhaps you ought to ask yourself if you just don't know what your positions is. No one can ridicule you for that.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The world will shine with light in our nightmare on July 15, 2012, 02:15:43 PM
        I feel like I'm probably going to be updating this again some time, but here we go-


      Social Issues

      Abortion/Women's Health
      • Keep abortion legal nationwide, without restrictions; pass Freedom Of Choice Act
      • Expand access to contraception
      • Allocate public funds towards Stem Cell Research
      • Promote 'safe sex' education programs

      LGBT Issues
      • Repeal DOMA, pass Respect For Marriage Act
      • Legalize same-sex marriage in every state, including adoption rights
      (no preference for whether this should be done through ballot referendums, state legislatures, or courts)
      • Include sexual orientation in hate crime laws

      Drugs
      • End the ‘Drug War’ and withdraw funds; cease distribution of funds to fight drugs in other countries
      • Legalize, regulate, and tax the sale of marijuana
      • Legalize most drugs, with the exception of methamphetamine or any drugs that cause direct harm to bystanders

      Prostitution
      • Legalize and tax prostitution
      • Require routine medical tests and strictly enforce health standards

      Guns/Crime
      • Support conceal-carry and 'castle doctrine' laws
      • Support the Brady background checks
      • Oppose handgun bans
      • Neutral on assault weapon bans
      • Oppose the death penalty

      Education
      • Support public schools, but not misguided spending; reform the system from within
      • Adopt a Finland-based system and repeal 'No Child Left Behind'
      • Reward public schools that succeed, and redesign failing ones

      Immigration
      • Enforce immigration laws; use defense funds to increase Border Patrol, deploy sensors, and build fences
      • Prosecute businesses that hire illegal immigrants
      • Provide residency for illegal individuals who demonstrate ‘good moral character’ by pursuing higher education or serving for at least two years in the US military
      • Oppose English-only legislation; strengthen bilingual education, instead
      • Do not prosecute children of illegal immigrants
      • Oppose ‘Arizona-style’ immigration proposals

      Euthanasia
      • Allow euthanasia at the consent of individual doctors and their patients

      Church and State
      • Allow voluntary school prayer, but no official teacher-led prayer; allow students to start religious groups
      • Keep the words ‘under God’ in the Pledge of Allegiance
      • Do not let religious dogma influence policy decisions

      Economic Issues

      Affirmative Action
      • Shift the emphasis on AA strategies from racial preferences to economic empowerment of all disadvantaged citizens; oppose quotas
      • Support equal pay legislation

      Free Trade
      • Generally support free trade; oppose both global laissez faire and protectionist policies
      • Give other countries access to the US market if they apply labor and environmental standards to factories
      • Build a rule-based global trading system

      Health Care
      • Keep the Affordable Care Act in place for the time being, but transition to a public option or single-payer system
      • Cover American citizens from the time of birth

      Welfare
      • Support ‘work-for-welfare’ legislation, such as the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act
      • Drug-testing for welfare recipients has not worked in practice or saved money for welfare programs, but I’m in favor of letting states mandate drug-testing if it’s proven to be a cost-saving measure

      Minimum Wage
      • Support the minimum wage, but exempt small businesses that would not be able to afford it

      Taxes
      • Roll back the Bush tax cuts for top earners, but keep them in place for Americans making below $250,000.  Revert back to Clinton-era tax levels when the economy stabilizes
      • Remove tax loopholes
      • Reduce the Corporate Tax

      Regulations
      • Re-evaluate government regulations; some are necessary, but others have the tendency to benefit large corporations at the expense of small businesses

      Spending Cuts
      • Make deficit reduction a priority, but not one that outweighs the importance of economic recovery
      • Oppose across-the-board spending cuts until the economy stabilizes
      • Evaluate and slash spending that goes  to wasteful or unnecessary projects

      Energy
      • Continue oil drilling, but incentivize the private sector to generate energy from cleaner sources
      • Launch an initiative for the federal and state governments to transition energy sources in public buildings (new heating and air conditioning systems, new lighting, etc.)
      • Keep tax credits for the production and sale of hybrids and environmentally friendly vehicles
      • End government subsidies and tax cuts to oil businesses
      • Lean against Cap and Trade legislation

      Social Security
      • Protect SS funds from being allocated toward unrelated expenditures (lock box)
      • Raise the Payroll Tax after the economy stabilizes
      • Oppose proposals to raise the retirement age or privatize Social Security

      Unions
      • Balance labor demands with business concerns
      • Negotiate with public unions for pension cuts when necessary, but keep collective bargaining in place

      Foreign Policy/Defense

      PATRIOT ACT
      • Strongly oppose; repeal the law in its entirety and protect Constitutional liberties

      Afghanistan & Iraq
      • Withdraw all military presence from Afghanistan and Iraq

      Israel/Palestine
      • Support a two-state solution; craft a foreign policy that pertains to the needs of both Israelites and Palestinians
      • Keep both entities accountable for upholding promises

      Iran
      • Use embargoes and isolationist techniques against Iran, but commit no military action unless there is clear evidence that a nuclear arms program is being developed

      Syria
      • Oppose US intervention in Syria.

      Military Spending
      • Withdraw troops from Korea, China, Japan, Europe, and elsewhere
      • Reduce overall spending on defense; reallocate some funds toward border protection

      Electoral Issues/Government

      Voter Regulations/ID Cards
      • Support distribution of voter ID cards, but not at the expense of the individual
      • Oppose any reform laws that might disenfranchise voter participation
      • Allow early voting and count absentee votes

      Electoral College
      • Abolish the electoral college; let new presidents be selected via popular vote.

      Washington D.C.
      • Let the citizens decide if they want to remain a district or become a part of Virginia/Maryland, but only at the consent of the state that would incorporate the district.

      Puerto Rico
      • Let the citizens decide on statehood.

      Senate
      • Eliminate use of the filibuster
      • Reduce Senate terms to four years instead of six
      [/list]


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Atlas Has Shrugged on July 15, 2012, 03:16:57 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: States should decide this issue. I oppose abortion on a personal level strongly, and believe that life is sacred.

      Same-sex marriage: This issue also is a states’’ rights issue, but I think government should not regulate marriage at all. That way, the government does not have to recognize same sex marriages, which I mixed on. My religion quite clearly states that it is wrong. But I think it is just as wrong for me to force my views on two people in love. By removing marriage from politics, I can go to a church that does not have to recognize same sex marriage, and I don't have to force my views on homosexuals, who are loved by God just as much as a heterosexual.

      Drug legalization: I support legalization of marijuana at a state level. I think the "war on drugs" targets minorities unfairly, and is way too costly to keep up. If marijuana was legal, than it would quickly be taken over by corporations, and regulated in the same way that beer and tobacco is regulated. It is easier for me to get pot than is beer these days.

      Prostitution: It is a states right to legalize it, but I think it should be legal, as long as it is not on the street. Local governments should regulate whether or not street prostitution should be legal, but as long as normal prostitution is legal, "pimping" should become obsolete.

      Guns: The 2nd Amendment clearly states that every citizen has a right to own a gun, and no state should be able to do away with that. However, if I did support gun control, I would want the state to ban the sale of guns, which is the only constitutional way to do so.

      Education: Education is a complex issue. I support the abolition of the Department of Education, and allow the states to run their own education programs. In Florida, the school system should focus on teaching, not testing, and the power of the teachers union should be curbed. The school system should only teach students in English, and non English speakers should be taught English along with their classes.

      Immigration: I support placing the military on the border. I also support an immigration reform program that would slowly grant citizenship to illegals that complete the following three steps-1. Learn English, 2. Serve in the military or complete a large amount of community service, and 3. Have no criminal record. The Constitution should be amended to say that children of parents who are citizens born in foreign countries should be able to be elected President, and children born to parents who are not citizens but living in America should NOT be able to get citizenship.

      Stem Cell Research: Stem cell research is full of potential, but must be done by private companies.

      Euthanasia: Doctors should not have the power to end life, only prolong it. If a patient truly is in pain, they have the ability to kill themselves without the help of a Doctor.

      English as the official language: English should be the official language of the USA, and being able to speak it should be a requirement for citizenship.

      School prayer: Each individual school should decide whether it’s allowed.

      Pledge of Allegiance: We should keep 'under God' in the Pledge of Allegiance.

      Economic Issues

      Affirmative Action: End it. Its reverse discrimination.

      Trade: Pull out of NAFTA, and other treaties which violate our sovereignty. Enact tariffs on all imports, but nothing higher than 5%.

      Health Care: Each state should be able to decide their own programs, but I support the Federal Government opening up state lines to make competition for insurance companies. I also support the programs of Medicaid, Medicare, and Social Security, but they must be reformed for future generations.

      Welfare: I support mandatory drug testing for welfare recipients on a state level.

      Minimum Wage: Each state should decide this.

      Monetary Policy: The Constitution gives the right to coin and regulate the value of money to Congress, not private banks. Therefore, the Federal Reserve is unconstitutional, and should be abolished. The Fed should be replaced by the system we had prior to the Federal Reserve, and the gold standard should be reinstated.

      Taxes: I think the Federal income tax should be abolished, and replaced with a consumption tax. All other taxes should be flat.

      Regulation: Some regulations are needed. Each state should decide their own regulations.

      Spending Cuts: Pass a balanced budget amendment to the US Constitution.

      Energy: The government should not be involved in energy. The Department of Energy should be abolished, and the Federal Government should open up ANWR, and each state should decide whether they want offshore drilling.

      Social Security: Social Security should not be looted to fund other programs. It needs reforms to survive, and a cap should be placed on new members for all those born after 2020.

      Unions: States should decide their own laws. I think that Unions are out of control, and that businesses should decide whether or not their employees can join a union. If the employees go on strike, and the owner does not want to make concessions, he can fire all of the strikers. It's his right.

      Foreign Policy/Defense

      PATRIOT ACT: Repeal it! Repeal it! Repeal it!

      Afghanistan: Pull out, it’s unwinnable.

      Cuba: End the embargo, and open up relations with Cuba. End "wet foot dry foot", and begin deporting illegal Cuban immigrants.

      Iraq: Withdrawal all troops from Iraq, and investigate whether or not WMDs were ever there. The US should prosecute those involved in any cover-up.

      Israel/Palestine: End US support and aid for Israel and Palestine until a two state solution can be made. Have both the US embassy in Israel and the US Embassy in Palestine (if there is one) in Jerusalem. Recognize Palestinian statehood, but demand that Israel’s sovereignty be recognized by Palestine.

      Iran: I would pressure Iran to end their program, but it's their country, not ours, and we have no rights to tell them what they should do and what they should not do. I would not place any sanctions on any nation.

      Syria: I support humanitarian aid for civilians, but nothing more.

      Military Spending: Cut it by 40%, and refocus our attention to our own Hemisphere. Close foreign bases.

      Electoral Issues/Government

      Voter Regulations/ID Cards: States rights issue, but Florida should not enact a law like this, as it could lead to a national ID card situation.

      Electoral College: Fine as it is.

      Washington D.C.: Fine as it is. I think the number of states should be capped at 50.

      Puerto Rico: End our control, and let them be independent. No statehood, what so ever. End the special tax breaks in the mean time, and when the independence process is nearly complete, end US citizenship for its inhabitants.

      Senate: I oppose the filibuster, but no reform is needed. Keep the popular election of Senators, but allow each state to decide if they want their Senators/Representatives to have term limits.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The world will shine with light in our nightmare on July 15, 2012, 04:35:06 PM
      Guns: The 2nd Amendment clearly states that every citizen has a right to own a gun, and no state should be able to do away with that. However, if I did support gun control, I would want the state to ban the sale of guns, which is the only constitutional way to do so.

      I'm confused. :P


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Atlas Has Shrugged on July 15, 2012, 04:40:15 PM
      Guns: The 2nd Amendment clearly states that every citizen has a right to own a gun, and no state should be able to do away with that. However, if I did support gun control, I would want the state to ban the sale of guns, which is the only constitutional way to do so.

      I'm confused. :P
      I meant to put sales in italics :P You should be able to have a gun, but they are vague on buying a gun....;) I still think the sale of guns should remain legal, of course, I just found a loophole that could be exploited.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: They put it to a vote and they just kept lying on July 16, 2012, 11:56:20 AM
      Guns: The 2nd Amendment clearly states that every citizen has a right to own a gun, and no state should be able to do away with that. However, if I did support gun control, I would want the state to ban the sale of guns, which is the only constitutional way to do so.

      I'm confused. :P

      I am too.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Atlas Has Shrugged on July 16, 2012, 04:17:50 PM
      Guns: The 2nd Amendment clearly states that every citizen has a right to own a gun, and no state should be able to do away with that. However, if I did support gun control, I would want the state to ban the sale of guns, which is the only constitutional way to do so.

      I'm confused. :P

      I am too.
      I am 100% against a ban on the sale of guns, or guns themselves. But, sadly, a loophole for those who want to get some form of gun control exists..a ban on guns is unconstitutional, but, technically, a ban on the sale (not the ownership) of guns would be constitutional. That does not mean in anyway that I support gun control.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Free Palestine on July 16, 2012, 04:40:22 PM
      I'll try...

      I consider myself an anarchist, first of all.  But I'll try to discus my views in the context of liberal, bourgeois society, rather than a bunch of theoretical "abolish everything" stuff.

      Abortion -- I've mentioned this before.  In regards to abortion, I'm a total bastard -- I think the social attitudes towards abortion and fetuses should be totally changed, so that aborting an unwanted fetus isn't a big deal, regardless of trimester or reason.  And I believe that as the fetus is in the individual's body, the decision whether or not to abort it is up to nobody but the individual who has the fetus in their body.

      Drugs -- I believe that "soft" drugs should be completely legalized.  "Hard" drugs that pose a serious risk to society (like meth) should have their sale banned perhaps, but not their possession or usage.

      Foreign policy & defense -- I think the U.S. should cut off all non-humanitarian aid to Israel.  I think the U.S. army should be gutted.

      And, actually, I think that the U.S. should just break up into a bunch of smaller states, united by some EU-like supranational entity.

      I believe that Bradley Manning is awesome, and I absolutely despise the whole "Bradley Manning is a traitor" and/or "hang Bradley Manning" crowd.

      Basically, I hate the U.S. government.

      Anyways...

      I think non-commercial filesharing should be legal.

      I believe that gender is a social construct, and not biological.  I would support a completely genderless society, though I'm wary of the sort of cultural revolution that would be required to make such a thing happen.  I can't stand liberal feminists.

      I think the world would be a better place if people at least waited a long while to have kids.  Yes, having kids at like 40 increases risk for defects, but that's what abortion is for!  I can't stand hippy-dippy types who say "what's so wrong with having kids at 13, man?"

      I despise tradition.  My particular cultural pet peeve is when women take their husband's last name and/or give their kids the father's last name.

      I dislike monogamy.  And I don't care much for the nuclear family.

      I think that conscription is a great moral evil.

      I think Iran should be left alone.

      If, say, aliens invaded and killed a bunch of us, and the choice was between humans dying off and humans going back to the values of 3,000 BCE (men fight and do all the important stuff, women shut up and have tons of babies) in order to survive, I'd probably pick the former option.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Zioneer on July 16, 2012, 08:13:29 PM
      Well, here goes. It'll probably be enlarged and changed eventually, but I'm using the basic format from Senator Scott.

      Social Issues

      Abortion: Eeeh, this is a complicated one. I believe abortion should be reduced, and if at all possible, eliminated except for the "incest, rape, and life of the mother" scenarios. I would criminalize most abortions beginning when the baby can survive outside the womb, because if the baby can survive, just induce pregnancy early and then you don't have to abort the baby. Aborting the baby when it can survive is murder, in my opinion. On the flip side, I support birth control that isn't abortion (pills, etc), and would support better sex ed in schools.

      Same-sex marriage: I'm... cautious on this, and would like for there to be civil unions with all the legal authority of a marriage, but if same-sex couples want to call it a marriage, then I guess they can. Just as long as they don't force churches to perform same-sex marriages. I know they won't though, so yeah.

      Drug legalization: I support legalizing, taxing, and regulating the living daylights out of marijuana, and even support international efforts between governments to produce it and undercut cartels, if needed. I don't know enough about other drugs to intelligently comment on those, so I don't know about legalization of most drugs. I do oppose legalizing meth and cocaine though.

      Prostitution: Oppose, though the areas where it's widely practiced (Las Vegas, etc) can keep their legal prostitution. I support efforts to crack down on sex slavery on the flip side.

      Guns: I support banning assault weapons, heavily regulating handguns, banning certain guns altogether, mandatory background checks, and banning the sale of guns to anyone who has had a record of mental instability. I also support cracking down on illegal gun sales.  I guess the Castle doctrine can stay though.

      Education: Adopt a Finland-style system to revamp education entirely, and pump far more money into schools. Also, hire education specialists from successful nations to see what we're doing wrong. Lastly, we should create more scholarships.

      Immigration: No 100 feet tall or whatnot border fences. That's a dumb idea. I think immigration laws should be enforced, but we can't ignore what deporting every illegal immigrant would do to our economy. Perhaps a partial amnesty should be done, and the DREAM Act should definitely be put into law. No Arizona-style immigration laws, they're xenophobic and incredibly stupid. Perhaps a trade deal with Mexico could reduce illegal immigration? Either way, the immigration process should be simplified and streamlined.

      Stem Cell Research: Stem cell research should be legal and federally funded. In fact, there should be tax breaks for people who donate stem cells that aren't from fetuses (this is why it's controversial, right?)

      Euthanasia: I guess it should be allowed if the patient wants it. No clue for patients who can't provide consent.

      English as the official language: (same as Senator Scott except for LDS stuff) I think that newcomers into the country should be incentivized to learn English, even in Spanish-speaking colonies in the country, but I oppose adopting English as the official language.  Strengthen bilingual and immigrant education. Work with the LDS Church to get missionaries and returned missionaries help with teaching English-as-a-Second-Language.

      School Prayer: I support permitting voluntary, non-led prayer in public schools, though I'm personally uncomfortable with taking part in one.

      Pledge of Allegiance: The Pledge of Allegiance is a dumb practice, and I frown upon schools taking part in it. I support legislation to ensure that states can't make it mandatory.

      Economic Issues

      Affirmative Action: It depends; does it help lower-income minorities? If so, support. If it helps well-off minorities, then unsure or vaguely oppose. If it's fair pay and hate crime/anti-discrimination legislation, I support it fanatically.

      Trade: More protectionism in some industries, but not all. Trade deals are fine or useful on a one-on-one basis. We need to rely on China less.

      Health Care: I don't think the ACA went nearly far enough, but it's a good starting point, and the Supreme Court decision solidified the ability to go further. I would support a single-payer Medicare for all system, and would be okay with a public option if push came to shove. This is one of my more important issues.

      Welfare: I support workfare (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Workfare) experiments and would like to see all capable persons on welfare be able to get a job, but I don't have enough info to comment on any specific act. I am opposed to mandatory drug-testing for welfare recipients.

      Minimum Wage: Support increasing the minimum wage for large businesses while at the same time lowering the minimum wage the same amount for small businesses.

      Taxes: Clinton-era taxes for those making over half a million, while keeping Bush tax cuts for those making below half a million. Once the economy starts to recover, roll back the Bush tax cuts slowly, only a bit each year. Gut most tax loopholes.

      Regulation: (Same as Senator Scott except last bit) Government regulations over businesses should be re-evaluated.  Some are necessary and should be implemented where they're necessary, but others tend to benefit large corporations at the expense of competitors and consumers through regulatory capture. Regulate credit-card industries much more. Also, empower the Consumer Finanical Protection Bureau. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Consumer_Financial_Protection_Bureau)

      Spending Cuts: Cut wasteful spending, especially in the military, but "wasteful" must be redefined. Economic recovery is above this issue in priority. We can fix the deficit when the economy is doing okay.

      Energy: Lessen oil-drilling and transition to renewable energy sources. There should be a federal "Green Energy Initiative" created to pave the way for a green energy industry. Tax breaks for clean energy industries is something I'm supportive of. Transitioning the military to clean energy is already happening, and I'm in favor of it. If there's another BP-level screw up in off-shore drilling, break up the corporation that did it and enforce heavy regulations on the next oil company to try. However, I'd also like oil corporations to be given incentives to be more efficient with energy derived from those sources.

      Social Security: (Same as Senator Scott) I support protecting Social Security funds from being allocated toward unrelated expenditures, and support raising the payroll tax after the economy stabilizes.  I oppose any raise in the retirement age and any privatization plan.

      Unions: (Same as Senator Scott) Balance labor demands with business concerns and negotiate with public sector unions when necessary.  I oppose bans on collective bargaining.

      Foreign Policy/Defense

      PATRIOT ACT: I despise the PATRIOT ACT and want it's repeal. I would like a Constitutional Amendment, or at least a series of strong legislation that protects personal liberties, to ensure that something like the PATRIOT ACT never happens again.

      Afghanistan: I support withdrawing all military presence from Afghanistan, though I would personally try and figure out a military proposal that arms whatever's left of Ahmad Shah Massoud's faction (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahmad_Shah_Massoud).

      Iraq: I support withdrawing all military presence from Iraq. We didn't need to be there in the first place.

      Israel/Palestine: I support either a two-state solution that ensures safe conduct between both countries, or a single-state solution that ensures equal rights for the Palestinians. Compromises must be made on both sides, and both need to be accountable.

      Iran: No invasions of Iran, that's the worst idea I've ever heard. Economic embargoes and isolating them from the world stage is much more useful. If they're actually trying to build a nuke, then military action, but under no circumstance should there be an invasion.

      Syria: I support US intervention in Syria, though on a limited level.

      Cuba: End the stupid embargo already, it isn't helping anyone!

      Military Spending: Cut some of it, and reallocate some funds toward clean energy development.

      Electoral Issues/Government

      Voter Regulations/ID Cards: (same as Senator Scott) I support distributing voter ID cards, but I fully oppose requiring the purchase of them.  If possible, include voter ID information on drivers’ licenses.  I oppose any restrictions on voting that causes disenfranchisement and early/absentee ballots should always be counted.

      Electoral College: Keep it, but moderate it's influence somehow.

      Washington D.C.: Let them have a voting Congressional representative. Don't make them a state.

      Puerto Rico: (Same as Senator Scott, except the end comment) Let the citizens decide on statehood, though I'd personally love to see them be the 51st state.

      Senate: Abolish the filibuster, and lower the amount of Senators needed to pass a bill.

      Congress: Increase the number of Congresspeople to make individual Congress members less influential.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Free Palestine on July 16, 2012, 08:53:40 PM
      Oh yeah, and I highly oppose gun control.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Supersonic on July 23, 2012, 08:30:13 PM
      I'm bored and tired, so these answers may be brief. I'll probably update it more thoroughly at another time.

      Social Issues

      Abortion: I'm pretty neutral. Personally pro-life and would like the weekly limit for abortions to be reduced to 12 at least. That's probably the best I can hope for in the UK. In a US context, I would leave it up to the states, but would support parental consent laws before an abortion.

      Same-sex marriage: In favour from a Conservative point of view, bringing in gay marriage strengthens the whole institution of marriage, which is good for society and families as a whole. Scrap that 'Civil Partnership', whatever it is.

      Drug legalization: Oppose. Medical Marijuana is alright, I guess. Otherwise I don't support the legalization of drugs.

      Prostitution: Oppose. Not much else to say really.

      Guns: I would support gun law relaxation in the UK, though the chances of that happening, even under Cameron is nil. In a US context, I would strongly support the 2nd Amendment, oppose most gun regulations, probably be an NRA member, allow concealed carry laws (with a required license) etc. Though I oppose gun carrying on national parks.

      Education: I'm all in favour of the 'Free School' and 'Academies' idea that Michael Gove is promoting in the UK, bringing back tougher qualifications, O-levels, and scrapping useless degrees/subjects will do alot of good.

      Immigration: Restrict. Stop the endless flow of migrants, even though EU laws prevent this. Tighten the guidelines required for entry, increase border control restrictions too.

      Stem Cell Research: Yeah, what's wrong with this?

      Euthanasia: Mmm, not too sure on this. Probably lean-oppose, but I wouldn't criminalize people who aid relatives who go abroad for it.

      English as the official language: Yes, yes, yes. Put it in the Constitution.

      School Prayer: I went to a Church of England school and had school prayer. Nothing wrong with it. Leave it up to the school governors/parents to decide.

      Pledge of Allegiance: Support it, although it's not really a UK thing.

      Economic Issues

      Affirmative Action: Urgh no. Scrap.

      Trade: Gotta love a bit of Free Trade.

      Health Care: Increase the privatization of the NHS, it's time to stop squandering money into the bottomless pit of nationalized health care. Continue to promote private sector involvement. In a US context, I opposed the ACA.

      Welfare: I support  mandatory drug-testing for welfare recipients, and the new 'three strikes and your out' law, which ensures individuals don't scrounge on the welfare system, when some people are genuinely in need.

      Minimum Wage: Leave it as it is.

      Taxes: Lower across the board. Take low income earners out of the tax bracket, reduce the top rate of income tax to 40%, then, depending on the economic situation, to 35%.

      Regulation: Too much bureaucracy and government involvement. (Generic, tired, answer)

      Spending Cuts: Cut, cap, balance. (US) Cut big time on Health and Welfare, stop cutting Defense and the Police. (UK)

      Energy: Investigate renewable energy sources.  Tax breaks for clean energy industries is something I'm supportive of. However, I'd also like oil corporations to be given incentives to be more efficient with energy derived from those sources. I'm very much in favour of increased Nuclear Power, and would support offshore oil drilling.

      Social Security: Make a compulsory pension fund for all workers over-21, which they can access when they retire.

      Unions: Ensure that Unions cannot strike without the support of over 50% of all their members, introduce emergency anti-strike legislation if need be. Allow the firing of workers who go out on strike and don't return to work.

      Foreign Policy/Defense

      PATRIOT ACT: Support general anti-terrorism legislation. It's a necessary evil.

      Afghanistan: Stay in until the jobs done, whenever that will be.

      Iraq: This isn't really relevant now, but I would have supported the surge in a US context.

      Israel/Palestine: As a general rule, I'm a big supporter of Israel and oppose Palestinian UN recognition.

      Iran: Keep nothing off the table. Invasion included. Increase sanctions and international pressure.

      Syria: Do a "Libya" on Syria, even if it doesn't have UN recognition.

      Cuba: Leave it as it is.

      Military Spending: Restore pre-2010 spending levels. (Higher than today)

      Electoral Issues/Government

      Voter Regulations/ID Cards: Abhor the use of ID cards. Voter regulations aren't really a UK issue, though from what I read I tend to agree with them in a US context.

      Electoral College: Keep it.

      Washington D.C.: Leave it as it is.

      Puerto Rico: Leave it as it is.

      Senate: Abolish the filibuster to 55, otherwise leave it as it is.

      Congress: Leave it as it is.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Maxwell on July 24, 2012, 02:21:25 AM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: Absolutely pro-choice, not the governments job in this medical procedure.

      Same-sex marriage: again, government has no role in defining marriage, gays should be married.

      Drug legalization: In my world, all drugs would be legal. But to keep it sane, I would legalize marijuana, and treat other drugs as a public health issue, not as a criminal issue.

      Prostitution: What kind of libertarian doesn't love PROSTITUTES? Am I right, or Am I right?

      Guns: take your guns where you want to take your guns, what guns you like. Its important part of protecting our freedoms.

      Education: Voucher programs have proven success, so i would support that, instead of throwing more money at the issue, as it has tended to be handled.

      Immigration: I'm not against reform to make it slightly easier, but until some good reform comes, we have to enforce our border, and do that by taking our troops out of all the unnecessary wars that we are currently in.

      Stem Cell Research: I don't know if the government should fund it, but i just know people should be allowed to at least research it.

      School Prayer: In public schools, no. In private schools, yes. I think that is the way it is.

      Pledge of Allegiance: I'm an atheist, but this isn't really an issue to me.

      Economic Issues

      Affirmative Action: Not the governments job.

      Trade: absolutely.

      Health Care: The government shouldn't be involved in this, basically because i fear the corruption of this area of importance. The individual mandate, a conservative idea adopted by a left of center president, is a poisonous, unconstitutional idea.

      Welfare: I would support abolishing in my world, but again, if i were to live in this world, I would drug test those who want it.

      Minimum Wage: I'd say abolish it, so that teens can really work, even if it means that they have to actually work in order to get promoted or a pay raise or ect.

      Taxes: get rid of the lobbyists and the corporate intrest by flattening the tax code to 15% to 20% and getting rid of all the corporate subsidies. If you can't survive on your own as a company than you probably shouldn't artifically survive thanks to the government.

      Spending Cuts: Cut ALL ACROSS THE BOARD. We're blowing money through a water hole. Cut defense, bring our troops home, while at the same time, cutting entitlement programs, and abolishing several departments of government.

      Energy: I would support people in their quest for cleaner energy, or more efficent energy to replace what we have.

      Social Security: privatize. boom.

      Unions: Ensure that Unions cannot strike without the support of over 50% of all their members, introduce emergency anti-strike legislation if need be. Allow the firing of workers who go out on strike and don't return to work.

      Foreign Policy/Defense

      PATRIOT ACT: Unconstitutional, and blasphemous to our way of life. Repeal immiediately.

      Afghanistan: Get out, immediately.

      Iraq: see afghanistan.

      Israel/Palestine: not our business

      Iran: look at actions, not intentions. We needn't be the policemen of the world.

      Syria: see everything else i've said.

      Cuba: stop our trade enbargo on Cuba.

      Military Spending: slash to 2003 levels.

      Electoral Issues/Government

      Voter Regulations/ID Cards: Just showing your ID to vote is fine with me. Otherwise, voter fraud is ridicolously low and not an issue.

      Constitution: awesome.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Del Tachi on July 30, 2012, 11:54:58 AM
      Abortion: Generally supportive of the status-quo.  I believe that the Roe v. Wade decision has provided a reasonable framework that protects both a woman’s right to choose and state autonomy.  The Roe decision should be protected, but the states should be allowed to write their own laws outside of that.  I reject being classified as siding with the “Pro-Choice” or “Pro-Life” lobbies, as neither one of these terms really reflect my “middle-of-the-ground” stance on the issue.  Support federal funding for stem cell research.   

      Gay Rights: Opposed the overturning of DADT; I believe that issues regarding sexuality on the battlefield serve as nothing more than a distraction and that the discussion of sexual topics--whether they be heterosexual or homosexual--does nothing to further the American military.  I believe that homosexual marriage should be a state issue, but I do see federal involvement in the matter to be necessary.  I believe that federal tax benefits should be reserved for heterosexual couples as a way for the government to encourage procreation among the population.  Not generally supportive of homosexual adoption, but believe that it should be a state issue.     

      Sex and Prostitution: Legalization of prostitution should be a state issue.  That being said, I would not like such a vulgar practice to be visible in my community.   

      Second Amendment: Supportive of the Second Amendment and believe that its text protects the rights of law-abiding private citizens to purchase and carry firearms.  Supportive of “castle laws” that allow citizens to protect their life and private property through the use of deadly force.  Believe that background checks and regular gun registration should be required for gun owners.  Support closing the gun-show loophole.  Would consider a reenactment of the assault weapons ban that was in place during the 1990s.   

      Drug War: Since the drug trade is international in nature, I  believe that issues relating to drugs necessitate federal involvement.  I support working more closely with other nations around the world to suppress the drug trade where it starts.  Should increase funding to anti-drug programs in both schools and prisons, with habitual drug users being send to court-mandated rehabilitation.  Penalties should be strengthened for drug offenders and prison sentences should be instituted for first-time drug offenses.  Believe that the federal government should tie state drug laws to highway funding, as they have done with alcohol as to discourage states from passing pro-drug laws.         

      Economic issues

      Education: Favor the NCLB’s approach of standards-based curricula in education reform.  Would increase federal involvement in K-12 education in order to ensure that students are excelling in core areas essential to academic success.  Would encourage the Department of Education to develop benchmark standards for grades K-12 and require all students to be tested in these areas annually.  Support tying education funding to school performance, allowing the methods that work the best to receive the most support.  However, I realize that this may come at the expense of poorer, more rural schools who also need more federal assistance and I would put into place programs to specifically aid schools such as these. 

      Believe that secondary education should be reformed as to place more emphasis on vocational education for students who do not excel in more traditional college-preparatory classes.   Stricter enforcement of anti-truancy laws is essential to lowering the dropout rate, and I believe that the legal dropout age should be raised to 18.

      Opposed to charter schools as they take necessary funds away from public school programs.  Would also like to see shorter school years and school days.  American children spend more time in school now then ever and we have no results to show for it.  I believe that shorter school days (especially for younger children) and shorter school years (especially for older children) would help students be able to focus more while in the classroom and allow older students to gain more experiences through internships, part-time jobs or other personal enrichment courses.       

      Tax Code: Favor adopting the Bowles-Simpson plan, closing loopholes and limiting deductions.  Support linking the Alternative Minimum Tax to inflation.  Individual tax rates are good where they are.  Support raising payroll taxes on high income earners.  Institute a flat tax rate for corporations.     

      Entitlement programs:  Generally supportive of protecting Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security.  However, I believe that these programs need reforms in order to protect their solvency.  Encourage partial privatization of Social Security by allowing future beneficiaries to move their funds into government-approved private investment accounts.  Support a watered-down version of the Ryan Plan for Medicare reform.  More Medicaid assistance to the states.

      Health care:  Generally opposed to the Affordable Care Act due to the presence of the individual mandate.  Would favor partial repeal.  Support using innovative free-market solutions, such as allowing insurers to compete across state lines, to increase access to insurance by lowering premiums.  Support extensive tort reform in order to lower the costs of medical treatment.  Favor streamlining the FDA-approval process in order to reduce costs.  Think that small businesses should be able to “pool” together in order to hold a larger stake when negotiating insurance contracts for their employees.   

      Labor Unions: Believe that the right to form a union is protected by the First Amendment right to assembly.  Unions preserve a delicate balance between the importance of a business’ bottom line and the welfare of its employees.  Do not support a federal “Right to Work” law because I do not believe that the federal government should be allowed to place conditions on such terms of employment. 

      Living Wage: Support linking the federal minimum wage to inflation. 

      Free Trade: Strongly supportive of free trade as a way to increase the United States’ exports.  Believe that free trade is advantageous to both the United States and foreign nations.  Would work to establish free trade zones around the world, especially within the Americas and European Union. 

      Immigration Reform: Support amnesty for law-abiding illegals who have resided in the country for at least seven years.  Support passage of the DREAM Act and the establishment of a guest-worker program and a more generous Visa program.  Support the strengthening of our border security as a matter of national security.  Encourage ESL courses as a means of assimilation.  Reform and streamline the legal immigration process as to deter those seeking to enter the country illegally.  Increase humanitarian aid to Latin America in order to decrease poverty in the region and to encourage economic development.   

      Energy Independence and the Environment:  Favor increasing investment in alternative sources of energy as well as more traditional sources of energy.  Would look to see a renewed focus on research and development rather than the commercialization of currently inefficient energy sources.  Support streamlining the licensing process for the construction of nuclear power stations.  Support increasing oil drilling on federal lands, including offshore, in oil shale and in ANWR.  Support the promotion of natural gas as a suitable energy source.  Support the completion of the Keystone XL oil pipeline.     

      Transportation: Support increasing federal funding to transportation programs across the nation.  Build more highways, enlarge airports and seaports, improve access to public transportation and increase support for rail initiatives.  Support more government involvement in wireless infrastructure to expand access to broadband Internet access. 

      NASA -Space Exploration: Strongly support the federal government’s role in the space program.  Believe that the emphasis should be shifted from space exploration to research and development.  Would set goals for permanent lunar research stations and regular trips to Mars by 2040. 
       
      Foreign Policy

      Iraq:  Support continued U.S. presence in Iraq through the use of development grants and security training.  Iraq should be our top “emerging ally” in the region and a secular Iraq is necessary for a pro-American Middle East.

      Afghanistan: Support increased troop levels in Afghanistan as a way to reduce violence.  Work diplomatically with Afghan government to decrease corruption and continue to fight terrorism.   

      Iran:  Continue to press for harder sanctions through the United Nations.  Encourage paramilitary forces in ousting current regime.   

      Pakistan:  Continue to diplomatically pressure Pakistan to aid in the fight against terrorism.   

      Israel/Palestine:  Supportive of Israel.  Increase American aid to Israeli government.  Oppose creation of Palestinian state.  As one of the only secular democracies in the region, Israel deserves the United States’ support on moral grounds. 

      European Union:  Start to dissolve ties with the EU, favoring instead forming stronger coalitions among its individual members.  Work for stronger relations with Germany and France while maintaining strong relations with the United Kingdom.   

      Eastern Europe: Expand American presence in Eastern Europe by increased economic aid and trade.  Give Eastern European nations an “alternative” to Russian influence.   

      Russia:  Deliver Russia an ultimatum on its support of undemocratic, rogue nations.  Make some big scene on the international stage in order to attempt to “embarrass” the Russian government.  Go toe-to-toe with Putin over Syria and Iran.  Fund paramilitary groups in Chechnya and other breakaway provinces.   

      Arab Spring: While supportive of the right to self-determination for Arab peoples, support American friendly governments in the region.  Put pressure on the new Egyptian government to maintain friendly relations with Israel.        

      United Nations:  Support continued American presence in the United Nations, if only to maintain our likeability around the world.  Support reforming the Security Council to allowed for more varied interests to be represented.   

      Democracy-Related Issues

      District of Columbia: Count residents of the District of Columbia as residents of the state of Maryland for the purposes of Congressional representation.  Allow D.C. residents to vote in Maryland congressional elections.   

      Puerto Rico: Favor Puerto Rican independence.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Peter the Lefty on August 13, 2012, 09:20:51 PM
      Abortion: Pro-choice.  Support Roe v. Wade and federal funding for abortions, and strongly support stem-cell research

      Gay rights: Well, since I'm gay, there isn't really much to say.  I think I should have the right to get married to whoever I end up with, and to adopt and raise kids with him.  And while I can't see myself serving in the military, I think my fellow queers should have the right to do so openly. 

      Prostitution: Not something I'd engage in, but I don't think the government has a right to say that people shouldn't be allowed to do.  Support legalization.  Just keep it in places where no one will see it and away from residential areas.

      Marijuana: Less addictive than alcohol.  Support legalization on that basis. 

      Second Amendment: In favor of tougher regulations on who can own guns, and what kind of guns civilians should be allowed to own. 

      Education: Put heavy investments into poor and rural schools.  Funding should go to hiring and training more teachers to cut class sizes.  Students should also not be judged based on their standardized test scores.  Also, I don't support the mandatory recitation of the pledge of allegiance.  Also, I support the abolishment of college tuition fees. 

      Health care: Support a single-payer system. 

      Taxes: Favor closing loopholes and raising taxes on the wealthy dramatically to a maximum rate of 65% for those earning above $2 billion a year.  I do think everyone earning $1,000,000 a year should also pay 60%. 

      Social Security: Call me a left-wing loonie.  Our cushion of protection is very limited and should be expanded by 50% at least.  Medicare and Medicaid should also be funded better. 

      Unions: Very pro-unions and for fighting to preserve their collective bargaining rights. 

      Minimum wage: Should be raised to $10/hour, and should be higher in some places depending on the cost of living (should be at least $18/hour in NYC, for example).  Shouldcohen be linked with inflation. 

      Trade: For fair trade. 

      Immigration: Support eaisier pathways to citizenship for illegal immigrants.  Support a stronger, but less intimidating-looking border. 

      Environment: Climate change is real, better believe it.  Support cap-and-trade and more conservation programs. 

      Energy: Support heavy investments in solar, wind, and other clean energy.  Oppose nuclear energy too. 

      Transportation: Support heavy new investments in it.  Also support the creation of a national high-speed railway. 

      Iraq: #BigMistake

      Iran: Sanctions are too across-the-board.  Should be oriented more at the country's leaders rather than the population. 

      Afghanistan: Support withdrawal of all troops by this time next year.  Should continue to aid Afghan government in the fight against the Taliban, but we should also pressure it to become less corrupt and more democratic. 

      Israel/Palestine: Cut ties to Israel and propose sanctions on it until it allows civillian goods into Gaza and withdraws all settlements from the West Bank.  Still be tough on Hamas. 

      Military spending and atomic weapons: Support a halt to the building of new atomic weapons and suppor a reduction in the size of our nuclear arsenal.  Support a halt to building of new aircraft carriers, tanks and planes (except for replacements).  In favor of a gradually-implemented 50% (at least) cut in total military spending (though there should be no cuts to anything that might threaten the safety of our troops.). Also support a 30%  increase in Veterans Affairs Department funding. 

      Wall Street: Support he reinstatement of the Glass-Stegall Act along with new, tougher regulations on the banks and Wall Street. 

      Cuba: End the embargo, for God's sake. 

      Arab Spring: Support the uprisings and intervention in Libya.  All for going Libyan-style in Syria. 

      Washington, D.C.: Support statehood for it. 

      Puerto Rico: Support independence for it. 

      Political/Electoral reform: Support strong limits on corporate money in campaigns.  Also support the replacement of FPTP system in the House with MMP.  Also support the abolishment of the Senate since it is unfair that every state has two Senators.  Send those hundred members to the House.  Also, support the replacement of our presidential system with a parliamentary one. 


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: 後援会 on August 26, 2012, 12:29:57 AM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: Preferably safe, legal, and rare. Keep abortion legal up to 20 weeks. Require parental, spousal notification, as well as counseling and ultrasounds. No federal funding for planned parenthood.

      Gay Rights: Oppose DADT. Support the Employee Non-Discrimination Act. Personally extremely morally opposed to homosexual marriage, but I'm not really going to complain about other people getting them. However, I do not want my children to be integrated into a pro-homosexual discourse (like what public education system is moving towards).

      Sex and Prostitution: Prostitution should be legal.

      First Amendment: Protect and defend the Citizens United decision and the right to free speech.

      Second Amendment: Pretty happy with the status quo.  

      Crime: I oppose the death penalty as well as three-strikes laws and mandatory minimum sentences.

      Drug War: We can probably pull back a little. Decriminalize marijuana. Reform drug sentencing. But continue our "drug war" efforts abroad.

      Economic issues

      Education: Discourage colleges, both private and public. It's a bubble and parasite on society that preys on people. We should be sending less people to 4-year institutions and sending them more to vocational schools. As a result, financially support our community colleges and other vocational schools. Support school vouchers, charter schools, and everything that weakens the grip of the public school unions. Though in all fairness, my children will probably be sent to religious schools.

      Tax Code: Heavily cut corporate taxes. Simplify the tax codes and kill most tax deductions (besides charity and the earned income tax deduction), especially the mortgage deduction. Lower the income tax rates and maybe institute a national sales tax to make up for the difference.

      Entitlement programs: Support the Ryan Plan tentatively. Enthusiastically support whatever highly-watered down version of the Ryan Plan actually makes it through Congress.

      Health care: Opposed to Obamacare due to lack of actual cost control measures. Total waste of effort. Support partial repeal. Institute rationing boards for all public healthcare systems (medicare, medicaid), similar to how NHS rations based on QALY. Try to move towards universal catastrophic health insurance.

      Labor Unions: Federal right-to-work law. Ban public unions from striking or collective bargaining. Ban unions from collecting mandatory dues. We need to destroy union power.

      Minimum Wage: I'd preferably the abolish the minimum wage, but barring that, I'm okay with keeping it where it is right now.

      Free Trade: Seek to tear down all trade barriers through mutually beneficial bilateral negotiation. Support the TPP.

      Immigration Reform: Create a very large guest-worker program. Generally reform the legal immigration system on Canadian lines (more legal immigrants, preference toward skilled immigrants). Oppose English as the official language. Stop deportation. End birthright citizenship.

      Energy Independence and the Environment: Eh. All-of-the-above approach, etc. Pursue coal, natural gas, shale, wind, solar, nuclear, and everything. Environmental concerns should not be taken seriously.

      Transportation: Privatize Amtrak. It's a failure. Besides that, we're doing a pretty fine job already.

      Space Exploration: Scrap all further space exploration.
       
      Foreign Policy

      My foreign policy views and goals are perfectly aligned with those of the United States government.

      Electoral Issues

      District of Columbia: Status-quo

      Puerto Rico: Up to the Puerto Rican People


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Donerail on August 26, 2012, 06:47:51 AM
      Gay Rights: I do not want my children to be integrated into a pro-homosexual discourse (like what public education system is moving towards).

      Education: Discourage colleges, both private and public. It's a bubble and parasite on society that preys on people. We should be sending less people to 4-year institutions and sending them more to vocational schools. As a result, financially support our community colleges and other vocational schools. Support school vouchers, charter schools, and everything that weakens the grip of the public school unions. Though in all fairness, my children will probably be sent to religious schools.

      Labor Unions: Federal right-to-work law. Ban public unions from striking or collective bargaining. Ban unions from collecting mandatory dues. We need to destroy union power.

      Have you met Krazen1211 yet?

      First Amendment: Protect and defend the Citizens United decision and the right to free speech.

      Or Vosem?

      Environmental concerns should not be taken seriously.

      Well that's interesting...
       
      My foreign policy views and goals are perfectly aligned with those of the United States government.

      As is this...


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: They put it to a vote and they just kept lying on August 26, 2012, 10:09:59 AM
      Space Exploration: Scrap all further space exploration.

      ...


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: World politics is up Schmitt creek on August 26, 2012, 10:15:29 AM
      Environmental concerns should not be taken seriously.
      Quote

      Quote
      Scrap all further space exploration.

      I don't really think we can do both of these things.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: 後援会 on August 26, 2012, 08:17:38 PM
      When I mean environmental concerns, I'm referring to the environmental concerns around our energy policy. I do not find the environmental concerns around fracking, mountain-top mining, the keystone pipeline, nuclear power, or any of these convincing.

      Of course, climate adaptation is an issue, but that is largely an agricultural, infrastructure (levees, etc.), and foreign policy problem (participation in global climate adaptation programs). I find the idea that we should curb industry in order to halt emissions non-serious because every 10% cut in US emissions is offset by roughly 6 months of Chinese industrial growth. Let alone Indian, Brazilian, etc.

      And there is no good argument in favor of space program besides "voters like sci-fi".


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Donerail on August 26, 2012, 09:11:33 PM
      I do not find the environmental concerns around fracking, mountain-top mining, the keystone pipeline, nuclear power, or any of these convincing.

      I tend to find pumping millions of gallons of chemicals into my groundwater (not to mention oil), blowing the tops off of mountains, and being irradiated rather convincing.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: courts on August 27, 2012, 11:42:15 PM
      interesting that virtually everyone is summing up their views with positions rather than actual concepts...


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Frodo on August 30, 2012, 11:25:01 PM
      Actually, it's not that interesting. This thread would be more compelling if it consisted of something other than laundry lists of issue positions. You may as well copy-paste your answers from the political matrix quiz, for all the insight that these responses provide.

      Originally those where the kinds of answers given, until nickshepDem and Beet started doing a 'laundry list' of their positions on the issues -I believe this was on pages 2 and 3.  From then on, nearly everyone followed suit.  


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: 後援会 on August 31, 2012, 01:47:27 AM
      I don't mean to suggest that the format that's been followed is an entirely vapid exercise. It's just that it seems to consist of people listing positions and the occasional critical comment about one or two items from the list. I suppose that can be useful, but I've never seen much engagement in this thread. Which is unfortunate! Many of these posts (including yours) are obviously the product of consideration and possibly hours of effort. People would be better off posting their own "Issue Positions" threads, each provoking a separate set of discussions.

      The problem is that not all of us are ideological people with "ideal governments". I don't view myself as ideological and I don't have an "ideal" government. I just have the government we have today, and I have things I think it does well, and from my studies in economics and history, as well as my experience in public service, I also have things I think should be run in slightly different ways. That's really it. If you gave me four years of absolute dictatorial power, I wouldn't fundamentally alter the way our government works. Maybe its policy on a few issues, but it'd be essentially the same government.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Banjo Broski on November 03, 2012, 02:02:35 AM
      here are my political views

      Abortion:Leave the way it is.

      Gay Rights:I oppose Civil Unions & Gay Marriage & Domestic Partnerships. And i oppose Adoption Rights & Hospital vists & all rights. My plan is to restore our policy on gays that we had in the 60s and 70s.

      Environment:Global warming is fake & gay i hate it repeal all environmental legislation abolish the EPA and Drill baby drill open up all areas for drilling.

      Israel & Palestine:I hate Both of them we need to help Palestine and kick out the Israelis like David Duke say but next we kick out the palestnians and we take over & make that area our 52nd state.

      Patriot Act:I fully support for everybody but whites.

      Campaign finance:I support at a national level however at local levels it is the states choices

      Death Penalty:Strongly Strongly Strongly Strongly Support Expand & Make Bigger

      School System:Let each state make there own laws on education

      States rights:I am 100% for states rights if a State wants to get out of america okey go for it i support states rights over the federal government BY FAR

      Healthcare:No Universal or Healthcare Reform. Cut Medicare and Medicade to if someone wants Healthcare go to your church for that or a private doctor which you pay for no government health care at all.

      NSA:I want to X the funding of NSA by 10 we need to colonize saturn & mars.

      Taxes:A 10% flat tax is the way to go. But if states want to change this then they can. Ether they create there own Tax plan or follow the national. Generally state by state but i believe 10% flat tax is the only smart way progressive tax is gay & dume.

      Social Secuirty:This is dume & stupid if you benifits go to a church or your local group.

      Welfare:let each state create there own welfare plans no federal government involovement each state makes there plans.

      Washington DC:I support DCS state right so we can move blacks from Virginia there.

      Miltary:We need more money support our troops we need more money going to the trops.

      Immigrants:Ban all immigrants all of them and kick out all minorties america needs to be white only just whites.

      Affirmative Action:simple kick out all the blacks,jews,mexicans and make america what it is a all white nation problem solved.

      Corperate Tax rate: 5% tax


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: DC Al Fine on November 03, 2012, 08:17:43 AM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: Banned except in to save the mother's life. Abortion is a barbaric act and our descendants will feel the same way about us as we feel about slaveowners now.

      Same-sex marriage: This is a church issue, not a state issue. Privately, I don't want gays getting married in my church.

      Drug legalization: Legalize and regulate marijuana, step up the drug war on items like Meth, Cocoain, Heroine.

      Prostitution: Oppose

      Guns: Handguns, rifles, and shot guns should be left alone. Ban assault weapons, grenade launchers and the like.

      Education: Less of this stupid "everyone needs a degree nonsense." Stream students based on academic success. Lots of vouchers. Encourage homeschooling

      Immigration: Stricter border controls. Put in a point system like in Canada to encourage skilled, English speaking workers to immigrate.

      Stem Cell Research: Ban embryonic stem cell research. Non-embryonic stem cell research should be legal but not funded.

      Euthanasia: Most abused medical procedure ever. Old people in places like the Netherlands are afraid to go to hospital because so many people manage to get euthanized without their consent. Ban euthanasia.

      English as the official language: English only for government services. french is ok in Canada though.

      School Prayer: I support permitting voluntary, non-led prayer in public schools.

      Pledge of Allegiance: The Pledge of Allegiance is a dumb practice, and I frown upon schools taking part in it. I support legislation to ensure that states can't make it mandatory.

      Economic Issues

      Affirmative Action: Winds up helping high income blacks and rich white ladies. No way.

      Trade: Free trade but don't sign deals with countries that subsidise their exports.

      Health Care: Federal government should provide catastrophic healthcare insurance funded out of payroll taxes (and maybe sin taxes). Cut medicare/medicaid and let people pay for routine things. Deregulate and encourage things like generic drugs to cut prices.

      Welfare: Use a guaranteed minimum income instead.

      Minimum Wage: Worst idea ever for low skill workers. Eliminate or cut the minimum wage.

      Taxes: Guaranteed minimum income paid to everyone except claw it back from the 75k to 100k mark. Flat tax on all income including capital gains, dividends, interest, and earned income.

      Regulation: Some are necessary and should be implemented where they're necessary, but others tend to benefit large corporations at the expense of competitors and consumers through regulatory capture. Regulate/deregulate on a case by case basis.

      Spending Cuts: Cut wasteful spending, especially in the military. Slash and burn baby!

      Energy: No subsidies for big oil, but allow more drilling. Cut green energy subsidies.

      Social Security: Create government pension plan out of SS with funds set aside and invested. Encourage people to invest more on their own.

      Unions: Support open shops and right to work. Ban unions in key areas like police.

      Foreign Policy/Defense

      PATRIOT ACT: Kill it with fire!

      Afghanistan: Set up a puppet who is able to hold onto power, then leave.

      Iraq: Make the situation stable then leave.

      Israel/Palestine: Support one state with equal rights for Palestinians.

      Iran: Be prepared to attack Iran if attacked first. Isolate and embargo for now.

      Syria: Do not get involved. We will just wind up setting up another Islamist regime.

      Cuba: End the stupid embargo already, it isn't helping anyone!

      Military Spending: Cut so that the USA returns to a proper defence force.

      Electoral Issues/Government


      Voter Regulations/ID Cards: Support voter ID cards.

      Electoral College: America should go Westminister anyways :P

      Washington D.C.: Let them have a voting Congressional representative. Don't make them a state.

      Puerto Rico: Referendum in PR to decide.

      Senate: Abolish the filibuster.

      Congress: Cut down on gerrymandering by establishing "Elections USA" to create districts.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Atlas Has Shrugged on November 03, 2012, 09:15:51 PM
      Banjo, you are not at all funny.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: So rightwing that I broke the Political Compass! on November 06, 2012, 07:16:33 AM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: Should be seen as murder in the eyes of the law(both for the women initiating it and the "doctor" practicing it)

      Religion: Christianity should be acknowledged as official religion, although other religions should not be persecuted.

      Gay Rights: I'm on the fence as to whether open homosexuality should even be legal(although open homosexuals should be granted an amnesty conditional on keeping their condition private from here on out). Would also favour research into  how to make conversion therapy more effective. Gays should not be permitted to work in the public service.

      Sex and Prostitution: Prostitution should be illegal. Adultery should be penalized by forfeiture of property/child visitation rights by the guilty party in the event that it leads to divorce.

      First Amendment: Has been taken too far. Speech that is seriously offensive to community norms, be it that of Fred Phelps or Bill Maher, should be banned. The 1st amendment should not apply to pornography.

      Second Amendment: Outdated really. Although if we implemented Swiss-style public militia service, it would probably be beneficial to the public spirit.

      Crime: Death penalty is too kind for murder, rape, treason, pedophilia. I would sentence them to permanent solitary confinement. I'm partial to the idea of restoring debtors prisons so as to kill the current debt culture, though those already in debt should probably be exempt. For petty crimes I think corporal punishment would be appropriate. I would also favour Singaporean-style approach towards non-serious antisocial behavior.

      Drug War: Well I regret the fact that alcohol Prohibition was repealed(it was actually working, especially before the depression), and think that cigarettes should be banned. You can guess my stance.

      Gambling: Re-illegalize it.

      Immigration: I think the multicultural experiment has been a mistake. Implement far more stringent standards regarding immigration, including consideration of cultural factors.

      Economic issues

      Education: Gradually phase out public schools. Fund universal education through school vouchers.

      Tax Code: Fair tax or VAT+ return to protectionist tariffs.

      Social safety net: Should be returned to state governments. Broadly favour reduction or privatization.

      Labor Unions: Unions should be banned whether public or private. They invariably seek to sabotage economic production for their own narrow constituency.
         
      Free Trade: Reinstate protectionists tariffs and nationalist economic policy in sectors where country is vulnerable to foreign production. But free trade for true Western allies.

      Energy Independence and the Environment: Global warming is a load of hooey. Favour any measures to get off dependance on Middle Eastern oil.

      Transportation: Free market. Privatize all roads.

       
      Foreign Policy
      Allies:Favour a more powerful NATO covering Australia, New Zealand, Singapore and Israel as well(but kicking out Turkey). Should entail compulsory contributions to a semi-common military so that the burden doesn't fall entirely on America as it does now. Should also entail some level of free trade and easier inter-immigration.

      Iran:Don't let Iran get the bomb, no matter what measures are needed to prevent it.

      Africa: Favour the establishment of Western operated charter cities/regions, with consent of African governments.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: afleitch on November 06, 2012, 09:27:09 AM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: Should be seen as murder in the eyes of the law(both for the women initiating it and the "doctor" practicing it)

      Religion: Christianity should be acknowledged as official religion, although other religions should not be persecuted.

      Gay Rights: I'm on the fence as to whether open homosexuality should even be legal(although open homosexuals should be granted an amnesty conditional on keeping their condition private from here on out). Would also favour research into  how to make conversion therapy more effective. Gays should not be permitted to work in the public service.

      Sex and Prostitution: Prostitution should be illegal. Adultery should be penalized by forfeiture of property/child visitation rights by the guilty party in the event that it leads to divorce.

      First Amendment: Has been taken too far. Speech that is seriously offensive to community norms, be it that of Fred Phelps or Bill Maher, should be banned. The 1st amendment should not apply to pornography.

      Second Amendment: Outdated really. Although if we implemented Swiss-style public militia service, it would probably be beneficial to the public spirit.

      Crime: Death penalty is too kind for murder, rape, treason, pedophilia. I would sentence them to permanent solitary confinement. I'm partial to the idea of restoring debtors prisons so as to kill the current debt culture, though those already in debt should probably be exempt. For petty crimes I think corporal punishment would be appropriate. I would also favour Singaporean-style approach towards non-serious antisocial behavior.

      Drug War: Well I regret the fact that alcohol Prohibition was repealed(it was actually working, especially before the depression), and think that cigarettes should be banned. You can guess my stance.

      Gambling: Re-illegalize it.

      Immigration: I think the multicultural experiment has been a mistake. Implement far more stringent standards regarding immigration, including consideration of cultural factors.

      Economic issues

      Education: Gradually phase out public schools. Fund universal education through school vouchers.

      Tax Code: Fair tax or VAT+ return to protectionist tariffs.

      Social safety net: Should be returned to state governments. Broadly favour reduction or privatization.

      Labor Unions: Unions should be banned whether public or private. They invariably seek to sabotage economic production for their own narrow constituency.
         
      Free Trade: Reinstate protectionists tariffs and nationalist economic policy in sectors where country is vulnerable to foreign production. But free trade for true Western allies.

      Energy Independence and the Environment: Global warming is a load of hooey. Favour any measures to get off dependance on Middle Eastern oil.

      Transportation: Free market. Privatize all roads.

       
      Foreign Policy
      Allies:Favour a more powerful NATO covering Australia, New Zealand, Singapore and Israel as well(but kicking out Turkey). Should entail compulsory contributions to a semi-common military so that the burden doesn't fall entirely on America as it does now. Should also entail some level of free trade and easier inter-immigration.

      Iran:Don't let Iran get the bomb, no matter what measures are needed to prevent it.

      Africa: Favour the establishment of Western operated charter cities/regions, with consent of African governments.

      You know if you were an effective troll you'd realise that you already posted in here on June 9th 2010. Your responses both times are well crafted (though the latter is laced with more bullsh-t)
      but both completely different no doubt reflecting the persona you decided to adopt each time.

      Just letting you know.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: So rightwing that I broke the Political Compass! on November 07, 2012, 01:46:09 AM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: Should be seen as murder in the eyes of the law(both for the women initiating it and the "doctor" practicing it)

      Religion: Christianity should be acknowledged as official religion, although other religions should not be persecuted.

      Gay Rights: I'm on the fence as to whether open homosexuality should even be legal(although open homosexuals should be granted an amnesty conditional on keeping their condition private from here on out). Would also favour research into  how to make conversion therapy more effective. Gays should not be permitted to work in the public service.

      Sex and Prostitution: Prostitution should be illegal. Adultery should be penalized by forfeiture of property/child visitation rights by the guilty party in the event that it leads to divorce.

      First Amendment: Has been taken too far. Speech that is seriously offensive to community norms, be it that of Fred Phelps or Bill Maher, should be banned. The 1st amendment should not apply to pornography.

      Second Amendment: Outdated really. Although if we implemented Swiss-style public militia service, it would probably be beneficial to the public spirit.

      Crime: Death penalty is too kind for murder, rape, treason, pedophilia. I would sentence them to permanent solitary confinement. I'm partial to the idea of restoring debtors prisons so as to kill the current debt culture, though those already in debt should probably be exempt. For petty crimes I think corporal punishment would be appropriate. I would also favour Singaporean-style approach towards non-serious antisocial behavior.

      Drug War: Well I regret the fact that alcohol Prohibition was repealed(it was actually working, especially before the depression), and think that cigarettes should be banned. You can guess my stance.

      Gambling: Re-illegalize it.

      Immigration: I think the multicultural experiment has been a mistake. Implement far more stringent standards regarding immigration, including consideration of cultural factors.

      Economic issues

      Education: Gradually phase out public schools. Fund universal education through school vouchers.

      Tax Code: Fair tax or VAT+ return to protectionist tariffs.

      Social safety net: Should be returned to state governments. Broadly favour reduction or privatization.

      Labor Unions: Unions should be banned whether public or private. They invariably seek to sabotage economic production for their own narrow constituency.
         
      Free Trade: Reinstate protectionists tariffs and nationalist economic policy in sectors where country is vulnerable to foreign production. But free trade for true Western allies.

      Energy Independence and the Environment: Global warming is a load of hooey. Favour any measures to get off dependance on Middle Eastern oil.

      Transportation: Free market. Privatize all roads.

       
      Foreign Policy
      Allies:Favour a more powerful NATO covering Australia, New Zealand, Singapore and Israel as well(but kicking out Turkey). Should entail compulsory contributions to a semi-common military so that the burden doesn't fall entirely on America as it does now. Should also entail some level of free trade and easier inter-immigration.

      Iran:Don't let Iran get the bomb, no matter what measures are needed to prevent it.

      Africa: Favour the establishment of Western operated charter cities/regions, with consent of African governments.

      You know if you were an effective troll you'd realise that you already posted in here on June 9th 2010. Your responses both times are well crafted (though the latter is laced with more bullsh-t)
      but both completely different no doubt reflecting the persona you decided to adopt each time.

      Just letting you know.
      Reported for unjustified accusation of trolling.

      FYI, I was a leftwing kook back in 2010, the reason being that I was a atheistic university student with no real world experience. Since then I've gotten a job, seen the light and truth of Jesus Christ, and basically been splashed in the face by the cold waters of reality.

      You have some nerve to presume me a liar.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: MrMittens on November 10, 2012, 10:19:58 AM

      Social Issues

      Abortion: Abortion should be illegal except for Rape, Incest and Maternal Health

      Same-sex marriage: Opposed to. There is no need to go out of the way to change the definitions of a time-old institution.

      Drug legalization: Legalize medicinal marijuana. Other than that, tougher enforcement of the laws, death penalty for dealers.

      Prostitution: Oppose, death penalty for pimps, prison terms and re-education for hookers.

      Guns: Ban assault weapons, but support freedom to bear reasonable arms for hunting and self-defence purposes.

      Education: Leave public education up to the states, but personally support private, religious and charity education.

      Immigration: Support DREAM Act. Amnesty for the children of illegals. Tough border defence, including a possible fence, and rigorous system of immigration checks (only those with high level skills and a strong grasp of English should be allowed in.

      Stem Cell Research: Unpleasant, but sadly necessary.

      Euthanasia: Damn bad slippery slope.

      English as the official language: Of course.

      School Prayer: Support prayer in school, but special dispensations for those who aren't Christian.

      Pledge of Allegiance: All people should take the Pledge of Allegiance.

      Economic Issues

      Affirmative Action: Affirmative action is racism and sexism with a smile on its face. Outlaw all practice of it.

      Trade: All markets should be open.

      Health Care: No to unsustainable public provided healthcare (like the NHS). Support a network of Private, Religious and Charity healthcare.

      Welfare: Abolish welfare altogether.

      Minimum Wage: Abolish the minimum wage.

      Taxes: Flat tax of 15%. Abolish corporate taxes.

      Regulation: Cut back on regulations on business.

      Spending Cuts: Abolish Medicare and Medicaid. End social security. Stop subsidsing companies.

      Energy: Adopt a fair and balanced approach to energy. No regulations of either renewable or non-renewable energy.

      Social Security: Privatize social security. End a statuatory retirement age.

      Unions: Ban public sector unions.

      Foreign Policy/Defense

      PATRIOT ACT: Keep the PATRIOT act.

      Afghanistan: Maintain a permanent military presence in Afghanistan.

      Israel/Palestine: Stan shoulder to shoulder with Israel in the face of Islamic extremism. Support Israel's current territoral make-up.

      Iran: Bomb Iranian nuclear facilities, target high ranking figures for assassination.

      Syria: Bomb the Assad forces.

      Cuba: End the embargoe.

      Military Spending: Maintain present levels of funding.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: They put it to a vote and they just kept lying on November 10, 2012, 12:08:42 PM
      Prostitution: Oppose, death penalty for pimps, prison terms and re-education for hookers.

      What about those forced into prostitution via human trafficking?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: MrMittens on November 10, 2012, 12:11:30 PM
      Prostitution: Oppose, death penalty for pimps, prison terms and re-education for hookers.

      What about those forced into prostitution via human trafficking?

      Different situation. Amnesty for those forced into becoming prostitutes.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: General White on November 11, 2012, 10:11:37 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion:STRONGLY OPPOSE.

      Gay Marriage:Support but leave to the states. Not a big issue i dont really care.

      Death Penalty:Support.

      Drugs:Marjiuanna legalization is a fail. Ether way the gangs are gonna fight over it if you legalize it or not if legalized taxes's will be so high people will still sell it on the black market and it will still be illegal. If you want to legalize Marjiuanna you have to first break down the gangs so the Government can sell it and tax it and make a profit.

      Patriot Act:Strongly Oppose.

      Three Strikes:Let each state make there own plans for three strikes. Dont really care.

      Flag Burning:Should not be a federal issue let each state make there own plans.

      Guns:Ban guns from planes,Public events,and public areas increase the sail of Bebi guns and allow Bebi guns to be carried anywhere.

      Affirmative Action:Strongly Oppose.

      Euthanasia:Hell no.

      Economy

      Taxes: Raise taxes and Support Progressive Taxation. The Rich should pay 70% and the Middle Class 35% and Poor 10%.

      Social Security Privatization:STRONGLY OPPOSE.

      Immigration:NO Dream Act,Put the army on the border,X the amount of border patrol by five times,Deport ALL Illegal immigrants,Illegal Immigrants are evil criminals they all should be deported period.

      Welfare:Abolish & support Minimum Income.

      Healthcare:Expand Medicare to cover all only after we have balanced the budget and have a strong Progressive tax system with no loopholes.







      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Marnetmar on November 12, 2012, 10:11:55 AM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: Oppose except for in cases of rape and incest, do not allow after 1st trimester.

      Gay Marriage: Support

      Death Penalty: Only in cases like multiple violent murders.

      Drugs: Allow marijuana to be manufactured and sold, but tax and regulate it heavily.

      Patriot Act: Strongly oppose.

      Three Strikes: Strongly oppose.

      Flag Burning: Obviously it's not something I or most people support on a moral level, but it should be perfectly legal.

      Guns: Require mental health and background checks.

      Affirmative Action: Neutral.

      Euthanasia: Strongly oppose.

      Economy


      Taxes: Progressive taxation for those making over $500,000 a year. Flat tax otherwise.

      Social Security Privatization: Keep normal system for the disabled and retired, privatize otherwise.

      Immigration: Close our borders and patrol them more thoroughly to protect us from the drug wars, but make legal immigration as easy as possible.

      Welfare: Support

      Healthcare: Coming soon.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: JimmyMcMillan on November 14, 2012, 11:37:46 PM
      Taxation:Abolish all taxes. Strongly Support Bush Tax Cuts as a good start and a Fair Tax as good movements in the right direction.
      Social Security:Reform and Partial Privatize.
      Healthcare:Expand our Healthcare System.
      Welfare Reform:Strongly Oppose.
      Rent Control:LOWER the rent so low anyone could buy homes lower the prices on apartments to near zero that way everyone can easyly afford a home and abolish taxes so home owners can live a free life and not be hit with the burden of taxes.
      Patriot Act:Oppose.
      Abortion:Pro-Choice.
      Gay Rights:Supports Gay Marriage.
      Global Warming:Strongly Opposes, the earth has always been cooling Global warming is a myth.
      Drilling:End all Offshore drilling.
      Affirmative Action:Support.
      Illegal Immigrants:Strongly Oppose amnesty.
      Death Penalty:Support.
      Drugs:Strongly Oppose legalize weed.
      Free Trade:Get out of NAFTA but abolish ALL Tarrifs and taxes on the border.Strongly Yes.
      Iran:No war period.
      Iraq/Afghanistan:Get out now.
      Schools:Limit all schools that do not reach standereds fit and cut all funding.
      College:Strongly opposes all budget cuts to schools. The key is to Abolish Taxes and Lower the Rent.
      Stem Cell Research:Should be done by the Free Market.
      NASA:Expand.
      SOPA:Strongly oppose words fail me.
      Raising Taxes on the rich:Strongly oppose words fail me.
      Minimum Wage:Support a 7:00 or 8:00 wage.
      Prayer In Schools:Strongly Support.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Supermariobros on November 23, 2012, 02:43:02 AM
      Generally I believe that its best that the states handle most decisions and the States should have much more power then they do know,However I believe there are points when the Federal Government should intervene.

      Abortin:Oppose in all cases except for the life of the mother. Im very Pro-Life.

      Gay Marriage:Support but should be a decided at the State level.

      Death Penalty:Support.

      Marijuana Legalization:Support.

      Taxes:Staunch Progressive Taxation. Strongly support.

      Healthcare:Oppose UHC support Private Insurance.

      Affirmative Action:Abolish.

      Social Security:Oppose Privatization.

      Welfare:Decided at the state level. Support welfare reform.

      Government Reform:Strongly Support Campaign Finance.

      Foreign Policy:Im somewhat of a Neo-Con.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Redalgo on November 23, 2012, 06:35:39 PM
      Alright, so it’s been about eight months. I feel that I can convey my views a wee bit better now.

      People compete for influence over varied forms of capital in varied aspects of their lives, use that capital to get what they want, and in doing so must often act to resolve their conflicts of interests. The state lays out rules for how we all are to play the game, so to speak, and it is in the best long-term interests of the individual and community alike if those rules feel fair and of mutual benefit. Subjective moral values form the foundations of public policy, and I reckon the laws of any given population ought to be a balanced mean of its individuals’ diverse perceptions of right and wrong.

      I am inclined to believe human nature is mostly “good” but want a government designed to guard against corruption. Vigilance and redundancy of safeguards (e.g. a federalist system, checks and balances, separation of powers, representative democracy, and so forth) seem more desirable to me than discipline and effectual leadership. I am wary of authority figures and likely to balk at usages of capital that seem “oppressive,” unjust, or set a precedent for abusive practices at a later date. I fondly advocate transparency, accountability, ease of access to information for the general public, and a political culture where we can express opinions without fear of retribution.

      On economic matters I am driven by a deep sense of compassion and empathy. Though probably best described as a market socialist, I know little of economics and am pragmatic enough to adopt ideas from the Chicago school of capitalist thought, couching them within a framework of loftier, overarching ideals. These include lowering relative socioeconomic inequality, increasing access to opportunities, and promoting workplace democracy - which in turn compels me to desire a social democratic welfare regime and the replacement of most American firms with worker cooperatives. I oppose class struggle and neo-corporatism, but also have a bit of fondness for the Nordic Model.

      One of my deepest concerns is that people focus too much on “me” and “now” as opposed to “us” and “later.” Desertification, soil erosion, loss of biodiversity, timber depletion, dwindling reserves of freshwater, overpopulation, and ravenous exploitation of minerals and animal life weigh heavily on my mind, nudging me toward a perspective that humanity in general is being very reckless and irresponsible with the resources currently at its disposal, setting itself up for a possibly devastating deterioration of living conditions for future generations. I want thorough environmental regulation, protection for vast expanses of wild lands, and to extend more rights to other animal species.  

      My vision of an excellent society also calls for social norms compatible with the individual pursuit of self-development and contentment in life. To me, this seems to imply a need for some intervention by government to provide a supportive, nurturing environment for folks... and also a great deal of respect for others’ projects - a live and let live social order where individuals and groups know it is none of their business to thwart or otherwise obstruct the affairs of others so long as what they are doing inflicts no significant harm onto or aggressively initiates violence against them. I sense this encapsulates the virtue of modesty. It’d be arrogant to force ones own way of life onto others.

      And yet, to some extent by even having rules for the game we do just that. One way or another, we have to give up some rights, privileges, freedoms, liberties or whatever else you prefer to call them in order to secure a more attractive collection of others. Even if we abolish government, we can never be entirely free. Deciding which perceptions of morality are worthwhile to codify into law, and how, is what sets a person apart from others on the issues. A lot of energy then goes into rationalizing the perceptions. We easily fall for an illusion of likeminded folk seeming to be wiser and more rational than our rivals, but I try to remain convinced that most of my opponents are just as well-intended, committed to the public interest, and worthy of being treated with respect as am I.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Donerail on November 25, 2012, 04:05:27 PM
      New here, so figure this is as good a place to start as any...

      Socially: Libertarian, pro-choice, pro-drug legalization, anti-censorship, pro-gay marriage, anti-death penalty, pro-prostitution legalization, pro-wall of separation of church and state, anti-affirmative action racially (though not economically), anti-hate crime (a crime is a crime), pro-more legal immigration, anti-illegal immigration, pro-stem cell research, anti-PATRIOT Act, anti-religious currencies, anti-gun control, pro-legal physician-assisted suicide, pro-legal gambling, anti-term limits, anti-public school prayer, pro-ACLU, pro-lower voting age, pro-campaign finance reform, pro-proportional representation, pro-DC statehood, anti-gerrymandering, pro-voter ID (don't really see how showing your driver's license disenfranchises anyone),

      Economically: Moderate, anti-welfare, pro-union, pro-environment, pro-privatization (though not education), anti-subsidies, anti-voucher, pro-fair tax, anti-deficit, pro-tax cuts (but equally, not just the wealthy), anti-pork, anti-embargo, pro-free trade, anti-healthcare mandate, pro-minimum wage increase, anti-ANWR drilling, anti-Keystone, anti-drilling, pro-NASA,

      Foreign Policy: Non-interventionist, no wars except in self-defense, bring the troops home, pro-three state solution in Palestine, anti-draft, anti-military spending, pro-UN membership, pro-reduction (not elimination) of US nuclear arsenal,

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Pro-choice up to around 22-24 weeks, when brain waves are detected in the higher brain.
      Drugs: Legalize most of them and tax. Some restrictions.
      Censorship: Bad. Very bad.
      Gay marriage: Support marriage being the sole dominion of the church and nationwide civil unions for all.
      Death penalty: Fiscally irresponsible and morally wrong as well.
      Prostitution: Legalize it.
      Church & state: Keep them pretty far separated, including currency/the pledge and prayer in public schools.
      Affirmative action: Oppose it racially-based (kinda pointless), support it economically-based.
      Hate crime laws: I really don't get the point of them. People should go to prison, not because of what they thought while they were killing someone, but because they killed someone.
      Immigration: Need to simultaneously make it easier for skilled immigrants to come here while cracking down on those who cut in line.
      Stem cell research: Fully legal, just not government-funded (that's more a fiscal thing than social, really).
      PATRIOT Act: To quote Brian Schweitzer, "I don't want to weaken the PATRIOT Act, I want to repeal it." Fully agree with the ACLU here and in most other areas.
      Gun Control: Oppose. Our rights include the right to bear arms.
      Assisted suicide: Legalize
      Gambling: Legalize

      Electoral Reform:
      Term limits: I'd prefer loose term limits, maybe 20-30 years.
      Statehood: Give it to Puerto Rico and DC if they want it.
      Voting age: Lower to 16
      Campaign Finance Reform: Support Citizens United.
      Voting system: Switch to IRV, abolish the Electoral College.
      Gerrymandering: Florida's Fair Districts law should be nationwide.
      Voter ID: Support loose voter ID laws; you have to show something proving you're a real person, whether that's a passport or driver's license or military ID or green card or any other sort of ID, but nothing excessive.

      Economic Issues:
      Welfare: Put in place significant reforms to ensure it's going to where it can actually help.
      Unions: I fully support unions and oppose "union-busting" type stuff.
      Privatization: Support in situations where it makes sense (TSA, NASA), oppose in some others (education; education vouchers are an awful idea).
      Environment: Strongly support the environment; I oppose drilling, in the Gulf and in the ANWR, and I oppose the Keystone pipeline.
      Minimum wage: Should probably be steadily increasing at a rate linked to inflation.
      Taxation: The Fair Tax seems, for lack of a better word, fair. Need a clear overhaul.
      Healthcare: Oppose Obamacare. A better solution is to allow interstate competition among healthcare providers.
      Trade: Free trade in most instances.
      Embargo: End the embargoes on Cuba and any other nations we might be embargoing (excluding things like arms).
      Pork: Actually can be beneficial in some cases, but needs tighter restraints.
      Subsidies: End subsidies of almost everything; let the market work.
      Military: Cut military spending severely.

      Foreign Policy
      War: No wars except in self defense or when we're clearly threatened. Bring the troops home. Non-interventionism.
      Israel-Palestine: Need a swift return to pre-1967 borders, an end to settlements, etc.
      Draft: Strongly oppose. 13th Amendment.
      UN: The US should work with the UN but shouldn't let it dictate us into wars.
      Nukes: We really don't need that many. I'm good with being able to blow up the world 2 or 3 times rather than a few dozen.

      Overall: Non-interventionist, moderate capitalist, civil libertarian.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Supermariobros on November 30, 2012, 04:10:32 AM
      Abortion:I am Strongly Pro-Life. Ban in all cases Abortion is evil and wrong. Period.

      Death Penalty:Support.

      Drugs:Oppose Legalization.

      Taxes:15% Flat Tax rate.

      Healthcare:Support a Single Payer Universal Healthcare system.

      Labor Unions:Strongly Support repeal all Anti-Union busting laws.

      Gay Rights:Support Gay Marriage.

      NSA:Strongly increase funding for NSA. Colonize Mars.

      Free Trade:STRONGLY Oppose end all Trade with China and make JOBS IN AMERICA.

      Illegal Immigration:STRONGLY Oppose deport all 12million Illegal Immigrants and cut the number of legal immigrants coming here in half.

      Social Security:Support partial privatization only if Negative income is installed.

      Welfare:Abolish, replace with Minimum income.

      I will update more later.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TNF on November 30, 2012, 09:49:29 AM
      Abortion:I am Strongly Pro-Life. Ban in all cases Abortion is evil and wrong. Period.

      Death Penalty:Support.

      Drugs:Oppose Legalization.

      Taxes:15% Flat Tax rate.

      Healthcare:Support a Single Payer Universal Healthcare system.

      Labor Unions:Strongly Support repeal all Anti-Union busting laws.

      Gay Rights:Support Gay Marriage.

      NSA:Strongly increase funding for NSA. Colonize Mars.

      Free Trade:STRONGLY Oppose end all Trade with China and make JOBS IN AMERICA.

      Illegal Immigration:STRONGLY Oppose deport all 12million Illegal Immigrants and cut the number of legal immigrants coming here in half.

      Social Security:Support partial privatization only if Negative income is installed.

      Welfare:Abolish, replace with Minimum income.

      I will update more later.

      Hey look, it's Vegetaboi.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: They put it to a vote and they just kept lying on November 30, 2012, 09:50:02 AM
      Yeah this new fellow is pretty bizarre. Sock check!


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Supermariobros on December 01, 2012, 06:36:09 PM
      Overall I am a Right-Wing conservative on pretty much all issues

      http://www.ontheissues.org/Quiz/political_map.asp?PS=20&ES=53.5&q1=5&q2=5&q3=2&q4=1&q5=1&q6=2&q7=2&q8=1&q9=2&q10=1&q11=4&q12=2&q13=1&q14=4&q15=5&q16=5&q17=4&q18=1&q19=1&q20=1

      but i have some liberal positions on healthcare for example. But everything else is very right-wing especially on immigration and abortion. I am far-right on those issues.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Del Tachi on December 14, 2012, 09:26:14 PM
      This is a pretty significant thread...maybe it should be stickied?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: k-onmmunist on December 15, 2012, 08:28:31 AM
      This is a pretty significant thread...maybe it should be stickied?

      i agree with this.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The world will shine with light in our nightmare on December 15, 2012, 12:43:21 PM
      This is a pretty significant thread...maybe it should be stickied?

      i agree with this.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Blackacre on December 15, 2012, 09:51:20 PM
      Social: Liberal as all hell. Support Gay Marriage, decriminalization of EVERY drug (it should be considered a national health matter, not a criminal matter, to better address drug problems) and I'm pro-choice all the way. Anti-death penalty. I don't give a crap if he murdered 50 people and peed on their corpses. 50 life sentences will do just fine. If you kill him, you're letting your state theoretically kill someone innocent who was wrongly convicted. You can reverse a life sentence. You can't revive the dead. I'm for immigration reform, pro Affirmative Action, pro Union, and we need to fix education. Pay teachers extra to go to poor towns to better educate school-age kids. Adopt a national standard. Let retired teachers be the only ones to serve on a school board. Also, I support a decent amount of gun regulation.

      Economically: Liberal as all hell. Remember before Reagan (who was a crappy President, let's be real here) and we had a top tax rate of 70% under conservatives and 90% under Ike? That was a good idea, people, and the rich were completely fine. Are we goldfish? Can we not remember that? Corporations need RULES (regulations) to keep them from crashing the economy like they did. The conservative in me loves Obamacare (It's personal responsibility in Health Care form) but as a whole I wanna see how it pans out. If it doesn't work, we need a single payer system, but if it's fine, then hey, good for us. I think we can close our deficit by making smart investments in our economy. That's stimulus spending, people. Economic investment. As for spending cuts, let's go ahead and cut our bloated military budget and grow our economy and see where that takes us.

      Foreign Policy: Chickendove. Economic sanctions, drones, UN alliances, just please, not another goddamn war.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: AkSaber on December 15, 2012, 10:45:41 PM
      Hmm. I won't itemize my views cause I think I could more succinctly summarize them by saying I am a non-interventionist, economically and socially.

      I believe it is your right to do to yourself as you see fit. As long as you aren't hurting anyone who didn't ask for it, you have the right to do as you please.

      Government's role is to protect us (within the confines of the Constitution) from those who would deprive us of our liberties (criminals and foreign invaders).

      Government is also to create habitable conditions for economic prosperity. Basically, the free market is to be undisturbed, and government creates free trade and travel treaties with as many nations as possible.

      The U.S. would spread democracy by setting a good example, not by killing everyone who doesn't agree with us.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Blackacre on December 16, 2012, 12:20:38 AM
      Hmm. I won't itemize my views cause I think I could more succinctly summarize them by saying I am a non-interventionist, economically and socially.

      I believe it is your right to to to yourself as you see fit. As long as you aren't hurting anyone who didn't ask for it, you have the right to do as you please.

      Government's role is to protect us (within the confines of the Constitution) from those who would deprive us of our liberties (criminals and foreign invaders).

      Government is also to create habitable conditions for economic prosperity. Basically, the free market is to be undisturbed, and government creates free trade and travel treaties with as many nations as possible.

      The U.S. would spread democracy by setting a good example, not by killing everyone who doesn't agree with us.

      Sounds like you fit the role of "dovish libertarian"


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: SUSAN CRUSHBONE on December 16, 2012, 08:08:19 AM
      Social Policy
      Abortion: Pro-choice up to around 22-24 weeks, when brain waves are detected in the higher brain.
      Drugs: Legalize most of them and tax. Some restrictions.
      Censorship: Bad. Very bad.
      Gay marriage: Support marriage being the sole dominion of the church and nationwide civil unions for all.Support nationally legal gay marriage.
      Death penalty: Fiscally irresponsible and morally wrong as well.
      Prostitution: Legalize it.
      Church & state: Keep them pretty far separated, including currency/the pledge and prayer in public schools.
      Affirmative action: Oppose it racially-based (kinda pointless), support it economically-based.
      Hate crime laws: I really don't get the point of them. People should go to prison, not because of what they thought while they were killing someone, but because they killed someone.
      Immigration: Need to simultaneously make it easier for skilled immigrants to come here while cracking down on those who cut in line.
      Stem cell research: Fully legal, just not government-funded (that's more a fiscal thing than social, really).
      PATRIOT Act: To quote Brian Schweitzer, "I don't want to weaken the PATRIOT Act, I want to repeal it." Fully agree with the ACLU here and in most other areas.
      Gun Control: Oppose. Our rights include the right to bear arms.
      Assisted suicide: Legalize
      Gambling: Legalize

      Electoral Reform:
      Term limits: Oppose in most cases; I'd prefer looser term limits, maybe 20-30 years.
      Statehood: Give it to Puerto Rico and DC if they want it. and treat the combination of American Samoa, Guam, etc. as DC is treated now.
      Voting age: Lower to 16
      Campaign Finance Reform: Money is speech, but drowning out people's voices is restricting their speech too. Repeal Citizens United.
      Voting system: Switch to IRV, abolish the Electoral College.
      Gerrymandering: Florida's Fair Districts law should be nationwide.Enshrining 'intent' in law has always struck me as a tremendously bad idea.
      Voter ID: Support loose voter ID laws; you have to show something proving you're a real person, whether that's a passport or driver's license or military ID or green card or any other sort of ID, but nothing excessive.

      Economic Issues:
      Welfare: Put in place significant reforms to ensure it's going to where it can actually help.Replace the current system with a guaranteed minimum income.
      Unions: I fully support unions and oppose "union-busting" type stuff.
      Privatization: Support in situations where it makes sense (TSA, NASA), oppose in some others (education; education vouchers are an awful idea). I do not see how privatising the TSA or NASA makes sense; if anything, we need to nationalise utilities, resource-extraction, and the like.
      Environment: Strongly support the environment; I oppose drilling, in the Gulf and in the ANWR, and I oppose the Keystone pipeline.
      Minimum wage: Should probably be steadily increasing at a rate linked to inflation. Abolished with the institution of a guaranteed minimum income.
      Taxation: The Fair Tax seems, for lack of a better word, fair.Hell no. Need a clear overhaul.
      Healthcare: Oppose Obamacare. A better solution is to allow interstate competition among healthcare providers.single payer
      Trade: Free trade in most instances.
      Embargo: End the embargoes on Cuba and any other nations we might be embargoing (excluding things like arms).
      Pork: Actually can be beneficial in some cases, but needs tighter restraints.
      Subsidies: End subsidies of almost everything; let the market work.
      Military: Cut military spending severely.

      Foreign Policy
      War: No wars except in self defense or when we're clearly threatened or when as part of an intergovernmental organisation or helping a movement/group that is legitimately being oppressed and expressly requests US aid. Bring the troops home. Non-interventionism.
      Israel-Palestine: Need a swift return to pre-1967 borders, an end to settlements, etc.
      Draft: Strongly oppose. 13th Amendment.
      UN: The US should work with the UN but shouldn't let it dictate us into wars.
      Nukes: We really don't need that many. I'm good with being able to blow up the world 2 or 3 times rather than a few dozen.

      Overall: Non-interventionist, moderate capitalist, civil libertarian.

      I would not have expected quite this much agreement.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Hnv1 on December 17, 2012, 02:26:28 PM
      Social Issues - completely Liberal, pro gay marriage, cannabis legalization, extreme pro-choice, and etc. etc.

      Fiscally - Left wing, Social-democracy to socialism, Marxist not in the Leninist manner by rather the Karl Kautsky way. progressive taxation (size of pockets = scope of taxes), strong unions, welfare state, and etc etc. In my eyes Scandinavia is the perfect model we need to strive for
      Pro subsidized education, universal health care, and regulation of banks    

      Security (not foreign policy as I am Israeli)
      - 2 states solutions around 67 borders. Whilst taking down most of those abominations called settlements, no Palestinian right of return but with reasonable reimbursement for refugees.
      Complete separation of church and state in Israel, and wide-scale reform in the IDF are crucial goals in my eyes      

      miscellaneous: I don't think we have the right to bear arms, and environmental-friendly policies are a must.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Del Tachi on December 17, 2012, 04:36:01 PM
      How would we go about getting this thread stickied?  PM the mods?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Alcon on December 17, 2012, 11:31:00 PM
      Done by popular request


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TNF on December 18, 2012, 09:52:16 AM
      Social Policy
      Abortion: Pro-choice.
      Drugs: End the War on Drugs, legalize Cannabis, and adopt harm reduction strategies to combat drug abuse.
      Censorship: The FCC should stick to regulating ownership of media, not media content.
      Gay marriage: Support legal equality for gay Americans.
      Death penalty: End use of the death penalty.
      Prostitution: Safe, legal, and regulated. License prostitutes and require regular checkups and the wearing of condoms by those who frequent prostitutes.
      Church & state: Status quo.
      Affirmative action: Ban outright. Racial preference policies are racist, but they are not the only form of Affirmative Action that should be banned -- legacy preferences for the rich should also be completely banned.
      Hate crime laws: Status quo.
      Immigration: One-time only path to citizenship for illegal immigrants already in the country and the adoption of a skills-based, points system for future immigrants. Tighten border security and shut down businesses that knowingly hire illegal immigrants, as well as massively fine individuals that do so.
      Stem cell research: Status quo. (Is this really even an issue anymore?)
      PATRIOT Act: Repeal the PATRIOT Act, as well as the indefinite detention provision of the NDAA.
      Gun Control: It should be as hard to get a gun as it is to get a car. I.E. not extremely difficult, but you should have to jump through enough hoops that most people who get them are proven to be of sound mind and know how to use a gun.
      Assisted suicide: Allow it provided the person in question is not pressured into doing it.
      Gambling: Mixed. Allow legal gambling, but keep it highly regulated.

      Electoral Reform:
      Term limits: Repeal the 22nd Amendment, but end lifetime tenure for federal judges, replacing it with a single, nonrenewable twenty year term.
      Statehood: Admit Puerto Rico as a state.
      Voting age: Lower to 16.
      Campaign Finance Reform: Amend the Constitution to overturn Citizens United. Ban paid political advertising, period.
      Voting system: Abolish the Electoral College, elect the President via IRV. Elect the House by proportional representation.
      Gerrymandering: End gerrymandering by electing the House by proportional representation.
      Voter ID: Ban Voter ID requirements. Automatically register everyone aged sixteen and up to vote and conduct most elections by mail.

      Economic Issues:
      Welfare: Repeal Clinton's welfare reform bill.
      Unions: Repeal Taft-Hartley, Landrum-Griffin, the Hatch Act, and all so-called "right-to-work" laws. Enact the Employee Free Choice Act asap.
      Privatization: Do the opposite in most cases. Nationalize utilities and the energy industry, as well as establish a national banking system (basically the Fed on steroids), nationalize the Ivy League and establish federal standards for education (as well as fund all education from pre-K to Grad School) based on merit, not ability to pay.
      Environment: Balance with economic concerns. I'm a conservationist, not an environmentalist.
      Minimum wage: Should always be half the median national wage, and indexed to wage growth.
      Taxation: Establish a more progressive tax scheme and implement a VAT.
      Healthcare: Medicare-for-All encompassing all kinds of health care (dental, mental, etc) and covering the costs of all prescription drugs.
      Trade: Establish a system of "social tariffs" that tax companies that make products overseas, and establish a VAT to protect American manufacturing. Renegotiate existing "Free Trade" agreements and work to develop a fairer set of laws governing trade at the WTO.
      Embargo: Bring Cuba back into the global community by ending our trade embargo there. Keep current arms embargoes on hostile states, however.
      Pork: Status quo.
      Subsidies: Case-by-case basis. Eliminate farm subsidies and put the money that was going in that direction towards the production of in vitro foodstuffs. Aid manufacturing where possible and end subsidies that are counterproductive, such as the wage subsidy that is the EITC (which encourages low wage employment).
      Military: Reduce overall military spending to pre-War on Terror levels and significantly cut ground forces (especially the Marines, because why have two ground armies in the form of the Army and the Marines) and automate as much as possible (replace pretty much all fighter pilots with drones), establish a United States Space Forces and a United States Cyberwarfare Force to deal with future threats, and ramp up research and development in Space fighting and Cyber war technology to help us gain an edge over the competition.

      Foreign Policy
      War: War should be undertaken only when the United States or one of its allies are directly attacked or when a violation of international law (such as an aggressive action by a state against another, or genocide) takes place. I am completely opposed to the idea of pre-emptive war.
      Israel-Palestine: Support Palestinian statehood and treating Israel the same way we would treat any other ally.
      Draft: No draft now but require draft registration for males and females.
      UN: The UN is a tool for peace and progress in the world and the US should remain a vital player at the United Nations, and pay back the dues we owe the organization that the isolationists in Congress decided not to pay in the 1990s.
      Nukes: New START was a step-forward, but we need to make further cuts in our nuclear arsenal provided that Russia does the same. Probably somewhere around 150-300 nuclear weapons is enough to serve as a deterrent.  

      Overall: Socially progressive, economic liberal, foreign policy realist.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Blackacre on December 18, 2012, 08:27:30 PM
      Electoral Reform:
      Term limits: Repeal the 22nd Amendment, but end lifetime tenure for federal judges, replacing it with a single, nonrenewable twenty year term. How would either affect the current political landscape?
      Statehood: Admit Puerto Rico as a state.
      Voting age: Lower to 16. Interesting. Why? I've never seen anyone argue this position...
      Campaign Finance Reform: Amend the Constitution to overturn Citizens United. Ban paid political advertising, period.
      Voting system: Abolish the Electoral College, elect the President via IRV. Elect the House by proportional representation. ...bue we'll still get the drama of election night, glued to our TVs, right? xD
      Gerrymandering: End gerrymandering by electing the House by proportional representation. I love you right now. Gerrymandering can DIE


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: DreamTheater on December 19, 2012, 05:04:23 PM
      Social Issues: Mostly Libertarian
      Abortion: Completely pro-life, with life of the mother exception.
      Gay-marriage: Support it, but the best idea is for the government to not be involved in marriage at all, because it is a religious institution.
      Drugs: Legalize marijuana, possibly other drugs as well. Lower drinking age to 18.
      Gun-control: Absolutely opposed. Eliminate "gun-free" zones.
      Patriot act / other "counter-terrorism" efforts: Completely opposed, these things completely violate our civil liberties. Abolish the TSA, repeal the patriot act, stop the indefinite detention part of the NDAA.
      Stem Cell research: Embryonic stem cell research should be illegal, other forms of stem cell research are fine.
      Death Penalty: Absolutely opposed.
      Euthanasia: Undecided.

      Economic Issues: Far right
      Minimum Wage: Abolish it. It hurts poor workers more than it helps them.
      Spending: Reduce dramatically. Reduce spending on both entitlements and military. Cut most government programs. Reduce funding for welfare, medicare, and medicaid. Raise age for medicare to 70. Cut welfare for anyone without disabilities and under 70.
      Taxes: Repeal 16th amendment, abolish income tax. FairTax is a pretty good idea, but I have to look into it more.
      Social Security: Privatize it.
      Education: Privatize it. Give out education vouchers. Ultimately this should only be a state function, not a federal government function.
      Federal reserve: Audit it. Eventually abolish it.
      Regulations: Dramatically reduce economic regulations.

      Foreign Policy: Non-intervention
      Military size: Reduce dramatically. Keep somewhat large for defense purposes only.
      War in Afghanistan: Leave immediately.
      Iran: Try to work out diplomatic solutions.
      Drone strikes: End immediately.
      Foreign Aid: Stop giving it.
      United Nations: Leave, or at least scale back our involvement.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: FEMA Camp Administrator on December 26, 2012, 07:58:42 PM
      Social Policy
      Abortion: Ideally I'd favor a national ban on all abortions other than those in the case that the mother would be killed by the birth, that old schtick. In the likely case that Roe v. Wade won't be repealed, I favor policies reducing abortions and incentivising women to keep their children. Sadly yes, this would involve supporting programs that'd make life easier on the less advantaged, especially those with kids. In this example, I'd prioritize the life of the children over fiscal conservatism.
      Gay Marriage: Not a fan of gay marriage, but I'm a pragmatist. I could allow for civil unions of some sort, etc., or even taking marriage out of the context of the state entirely.
      Marijuana Legalization: Favor. Though with most of my more moderate positions, I'd prefer not to champion it.
      Other Drugs: I haven't thought much about the issue, though I would likely in no way favor legalizing them. Decriminalization in favor of heavy financial penalties might be a good idea.
      Immigration: Don't tolerate illegal immigration, but make legal immigration itself easier. Might have to make some modifications to policy concerning illegal immigration to make things more convenient for everyone. No specifics.
      Gypsies: Crazy magic tricks? Telling my fortune? Putting curses on my line!? Heavily favor putting them into camps.

      Economic Policy
      Right-to-Work: In favor.
      Public Sector Collective Bargaining: As well in favor, which may sound contradictory. The way I see it, a person has the right to be part of what organization they please. That doesn't necessarily obligate the employment entity to respect their authority. Nor does it mean that a union would be automatically powerless. But I digress...
      Taxes on the Rich: Not necessarily a fan of raising taxes. But for God's sake Republicans, concede this. If things really are hurt by it, then just say it was thanks to conceding to the Democrats.
      Government Spending: Reduce unneeded spending. Easy enough to say, but what's unnecessary? I'd favor a radical consolidation of the various anti-poverty programs, possibly reduce it to the "guaranteed minimum income" program, but impose certain restrictions and limitations on the unemployed, ie. time limits on receiving benefits while unemployed, requirement that one must be looking for work, drug testing, etc.
      Programs: See above, I guess. Also, make Social Security more accountable, don't let Congress borrow from it, "lock box", allow for vouchers in order to find alternatives to medicaid.
      Education: Allow school vouchers. In no way of a fan of the people on this forum who support a public education system for public education's sake, though that in no way means we should abolish it.
      Regulation: We should probably have not de-regulated banking as much, though in general, the regulations I'd favor on corporations would environmental related.
      Eminent Domain: Not in favor, and it should definitely not be extended to corporations.

      Foreign Policy
      Iraq and Afghanistan: Are those officially ended? If so, good. We set up a Democracy in Iraq, and that Hell hole we call "Afghanistan" doesn't deserve to take the lives of a single American soldier.
      Iran: In light of the trouble we ran into with the two aforementioned countries, all action we take against these folks should remain covert. Sure, it's shady and maybe a bit morally ambiguous, but that's the way covert operations should be.
      Israel: Support them, I guess. I'm in no way some super pro-Israel absolutist, but I would back them. And hey, if they wanna start the war with Iran for us, that makes life a lot more convenient.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Maxwell on December 30, 2012, 06:57:28 PM
      Social Policy:

      Overall: Liberaltarian

      Abortion: Pro-Choice until viability.

      Gay Marriage: I would want the Government out of the institution, since after that I think the Civil Rights Act would take hold, if not, then that's fine too. If its not out of the Government institution, however, I would make it legal.

      Drug Legalization: I'd work on a compromise on that, legalizing marijuana and doing some helpful drug rehabilitation on users rather than jailing them. I'd prefer legalizing all, since its all about choice with me, but I'd be malleable on a proper solution to the failed drug wars.

      Immigration: I used to be center right/right on immigration, but my views have kind of shifted. My view is that we do have laws we should abide by, but we should work towards reform of legal immigration so that we have a better immigration system. Also I would make it a tad easier to get a work visa.

      Death Penalty: Again, this is an issue I used to be fairly right-wing, but I've shifted to a huge extent. I think the Death Penalty is absolutely wrong, on a fiscal and a social level. It costs more to give one the death penalty per person, and what if we got the wrong person? Life-sentences, with less chances of parole, would be the better option in my mind.

      Patriot Act: I would want a 100% repeal of this violation of civil liberties.

      Gun Control: My views in politics have become ever more malleable, and that also goes into the world of gun control. I would prefer there to be as little as possible, but I would like to add some hoops to jump through in order to get guns. This another issue where I was far right on that I've shifted a bit more to the center.

      Assisted Suicide: In favor of, under the right circumstances.

      Fiscal Policy:

      Overall: Pragmatic Conservative

      Right-To-Work: I am in favor of right to work.

      Welfare: I am in favor of Clinton's welfare bill, and continuous bills that would make it so that welfare is the option that goes to those who deserve it and need it the most.

      Privatization: I believe Privatization works in a lot of cases. At the same token, the banks should have regulation and should go to jail should they commit fraud, prisons, roads, and all other things that, in the common sense world, has no real incentive for the person doing the job, should be handled by the government. I'd even argue toward nationalization of the job that defense contractors, as the defense lobby has gotten out of hand in my view.

      Taxation: I believe lower taxes not only helps the upper bracket, but it also helps people all around. At the same token, if cuts across the board still aren't nearly enough to fix the deficit problem, I think that we should raise taxes. I actually think we should go over the cliff, as we get both more spending cuts and more tax increases than we would in any other scenario. I like the flat tax, but in terms of negotiations, I would like a top rate 30% progressive tax system, with a much more simple tax code.

      Education: School vouchers so that kids would have a better chance at a strong private school would be the best choice in my view. I have some issues with vouchers, such as religious schools, but my thinking on issues generally revolve around one's choice, so I think that parents should have that choice even if I may disagree with that choice of school.

      Government Spending: We have to not only reduce spending in poverty program and drug war programs, but we also have to look deeply into the military budget and start to gut it back to pre-Iraq war levels (plus, of course, inflation). I would also look into waste of all of these programs where ever they are, either if there's a unnecessary middle man, ect. I would like to look most into spending cuts for deficit/debt reduction, but reality tells me that that won't be all of it.

      Social Security: I would reform these by raising the retirement age. I would agree with Cathcon by locking it and saying Congress can never take from the trust fund ever again. I also had an idea of giving by all of the retirees money back with an apology saying we never were going to keep the governments promise, but again, I'd reform it with a lighter hand than that.

      Foreign Policy:

      Overall: Non-interventionist

      Israel: We should not do everything Israel says. We should not bow to Israel and act as if we serve them. We should look fairly at what we agree and disagree with them with and treat them as allies, not as lovers. I believe that will strengthen, not weaken, our foreign relationship with them.

      Iran: We are doing something that is comparable to the Treaty of Versailles. When after World War I the world decided to intensely punish Germany and put stiff rules on Germany, they burst the way they did. The same could happen to Iran, and we need to be a lot more careful than we are being.

      Afghanistan: We should've been out years ago.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Wyoming Conservative on January 02, 2013, 03:31:31 PM
      Social Policy

      Abortion:Pro-Life,Illegal except in the life of the mother(you get the picture).

      Gay Rights:Should be none of the governments damn business.

      Affirmative Action:Should be banded. Racism with a smile on its face.

      Death Penalty:Support. But im not 100% on this issue.

      Drugs:I support legalizing Marijuana. But not other hard drugs. End the drug war as it costs to much money.

      Gambling:Completely legal.

      Economic Policy

      Taxes:Massive cuts to Business taxes and massive across the board tax cuts. Reform to a flat tax system.

      Healthcare:I oppose Obamacare. If the government forces you to buy healthcare whats stoping them from forcing you to buy say tooth paste?. Its a slippery slope. Support tort reform and other measures to lower the cost of healthcare, oppose Socialized medicine and other government involvement.

      Social Security:Part of it should be privatized. If someone wants to opt out of the system so be it.

      Education:School vouchers would be a good start. Raise teachers pay but cut of funding for failing public schools.
       
      Welfare:There should be a safety net to help the poor. However welfare is extremely unproductive and has gone to far. Maybe something like a negative income tax were everyone was guaranteed to a home and the market could flourish without regulation?. Im in favor of Milton Friedman's negative income proposals along with massive privatization of government sectors. Abolish welfare and replace with a Negative Income tax. Basically i'm like Milton Friedman or Jack Kemp a extreme free marketer yet someone who believes in helping the poor: through market means.

      Medicare:Turn into a voucher program.

      Spending:Large spending cuts to pay back the debt specifically entitlements along with military cuts. Trim down the number of government employees.

      Foreign Policy

      Foreign Aid:Cut back all foreign aid. We have enough problems at home to deal with don't we?.

      Afghanistan:Its time to leave.

      Iraq:Should have never happened in the first place.

      UN:Scale back our current involvement.





      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: afleitch on January 04, 2013, 08:56:53 AM

      It's been a while

      Abortion: Pro-choice in the US context. Happy with the status quo in the UK

      Drugs: I don't care. The idea that peoples right to be 'legally high' is an issue at all pisses me off. Legalise most drugs, and tax them in the same way we tax tobacco and alcohol and then see how many people care.

      Censorship: Generally oppose. If you don't like something don't look at it

      Gay marriage: Fully support. Anyone who says 'it's not a government issue it's religious' isn't answering the question or thinks it's safer to answer that way because opposing gay marriage is increasingly unacceptable. It IS a government issue. Marriage comes with all sorts of legal benefits. If it didn't, people wouldn't bother. If you want the 'state out of marriage' then accept that people who marry should therefore get nothing by right from their spouse or any recognition from the state that they are a couple or a family, even if they have kids. Let's all involve lawyers and sign contracts for everyting from pensions to hospital visits.

      Death penalty: Strongly oppose. If you can't impose justice without taking someone's life because you don't know what to do with them, then you have a terrible justice system

      Prostitution: Legalise it, regulate it, register it and tax it. Soon it will be cheaper just to bang your wife.

      Church & state: Seperate (which includes disestablishment in the UK), no special rights and no tax breaks. No concessions in equality legislation because you happen to have a hissy fit around women and gays .

      Affirmative action: Can't live with it, because it is positive discrimination but can't live without it because people (read striaght white men, as they are still disproportionate in business) are generally racist, sexist and homophobic assholes if they can get away with it.

      Hate crime laws: Beating the crap out of a someone because of their race or the sexuality or whatever is worse than beating them up just because they are another person.

      Immigration: I'm fine with it in principle, but it's not desirable to have it unrestricted.

      Stem cell research: Yes, Fund it with every penny you can, even if it turns out not to be viable. It's only cells.

      PATRIOT Act: Repeal.

      Gun Control: Unless you are in the armed forces you don't need a gun. Evan farmers and hunters might need access to them, but it doesn't mean they need to own them

      Assisted suicide: Allow. It's a matter of human dignity

      Gambling: Allow it, tax it, regulate it etc.

      Electoral Reform:

      Term limits: Let someone be in public office until they retire, are defeated or die.

      Statehood: Admit Puerto Rico, because they wan't it and D.C because they are your capital as states.

      Voting age: Lower to 16.

      Campaign Finance Reform: Only allow small donations

      Voting system: In the UK, move to STV with a % threshold. In the USA move to STV and abolish the electoral college.

      Gerrymandering: In the USA, establish an independent Boundary Commission to draw up multi member seats.

      Voter ID: Automatic registration with no voter I.D so essentially if an adult comes up to you they vote and get a little sticker and and if a child comes up to you, they can't vote but get a little sticker.

      Economic Issues:

      Welfare: Support Clinton era reform.

      Unions: Support the right of every working person in every profession from lawyers to shelf stackers to form unions.

      Privatization: Case by case basis.

      Environment: Move towards sustainable energy. Stick two fingers up to the car; turn freeways into railways if you have to.

      Minimum wage: Support and tied to wage inflation.

      Taxation: USA; Impose nationwide sales tax, lift poorest workers out of the tax system altogether and increase taxes on the top 25% of earners.

      Healthcare: Establish an American NHS. If single payer is good enough for schools, the police and the fire service it's good enough for public health.

      Trade: Support free trade

      Embargo: Embargo states that contravene the principles of UN Human Rights

      Pork: Oink oink

      Subsidies: Case-by-case basis
       
      Military: Cut spending.

      Foreign Policy

      War: If attacked, if ally attacked, if genocide can only be prevented through intervention, or with agreement from the UN

      Draft: None, unless nation at threat of home invasion

      UN: Is great, but shouldn't be about having every nation on board, only those who actually care about human rights, peace, democracy and personal freedom.

      Nukes: Maintain.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Donald Trump 2016 on January 06, 2013, 07:34:17 PM
      Social

      Abortion:Im Pro-Choice untill the first trimester.

      Gay Marriage:I support Gay Marriage but believe it should be left to the states.

      Gun Control:I oppose all Gun Control laws. And support a full repeal of the brady bill and all anti-gun legislation. I support national stand your ground laws.

      Death Penalty:I support capital punishment and support larger use of the death penalty.

      Drugs:I support legalizing marijuana for medical purposes. End the war on drugs and put all the money used on drugs into our broken border fence.

      Prayer in public schools:Oppose.

      Economic Issues

      Taxes:Simplify the current tax system. Make the income tax lower and flatter. A simple 15% flat tax rate across the board.

      Social Security:I support massive privatization. Dismantle and reform the social security system and strongly encourage private accounts.

      Trade:Replace Free Trade with Fair Trade. Raise Tariffs and get out of NAFTA/WTO.

      Immigration:Secure our border. Put more troops on the border massively and import a policy of limited immigration.

      Environment:Nothing is more important then our environment. Invest in green energy and tackle the problem of climate change by signing the kyoto protocol.

      Foreign Policy

      Israel:I strongly support Israel. More aid to them. I would support a palestinian state only on israeli terms.

      Afghanistan:I support ending the war.

      Military:We treat our soilders like complete sh**t. Thats wrong. Increase the pay of solders by massive amounts. Support more funding on the military oppose all cuts.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: hillbilly32 on January 12, 2013, 12:48:20 AM
      Here are my views.

      Abortion:I am Pro-Life & Abortion should be illegal in all cases except to save the life of the mother or rape or incest.

      Gay Rights:I oppose Gay Marriage & Civil Union.

      Death Penalty:I strongly support the death penalty. Let clear out death row & expand the death penalty. Make appeals more harder.

      Drug Use:I oppose legalizing Any drugs & support banning alcohol.

      Taxes:Make Taxes more progressive & more tax on the rich.

      Social Security:I OPPOSE ALL EFFORTS TO PRIVATIZE SOCIAL SECURITY & THAT FINAL OKEY.

      Guns:I OPPOSE ALL GUN CONTROL & THAT THE END OF THAT.

      Healthcare:I support universal Healthcare Public or Private.

      Free Trade:I support abolishing all tarrifs & strongly support free trade. Those damn Yankee Republicans hated the south & imposed tarrifs & hurt our economy so I hate fair trade.

      Law:I support the Union issueing a official apology to the confederate states & admitting that the south was 100% right on the civil war & I support the confederacy being able to sucedde. I am also a member of Neo-Confederate movements.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: © tweed on January 12, 2013, 12:49:11 AM
      Here are my views.

      Abortion:I am Pro-Life & Abortion should be illegal in all cases except to save the life of the mother or rape or incest.

      Gay Rights:I oppose Gay Marriage & Civil Union.

      Death Penalty:I strongly support the death penalty. Let clear out death row & expand the death penalty. Make appeals more harder.

      Drug Use:I oppose legalizing Any drugs & support banning alcohol.

      Taxes:Make Taxes more progressive & more tax on the rich.

      Social Security:I OPPOSE ALL EFFORTS TO PRIVATIZE SOCIAL SECURITY & THAT FINAL OKEY.

      Guns:I OPPOSE ALL GUN CONTROL & THAT THE END OF THAT.

      Healthcare:I support universal Healthcare Public or Private.

      Law:I support the Union issueing a official apology to the confederate states & admitting that the south was 100% right on the civil war & I support the confederacy being able to sucedde. I am also a member of Neo-Confederate movements.

      wtf is this then?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: hillbilly32 on January 12, 2013, 12:50:13 AM
      Here are my views.

      Abortion:I am Pro-Life & Abortion should be illegal in all cases except to save the life of the mother or rape or incest.

      Gay Rights:I oppose Gay Marriage & Civil Union.

      Death Penalty:I strongly support the death penalty. Let clear out death row & expand the death penalty. Make appeals more harder.

      Drug Use:I oppose legalizing Any drugs & support banning alcohol.

      Taxes:Make Taxes more progressive & more tax on the rich.

      Social Security:I OPPOSE ALL EFFORTS TO PRIVATIZE SOCIAL SECURITY & THAT FINAL OKEY.

      Guns:I OPPOSE ALL GUN CONTROL & THAT THE END OF THAT.

      Healthcare:I support universal Healthcare Public or Private.

      Law:I support the Union issueing a official apology to the confederate states & admitting that the south was 100% right on the civil war & I support the confederacy being able to sucedde. I am also a member of Neo-Confederate movements.

      wtf is this then?

      @Tweedelism is for possers in Junior High Im not sure what you mean.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TNF on January 12, 2013, 01:08:33 AM
      ^ someone seems to be trying to create a troll that is everything Oldies imagines the Democratic Party to be, except also socially conservative. My money is on it being yet another sockpuppet of Vegetaboi's.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: hillbilly32 on January 12, 2013, 01:11:03 AM
      ^ someone seems to be trying to create a troll that is everything Oldies imagines the Democratic Party to be, except also socially conservative. My money is on it being yet another sockpuppet of Vegetaboi's.

      @TNF I am not sure what you mean. I am Hillbilly32 & I am a southern confederate populist democrat.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TNF on January 12, 2013, 08:51:39 AM
      ^ someone seems to be trying to create a troll that is everything Oldies imagines the Democratic Party to be, except also socially conservative. My money is on it being yet another sockpuppet of Vegetaboi's.

      @TNF I am not sure what you mean. I am Hillbilly32 & I am a southern confederate populist democrat.

      No, you're quite obviously a troll, and more likely a sock puppet.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: They put it to a vote and they just kept lying on January 12, 2013, 11:30:25 AM
      Definitely Vegetaboi, and he's definitely noticed Oldiesfreak.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Tsongas Democrat on January 13, 2013, 07:19:35 PM
      Social- Pro-Life,Pro-Gay Marriage,Anti-Death Penalty,Pro-Weed legalization,Anti-Euthanasia,Anti-School Prayer.

      Economic-Pro-Bush Tax Cuts/Pro-Lower Taxes,Anti-Social Security Privatization,Pro-Universal Healthcare,Pro-Welfare Reform,Pro-Cutting spending,Pro-Balanced Budget,Protectionist.

      Overall-Centrist,DLC Democrat,Moderate Democrat,New Democrat.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Wyoming Conservative on January 13, 2013, 10:53:47 PM
      My new list.

      Social
      Overall:Libertarian Conservative
      Abortion:Im Pro-Life abortion should be Illegal in all cases period.
      Drugs:Legalize marijuana.
      Death Penalty:Strongly Support,expand use of the death penalty and clear out death row.
      Gay Rights:I favor gay marriage at the state level.

      Economic
      Overall:Right-Wing Conservative
      Taxes:I support a simple 10percent flat tax rate and massive across the board tax cuts.
      Social Security:Reform,raise retirement age,privatize.
      Healthcare:I strongly oppose UHC,Socialized medicine,Obamacare. Break up healthcare monopolies and ge the government completely out of healthcare reverting the system to a true free market.
      Free Trade:Oppose, support Fair Trade over Free Trade.
      Immigration:Secure the borders and strongly oppose amnesty and the dream act.
      Campaign Finance Reform:Oppose
      Environment:Economy comes before environment period. I support expanding drilling and drilling in the alaska. Also approve the keystone pipeline now and drill more.
      Education:Completely privatize all public schools. Cut of all funding and support school vouchers for all. Public schools have failed.

      Foreign Policy
      Overall:Isolationist
      Iraq War:Illegal war, strongly oppose.
      Foreign Aid:Cut all foreign aid period. We have enough problems at home the troubles of other countries should not be a problem for use.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Niemeyerite on January 14, 2013, 09:13:58 AM
      I share Afleitch beliefs. Are you sure you are a Tory, Andrew?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: LastVoter on January 14, 2013, 11:08:28 PM
      Definitely Vegetaboi, and he's definitely noticed Oldiesfreak.
      Why are we pointing this out, just let him do his job.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Gass3268 on January 15, 2013, 06:35:35 AM
      Here's me! I'll probably add more issues over time.

      Social
      Overall: Liberal
      Abortion: Legal in all cases. The Government should not be playing doctor.
      Drugs:Legalize marijuana and most soft drugs.
      Death Penalty:Strongly oppose, the more states the ban it the better.
      Gay Rights:
      Guns Control: We need universal background checks, assault weapon ban, large magazine ban and a national gun registry   

      Economic
      Overall: Socialist
      Taxes: Support a more Progressive tax system with more brackets. Wealthy need to pay more!
      Social Security: It's fine as it is for another 20 years, when we get to that point we can raise the Social Security tax.
      Healthcare: Obamacare was a good start, but we need to go farther. Single-payer is the way to go!
      Free Trade:Depends on the country. Canada yes, Mexico no.
      Immigration: We need to make the immigration process easier, give citizenship to those who are already here and protect or borders in a human way.
      Campaign Finance Reform: Only way we will have a true democracy is if we get the money out of politics.
      Environment: Climate change is real. We need to stop offshore oil-drilling and fracking as they are both destroying the environment. We need to invest more in wind, solar and biofuels. Would be willing to compromise and allow for more nuclear power plants. 
      Education: Invest more in public schools and teachers. Come up with teacher accountability measures that take more into account then just test scores.

      Foreign Policy
      Overall:Don't know what exactly yet
      Iraq War: Bad!
      Foreign Aid: Actually works and doesn't take up too much of the budget to continue or even expand.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Khunanup on January 20, 2013, 07:31:38 PM
      I share Afleitch beliefs. Are you sure you are a Tory, Andrew?

      He sounds more like a Lib Dem!


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Fresneck Harnizos on January 22, 2013, 07:53:15 PM
      Pro-Environment, Anti-Immigration, Protectionist, Anti-Wall Street & Anti-Usuary, Non-interventionist foregn policy, anti-Police State, Against Corporate Monopolies and in favor of taxing on the ultra wealthy, and a moderate social safety net as long as it does not promote dissgenics.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mechaman on January 22, 2013, 10:39:23 PM
      I figure it's time I should post an update

      Social
      Overall: Liberalish
      Abortion: Legal, while I have a moral distaste for it the alternative, that is giving the government authority over somebody's body, is a very dangerous slippery slope.
      Drugs: Legalize most drugs.  Voluntary self-harm shouldn't be considered a crime.
      Death Penalty: Shouldn't exist.  Needs to be a Constitutional Amendment or something to ban this as "cruel and unusual".
      Gay Rights: How about, instead, we talk about universal rights?  Or why is it that we even have to discuss the concept of love and government?  I think the answer is quite obvious: We stop asking questions about what people do in the privacy of their own bedrooms and we back our rhetoric on that piece of paper called the Bill O'Rights that says that we shall not have a government that prohibits or endorses the practices of one religious philosophy over another.
      Gun Control: Non-issue.  Those who automatically jump in the air for more controls after every shooting committed by some nutcase tend to overlook (but not ignore) the joke of a mental healthcare system we have that has an almost contemptible view of people with mental disabilities.  People who start foaming at the mouth that gun control will lead to a fascist one party dictatorship give the proles of this country too much credit if they think that the right to an M-16 rifle will prevent said police state.  I don't own a gun, don't ever plan on owning one, and I could give a sheyit if I get shot by someone with one.  NON.  FUUCKING.  ISSUE.

      Economic
      Overall: Left Wing State Skeptic
      Taxes: Ideally I would prefer a Georgist tax structure that taxes the unmodified value of land over the income tax structure we have now.  The immorality of property ownership warrants it.
      Social Security: Is a joke.  People should be able to opt out if they choose.  OF course, if they do choose to opt out of it, they don't get the benefits they would get otherwise.
      Healthcare: Is a right, not a privilege.  There needs to be a public health system for those who can't easily and readily afford privatized healthcare.  However, I do believe that it would be an excessive use of state power and quite authoritarian to ban the practice of private healthcare.  So really, I guess a favoring of a mixed healthcare system with easily affordable public care for those who choose so.
      Free Trade:  Is not perfect.  However, with globalization it's inevitable.  And is infinitely preferable to the system that came before.
      Immigration: Abolish the authoritarian concept known as "the national border" and institute Quik-Stop citizenship registration.  Take a process that used to take years to accomplish and slim it down to a matter of minutes.
      Campaign Finance Reform: My solution to this is simple: Kill the Corporations.
      Environment: Should be a no brainer.  Keep your head clean of fumes, play nice with others, and keep your space uncluttered.  Otherwise, our planet ends up looking and smelling like your old college dorm room after one too many bong hits.
      Education: I'm not sure how we fix this, but a lot of people really need to get the sheyit together.  We're talking about our nation's future here damn it!

      Foreign Policy
      Overall:Don't know what exactly yet
      Iraq War: You know those Joel Schumacher Batman movies you saw as a kid and you see them when you're like fuuckin' 24 years old and stoned out of your mind and you're like "damn, did this movie suck major" even though you swallowed enough qualudes to have met your own father in the past?  Yeah, this was a bit worse than that.
      Interventionism: Stop playing big daddy policeman.  You know that one jackass who used to bully everyone and took karate?  Yeah, that's what America has become to many people.  And, newsflash Obama, the drones don't really help shake that perception.  Now, we are the kid who bullies everyone, who knows karate, and is very proficient at flying remote control airplanes that drop sheyit on everyone when he's bored.  We need to cut back, so we save money and goodwill, unless a situation is REALLY calling for military action.  Oh yes, also be a good idea if the President (who isn't a fuuckin' god, like everyone who supports him seems to think) doesn't have as much authority to just off and send troops where he likes, congressional approvals/disapprovals of war be damned.
      Foreign Aid: This isn't 1946.  We need to be smart with how we send our money overseas.  We need to delegate to humanitarian/charitable organizations more and less outright to governments.  Not against direct government aid to implement social justice per se, but am also in favor of private organization involvement in aid.  Really, just keep a humanitarian perspective on it and keep bureaucratic interference to a minimal.

      More should come out later.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Peter the Lefty on January 31, 2013, 09:05:35 PM
      Social: Complete Feingoldian civil libertarian.  Pro-gay marriage (obviously for me :P), pro-choice in the vast majority of cases.  Pro-pot legalization (and regulation).  Anti-death penalty, pro-euthanasia, and yes, I'm against "in God we Trust" and "One nation under God" being in currency, the pledge of allegiance, etc.  Pro-gun control.  Support letting in more immigration in. 

      Economic: Fair trade, very progressive taxation, passionately pro-labor unions (except sometimes the teachers' unions with regards to tenure.  And the American Musicians' Union can also be rather dogmatic).  Pro-regulation of big business and banks, including the reinstatement of the Glass-Stegall Act in its full original entirety.  Put a financial transaction's tax in there too.  Support raising the minimum wage to the living wage.  Support a single-taxpayer health care system, and a large increase in Social Security spending so that we actually have a safety net that's not a complete joke. 

      Environmental: Yes, climate change is real.  Support a gradually implemented cap and trade system, along with much greater funding for solar and wind technology.  Oppose nuclear energy.  Also a big animal rights supporter. 

      Foreign Policy: Dove.  Pro-Palestinian (though both their factions are crap), anti-Afghan war, anti-Iraq war, and generally extremely skeptical of anyone who wants to start a war even against the most insane regimes in the world.  Though I did (and still do) support the Libya intervention, and I think something seriously has to be done about the situation in Syria.  Very passionate about human rights in general.

      Miscellaneous: Support campaign finance reform, want a parliamentary system in my heart of hearts, support proportional representation and oppose upper houses in general.  But so long as we're stuck in the shackles of the structure of government related to us by the Founding Fathers, I guess abolish the electoral college and institute preferential voting.  Same with all House and Senate elections.  Oh, and maybe give more Senate seats to larger states so that it's actually proportional to the population.  And give D.C. Statehood status already. 


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: H.E. VOLODYMYR ZELENKSYY on February 02, 2013, 11:30:40 PM
      Social: Complete Feingoldian civil libertarian.  Pro-gay marriage (obviously for me :P), pro-choice in the vast majority of cases.  Pro-pot legalization (and regulation).  Anti-death penalty, pro-euthanasia, and yes, I'm against "in God we Trust" and "One nation under God" being in currency, the pledge of allegiance, etc.  Pro-gun control.  Support letting in more immigration in. 

      Economic: Fair trade, very progressive taxation, passionately pro-labor unions (except sometimes the teachers' unions with regards to tenure.  And the American Musicians' Union can also be rather dogmatic).  Pro-regulation of big business and banks, including the reinstatement of the Glass-Stegall Act in its full original entirety.  Put a financial transaction's tax in there too.  Support raising the minimum wage to the living wage.  Support a single-taxpayer health care system, and a large increase in Social Security spending so that we actually have a safety net that's not a complete joke. 

      Environmental: Yes, climate change is real.  Support a gradually implemented cap and trade system, along with much greater funding for solar and wind technology.  Oppose nuclear energy.  Also a big animal rights supporter. 

      Foreign Policy: Dove.  Pro-Palestinian (though both their factions are crap), anti-Afghan war, anti-Iraq war, and generally extremely skeptical of anyone who wants to start a war even against the most insane regimes in the world.  Though I did (and still do) support the Libya intervention, and I think something seriously has to be done about the situation in Syria.  Very passionate about human rights in general.

      Miscellaneous: Support campaign finance reform, want a parliamentary system in my heart of hearts, support proportional representation and oppose upper houses in general.  But so long as we're stuck in the shackles of the structure of government related to us by the Founding Fathers, I guess abolish the electoral college and institute preferential voting.  Same with all House and Senate elections.  Oh, and maybe give more Senate seats to larger states so that it's actually proportional to the population.  And give D.C. Statehood status already. 

      Have sex with me now.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The world will shine with light in our nightmare on February 03, 2013, 10:20:32 PM
      used to support support sending criminals to alaska or siberia

      That's um, interesting.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Darth Maul on February 03, 2013, 10:55:38 PM
      used to support support sending criminals to alaska or siberia

      That's um, interesting.

      Yeah I used to see it as a alternative to capital punishment but now I dont since I favor it.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: H.E. VOLODYMYR ZELENKSYY on February 04, 2013, 05:52:20 AM
      used to support support sending criminals to alaska or siberia

      That's um, interesting.

      Yeah I used to see it as a alternative to capital punishment but now I dont since I favor it.

      Why Alaska of all places?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: AkSaber on February 04, 2013, 07:42:47 AM
      used to support support sending criminals to alaska or siberia

      That's um, interesting.

      Yeah I used to see it as a alternative to capital punishment but now I dont since I favor it.

      Why Alaska of all places?

      Not in his backyard?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TNF on February 04, 2013, 07:43:25 AM
      used to support support sending criminals to alaska or siberia

      That's um, interesting.

      Yeah I used to see it as a alternative to capital punishment but now I dont since I favor it.

      Why Alaska of all places?

      It's the closest thing we have to Siberia?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Darth Maul on February 11, 2013, 09:02:48 PM
      My views.

      Abortion:Should be illegal all cases period. Even if the woman is raped or in the life of the mother. 100% banded.

      Gay Rights:Oppose gay marriage. Favor domestic partnerships.

      Capital Punishment:Strongly support expand usage.

      Healthcare:Strongly Oppose universal healthcare or anyform of socialized medicine. Repeal Obamacare.

      Taxes:Support a simple clean Flat tax Rate of 15%. Never raise taxes under any circumstances.

      Social Security:Abolish.

      Military:Increase funding to massive amounts. We treat our soilders like sh**t they make less then 50,000 per year. Raise there salary to 300,000 and raise the military budget to 990billion.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TNF on February 11, 2013, 09:13:29 PM
      My views.

      Abortion:Should be illegal all cases period. Even if the woman is raped or in the life of the mother. 100% banded.

      Gay Rights:Oppose gay marriage. Favor domestic partnerships.

      Capital Punishment:Strongly support expand usage.

      Healthcare:Strongly Oppose universal healthcare or anyform of socialized medicine. Repeal Obamacare.

      Taxes:Support a simple clean Flat tax Rate of 15%. Never raise taxes under any circumstances.

      Social Security:Abolish.

      Military:Increase funding to massive amounts. We treat our soilders like sh**t they make less then 50,000 per year. Raise there salary to 300,000 and raise the military budget to 990billion.

      Welcome back, Vegetaboi!


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The world will shine with light in our nightmare on February 11, 2013, 09:14:01 PM
      Abortion:Should be illegal all cases period. Even if the woman is raped or in the life of the mother. 100% banded..

      lol wtf


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: They put it to a vote and they just kept lying on February 19, 2013, 05:37:57 PM
      Alright time for an update. I'm going with the Political Matrix and my responses, and I'll post my score below.

      1. The right to individual autonomy is important, even if it threatens collective security. (Usually agree)
      2. The government should penalize organizations that practice outsourcing. (Neutral)
      3. Giving faith-based charities the same government resources as secular organizations is a good idea. (Neutral)
      4. We should increase foreign aid to countries struggling with poverty. (Usually disagree)
      5. We should increase funding for education. (Neutral)

      6. Heterosexual couples should receive higher marital recognition than same-sex couples. (Usually disagree)
      7. Overall, free trade hurts more than it helps. (Neutral)
      8. We should reduce the number of government programs substantially. (Neutral)
      9. Abortion should be illegal or very heavily restricted. (Neutral)
      10. The government should fund museums, theaters, and other cultural institutions that are unable to survive independently. (Usually disagree)

      11. The government should subsidize health insurance for those who cannot easily afford it. (Neutral)
      12. The government should work to reduce children's exposure to offensive radio and television content. (Disagree)
      13. It is unfair that wealthier people pay higher tax rates. (Usually disagree)
      14. The minimum wage should be raised. (Agree)
      15. Marijuana should be legalized. (Agree)

      16. Society focuses too much on forcing equality at the expense of real merit. (Usually disagree)
      17. Violating individual rights is acceptable when it comes to fighting terrorism. (Usually disagree)
      18. Current levels of government regulation on industry are excessive. (Neutral)
      19. The government should provide basic needs for all people. (Usually disagree)
      20. The death penalty should be an option for serious crimes. (Neutral)
      21. We should reduce the difficulty of immigration. (Agree)

      22. Union workers should be protected against being fired during strikes. (Neutral)
      23. Prostitution should be legalized. (Usually agree)
      24. Flag burning should be banned. (Usually disagree)
      25. I support affirmative action. (Usually disagree)
      26. The government should impose tariffs to protect industries from foreign competition. (Neutral)
      27. Physician-assisted suicide should be legal if the patient is capable of informed, rational consent. (Neutral)

      Economic: -0.26
      Social: -3.48

      And this comes as a shock to me, I have ventured into the left side of the PM for the first time.

      Weeee.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The world will shine with light in our nightmare on February 19, 2013, 07:04:58 PM
      I'm going to post my PM responses, as well.

      1. The right to individual autonomy is important, even if it threatens collective security. (Usually agree)
      2. The government should penalize organizations that practice outsourcing. (Usually disagree)
      3. Giving faith-based charities the same government resources as secular organizations is a good idea. (Usually agree)
      4. We should increase foreign aid to countries struggling with poverty. (Neutral)
      5. We should increase funding for education. (Neutral)

      6. Heterosexual couples should receive higher marital recognition than same-sex couples. (Disagree)*
      7. Overall, free trade hurts more than it helps. (Usually disagree)
      8. We should reduce the number of government programs substantially. (Neutral)
      9. Abortion should be illegal or very heavily restricted. (Disagree)*
      10. The government should fund museums, theaters, and other cultural institutions that are unable to survive independently. (Neutral)

      11. The government should subsidize health insurance for those who cannot easily afford it. (Agree)*
      12. The government should work to reduce children's exposure to offensive radio and television content. (Usually disagree)
      13. It is unfair that wealthier people pay higher tax rates. (Disagree)*
      14. The minimum wage should be raised. (Agree)
      15. Marijuana should be legalized. (Agree)

      16. Society focuses too much on forcing equality at the expense of real merit. (Usually disagree)
      17. Violating individual rights is acceptable when it comes to fighting terrorism. (Disagree)
      18. Current levels of government regulation on industry are excessive. (Usually disagree)
      19. The government should provide basic needs for all people. (Neutral)
      20. The death penalty should be an option for serious crimes. (Disagree)
      21. We should reduce the difficulty of immigration. (Usually agree)

      22. Union workers should be protected against being fired during strikes. (Usually disagree)
      23. Prostitution should be legalized. (Usually agree)
      24. Flag burning should be banned. (Usually disagree)
      25. I support affirmative action. (Usually agree)
      26. The government should impose tariffs to protect industries from foreign competition. (Usually disagree)
      27. Physician-assisted suicide should be legal if the patient is capable of informed, rational consent. (Usually agree)

      *=Critical Issue

      Economic score: -1.68
      Social score: -5.39

      Absolutely no change.  Wow.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Goldwater on February 19, 2013, 08:48:08 PM
      1. The right to individual autonomy is important, even if it threatens collective security. (Usually agree)
      2. The government should penalize organizations that practice outsourcing. (Disagree)
      3. Giving faith-based charities the same government resources as secular organizations is a good idea. (Agree)
      4. We should increase foreign aid to countries struggling with poverty. (Neutral)
      5. We should increase funding for education. (Neutral)

      6. Heterosexual couples should receive higher marital recognition than same-sex couples. (Disagree)
      7. Overall, free trade hurts more than it helps. (Disagree)
      8. We should reduce the number of government programs substantially. (Agree)
      9. Abortion should be illegal or very heavily restricted. (Usually disagree)
      10. The government should fund museums, theaters, and other cultural institutions that are unable to survive independently. (Usually disagree)

      11. The government should subsidize health insurance for those who cannot easily afford it. (Usually disagree)
      12. The government should work to reduce children's exposure to offensive radio and television content. (Disagree)
      13. It is unfair that wealthier people pay higher tax rates. (Agree)
      14. The minimum wage should be raised. (Disagree)
      15. Marijuana should be legalized. (Agree)

      16. Society focuses too much on forcing equality at the expense of real merit. (Usually agree)
      17. Violating individual rights is acceptable when it comes to fighting terrorism. (Usually disagree)
      18. Current levels of government regulation on industry are excessive. (Agree)
      19. The government should provide basic needs for all people. (Usually disagree)
      20. The death penalty should be an option for serious crimes. (Agree)
      21. We should reduce the difficulty of immigration. (Neutral)

      22. Union workers should be protected against being fired during strikes. (Disagree)
      23. Prostitution should be legalized. (Usually agree)
      24. Flag burning should be banned. (Disagree)
      25. I support affirmative action. (Disagree)
      26. The government should impose tariffs to protect industries from foreign competition. (Disagree)
      27. Physician-assisted suicide should be legal if the patient is capable of informed, rational consent. (Usually agree)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TNF on February 20, 2013, 11:14:20 AM
      1. The right to individual autonomy is important, even if it threatens collective security. (Neutral)
      2. The government should penalize organizations that practice outsourcing. (Agree)*
      3. Giving faith-based charities the same government resources as secular organizations is a good idea. (Disagree)
      4. We should increase foreign aid to countries struggling with poverty. (Neutral) [1]
      5. We should increase funding for education. (Agree)*

      6. Heterosexual couples should receive higher marital recognition than same-sex couples. (Disagree)
      7. Overall, free trade hurts more than it helps. (Agree)*
      8. We should reduce the number of government programs substantially. (Disagree)*
      9. Abortion should be illegal or very heavily restricted. (Disagree)
      10. The government should fund museums, theaters, and other cultural institutions that are unable to survive independently. (Agree)

      11. The government should subsidize health insurance for those who cannot easily afford it. (Agree)*
      12. The government should work to reduce children's exposure to offensive radio and television content. (Neutral) [2]
      13. It is unfair that wealthier people pay higher tax rates. (Disagree)*
      14. The minimum wage should be raised. (Agree)*
      15. Marijuana should be legalized. (Agree)

      16. Society focuses too much on forcing equality at the expense of real merit. (Neutral) [3]
      17. Violating individual rights is acceptable when it comes to fighting terrorism. (Neutral)
      18. Current levels of government regulation on industry are excessive. (Disagree)*
      19. The government should provide basic needs for all people. (Agree)*
      20. The death penalty should be an option for serious crimes. (Disagree)
      21. We should reduce the difficulty of immigration. (Disagree)* [4]

      22. Union workers should be protected against being fired during strikes. (Agree)*
      23. Prostitution should be legalized. (Agree)
      24. Flag burning should be banned. (Disagree)
      25. I support affirmative action. (Disagree)*
      26. The government should impose tariffs to protect industries from foreign competition. (Agree)*
      27. Physician-assisted suicide should be legal if the patient is capable of informed, rational consent. (Agree)


      [1] Is it in our foreign policy interest? If so, then I'd agree with increasing foreign aid. If not, then disagree.

      [2] Give TV, Film, and Videogames the same freedom as publishers. I wouldn't necessarily oppose restricting content unsuitable for children to certain timeframes, though.

      [3] Don't know what this means.

      [4] I'm opposed to the current system, but I would like to admit less immigrants under a stricter criteria.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Torie on March 02, 2013, 08:07:44 AM
      Heterodox.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Maxwell on March 10, 2013, 11:51:45 PM
      1. The right to individual autonomy is important, even if it threatens collective security. (Agree)*
      2. The government should penalize organizations that practice outsourcing. (Disagree)
      3. Giving faith-based charities the same government resources as secular organizations is a good idea. (Usually agree)
      4. We should increase foreign aid to countries struggling with poverty. (Usually Disagree)
      5. We should increase funding for education. (Usually Disagree)

      6. Heterosexual couples should receive higher marital recognition than same-sex couples. (Disagree)*
      7. Overall, free trade hurts more than it helps. (Disagree)*
      8. We should reduce the number of government programs substantially. (Usually agree)
      9. Abortion should be illegal or very heavily restricted. (Disagree)*
      10. The government should fund museums, theaters, and other cultural institutions that are unable to survive independently. (Usually Disagree)

      11. The government should subsidize health insurance for those who cannot easily afford it. (Disagree)
      12. The government should work to reduce children's exposure to offensive radio and television content. (Disagree)
      13. It is unfair that wealthier people pay higher tax rates. (Neutral)
      14. The minimum wage should be raised. (Neutral)
      15. Marijuana should be legalized. (Agree)

      16. Society focuses too much on forcing equality at the expense of real merit. (Agree)
      17. Violating individual rights is acceptable when it comes to fighting terrorism. (Disagree)*
      18. Current levels of government regulation on industry are excessive. (Usually disagree)
      19. The government should provide basic needs for all people. (Disagree)
      20. The death penalty should be an option for serious crimes. (Disagree)
      21. We should reduce the difficulty of immigration. (Usually agree)

      22. Union workers should be protected against being fired during strikes. (Usually disagree)
      23. Prostitution should be legalized. (Agree)
      24. Flag burning should be banned. (Disagree)
      25. I support affirmative action. (Disagree)
      26. The government should impose tariffs to protect industries from foreign competition. (Disagree)*
      27. Physician-assisted suicide should be legal if the patient is capable of informed, rational consent. (Usually agree)

      Result:

      E: +5.29
      S: -7.13


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Warren 4 Secretary of Everything on March 11, 2013, 01:16:13 AM
      1. The right to individual autonomy is important, even if it threatens collective security. (Usually Agree)
      2. The government should penalize organizations that practice outsourcing. (Agree)
      3. Giving faith-based charities the same government resources as secular organizations is a good idea. (Usually Disagree)
      4. We should increase foreign aid to countries struggling with poverty. (Usually Agree)
      5. We should increase funding for education. (Usually Agree)

      6. Heterosexual couples should receive higher marital recognition than same-sex couples. (Disagree)
      7. Overall, free trade hurts more than it helps. (Usually Agree)
      8. We should reduce the number of government programs substantially. (Usually Agree)
      9. Abortion should be illegal or very heavily restricted. (Disagree)
      10. The government should fund museums, theaters, and other cultural institutions that are unable to survive independently. (Usually Agree)

      11. The government should subsidize health insurance for those who cannot easily afford it. (Agree)
      12. The government should work to reduce children's exposure to offensive radio and television content. (Usually Disagree)
      13. It is unfair that wealthier people pay higher tax rates. (Neutral)
      14. The minimum wage should be raised. (Agree)
      15. Marijuana should be legalized. (Agree)

      16. Society focuses too much on forcing equality at the expense of real merit. (Agree)
      17. Violating individual rights is acceptable when it comes to fighting terrorism. (Disagree)
      18. Current levels of government regulation on industry are excessive. (Usually Agree)
      19. The government should provide basic needs for all people. (Disagree)
      20. The death penalty should be an option for serious crimes. (Usually Agree)
      21. We should reduce the difficulty of immigration. (Usually Agree)

      22. Union workers should be protected against being fired during strikes. (Usually Disagree)
      23. Prostitution should be legalized. (Disagree)
      24. Flag burning should be banned. (Disagree)
      25. I support affirmative action. (Neutral)
      26. The government should impose tariffs to protect industries from foreign competition. (Disagree)
      27. Physician-assisted suicide should be legal if the patient is capable of informed, rational consent. (Usually Disagree)

      Result:

      E: -0.65
      S: -2.96


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mechaman on March 11, 2013, 02:14:31 AM
      1. The right to individual autonomy is important, even if it threatens collective security. (Agree)*
      2. The government should penalize organizations that practice outsourcing. (Disagree)
      3. Giving faith-based charities the same government resources as secular organizations is a good idea. (Disagree)
      4. We should increase foreign aid to countries struggling with poverty. (Usually Disagree)
      5. We should increase funding for education. (Agree)*

      6. Heterosexual couples should receive higher marital recognition than same-sex couples. (Disagree)
      7. Overall, free trade hurts more than it helps. (Usually Disagree)
      8. We should reduce the number of government programs substantially. (Usually Agree)
      9. Abortion should be illegal or very heavily restricted. (Disagree)
      10. The government should fund museums, theaters, and other cultural institutions that are unable to survive independently. (Agree)*

      11. The government should subsidize health insurance for those who cannot easily afford it. (Agree)*
      12. The government should work to reduce children's exposure to offensive radio and television content. (Disagree)
      13. It is unfair that wealthier people pay higher tax rates. (Disagree)
      14. The minimum wage should be raised. (Usually Agree)*
      15. Marijuana should be legalized. (Agree)*

      16. Society focuses too much on forcing equality at the expense of real merit. (Agree)
      17. Violating individual rights is acceptable when it comes to fighting terrorism. (Disagree)*
      18. Current levels of government regulation on industry are excessive. (Usually Agree)
      19. The government should provide basic needs for all people. (Disagree)*
      20. The death penalty should be an option for serious crimes. (Disagree)
      21. We should reduce the difficulty of immigration. (Agree)*

      22. Union workers should be protected against being fired during strikes. (Neutral)
      23. Prostitution should be legalized. (Agree)
      24. Flag burning should be banned. (Disagree)
      25. I support affirmative action. (Neutral)
      26. The government should impose tariffs to protect industries from foreign competition. (Disagree)
      27. Physician-assisted suicide should be legal if the patient is capable of informed, rational consent. (Usually Agree)

      Result:

      E: -0.06
      S: -8.26
      [/quote]


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Undecided Voter in the Midwest on March 11, 2013, 05:15:52 PM
      1. The right to individual autonomy is important, even if it threatens collective security. (Agree)
      2. The government should penalize organizations that practice outsourcing. (Usually disagree)
      3. Giving faith-based charities the same government resources as secular organizations is a good idea. (Usually disagree)
      4. We should increase foreign aid to countries struggling with poverty. (Disagree)
      5. We should increase funding for education. (Neutral)

      6. Heterosexual couples should receive higher marital recognition than same-sex couples. (Neutral)
      7. Overall, free trade hurts more than it helps. (Neutral)
      8. We should reduce the number of government programs substantially. (Agree)
      9. Abortion should be illegal or very heavily restricted. (Neutral)
      10. The government should fund museums, theaters, and other cultural institutions that are unable to survive independently. (Usually disagree)

      11. The government should subsidize health insurance for those who cannot easily afford it. (Disagree)
      12. The government should work to reduce children's exposure to offensive radio and television content. (Disagree)
      13. It is unfair that wealthier people pay higher tax rates. (Usually disagree)
      14. The minimum wage should be raised. (Disagree)
      15. Marijuana should be legalized. (Agree)

      16. Society focuses too much on forcing equality at the expense of real merit. (Agree)
      17. Violating individual rights is acceptable when it comes to fighting terrorism. (Disagree)
      18. Current levels of government regulation on industry are excessive. (Agree)
      19. The government should provide basic needs for all people. (Disagree)
      20. The death penalty should be an option for serious crimes. (Usually agree)
      21. We should reduce the difficulty of immigration. (Neutral)

      22. Union workers should be protected against being fired during strikes. (Usually disagree)
      23. Prostitution should be legalized. (Usually agree)
      24. Flag burning should be banned. (Disagree)
      25. I support affirmative action. (Disagree)
      26. The government should impose tariffs to protect industries from foreign competition. (Neutral)
      27. Physician-assisted suicide should be legal if the patient is capable of informed, rational consent. (Usually disagree)

      FINAL SCORE:

      E: +4.65
      S: -3.83

      Hmm... my score's changed a bit since the first time I took it, though I can't think of any major change of heart that I've had since then...


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mr. Illini on March 20, 2013, 07:58:06 PM
      1. The right to individual autonomy is important, even if it threatens collective security. (Agree)
      2. The government should penalize organizations that practice outsourcing. (Disagree)
      3. Giving faith-based charities the same government resources as secular organizations is a good idea. (Agree)
      4. We should increase foreign aid to countries struggling with poverty. (Disagree)
      5. We should increase funding for education. (Disagree)

      6. Heterosexual couples should receive higher marital recognition than same-sex couples. (Disagree)
      7. Overall, free trade hurts more than it helps. (Disagree)
      8. We should reduce the number of government programs substantially. (Agree)
      9. Abortion should be illegal or very heavily restricted. (Usually agree)
      10. The government should fund museums, theaters, and other cultural institutions that are unable to survive independently. (Disagree)

      11. The government should subsidize health insurance for those who cannot easily afford it. (Disagree)
      12. The government should work to reduce children's exposure to offensive radio and television content. (Disagree)
      13. It is unfair that wealthier people pay higher tax rates. (Agree)
      14. The minimum wage should be raised. (Disagree)
      15. Marijuana should be legalized. (Agree)

      16. Society focuses too much on forcing equality at the expense of real merit. (Usually agree)
      17. Violating individual rights is acceptable when it comes to fighting terrorism. (Disagree)
      18. Current levels of government regulation on industry are excessive. (Agree)
      19. The government should provide basic needs for all people. (Usually disagree)
      20. The death penalty should be an option for serious crimes. (Disagree)
      21. We should reduce the difficulty of immigration. (Agree)

      22. Union workers should be protected against being fired during strikes. (Usually disagree)
      23. Prostitution should be legalized. (Agree)
      24. Flag burning should be banned. (Disagree)
      25. I support affirmative action. (Usually disagree)
      26. The government should impose tariffs to protect industries from foreign competition. (Disagree)
      27. Physician-assisted suicide should be legal if the patient is capable of informed, rational consent. (Usually agree)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: They put it to a vote and they just kept lying on March 21, 2013, 05:23:52 AM
      5. We should increase funding for education. (Disagree)

      8. We should reduce the number of government programs substantially. (Agree)

      13. It is unfair that wealthier people pay higher tax rates. (Agree)
      14. The minimum wage should be raised. (Disagree)


      16. Society focuses too much on forcing equality at the expense of real merit. (Usually agree)
      18. Current levels of government regulation on industry are excessive. (Agree)
      19. The government should provide basic needs for all people. (Usually disagree)*

      Bloody hell...

      * = Saying just 'usually disagree' contradicts your 'agree' with the fact that Government programs should be cut back (#8)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: patd25 on April 07, 2013, 01:45:30 PM
      Social Issues

      LGBT Rights: I believe that though the states should be allowed to separately decide marriage laws, they should not have the right to prevent equal protection under hate crimes, employment discrimination and adoption rights.

      Abortion: I'm a bit neutral on abortion. I don't think states like Arkansas and North Dakota should go through with such strict laws and women should have a right to their bodies, but I also feel that abortion should only take place when the mother's life is in danger.

      The Drug War: This war has gotten too expensive and needs to be ended. While hard drugs like heroin, cocaine, and LSD should still be illegal. Marijuana should be allowed to be smoked in a person's property or in shops that allow it.

      Death Penalty: Life sentence is completely rational, but sometimes, the most heinous crimes need to punished with death. However, this should only happen once every ounce of evidence has been completely proven so that innocent people do not get killed.

      To be continued...




      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TNF on April 13, 2013, 01:54:38 PM
      Domestic Issues

      Labor Relations: I support the immediate passage of the Employee Free Choice Act (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Employee_Free_Choice_Act), as well as efforts currently being made to make labor organizing a civil right (http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/blogs/national-affairs/organizing-as-a-civil-right-how-to-strengthen-labor-and-reverse-inequality-20120920). I oppose attacks on labor unions at the state and local levels, and support amending the National Labor Relations Act to protect the right of public sector, domestic, agricultural, and supervisory workers to organize and collectively bargain. (http://realignmentproject.wordpress.com/2012/03/05/a-wagner-act-for-public-sector-unions/) In addition, I support repealing the Taft-Hartley Act (https://www.commondreams.org/archive/2007/09/04/3600) and banning the use of scabs by employers when workers go out on strike. Fundamentally, I believe that labor unions should be involved in tripartite economic planning involving business and government, (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tripartism) and support requiring labor representation on corporate boards. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Co-determination)

      Labor Standards: I support the passage of the Paycheck Fairness Act (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paycheck_Fairness_Act) and the implementation of a nationwide wage theft law modeled on Chicago's wage theft ordinance. (http://www.aflcio.org/Blog/Political-Action-Legislation/Chicago-Workers-Win-Tough-New-Wage-Theft-Protection) Furthermore, I support expanding coverage of overtime pay to all wage earners in the country, while also requiring time-and-a-half be paid to any employee that works on the weekend and double-time paid to any employee that works a federal holiday. I support mandating paid vacations (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Annual_leave), paid sick leave (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sick_leave), paid parental leave (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parental_Leave), and paid long service leave (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long_Service_Leave). I favor linking the minimum wage to productivity (http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/cepr-blog/the-minimum-wage-and-economic-growth), with increases implemented as worker productivity rises. I also favor the gradual implementation of a 30 hour workweek (http://www.zcommunications.org/whats-wrong-with-a-30-hour-work-week-by-don-fitz) with no loss in pay.

      Taxes: I support a more progressive income tax structure that taxes capital gains at the same rate as regular income, closing tax loopholes that encourage offshoring (among others), and increases the corporate tax rate. I further support allowing the IRS to pre-fill tax returns (https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/allow-irs-send-citizens-pre-filled-tax-forms/tTJg7hyz), cracking down on individual and corporate tax dodgers, and linking the threshold at which the highest income tax bracket kicks in (ideally something like 78% as a top rate) at 30 times the rate of a two person household working full time at minimum wage (i.e. at the current minimum wage rate, that 78% top rate would be applied to all income over $904,800). I favor ending the tax exemption for churches and tax free foundations.

      Immigration: I support ending the 'family reunification' bias inherent in American immigration law and instead support the implementation of a points-based, skills-based system that will admit more highly skilled immigrants in crucial sectors. I support a path to citizenship for the millions of undocumented workers already in the country, as well as support the implementation of the DREAM Act. I support tough penalties for employers that knowingly hire undocumented workers, as well as the implementation of the E-Verify system nationwide to prevent the future hiring of undocumented workers. I also support increased funding for ESL (English-as-a-Second-Language) programs, for reasons Frodo noted above.

      Elementary and Secondary Education: I support full federal funding for public schooling and a ban on both homeschooling and private schools, with students being sent to schools based upon a random lottery of local schools, rather than designated arbitrarily by school district lines. I oppose the use of merit pay, efforts to undermine teachers' unions, and efforts to eliminate teacher tenure. I favor an explicit ban on charter schools and voucher programs, and favor adopting the basic tenants of the Finnish education system in the United States. I support paying teachers as well as we pay lawyers and doctors, and support reducing class sizes to a 15:1 ratio. I support divorcing school from sport and support more funds being spent on the arts and social studies, as well as more funding for school clubs and student organizations.

      More to come later.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: courts on April 28, 2013, 12:07:18 PM
      1. The right to individual autonomy is important, even if it threatens collective security.

      disagree. i'm not even sure 'rights' really exist other than as social constructs. regardless communities are under no obligation to accept everyone. if you are a free loader or not willing to assimilate or just generally a nuisance then they should be able to kick you out. actually i'd argue if society was more 'tribal' and monocultural in general like that we might actually have more freedom and personal happiness than we do now rather than less. i suppose part of my sympathy towards radical ideas like demarchy lately stems from that.

      2. The government should penalize organizations that practice outsourcing.

      agree.

      3. Giving faith-based charities the same government resources as secular organizations is a good idea.

      agree

      4. We should increase foreign aid to countries struggling with poverty.

      disagree. it is often hugely wasteful, counterproductive (e.g. food aid driving local farms out of business), and frankly 'saving' is not any country's job. governments should focus solely on their own countries. the only exceptions i can think of are basically just trying to prevent a refugee crisis or helping a business partner or something practical like that.

      5. We should increase funding for education.

      agree kind of. teachers should be paid more and schools shouldn't be funded through property tax. on the other hand i think people spend too much time in school. so certain things like senior year should be abolished.

      6. Heterosexual couples should receive higher marital recognition than same-sex couples.

      marriage has never been about 'equality.' it has to do with trying to favor some lifestyles over others with benefits and privileges (e.g. married life over being single). if we are going to accept that a ) marriage has nothing to do with promoting the nuclear family and b ) people should be treated equally then i think government should just get out of marriage entirely. also i hate what 'no fault divorce' and the anti-male bias in family courts has done to our society.

      7. Overall, free trade hurts more than it helps.

      agree, there's a reason protectionism was embraced by virtually every industrialized power in history. plus the 'comparative advantage' argument doesn't really make sense given how mobile capital is.

      8. We should reduce the number of government programs substantially.

      agree but mostly in the sense that there's a ton of corporate welfare programs out there and duplication going on.

      9. Abortion should be illegal or very heavily restricted

      agree. i support heartbeat laws.

      10. The government should fund museums, theaters, and other cultural institutions that are unable to survive independently.

      in theory agree, in practice a lot of it is obviously way too degenerate though.

      11. The government should subsidize health insurance for those who cannot easily afford it.

      i don't really think insurance is a great model but yes, obviously i support universal healthcare. i think single payer would be best.

      12. The government should work to reduce children's exposure to offensive radio and television content.

      agree obviously.

      13. It is unfair that wealthier people pay higher tax rates.

      disagree, tax rates are way too low. to say nothing of the crooks and parasites on wall street.

      14. The minimum wage should be raised.

      agree, raise it to ~$15.

      15. Marijuana should be legalized.

      agree and aggressively promote hemp use.

      16. Society focuses too much on forcing equality at the expense of real merit

      agree to an extent.

      17. Violating individual rights is acceptable when it comes to fighting terrorism.

      again i don't really like how this question is framed but i disagree anyway because of the rule of law and not wanting the state turning on its own citizens and all that. on the other hand to some extent modern surveillance is probably unavoidable...

      18. Current levels of government regulation on industry are excessive.

      agree, we have way too many laws and regulations to keep track of (over criminalization). and a lot of these regulations exist solely because big business lobbied for them to stamp out their competitors not the other way around (regulatory capture).

      19. The government should provide basic needs for all people.

      kind of vague. my instinct is to say no because there are limits to our resources. and you don't want to encourage parasitism or otherwise create perverse incentives. on the other hand i could support replacing social security and most welfare programs with something like a negative income tax or guaranteed income as milton friedman once suggested. and there is a major problem in terms of long term unemployment/underemployment...

      20. The death penalty should be an option for serious crimes.

      agree. someone that burns an old lady to death on an elevator or kills an 8 year old child in a bombing just to prove a point should be shot. we shouldn't expend resources on such complete monsters or put other people's lives at risk out of some misguided humanist belief.

      21. We should reduce the difficulty of immigration.

      disagree. go back to the pre-1965 immigration policy or something similar.

      22. Union workers should be protected against being fired during strikes.

      agree, we need more unions and profit-sharing in general.

      23. Prostitution should be legalized.

      disagree. i could get into arguments about it failing to root out the black market or address the undesirability of being a prostitute sure... but honestly what it boils down to is that i just don't want to live in a community where that sort of thing is tolerated. but if you do then whatever.

      24. Flag burning should be banned.

      kind of agree although i have no attachment to what the current flag stands for obviously.

      25. I support affirmative action.

      disagree. if it exists it should be based on income level rather than race or gender. although to be honest considering i may very well have benefitted from affirmative action schemes i feel somewhat hypocritical here.

      26. The government should impose tariffs to protect industries from foreign competition.

      agree

      27. Physician-assisted suicide should be legal if the patient is capable of informed, rational consent.

      agree. if you have a terminal illness then choosing death with dignity should definitely be an option. i would much rather be euthanized than suffer a slow and degrading death. i know someone whose mother is slowly dying from face cancer. the thought of being forced to endure something like that or alzheimers or any number of other ailments because of a bunch of do-gooders is terrifying.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mechaman on April 29, 2013, 12:39:24 AM
      Economic Positions:

      Something Something Evil Socialist

      Debt: Is perhaps the greatest advantage Government has.  However, with unjustified wars, corporate welfare, American empire, and fiscal policies that fly in the face of logic it has gotten to unacceptable levels.  We don't need to kill grandma or your kids to fix this, we need to kill imperialism.  Once we're a power that respects national self-determination of others and stick true to the principles of keeping government out of the business of subsidizing industry, don't be so surprised to see a large number of our debt problems go away.
      Education: More funding for public education.  Axe out federally funded "vouchers" for private schools.  There are public schools for a reason and having some "voucher" program, espoused by of all people libertarians, makes little sense.  If the government is paying a family money to send their kid to a private institution, is it really a private institution?
      Healthcare: Universal Healthcare.  The whole nine yards.  The fact that this is still a question disturbs me.  Healthcare should be a right, not a privilege.
      Labor Rights: All too often when talking of the rights of us as Americans, many fail to realize just how much our modern society owes to the labor movements of the 19th-20th centuries.  The austerity craze sweeping not just this nation but many other nations is quite evident that labor rights have taken a back seat in many cases.  With all the fancy talking over, here are a few of my positions related to this issue:
      Minimum Wage: It's called "Minimum Wage" for a reason.  Paying "tipped" employees as low as $2.13 an hour makes absolutely zero sense except to create a culture of guilt for those employed in those industries.  If I tip a waiter, I want to do it because they did a good job, not because I worry about how they can survive on such miserable pre-tip earnings.  And don't give me any of that crap about "well it'll cost the owners too much!"  or "prices will skyrocket!"  Plenty of other businesses seem to do just fine paying their employees only $7.25, the current minimum, which should really be indexed for inflation.
      Mandated Breaks: Not sure if this is law, but each employee working eight hours or longer should be guaranteed at least one hour long break.  This is necessary due to the nature of many jobs that require such hours.  Employers who work their employees to death should be reprimanded, not rewarded.
      Work Place Safety: Basic compliance with workplace safety laws.  Fire escapes, ventilation, what have you.  Cutting corners on this issue to save a few bucks is unacceptable.
      Unions: No non-union worker should be forced to pay union dues.  Workers have the right to form a union in any occupation they please.  Companies that forbid the formation of such unions are forbidding the right of the workers' freedom of association.  Uphold the right to secret ballot.  Seniority rules are flawed, but should be left up to the individual unions to address.
      Social Welfare: If current times have taught us anything it is that a strong social safety net is a necessity.  In favor of expansion of unemployment, food card, low income housing, and various miscellaneous programs for those down on their luck.  Increase the amount of time one qualifies for unemployment benefits, as current economic realities show that many people go beyond the traditional 26 week period.  Prosecute discriminatory practices by welfare offices (both federal and statewide) that affect welfare recipients adversely.
      Taxation: Current structure is acceptable.  For now.  However, I would prefer a most just taxation system based on Georgian economic principles of general public ownership of the land.  That is, replacing all forms of income taxation (since it taxes the labor of the populace) with a progressive Land Values Tax.  Hopefully, such a plan would yield less disparity between rich and poor.
      Trade: Nothing short of free trade.  I realize this is a controversial position for a left winger now days, but really I feel it is the only left wing position one can take considering the tendencies of corporate greed.  People who think that using protective tariffs is going to help American workers are fools, history has shown that companies protected by heavy tariffs prefer to instead pocket the extra profits soaked out of the pockets of workers.  I say we make these robber barons compete on an even playing field with the competition without suffering the lower classes.  We used to have a powerful labor rights segment in society, maybe it's time we revived it.  Thinking that tariffs would force a country to rethink it's labor policies is also bunk, considering how little effect it has had in China.  Hell, we've banned trade with Cuba for fifty years and we look like the bad guys!  More on that later.  Protectionist trade has no place in the world of the 21st century.  This is one instance where, shocker, the free market is right.  However, I wouldn't be opposed to punishing American business that outsource labor to countries with lax labor rights.

      I think that's all for tonight.  More to come later.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mechaman on April 29, 2013, 11:54:55 AM
      Environmental and Energy Issues:

      Anti-Automobile Warrior Climate Hater

      Alternative Energy:
      All for.  We need to boost investments in developing new sources of energy in addition to those that are already being pursued.  Wind, Solar, Geothermal, and yes even Nuclear need to be pursued as alternatives to the US addiction to Coal and Oil.  Clean Coal is hilarious, but probably a little better than Not Clean Coal I guess.  Same thing for alternative fuels.  Plain unleaded with 10% ethanol is just not enough (in fact, I would argue it's more trouble than it's worth) to address the problems with traditional oil.  Same thing with feel good Hybrid cars, which while offering more miles to the gallon ultimately does little to address the real issue at hand: consumption.  Looking at a lower gasoline bill of $30 instead of say $72 usually leads to two things: 1) Look at how much money I saved on gas!  Hooray, which leads directly to 2) Driving is so much cheaper now that I got this Hybrid I can do it more and more and more!
      See, the process?
      Now, ideas like the Electric car sound good in theory, until we take in consideration the energy usage it would take to recharge these cars.  Granted, Electric automobiles have gotten more efficient since the horror days when they had to be charged all day to go 90 miles.  However, this brings up another problem that will arise in the future: energy cost inflation.  I'm no expert, but I bet that charging a freaking thousand pound car (conservative estimate) probably costs a bit more than powering your PS3 or phone.
      So you ask, Mechaman, if you are such a naysayer of almost all forms of automobile usage currently available, what would you recommend?  Well, a few things:
      1) Use Research Development to find a way to create a cheap and efficient way to produce a Solar powered car.  This is not a 100% foolproof solution, given that some areas on the planet receive very little sunlight.  In that case perhaps there needs to be a way to convert wind, hydrogen, earth, or other common resources into a readily available source of energy.  I am not fool enough to believe that a Solar car capable of going 150 mph available for $30,000 is possible in ten years.  Hopefully someday though it will work for people in sparsely populated areas devoid of public transport, which brings me to point
      2) Enormous public transport budget, including the development of a National High Speed Rail Program.  Might end up being the most expensive public works program in history, but necessary for the future conservation of resources for better purpose than to soothe our addiction to the automobile.  Some user fees might be necessary, but largely would like to see this funded by heavy unleaded gasoline taxes (I'm thinking maybe 50 cents a gallon).  However, if sane fiscal policies are followed (more on that later), worries of currency manipulation and the like in response to such a grandiose program could be avoided.
      I'll readily admit that I don't know if this would all work.  Just a few ideas.
      The Climate Change debate: I'll be real honest, this issue might be dead last out of all the ones I will address in this section.  I do believe that Climate Change is real, however I don't believe the way it's being addressed at the moment is the right course.  Paranoia is not helping address the issue, and there needs to be more than just buying green products or banning incandescent lightbulbs to address this issue.  More to the point, I believe the focus of the debate needs to be changed.  People aren't so thrilled to have religious fundamentalist wackjobs telling everyone the world is going to end and we're all f***ed, why do they think the doomsday mantra will rally people to act on the Climate Change front?  At this point, I don't think Climate Change can be avoided thus the best strategy should be follow a more logical strategy: preparing the nation, and the world, for surviving Climate Change.  I believe that people would be more willing to go with green taxes and the like if they are given the impression that yes, this is going to suck a bit but we can survive, versus the current "REFORM OR DIE!" mentality of the advocates.  Appealing to people's optimism is way better than using the politics of fear as a highly ranked president once stated: "We have nothing to fear but fear itself."  If Climate Change really is as horrible as advocates claim, last thing we need is a panic stricken populace.
      Parks and Recreation: Reduce some public land ownership out west.  At the same time, increase enforcement of standards in upholding National Parks and other areas.  Support Urban Green Zones and even some Urban Farming.

      Wow, only a few issues.  Maybe more will come up later


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mechaman on April 29, 2013, 12:53:41 PM
      Social Issues:

      Anti-Bloomberg Liberal

      Women's Reproductive Issues: I'm not a woman, therefore I don't feel in a position to tell them what to do with their bodies.  I can't imagine what it's like to have an abortion, but I bet it's not like going to get groceries at the local IGA.  Nor should it be.  Abortion isn't exactly a thing I approve, but the alternative sets a much worse precedent (government mandate on controlling an individual's body).  In a phrase: Safe, Legal, and Rare.  Birth Control should be readily available and affordable, for obvious reason.
      Firearms: I am a Constitutional Liberal.  I believe that possession of firearms is a Constitutionally protected right and should be protected as such.  I agree with the Heller decision, gun bans are unconstitutional and should be overturned.  However, I wouldn't be wholly opposed to gun regulations like limiting the size of magazine clips or child locks on guns, given the whole "well regulated militia" bit.  Draconian measures, like a National Gun Registry, I oppose on principle to similar slippery slope as alluded to in the Abortion segment.  Sure, in the event of a revolution an AK-47 isn't going to help at all against tanks and F-17s, but that doesn't mean that I shouldn't be wary of a government with information on all legal gun owners in the nation.
      Alcohol, Drugs, and Tobacco: All fall under the category of "vice".  In most of these cases the decision to partake in these vices are of a conscious choice.  And considering the amount of public health information on the hazards of these vices, I find it hard to believe that many engage in these activities out of pure ignorance.  The war on Marijuana and other soft drugs must end with legalization and regulation similar to laws on tobacco.  In favor of reducing the Alcohol age down to 18 years, as the 21 age limit has done very little to actually reduce underage alcohol consumption.  Tobacco is a deadly substance that has proven side effects that lead to cancer from both first hand and second hand smoking.  I am against the banning of smoking Tobacco for the same reasons I support Alcohol and Marijuana.  It is a free choice and people who partake of it are more than often well aware of the dangers posed by it.  However, I do approve of establishments that ban the smoking of such a product in public spaces and would agree with policies that prosecute smokers that smoke in establishments that disallow it.  Also okay with advertising regulations and warning labels.  Same thing for Marijuana and Alcohol.  Mostly, I support common sense regulations on these vices and the right of individuals and businesses to allow/disallow the partaking of these activities on their own grounds.  Support of the decriminalization of hard drugs.  Penalties, of course, should be minimum.
      Euthanasia: Lightly approve.  I agree with the principle of it, but believe that there needs to be a well regulated legal process in regards to it to avoid abuse of the system.  My fear mostly is that some might abuse the system to get away with murder thus leading to increased crime and prosecution costs.
      Equality: I won't say what has already been said by 90% of the people on this forum.  Full equality for LGBT individuals.  Duh duh duh.
      Crime and Punishment: Death penalty must be abolished!  It's unethical, immoral, and makes little sense.  In favor of a more reform minded jail system that puts convicts to work and addresses the mental factors that drove them towards crime.  And for the love Gul, give them some half decent food.  Really, look at the policies of Scandinavia to get an idea of my ideal system.
      Freedom of Speech: Flag burning is an act of free speech and should be protected.  So to is the throwing around of racial, ethnic, sexual slurs.  So to is the right to condemn people who do.  We need to abolish the FCC, which really has no purpose beyond being a board of censorship on the airwaves.  Parents can regulate their own children and don't need a government appointed nanny commission to do so.  $250,000 fines for saying the word "fuck" on national tv is an excessive fine.  The networks seem to do well enough on their own self-regulating and have in the process made censorship agencies virtually useless.
      Freedom of Religion: The proliferation of religious bias in legislation and law is getting out of control.  People's personal religious beliefs are all too often negatively affecting the direction of this country.  The Government exists by the Bill of Rights to neither enforce or prohibit the exercise of religious values.  We need Supreme Court rulings that enforce the 1st Amendment more clearly and limits such activism in government.  I fully support students saying prayers at high school graduation, manger scenes, and even voicing religiously motivated opinions on controversial issues.  What I don't approve of those people using government as a platform to enforce those values over those of others.  The way this is worded is likely to get some opposition.
      Civil Liberties: Need to be strongly enforced in this age of government onslaught and interventionism.  In these times of conflict and strife the right to a warranted search needs to be a guarantee, as should the right to due process.  Ideas like drones patrolling the skies for people going five over the speed limit in West Texas is more than intrusive on liberty.  It's simply freaking overkill and such things should be avoided.  And the people deserve assurances, court rulings, and various other methods to assure that at any moment they can't be f***Ing arrested or killed by their government without proper process.  It's a shame that his is a low priority for the American Left when it should be one of the top issues promoted by us to combat corporatist neoconservatism.  We should be trying to win over libertarians genuinely concerned by the expansion of government power in prosecuting private citizens, not condemning them as seems to be the trend.

      More might be coming.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on May 23, 2013, 08:00:15 PM
      Basically a libertarian but for being a little racist, in favor of some gun control and for UHC. 


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: DolphMcCrungus on May 23, 2013, 10:07:34 PM
      Social Issues
      Gay Marriage
      We'll start off with the BIG social issue these days. I dislike the idea of gay marriage due to my religious beliefs but I don't believe the government should have any business in restricting a popular concept like gay marriage.
      Abortion
      Ah, the classic social issue. I believe abortion is the termination of human life and I abhor the concept of it. I would allow abortions in the case of rape, incest, and to save the mother's life but other than that it should be as illegal as murdering someone on the street.
      Second Amendment Rights
      The events of Sandy Hook, Fort Hood, Columbine, VTech, and other shootings are truly saddening and can invoke anger towards things that aren't really the problem. I don't see guns as the problem in this matter but rather mental health and the ease of acquiring guns. I support extensive background checks and increased funding for mental health institutions to help curb this problem of senseless violence.
      The War on Drugs
      The war on drugs has allowed border violence to spiral out of control. I support the legalization (and heavy taxation) of marijuana. Marijuana should receive the same treatment as tobacco (not allowed in restaurants + sin tax). I support harder drugs remaining illegal (because who on earth is ok with coke-heads running around?).
      Death penalty
      I completely support the death penalty as a punishment for the most serious crimes.
      Stem Cell Research
      I am a big proponent of stem cell research and it's possibilities. The government should fund this gold mine of health discoveries.

      Economic Issues
      Affirmative Action
      When affirmative action was introduced there was obviously a need for it. Despite this, it is 2013 and while racism does still exist it is important that those with the most merit or are more qualified for the job should not be looked over for someone else (and possibly less qualified) just to fill a race quota.
      Minimum Wage
      Minimum wage should remain as it is. Raise or lower it depending on the cost of living as these costs increase and decrease.
      Taxation
      I support progressive taxation. If someone makes $250k a year then of course they should be asked to pay more in taxes than someone making $20k or less.
      Energy
      I support the keystone pipeline. I also support funding for researching alternative energy. The sooner we can provide financial relief to those at the pump in the short term and stop ourselves from being at the mercy of the oil companies in the long term, the better.
      Spending
      We have to balance the budget. The longer we put off balancing the budget, the worse our changes of doing it become. It is a priority and we shouldn't put it on the back-burner.
      Regulations
      Government regulations hinder business output but sometimes they are needed. I think everyone can agree on this. Only regulate when necessary.
      Immigration
      Everyone knows that America is a country of immigrants but we shouldn't bend to the will of those who are in our country illegally. Pass the citizenship test, have a work visa, or join the military or forget about living here if you are here illegally.

      Foreign Policy
      Military Spending
      In 1961 Dwight D. Eisenhower warned against a military industrial complex. Our military spending is uneven and increasing every year and we must stop this. National defense is of course a priority but we must build smarter instead of bigger.

      I don't know what all that makes me. A moderate perhaps?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Snowstalker Mk. II on May 27, 2013, 11:26:31 AM
           I've bounced basically everywhere over the past month and a half or so (basically every political view imaginable except Nazism, Maoism, and the various breeds of "classical liberalism", including modern "conservatism"), so I might as well peg down my central views here and now. If you read this, will you disagree with me? Probably. I'm sure my own views are flawed and skewed by my own life experiences (or lack thereof), and they'll most likely change as I grow and change as a person. But for now, what is below me is right to me.

           Essentially, I take the view that man, while clearly holding the potential to do great things, is fundamentally flawed, with most of these flaws coming from our animal instincts and impulses (selfishness, aggression, excess pursuit of self-indulgence). Many of these problems have been mended or dulled over the past 200,000 years of our species's existence, but in the West I see signs of a decline, much as the other great civilizations have declined and collapsed. Why?

           Well, there seems to be a reversal of much of the social progress made; privatization of industry (often for no good reason besides the idea of privatization), rolling back of the welfare state, and most worryingly, a media, society, and government that now encourages us to embrace our animal traits through disregarding the need to contribute to one's community. Promoted are concepts like the sexual objectification of women, and in general the glorification of greed and decadence. We're constantly outdoing ourselves in scientific and medical progress, reducing infant mortality, reducing absolute poverty in developing states, yet we're less happy than ever, because what we see as "happiness" is the hollow pursuit of animal pleasure, not the fulfilling happiness of helping others and spending time with family and community.

           I've probably angered both "conservatives" and "liberals" with that last paragraph, and if so I'm proud of myself. Both the major parties in America essentially advocate two flavors of individualism. The Republican Party, the more outwardly dangerous beast, is quasi-Objectivist in its open desire to subjugate most of the population, with those unwilling or unable to slave away for the plutocrats left to die. At the same time, most of the party is socially "conservative", though certainly not in the way I am; the GOP's positions are simply part of their goal of subjugating those they see as lesser (women and homosexuals) and avoiding the social change the plutocrats fear, not on any desire to improve society's moral compass.

           The Democratic Party, the lesser of two evils, has views on the role of government which are lukewarm at best and, despite some dissenting voices on the left, being pulled into a more benign form of neoliberalism (as opposed to the Randite GOP). The Democratic Party's variety of individualism is a perversion of the concept of "rights" into the idea of "I can do whatever I want and no one can stop me", or "Don't like X? Don't do it.". This dangerous idea is that it is inherently wrong to make judgement on how others live their lives, and that we're all just individual people living individual lives and pursuing our own happiness. Taken to its logical conclusion, we should let an alcoholic drink themselves to death, because it's their business, right? Certainly I don't want to eliminate fun or turn everyone into soulless drones. But I believe that we are all interconnected as members of the human race, and we have a duty to intervene when one of us is harming another or if one of us is harming themselves. I suspect a silent majority or at least a significant minority of Americans would agree with me here, but neither major party reflects this view, instead shilling their two rancid flavors of hyper-individualism.

           Like most Western leftists, I take the view that our society's peak was the period from about 1933 to 1969, the point where we achieved the most progress in the pursuit of social and economic equality. But starting in the late 1970's and late 1980's, I'd say, the decline has begun and continues to this day. We've become a civilization of individuals, who seek to ignore what, as Kennedy said, they can do for their country. Instead, the plutocratic stranglehold on civilization has been accepted and the chasm between rich and poor continues to widen, while both heads of the individualist beast preach to us to live for ourselves, be it through the accumulation of wealth at the expense of others or the pursuit of mindless self-indulgence at the expense of others (and ourselves).

           Hence, my ideal society, which for all I know could exist in 50 years or never, would be a stateless, classless society where individuals all accept the need to work for the collective good, while still embracing their individuality and using their own skills to innovate for themselves and others. What would I call it? It seems fairly similar to Marxism or syndicalism, albeit with a moralistic tinge. At the same time, the emphasis on community and family reminds me a bit of Asian society. For all the issues I take with the governments of China, Singapore, Japan, etc., perhaps that's where the world will turn in the future. Is it unrealistic? Probably. In practice, I generally accept gradual reform through a social democratic or democratic socialist state, since in the end, ensuring that people live better lives is more immediately important than anything else.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: DolphMcCrungus on May 27, 2013, 03:29:06 PM

      Is this the most radical member of these boards? I'd hope so.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TJ in Oregon on May 27, 2013, 03:47:52 PM
      Interesting read, Snow. I have to say I found it illuminating and agree with a lot more of what you wrote than perhaps may be expected. I read this simultaneously with some of G. K. Chesterton and they're sounding strangely similar. More so than one might think at least. A lot of the themes are the same, although Chesterton hasn't discussed economics nearly as much. Granted he was long before the 1980s. I still don't agree with most of your conclusions as they relate to politics, of course, but find the sentiment admirable.

      I apologize for assuming you were actually Ted Strickland all this time; now I can see you're Jim Trafficant :P


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Snowstalker Mk. II on May 27, 2013, 04:28:28 PM

      Depends on what you mean by "radical".


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Bacon King on May 27, 2013, 04:50:35 PM
      Snowstalker, you made over-generalizations of the Democratic Party in a hilarious fashion, just like Naso would; your beef is with youngs and it just happens that they vote D. Also the last paragraph should probably be expanded into two or three because I don't see how your ideal government choice follows at all from what you said. Good work, but needs improvement. Even though your homework is late, I will be courteous and not give you a late penalty.

      GRADE: C+


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Del Tachi on June 19, 2013, 02:54:35 PM
      I figured I needed to update, as my beliefs change every so often…

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Supportive of Roe v. Wade, and generally pro-choice.  However, I am  not opposed to certain “informed consent” laws and mandatory waiting periods.  Minors seeking abortion should have to gain parental consent.
      Drugs: Continue the war on drugs with harsher penalties being applied to violators, including recreational users.  Marijuana is a gateway to other, harder drugs and should be banned. 
      Censorship: The government has the responsibility to censor objectionable material from the air and radio waves.  The fact that satellite communications are exempt from FCC content regulation should be enough to appease the anti-censorship crowd.
      Gay marriage: States reserve the right to make their own marriage laws, and gay couples should only be allowed federal benefits if they reside in a state where their marriage is recognized. 
      Death penalty: Federal use of the death penalty is warranted in extreme circumstances; States can enact their own laws. 
      Prostitution: Local and municipal jurisdictions should be allowed to make their own laws to fit their communities as prostitution’s major affects are on property values and local health.  I would not support the legalization of prostitution in my community as a matter of moral decency and preserving property values. 
      Church & state:  The state should stay out of religious affairs, and religious organizations and churches should be tax exempt with the exception of the monies they earn through commercial enterprises.  Forcing churches to forfeit their tax exempt status for making political stances is tantamount to “taxing” the First Amendment.  Individuals should be allowed to lobby and petition the state on behalf of the Church like any other citizen would be able to do for any other organization. 
      Affirmative action: Ambivalent.  Private corporations and organizations should be allowed to devise their own systems as long as they are not discriminatory.  There is a difference between promoting certain attributes in hiring and discriminating against those who do not meet such criteria.  Employment in the public sector should primarily be merit-based. 
      Hate crime laws: Crimes of corresponding severity should be treated similarly regardless of apparent motive.  No additional punishment should be levied for crimes perpetuated out of “hate.” 
      Immigration: Secure the border as a matter of national security.  Full amnesty for illegals who have been residing lawfully in the country for at least five years.     
      Stem cell research: Support federal funding of stem cell research. 
      PATRIOT Act: Support the PATRIOT Act.  Increase Congressional oversight over Executive national security initiatives as a way to increase accountability and decrease the possibility for misuse.   
      Gun Control: Status-quo.  Increase data sharing between state and federal agencies as a way to strengthen the effectiveness of federal background checks.  Onus should be on the States to close the “gun-show loophole”.   
      Assisted suicide: Ambivalent.  However, living wills are generally a bad idea and end-of-life decisions are best left to family members.   
      Gambling: Decisions should be left to local and municipal jurisdictions.  I would not support legal gambling in my community.  Heavily tax earnings gained through gambling and lotto.
      Organ donation: Status quo.  Opposed to universal or “opt-out” organ donation; follow wishes of next-of-kin in ambiguous cases.  Invest in non-market mechanisms (public service announcements, increase education) to increase organ donation. 

      Electoral Reform:
      Term limits: No term limits for Congress or judges, but keep the 22nd Amendment.  Keep the seniority system in place in Congress.   
      Statehood: Congress’ prerogative, popular referendums are irrelevant.  Consider statehood for D.C. 
      Voting age: Keep as is, but allow people who will turn 18 before election day to vote in primary elections. 
      Campaign Finance Reform: Status quo.  Political donations are free speech. 
      Voting system: Keep as is.  Allow States to experiment with proportional representation and multi-seat districts. 
      Gerrymandering: Status quo. 
      Voter ID: Repeal Section 5 (if SCOTUS doesn’t do it soon).  Allow States to make and enforce their own Voter ID laws.   

      Economic Issues:
      Welfare: Block-grant Medicaid and SNAP and send back to the State with federally-enforced support and eligibility standards. 
      Unions: Oppose right-to-work laws, as they are excessive government regulation in employment contracts.  Allow public and private sector unions, but consider limiting collective bargaining rights for certain public employees. 
      Privatization: Partially privative Social Security in order to allow for additional, voluntary investment by workers.  Sell certain government assets associated with TVA.
      Environment: Economic protection but be weighted against economic development.  As much as environmentalists would try to convince you otherwise, trees and land and ecosystems do have monetary value.  Implement as a VMT to support future infrastructure projects. 
      Minimum wage: Repeal the federal minimum wage.  Minimum wage increases result in job loss and are an inefficient way to decrease poverty.  Support expansion of the Earned Income Tax Credit. 
      Taxation: Keep the current progressive system for income taxation.  Experiment with shifting the tax burden back to the upper classes through consumption-based taxation (i.e., luxury goods taxes, real estate taxes).  Implement an income tax “surcharge” on incomes over a certain level, say $3 million.  Consider a low national VAT (0.5-1%).  Raise and lock the Social Security tax cap to cover 90 percent of all workers.  Reform and lower corporate taxes as a way to discourage outsourcing.   
      Healthcare: Status-quo.  Implement Obamacare, but work to lower the cost of medicine by enacting medical malpractice reform and allowing insurers to compete across state lines.  Grant partial exemptions to Obamacare (with oversight) for states wanting to deisgn their own insurance exchange systems.  Grant liberal exceptions from insurance mandates.  Work to make Medicare solvent by raising the eligibility age and instituting max-payouts.  Consider moving Medicare to a “premium support” system. 
      Trade: Support free trade as way to bring down prices for consumers.  Trade to correct American trade deficit by encouraging American producers to export, especially in the agriculture sector. 
      Embargo: Use embargos and sanctions as way to exert diplomatic pressure.   
      Pork: Overwhelmingly supportive.  Use “pork-barrel” projects as ways to promote local economic development.   
      Subsidies: Increase agricultural subsidies; generously subsidize struggling industries. 
      Military: Maintain current military funding levels, but shift more money into R&D and away from traditional ground forces.  Make more use of military contractors as a way to allow for funds to go further.   

      Foreign Policy
      War: Maintain a constant state of military readiness, and be willing to go to war whenever and wherever American interests are at stake.  Do not be afraid to go to war unilaterally.  Use reputation as a military juggernaut as a way to exert diplomatic pressure. 
      Israel-Palestine: Generally supportive of a two-state solution, but it most likely will have to occur on Israeli terms in order to be successful.  Increase support for Israel as it is the only secular democracy in the Middle East.  Call for an end to new settlements, but maintain that those living in settlements have a solely civilian status. 
      Draft: Institute a mandatory period of “national service” for young men and women, with a term of service in the armed forces as a possible way to satisfy this requirement.  Maintain the selective service system, and start to collect information on young women.  If a draft ever has to be reinstituted, draft all eligible males before dipping in the “ladies’ pool”. 
      UN: Use status as the UN’s largest financial contributor to encourage the organization into changing its role in a new, global environment.  Shift focus away from security issues and to humanitarian issues.  Use the UN as a global forum in which member nations may organize international relief efforts and financial aid.  Work through other international organizations (namely NATO) to deal with threats to international security.   
      Nukes: Maintain American nuclear arsenal.  Expand the “nuclear club” to more U.S. allies such as Canada, Australia and Germany. 
      Foreign Aid:  Increase levels of foreign aid as a way to increase American presence and influence in the developing world.   

      Overall: Hmmm….after making this list I can honestly say I don’t know what I am.  Republican?  Democrat?  Moderate hero?  I would describe myself primarily as a “big-government Republican” or “neoconservative”.  I would say that, except for my opinions on a few social issues, I fit the GWB-mold quite well.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: They put it to a vote and they just kept lying on June 23, 2013, 04:44:30 PM
      Gonna try to respectfully address some of these points

      abortion should have to gain parental consent.
      Drugs: Continue the war on drugs with harsher penalties being applied to violators, including recreational users.  Marijuana is a gateway to other, harder drugs and should be banned.

      Marijuana is not a gateway drug. If it was, nearly everyone who smokes weed would do harder drugs, which isn't the case. Some people become psychologically addicted to the feeling of "being high," which leads to usage of harder drugs.

      Censorship:The government has the responsibility to censor objectionable material from the air and radio waves.  The fact that satellite communications are exempt from FCC content regulation should be enough to appease the anti-censorship crowd.

      Who decides what is objectionable? Nudity and swearing might be objectionable to you, but it isn't to me. It's a hard line to find, but it's better to establish liberty as a core value over a "guv'mint knows best 4 ur telebox" state

      Immigration: Secure the border as a matter of national security.

      Yes those dirt poor Mexicans might blow up our buildings lawdie lawdie

      Support the PATRIOT Act.  Increase Congressional oversight over Executive national security initiatives as a way to increase accountability and decrease the possibility for misuse.

      Implying of course that the Government would go out of its way to protect OUR liberty.

      Campaign Finance Reform: Status quo.  Political donations are free speech.

      They are up until corporations get to have more "free speech" than individuals.


      Minimum wage: Repeal the federal minimum wage.  Minimum wage increases result in job loss and are an inefficient way to decrease poverty.

      Yeah because at least you have a job, who cares if you're making 80 cents an hour! This is America!

      Embargo: Use embargos and sanctions as way to exert diplomatic pressure.

      Eh


      War: Maintain a constant state of military readiness, and be willing to go to war whenever and wherever American interests are at stake.  Do not be afraid to go to war unilaterally.  Use reputation as a military juggernaut as a way to exert diplomatic pressure.

      Yes because our economic interests are more valuable than the lives of our fellow man. Good.


      Draft: Institute a mandatory period of “national service” for young men and women, with a term of service in the armed forces as a possible way to satisfy this requirement.  Maintain the selective service system, and start to collect information on young women.  If a draft ever has to be reinstituted, draft all eligible males before dipping in the “ladies’ pool”.

      I don't even want to respond to this

      Nukes: Maintain American nuclear arsenal.  Expand the “nuclear club” to more U.S. allies such as Canada, Australia and Germany.

      You can't hug your children with nuclear arms

      Overall: Hmmm….after making this list I can honestly say I don’t know what I am.  Republican?  Democrat?  Moderate hero?  I would describe myself primarily as a “big-government Republican” or “neoconservative”.  I would say that, except for my opinions on a few social issues, I fit the GWB-mold quite well.

      Yeah I'd say you're like a centrist, nanny-statist Republican :P


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: H. Ross Peron on June 23, 2013, 09:32:41 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: Abortion should be banned (at the federal level if necessary) for all reasons except if the mother's life is endangered and rape/incest (admittedly I'm morally conflicted on the latter part). Abortion after fetal viability shall be treated as equivalent to murder.  

      Same-sex marriage: This should be left to the states to decide. However on a federal level DOMA should be repealed and there should be full-scale anti-discrimnation legislation against homosexuals.

      Drug legalization: Marijuana and other soft drugs should be fully legalized with the age limit at 18 with the drinking age similarly reduced to 18. Hard drugs (with some exceptions such as bath salts) should be decriminalized. In general drug use and addiction should be seen as a public health issue not a crime.

      Prostitution: States and local governments have the perogrative here but I'm mostly opposed to legalizing it.

      Guns: There should be expanded punishments for straw purchasing and a universal background check system. Otherwise no new gun control legislation is necessary

      Education: A national curriculum with minimum standards should be instituted with more equalized funding. In addition the school year needs to be revamped by abolishing summer vacation but inserting more holidays throughout the year. College should be paid for with a Richard Nixon Scholarship for students above a certain grade level (and/or percentage) who are lower middle class or below in income level. Financial grants should in addition be more generous for students (this should be dependent on their academic record). At the same time, however, vocational schools should be promoted as a legitimate choice for students depending on their performance.

      Immigration: Illegal immigrants without criminal records should have a path to citizenship with it being expediated for those who were minors when brought here, English-speakers, those with useful skills, and/or those who have served in the military. In the future, immigration laws should be loosened and all country-based quotas should be abolished and anybody with a graduate/professional degree or earning one here in the States should be guaranteed a green card provided they don't have a criminal record.

      Stem Cell Research: Status quo of federal funding for stem cell research is fine.

      Euthanasia: Ultimately this is a state issue but I am personally opposed to legalizing it.

      English as the official language: English should be the official language of the Republic.

      School prayer: Should be legal on a voluntary basis but no public school should allow teacher-led prayer.

      Pledge of Allegiance: Status quo is fine although no student should be forced to recite it.

      Economic Issues

      Affirmative Action: Affirmative action should be limited and shifted towards income-based affirmative action rather than being race-based.

      Trade: I love free trade. Get both the EU-US FTA and the TPP negotiated and ratified. In addition there should eventually be a free-trade pact covering all First World democracies (NAFTA zone+EU+South Korea+Japan+Singapore+Southern Cone+Australia/NZ+Israel) allowing the free movement of goods and people.

      Health Care: Obamacare should be implemented aggresively and if it fails to appreciably rein in costs and/or fails to cover a significant amount of Americans should be replaced with a single-payer system.

      Welfare: While I prefer programs that provide certain services for the poor (ie Medicaid) or towards certain goods (such as Food Stamps), welfare is necessary to boost consumer spending in many cases, so status quo I suppose with some of the more aggressive cuts rolled back.

      Minimum Wage: Should be raised to 9 or 10 dollars and indexed to inflation.

      Monetary Policy: While in normal times, a tight money policy limiting inflation is reasonable, these are not normal times and as a result stimulative measures and quantitative easing (basically the current policy of the Fed) is necessary to get us out of recession.

      Taxes: All loopholes should be throughly eliminated while deductions should be set at a certain cash amount (indexed to inflation). After that estate taxes should be fully restored to Clinton-era levels and the income tax raised slightly. In addition a carbon tax should be instituted and perhaps a Value Added Tax (with exceptions for food and other necessary goods). The corporate tax should be cut with a view to eventually eliminating it (as long as its revenue neutral).

      Regulation: Generally status quo seems ok but speed up approval of regulations especially those affecting workers' safety or environment.

      Spending Cuts: Military spending and farm subsidies should be cut, otherwise spending needs to increase in the context of a recession.

      Energy: Pass a national energy-infrastructure bill. Its energy components should include a large-scale program of building nuclear power plants, more reserach funding for energy, and a view towards phasing out coal completely at a set date. The infrastructure component of the bill will in addition to repairs to the current infrastructure involve the construction of a national high speed rail system and funding to expand public transit in metropolitan areas.

      Social Security: The payroll tax cap should be removed and retirement age should be determined by a formula based on one's occupation, income level, health, employment status, dependents, and so forth.

      Unions: Taft-Hartley should be repealed.

      Foreign Policy/Defense

      PATRIOT ACT: Should be modified significantly at the least.

      Afghanistan: Maintain the current Obama policy of continuing a withdrawal and shifting the role to Afghan forces while maintaining an advisory force after 2014. We should be very wary of negotiating with the Taliban however.

      Cuba: The embargo on Cuba should be ended and America should pursue friendly relations with the country and reduce Russian or Iranian influence.

      Iraq: Keep a wary eye on it and use diplomatic efforts to help keep Iraq stable and free from Iranian influence.

      Israel/Palestine: A two-state solution should be pursued with Israel keeping all of Jerusalem and some settlement blocks. In addition Palestine, once independent, should sign a non-aggression pact with Israel and be neutral.

      Iran: Continue the status quo of preventing Iran from gaining nuclear weapons with sanctions, diplomacy, and sabotage. However avoid a war with Iran at all costs unless Iran attacks us or our allies first.

      Syria: Impose a no-fly zone on Syria to cripple Assad's forces.

      Military Spending: Should be reduced especially on things such as missile dfence programs

      Electoral Issues/Government

      Voter Regulations/ID Cards: Most of it is a thinly-disguised attempt to prevent Democratic-leaning demographics from voting. Should be restricted and delayed by the courts. To solve the problem, institute a national ID card.

      Electoral College: Should be abolished with Presidents being elected by direct popular vote with a runoff of the top two candidates if nobody wins a majority.

      Washington D.C.: DC should be given a voting member in the House of Representatives and one Senator (see my Senate reform plan below).

      Puerto Rico: Should be given statehood.

      Senate: Should be made a largely advisory body limited to only delaying legislation, and be partially made proportional to population while ensuing all states have at least one Senator and none have more than three. House terms should be extended to three years. In addition the number of House seats should be increased to 800 single-member constitutencies and 100 seats distributed proportionally to ensure that the number of seats coincide with the percentage of votes.
      Thoughts?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: They put it to a vote and they just kept lying on June 26, 2013, 08:16:48 PM
      Using Rockefeller's mold

      Social Policy

      Abortion: 100% pro-choice. This is a no-brainer. I support federal funding for Planned Parenthood and other women's health clinics.

      Drugs: Legalize all drugs. Tax and heavily regulate them. Just don't sell heroin in the local CVS.

      Censorship: 150% opposed to in any way, shape or form.

      Gay marriage: Should be legalized at the federal level. It's 2013, love is love, equality shouldn't depend on residence, etc.

      Death penalty: Morally opposed to state-sponsored killing.

      Prostitution: Legalize it, regulate it, etc.

      Church & state: Should be completely separate. This is not a theocracy.

      Affirmative action: Honestly don't care.

      Hate crime laws: No special laws for hate crimes.

      Immigration: Completely open the borders and allow any and everyone in. We don't own the world and we should be seen as a good place to go to, not the place to fear because the white man thinks them damn Mexicans are all terrorists cuz they ain't white.
          
      Stem cell research: Fully support federal funding of stem cell research. 

      PATRIOT Act: 100% opposed.

      Gun Control: No one needs an assault rifle to go hunting. No one needs extreme clips to defend their home. Background checks are groovy, too.

      Assisted suicide: Also don't really care.

      Gambling: why the hell not

      Organ donation: This is a personal decision.

      Term limits: No term limits for Congress or judges, but keep the 22nd Amendment.  Keep the seniority system in place in Congress. (this is Rockefeller's opinion, and mine too)

      Statehood: Statehood for DC and PR would be cool

      Voting age: Keep as is, but allow people who will turn 18 before election day to vote in primary elections. (I have also suggested an IQ test, but unfortunately that would restrict the Republican vote and that makes it illegal)

      Campaign Finance Reform: Get corporations OUT of political donations. Corporations are not people and do not deserve the kind of influence they presently have.

      Voter ID: No.

      Economic Issues:

      Welfare: I'm not super well researched on this issue, but I like the idea of welfare-to-work.

      Unions: Without unions, minimum wage and work safety regulations would not exist. Let them live.

      Privatization: No.

      Environment: We only get one Earth man

      Minimum wage: Raise it to $9 or $10 dollars an hour ("living wage") and index it to inflation.

      Taxation: Progressive taxation is cool. Tax the top 10% at roughly 70-80% of their income.

      Healthcare: Obamacare is cool but something in the vein of Britain's NHS would be amazing.

      Trade: Not really well researched on this issue either. I know fair-trade coffee is good, though.

      Embargo: No.

      Pork: No
      .
      Subsidies: Increase agricultural subsidies; generously subsidize struggling industries. 

      Military: DRASTICALLY cut military funding for operations overseas. Cut it somewhat at home as well.

      Foreign Policy

      War: Killing our fellow man is absolutely unnecessary and it makes me sick to think that we would seriously prioritize our national interests over human life.

      Israel-Palestine: Two state solution is best solution.

      Draft: No.

      Nukes: No.

      Foreign Aid:  Kinda mixed.

      Overall: F[inks] conservatism


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Donerail on June 26, 2013, 10:13:59 PM
      Updating.

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Supportive of Roe v. Wade. Guess I'm pro-choice. Honestly not an issue I'm too concerned with. Oppose all abortions after viability.
      Drugs: End the War on Drugs immediately, legalize all soft drugs, decriminalize hard ones. 
      Censorship: Yeah no. Censorship is bad.
      Gay marriage: Yeah not homophobic. Welcome to the 21st century. 
      Death penalty: State really shouldn't have the power to kill its own citizenry. 
      Prostitution: Legalize, regulate, whatever. 
      Church & state: Pro-separation of said ones, but not a big issue for me. I'm not harmed by the lack of, say, the Ten Commandments in a courthouse, and I'm not harmed if it's there. It's when religion begins to infringe on the personal choices of the citizenry that it's a problem. Support keeping churches tax-exempt. 
      Affirmative action: Oppose race-based affirmative action, never heard a good argument for it. Economic, on the other hand... 
      Hate crime laws: Crime punishments should be based on what the crime actually is.
      Immigration: Amnesty DREAM Act whatever liberal position. After you do that dedicate more to securing the border, in combination with making it way easier to legally immigrate and get work visas.     
      Stem cell research: Support. 
      PATRIOT Act: Oppose as an invasion of privacy, and oppose most other post-9/11 national security stuff too.   
      Gun Control: I guess Manchin-Toomey ain't bad. Generally opposed to most gun control measures though, including AWB, restrictions on magazine size, etc.   
      Assisted suicide: Okay with it.   
      Gambling: Okay with it.
      Organ donation: I have no issue with organ donation. Maybe opt-out would be better? Not sure. 

      Electoral Reform:
      Term limits: Generally opposed to term limits.   
      Statehood: Statehood for DC, Puerto Rico... can't think of anywhere else. Afghanistan maybe. 
      Voting age: Lower to 16. 
      Campaign Finance Reform: Overturn Citizens United, full public financing maybe? Certainly a very big issue. Reading Lessig's book now. 
      Voting system: Keep single-member districts but add instant runoff voting.
      Gerrymandering: Drawn by an independent commission, no partisanship allowed. 
      Voter ID: Stupid laws designed solely to disenfranchise voters.   

      Economic Issues:
      Welfare: Hmm. Not my most well-researched issue. I'd like to include a work or searching for work requirement that can be fulfilled by public service or volunteering. 
      Unions: Oppose right-to-work. Support collective bargaining. 
      Privatization: Can't think of anything off the top of my head.
      Environment: Support? Yeah. Protect the earth and whatnot. Carbon tax and container deposit legislation and clean power and whatnot. 
      Minimum wage: Replace with a basic income. 
      Taxation: Keep general structure, begin shift to consumption-based taxation. I still like the FairTax.   
      Healthcare: Bismarck y'all. 
      Trade: Support free trade in most circumstances. 
      Embargo: Embargos do nothing but harm the poor in foreign nations. Worthless.   
      Pork: Needs to be reduced.   
      Subsidies: Reduce subsidies to most industries, especially agriculture. 
      Military: Big funding reduction, focus on national defense. Remove from foreign occupations. Invest in R&D.   

      Foreign Policy
      War: I am against the war. Especially given our nation's foreign policy recently, there's a very good chance that the current war is unnecessary, whatever it is, Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan (now), Libya, whatever.
      Israel-Palestine: Need a solution now. Probably a two-state one, though Israel making any significant concessions does not look to be in the cards.
      Draft: No. 
      UN: Continue US membership and support, use to focus on things like humanitarian aid and disease eradication - and the Security Council really does need to be fixed.   
      Nukes: Multilateral reductions are a good thing. 
      Foreign Aid: Decrease foreign aid, especially foreign military aid.   

      Overall: Liberalitarian, leaning more towards liberal now. Still have conservative planks on AA, hate crime laws, maybe abortion, and taxation.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The Free North on June 26, 2013, 10:19:27 PM
      Social Policy

      Abortion: No except cases of rape and where life of mother is in danger. Not really a big issue for me at all, besides gay marriage and global warming probably least important

      Drugs: Start by legalizing marijuana, possibly others down the road. Ideally everything would be legalized, but i dont think the public is ready for that yet.

      Censorship: No

      Gay marriage: Legalized, get the government out of marriage

      Death penalty: Used much less frequently

      Prostitution: Legalized

      Church & state: Separate, but it goes both ways..no church interference with govt and the govt has no power to regulate religion

      Affirmative action: No, its just a different form of racism

      Hate crime laws: no

      Immigration: Secure the border first. Then make it easier to become a citizen, shouldnt take 10 friggin years to join our country. Maybe amnesty
          
      Stem cell research: Fully support federal funding of stem cell research.  

      PATRIOT Act: Nope

      Gun Control: None

      Assisted suicide: No opinion

      Gambling: full legalization

      Organ donation: no opinion.

      Term limits: Support limits for all members of congress, as well as lower level federal judges


      Statehood: 50 is too nice a number to mess it up

      Voting age: 18

      Campaign Finance Reform: Havent made up my mind yet

      Voter ID: No.

      Economic Issues:

      Welfare: keep it for those who truly need it, reform it to weed out abuse of the system

      Unions: dont care

      Privatization: as much as possible

      Environment: Global warming is not going to kill us all, get rid of the EPA

      Minimum wage: not sure

      Taxation: Get rid of the income tax completely

      Healthcare: Get rid of government run healthcare, get rid of corporate healthcare, let doctors do their thing, and allow free competition for insurance

      Trade: not sure

      Embargo: No.

      Pork: No
      .
      Subsidies: reduce  

      Military: Major cuts to overseas budget, modernize the army, get rid of our overseas empire, defend this country first

      Foreign Policy

      War: No agressive war, no war on ideas, stop policing the world

      Israel-Palestine: none of our business

      Draft: No, unless the USA is invaded

      Nukes: Dont mind them, no one is gonna use them so it doesnt matter

      Foreign Aid: cut it all, only use it for special situations (earthquake in haiti, etc)

      Overall: derp


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Goldwater on June 26, 2013, 10:32:38 PM
      Also using Rockefeller's method

      Social Policy

      Abortion: Completely legal during the first two trimesters, illegal except fir risk to health during the third trimester.

      Drugs: Legalize Marijuana undecied when it comes to other currently illegal drugs.

      Censorship: Strongly oppose.

      Gay marriage: Strongly support.

      Death penalty: Support for mass murders and other similar level crimes.

      Prostitution: Legalize and regulate it.

      Church & state: Support, although I don't really care if god is mentioned on our money or in the pledge of allegiance.

      Affirmative action: Oppose.

      Hate crime laws: Should be treated the same as any other crime.

      Immigration: Support both amnesty and strong border security.
          
      Stem cell research: Support. 

      PATRIOT Act: Oppose.

      Gun Control: Support background checks, oppose banning any type of gun.

      Assisted suicide: Support.

      Gambling: Support.

      Organ donation: This is a personal decision.

      Term limits: Undecided.

      Statehood: Support statehood for Porto Rico, undecided on DC statehood.

      Voting age:  Keep as is, but allow people who will turn 18 before election day to vote in primary elections

      Campaign Finance Reform: Status quo.

      Voter ID: Apathetic.

      Economic Issues:

      Welfare: Support welfare-to-work.

      Unions: Support right-to-work laws.

      Privatization: Generally support.

      Environment: Support environmental protection as long as it doesn't interfere with economic development.

      Minimum wage: Fine as it is.

      Taxation: Ideally I want flat taxes, but realistically I just ant taxes to be as simple and low as possible.

      Healthcare: Oppose both universal healthcare and "Obamacare", although I would prefer the former to the latter.

      Trade: Strongly support free trade

      Embargo: Generally a bad idea.

      Pork: Oppose.
       
      Subsidies: Generally oppose.

      Military: Maintain current military funding levels, but shift more money into R&D and away from traditional ground forces.  Make more use of military contractors as a way to allow for funds to go further.

      Foreign Policy

      War: Justified for humanitarian causes and national security.

      Israel-Palestine: Support two-state solution.

      Draft: Oppose except in extreme situations.

      Nukes: Free counties should have them, dictatorships should not.

      Foreign Aid:  Depends on the situation.

      Overall: Insane.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TNF on June 26, 2013, 10:47:15 PM
      Domestic Issues

      Abortion: Abortion should be totally legal at any stage of pregnancy. A woman should be able to end a pregnancy with the least interference possible from the state, and access to abortion should be free of charge. I oppose parental notification laws, mandated waiting periods, required ultrasounds, counseling, and any and all attempts to criminalize abortion through the backdoor. Ultimately, we should focus on reducing the number of abortions performed by expanding access to health care, child care, education, and birth control.

      Same-sex marriage: We should stop linking fundamental human rights to an institution with a 50% failure rate. Tax incentives given with marriage should be abolished or de-linked from marriage itself, and individuals should be free to marry or cohabit with whom and with how many people they see fit, provided that there is no coercion involved.

      Drug legalization: Soft drugs should be made legal, legal smoking/drinking ages substituted for legal purchase ages (ideally lower than what currently exists), and hard drugs heavily regulated with drug maintenance programs, harm reduction strategies, etc.

      Prostitution: Sex work should be taxed, legal, and regulated.

      Guns: Status quo.

      Education: National curriculum developed with the aid of teachers' unions and parents, an end to most standardized testing, class size limitations, equal funding from the federal government, universal pre-k and universal access to higher education. Ban on private schooling and homeschooling.

      Stem Cell Research: Status quo.

      Euthanasia: Legal. If you oppose death with dignity being legal, you're an awful person.

      English as the official language: We've done fine without an official language so far. No reason to change horses midstream.

      School prayer: Status quo.

      Pledge of Allegiance: Shouldn't be required in schools.

      Affirmative Action: Class-based rather than race or gender based in the short-term, in the long term, abolition in favor of universal access to higher education.

      Trade: Fair Trade, not 'Free Trade'.

      Health Care: Move towards single-payer, obvi.

      Welfare: Repeal 'Welfare Reform,' make the existing benefit scheme more generous, and institute a universal basic income.

      Minimum Wage: Raise to $22 gradually and index to increases in worker productivity.

      Monetary Policy: Pragmatic, but favorable towards a weaker dollar (to encourage investment in the United States) and a loose monetary policy to promote economic growth. Prioritize full employment above anything else.

      Taxes: Close loopholes, return to Eisenhower-era tax rates.

      Regulation: Return to pre-Carter regulatory framework. 

      Spending Cuts: Cut spending when the economy is growing, not when the economy is shrinking.

      Energy: Nationalize the energy sector, heavily expand use of nuclear power, keep prices low for consumers.

      Social Security: Remove the payroll tax cap, make the benefits more generous, divert revenues from the general fund into the program, reduce the retirement age to 55.

      Unions: Taft-Hartley should be repealed, as should Landrum-Griffin, the Hatch Act, and all existing anti-labor legislation. Enact the Employee Free Choice Act, recognize the right of public, agricultural, and domestic employees to organize, bargain collectively, and strike. Provide for a framework for industry-wide collective bargaining, ban 'right-to-work' laws.

      Foreign Policy

      PATRIOT ACT: Should be repealed, as should provisions of the 2011 NDAA that provide for indefinite detention. PRISM and associated illegal wiretap programs should be ended, torture banned, and the United States out of Guantanamo.

      Afghanistan: Withdraw along Obama's guidelines, negotiate with the Taliban where feasible to prevent continued loss of life.

      Cuba: End the Embargo, close Guantanamo Bay prison, and seek normalized relations with Cuba.

      Iraq: Status quo.

      Israel/Palestine: Recognize Palestinian statehood, cut off all aid to Israel to force the Israelis to the negotiation table, and act as an honest broker in any subsequent negotiations for a peace treaty.

      Iran: Status quo.

      Syria: Aid for refugees, no arms sales to the combatants.

      Military Spending: Automate as much as possible. At the very least, reduce to pre-9/11 levels, with a goal of reducing military spending even further, cut something like 25-50% of the military budget, with most savings coming from automation and cuts in the officer corps, not in rank-and-file soldiers.

      Electoral Issues/Government

      Voter Regulations/ID Cards: Automatic voter registration for all persons aged 16 and up.

      Electoral College: Should be abolished.

      Washington D.C.: Should be given proper representation in the House and the Senate.

      Puerto Rico: The people of Puerto Rico should decide their own future.

      Senate: Should be abolished.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: ElectionLover on June 27, 2013, 09:17:40 PM
      Me on the issues....

      Social Issues

      Gay Marriage: Support. I see no reasonable argument against this.

      Abortion: Oppose.

      Drugs: Illegal drugs should be KEPT illegal. We should NOT END the War on Drugs,  but I think we should cut a LITTLE spending of the war.

      Death Penalty: Let the states decide.

      Guns: I strongly support the right to bear arms. No gun control!

      Affirmative Active: STRONGLY oppose. It is unfair.

      Prostitution: Keep it ILLEGAL NATIONALLY, but states can allow it if they want to.

      Hate Crime Laws: Oppose.

      Immigration: We should still secure our borders, but not spend so much on it.

      Patriot Act: Keep it.

      Assisted suicide: No! Are you guys crazy?! You guys act like this is a normal thing to support! Physicians should help people change their minds about suicide when their depressed!  Maybe in a few scenarios it's OK, but it should be EXTREMELY RARE.

      Censorship: No!

      Organ donation: Personal choice.

      Now you sort of get my social policy, MOSTLY Conservative with A LITTLE Liberal mixed in.
      _____________________________________________________________________________

      Foreign Policy

      War: Don't force us in one, but when it is necessary, we have to fight! Non-interventionism has NEVER WORKED in history!

      Draft: No.

      Military budget (this could also fit in the economic issues as well): Don't cut it too much, but a little cut in spending is OK. A weak military would be devastating!

      Iraq: Shouldn't have gotten into it in the first place.

      Afghanistan War: It was the right thing to do, but we should bring our troops home, it's been WAY too long.

      Cuba Embargo: No.

      So now you sort of get my foreign policy, no non-interventionism, but do not be too much of a war-monger. Fight when necessary. No more Cuban trade embargo!

      _____________________________________________________________________________

      Economic Issues

      Minimum Wage: Do NOT raise the minimum wage. Unemployment would rise drastically. Businesses couldn't afford to pay their workers. Prices on products will rise! More companies will outsource jobs because of this! We should not lower or end the minimum wage either, keep it at the same level.

      Right-to-work: Support.

      Deregulation: Support. More government control is never the answer in economics. Do not over-deregulate though.

      Taxes: Lower them as much as possible, for both the poor, middle class, and rich. Don't abolish the income tax.

      Environment: More government regulation on the environment destroys business freedom. Encourage businesses to be more environmentally-friendly, do not force them!

      Welfare: People who are on welfare should be required to work, unless they have any disabilities.

      Trade: Free trade over fair trade.

      You sort of get my economic policy now, I'm a hard-core conservative when it comes to economic issues.



      So, how do you guys think of my political stances?









       


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: They put it to a vote and they just kept lying on June 29, 2013, 10:22:12 AM
      Gonna pick a few

      Drugs: Illegal drugs should be KEPT illegal. We should NOT END the War on Drugs,  but I think we should cut a LITTLE spending of the war.

      That's right! Keep throwing them blacks in jail for smoking weed!

      Guns: I strongly support the right to bear arms. No gun control!

      That's right! Keep wondering why shootings happen so often, too!

      Immigration: We should still secure our borders, but not spend so much on it.

      Pure race is best race.


      Hooray for intrusive Government!

      Assisted suicide: No! Are you guys crazy?! You guys act like this is a normal thing to support! Physicians should help people change their minds about suicide when their they're depressed!  Maybe in a few scenarios it's OK, but it should be EXTREMELY RARE.

      They're not depressed you dolt. They're in visceral pain because they are dying. God forbid they be put out of their misery as opposed to living in severe pain. Gotta love Conservatism.

      Also, ftfy.


      Oh good you're not entirely totalitarian.

      War: Don't force us in one, but when it is necessary, we have to fight! Non-interventionism has NEVER WORKED in history!

      Right, because history PROVES that people would prefer to be bombed and shot and murdered than not bombed, shot or murdered. Good.

      Minimum Wage: Do NOT raise the minimum wage. Unemployment would rise drastically. Businesses couldn't afford to pay their workers. Prices on products will rise! More companies will outsource jobs because of this! We should not lower or end the minimum wage either, keep it at the same level.

      Do you really understand WHY people get laid off when the Government says "we need you to pay your workers enough for them to actually LIVE and live comfortably in this country?" It's because those employers are selfish and greedy and decide to FIRE workers, so they can keep money. It's not that they won't be able to afford a minimum wage hike, it's because they REFUSE to give more of their money to pay for their workers. They know they can find someone who will work for 7.25 an hour and not complain about it. People get laid off because employers don't want to comply with minimum wage raises so they can keep their money, not because "big evil gubmint want da people to make enough money for their work."

      Deregulation: Support. More government control is never the answer in economics. Do not over-deregulate though.

      Of course! Give the banks and corporations MORE power! Makes sense.

      Taxes: Lower them as much as possible, for both the poor, middle class, and rich. Don't abolish the income tax.

      Not only is the bolded part a grammatically incorrect statement, it is also a morally incorrect statement. I don't think Conservatives understand how wealth inequality works.

      Environment: More government regulation on the environment destroys business freedom. Encourage businesses to be more environmentally-friendly, do not force them!

      Right, because the "encourage them, don't force them" policy has worked so well over the years.

      Hint: that was sarcasm, it hasn't worked at all.

      So, how do you guys think of my political stances?

      Your politics are as terrible as your grammar.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Maxwell on June 29, 2013, 03:36:28 PM
      Social Policy

      Abortion (Center-Left):  Pro-choice up to the point of viability. It's the womans body, but after a certain point, the baby would possibly have the ability to survive, and that's generally at about 26 weeks. That's where I think the line should be drawn.

      SSM and other LGBT rights (Left): Absolutely support. There are two ways of doing this in my view: one way is to get Government out of marriage. Getting rid of all the benefits the Government gives to married couples, and allow non-discrimination legislation to adapt. Another way is the way that is going on right now: fighting state by state to legalize gay marriage. Two people who love each other should have no barriers to be happy with one another.

      Marijuana (Left): Legalize. I do agree, that we should do this by going state by state with attempts to legalize, but I think it's time we realized that the War on Drugs is a colossal failure. Tax it heavily, regulate it like cigarettes, advertise against its use. We need to more effectively use our resources.

      Drinking Age (Left): It should be lowered to 18. We can send our men and women to war, and vote, but god forgiveth, we can't drink until we are 21. If we are legally decided to be an adult at 18, than we should be given all the benefits and what not of being an adult.

      Oh, and I'm against the Death Penalty.

      Physician-assisted suicide (Center/Center-Right): I'm not quite sure, to be honest. I think one should be in charge of their own death, but at the same time, it also depends on the circumstance. Maybe they are in so much pain at one point and they say they want to be dead, but they are not truly meaning of it if they survive. I think in the right context and under the right scope, Physician-assisted Suicide could work, but I think there would be a lot of consent to go by. (this might be my only moralist position)

      Guns (Center/Center-Right): I think background checks is fine and is not gun control, so I supported Toomey-Manchin, although there were some major loopholes in the bill. However, I am not so supportive of a Assault Weapons ban, which would have little to no effect on gun violence. If we wanted to change the effect of gun violence, we need to look at our other laws and get power out of the black market (i.e. see Drug Wars)

      Immigration (Center-Left): We need a more balanced workforce. What do I mean by that, well I mean that our workforce in the US is balanced on average skilled workers, with only small bits of American workers either highly skilled or low skilled. Compare that to an immigrant workforce, who have a lot of low skilled and high skilled workers, but not very many average workers. We need to increase immigration into this country. I believe it is time we reformed our immigration system to make it easier for people to come in, but we also need to be mindful and not treat people who came in here illegally any better than we treat people who follow the process. I do like the immigration plan in Congress, but I also want to do wonders on the work visa program.

      Ultimately, though, if they are paying taxes in this country and are working, I have no problem with immigrants, illegal or not illegal, being in our country.

      Affirmative Action (Right): Against.

      Economic Policy

      Income Tax (Center Right): We should have an income tax system. However, we should scale back rates once the economy gets back on track. However, in order to do that in a balanced fashion when it comes to revenue, we need to cut all of the special interest loopholes and ways that the corporate system gets to avoid taxation.

      Deficit (Right): The deficit needs to be lowered through cuts and increases to revenue, otherwise known as austerity. However, we also need to increase spending in smaller places: infrastructure for example, in order to push jobs back into the economy. I am against massive wasteful spending, but not all spending is the same: We have a massively bloated military budget and we have no wars we are fighting with it, and I support big cuts to it. I also support looking under every rock and cutting waste.

      Social Security (Right): I am for raising the retirement age, as Americans are living longer, and doing more with their lives. The retirement age has been the same since FDR, back when the age of death was LOWER than the retirement age he set for Social Security. It is only fair that we raise it now to compensate for increasing costs of the program. Simply put, we need to lock the lockbox. No more to Washington Republicans and Democrats robbing the trust fund as they did to fund their mistakes. In the long term, I do support a shift towards either privatization, or the Government handing back what people have put in and abolishing the program all together.

      Free Trade (Right):  Pro-Free Trade.

      Education (Center):  It should be in the hands of the states. We need to shift out of the dreadful policies of No Child Left Behind. Not all education spending is good spending, as we spend more it seems that those dollars go to waste when our scores are sh**t. We need to put more money behind primary education, giving a good foundation for later years.

      Infrastructure spending (Center-Left): Support increasing. Our roads are in dire danger, and we need to do more to make our roads safer and better. One solution I like is making the toll roads private while keeping regular roads public. There are innovative solutions out there, and I believe that it isn't completely a lost cause.
       
      Environment (Center Right): We should be mindful of our effect, but we should also not over-estimate our effect. There is something of an arrogance of our existence on this earth that we are the main culprits destroying the earth. Earth has long term shifts, some of them radical (see: the Ice Age), so I am still very skeptical. Ultimately, I wouldn't put environmental interests ahead of economic interests. However, I do support preserving lands for future generations via National Parks.

      Foreign Policy

      Embargo on Cuba: Totally against it. Cuba is no longer a threat. The more people we are trading with and working with across the world, the better. We need to lower barriers, not put up. No more Embargo on Cuba!

      Military involvement overseas (Left): My basic foreign policy idea is simple: It is much like Milton Friedman described Government policy in the economy. Foreign Policy is too powerful: any movement we make ultimately comes back to bite us in the future. See all these leaders we put into power and than overthrew. I think it's time we stopped being so involved in world affairs. Let's be more mindful of our place in the world and stop being the world police. So my foreign policy is a minimalist foreign policy.

      Humanitarian causes (Right): We should be more cautious about humanitarian aide. In any place where we could be thinking to fund poor kids in Africa, it turns out to be a dictator who takes those funds and slaughters thousands of his people. We need to be more cautious all around with foreign policy, but I think Humanitarian aide is a perfect example of why we need a more minimalist foreign policy.

      Support for Democracy (Left): The United States isn't a Democracy. It is a constant fight between Republic and Democracy. Why should we impose something that we aren't even 100% behind?  Again, let's leave people alone, we don't know the backlash we may face because of these policies. Iraq is still a disaster to this day, because we invaded a country and then tried to "fix" our mess under the guise of Democracy.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: windjammer on June 29, 2013, 03:57:40 PM
      Social Policy

      Abortion:  Pro-choice up to the point of viability. It's the womans body, but after a certain point, the baby would possibly have the ability to survive, and that's generally at about 26 weeks. That's where I think the line should be drawn.

      SSM and other LGBT rights: Absolutely support. There are two ways of doing this in my view: one way is to get Government out of marriage. Getting rid of all the benefits the Government gives to married couples, and allow non-discrimination legislation to adapt. Another way is the way that is going on right now: fighting state by state to legalize gay marriage. Two people who love each other should have no barriers to be happy with one another.

      Marijuana: Legalize. I do agree, that we should do this by going state by state with attempts to legalize, but I think it's time we realized that the War on Drugs is a colossal failure. Tax it heavily, regulate it like cigarettes, advertise against its use. We need to more effectively use our resources.

      Drinking Age: It should be lowered to 18. We can send our men and women to war, and vote, but god forgiveth, we can't drink until we are 21. If we are legally decided to be an adult at 18, than we should be given all the benefits and what not of being an adult.

      Oh, and I'm against the Death Penalty.

      Physician-assisted suicide: I'm not quite sure, to be honest. I think one should be in charge of their own death, but at the same time, it also depends on the circumstance. Maybe they are in so much pain at one point and they say they want to be dead, but they are not truly meaning of it if they survive. I think in the right context and under the right scope, Physician-assisted Suicide could work, but I think there would be a lot of consent to go by. (this might be my only moralist position)

      Guns: I think background checks is fine and is not gun control, so I supported Toomey-Manchin, although there were some major loopholes in the bill. However, I am not so supportive of a Assault Weapons ban, which would have little to no effect on gun violence. If we wanted to change the effect of gun violence, we need to look at our other laws and get power out of the black market (i.e. see Drug Wars)

      Immigration: We need a more balanced workforce. What do I mean by that, well I mean that our workforce in the US is balanced on average skilled workers, with only small bits of American workers either highly skilled or low skilled. Compare that to an immigrant workforce, who have a lot of low skilled and high skilled workers, but not very many average workers. We need to increase immigration into this country. I believe it is time we reformed our immigration system to make it easier for people to come in, but we also need to be mindful and not treat people who came in here illegally any better than we treat people who follow the process. I do like the immigration plan in Congress, but I also want to do wonders on the work visa program.

      Ultimately, though, if they are paying taxes in this country and are working, I have no problem with immigrants, illegal or not illegal, being in our country.

      Affirmative Action: Against.

      Economic Policy

      Income Tax: We should have an income tax system. However, we should scale back rates once the economy gets back on track. However, in order to do that in a balanced fashion when it comes to revenue, we need to cut all of the special interest loopholes and ways that the corporate system gets to avoid taxation.

      Deficit: The deficit needs to be lowered through cuts and increases to revenue, otherwise known as austerity. However, we also need to increase spending in smaller places: infrastructure for example, in order to push jobs back into the economy. I am against massive wasteful spending, but not all spending is the same: We have a massively bloated military budget and we have no wars we are fighting with it, and I support big cuts to it. I also support looking under every rock and cutting waste.

      Social Security: I am for raising the retirement age, as Americans are living longer, and doing more with their lives. The retirement age has been the same since FDR, back when the age of death was LOWER than the retirement age he set for Social Security. It is only fair that we raise it now to compensate for increasing costs of the program. Simply put, we need to lock the lockbox. No more to Washington Republicans and Democrats robbing the trust fund as they did to fund their mistakes. In the long term, I do support a shift towards either privatization, or the Government handing back what people have put in and abolishing the program all together.

      Free Trade:  Pro-Free Trade.

      Education:  It should be in the hands of the states. We need to shift out of the dreadful policies of No Child Left Behind. Not all education spending is good spending, as we spend more it seems that those dollars go to waste when our scores are sh**t. We need to put more money behind primary education, giving a good foundation for later years.

      Infrastructure spending: Support increasing. Our roads are in dire danger, and we need to do more to make our roads safer and better. One solution I like is making the toll roads private while keeping regular roads public. There are innovative solutions out there, and I believe that it isn't completely a lost cause.
       
      Environment: We should be mindful of our effect, but we should also not over-estimate our effect. There is something of an arrogance of our existence on this earth that we are the main culprits destroying the earth. Earth has long term shifts, some of them radical (see: the Ice Age), so I am still very skeptical. Ultimately, I wouldn't put environmental interests ahead of economic interests. However, I do support preserving lands for future generations via National Parks.

      Foreign Policy

      Embargo on Cuba: Totally against it. Cuba is no longer a threat. The more people we are trading with and working with across the world, the better. We need to lower barriers, not put up. No more Embargo on Cuba!

      Military involvement overseas: My basic foreign policy idea is simple: It is much like Milton Friedman described Government policy in the economy. Foreign Policy is too powerful: any movement we make ultimately comes back to bite us in the future. See all these leaders we put into power and than overthrew. I think it's time we stopped being so involved in world affairs. Let's be more mindful of our place in the world and stop being the world police. So my foreign policy is a minimalist foreign policy.

      Humanitarian causes: We should be more cautious about humanitarian aide. In any place where we could be thinking to fund poor kids in Africa, it turns out to be a dictator who takes those funds and slaughters thousands of his people. We need to be more cautious all around with foreign policy, but I think Humanitarian aide is a perfect example of why we need a more minimalist foreign policy.

      Support for Democracy: The United States isn't a Democracy. It is a constant fight between Republic and Democracy. Why should we impose something that we aren't even 100% behind?  Again, let's leave people alone, we don't know the backlash we may face because of these policies. Iraq is still a disaster to this day, because we invaded a country and then tried to "fix" our mess under the guise of Democracy.

      You are a kind of rockefeller isolationnist. Really on the left socially, on the right economically (but not so far). You could be Olympia Snowe but she's pro interventionnist, so I would say Lincoln Chafee when he was independant!


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Frodo on June 29, 2013, 11:28:05 PM
      Social/Cultural Hot-Button issues

      Women's Rights: I support the passage of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, as well as the final ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equal_Rights_Amendment).  

      Gay Rights: I applaud the recent Supreme Court decision (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_v._Windsor) striking down Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act, and support the Respect for Marriage Act (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Respect_for_Marriage_Act) striking down DOMA in its entirety.  Also support the passage of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Employment_Non-Discrimination_Act).  

      Sex: Favor mandatory comprehensive sex education programs (http://www.advocatesforyouth.org/sex-education-home), including accurate and up-to-date information regarding safe sex (condoms, contraceptives, etc.), sexually transmitted diseases, and abstinence.  I also support the right to free sexual speech & expression (https://ncsfreedom.org) without legal penalties or harassment, and to this end I support the right of women to go topless wherever men are allowed to; public nudity in designated areas; as well as ending censorship of nudity in the media.

      Second Amendment: The Second Amendment (http://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution/second_amendment) was intended to be seen as protecting an individual right as with all the other original ten amendments that comprised the Bill of Rights when it was added to the Constitution.  When it was originally written, 'militia' connoted the entirety of the citizenry (http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/10/311), not just a government-created body.  

      Accordingly, I support concealed-carry, castle-doctrine laws, and other liberalizing measures. I strongly oppose gun-bans at any governmental level.  However, as with every other amendment, there are limits.

      With greater freedom comes greater responsibility in using that freedom, and it is in that spirit that I support measures like mandatory firearms training and universal background checks before any gun or permit is issued, to ensure that the unorganized citizens' militia is well-trained and well-regulated.  

      Drug War: I support ending the 'War on Drugs' (http://www.drugpolicy.org) by overturning the Controlled Substances Act, ending mandatory minimum sentencing, legalizing marijuana, and instead direct our attention and funding towards prevention and treatment of addicts.  

      Economic issues

      Education: Favor adapting the Finland education model (http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2011/12/what-americans-keep-ignoring-about-finlands-school-success/250564/) to the United States, including a major expansion in after-school tutoring programs as well as universal pre-school education; smaller class sizes; adopting Common Core standards (http://www.corestandards.org/) and expanding them beyond math and English; changing the traditional school year to a year-round schedule (http://www.nayre.org/); and work to ensure that teachers receive the same societal status as doctors and lawyers with attendant qualifications.

      Tax Code: In addition to closing tax loopholes, sun-setting the alternative minimum tax, and setting the top individual income tax rate at 40%, I favor tax reforms including cutting the corporate income tax to 25%, and introducing the Value-Added Tax (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Value_added_tax) (superseding all preceding sales and use taxes) with the intention of encouraging savings and investment, manufacturing exports over consumption of imports, as well as increasing revenue to pay for the social programs that the American people desire.  

      Entitlement programs: I believe the Bismarck model of Germany and Switzerland is better suited to the United States than the Single-Payer system of Great Britain and Canada.  To achieve this goal, I support various measures to improve upon the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (http://www.healthcare.gov/index.html).  Among them, I favor federalizing[/url] Medicaid (http://www.medicaid.gov/), a single national health insurance exchange, universal (and federalized) childcare, and medical liability reform.

      With regard to Medicare (http://www.medicare.gov/) and Social Security (http://www.ssa.gov/), I favor raising the eligibility age to seventy, raising the payroll tax as well as eliminating the cap on it, preserve as well as raise the estate tax, and indexing benefits to inflation as opposed to wages.  

      I strongly oppose changing Medicare into a premium support plan, or diverting payroll taxes into private retirement accounts subject to the whims of the market.  

      Labor Unions: Support the passage of the Employee Free Choice Act (http://www.opencongress.org/bill/111-s560/show), and repealing the Taft-Hartley Act of 1947 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taft%E2%80%93Hartley_Act).

      Free Trade: Strongly support free trade, and favor the establishment of the Free Trade Area of the Americas, the Trans-Pacific Partnership, the Trans-Atlantic Trade & Investment Partnership, and the completion of the Doha Development Round (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doha_Development_Round) of the WTO -as well as a significant reduction of farm subsidies throughout the developed world including the United States.  

      Immigration Reform: I fully support the provisions in the Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Border_Security,_Economic_Opportunity,_and_Immigration_Modernization_Act_of_2013).

      To encourage assimilation, I support significant increases in funding for ESL (English-as-a-Second-Language) programs, and streamlining the legal immigration process to make it less cumbersome and more convenient for visa applicants.

      I strongly oppose calls by nativists for mass deportations and denying birthright citizenship.  

      Energy Independence and the Environment: I support the construction of the Keystone XL pipeline, strictly regulating the fracking practices of the natural gas industry, as well as lifting the ban on exporting liquefied natural gas (LNG) and oil, especially to Europe.  

      To build a more ecologically sustainable society over the long-haul, I favor research into nuclear fusion and hydrogen fuel-cell technologies; increasing investments into alternative renewable energy sources like wind, solar, geothermal, and biomass among others; promoting energy efficiency in government as well as in private industry, using the LEED Green Building Rating System (http://www.usgbc.org/) as a model; tax credits for hybrid vehicles; increasing the fuel economy standards for newer vehicles; gradually eliminating taxpayer subsidies for the fossil fuel and ethanol industries; implementing a carbon tax (http://www.carbontax.org/) (superseding existing state and federal fuel excise taxes) to further spur these changes in energy usage; as well as beginning a 'nuclear renaissance' through the building of enough new nuclear power plants, and updating those already in existence (http://www.nei.org/) so that 50% of our energy needs would be based on nuclear power.

      I also support opening Yucca Mountain as a storage site for spent nuclear waste, as well as increasing our capacity for reprocessing spent nuclear fuel so that they can be reused and to reduce the total amount of waste that would have to be sent there.

      Transportation: The federal government should also create a national transportation infrastructure for the 21st century (http://t4america.org) comparable in scope to President Eisenhower's Interstate Highway System, with High Speed Rail (http://www.hsr.ca.gov/) as its centerpiece, beginning with increasing investments into mass transit programs in urban areas so as to concentrate population growth there.

      NASA -Space Exploration: Strongly support President Bush's initiative to refocus the space agency away from the International Space Station (instead letting private companies and international space agencies fund the ISS upon its completion) and towards the exploration and colonization of the Moon and Mars.  I also support reviving the Constellation program (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constellation_program); moving manned and unmanned rocket launch facilities HQ from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida to the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico -and distributing funding accordingly.

      Foreign Policy

      Support the ratification of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Convention_on_the_Law_of_the_Sea).  Advocate cultivating our relations with India through such agreements like the U.S.-India Civil Nuclear Agreement, with the ultimate objective of making India into an ally as special and important to the United States as the United Kingdom and Japan is today.  Support the leasing of bases throughout Southeast Asia (including Subic Naval Base in the Philippines) to counter the growing military power of China, and reshaping our military to better handle the twin challenges of counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency, including a major expansion of the Special Forces.  Also support missile defense to guard against rogue regimes threatening our allies.

      Democracy-Related Issues

      District of Columbia: Support having the non-federal areas of DC retroceded to Maryland as the city of Washington, thereby enabling the residents within to be represented at all levels of government.  

      Election Reform: I support mandatory, universal voter registration; and full mandatory public disclosure by all (including independent super PACS like 501(c) and 527 groups) of all political donations and expenditures.  

      I also support replacing the First-Past-The-Post system with mixed-member proportional representation (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mixed_member_proportional_representation) with regard to the federal House of Representatives and state legislatures.    

      In addition, I advocate eliminating the Electoral College and having the President elected by the national popular vote alone (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Popular_Vote_Interstate_Compact), contingent on Congress and the states ratifying the Right to Vote Amendment (http://www.fairvote.org/reforms/right-to-vote-amendment/).  
      -----------------------------------------------

      In sum, I consider myself a liberal Democrat, heavily influenced by the 'Third Way' as exemplified by Bill Clinton and Tony Blair.  


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: H. Ross Peron on June 30, 2013, 01:44:38 AM
      Frodo, yours is one of the best political platforms I've ever read :) Besides on Social Security, I think we agree on practically everything mentioned in your platform.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: MyRescueKittehRocks on June 30, 2013, 05:26:21 PM
      Frodo, Excellent view of the second amendment along with the Finland model.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The Simpsons Cinematic Universe on June 30, 2013, 09:14:03 PM
      Within the context of contemporary American politics, anyway.

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Pro-choice until point of viability.
      Drugs: Decriminalize all drugs to make seeking help for addiction easier. Legalize all soft drugs. I'm supportive of the use and study of psychedelic drugs.
      Censorship: Oppose all censorship.
      LGBT Rights: I fall into "B" myself. Totally support.
      Transgender issues: Very important issue. Discrimination against transgender people must be illegal.
      SSM: Legalize.
      Polygamy: Legalize.
      Marriage privatization: Support. State shouldn't subsidize marriage.
      Death penalty: Unconditionally oppose
      Prison system: End private and for-profit prisons. Adopt rehabilitation-based incarceration system based upon that of Norway.
      Prostitution: Mixed thoughts, but in favor of legalization.
      Church & state: Keep religion out of politics
      Religion: Everyone has a right to hold their own religious beliefs. Spreading these beliefs to one's children is indoctrination and child abuse. Do not teach religion to children.
      Religion & SSM: Don't force religious groups to do SSMs.
      Affirmative action: By economic status - support. Race-based affirmative action should be encouraged, but quotas and whatnot are going too far. Punish discriminatory businesses, though.  
      Hate crime laws: A bit undecided. Support in some instances.
      Immigration: Support open borders.
      Stem cell research: Strongly, strongly support
      Science: Scientific progress should be supported by the government. Increase funding for NASA.
      PATRIOT Act: Oppose.
      Gun Control: Support closing loopholes, oppose assault weapons ban.  
      Assisted suicide: Support.
      Organ donation: Opt-out is a good idea.
      Federalism: Mostly oppose. I dislike the idea of "leaving an issue to the states". Some devolution is necessary in a country as large as the United States, though.
      Creationism: Keep it out of schools
      Sex ed: Comprehensive sex ed is pretty much just common sense.

      Electoral Reform:
      DC: Support DC statehood.
      Voting age: Status quo.
      Campaign Finance Reform: Oppose Citizens' United, support public funding.
      Voting system: Mixed member proportional. Oppose the electoral college... though I'd really miss the pretty maps.
      Gerrymandering: Absolutely needs fixing.
      Voter ID: Oppose.  
      Two party system: Oppose.
      Senate: Should have its power significantly decreased or be abolished.

      Economic Issues:
      Welfare state: Support an extensive welfare state. This is one of my biggest issues, having grown up in a low-income family on food stamps.
      Unions: Love 'em. I have a thing for the IWW.
      Privatization: Oppose.
      Global warming: Real and human-caused. We need to have legislation to limit carbon emissions.
      Water fluoridation: One of the greatest medical breakthroughs of the past century. Fully support.
      Nuclear energy: More sustainable than some would have us believe. Support, in addition to maxing out what we can get from solar power, wind power, etc.
      Minimum wage: Raise it.
      Taxation: Support progressive taxation.
      Healthcare: Single-payer.
      Trade: Fair trade.  
      Education:: Increase funding. Abolish private schools.
      Military: Reduce funding drastically.

      Foreign Policy
      War: End imperialistic foreign policy. Not completely ideologically non-interventionist.
      Israel-Palestine: A solution which one secular state is formed would be ideal, but possibly unworkable. Two-state solution is probably best.
      Iran: Not a massive threat. Should face international sanctions for human rights abuses, though.
      Syria: Assad is preferable to Islamists.
      Middle East (other): Support sanctions on Saudi Arabia for the same reasons as Iran.
      Cuba: Normalize relations, end embargo.
      Draft: Oppose.
      UN: Support US membership. Oppose the structure of the security council. Support Palestinian membership.  
      Global state: One decentralized world state is ideal, but unlikely.
      Nukes: Reduce.
      Foreign Aid: Foreign aid to Africa should come in different forms. Focus on long-term development.
      Puerto Rico: Support self-determination
      Canada: Support annexation.

      Overall: I'm interested to see what you would describe me as.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Atlas Has Shrugged on July 01, 2013, 08:28:18 PM

      Overall: I'm interested to see what you would describe me as.

      Scary.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Leftbehind on July 01, 2013, 10:58:56 PM
      ()

      MustCrushCapitalism - you don't see yourself a socialist?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The Simpsons Cinematic Universe on July 02, 2013, 12:42:02 AM
      Mwahaha
      MustCrushCapitalism - you don't see yourself a socialist?
      I do, actually.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: windjammer on July 02, 2013, 05:50:22 PM
      Economy
      -We should increase for education: I believe it's a necessity because it will produce skilled employers and it's good to improve our economy in a work where it's just impossible to rivalize with China by the prize!
      - As a developed country, it's a duty to grant a correct standard of living for all people, we must show solidarity! That's why I favor a national health care (Obamacare)!
      -I'm pro-union, I believe workers must be protected against their employers, who want to exploit their employees to obtain a better gain (Yes, I totally agree with Marx on this point :p). Union workers aren't necessarily bad for the employers, because it prevents violent strikes. I favor a minimum wage too!
      -However, I'm not anticapitalist: pro free trade,... But it must be regulated by the state (minimum wage,...) because capitalism can lead to a major crisis (1929,2008,...)
      -I tend to favor a kind of welfare state, not a socialist state! I think the USSR is an example of the inefficience of socialism economically: a too big bureaucracy which conducts to a big corruption and a weak productivity.

      Social:
      -I'm catholic (I'm french after all :p), I have a good opinion of the church generally. In France, the catholic church has always been an example of solidarity, so I'm not against teaching religion in school (if the students want to have cathechism of course!). My signature is a picture of "Abbe Lemire" who was a priest and a great fighter for better social conditions, a fighter against poverty,... It's really what I like in catholiscism: help the poors, solidarity,...
      -However, I don't agree with their social views on abortion and SSM: I'm strongly pro-choice (it's a women's right for me!) and pro-SSM.
      -I strongly oppose death penalty.
      -I tend to favor prostitution's legalization (I'm against procuring) but oppose drugs.
      -I favor immigration, our population is becoming older, immigration is a necessity! 
      -I'm against flag-burning, think collective security is more important than the right of autonomy (tend to favor measures against terrorism, with moderation),  I tend to favor limiting violence in video-games.


      Foreign policy
      -I'm interventionnist, I was in favor of the intervention in Libya, I think we should help syrian rebels.
      -Manning and Snowden are just two traitors and are weakening their country.



      So, who am I politically?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Supersonic on July 02, 2013, 05:54:20 PM

      Maybe something like a Henry Jackson liberal.

      Economically left, socially centre-left, fairly interventionist in foreign policy.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Maxwell on July 02, 2013, 06:01:15 PM
      Social Policy

      Abortion:  Pro-choice up to the point of viability. It's the womans body, but after a certain point, the baby would possibly have the ability to survive, and that's generally at about 26 weeks. That's where I think the line should be drawn.

      SSM and other LGBT rights: Absolutely support. There are two ways of doing this in my view: one way is to get Government out of marriage. Getting rid of all the benefits the Government gives to married couples, and allow non-discrimination legislation to adapt. Another way is the way that is going on right now: fighting state by state to legalize gay marriage. Two people who love each other should have no barriers to be happy with one another.

      Marijuana: Legalize. I do agree, that we should do this by going state by state with attempts to legalize, but I think it's time we realized that the War on Drugs is a colossal failure. Tax it heavily, regulate it like cigarettes, advertise against its use. We need to more effectively use our resources.

      Drinking Age: It should be lowered to 18. We can send our men and women to war, and vote, but god forgiveth, we can't drink until we are 21. If we are legally decided to be an adult at 18, than we should be given all the benefits and what not of being an adult.

      Oh, and I'm against the Death Penalty.

      Physician-assisted suicide: I'm not quite sure, to be honest. I think one should be in charge of their own death, but at the same time, it also depends on the circumstance. Maybe they are in so much pain at one point and they say they want to be dead, but they are not truly meaning of it if they survive. I think in the right context and under the right scope, Physician-assisted Suicide could work, but I think there would be a lot of consent to go by. (this might be my only moralist position)

      Guns: I think background checks is fine and is not gun control, so I supported Toomey-Manchin, although there were some major loopholes in the bill. However, I am not so supportive of a Assault Weapons ban, which would have little to no effect on gun violence. If we wanted to change the effect of gun violence, we need to look at our other laws and get power out of the black market (i.e. see Drug Wars)

      Immigration: We need a more balanced workforce. What do I mean by that, well I mean that our workforce in the US is balanced on average skilled workers, with only small bits of American workers either highly skilled or low skilled. Compare that to an immigrant workforce, who have a lot of low skilled and high skilled workers, but not very many average workers. We need to increase immigration into this country. I believe it is time we reformed our immigration system to make it easier for people to come in, but we also need to be mindful and not treat people who came in here illegally any better than we treat people who follow the process. I do like the immigration plan in Congress, but I also want to do wonders on the work visa program.

      Ultimately, though, if they are paying taxes in this country and are working, I have no problem with immigrants, illegal or not illegal, being in our country.

      Affirmative Action: Against.

      Economic Policy

      Income Tax: We should have an income tax system. However, we should scale back rates once the economy gets back on track. However, in order to do that in a balanced fashion when it comes to revenue, we need to cut all of the special interest loopholes and ways that the corporate system gets to avoid taxation.

      Deficit: The deficit needs to be lowered through cuts and increases to revenue, otherwise known as austerity. However, we also need to increase spending in smaller places: infrastructure for example, in order to push jobs back into the economy. I am against massive wasteful spending, but not all spending is the same: We have a massively bloated military budget and we have no wars we are fighting with it, and I support big cuts to it. I also support looking under every rock and cutting waste.

      Social Security: I am for raising the retirement age, as Americans are living longer, and doing more with their lives. The retirement age has been the same since FDR, back when the age of death was LOWER than the retirement age he set for Social Security. It is only fair that we raise it now to compensate for increasing costs of the program. Simply put, we need to lock the lockbox. No more to Washington Republicans and Democrats robbing the trust fund as they did to fund their mistakes. In the long term, I do support a shift towards either privatization, or the Government handing back what people have put in and abolishing the program all together.

      Free Trade:  Pro-Free Trade.

      Education:  It should be in the hands of the states. We need to shift out of the dreadful policies of No Child Left Behind. Not all education spending is good spending, as we spend more it seems that those dollars go to waste when our scores are sh**t. We need to put more money behind primary education, giving a good foundation for later years.

      Infrastructure spending: Support increasing. Our roads are in dire danger, and we need to do more to make our roads safer and better. One solution I like is making the toll roads private while keeping regular roads public. There are innovative solutions out there, and I believe that it isn't completely a lost cause.
       
      Environment: We should be mindful of our effect, but we should also not over-estimate our effect. There is something of an arrogance of our existence on this earth that we are the main culprits destroying the earth. Earth has long term shifts, some of them radical (see: the Ice Age), so I am still very skeptical. Ultimately, I wouldn't put environmental interests ahead of economic interests. However, I do support preserving lands for future generations via National Parks.

      Foreign Policy

      Embargo on Cuba: Totally against it. Cuba is no longer a threat. The more people we are trading with and working with across the world, the better. We need to lower barriers, not put up. No more Embargo on Cuba!

      Military involvement overseas: My basic foreign policy idea is simple: It is much like Milton Friedman described Government policy in the economy. Foreign Policy is too powerful: any movement we make ultimately comes back to bite us in the future. See all these leaders we put into power and than overthrew. I think it's time we stopped being so involved in world affairs. Let's be more mindful of our place in the world and stop being the world police. So my foreign policy is a minimalist foreign policy.

      Humanitarian causes: We should be more cautious about humanitarian aide. In any place where we could be thinking to fund poor kids in Africa, it turns out to be a dictator who takes those funds and slaughters thousands of his people. We need to be more cautious all around with foreign policy, but I think Humanitarian aide is a perfect example of why we need a more minimalist foreign policy.

      Support for Democracy: The United States isn't a Democracy. It is a constant fight between Republic and Democracy. Why should we impose something that we aren't even 100% behind?  Again, let's leave people alone, we don't know the backlash we may face because of these policies. Iraq is still a disaster to this day, because we invaded a country and then tried to "fix" our mess under the guise of Democracy.

      You are a kind of rockefeller isolationnist. Really on the left socially, on the right economically (but not so far). You could be Olympia Snowe but she's pro interventionnist, so I would say Lincoln Chafee when he was independant!

      Isolationism is the wrong term. I support free trade and I support an aggressive policy on getting all countries who are interested in wanting to be our trade partner to do so. I think the correct term is Non-Interventionism.

      Also, while I am generally center right on economic issues, I do have some where I fit into the fairly right wing mold (unions, social security/medicare, healthcare).


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: H. Ross Peron on July 03, 2013, 01:26:08 AM
      Where am I politically?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: They put it to a vote and they just kept lying on July 03, 2013, 08:58:46 AM

      moderateheroland


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Supersonic on July 03, 2013, 09:11:50 AM

      New Democrat, in the mould of Andrew Cuomo and best typified by Bill Clinton. Generally centrist on social issues reading your answers, except on abortion and guns where you tilt to the right. You're generally centre-left on economics issues. Foreign policy, too, pretty centrist although your Syria stance stood out. It probably makes sense to switch your E/S matrix scores as you seem socially more centrist than economically so. You're not a moderate hero per-se, just a pragmatic Democrat. In days long gone, you might have voted Republican, maybe up to Ford in '76, or pushing it, Bush in '88. Thereafter probably straight Democrat.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Supersonic on July 03, 2013, 09:30:18 AM
      Procrastination. I'll probably flesh this out at some point.

      Social Policy

      Abortion:  Constitutional amendment to overturn Roe v. Wade. Return abortion back to the states. Enact parental consent laws. Remove funding for Planned Parenthood.

      SSM and other LGBT rights:  Support Same Sex Marriage, but it should be a state decision. Support ENDA too.

      Marijuana:  Keep it illegal and crack down on the states that are decriminalising it, enact a federal ban preventing states from selling it.

      Drinking Age:  Preferably lowered to 18 as in the UK but this doesn't really concern me.

      Death Penalty:  Oppose. Imperfect society is incapable of accurately determining who deserves to die. (quoting TDA's answer here)

      Physician-assisted suicide: Neutral, but lean oppose.

      Guns: Moved slightly more to the right on this. Oppose federal attempts at gun control and empower the states to take their own lead on the issue. I support gun control at the state level, not federally.

      Affirmative Action: Oppose, in all instances.

      Economic Policy

      Income Tax:  Gradually decrease it across the board. No tax rises.

      Deficit:  Cut the deficit by spending cuts, see my plan on the NYT interactive budget app. Balance the budget via 20% tax rises, 80% cuts.

      Social Security:  Cut social security, raises eligibility age to 70, tighten means testing etc.

      Free Trade:  Wholly support. No exceptions.

      Education:  Remove the Department of Education. It's a state issue.

      Infrastructure spending:  No spending until the budget is balanced.

      Environment: Encourage investment in greener technology, protect conservation and green belt areas. Allow off-shore oil drilling and fracking.

      Foreign Policy

      Mideast: Wholly support Israel. Should have kept troops in Iraq and would have voted for the surge (but would have opposed the war in retrospect). Neutral on Iran with the recent election, though any sign of antagonism towards Israel and building of nuclear weapons would be met with retribution.

      East Asia: Continue to back our allies in Asia. Encourage a trade rapprochement with China, though remain wary of them.

      Embargo on Cuba:  Continue.

      Military involvement overseas:  Should be encouraged where human rights are being threatened or our nations interests are threatened.

      Humanitarian causes:  As above.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The world will shine with light in our nightmare on July 05, 2013, 12:45:24 AM
      It's been about a year since I wrote one of these, and since certain US policies have changed, I thought it would be appropriate to revise some planks.


      Social Issues

      Abortion/Women's Health:Left
      • Keep abortion legal nationwide; neutral on late-term abortion
      • Expand access to contraception, cover with public funds
      • Allocate public funds toward Stem Cell Research
      • Promote 'safe sex' education programs

      LGBT Issues: Left
      • Support the Supreme Court's recent ruling on DOMA
      • Legalize same-sex marriage in every state, including adoption rights
      (no preference for whether this should be done through ballot referendums, state legislatures, or courts)
      • Include sexual orientation in hate crime laws

      Drugs: Center-Left
      • End the ‘Drug War’ nationally and internationally; direct money and efforts to causes that seek to prevent the use of hard drugs; decriminalize all drugs, prosecute dealers
      • Legalize, regulate, and tax the sale of marijuana; oppose the legalization of other hard drugs

      Prostitution: Center-Left
      • Legalize and tax prostitution
      • Require routine medical tests and strictly enforce health standards

      Guns/Crime: Center
      • Support conceal-carry and 'castle doctrine' laws
      • Support enacting Manchin-Toomey style background checks
      • Oppose handgun bans
      • Neutral/lean oppose assault weapons bans
      • Oppose the death penalty
      • Encourage states and local communities to address crime and prevent police brutality

      Education: Left
      • Support public schools, but not misguided spending; reform the system from within
      • Adopt a Finland-based system and repeal 'No Child Left Behind'
      • Reward public schools that succeed, and redesign failing ones
      • Grant waivers to states for all federally-required standardized tests, reduce standardized tests to one per student during his or her junior/senior year
      • Guarantee teachers the right to unionize, but maintain a healthy balance between unions and governments
      • Give teachers the right to choose their own books and design their own assignments/tests, provided that they meet a certain criteria

      Immigration: Center/Center-Right
      • Enforce immigration laws; use defense funds to increase Border Patrol, deploy sensors, and build fences
      • Prosecute businesses that hire illegal immigrants
      • Provide residency for illegal individuals who demonstrate ‘good moral character’ by pursuing higher education or serving for at least two years in the US military
      • Oppose English-only legislation; strengthen bilingual education, instead
      • Oppose prosecuting children of illegal immigrants
      • Oppose mass deportation
      • Oppose ‘Arizona-style’ immigration proposals

      Euthanasia: Left
      • Allow euthanasia at the consent of individual doctors and their patients

      Church and State: Center
      • Allow voluntary school prayer, but no official teacher-led prayer; allow students to form religious groups in public schools
      • Keep the words ‘under God’ in the Pledge of Allegiance
      • Support separation of church and state, but oppose keeping the church out of the public square

      Economic Issues

      Affirmative Action: Center
      • Shift the emphasis on AA strategies from racial preferences to economic empowerment of all disadvantaged citizens; oppose quotas
      • Support equal pay legislation

      Free Trade: Center
      • Generally support free trade; oppose both global laissez faire and protectionist policies
      • Give other countries access to the US market if they apply labor and environmental standards to factories
      • Build a rule-based global trading system

      Health Care: Left
      • Keep the Affordable Care Act in place for the time being, but transition to a public option or single-payer system
      • Cover American citizens from the time of birth

      Welfare: Center
      • Support ‘work-for-welfare’ legislation, such as the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act
      • Drug-testing for welfare recipients has not worked in practice or saved money for welfare programs, but I am in favor of letting states mandate drug-testing if it’s proven to be a cost-saving measure.  Unfortunately, the practicality of such policies is yet to be shown.

      Minimum Wage: Center-Left
      • Support the minimum wage, but exempt small businesses that would not be able to afford it

      Taxes: Center
      • Roll back the Bush tax cuts for top earners, but keep them in place for Americans making below $250,000.  Revert back to Clinton-era tax levels when the economy stabilizes
      • Remove tax loopholes
      • Reduce the Corporate Tax

      Regulations: Center
      • Re-evaluate government regulations; some are necessary, but others have the tendency to benefit large corporations at the expense of small businesses

      Budget: Center-Right
      • Make debt/deficit reduction a priority, but not one that outweighs the importance of economic recovery
      • Oppose across-the-board spending cuts until the economy stabilizes
      • Evaluate and slash spending that goes  to wasteful or unnecessary projects
      • Ban pork-barrel projects
      • End farm subsidies for large businesses in the food industry
      • Cut pay of civilian federal workers by 5 percent, reduce federal workforce by 10 percent

      Energy: Center/Center-Left
      • Continue oil drilling, but incentivize the private sector to generate energy from cleaner sources
      • Launch an initiative for the federal and state governments to transition energy sources in public buildings (new heating and air conditioning systems, new lighting, etc.)
      • Keep tax credits for the production and sale of hybrids and environmentally friendly vehicles
      • End government subsidies and tax cuts to oil businesses
      • Lean against Cap and Trade legislation

      Social Security: Left
      • Protect SS funds from being allocated toward unrelated expenditures (lock box)
      • Raise the Payroll Tax after the economy stabilizes
      • Oppose proposals to raise the retirement age or privatize Social Security
      • Reduce benefits for wealthy individuals
      • Use an alternate measure for inflation

      Unions: Center-Left
      • Balance labor demands with business concerns
      • Negotiate with public unions for pension cuts when necessary, but keep collective bargaining in place

      Foreign Policy/Defense: Left

      PATRIOT ACT
      • Strongly oppose; repeal the law in its entirety and protect Constitutional liberties

      Afghanistan & Iraq
      • Withdraw all military presence from Afghanistan and Iraq

      Israel/Palestine
      • Support a two-state solution; craft a foreign policy that pertains to the needs of both Israelites and Palestinians
      • Keep both entities accountable for upholding promises

      Iran
      • Use embargoes and isolationist techniques against Iran, but commit no military action unless there is clear evidence that a nuclear arms program is being developed

      Syria
      • Oppose US intervention in Syria.

      Military Spending
      • Withdraw troops from Korea, China, Japan, Europe, and elsewhere
      • Reduce nuclear arsenal and space spending
      • Reduce Navy and Air Force fleets
      • Cancel or delay some weapons programs
      • Reduce noncombat military compensation and overhead

      Electoral Issues/Government

      Voter Regulations/ID Cards
      • Support distribution of voter ID cards, but not at the expense of the individual
      • Oppose any reform laws that might disenfranchise voter participation
      • Allow early voting and count absentee votes

      Electoral College
      • Abolish the electoral college; let new presidents be selected via popular vote.
      • Enact proportional representation for elections pertaining to the legislative branch

      Washington D.C.
      • Let the citizens decide if they want to remain a district or become a part of Virginia/Maryland, but only at the consent of the state that would incorporate the district.

      Puerto Rico
      • Let the citizens decide on statehood.

      Senate
      • Tighten rules pertaining to the filibuster
      • Reduce Senate terms to four years instead of six



      To sum up my ideology, I suppose I'm firmly leftist, but occasionally tip to the center or even the center-right, depending on the issue.  My top priority is making government more frugal, efficient, and respecting of civil liberties.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Del Tachi on July 19, 2013, 04:10:22 PM

      • Reduce Senate terms to four years instead of six


      So there are going to be two electoral classes of 50 Senators each?

      So, that would mean that half of the U.S. Senate would always stand for re-election the same year as presidential elections...not gonna fly with ardent defenders of the Senate's status as the "upper chamber". 


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TJ in Oregon on July 19, 2013, 11:58:33 PM

      • Reduce Senate terms to four years instead of six


      So there are going to be two electoral classes of 50 Senators each?

      So, that would mean that half of the U.S. Senate would always stand for re-election the same year as presidential elections...not gonna fly with ardent defenders of the Senate's status as the "upper chamber". 

      Maybe we could do odd years?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The world will shine with light in our nightmare on July 25, 2013, 09:55:07 PM
      Ideally, half the Senate would be up every two years.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TNF on July 26, 2013, 07:56:55 AM
      Ideally, half the Senate would be up every two years.

      Shorter terms = more money in politics


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: tpfkaw on July 27, 2013, 03:33:32 PM
      Ideally, half the Senate would be up every two years.

      Shorter terms = more money in politics

      and even more short sighted, election-cycle politics. then again as i've said before i support something like demarchy so what do i know.

      But you think nearly all people are idiots...


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: ElectionsGuy on August 07, 2013, 09:40:31 AM
      Since it is much harder to think of issues to explain, I will copy the political matrix test and tell you what I think.

      A = Agree, N = Neutral, D = Disagree, UD = Usually Disagree, UA = Usually Agree. CI = Critical Issue.



      1. The right to individual autonomy is important, even if it threatens collective security. (A) (CI)

      2. The government should penalize organizations that practice outsourcing. (D)

      3. Giving faith-based charities the same government resources as secular organizations is a good idea. (N)

      4. We should increase foreign aid to countries struggling with poverty. (D) (CI)

      5. We should increase funding for education. (N)

      6. Heterosexual couples should receive higher marital recognition than same-sex couples. (D)

      7. Overall, free trade hurts more than it helps. (D) (CI)

      8. We should reduce the number of government programs substantially. (A) (CI)

      9. Abortion should be illegal or very heavily restricted. (D)

      10. The government should fund museums, theaters, and other cultural institutions that are unable to survive independently. (D)

      11. The government should subsidize health insurance for those who cannot easily afford it. (N)

      12. The government should work to reduce children's exposure to offensive radio and television content. (D) (CI)

      13. It is unfair that wealthier people pay higher tax rates. (A) (CI)

      14. The minimum wage should be raised. (D) (CI)

      15. Marijuana should be legalized. (A)

      16. Society focuses too much on forcing equality at the expense of real merit. (A) (CI)

      17. Violating individual rights is acceptable when it comes to fighting terrorism. (D) (CI)

      18. Current levels of government regulation on industry are excessive. (A) (CI)

      19. The government should provide basic needs for all people. (UD) (CI)

      20. The death penalty should be an option for serious crimes. (D)

      21. We should reduce the difficulty of immigration. (A)

      22. Union workers should be protected against being fired during strikes. (D)

      23. Prostitution should be legalized. (A)

      24. Flag burning should be banned. (D)

      25. I support affirmative action. (D) (CI)

      26. The government should impose tariffs to protect industries from foreign competition. (D)

      27. Physician-assisted suicide should be legal if the patient is capable of informed, rational consent. (A)


      Economic: +7.48. Social: -7.83.

      Last Updated: September 1st, 2013.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: MalaspinaGold on August 07, 2013, 05:46:02 PM
      My political views:

      Abortion:- No restrictions, up to 24 weeks. States can do what they want after 24 weeks, so long as abortion related to life/health of the mother and birth defects (maybe rape/incest) not infringed upon. Third trimester abortions make up less than 5% of abortions, so it's not really an important issue to me.

      SSM- Same-sex couples get full rights received by straight couples. Repeal DOMA; not a federal issue. States can decide as they wish, though they have to recognize marriages made in other states, otherwise federal legalization. As you can see, I am ambivalent about this issue.

      Drug War- Legalize marijuana, scale back drug war. It's not working, we should not be throwing money at it. Spend resulting surplus on anti-poverty programs.

      Guns- I've moved to the right on this issue a bit. Federal background checks needed. Federal assault weapons ban not really called for, but local governments should have the right to impose an assault weapons ban, a handgun ban, and/or a ban on on large magazines, because they represent the most homogenous communities (i.e. these would probably not work as well in Montana, but in New York City, could help cut crime).

      Done with boring social issues.

      Taxes Taxes on top 2% revert to Clinton-era. Close some tax loopholes (i.e. helicopter/yacht tax breaks) while reforming others (child tax credit make applicable for only the first 3/4 children, and get rid of it for those making over $250,000). Corporate tax code should be raided of loopholes.

      Social Security/Medicare- These will eventually have to be dealt with; but now is not the tie. Social security pays for itself, and as more boomers retire, we should eliminate the cap on the Social Security taxes.

      Minimum Wage- Raise it, tie to inflation. Only common sense thing to do.

      Corporate Subsidies- Eliminate many corporate subsidies, such as the oil subsidies.

      Regulations Regulations are important, and get too much bad rap. Curtail some "red tape" but enact more regulations on financial institutions.

      Energy
      Coal: Coal is dying, no need to resuscitate it.
      Natural Gas: Severely limit and regulate fracking; probably not politically sound to eliminate it.
      Nuclear: Ambivalent about this: More study into feasibility of fusion reactors; fission should be looked at too, if only to cut greenhouse emissions.
      Biofuels: Some good, some bad. Corn is essentially a waste of time and money;by contrast Germany has had success utilizing algae.
      Green Energy: Establish subsidies to get this nascent industry off the ground. We used to have a near monopoly on this energy, but are in danger of being overtaken by the Chinese. Solyndra was an exception, not the rule.
      Oil: As said before, eliminate oil subsidies, no drilling in natural reserves, parks, monuments, etc.
      Cap and Trade: support

      Health care- ACA should have gone farther, included public option.

      Labor-Generally support unions, NLRB should be given more teeth. Unions are a critical counterweight to large corporations, and should be protected.

      National Security-Right to privacy is important. The NSA should not have authority to collect the data it does, and in any case, it is inefficient. I am against the Patriot Act.

      Foreign intervention-I am neutral on Syria, especially since the rebels if given power would probably be too weak to keep an Islamic state from rising. I support increasing humanitarian aid to developing countries; considering that less than 1% of our budget is spent in this area. Israel is our ally; we should make it clear that we insist upon a Palestinian state, and they should not feel entitled to a blank check.

      Free trade- Generally do not support; by all means we should trade freely with countries that treat workers fairly and are democratic. However NAFTA was a mistake, as countless jobs have moved to maquiladoras along the Mexican border, resulting in worse conditions on both sides of the border.

      So, what am I?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: PolitiJunkie on August 07, 2013, 11:02:05 PM
      I'll do social and electoral tonight, and add economic and foreign tomorrow.

      Social

      • Abortion/Women's Health: I am 100% pro-choice and I support federal funding for planned parenthood and other women's health clinics. I also fully support a woman's right to any and all contraception, and I believe that all hospitals should be required to provide such contraception regardless of religious affiliation.
      • Affirmative Action: Support, to a reasonable extent. I believe affirmative action is more important with regards to college admissions than employment, but both are still necessary. Preferably, race should be a deciding factor between candidates of equal caliber, not a booster for unqualified candidates.
      • Assisted Suicide: Support one's right to choose this option, but it should obviously be monitored closely.
      • Church and State: Should be fully separated. Oppose the presence of "under God" in the Pledge; the U.S. operates under the Constitution, not God. Faith-based charities should not have the same government resources as secular ones.
      • Dealth Penalty: I have no problem whatsoever with the moral concept of the death penalty, however I have three major problems with the way it is currently executed (no pun intended): 1. The death penalty is cost-deficient; one execution costs more money than keeping one person in prison for life. 2. The death penalty is applied in a racist fashion. 3. The death penalty is sometimes applied when there is still reasonable doubt about one's guilt of a crime. If we can eradicate these issues, and create a cost-effective, color-blind death penalty that is only used in instances of 100% certainty of guilt, go for it.
      • Drinking Age: All practical arguments point in favor of lowering the drinking age to 18.
      • Drugs: End the war on drugs completely. Legalize, tax, and regulate marijuana, allowing it to occupy a similar position as alcohol and cigarettes. Decriminalize all other drugs but do not legalize or sell them in a way that would make them readily available.
      • Gun Conrol: Gun control is one of the toughest issues, and it is one where extreme (or even very strong) views on both sides are completely insane. We cannot ignore the Second Amendment, but we also cannot ignore the presence of the words "well-regulated." Nobody needs a magazine that can shoot several rounds, or an AK-47. Support assault weapons ban. Oppose handguns ban. Support strengthened background checks. Oppose the NRA's stranglehold on Congressional Republicans. A moderate approach is the only way to deal with gun control.
      • Hate Crime Laws: Fully support them.
      • Immigration: Continue to strengthen border security, streamline legal immigration, provide a pathway to earning citizenship for illegal immigrants who are already here, and crack down on employers hiring undocumented workers. Support DREAM Act. Supported Gang of 8 Immigration Bill before it became nothing. Vehemently oppose any federal, state, or municipal laws that stipulate racial profiling as a means of combating illegal immigration. SB1070 and similar legislation is not only disgusting but inherently unconstitutional and anti-American.
      • PATRIOT Act: 100% oppose. Repeal.
      • Prostitution: Legalize, regulate, and tax prostitution.
      • Same-sex marriage: 100% support; legalize at the federal level and ensure that, in the eyes of the law, there is 0 distinction between a same-sex couple and an opposite-sex couple.
      • Stem-Cell Research: Fully support federal funding of stem-cell research.

      Electoral Reform
      • Campaign Finance Reform: Strongly support. Pass a 28th Amendment that overturns Citizens' United decision
      • Congressional Term Length/Limits: Of course I see the upsides, but oppose. Let the voters make that decision. I would make no changes to the current system of term lengths (keep all House terms two years, and all Senate terms six years with one-third of the Senate up for reelection every two years).
      • Electoral College: I don't think it's as evil as some say, but abolish, replacing it with national popular vote and run-off for the top two candidates if nobody achieves a majority. Vehemently opposed to any electoral college reform (i.e. changes that aren't abolition) because most are measures that would make the winner of the popular vote less likely to be elected POTUS and would benefit Republicans tremendously (i.e. applying the Maine/Nebraska method to all states; this would be horrendous)
      • Filibuster: The filibuster in its present form is a massive hindrance to progress in the Senate and in Washington D.C. overall. Senate filibusters SHOULD absolutely require floor speech for their entire duration, and lower the number of Senators required for cloture to 55.
      • Voter Regulations/ID Cards: 100% oppose any measures to disenfranchise. All voter regulation/ID Card measures recently have been attempts by Republican-controlled state legislatures to disenfranchise minorities and other Democratic-leaning groups. I support automatic voter registration for all persons aged 18 and up (undecided about lowering the voting age to 16, but leaning toward no.)
      • Presidential Term Length/Limits: Presidents should serve one non-renewable six-year term. That way, NO President is ever distracted by running for reelection and thus deterred from serving the people, but still has more than four years to set an agenda. Presidents who serve less than three full years of another's term due to death, resignation, or impeachment, can run for a full term, but those who serve more than three full years cannot.
      • Puerto Rico Statehood: Let the people of Puerto Rico decide. If they pass a resolution for statehood, Congress should have to approve this resolution.
      • Washington DC Statehood: Vehemently oppose. The whole intent is that the capital is NOT one of the states. Ambivalent with respect to retroceding all the non-federal areas of DC into Maryland, but I can see the pluses.

       


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: H. Ross Peron on August 07, 2013, 11:24:34 PM

      I'd say generally New Deal Democrat.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Zioneer on September 06, 2013, 04:49:40 PM
      Can I have a list of the current questions/topics we've got? It's annoying to have to copy and paste the topic titles and have to check whether the post I'm using has all the topics or not.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Darth Plagueis on September 27, 2013, 07:46:09 PM
      Overall Ideology:idk registered Republican, Conservative on Economics, Isolationist on Foreign policy, Mixed on social issues.

      Taxes-Simplify taxes to a 10% Flat Tax Rate.
      Social Security-Privatize.
      Healthcare-Reform Medicare, Adopt a Free Market Healthcare System, Repeal Obamacare.
      Abortion-Illegal in all cases, but the life of the mother.
      Drugs-Legalize Marijuana.
      Death penalty-Opposed.
      Gay Rights-Not sure on Gay Marriage, but for Domestic unions.
      Environment=More drilling, build the keystone pipeline rightaway. Economy and jobs>>>>>>>Environment.
      Trade-Create special economic zones, more free trade=the better.
      Immigrant-Adopt more liberal immigration laws.
      Patriot Act=Oppose all laws that violate freedom of speech, oppose NDDA, Patriot Act and NSA.
      Foreign Policy=Support Israel, oppose Human rights violations in the middle east and across the world, take a strong stand against radical islam, oppose war in Iraq, oppose all involvement in the conflict in Syria. Exit the middle east


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: ChrisDR68 on October 17, 2013, 09:52:34 AM
      My views are moderately centre left.

      A more equitable distribution of wealth is something I believe in. The gap between rich and poor is fairly narrow in Scandinavian countries and Germany and UK should aim for a similar outcome.

      The NHS and welfare state are good things although the present coalition government is attempting to make work pay so people are encouraged to come off benefits and I agree with that.

      Social mobility has stalled in the UK and I have a suspicion the abolition of most of the grammar schools in the 60's and 70's has something to do with it so I would support policies which brought them back so long as funding for the current comprehensives are kept in line with them. 

      I'm in favour of state funding for political parties as the current system tends to encourage corruption. What each party spends at general elections should be dependent on the average level of support they obtained in the previous three general elections.

      The energy companies should either be regulated far more rigorously or brought back into public ownership as privatisation clearly hasn't worked as it should have.

      New laws should be introduced so that if there is another banking crisis the bank bosses can be prosecuted and if found guilty of serious illegality then thrown in jail.

      On social issues I'm against the death penalty and legalising drugs and in favour of allowing abortion (although I'd like the amount of time a woman can carry a baby before it is aborted reduced).         


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Cassius on November 04, 2013, 10:05:27 AM
      I would say that I am strongly to the right.

      On economic issues, I feel that efforts to 'manage' the economy are in most cases deluded, and the best that can be hoped for is amelioration of the harshness of the free market through regulations and restrictions. So, whilst this mixes in with moral matters a little, I am in favour of banning prostitution, shop bought pornography and drugs, as I feel that these really serve no good or necessary purpose, and are in the vast majority of cases harmful to those who get involved with them.

      Also, in terms of regulations, I am in favour of restricting shopping on Sunday's, as it is a day of rest for Christians like myself (and to give everyone else a break from it). I also support robust regulation of financial instiutions and trade unions.

      When it comes to government spending and taxation, I feel that it is the duty of the government to maintain large, efficient and well trained military and police forces. As well, I feel that there should be a government run health insurance scheme for the poorest member's of society, although I do feel that a larger role in the provision of health and welfare needs to be delegated to the church, charities and community groups. This is especially true in the case of welfare, as - am generally opposed to the existance of state pensions, as well as to most welfare payments (I would retaina very modest dole, subject to extensive means testing). I would also abolish payments such as child benefit and educational maintenance allowance.

      I am also opposed to the use of short term keynesian spending, as this is both irresponsible and unriable. I feel that the government should not set itself objectives, such as creating equality or growth, with regards to the broader economy, since these will almost always end in failure, and will result in more attention being paid to one section of policy than others. I would argue that the governemnt should restrict itself to more tangible goals, such as balancing budgets and reducing the level of government debt, as well as providing a stable of efficient, well run services.

      On tax, I feel that a flat tax of between 15 and 25 percent is most agreeable, though of course this would be subject to change. I am also in favour of eliminating VAT altogether, or at least reducing it to a much lower level, such as 5 percent. This would not hold for all goods, as cigarettes and alcohol would probably see much heftier levels of tax levied upon them. I also think that inheritance tax should be eliminated, and I am opposed to all kinds of wealth and property taxes. It should also be possible to donate a small percentage of your income tax directly to the Church.

      On moral matters, I am opposed to same-sex marriage and adoption. The abortion issue is a trickier one one, as I am accepting of abortions if the health and life of the mother is threatened by the birth of the infant. I am also unsure as to the merits of aborting very severely disabled babies (those who would not survive long outside the womb for instance). However, I feel that in most cases, even that of rape, that the potential life of the baby is important. I am also in favour of legalising euthanasia for the extremely terminally ill, provided that it has the consent of the family. When it comes to teenage and single mothers who cannot support their child, I am in favour of the government taking the baby and putting it up for adoption.

      I am a monarchist, and do believe that the monarch has a right to criticise and if necessary, block the actions of an elected government, althoguh I believe the latter should be discouraged. I am also in favour on an unelected House of Lords, comprised of hereditary, life and spiritual peers. I would see the commons elected by fptp. I am also in favour of disestablishing the Church of England.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TheDeadFlagBlues on November 14, 2013, 04:58:25 PM
      I am a democratic socialist who believes in a positivist conception of freedom/liberty, using governmental organs to level the very topographic playing field established by centuries of institutional oppression, maximizing the material prosperity of all while respecting the environment. I am an avid proponent of multiculturalism, globalization and large-scale immigration. I manage to be culturally "liberal" or "crunchy" while lacking a single iota of libertarian sentiments and affirming the existence of God.

      I am weird. I feel like my forum character is actually interesting now that I've shed many of my contrived, generic characteristics. I'm real af rn. I only post here to see what particular posters (Al, Gully Foyle, The Head Beagle, Lief, Torie, oakvale, and Nathan) have to say about current events. You guys consistently amuse me or compel me to rethink my opinions.

      edit: quick shoutout to Hashemite for his election blog, which is gold.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Marokai Backbeat on November 14, 2013, 05:11:48 PM
      I consider myself a democratic socialist who both hates and agrees with everyone to one extent or another, pretty much.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TheDeadFlagBlues on November 14, 2013, 05:37:06 PM
      I consider myself a democratic socialist who both hates and agrees with everyone to one extent or another, pretty much.

      The weird middle ground of radical ideals and pragmatic tendencies. I feel you bruh.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: PJ on November 15, 2013, 01:19:31 PM
      I consider myself a democratic socialist who both hates and agrees with everyone to one extent or another, pretty much.

      The weird middle ground of radical ideals and pragmatic tendencies. I feel you bruh.
      This is probably the best description for my political ideology as well.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Horus on November 27, 2013, 01:41:03 PM
      1. The right to individual autonomy is important, even if it threatens collective security. (A) (CI)

      2. The government should penalize organizations that practice outsourcing. (N)

      3. Giving faith-based charities the same government resources as secular organizations is a good idea. (UD)

      4. We should increase foreign aid to countries struggling with poverty. (UA)

      5. We should increase funding for education. (A) (CI)

      6. Heterosexual couples should receive higher marital recognition than same-sex couples. (D) (CI)

      7. Overall, free trade hurts more than it helps. (D)

      8. We should reduce the number of government programs substantially. (UD)

      9. Abortion should be illegal or very heavily restricted. (D)

      10. The government should fund museums, theaters, and other cultural institutions that are unable to survive independently. (UA)

      11. The government should subsidize health insurance for those who cannot easily afford it. (A)

      12. The government should work to reduce children's exposure to offensive radio and television content. (D) (CI)

      13. It is unfair that wealthier people pay higher tax rates. (D)

      14. The minimum wage should be raised. (UA)

      15. Marijuana should be legalized. (A) (CI)

      16. Society focuses too much on forcing equality at the expense of real merit. (UA) (CI)

      17. Violating individual rights is acceptable when it comes to fighting terrorism. (D) (CI)

      18. Current levels of government regulation on industry are excessive. (UD)

      19. The government should provide basic needs for all people. (UA)

      20. The death penalty should be an option for serious crimes. (D) (CI)

      21. We should reduce the difficulty of immigration. (UA)

      22. Union workers should be protected against being fired during strikes. (D) (CI)

      23. Prostitution should be legalized. (A)

      24. Flag burning should be banned. (D)

      25. I support affirmative action. (UD)

      26. The government should impose tariffs to protect industries from foreign competition. (D)

      27. Physician-assisted suicide should be legal if the patient is capable of informed, rational consent. (A)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: ElectionsGuy on November 28, 2013, 02:27:48 AM
      I think I'll finally to a comprehensive post on this. It might take me a few days, but tonight I'll start with Social Issues. Nothing more than my basic beliefs and my own platform, nothing too into detail. I'll try to cover as most issues as I can.

      Social Issues:

      Gay marriage (Far left):

       - Legalize nationally (civil rights issue). I would even go as far as to say people should marry multiple people if they want to.
       - Get the government out of marriage, the definition should be very broad, a bond between people.

      Abortion (Mostly Left):

       - Basically, I think women should always have the option of abortion and that option should always be available.
       - BUT, I do think there should be a requirement or a definite reason for that abortion.
       - I don't support abortion on demand, and I don't think being lazy or not knowing how to take care of a child cuts the deal.
       - I formerly supported second trimester bans or such. Now, I don't support any bans on abortion whatsoever.

      Death Penalty (Left):

       - Don't support under any circumstances. The state does not have the right to kill their own people.
       - Punishment and rehabilitation are needed, but killing someone for their crime is stooping down to the levels of that criminal themselves.

      Prostitution (Left):

       - Legalize. Again, like gay marriage, people should be able to do the things they want to do. That's pretty much all I have to say.

      Death via Injection (Left):

       - Allow. People should make their own decisions for themselves.
       - However, I think a person must qualify to a certain illness.

      Religion (Center-left):

       - I support the right to express religion or almost all circumstances.
       - I don't think religion should be removed from institutions because they are "offensive" to particular peoples.
       - Education should have nothing to do with religion however, as this has a major affect on the education itself. This is one of the only cases where religious opinions should be kept out of society.
       - Personally, I'm secular and non-religious. Not an atheist though, I'm just neutral. Believe in evolution.

      Drugs (Far-left):


       - Legalize all drugs. The government shouldn't regulate what you put in your body, and you should make those decisions for yourself.
       - This position goes for all food or drink contents of any kind.

      Immigration (Center-left):

       - Immigration process should be simpler and quicker. People shouldn't have to struggle to earn citizenship.
       - To those here illegally, they must go through the process of naturalization just like the legal immigrants did. Oppose immediate amnesty.
       - We should have basic border security, immigrants should have to follow the laws just like we do.
       - Oppose mass deportations and very rough treatment for illegals. They should have some form of punishment for breaking the laws though.

      Stem-cell Research (Left):

       - Completely approve. However its not like we should dramatically increase the funding. Keep it going obviously, but its not the most important thing focus on right now.

      Space Exploration (Left):

       - Exactly the same as my position on stem-cell research.

      Overall:

      I favor a hands off approach to every day life and social issues. My attitudes are different from the left in that we do not need to correct society, but leave society alone. I favor maximum amount of freedom to social practices and allow people to control their lives the way they would like to.

      Economic Issues:

      Minimum Wage (Right):

       - I'm not for abolishing it, as that could lead to businesses treating people unfairly.
       - Don't raise it, but adjust to inflation every year.

      Welfare (Right):

       - In order to obtain government welfare, people must be in job training programs looking for work.
       - Cut the unnecessary welfare programs we don't need and only have a few programs. Simplify government welfare.
       - Encourage people to work and have programs teach people how to work.

      Taxes (Far Right):

       - Abolish IRS, implement a fair tax or a flat tax.
       - Cut taxes along with government spending.
       - Simplify the tax code and abolish a few ridiculous taxes.

      Social Security (Far Right):

       - Privatize social security so people can control their retirement.
       - Reform it in a way so were not spending the massive amounts of money on it we are now.

      Government Subsidies (Far Right):

       - Oppose, of any kind. Government should stay out of the free market in general.

      Government and Business (Right):

       - Oppose any government regulation of business.
       - Only the most corrupt big businesses should be dealt with by a little bit of government, and even then, it should be local government.

      Federal Stimulus (Far Right):

       - Oppose, the government doesn't fix the economy, the market and people do.

      The Federal Reserve (Right):

       - Perhaps the worst thing that's ever been created in US history, abolish it.
       - The cause of all our depressions and the reason we've racked up so much debt.
       - Diminished buying power of the dollar, go back to the gold standard.

      Health Care (Right):

       - Privatize healthcare, let people choose the healthcare they want.
       - Oppose "ObamaCare" or any type of national socialized healthcare system.

      Education (Right):

       - Support Voucher system for people to choose their sons/daughters schools.
       - Disconnect education from the federal level, make it a local issue.

      Energy:

       - Privatize the energy sector, and become energy independent.
       - Support the Pipeline, use whatever effective forms of energy we have.
       - We can use green energy, but we shouldn't replace natural gas, coal, etc.

      Overall:

      I'm in favor of a smaller government, less regulations, lowering and simplifying taxes, and privatizing our current nationalized healthcare and social security. I'm very pro-capitalist, support people determining their economic future by merit, and support a hands off approach when it comes to the economy and the free market.

      Domestic Policy:

      Individual/Constitutional Rights (Far Left):

       - Oppose Patriot Act, strongly. Freedom > Security/Safety always. And with that I oppose any kind of government violations of civil liberties.
       - Oppose government regulation of media, television, internet, video games, etc. for any reason. Government only invades on privacy and disrupts free entertainment when it does this.

      Gun Control (Right):

       - The right to own a gun is constitutionally protected, no exceptions.
       - However we should educate people about gun safety, have background checks, and require basic permits and licenses to own guns.
       - I don't support any kind of restrictions or bans on guns.

      Stop and Frisk (Left):

       - Oppose in all instances. Everybody is treated with due process.
       - You are innocent until proven guility, not the other way around.

      Political Campaign Spending (Right/Left?):

       - Oppose restrictions. Money is an expression and that expression shouldn't be limited
       - PACs and individuals should be able to spend how they want when they want.

      Drawing the Lines (Left):

       - An independent group should draw the lines for CD's and state legislative districts, and they should make sure they are fair to both sides.

      Overall:

      I support all individual rights and don't accept when those rights get infringed. I'm for less government regulation and intervention into our privacy and our daily activities.

      Foreign Policy:

      Military Spending (Left):

       - Cut Military spending.
       - It will decrease our deficit, balance our budget faster, and remove unnecessary troops from unnecessary places.
       - I think we should remain a world superpower (economically) and have a powerful military, but we shouldn't be intervening in the world.

      The Bush Wars (Left):


       - Withdraw all troops, we wasted time and money with these wars.

      United Nations (Left?):


       - Scale back our current involvement.
       - Only use it in really bad situations.

      Allies and Enemies (Left):


       - In an ideal society, we shouldn't have allies or enemies, but since we don't live in a perfect world, we do have allies and enemies.
       - We shouldn't treat countries any differently based on whether they like us or not. This is also why I'm against humanitarian aid.
       - Example: we should not support one side of a war, as that will signal to the unlikeable country that we don't like them, which makes our reputation worse.

      Trade (Right):

       - Free trade with all countries to get the resources we need. Maintain good diplomacy as explained above so we're not pissing off other countries.
       - I support free trade with minimal protectionism.

      Aid (Left?):

       - As explained above in "allies and enemies".

      Drones and Surveillance (Left):

       - Only support drones to gather information, not to spy or kill any suspected terrorists.
       - Scale back massively our drone program and our current surveillance.

      Overall:

      I support a non-interventionist role in foreign policy. We should respect other nations independence as others respect our independence. We should cut our spending, but remain powerful in the world. We only use war as a solution when we are directly attacked.

      Electoral Issues:

      Statehood:

       - Let Puerto Rico, DC, or any other territory that want to become states become states.

      Presidential Elections:

       - Abolish the electoral college, implement pure popular vote just like all other elections.
       - Electoral College makes presidential elections fun, but makes it more complex and unfair. It doesn't represent the actual votes.
       - We can still look at the election by county and state, but ultimately an election shouldn't be decided by a few swing states, they should be decided by pure votes and the people.

      Congressional Term Limits:


       - I support term limits to limit the corruption of politicians.
       - Just like a president, there should be a time where they've served the people and their time is up.
       - Being a politician shouldn't be a lifetime career. It should be an opportunity.

      Drawing the Lines:


       - Let and independent, non-partisan group draw the lines, and they should also make sure they're fair to both sides.
       - They way we do it now with the party that happens to be in power (in X state) before redistricting controlling the drawing of the lines is awful and unfair.

      Overall:

      Pretty libertarian, but I got some weird beliefs as well that don't fit the platform.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TNF on November 29, 2013, 12:27:15 PM
      So, ElectionsGuy, since you oppose affirmative action on the basis of race or sex or whatever, do you also oppose legacy preferences at universities? Or are you fine and dandy with colleges and universities giving preferential treatment to the children of alumni?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: courts on November 29, 2013, 04:15:14 PM
      - Legalize nationally (civil rights issue). I would even go as far as to say people should marry multiple people if they want to.
       - Get the government out of marriage, the definition should be very broad, a bond between people.
      why have a definition at all if you're 'getting the government out of marriage'?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: H. Ross Peron on November 29, 2013, 04:17:15 PM
      So, ElectionsGuy, since you oppose affirmative action on the basis of race or sex or whatever, do you also oppose legacy preferences at universities? Or are you fine and dandy with colleges and universities giving preferential treatment to the children of alumni?

      Well can't answer for him, but my position is that any university under public control or receives any sort of public funding should not have either affirmative action (except perhaps income-based AA) or legacy preferences.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: ElectionsGuy on November 29, 2013, 04:29:31 PM
      So, ElectionsGuy, since you oppose affirmative action on the basis of race or sex or whatever, do you also oppose legacy preferences at universities? Or are you fine and dandy with colleges and universities giving preferential treatment to the children of alumni?

      Yes, all people should be treated equally.

      - Legalize nationally (civil rights issue). I would even go as far as to say people should marry multiple people if they want to.
       - Get the government out of marriage, the definition should be very broad, a bond between people.
      why have a definition at all if you're 'getting the government out of marriage'?

      Good point, there probably shouldn't be any official definition. But if there had to be one, it would be what I said.

      Why are you all questioning me anyway? This is a thread to write down beliefs, not debate them.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: courts on November 29, 2013, 08:52:03 PM
      people have asked questions before on this thread


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TNF on December 06, 2013, 04:01:08 PM
      Participatory Democracy. In general, democracy is a great thing and should be expanded, but in a way that empowers the working class rather than the owner class. To that end, I support expanding elements of direct democracy where they already exist (participatory budgeting (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Participatory_budgeting), for example) and establishing them where they do not. This country would be a lot better off were it run by people without shiny degrees from Ivy League schools.

      Democratic Socialism. The economy should be democratically planned and managed for the benefit of the nation. I support the unionization of everything, high minimum wages, a crash reindustrialization program, reduction in working hours, and nationalization of most large-scale industry. Make the essentials of life free of charge and challenge market logic at every turn.

      Progressive Nationalism. I'll just quote the Young Democratic Socialists of America on this one:

      Quote from: YDS
      "...we can cleanse the flag by overthrowing the class that has soiled it, and fly it high as we take our place in the community of nations along with our socialist brothers and sisters around the globe."

      Anti-Elitism. I don't know how much of an explanation this one needs, but I am equally opposed to the elitism of Country Club Conservatives and the Arugula-eating, gun-hating, upper middle class liberal moralists of the coasts.

      International Solidarity. Support the Palestinians in their struggle for nationhood, end the global US military and financial empire, and stay the hell out of the internal affairs of other nations. War is a racket and should be avoided; the only instances in which war is permissible is in self defense and if approved by the United Nations Security Council. "Humanitarian intervention" is often a code word for capitalist imperialism, and has been since the 19th Century.


      I guess that's that.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Atlas Has Shrugged on December 06, 2013, 04:31:42 PM
      Social Policy
      Abortion: Oppose abortion in most instances. Only allow it in case of rape, incest, or health of the mother. Implement a program that assists young mothers who can afford to raise their child in order to prevent a potential abortion. I’d imagine this would consist of subsidies similar to any other welfare program.
      Drugs: Federally decriminalize marijuana and cocaine. Leave enforcement to the states.
      Censorship: The Federal government should not censor television or radio, but I would hope the broadcasting companies draw a line at some point.
      Gay marriage: Abolish marriage licenses, and implement civil unions. Churches have the right to marry whoever they want.
      Death penalty: A states right.
      Prostitution: States can legalize it if they so choose.
      Church & State: I think they should be kept separate. Churches should be tax exempt.
      Affirmative action: Oppose. 
      Hate crime laws: A “hate crime” is still a crime. If I kill a person in cold blood, it is an act of hate, no matter what their race/gender/sexual orientation is. No additional penalties/distinction should be made.
      Immigration: Secure the border first and foremost. Allow all illegal aliens who have lived here for twenty years, have no criminal record, and speak passable English the status of “permanent resident.” Deport all illegal immigrants who are arrested and convicted of a crime.
      Stem cell research: I think private research can solve this. I support stem cell research, and think it should be pursued.
      PATRIOT Act: Repeal it!
      Gun Control: Oppose almost all forms of gun control.
      Assisted suicide: States have a right to legalize it. I support its legalization.
      Gambling: Again, a state’s decision.

      Electoral Reform:
      Term limits: No term limits for Congress or judges. The President should be limited to two terns.   
      Statehood: Oppose Puerto Rican and DC statehood. Allow DC representation in Congress.
      Voting age: Keep it at 18.
      Campaign Finance Reform: Require complete transparency, but allow unlimited donations from individuals.
      Voting system: Status quo.
      Gerrymandering: A non partisan commission should draw districts, but I don’t care enough to push it.
      Voter ID: You need some form of ID to get alcohol, cigarettes, to board a plane, and so on. Why shouldn’t it be required when you vote?

      Economic Issues:
      Welfare: Support Medicare, Medicaid, as well as subsidies for single mothers, and other disadvantaged people. Education/vocational training should be required for unemployment checks, however. I also think welfare should be run by the states.
      Unions:  I support right to work legislation, 
      Privatization: Minor reforms to Social Security, but no privatizations of major welfare programs. Privatize certain departments of the federal government.
      Environment: Basic regulations, but I’m not overly concerned, outside of the coal slurries.
      Minimum wage: Keep minimum wage as it is.
      Taxation: Implement a consumption tax.
      Healthcare: Repeal Obamacare, and implement single payer healthcare funded by a national sales tax. Public healthcare will not be made available to illegal immigrants.
      Trade: Repeal NAFTA, implement tariffs. Encourage reindustrialization.
      Embargo: End the embargo on Cuba.
      Pork: Oppose. It’s not healthy for our nation, and the money could be better spent.
      Subsidies: End farm subsidies for agro corporations.
       Military: Massive cuts, withdraw armed forces back to our hemisphere. Reduce spending by 40%.

      Foreign Policy
      War: Only by a Congressional declaration. Oppose almost all foreign interventions.
      Israel-Palestine: Neutral, but push for a two state solution. End US military and economic aid to Israel.
      Draft: Absolutely oppose.
      UN: Remain in the UN, but I would prefer to see the UN gutted and reformed so it is more of a yearly diplomatic gathering and less of an influence on international affairs. The annoying third way, teary eyed internationalists who comprise most of the UN leadership want our nation to police the world.
      Nukes: Maintain and occasionally upgrade the American nuclear arsenal, but do not expand it.
      Foreign Aid:  Oppose all military aid. I support disaster relief, such as supporting Haiti, however,
      Overall: Odd fusion of Pat Buchanan and Ron Paul. I support an ideally private healthcare system, but we are too far gone with Obamacare, so the only other option is full blown single payer. Otherwise I’m your standard Paleoconservative.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Flake on December 08, 2013, 02:06:21 AM
      Social Policy
      Abortion: Completely legal until the end of 2nd trimester, illegal unless the life of the mother depends on it.
      Drugs: Federally decriminalize marijuana. Leave enforcement to the states.
      Censorship: The Federal government should not censor communications
      Gay marriage: Let two consenting adults wed if they choose so.
      Death penalty: Let states decide on the issue.
      Prostitution: States can legalize it if they so choose.
      Church & State: Completely seperated. Churches should be tax exempt.
      Affirmative action: Support
      Hate crime laws: A “hate crime” is still a crime. If I kill a person in cold blood, it is an act of hate, no matter what their race/gender/sexual orientation is. No additional penalties/distinction should be made.
      Immigration: Open the border, make immigration easier for people coming into the United States from other countries.
      Stem cell research: I think private research and public research can solve it and work together to advance the effects of it.
      PATRIOT Act: Repeal it.
      Gun Control: Require mandatory tests to make sure people are able to use a gun safely, background checks required for all people purchasing guns offline and online, ban plastic guns (http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2013/12/03/house-plastic-gun-bill-vote/3855281/), and ban automatic weapons.
      Assisted suicide: Oppose.
      Gambling: States decision.

      Electoral Reform:
      Term limits: No term limits for Congress or judges. The President should be limited to two terms.
      Statehood: Support Puerto Rican, DC, and Guam statehood.
      Voting age: Keep at 18.
      Campaign Finance Reform: Require complete transparency, limit contributions to $9,000
      Voting system: Ranked choice voting for up to four candidates.
      Gerrymandering: A non partisan commission should draw districts.
      Voter ID: No voter ID required because it is a virtually non existent problem that just causes complications at the voting booth for many people.

      Economic Issues:
      Welfare: Support Medicare, Medicaid, as well as subsidies for single mothers, and other disadvantaged people. Programs run nationally.
      Unions: Oppose right to work legislation.
      Privatization: Minor reforms to Social Security, but no privatizations of welfare programs.
      Environment: Status quo and ban fracking.
      Minimum wage: Raise minimum wage to $12.
      Taxation: Status quo, but end subsidies to large oil companies, large banks, etc.
      Healthcare: Keep the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.
      Trade: Status quo.
      Embargo: End the embargo on Cuba.
      Pork: This shouldn't really be an issue?
      Subsidies: Extend farm subsidies to all farms with the exception of the top 10% of earning farms.
       Military: Massive cuts, withdraw armed forces back to our hemisphere. Reduce spending by 30%.

      Foreign Policy
      War: Only by a Congressional declaration. Oppose almost all foreign interventions.
      Israel-Palestine: Neutral, but push for a two state solution. End US military and economic aid to Israel.
      Draft: Absolutely oppose.
      UN: Remain in the UN.
      Nukes: Maintain and occasionally upgrade the American nuclear arsenal, but do not expand it.
      Foreign Aid:  Oppose all military aid. Support disaster relief.
      Overall: I support a national healthcare system, but I am more in favor of the current law in place where health insurance companies don't screw you over and so the private sector can handle this.

      (Thanks Sanchez)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: They put it to a vote and they just kept lying on December 08, 2013, 08:04:58 PM
      Social Policy
      Abortion: 100% legal and federally funded until third trimester, then only if the mother's health is in danger.
      Drugs: 100% legal
      Censorship: f--k it
      Gay marriage: 100% legal at the federal level
      Death penalty: strongly oppose
      Prostitution: 100% legal
      Church & State: separate
      Affirmative action: needed in most cases
      Hate crime laws: needed in some cases
      Immigration: ideally, have no restrictions on immigration. let anyone in. realistically, give amnesty to everyone here and drastically simplify the process to become a legal resident.
      Stem cell research: 100% support
      PATRIOT Act: repeal that garbage
      Gun Control: support assault weapon bans and some restrictions on magazine bans as well as background checks, but that's about it.
      Assisted suicide: if the patient wants it, let them have it.
      Gambling: legal and heavily taxed

      Electoral Reform:
      Term limits: stupid
      Statehood: give PR+DC statehood first and foremost
      Voting age: 18.
      Campaign Finance Reform: ban pacs and implement an individual donation cap
      Voting system: f--k the electoral college
      Gerrymandering: lol
      Voter ID: f--k voter id laws

      Economic Issues:
      Welfare: keep it in the hands of the government, and have it be available on demand for those who need it.
      Unions: approve
      Privatization: ew
      Environment: protect at all costs
      Minimum wage: should be much, much higher. even $15 isn't really enough (thanks g_w)
      Taxation: my thoughts on this are well known. brutally tax the top income brackets.
      Healthcare: support a UK-type system
      Trade: have a mix of free and fair trade, lean fair trade
      Embargo: only in dire circumstances
      Pork: get rid of corporate subsidies (thanks g_w)
      Subsidies: see above
      Military: drastically cut down

      Foreign Policy
      War: not needed unless we are attacked or are in imminent danger of being attacked
      Israel-Palestine: support palestinian statehood
      Draft: no.
      UN: they a'ight
      Nukes: : f--k em
      Foreign Aid:   a nice idea, but doesn't always work out.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TNF on December 08, 2013, 11:24:28 PM
      Social Policy
      Abortion: Allow on demand at any stage of pregnancy, with no questions asked, no frivolous restrictions placed upon it by state legislatures and completely free of charge.
      Drugs: Legalize 'em.
      Censorship: No thank you.
      Gay Marriage: End marriage as a civil institution.
      Death penalty: No thank you.
      Prostitution: Legalize it.
      Church and State: Ban religious schools, restrict religion in the public sphere, and tax churches very heavily.
      Stem cell research: Support (not living in 2003)
      PATRIOT Act: Repeal it.
      Gun control: Completely opposed, legalize all guns and require gun training courses in schools. Ideally replace the standing army with citizens' militia, same goes for the police force (assuming we're also abolishing most of the criminal code in favor of a more restitution-oriented kind of criminal code, of course) and nationalize the gun industry. Very strongly supportive of "gun culture" and individual self defense.
      Assisted suicide: Legalize it.
      Gambling: Nationalize the gambling industry and make it a socially productive activity.

      Electoral Reform
      Term Limits: Dumb, repeal all that exist.
      Statehood: For whom? Let the territories decide their own fate, err on the side of independence. Ideally redraw all state boundaries along cultural/geographic/economic lines.
      Voting Age: 16, would like to introduce more participatory forms of governance, like mint mentioned above (demarchy is a sweet idea)
      Campaign Finance Reform: Ban all corporate donations, end corporate personhood, limit campaigning to two weeks only, completely cover all campaign expenses out of the public treasury so as not to have so many corrupt douchebags in office
      Gerrymandering: Adopt proportional representation
      Voter ID: End voter registration, let anyone who can make it to the polls vote

      Economic Issues
      Welfare: Universal basic income + National Healthcare + Universal housing program + Universal Food Stamps + $21 an hour minimum wage + Right to a Job + National Education
      Unions: Should essentially run the economy, very very very supportive, abolish all restrictions on them (Taft-Hartley, Landrum-Griffin, Hatch Act, ect), encourage their growth, ban scabs, require union shops and hiring halls, etc
      Privatization: Make a U-Turn and start nationalizing large industries
      Environment: something something free mass transit something something universal auto insurance something something national parks
      Minimum Wage: $21/hour
      Taxation: Confiscatory rates on the 1%
      Healthcare: NHS style, with the state owning the hospitals; the state should also own all drug companies and produce useful drugs for public consumption
      Trade: End "free trade," in favor of an industrial policy focused on employing Americans and creating products that are long lasting and cheap
      Embargo: End it
      Pork: Ban
      Subsidies: Nationalize any institution receiving federal dollars
      Military: End standing army in favor of citizen militias, end all overseas activity, bring troops home etc

      Foreign Policy
      War: Only if the US is attacked/UN Security Council approves it
      Israel-Palestine: Recognize Palestine, ignore Israel
      Draft: No, but favorable to the idea of universal national service in non-military settings, provided said service pays union wages to those employed by it (and because that's not likely, the answer is emphatically 'no')
      UN: Support, make more democratic and weaken the influence of the Security Council
      Nukes: Seek international treaty banning or placing them under UN control
      Foreign Aid: Cancel all debt owed to the US and leave them alone


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: PJ on December 09, 2013, 12:33:03 AM
      Social Policy:
      Abortion: Oppose abortion regulation and support federal funding. I am conflicted on 3rd Trimester abortion, but ultimately, it's not my decision. In addition, we should be investing in reproductive education, focusing on safe sex, but not abandoning abstention entirely.
      Drugs: Support legalization of soft drugs. Tax them and hold them up to the same standards as anything else being sold to the public. (These standards should be increased btw.) Decriminalize hard drugs, with fines and mandatory rehab after multiple offenses. The cost for rehab should be fully covered by the federal government. Lower the age for alcohol of all types to 18.
      Censorship: None at all. No flag burning amendments, no restrictions on freedom of speech, no regulations whatsoever. Period.
      Gay Marriage: Legal federally. What's really more important is protecting LGBT people from losing their jobs, eviction, etc. based on their sexual orientation or gender identity.
      Death Penalty: A federal constitutional amendment prohibiting it under all circumstances. I all oppose life imprisonment without parole, but defined by statute.
      Prostitution: Only arrest those who hire prostitutes, not the prostitutes themselves.
      Church & State: Separate. I'm best decried as a secular catholic.
      Affirmative Action: Neutral. I wish it wasn't needed, as I would prefer a discrimination-free society. However, our history as a superficially based society suggests otherwise.
      Hate Crime Laws: I would support in principle, but there is now way to measure whether or not a crime is a "hate crime." So I don't support them in actuality.
      Immigration: Make it easier to become a legal citizen, and make it easier for illegal residents to become legal. Against a border fence.
      Stem Cell Research: Support its expansion, including federal funding.
      PATRIOT Act: Repeal in its entirety, and oppose most kinds of surveillance.
      Gun Control: Ban assault weapons, create a universal background check system, ban concealed carry, and restrict the kind of guns police can carry. Tying into this and PATRIOT Act, I don't any further surveillance systems than the universal background check system.
      Assisted Suicide: Legalize nationally. It's the patient's choice.
      Gambling: Legalize nationally. I don't want taxes to be high on it. The better answer is education.

      Electoral Reform:
      Term Limits: Only for appointed positions and the president. If the people don't like them, they'll be voted out.
      Statehood: Any territory that wants it should be granted statehood. Yes to Puerto Rico and DC. I don't agree with the attempts by sections of states to create new ones.
      Voting Age: 18
      Campaign Finance Reform: Require complete transparency, limit contributions to $9,000.
      Voting System: Popular vote and PR-STV.
      Gerrymandering: Not real passionate about it. Bipartisan committee I guess.
      Voter ID: Will lead to racial profiling.

      Economics:
      Welfare: Expand the current programs, no decreases in funding.
      Unions: Strongly approve of the right to unionize. Oppose all right-to-work laws.
      Privatization: Oppose privatization of social security, schools, etc.
      Environment: Ban fracking, ban mountain-top mining, set water purity standards, protect all endangered species, invest in green energy, etc, etc, etc.
      Minimum Wage: If the minimum wage had always raised with inflation, it would be at $21.
      Taxation: Abolish the sales tax, with the exception of controlled substances and gambling. Raise Income tax on the rich drastically, which should be the primary tax.
      Healthcare: ACA didn't go far enough. A single-payer is the best choice.
      Trade: Protectionism prevents globalization. I support regulating outsourcing, but to give one corporation an advantage over another based on nationality is bad.
      Pork: End corporate subsidies for the most part.
      Subsidies: I support farm subsidies for low-income farmers. Also, temporary subsidies to green energy, to speed up the transition. Otherwise, end corporate subsidies.
      Military: Increase veteran's benefits, decrease heavy artillery funding in the military. Spending is really out of control there.
      Corporate Regulation: Constitutional amendment denying corporations the same rights as people.*
      Education: Increase funding overall. Oppose creationism in schools and voucher programs.*

      Foreign Policy:
      War: The only wars that ever needed to be fought were the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, WWI, and WWII.
      Israel-Palestine: Oppose military intervention. I'd like to see both be sovereign states.
      Draft: Oppose in all circumstances. It's essentially slavery and has no place in modern day society.
      UN: Is necessary for a successful foreign policy and the best way to get us on track to eliminating war.
      Nukes: Drastically reduce nuclear arsenal.
      Foreign Aid: Good in most cases, though I don't want it to create imperialistic relationships.

      Summary: Your typical Social Democrat. I admire Bernie Sanders, among others. Strongly support worker's rights, strongly regulating corporations, and generally expanding welfare. Feel very strongly about gay rights, strongly support gun control, and social libertarian for the most part. I am strongly opposed to the draft and military expansion, support strong environmental regulations, and would prefer if we move away from the electoral college and towards actual democracy.

      *added two: corporation regulation and education


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TNF on December 09, 2013, 12:38:36 AM
      How was World War I a remotely justified conflict?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: PJ on December 09, 2013, 12:57:11 AM
      How was World War I a remotely justified conflict?
      I didn't mean starting it was justified. I meant that I oppose intervention unless the it's a world war, at which point it becomes almost unavoidable.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TNF on December 09, 2013, 11:54:58 PM
      How was World War I a remotely justified conflict?
      I didn't mean starting it was justified. I meant that I oppose intervention unless the it's a world war, at which point it becomes almost unavoidable.

      We managed to avoid it for three years in the early part of the last century, for good reason.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: H. Ross Peron on December 10, 2013, 01:09:41 AM
      Would a citizen's militia even be practicable? The way military technology is moving, the future is increasingly a small cadre of highly trained professionals not a massive civic army. Not to mention that despite what the NRA says, the militia in the American Revolution had pretty mediocre performance compared to the Continentals.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Yogi on December 10, 2013, 01:13:02 AM
      Too lazy atm to get into details but here's a good, quick description:

      Economic Issues: Fiscally Conservative, borderline Fiscally Libertarian
      Foreign Policy: Hawkish
      Social Issues: Center-Right (Pro-Life, but also Pro-gay)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TNF on December 10, 2013, 07:43:34 AM
      Would a citizen's militia even be practicable? The way military technology is moving, the future is increasingly a small cadre of highly trained professionals not a massive civic army. Not to mention that despite what the NRA says, the militia in the American Revolution had pretty mediocre performance compared to the Continentals.

      The point is to avoid war; in the event of an actual war where the U.S. is attacked, there would certainly be a temporary standing army established. But in peacetime, there's really no need for a standing, national army. Jefferson was absolutely correct about how dangerous standing armies are.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: windjammer on December 10, 2013, 09:50:41 AM
      Social Policy:
      Abortion: I support abortion during 1st semester, oppose after except some exceptions. Abortion should be funded.
      Drugs: Oppose
      Censorship: Support flag burning amendment, stand with Alito on Snyder Phelps.
      Gay Marriage: Legal federally. What's really more important is protecting LGBT people from losing their jobs, eviction, etc. based on their sexual orientation or gender identity.
      Death Penalty: Oppose, oppose life imprisonment without possibility of parole.
      Prostitution: Mixed. Support prostitutes rights, but mixed on brothel.
      Church & State: Church and State shouldn't be separated, like Germany.
      Affirmative Action: Strongly support.
      Hate Crime Laws: Support
      Immigration: Strongly support, support Dream Act,...
      Stem Cell Research: Support its expansion, including federal funding.
      PATRIOT Act: Support
      Gun Control: Staunchly support (I'm french). The NRA should be banned.
      Assisted Suicide: Lean oppose
      Gambling:Support legalization, but must be respected.

      Electoral Reform:
      Term Limits: Oppose
      Statehood: Any territory that wants it should be granted statehood. Yes to Puerto Rico and DC. I don't agree with the attempts by sections of states to create new ones.
      Voting Age: 18
      Campaign Finance Reform: Support (french)
      Voting System: keep this system.
      Gerrymandering: Support independant commission.
      Voter ID: Oppose in the USA, support in France.
      Economics:
      Welfare: Expand the current programs, no decreases in funding.
      Unions: Strongly approve of the right to unionize. Oppose all right-to-work laws. Support Taft-Hardley Act repeal, support union shop.
      Privatization: Oppose privatization of social security, schools, etc.
      Environment: Ban tracking, band mountain-top mining, set water purity standards, protect all endangered species, invest in green energy, etc, etc, etc.
      Minimum Wage: The Minimum Wage should be raised.
      Taxation: Mixed.
      Healthcare: ACA didn't go far enough. A single-payer is the best choice.
      Subsidies: I support farm subsidies for low-income farmers.
      Military: Increase veteran's benefits, military spending shouldn't be cut.
      Education: Increase funding overall. Oppose creationism in schools and voucher programs.*

      Foreign Policy:
      War: Except Iraq War, I'm a ing hawk.
      Israel-Palestine:: Support diplomacy between Israel and Palestine.
      Draft: Support, it can be necessary.
      Nukes: Support new start treaty.
      Foreign Aid: Good in most cases



      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The world will shine with light in our nightmare on December 10, 2013, 03:58:02 PM
      Social Policy:
      Abortion: Generally support elective abortion.  I don't like late-term abortions, but those are extremely rare and usually done for medical purposes, and for that reason I still think it should be decided between a woman and her doctor, though I'm not completely opposed to ethical barriers.
      Drugs: Support the legalization and taxation of marijuana, oppose legalization of most other drugs.
      Censorship: I favor the V-chip.
      Gay Marriage: Legal federally. Increase workplace protections for the LGBTQ community.
      Death Penalty: Oppose.
      Prostitution: I favor letting the states decide on this one.
      Church & State: Favor voluntary school prayer, presence of God on money and in the Pledge
      Affirmative Action: Generally oppose.  I'm more favorable to affirmative action on the basis of income, not on race.  Strongly oppose quotas.
      Hate Crime Laws: Support.
      Immigration: Support the DREAM Act as well as comprehensive reform of the immigration system.  Modernize the process, but crack down on drug cartels and consider efforts to improve Mexico's economy so as to discourage lawbreaking.
      Stem Cell Research: Support its expansion, including federal funding.
      PATRIOT Act: Strongly oppose; repeal all sections of the bill that permit unwarranted spying/wiretapping
      Gun Control: Support conceal-carry, Manchin-Toomey.  Ban and destroy undetectable firearms.
      Assisted Suicide: Support with heavy restrictions.
      Gambling: Status quo.

      Electoral Reform:
      Term Limits: Oppose.
      Statehood: Grant statehood to Puerto Rico and DC if the people of both territories agree to it.
      Voting Age: I support lowering the voting age to 17.
      Campaign Finance Reform: Pass the DISCLOSE Act, increase oversight of funds, ban campaign donations from recipients of government bailouts until bailout money is fully repaid.  Prohibit donations from corporations if a foreign national owns 20% or more of voting shares.
      Gerrymandering: Abolish CDs, promote a more Parliamentarian system with IRV
      Voter ID: Strongly oppose (critical issue)

      Economics:
      Welfare: Expand the current programs, but maintain work requirements and require able-bodied people on welfare to find work.  Expand the EITC.
      Unions: Strongly approve of the right to unionize. Oppose all right-to-work laws.
      Privatization: Oppose privatization of social security, schools, etc.
      Environment: Ban mountain-top mining, set water purity standards, protect all endangered species, invest in green energy
      Minimum Wage: Raise and index to inflation.
      Taxation: Allow the Bush tax cuts to expire for wealthy individuals, cut them for individuals making below that.  Remove loopholes and reform the tax code to discourage outsourcing.
      Healthcare: Single-payer.  At the moment, I favor either a German or French-based health care system with identity cards.
      Subsidies: I support farm subsidies for low-income farmers.
      Military: Increase veteran's benefits, drastically reduce military spending.
      Education: Transition the current education system in the US to one that is more Finland-based and public.  Set higher standards for people who are in or training for the teaching profession.  Eliminate most standardized tests.

      Foreign Policy:
      War: Only as a last resort.
      Israel-Palestine:: Support diplomacy between Israel and Palestine.
      Draft: Strongly oppose.
      Nukes: Support treaties which reduce nuclear arsenals.
      Foreign Aid: Generally support, but reform our foreign aid policy so that there is more oversight over our dollars.


      I guess I'd consider myself a Jon Tester-esque Christian Democrat? :P


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: I Will Not Be Wrong on December 17, 2013, 10:57:39 PM
      Abortion: legal until second trimester
      Gay marriage: I personally support it, but perhaps it should be left up to the states
      Immigration: extremely liberal here
      Gun control: conservative
      Environment: liberal here
      As you can tell, I am more interested in social issues, like most young people.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: ElectionsGuy on December 19, 2013, 06:21:47 PM
      Abortion: legal until second trimester
      Gay marriage: I personally support it, but perhaps it should be left up to the states
      Immigration: extremely liberal here
      Gun control: conservative
      Environment: liberal here
      As you can tell, I am more interested in social issues, like most young people.

      Yes, social issues are popular to talk about because they are easy, simplistic, and can be resolved with a simple answer. Economic and foreign policy issues though, are much more in depth and require explanations and certain policy preferment. Sure, you can be one way or the other, but its not like SSM where you're either just for it or against it, there are many extents and third ways you can take those kind of issues. I just wouldn't vote solely on social issues, as they are not even near as important as the other issues out there (economic, foreign policy, domestic). And thankfully I don't think you will by the color of your avatar ;)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: I Will Not Be Wrong on December 19, 2013, 06:26:29 PM
      Abortion: legal until second trimester
      Gay marriage: I personally support it, but perhaps it should be left up to the states
      Immigration: extremely liberal here
      Gun control: conservative
      Environment: liberal here
      As you can tell, I am more interested in social issues, like most young people.

      Yes, social issues are popular to talk about because they are easy, simplistic, and can be resolved with a simple answer. Economic and foreign policy issues though, are much more in depth and require explanations and certain policy preferment. Sure, you can be one way or the other, but its not like SSM where you're either just for it or against it, there are many extents and third ways you can take those kind of issues. I just wouldn't vote solely on social issues, as they are not even near as important as the other issues out there (economic, foreign policy, domestic). And thankfully I don't think you will by the color of your avatar ;)
      Wow, I never thought about it like that!!!
      Oh, and I lean right on foreign issues and economic issues.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Brewer on December 26, 2013, 10:49:40 PM
      Social Policy
      Abortion: Completely pro-choice.
      Drugs: Support legalizing marijuana. Get rid of mandatory minimums.
      Censorship: Flag-burning amendment is stupid. Little radio or television censorship -- it's the job of the parents to regulate their children, not the government.
      Gay Marriage: Legalize on federal level, support ENDA, etc.
      Death Penalty: Ban it on a federal level.
      Prostitution: Definitely a state issue.
      Church and State: Oppose prayer in schools, could honestly care less about putting "In God We Trust" on money.
      Affirmative Action: Support it.
      Hate Crime Laws: There should be no such thing. A crime is a crime -- no regulating thoughts or opinions. These laws are blatantly unconstitutional.
      Immigration: Support DREAM, comprehensive immigration reform.
      Stem Cell Research: Expand it.
      PATRIOT Act: I support most of it being repealed.
      Gun Control: Support an assault weapons ban, magazine limits, and background checks.
      Assisted Suicide: Leave it to the states.
      Gambling: Legalize it federally.

      Electoral Reform
      Term Limits: The very notion behind these is absurd: don't trust voters to reelect their own representatives. What is the point of a democracy? End all term limits.
      Statehood: Allow Puerto Rico and D.C. to enter the union with support from a majority of their citizens.
      Voting Age: Support lowering voting age to 16.
      Campaign Finance Reform: Require complete transparency, ban corporate donations.
      Gerrymandering: Leave it up to a nonpartisan commission.
      Voter ID: Completely oppose it. If you can make it to the polls, you should be able to vote.

      Economics
      Welfare: Support current programs.
      Unions: Unions are the backbone of this country. Right-to-Work is absolutely un-American.
      Environment: Invest in green energy and implement higher standards for gas mileage and the reduction of carbon pollution. Ensure that workers in fossil fuel industries are able to transition into other industries with government assistance as jobs in their industries are inevitably lost while we transition toward more renewable energy sources.
      Minimum Wage: Raise across the country, proportional to the cost of living in each area, and index to inflation.
      Taxation: No tax raises on middle/lower-class. No tax cuts for the rich, tax increases on them are necessary, however cut corporate taxes while closing tax loopholes.
      Healthcare: Support the Affordable Care Act.
      Trade: Pro-fair trade. Oppose new free trade agreements unless it can be proven that they will not be detrimental to American workers and wages.
      Pork: I'm fine with it.
      Subsidies: Support for low-income farmers, small farms.
      Military: Cut funding, oppose Iraq, support Afghanistan and we should have made more of an attempt to assist moderate rebels in Syria. Completely support the Iran deal. Allow women to serve at frontlines.
      Education: Anti-vouchers, complete support of public education. Oppose and repeal teacher tenure laws, expand funding, put technology in all classrooms.

      Foreign Policy
      War: Not a hawk, not non-interventionist. Supported Afghanistan but not Iraq. WWI and Vietnam were poor decisions.
      Israel/Palestine: I'm pretty moderate on this issue. Support a two-state solution.
      Draft: Never.
      Nukes: Support START Treaty, but do not eliminate stockpile.
      Foreign Aid: Minimal part of the federal budget -- make cuts only to increase efficiency.

      Summary: Basically, I'm a mainstream liberal with some moderate tendencies.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: So rightwing that I broke the Political Compass! on January 09, 2014, 11:35:54 AM
      Abortion: legal until second trimester
      Gay marriage: I personally support it, but perhaps it should be left up to the states
      Immigration: extremely liberal here
      Gun control: conservative
      Environment: liberal here
      As you can tell, I am more interested in social issues, like most young people.

      Yes, social issues are popular to talk about because they are easy, simplistic, and can be resolved with a simple answer. Economic and foreign policy issues though, are much more in depth and require explanations and certain policy preferment. Sure, you can be one way or the other, but its not like SSM where you're either just for it or against it, there are many extents and third ways you can take those kind of issues. I just wouldn't vote solely on social issues, as they are not even near as important as the other issues out there (economic, foreign policy, domestic). And thankfully I don't think you will by the color of your avatar ;)
      Not so. I find my social policies are, as whole, much more complex and in depth then the economic or foreign policies.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: So rightwing that I broke the Political Compass! on January 09, 2014, 11:36:29 AM
      These are my pipe dream policies. Obviously when I'm elected as an actual politician I would have to temper them for the sake of electability :(

      Social Policy



      Abortion: To be classified as premeditated murder. I would prefer it to be applied retroactively to mothers and abortionists who committed it prior to the law's passage, but that's probably unrealistic given the numbers that would need to be imprisoned.

      Drugs: I would be inclined to try out Singapore-esque policies. Death penalty for enablers/dealers. Not to sure on what specific punishment for users, but certainly harsh enough to serve as a disincentive.

      Censorship:  Let the states and/or local governments decide. However any depictions of criminal sexual acts(except in cases where a permit for artistic license has been granted) would be banned. Furthermore and books/sites etc endorsing crimes or explaining how to commit/get away with said crimes would be banned.

      Gay marriage: Leave to states, to be resolved once and for all by a referendum in all 50 states regarding it's acceptance or rejection of gay marriage from here on out. Thereafter the matter shall be considered closed permanently, since constant struggle and controversy is contrary to civic tranquility.

      Prostitution: Legalize.

      Church & State: Unsure about whether the separation of church and state is a good thing or not. The body politic needs a moral compass of some kind, and my feeling is that only religion can provide that.

      Affirmative action: Racist nonsense.

      Immigration: Basic economics- increase the supply of labour and it's price(wages) goes down. So, I would curtail immigration significantly.

      PATRIOT Act: Expand it. Advancing technology only makes devestating acts of terrorism easier to commit.

      Gun Control: Oppose all forms of gun control.



      Economic Issues:

      Welfare: Abolish, Kills incentive to work

      Unions:  Abolish, kills jobs

      Environment: Let the affected communities decide.

      Minimum wage: Abolish. Kills jobs.

      Taxation: Abolish, except for a VAT.

      Healthcare: Abolish all public involvement

      Trade:High tariffs to re-industrialize the nation.


      Foreign Policy

      Israel-Palestine: Unconditional support for Israel, as the only Western democracy in the Middle East we would be fools to not back them.

      Draft: Consider reinstating

      UN:  em.

      Nukes: A good thing, prevent hostile countries from acquiring by any means necessary.

      Foreign Aid: Is essentially bribery. Potentially useful, but put an end to any that is purely sentimental nonsense.

      Iran: I've reached the point where invasion seems the only possible way to avert the disaster that Iranian nukes would be for Israel and the West.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Хahar 🤔 on January 09, 2014, 06:51:58 PM
      Abortion: To be classified as premeditated murder. I would prefer it to be applied retroactively to mothers and abortionists who committed it prior to the law's passage, but that's probably unrealistic given the numbers that would need to be imprisoned.

      That's also illegal.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Ban my account ffs! on January 09, 2014, 06:58:19 PM
      Abortion: To be classified as premeditated murder. I would prefer it to be applied retroactively to mothers and abortionists who committed it prior to the law's passage, but that's probably unrealistic given the numbers that would need to be imprisoned.

      That's also illegal.
      Something tells me that with the terrifying fascist police state of social control he wants to implement, things like "rights" probably won't really matter.

      What a paranoid, afraid person!


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: ElectionsGuy on January 09, 2014, 07:31:09 PM

      Oh god.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The world will shine with light in our nightmare on January 09, 2014, 07:43:17 PM
      Rockingham is a troll (https://uselectionatlas.org/FORUM/index.php?topic=165358.msg3531447#msg3531447), err, "parody."  Here's another post (https://uselectionatlas.org/FORUM/index.php?topic=18844.msg3507114#msg3507114) of his on this thread from 2012.

      If you haven't put him on ignore yet, I suggest you do so.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: So rightwing that I broke the Political Compass! on January 11, 2014, 09:38:50 AM
      Rockingham is a troll (https://uselectionatlas.org/FORUM/index.php?topic=165358.msg3531447#msg3531447), err, "parody."  Here's another post (https://uselectionatlas.org/FORUM/index.php?topic=18844.msg3507114#msg3507114) of his on this thread from 2012.

      If you haven't put him on ignore yet, I suggest you do so.
      False. And those confessions were not from me. Some leftwing troll hacked my account and made those posts so as to delegitimize my voice.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: SWE on January 20, 2014, 09:12:48 PM
      Social Policy:
      Abortion: I'm mostly pro-choice, but I support a ban on partial-birth abortions. Proper sex education and easy access the birth control would lower the number of abortions.
      Gay Marriage: There is no fathomable reason not to legalize it
      Drugs: Legalize marijuana, lower the drinking age to 18, decriminalize harder drugs and treat drug use as a health issue, not a crime
      Stem Cell Research: Stem Cell research saves lives
      Death Penalty: I am 100% against capital punishment. The state should not be powerful enough to terminate the lives of its citizens
      Gun control: Institute universal background checks, but nothing beyond that
      Church and State: Church and state should be completely separate. Take "In God We Trust" off of our currency and make "E Pluribus Unum" our nation's motto
      Affirmative Action: Race based AA is nothing more than reverse discrimination, however, I am somewhat more open to class based AA
      Prostitution: Legalize
      Euthanasia: Terminally ill patients should be allowed to end their lives

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: Increase it and tie it to inflation
      Welfare: The notion of "Welfare Queens" is ridiculous. Nobody on welfare wants to be on welfare. Never cut welfare funding. If anything, increase funding, especially when the economy is poor and people need it most.
      Right-to-Work: Unions are necessary to protect workers. Right-to-Work-For-Less is a more accurate name
      Taxation: Cut taxes on lower and middle class, increase on the upper class, close tax loopholes, eliminate sales tax
      Healthcare: Institute a single-payer system
      Social Security: Never privatize Social Security
      Trade: Free trade kills jobs
      Deficit Spending: Deficits are not an inherently bad thing. Cutting spending during economic down times is one of the worst things you can do for growth
      Debt Ceiling: There's no reason for it to exist in the first place
      Education: More funding to public education, no school vouchers, standardized testing is pointless
      Balanced Budget Amendment: No
      Sequester: These cuts were designed specifically to be as painful as possible, so why are we keeping them in place?

      Foreign Policy and National Security
      Afghanistan: It's time to pull out. We can't nation build forever
      Iraq: The Iraq War was completely useless and did nothing but humiliate us and take away troops that could be used to fight al Qaeda
      Iran: Diplomacy is the best course of action. No more sanctions.
      Syria: The United States has no interest getting involved
      Cuba: End the travel ban and trade embargo
      Military Spending: Cut drastically
      PATRIOT Act: A disgusting bill. Repeal in its entirety
      NSA Spying: Blatantly unconstitutional
      Palestine: Recognize Palestine
      Israel: Israel is our ally, but that doesn't mean we have to constantly suck up to them
      Immigration: Make the legal immigration process much simpler, provide a path to citizenship for immigrants already living here
      Guantanamo Bay: it's an embarrassing chapter in American history and it needs to be shut down

      Environment
      Climate Change: Climate change is real. Anyone who denies it is just kidding themself
      Green Energy: Invest in alternate energy. It's good for the environment, creates jobs, and helps us achieve energy independence
      Keystone XL Pipeline: It's not worth the huge negative impacts to create 35 jobs

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College: Abolish it and have the president elected by popular vote
      Gerrymandering: All districts should be drawn using the shortest split-line method
      Term limits: We already have term limits, it's called voting out incumbents. Legislating is a complicated process, and we don't need congress filled with inexperienced legislators.
      Campaign Finance Reform: All election campaigns should be funded by a limited pool of taxpayer money
      Voter ID: Nothing more than voter suppression
      Compulsory Voting: While I originally supported it, I now realize it creates more problems than it solve.
      Voter Registration: Voter registration should be automatic
      Voting Rights Act Preclearance: All fifty states should be required to get preclearance under the Voting Rights Act
      Statehood: If a majority of citizens of a territory support statehood, than that territory should receive statehood


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: PJ on January 20, 2014, 09:19:12 PM
      Welcome! :) I agree with you on almost everything. What about class-based AA?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: New_Conservative on January 22, 2014, 01:18:36 AM
      Social Policy:
      Abortion: I'm mostly pro-life, but I support allowing abortions in cases of rape or incest, or the health of mother is threatened. Proper sex education in schools would lower the number of abortions.
      Gay Marriage: Legalize Gay Marriage, but don't punish religious institutions who refuse to marry gay couples.
      Drugs: Legalize, tax, and regulate marijuana, keep all other illegal drugs illlegal.
      Stem Cell Research: Leave research and funding to the private sector
      Death Penalty: In support of the death penalty, but only if found guilty of the most heinous crime(s).
      Gun control: In support of universal background checks, but nothing beyond that
      Church and State: Church and state should be seperate, but keep "In God We Trust" on the dollar bill.
      Affirmative Action: Don't support it, everyone deserves a fair shot.
      Prostitution: Keep illegal.
      Education: Support school vouchers, against national standards, teach to a student's potential, instead of uniform testing.
      Immigration:  Enforce immigration laws; use defense funds to increase Border Patrol, deploy sensors, and build fences, prosecute businesses that hire illegal immigrants, support making English our official language, don't force high school students to take Spanish and other foreign languages if they don't want too, oppose prosecuting children of illegal immigrants.
      Euthanasia: Allow euthanasia, as long as the patient passes a mental health examination and the doctor signs off on it.

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: Keep as is, leave it up to the states
      Welfare: I support welfare for those who are actively looking for a job, or are involved in a job-training/educational program. Reform Welfare. Drug test people who recieve welfare.
      Right-to-Work: Huge supporter of right-to-work laws.
      Taxation: Cut taxes for all income groups.
      Healthcare: open the markets so insurers can compete across state lines and drive down costs
      Social Security: Reform and raise the retirement age to account for people living longer
      Trade: Free trade benefits the consumer.
      Deficit Spending: Cut spending
      Debt Ceiling: Lower the debt ceiling

      Foreign Policy and National Security
      Afghanistan: Don't pull out not until all U.S. military leaders are confident the mission has been accomplished.
      Iraq: The Iraq War was not completely useless. It allowed us to help liberate Iraq, and allowed us to show dictators in the Middle East that we are not messing around.
      Iran: Strategically eliminate their nuclear bomb making capabilities
      Syria: Don't get involved.
      Cuba: End the travel ban.
      Military Spending: Increase spending
      PATRIOT Act: Support
      NSA Spying: A little over the top, but neccessary to combat terrorism.
      Palestine: Against Palestinian statehood

      Environment
      Climate Change: Climate change is real, but not as pressing of a problem as some on the left say it is. Not every natural event that occurs is because of climate change. I don't believe it is caused by humans.
      Green Energy: Let the private marketplace decide.
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Huge supporter of the Keystone Pipeline

      Elector Reform
      Electoral College: Abolish it and have the president elected by popular vote.
      Gerrymandering: All districts should be drawn by an independent bi-partisan commision.
      Term limits: In favor of term limits in Congress, and in the Supreme Court.
      Campaign Finance Reform: Corporations should be allowed to fund political campaigns.
      Voter ID: Don't see the big deal in enforcing showing an ID to vote...
      Compulsory Voting: No, it is your decision whether or not you want to vote.
      Voting Rights Act Preclearance: All fifty states should be required to get preclearance under the Voting Rights Act
      Statehood: If a majority of citizens of a territory support statehood, than that territory should receive statehood


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Vladimir on January 26, 2014, 05:01:12 PM
      Very socially conservative. A few examples;
      Abortion: Only when the life of the mother is seriously threatened.
      Gay "Marriage": Completely and totally illegal.
      Drugs: Marijuana should be completely illegal, and I'm not too fond of alcohol or cigarettes but I realize those two would be nearly impossible to illegalize, so I'll tolerate them in moderation.
      Church and State: Keep "In God we Trust", school prayers should be allowed but determined based on the school districts, freedom OF religion not FROM religion, take out the "Solemnly swear" parts of oaths and return to what it was, etc.

      Moderately economically conservative. A few examples;
      Taxes: Should be a universal tax rate from the bottom of the ladder to the very top, with the exception being the absolute poorest of the poor, whom should receive government assistance, but must prove they are actively trying to secure a job that can pay for themselves.
      Deficit Spending: Slash spending across the board, with the only exceptions being education and the military.
      Welfare: Only for the poorest of the poor, and drug test applicants.
      Debt Ceiling: Lower, lower, LOWER!!!!


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Cassius on January 26, 2014, 05:24:05 PM
      Welcome! Good to see another solid conservative on the forum.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: H.E. VOLODYMYR ZELENKSYY on January 26, 2014, 09:20:04 PM
      Very socially conservative. A few examples;
      Abortion: Only when the life of the mother is seriously threatened.
      Gay "Marriage": Completely and totally illegal.
      Drugs: Marijuana should be completely illegal, and I'm not too fond of alcohol or cigarettes but I realize those two would be nearly impossible to illegalize, so I'll tolerate them in moderation.
      Church and State: Keep "In God we Trust", school prayers should be allowed but determined based on the school districts, freedom OF religion not FROM religion, take out the "Solemnly swear" parts of oaths and return to what it was, etc.

      Moderately economically conservative. A few examples;
      Taxes: Should be a universal tax rate from the bottom of the ladder to the very top, with the exception being the absolute poorest of the poor, whom should receive government assistance, but must prove they are actively trying to secure a job that can pay for themselves.
      Deficit Spending: Slash spending across the board, with the only exceptions being education and the military.
      Welfare: Only for the poorest of the poor, and drug test applicants.
      Debt Ceiling: Lower, lower, LOWER!!!!


      May I be the first to say that you make me, as a gay man, an atheist, a man who thinks government shouldn't control what you put in your body, a man who believes that those who can afford it should give back to the community, who believes that science should lead the way on issues of women's health and that women shouldn't be made to carry their rapist's baby, that our military is bloated and needs to be cut, and that everyone deserves a basic standard of living, sick? I think you might find a certain other Vladimir to be a good friend of yours.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: fivex on January 27, 2014, 03:47:59 AM
      Very socially conservative. A few examples;
      Abortion: Only when the life of the mother is seriously threatened.
      Gay "Marriage": Completely and totally illegal.
      Drugs: Marijuana should be completely illegal, and I'm not too fond of alcohol or cigarettes but I realize those two would be nearly impossible to illegalize, so I'll tolerate them in moderation.
      Church and State: Keep "In God we Trust", school prayers should be allowed but determined based on the school districts, freedom OF religion not FROM religion, take out the "Solemnly swear" parts of oaths and return to what it was, etc.

      Moderately economically conservative. A few examples;
      Taxes: Should be a universal tax rate from the bottom of the ladder to the very top, with the exception being the absolute poorest of the poor, whom should receive government assistance, but must prove they are actively trying to secure a job that can pay for themselves.
      Deficit Spending: Slash spending across the board, with the only exceptions being education and the military.
      Welfare: Only for the poorest of the poor, and drug test applicants.
      Debt Ceiling: Lower, lower, LOWER!!!!

      ...Do you really have Hitler quotes in your signature?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: H.E. VOLODYMYR ZELENKSYY on January 27, 2014, 01:25:18 PM
      Very socially conservative. A few examples;
      Abortion: Only when the life of the mother is seriously threatened.
      Gay "Marriage": Completely and totally illegal.
      Drugs: Marijuana should be completely illegal, and I'm not too fond of alcohol or cigarettes but I realize those two would be nearly impossible to illegalize, so I'll tolerate them in moderation.
      Church and State: Keep "In God we Trust", school prayers should be allowed but determined based on the school districts, freedom OF religion not FROM religion, take out the "Solemnly swear" parts of oaths and return to what it was, etc.

      Moderately economically conservative. A few examples;
      Taxes: Should be a universal tax rate from the bottom of the ladder to the very top, with the exception being the absolute poorest of the poor, whom should receive government assistance, but must prove they are actively trying to secure a job that can pay for themselves.
      Deficit Spending: Slash spending across the board, with the only exceptions being education and the military.
      Welfare: Only for the poorest of the poor, and drug test applicants.
      Debt Ceiling: Lower, lower, LOWER!!!!

      ...Do you really have Hitler quotes in your signature?

      No, the second one's Goebbels IIRC.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mechaman on February 08, 2014, 12:29:37 PM
      Very socially conservative. A few examples;
      Abortion: Only when the life of the mother is seriously threatened.
      Gay "Marriage": Completely and totally illegal.
      Drugs: Marijuana should be completely illegal, and I'm not too fond of alcohol or cigarettes but I realize those two would be nearly impossible to illegalize, so I'll tolerate them in moderation.
      Church and State: Keep "In God we Trust", school prayers should be allowed but determined based on the school districts, freedom OF religion not FROM religion, take out the "Solemnly swear" parts of oaths and return to what it was, etc.

      Moderately economically conservative. A few examples;
      Taxes: Should be a universal tax rate from the bottom of the ladder to the very top, with the exception being the absolute poorest of the poor, whom should receive government assistance, but must prove they are actively trying to secure a job that can pay for themselves.
      Deficit Spending: Slash spending across the board, with the only exceptions being education and the military.
      Welfare: Only for the poorest of the poor, and drug test applicants.
      Debt Ceiling: Lower, lower, LOWER!!!!


      May I be the first to say that you make me, as a gay man, an atheist, a man who thinks government shouldn't control what you put in your body, a man who believes that those who can afford it should give back to the community, who believes that science should lead the way on issues of women's health and that women shouldn't be made to carry their rapist's baby, that our military is bloated and needs to be cut, and that everyone deserves a basic standard of living, sick? I think you might find a certain other Vladimir to be a good friend of yours.

      Are you really losing your sh*t to an obvious troll?

      Then again, I'd probably do the same thing.  THese trolls are like watching a train wreck.  So horrible, but you just got to watch.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Randy Bobandy on February 16, 2014, 11:26:20 AM
      Social Policy:
      Abortion: If contraception and comprehensive sex education were freely available, abortion wouldn't even be such a huge issue. Until we correct these problems, we should keep all abortions, for women of all ages, safe and legal.
      Gay Marriage: There is literally no reason not to legalize gay marriage.
      Drugs: Legalize, tax, and regulate all currently scheduled drugs.
      Stem Cell Research: Stem cells save lives. Fund the heck out of research.
      Death Penalty: The state shouldn't endorse murder.
      Gun control: I support background checks, nothing more.
      Church and State: "In God We Trust", "E Pluribus Unum", etc. need to go.
      Affirmative Action: I support class-based affirmative action.
      Prostitution: Legalize!
      Education: See: Finland. Also, school vouchers aren't such a bad idea.
      Immigration: Bush II's immigration proposals were pretty nice. Also, the DREAM Act is great.
      Euthanasia: Suicide is a right

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: Increase, increase, increase.
      Welfare: We need to take care of those who can't work or can't find work.
      Right-to-Work: Do you mean, right-to-be-subjugated?
      Taxation: We're grossly under-taxed--especially our corporate overlords.
      Healthcare: Obamacare doesn't go far enough. Start a public option.
      Social Security: Raise the retirement age and payroll taxes.
      Trade: I'm a tentative supporter of free trade. Overall, free trade should benefit the worker and not faceless corporations.
      Deficit Spending: Deficits are not uniquely bad.
      Debt Ceiling: Why is this even an issue?

      Foreign Policy and National Security
      Afghanistan: Pull out.
      Iran: They're not a threat.
      Syria: Doesn't matter.
      Cuba: Greatest country in the world. End the travel ban and the trade embargo. Take some lessons from Fidel.
      Military Spending: Abolish the military.
      PATRIOT Act: Repeal.
      NSA Spying: Totally ridiculous.
      Palestine: The U.S. needs to stop being Israel's little lapdog. Palestine deserves statehood.

      Environment
      Climate Change: Climate change is an issue, and people who don't think so are blind.
      Green Energy: Ramp up investment.
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Tentative supporter.

      Elector Reform
      Electoral College: Why is it even still around?
      Gerrymandering: All districts should be drawn by the voters themselves.
      Term limits: I support term limits for members of Congress and federal judges.
      Campaign Finance Reform: Corporates are so not people.
      Voter ID: Might as well support it. After all, we don't want voter fraud.
      Compulsory Voting: No.
      Voting Rights Act Preclearance: All fifty states should be required to gain preclearance under the VRA.
      Statehood: If a majority of citizens in a territory support statehood for that territory, then that territory should be a state.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: H.E. VOLODYMYR ZELENKSYY on February 16, 2014, 11:28:42 AM
      99% of what you believe makes me cry tears of joy, but I'm not sure if the Voter ID thing is sarcasm or not. Also, why the E Pluribus Unum hate?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Randy Bobandy on February 16, 2014, 11:53:17 AM
      99% of what you believe makes me cry tears of joy, but I'm not sure if the Voter ID thing is sarcasm or not. Also, why the E Pluribus Unum hate?
      The Voter ID thing is not sarcasm. If you're 18 years of age and want to take part in the political process, I don't necessarily see the wrong in having to provide a photo ID at the polls.

      E pluribus unum, when it became our motto, essentially meant "out of many rich white slaveowners, one elitist society composed of rich white slaveowners". That is still basically true (switch out African-Americans with the average laborer, and you still have slaveowners in corporate boardrooms), and the connotations of the motto just bother the hell out of me.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: H.E. VOLODYMYR ZELENKSYY on February 16, 2014, 12:36:56 PM
      99% of what you believe makes me cry tears of joy, but I'm not sure if the Voter ID thing is sarcasm or not. Also, why the E Pluribus Unum hate?
      The Voter ID thing is not sarcasm. If you're 18 years of age and want to take part in the political process, I don't necessarily see the wrong in having to provide a photo ID at the polls.

      E pluribus unum, when it became our motto, essentially meant "out of many rich white slaveowners, one elitist society composed of rich white slaveowners". That is still basically true (switch out African-Americans with the average laborer, and you still have slaveowners in corporate boardrooms), and the connotations of the motto just bother the hell out of me.

      On the voter ID thing, you seem to be assuming that everyone has a photo ID, which is simply not true. Those sorts of laws have been shown again and again to disenfranchise legitimate voters at basically no benefit to the integrity of the system - the number of voter impersonation cases in every election is negligible.

      Of course, it's rather obvious that old-timey America was a terrible place with slavery and all those things, but (and here I go being all idealistic with my head in the clouds) the whole point of America is, as I see it, the place where anyone can come and forge a new life, get ahead, raise a family if they want, yada yada yada. The reality of that vision is, sadly, basically not true at all in today's society, but mottoes are about ideals. If national mottoes reflected a country's history, most of them would be depressing as .

      Also, you can have your beliefs, but I'm not a fan of comparing the current conditions of the non-wealthy to slavery, no matter how bad they are.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Randy Bobandy on February 16, 2014, 12:45:05 PM
      99% of what you believe makes me cry tears of joy, but I'm not sure if the Voter ID thing is sarcasm or not. Also, why the E Pluribus Unum hate?
      The Voter ID thing is not sarcasm. If you're 18 years of age and want to take part in the political process, I don't necessarily see the wrong in having to provide a photo ID at the polls.

      E pluribus unum, when it became our motto, essentially meant "out of many rich white slaveowners, one elitist society composed of rich white slaveowners". That is still basically true (switch out African-Americans with the average laborer, and you still have slaveowners in corporate boardrooms), and the connotations of the motto just bother the hell out of me.

      On the voter ID thing, you seem to be assuming that everyone has a photo ID, which is simply not true. Those sorts of laws have been shown again and again to disenfranchise legitimate voters at basically no benefit to the integrity of the system - the number of voter impersonation cases in every election is negligible.

      Of course, it's rather obvious that old-timey America was a terrible place with slavery and all those things, but (and here I go being all idealistic with my head in the clouds) the whole point of America is, as I see it, the place where anyone can come and forge a new life, get ahead, raise a family if they want, yada yada yada. The reality of that vision is, sadly, basically not true at all in today's society, but mottoes are about ideals. If national mottoes reflected a country's history, most of them would be depressing as .

      Also, you can have your beliefs, but I'm not a fan of comparing the current conditions of the non-wealthy to slavery, no matter how bad they are.
      I don't see America that way, but we're all entitled to our beliefs. Probably my problem with the motto is that I'm a solid non-patriot and think that the Founders were sort of circle-jerking when they came up with these mottoes etc. etc. about liberty and equality, but that's just me.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: H.E. VOLODYMYR ZELENKSYY on February 16, 2014, 12:50:37 PM
      99% of what you believe makes me cry tears of joy, but I'm not sure if the Voter ID thing is sarcasm or not. Also, why the E Pluribus Unum hate?
      The Voter ID thing is not sarcasm. If you're 18 years of age and want to take part in the political process, I don't necessarily see the wrong in having to provide a photo ID at the polls.

      E pluribus unum, when it became our motto, essentially meant "out of many rich white slaveowners, one elitist society composed of rich white slaveowners". That is still basically true (switch out African-Americans with the average laborer, and you still have slaveowners in corporate boardrooms), and the connotations of the motto just bother the hell out of me.

      On the voter ID thing, you seem to be assuming that everyone has a photo ID, which is simply not true. Those sorts of laws have been shown again and again to disenfranchise legitimate voters at basically no benefit to the integrity of the system - the number of voter impersonation cases in every election is negligible.

      Of course, it's rather obvious that old-timey America was a terrible place with slavery and all those things, but (and here I go being all idealistic with my head in the clouds) the whole point of America is, as I see it, the place where anyone can come and forge a new life, get ahead, raise a family if they want, yada yada yada. The reality of that vision is, sadly, basically not true at all in today's society, but mottoes are about ideals. If national mottoes reflected a country's history, most of them would be depressing as .

      Also, you can have your beliefs, but I'm not a fan of comparing the current conditions of the non-wealthy to slavery, no matter how bad they are.
      I don't see America that way, but we're all entitled to our beliefs. Probably my problem with the motto is that I'm a solid non-patriot and think that the Founders were sort of circle-jerking when they came up with these mottoes etc. etc. about liberty and equality, but that's just me.

      Well, they were (except Thomas Paine, the underrated bro that he is), but I believe we can make America better. I mean, yeah, deep down we're just constrained by random lines drawn on maps and I could easily drive over to Toronto right now, but I think change is possible, even though it may seem hard.

      Let's have an everyone's-entitled-to-their-beliefs party! We can bring Ken Ham and everyone on Conservative Political Forum.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Randy Bobandy on February 16, 2014, 12:54:50 PM
      99% of what you believe makes me cry tears of joy, but I'm not sure if the Voter ID thing is sarcasm or not. Also, why the E Pluribus Unum hate?
      The Voter ID thing is not sarcasm. If you're 18 years of age and want to take part in the political process, I don't necessarily see the wrong in having to provide a photo ID at the polls.

      E pluribus unum, when it became our motto, essentially meant "out of many rich white slaveowners, one elitist society composed of rich white slaveowners". That is still basically true (switch out African-Americans with the average laborer, and you still have slaveowners in corporate boardrooms), and the connotations of the motto just bother the hell out of me.

      On the voter ID thing, you seem to be assuming that everyone has a photo ID, which is simply not true. Those sorts of laws have been shown again and again to disenfranchise legitimate voters at basically no benefit to the integrity of the system - the number of voter impersonation cases in every election is negligible.

      Of course, it's rather obvious that old-timey America was a terrible place with slavery and all those things, but (and here I go being all idealistic with my head in the clouds) the whole point of America is, as I see it, the place where anyone can come and forge a new life, get ahead, raise a family if they want, yada yada yada. The reality of that vision is, sadly, basically not true at all in today's society, but mottoes are about ideals. If national mottoes reflected a country's history, most of them would be depressing as .

      Also, you can have your beliefs, but I'm not a fan of comparing the current conditions of the non-wealthy to slavery, no matter how bad they are.
      I don't see America that way, but we're all entitled to our beliefs. Probably my problem with the motto is that I'm a solid non-patriot and think that the Founders were sort of circle-jerking when they came up with these mottoes etc. etc. about liberty and equality, but that's just me.

      Well, they were (except Thomas Paine, the underrated bro that he is), but I believe we can make America better. I mean, yeah, deep down we're just constrained by random lines drawn on maps and I could easily drive over to Toronto right now, but I think change is possible, even though it may seem hard.

      Let's have an everyone's-entitled-to-their-beliefs party! We can bring Ken Ham and everyone on Conservative Political Forum.
      Thomas Paine was, admittedly, kinda cool.

      That everyone's-entitled-to-their-beliefs party idea seems like it would be interesting...


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: H.E. VOLODYMYR ZELENKSYY on February 16, 2014, 01:04:05 PM
      99% of what you believe makes me cry tears of joy, but I'm not sure if the Voter ID thing is sarcasm or not. Also, why the E Pluribus Unum hate?
      The Voter ID thing is not sarcasm. If you're 18 years of age and want to take part in the political process, I don't necessarily see the wrong in having to provide a photo ID at the polls.

      E pluribus unum, when it became our motto, essentially meant "out of many rich white slaveowners, one elitist society composed of rich white slaveowners". That is still basically true (switch out African-Americans with the average laborer, and you still have slaveowners in corporate boardrooms), and the connotations of the motto just bother the hell out of me.

      On the voter ID thing, you seem to be assuming that everyone has a photo ID, which is simply not true. Those sorts of laws have been shown again and again to disenfranchise legitimate voters at basically no benefit to the integrity of the system - the number of voter impersonation cases in every election is negligible.

      Of course, it's rather obvious that old-timey America was a terrible place with slavery and all those things, but (and here I go being all idealistic with my head in the clouds) the whole point of America is, as I see it, the place where anyone can come and forge a new life, get ahead, raise a family if they want, yada yada yada. The reality of that vision is, sadly, basically not true at all in today's society, but mottoes are about ideals. If national mottoes reflected a country's history, most of them would be depressing as .

      Also, you can have your beliefs, but I'm not a fan of comparing the current conditions of the non-wealthy to slavery, no matter how bad they are.
      I don't see America that way, but we're all entitled to our beliefs. Probably my problem with the motto is that I'm a solid non-patriot and think that the Founders were sort of circle-jerking when they came up with these mottoes etc. etc. about liberty and equality, but that's just me.

      Well, they were (except Thomas Paine, the underrated bro that he is), but I believe we can make America better. I mean, yeah, deep down we're just constrained by random lines drawn on maps and I could easily drive over to Toronto right now, but I think change is possible, even though it may seem hard.

      Let's have an everyone's-entitled-to-their-beliefs party! We can bring Ken Ham and everyone on Conservative Political Forum.
      Thomas Paine was, admittedly, kinda cool.

      That everyone's-entitled-to-their-beliefs party idea seems like it would be interesting...

      Don't worry, the Democratic Underground people would balance CPF out.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Goldwater on February 16, 2014, 02:14:41 PM
      ...
      Cuba: Greatest country in the world. ... Take some lessons from Fidel.
      Military Spending: Abolish the military.
      ...

      ...Wait, what?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: beaver2.0 on February 19, 2014, 07:12:35 PM
      Thanks to the guy far above for giving me a framework.

      Social Policy
      Abortion:  Legal, but not really regarded as a good thing.  Free for people of really low income who probably could not raise a child anyway.

      Drugs:  Really not needed, ban tobacco, marijuana, anything illegal now.  Throw people who use them in jail, or use corporal punishment.

      Censorship:  Illegal stuff banned.  Federal government determines things, and local bans must be deemed right by the higher ups.

      Gay marriage:  Legal everywhere.

      Prostitution:  Illegal.

      Church & State:  Separate completely.  In fact, have a restraining order between those two.

      Affirmative action:  No.

      Immigration:  Allow, but only when actually needed.  Make it harder for unskilled people, but easier for educated people.  Help those people get on their feet here.

      PATRIOT Act:  It could be expanded.

      Gun Control:  Ban assault weapons for all.  Extensive background checks, etc. for all others.

      Criminals:  Capitol punishment for murder.  Bring back corporal punishment, so, robbery = a few days in the stocks.  That should straighten people out.

      Economic Issues:

      Welfare:  Keep, but only for people employed or actively seeking jobs.  Establish a new CCC for people to work in if no other alternatives are around.  People with no jobs will not be helped.  At all.

      Unions:  Good.

      Environment:  Federal Government should regulate it.

      Minimum wage:  Raise to something like $11.

      Taxation:  Make higher for rich.  Add VAT.

      Healthcare:  Get basic government care.

      Trade:  High tariffs.


      Foreign Policy
      Draft:  Get mandatory service.

      UN:  em.

      Nukes:  Good.

      Foreign Aid:  Not bad, except when useless.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mr. Illini on February 21, 2014, 12:40:42 PM
      Social Policy

      Abortion: Pro-life, with exceptions for rape, incest, and the life of the mother.

      Drugs: Legalize marijuana and many other drugs, but not the most addictive of them.

      Censorship: Don't censor the internet or the TV, only limit on freedom of speech should be those situations which could cause a mass-panic, such as the classic, "No yelling fire in a crowded theater."

      Gay marriage: Legalize it nationally.

      Prostitution:  Legalize it on the federal level, allow states to regulate it.

      Church & State: This isn't a theocracy. All of our morals are informed by our respective religious beliefs, but there is a clear distinction between that and enforcing Biblical code through the legal system.

      Affirmative action: Support to an extent.

      Immigration: Create a path to citizenship, reform the immigration process to make it easier for people to come here legally.

      PATRIOT Act: Terrible law, repeal it. Civil liberties must be preserved in all possible cases and this law grossly oversteps its bounds.

      Gun Control:  Fairly pro-gun, support background checks and possibly a registry, but not supportive of the assault weapons ban (open-minded on the issue, however).

      Criminals: End capital punishment, it is terribly immoral. End minimum mandatory sentencing and reform the justice system to more of a focus on rehabilitation.


      Economic Policy

      Welfare: An important piece of an industrialized nation. Supportive of legitimate reform but not open to politicization of said reform - should be strictly geared at reforming the system rather than an opportunity to restrict it.

      Unions: Strongly supportive.

      Environment: Supportive of sweeping measures to reduce carbon emissions. Climate change is man-made and needs to be acted on immediately. Hold big carbon producers accountable for their abuse of the environment. Invest in alternative energy. Solar energy is the way of the future.

      Minimum wage:  Skeptical of how much it can really help the lower classes, job losses not worth minimum wage hikes. Definitely open to raising it a couple bucks but generally more supportive of the safety net to make up for low wages.

      Taxation: Progressive taxation, the rich should pay the large share of the tax base, but not so much that it would kill ambition. Cut taxes on the middle and lower classes.

      Healthcare: Single Payer health care system.

      Trade: Generally supportive of free trade with some tariffs, support tax breaks for companies willing to keep labor here however.


      Foreign Policy

      Draft: Immoral and illegal.

      UN: Support full cooperation on the part of the United States. Can be a force for good so long as sovereignty is not stripped.

      Nukes: Gradual arms reduction, the benefits of MAD are overstated and the potential for misuse is greater than most think.

      Foreign Aid:  Supportive of strong aid program but reformed from our current one, supportive of humanitarian aid and not military aid, re-target to ensure that aid is directly helping those in need and not used corruptly by governments.

      Summary

      Progressive policies on the safety net, health care, unionization, civil liberties, marriage, immigration, energy, and foreign policy.

      Moderate on the minimum wage, trade, and guns.

      Conservative on abortion.

      Overall placed on the center-left. For now.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: H.E. VOLODYMYR ZELENKSYY on February 25, 2014, 10:18:08 AM
      Wait, what are you doing not being a Democrat?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: AggregateDemand on February 26, 2014, 02:57:03 AM
      SOCIAL POLICY

      Abortion: Pro-choice, but no late-term or partial birth

      Narcotics: Legalize/tax marijuana. Decriminalize possession of hard drugs in small quantities. Transfer funding to rehab programs. Alcohol prohibition beyond 18 years old is unconstitutional.

      Prostitution: States-rights. Legalized, but heavily-regulated for public safety. Allow localities to ban prostitution commerce.

      2nd Amendment: Allow greater ownership freedom and carry freedom for citizens who meet rigorous training regimens. Everyone else gets bolt-action rifles and pump-shotguns.

      Crime & Punishment: Abolish capital punishment. Eliminate most mandatory minimum sentences. Reduce enforcement and penalties for victimless crimes. Support most stand-your-ground laws.

      Gay Marriage: The most pointless social initiative in my lifetime. Most of the inequality stems from unequal tax laws, healthcare laws, and property laws that affect all single people, regardless of orientation. However, people say legalize, and I have no particular feeling one way or the other. Legalize by default.

      Patriot Act: Government surveillance is not particularly alarming as long as citizens have vast oversight mechanisms and smart juries.

      Affirmative Action: Okay, as long as its education reform for disadvantaged citizens, not handouts based on skin color.

      Education: States-rights. No common core. More choice. More innovation. Eliminate FFELP lending. Pell Grants or refundable tax credits.

      ECONOMIC POLICY

      Welfare/Unemployment: Repeal and replace with guaranteed minimum income.

      Social Security: Raise qualifying age to 70. Phase-out benefits (i.e. tax benefits) for seniors with additional income. Switch to defined-contribution to reduce generational conflict caused by the adversarial defined-benefit system.

      Healthcare: Federalize of Medicaid. Massive cost-cutting to Medicare/Medicaid or convert the current public health entitlements to rationed catastrophic single-payer. Eliminate all employer mandates. Repeal or eliminate most ACA provisions.

      Taxation: Guaranteed minimum income with a 35% flat tax (20% income tax, 15% FICA). Eliminate existing, regressive FICA tax system. Capital gains taxed at 35%, but with time-value adjustments set by IRS/FED. Abolish AMT. Eliminate all deductions, even charity. Phaseout corporate income tax.

      Wealth Inequality: Bottom rungs of the social ladder must be rebuilt with guaranteed minimum income assistance so people can work out of poverty. Reduce student debt, and bend collegiate education cost curve. Transfer spending back to the working class. Let full employment raise wages. Fair taxation rules for capital gains.

      SUMMARY
      Typical pragmatist. Middle-of-the-road libertarian.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Matty on March 09, 2014, 01:12:00 AM
      I would consider myself a conservative with a few libertarian meanings. However, the reason why I agree with a few libertarian viewpoints is not because of "liberty", but because that viewpoint brings about a certain conservative value. For example, I am hostile to some parts of the war on drugs because I think they break up the black family. That is, I don't support scaling back the drug war because I think it is your right to consume a poison that enslaves and kills, I support scaling back the drug war because too many men are behind bars who should be at home being fathers.

      Economics is where I have the most passion. I am a huge fan of Hazlitt, Bastiat, Friedman, etc.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: H.E. VOLODYMYR ZELENKSYY on March 11, 2014, 11:01:07 AM
      Two questions, Boshie: How is marijuana a "poison that enslaves and kills"? And why do you seem to think black people are the only people who do drugs (or are you pointing out the racism in our justice and law enforcement systems?)?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Vladimir on March 11, 2014, 11:10:08 PM
      Very socially conservative. A few examples;
      Abortion: Only when the life of the mother is seriously threatened.
      Gay "Marriage": Completely and totally illegal.
      Drugs: Marijuana should be completely illegal, and I'm not too fond of alcohol or cigarettes but I realize those two would be nearly impossible to illegalize, so I'll tolerate them in moderation.
      Church and State: Keep "In God we Trust", school prayers should be allowed but determined based on the school districts, freedom OF religion not FROM religion, take out the "Solemnly swear" parts of oaths and return to what it was, etc.

      Moderately economically conservative. A few examples;
      Taxes: Should be a universal tax rate from the bottom of the ladder to the very top, with the exception being the absolute poorest of the poor, whom should receive government assistance, but must prove they are actively trying to secure a job that can pay for themselves.
      Deficit Spending: Slash spending across the board, with the only exceptions being education and the military.
      Welfare: Only for the poorest of the poor, and drug test applicants.
      Debt Ceiling: Lower, lower, LOWER!!!!

      ...Do you really have Hitler quotes in your signature?

      Yeah, I do. Also, sorry for the lateness of this reply; I wanted to maintain a presence on this forum but I forgot about it. I'll try to keep up now.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Vladimir on March 11, 2014, 11:11:30 PM
      Very socially conservative. A few examples;
      Abortion: Only when the life of the mother is seriously threatened.
      Gay "Marriage": Completely and totally illegal.
      Drugs: Marijuana should be completely illegal, and I'm not too fond of alcohol or cigarettes but I realize those two would be nearly impossible to illegalize, so I'll tolerate them in moderation.
      Church and State: Keep "In God we Trust", school prayers should be allowed but determined based on the school districts, freedom OF religion not FROM religion, take out the "Solemnly swear" parts of oaths and return to what it was, etc.

      Moderately economically conservative. A few examples;
      Taxes: Should be a universal tax rate from the bottom of the ladder to the very top, with the exception being the absolute poorest of the poor, whom should receive government assistance, but must prove they are actively trying to secure a job that can pay for themselves.
      Deficit Spending: Slash spending across the board, with the only exceptions being education and the military.
      Welfare: Only for the poorest of the poor, and drug test applicants.
      Debt Ceiling: Lower, lower, LOWER!!!!


      May I be the first to say that you make me, as a gay man, an atheist, a man who thinks government shouldn't control what you put in your body, a man who believes that those who can afford it should give back to the community, who believes that science should lead the way on issues of women's health and that women shouldn't be made to carry their rapist's baby, that our military is bloated and needs to be cut, and that everyone deserves a basic standard of living, sick? I think you might find a certain other Vladimir to be a good friend of yours.

      Actually, I'm a big Putin fan. So is 70% of Russians and most Crimeans. :)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Vladimir on March 11, 2014, 11:17:41 PM
      Very socially conservative. A few examples;
      Abortion: Only when the life of the mother is seriously threatened.
      Gay "Marriage": Completely and totally illegal.
      Drugs: Marijuana should be completely illegal, and I'm not too fond of alcohol or cigarettes but I realize those two would be nearly impossible to illegalize, so I'll tolerate them in moderation.
      Church and State: Keep "In God we Trust", school prayers should be allowed but determined based on the school districts, freedom OF religion not FROM religion, take out the "Solemnly swear" parts of oaths and return to what it was, etc.

      Moderately economically conservative. A few examples;
      Taxes: Should be a universal tax rate from the bottom of the ladder to the very top, with the exception being the absolute poorest of the poor, whom should receive government assistance, but must prove they are actively trying to secure a job that can pay for themselves.
      Deficit Spending: Slash spending across the board, with the only exceptions being education and the military.
      Welfare: Only for the poorest of the poor, and drug test applicants.
      Debt Ceiling: Lower, lower, LOWER!!!!


      May I be the first to say that you make me, as a gay man, an atheist, a man who thinks government shouldn't control what you put in your body, a man who believes that those who can afford it should give back to the community, who believes that science should lead the way on issues of women's health and that women shouldn't be made to carry their rapist's baby, that our military is bloated and needs to be cut, and that everyone deserves a basic standard of living, sick? I think you might find a certain other Vladimir to be a good friend of yours.

      Are you really losing your sh*t to an obvious troll?

      Then again, I'd probably do the same thing.  THese trolls are like watching a train wreck.  So horrible, but you just got to watch.
      I'll apologize to you as well for the lateness of this reply; kind of dropped the ball on this even though I wanted to keep up; once again I'll try to now. But, with that aside, I assure you I am no troll. I actually used to be quite a bit more conservative but I've changed a bit. I like to call myself an "Authoritarian Conservative" as in I'm still very conservative, but I like a strong government minus bloated taxation and certain other things, and I'm not necessarily a supporter of genocide or racism as in Hitler. Btw to address my signature, it's there because of how true it is. I do not support Adolf, but I see the use of certain quotes of his in application to other things. And, the two particular quotes I chose are very applicable to a certain president :).


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: H.E. VOLODYMYR ZELENKSYY on March 11, 2014, 11:19:12 PM
      Very socially conservative. A few examples;
      Abortion: Only when the life of the mother is seriously threatened.
      Gay "Marriage": Completely and totally illegal.
      Drugs: Marijuana should be completely illegal, and I'm not too fond of alcohol or cigarettes but I realize those two would be nearly impossible to illegalize, so I'll tolerate them in moderation.
      Church and State: Keep "In God we Trust", school prayers should be allowed but determined based on the school districts, freedom OF religion not FROM religion, take out the "Solemnly swear" parts of oaths and return to what it was, etc.

      Moderately economically conservative. A few examples;
      Taxes: Should be a universal tax rate from the bottom of the ladder to the very top, with the exception being the absolute poorest of the poor, whom should receive government assistance, but must prove they are actively trying to secure a job that can pay for themselves.
      Deficit Spending: Slash spending across the board, with the only exceptions being education and the military.
      Welfare: Only for the poorest of the poor, and drug test applicants.
      Debt Ceiling: Lower, lower, LOWER!!!!


      May I be the first to say that you make me, as a gay man, an atheist, a man who thinks government shouldn't control what you put in your body, a man who believes that those who can afford it should give back to the community, who believes that science should lead the way on issues of women's health and that women shouldn't be made to carry their rapist's baby, that our military is bloated and needs to be cut, and that everyone deserves a basic standard of living, sick? I think you might find a certain other Vladimir to be a good friend of yours.

      Actually, I'm a big Putin fan. So is 70% of Russians and most Crimeans. :)

      Good to know, I'll need a good punching bag about which to get needlessly angry and rant on the internet. Now, starting with the easy questions, why should gay marriage be illegal?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Vladimir on March 13, 2014, 12:32:43 AM
      Very socially conservative. A few examples;
      Abortion: Only when the life of the mother is seriously threatened.
      Gay "Marriage": Completely and totally illegal.
      Drugs: Marijuana should be completely illegal, and I'm not too fond of alcohol or cigarettes but I realize those two would be nearly impossible to illegalize, so I'll tolerate them in moderation.
      Church and State: Keep "In God we Trust", school prayers should be allowed but determined based on the school districts, freedom OF religion not FROM religion, take out the "Solemnly swear" parts of oaths and return to what it was, etc.

      Moderately economically conservative. A few examples;
      Taxes: Should be a universal tax rate from the bottom of the ladder to the very top, with the exception being the absolute poorest of the poor, whom should receive government assistance, but must prove they are actively trying to secure a job that can pay for themselves.
      Deficit Spending: Slash spending across the board, with the only exceptions being education and the military.
      Welfare: Only for the poorest of the poor, and drug test applicants.
      Debt Ceiling: Lower, lower, LOWER!!!!


      May I be the first to say that you make me, as a gay man, an atheist, a man who thinks government shouldn't control what you put in your body, a man who believes that those who can afford it should give back to the community, who believes that science should lead the way on issues of women's health and that women shouldn't be made to carry their rapist's baby, that our military is bloated and needs to be cut, and that everyone deserves a basic standard of living, sick? I think you might find a certain other Vladimir to be a good friend of yours.

      Actually, I'm a big Putin fan. So is 70% of Russians and most Crimeans. :)

      Good to know, I'll need a good punching bag about which to get needlessly angry and rant on the internet. Now, starting with the easy questions, why should gay marriage be illegal?


       Good question! But, before I start, you don't have to get angry with me. I'm a nice guy once you get past your initial disgust and contempt with me ;).
        Anyhow, I could simply answer that question based on my belief in God, but that's probably not what you are looking for, and I'd get a stock response for it so I'll stay away from that. Why gay "marriage" should be illegal; the definition of marriage is (or should be based on whatever view you have on the definition) a union between a man in a woman, based on love, for the purpose of creating a stable family environment for a child/children.
        Your next assertion would undoubtedly be one of the following; either, "If two gays love eachother, why can't they be happy too?" or, "Gays can create a stable family environment and raise children as well, so why can't they do so?". Well, before I continue, let me say that I have several gay family members/friends and I do not hate anybody for simply being gay. Now, with that said, I contend that homosexuality is not natural, and is a self-induced mental condition, meaning, a state of mind one puts themselves in. (I'll probably get questioned for this statement but I assure you I can back it up, but I'll save that for later). Also, for two gays to "create" a family, they have to either adopt a child, or artificially produce one through the help of modern science. Sure, on the outside it appears to be relatively similar to a "straight" marriage. But, the sad truth is, is that the vast majority of said gay "marriages" do not provide a stable family environment. Gays have a much higher; divorce rate, partner violence rate, disease (whether it be an STD or a genetic disease) rate, as well as a much lower percentage reporting marital fidelity.
           
          I could go on, but I have a feeling this is already a bit much. So, I'll continue whenever prompted to. Also, I can provide sources for these "accusations", which I will probably be asked to list. Also, let me assure you once more; I do not hate anybody for merely being gay. I have many gay friends/ a few gay family members. I do not hate anybody here that opposes my views/facts. Also, if you or anybody else disagrees, please avoid vitriol and stick to logical, factual responses; I'm not here for a pissing contest. (Just figured I should state all the above less I be called a 'homophobic bigoted hater' or something of the like).


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Vladimir on March 13, 2014, 12:44:48 AM

      No, the second one's Goebbels IIRC.
      [/quote]

         Is it Dr. Goebbels? Could've sworn that was Adolf. If you can show me it was Goebbels, I'll change my signature to show that.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Vladimir on March 13, 2014, 12:50:17 AM

      May I be the first to say that you make me, as a gay man, an atheist, a man who thinks government shouldn't control what you put in your body, a man who believes that those who can afford it should give back to the community, who believes that science should lead the way on issues of women's health and that women shouldn't be made to carry their rapist's baby, that our military is bloated and needs to be cut, and that everyone deserves a basic standard of living, sick? I think you might find a certain other Vladimir to be a good friend of yours.

      Are you really losing your sh*t to an obvious troll?

      Then again, I'd probably do the same thing.  THese trolls are like watching a train wreck.  So horrible, but you just got to watch.

         Hey, you should take a look at my political matrix score before assuming that. I'm the real deal ;)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Goldwater on March 13, 2014, 12:50:44 AM
      Very socially conservative. A few examples;
      Abortion: Only when the life of the mother is seriously threatened.
      Gay "Marriage": Completely and totally illegal.
      Drugs: Marijuana should be completely illegal, and I'm not too fond of alcohol or cigarettes but I realize those two would be nearly impossible to illegalize, so I'll tolerate them in moderation.
      Church and State: Keep "In God we Trust", school prayers should be allowed but determined based on the school districts, freedom OF religion not FROM religion, take out the "Solemnly swear" parts of oaths and return to what it was, etc.

      Moderately economically conservative. A few examples;
      Taxes: Should be a universal tax rate from the bottom of the ladder to the very top, with the exception being the absolute poorest of the poor, whom should receive government assistance, but must prove they are actively trying to secure a job that can pay for themselves.
      Deficit Spending: Slash spending across the board, with the only exceptions being education and the military.
      Welfare: Only for the poorest of the poor, and drug test applicants.
      Debt Ceiling: Lower, lower, LOWER!!!!


      May I be the first to say that you make me, as a gay man, an atheist, a man who thinks government shouldn't control what you put in your body, a man who believes that those who can afford it should give back to the community, who believes that science should lead the way on issues of women's health and that women shouldn't be made to carry their rapist's baby, that our military is bloated and needs to be cut, and that everyone deserves a basic standard of living, sick? I think you might find a certain other Vladimir to be a good friend of yours.

      Actually, I'm a big Putin fan. So is 70% of Russians and most Crimeans. :)

      Good to know, I'll need a good punching bag about which to get needlessly angry and rant on the internet. Now, starting with the easy questions, why should gay marriage be illegal?


       Good question! But, before I start, you don't have to get angry with me. I'm a nice guy once you get past your initial disgust and contempt with me ;).
        Anyhow, I could simply answer that question based on my belief in God, but that's probably not what you are looking for, and I'd get a stock response for it so I'll stay away from that. Why gay "marriage" should be illegal; the definition of marriage is (or should be based on whatever view you have on the definition) a union between a man in a woman, based on love, for the purpose of creating a stable family environment for a child/children.
        Your next assertion would undoubtedly be one of the following; either, "If two gays love eachother, why can't they be happy too?" or, "Gays can create a stable family environment and raise children as well, so why can't they do so?". Well, before I continue, let me say that I have several gay family members/friends and I do not hate anybody for simply being gay. Now, with that said, I contend that homosexuality is not natural, and is a self-induced mental condition, meaning, a state of mind one puts themselves in. (I'll probably get questioned for this statement but I assure you I can back it up, but I'll save that for later). Also, for two gays to "create" a family, they have to either adopt a child, or artificially produce one through the help of modern science. Sure, on the outside it appears to be relatively similar to a "straight" marriage. But, the sad truth is, is that the vast majority of said gay "marriages" do not provide a stable family environment. Gays have a much higher; divorce rate, partner violence rate, disease (whether it be an STD or a genetic disease) rate, as well as a much lower percentage reporting marital fidelity.
           
          I could go on, but I have a feeling this is already a bit much. So, I'll continue whenever prompted to. Also, I can provide sources for these "accusations", which I will probably be asked to list. Also, let me assure you once more; I do not hate anybody for merely being gay. I have many gay friends/ a few gay family members. I do not hate anybody here that opposes my views/facts. Also, if you or anybody else disagrees, please avoid vitriol and stick to logical, factual responses; I'm not here for a pissing contest. (Just figured I should state all the above less I be called a 'homophobic bigoted hater' or something of the like).


      Okay, I'll bite. What is your source for these, shall we say... strong claims?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The world will shine with light in our nightmare on March 13, 2014, 01:13:28 AM
      Let's take this apart one piece at a time, shall we?

      Good question! But, before I start, you don't have to get angry with me. I'm a nice guy once you get past your initial disgust and contempt with me ;).
        Anyhow, I could simply answer that question based on my belief in God, but that's probably not what you are looking for, and I'd get a stock response for it so I'll stay away from that.

      Your point?  I am seeking and preparing to be on the ordination path this fall, partly because, and not in spite of, my unwavering support for increased LGBT representation and acceptance in the Christian church.  Your personal belief in God or what God wants should not dictate the law of the land.  In fact, it's worth absolutely nothing in the realm of civic discourse because it has no bearing on what other members of society believe in or desire.  Nothing warrants its mention.  If you oppose gay marriage for religious reasons, you have the right to not marry a person of the same gender.  You do not have the right to tell other people to live your lifestyle.

      Quote
      Why gay "marriage" should be illegal; the definition of marriage is (or should be based on whatever view you have on the definition) a union between a man in a woman, based on love, for the purpose of creating a stable family environment for a child/children.

      Why is your view on how marriage should be "defined" superior to any other view?

      Quote
      Your next assertion would undoubtedly be one of the following; either, "If two gays love eachother, why can't they be happy too?" or, "Gays can create a stable family environment and raise children as well, so why can't they do so?". Well, before I continue, let me say that I have several gay family members/friends and I do not hate anybody for simply being gay.

      Nobody cares how many gay people you know.  Really.  No one cares about your personal relations with other people.  If you affirm the right of opposite-sex couples to enter a marriage contract and oppose that same right for same-sex couples, you are essentially discriminating against the latter group.  I don't see how this doesn't constitute as hate.

      Quote
      Now, with that said, I contend that homosexuality is not natural, and is a self-induced mental condition, meaning, a state of mind one puts themselves in. (I'll probably get questioned for this statement but I assure you I can back it up, but I'll save that for later).

      Burden of proof is on you here.

      Quote
      Also, for two gays to "create" a family, they have to either adopt a child, or artificially produce one through the help of modern science. Sure, on the outside it appears to be relatively similar to a "straight" marriage. But, the sad truth is, is that the vast majority of said gay "marriages" do not provide a stable family environment. Gays have a much higher; divorce rate, partner violence rate, disease (whether it be an STD or a genetic disease) rate, as well as a much lower percentage reporting marital fidelity.

      I'm not sure where you get the divorce rate statistic from, since gay marriage is not legal in most states.  However, domestic violence is common among both straight and gay couples, and the majority of same-sex couples are well functioning (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19834003) similar to that of healthy heterosexual couples.  Even if you can prove statistical disparities between these groups, the burden is on you to draw a clear and direct link to sexual orientation.
          
      Quote
      I could go on, but I have a feeling this is already a bit much. So, I'll continue whenever prompted to. Also, I can provide sources for these "accusations", which I will probably be asked to list. Also, let me assure you once more; I do not hate anybody for merely being gay. I have many gay friends/ a few gay family members. I do not hate anybody here that opposes my views/facts. Also, if you or anybody else disagrees, please avoid vitriol and stick to logical, factual responses; I'm not here for a pissing contest. (Just figured I should state all the above less I be called a 'homophobic bigoted hater' or something of the like).

      You condescendingly put quotations around the word 'marriage,' when referring to gay marriages.  Why should we think of you as anything other than a bigot, given that you have a clear animus for same-sex couples?

      I will say no more until you provide sources.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The world will shine with light in our nightmare on March 13, 2014, 01:22:48 AM

      May I be the first to say that you make me, as a gay man, an atheist, a man who thinks government shouldn't control what you put in your body, a man who believes that those who can afford it should give back to the community, who believes that science should lead the way on issues of women's health and that women shouldn't be made to carry their rapist's baby, that our military is bloated and needs to be cut, and that everyone deserves a basic standard of living, sick? I think you might find a certain other Vladimir to be a good friend of yours.

      Are you really losing your sh*t to an obvious troll?

      Then again, I'd probably do the same thing.  THese trolls are like watching a train wreck.  So horrible, but you just got to watch.

         Hey, you should take a look at my political matrix score before assuming that. I'm the real deal ;)

      Right, because it's not like any idiot can just type in a fake PM score. ::)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: H.E. VOLODYMYR ZELENKSYY on March 13, 2014, 04:56:09 AM

         Is it Dr. Goebbels? Could've sworn that was Adolf. If you can show me it was Goebbels, I'll change my signature to show that.
      [/quote]

      Oh, wait, apparently you're right. Wikiquote says it's from Mein Kampf.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: ElectionsGuy on March 13, 2014, 06:13:26 AM
      Very socially conservative. A few examples;
      Abortion: Only when the life of the mother is seriously threatened.
      Gay "Marriage": Completely and totally illegal.
      Drugs: Marijuana should be completely illegal, and I'm not too fond of alcohol or cigarettes but I realize those two would be nearly impossible to illegalize, so I'll tolerate them in moderation.
      Church and State: Keep "In God we Trust", school prayers should be allowed but determined based on the school districts, freedom OF religion not FROM religion, take out the "Solemnly swear" parts of oaths and return to what it was, etc.

      Moderately economically conservative. A few examples;
      Taxes: Should be a universal tax rate from the bottom of the ladder to the very top, with the exception being the absolute poorest of the poor, whom should receive government assistance, but must prove they are actively trying to secure a job that can pay for themselves.
      Deficit Spending: Slash spending across the board, with the only exceptions being education and the military.
      Welfare: Only for the poorest of the poor, and drug test applicants.
      Debt Ceiling: Lower, lower, LOWER!!!!


      May I be the first to say that you make me, as a gay man, an atheist, a man who thinks government shouldn't control what you put in your body, a man who believes that those who can afford it should give back to the community, who believes that science should lead the way on issues of women's health and that women shouldn't be made to carry their rapist's baby, that our military is bloated and needs to be cut, and that everyone deserves a basic standard of living, sick? I think you might find a certain other Vladimir to be a good friend of yours.

      Actually, I'm a big Putin fan. So is 70% of Russians and most Crimeans. :)

      Good to know, I'll need a good punching bag about which to get needlessly angry and rant on the internet. Now, starting with the easy questions, why should gay marriage be illegal?


       Good question! But, before I start, you don't have to get angry with me. I'm a nice guy once you get past your initial disgust and contempt with me ;).
        Anyhow, I could simply answer that question based on my belief in God, but that's probably not what you are looking for, and I'd get a stock response for it so I'll stay away from that. Why gay "marriage" should be illegal; the definition of marriage is (or should be based on whatever view you have on the definition) a union between a man in a woman, based on love, for the purpose of creating a stable family environment for a child/children.
        Your next assertion would undoubtedly be one of the following; either, "If two gays love eachother, why can't they be happy too?" or, "Gays can create a stable family environment and raise children as well, so why can't they do so?". Well, before I continue, let me say that I have several gay family members/friends and I do not hate anybody for simply being gay. Now, with that said, I contend that homosexuality is not natural, and is a self-induced mental condition, meaning, a state of mind one puts themselves in. (I'll probably get questioned for this statement but I assure you I can back it up, but I'll save that for later). Also, for two gays to "create" a family, they have to either adopt a child, or artificially produce one through the help of modern science. Sure, on the outside it appears to be relatively similar to a "straight" marriage. But, the sad truth is, is that the vast majority of said gay "marriages" do not provide a stable family environment. Gays have a much higher; divorce rate, partner violence rate, disease (whether it be an STD or a genetic disease) rate, as well as a much lower percentage reporting marital fidelity.
           
          I could go on, but I have a feeling this is already a bit much. So, I'll continue whenever prompted to. Also, I can provide sources for these "accusations", which I will probably be asked to list. Also, let me assure you once more; I do not hate anybody for merely being gay. I have many gay friends/ a few gay family members. I do not hate anybody here that opposes my views/facts. Also, if you or anybody else disagrees, please avoid vitriol and stick to logical, factual responses; I'm not here for a pissing contest. (Just figured I should state all the above less I be called a 'homophobic bigoted hater' or something of the like).


      Sorry to pounce on the already lots of criticism of this, but there's no scientific evidence whatsoever to back this up. Also statistics shouldn't stop anybody from having a right to do something.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: afleitch on March 13, 2014, 07:35:47 AM
      Vladimir; back up your statement.

      If you consider it to be a 'self induced mental state', please outline precisely how all observations of animal species that reproduce by procreation have shown the display of homosexual behaviours. Please give evidence that all these animals, separated by hundreds of millions years of divergent evolution induce themselves into a differing mental state.

      With regards to humans, please provide hard evidence confirming the point in the life of an adolescent (and for my example I will choose a male) in which they induce themselves; i.e they make a conscious decision that their pupils will dilate, their palms will sweat, chemical responses will take place and blood will rush to engorge the penis to a state of erection whereby it may self lubricate when faced with an attractive specimen of the same sex. At what point in their life was that conscious decision made, particularly if they had not reacted in a similar fashion to females. If there is no sexual attraction until it actually manifests itself, can you please confirm with evidence at what point individuals made a conscious choice to have any sexual response heterosexual, homosexual or otherwise?

      Please also provide evidence, that in the event your hypothesis is 'true' that it sets aside homosexuals as a group that should be denied rights on the basis that their orientation is either a choice or a self induced mental state. Please provide evidence, given that you believe in God, that people's religious choices which involve adhering to a faith, leaving it, joining another, changing what you believe over the course of your lifetime or abandoning it altogether would not fit the same definition of a 'choice' or a 'self induced mental state', or if it does, that it deserves an arbitrary exemption from the conditions under which rights can be given or received?

      Please provide evidence that domestic violence rates amongst same sex couples are higher than amongst opposite sex couples.

      You may wish to review the following source material;

      Broken Rainbow Conference Report C Jones (2002)
      Homophobic Crime and Same-Sex Domestic Abuse D Collins, M Vallely (2001)
      Domestic Violence within Lesbian Relationships K Townley (2001)
      At the End of the Rainbow: A Report on Gay Male Domestic Violence and Abuse M Lehman (1997)
      Same-Sex Domestic Violence: Strategies for Change S Lundy, B Leventhal (1999)
      Lesbian, Gay Male, Bisexual and Transgendered Elders: Elder Abuse and Neglect Issues L Cook-Daniels (2002)
      Hold Tight, Tight Hold: A Project on Same-Sex Domestic Abuse: Same Sex Domestic Abuse - A New Approach D Shelley (2002)
      Violence & Abuse in Same-Sex Relationships: A Review of Literature A Richards, N Noret, I Rivers (2003)
      Hate crimes in Scotland: A summary of results from the Equality Network postcard and email survey on hate crimes  Equality Network (2004)
      Gay identity, interpersonal violence, and HIV risk behaviors: an empirical test of theoretical relationships among a probability-based sample of urban men who have sex with men M Relf, B Huang, J Campbell,Catania, J (2004)
      Violence and social injustice against lesbian, gay and bisexual people L Sloan, N Gustavsson (1998)
      Domestic Abuse against Men in Scotland  D Gadd, S Farrall, D Dallimore,Lombard, N (2002)
      Domestic Partner Abuse. L Kevin Hamberger, Claire Renzetti. (1999)
      Loving in Fear: lesbian and gay survivors of childhood sexual abuse. Queer Press Collective. (1993)
      Men who beat men who love them: battered gay men and domestic violence. David Island. (1995)
      Naming the violence: speaking out against lesbian battering. National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, Lesbian Task Force (1989)
      No more secrets: violence in lesbian relationships. Janice Ristock. (2002)
      Patterns of sexual violence among men. P.M. Davies (1998)
      Professional’s guide to understanding gay and lesbian domestic violence: understanding practice interventions. J C. McClennen and J Gunther (2000)
      Violent Betrayal: partner abuse in lesbian relationships. C M. Renzetti. (199

      Please provide evidence, drawn from official government data of higher level of divorce rates

      You may wish to refer to the following;

      Badgett, M.V. Lee; Herman, Jody L. (November 2011). Patterns of Relationship Recognition by Same-Sex Couples in the United States

      I am of course more familiar with UK data; the Office of National Statistics have confirmed that in the 7 year window since the introduction of civil partnerships, dissolution rates for those who had a civil partnership within those 7 years was 3.2% for m/m couples and 6.1% for f/f couples; which dovetails neatly into the existing understanding that in m/f couples, women are disproportionately higher instigators of divorce than men. The same figure for m/f couples, over the same 7 year window was 13%. While it is expected that over time these figures may converge, there is no evidence from my own country that divorce rates are higher.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Vladimir on March 13, 2014, 05:42:17 PM

      May I be the first to say that you make me, as a gay man, an atheist, a man who thinks government shouldn't control what you put in your body, a man who believes that those who can afford it should give back to the community, who believes that science should lead the way on issues of women's health and that women shouldn't be made to carry their rapist's baby, that our military is bloated and needs to be cut, and that everyone deserves a basic standard of living, sick? I think you might find a certain other Vladimir to be a good friend of yours.

      Are you really losing your sh*t to an obvious troll?

      Then again, I'd probably do the same thing.  THese trolls are like watching a train wreck.  So horrible, but you just got to watch.

         Hey, you should take a look at my political matrix score before assuming that. I'm the real deal ;)

      Right, because it's not like any idiot can just type in a fake PM score. ::)

         Please keep the insults out of this. I don't really care whether or not you are repulsed by me, but try to keep the conversation cordial. Resorting to insults makes you look bad :)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Goldwater on March 13, 2014, 05:51:35 PM
      I see you are dodging all of the questions, Vlad...


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Vladimir on March 13, 2014, 06:20:06 PM
      Let's take this apart one piece at a time, shall we?

      Good question! But, before I start, you don't have to get angry with me. I'm a nice guy once you get past your initial disgust and contempt with me ;).
        Anyhow, I could simply answer that question based on my belief in God, but that's probably not what you are looking for, and I'd get a stock response for it so I'll stay away from that.

      Your point?  I am seeking and preparing to be on the ordination path this fall, partly because, and not in spite of, my unwavering support for increased LGBT representation and acceptance in the Christian church.  Your personal belief in God or what God wants should not dictate the law of the land.  In fact, it's worth absolutely nothing in the realm of civic discourse because it has no bearing on what other members of society believe in or desire.  Nothing warrants its mention.  If you oppose gay marriage for religious reasons, you have the right to not marry a person of the same gender.  You do not have the right to tell other people to live your lifestyle.

      Quote
      Why gay "marriage" should be illegal; the definition of marriage is (or should be based on whatever view you have on the definition) a union between a man in a woman, based on love, for the purpose of creating a stable family environment for a child/children.

      Why is your view on how marriage should be "defined" superior to any other view?

      Quote
      Your next assertion would undoubtedly be one of the following; either, "If two gays love eachother, why can't they be happy too?" or, "Gays can create a stable family environment and raise children as well, so why can't they do so?". Well, before I continue, let me say that I have several gay family members/friends and I do not hate anybody for simply being gay.

      Nobody cares how many gay people you know.  Really.  No one cares about your personal relations with other people.  If you affirm the right of opposite-sex couples to enter a marriage contract and oppose that same right for same-sex couples, you are essentially discriminating against the latter group.  I don't see how this doesn't constitute as hate.

      Quote
      Now, with that said, I contend that homosexuality is not natural, and is a self-induced mental condition, meaning, a state of mind one puts themselves in. (I'll probably get questioned for this statement but I assure you I can back it up, but I'll save that for later).

      Burden of proof is on you here.

      Quote
      Also, for two gays to "create" a family, they have to either adopt a child, or artificially produce one through the help of modern science. Sure, on the outside it appears to be relatively similar to a "straight" marriage. But, the sad truth is, is that the vast majority of said gay "marriages" do not provide a stable family environment. Gays have a much higher; divorce rate, partner violence rate, disease (whether it be an STD or a genetic disease) rate, as well as a much lower percentage reporting marital fidelity.

      I'm not sure where you get the divorce rate statistic from, since gay marriage is not legal in most states.  However, domestic violence is common among both straight and gay couples, and the majority of same-sex couples are well functioning similar to that of healthy heterosexual couples.  Even if you can prove statistical disparities between these groups, the burden is on you to draw a clear and direct link to sexual orientation.
          
      Quote
      I could go on, but I have a feeling this is already a bit much. So, I'll continue whenever prompted to. Also, I can provide sources for these "accusations", which I will probably be asked to list. Also, let me assure you once more; I do not hate anybody for merely being gay. I have many gay friends/ a few gay family members. I do not hate anybody here that opposes my views/facts. Also, if you or anybody else disagrees, please avoid vitriol and stick to logical, factual responses; I'm not here for a pissing contest. (Just figured I should state all the above less I be called a 'homophobic bigoted hater' or something of the like).

      You condescendingly put quotations around the word 'marriage,' when referring to gay marriages.  Why should we think of you as anything other than a bigot, given that you have a clear animus for same-sex couples?

      I will say no more until you provide sources.

          About my faith; I recognize this and that is exactly why I chose to leave that argument out. I chose to go along the logical/statistical/factual/what-have-you side. Thus, please keep the Jesus bashing out of it.
           Secondly; my/many many people through history's view on the definition of marriage is "superior" because of a few things. First off, I will note briefly that the term "marriage" as is used today (not the simple unions between men and women used before in Greece, Rome, etc) was created by Christianity. Either way, my so-called "superior" definition is the definition that has been time-tested and time-proven to be the most effective and lasting of any unions between any 2 people. It is the definition that has been widely recognized as the "purpose" of marriage in our society and the definition which is the most logical. Now, if you want to allow gay "marriage" to be legal, than you'd have to redefine the definition of marriage and thus invalidate all marriages by the previous definition. If you want to allow gay "unions", then that is a different argument entirely.
          You then go on to state that nobody cares about how many gays I personally know. Before I continue, let me just state that that is a ridiculous statement. Of course nobody cares. I doubt you care about anything I could possibly say. Quite frankly, I don't care about anything you say either. Don't want to sound mean by saying these things, but it's the sad truth. This is the internet. Anything you say about yourself cannot be validated without myself personally going to your house and observing the said action/situation (Which, might I add, is a bit creepy :P). So, yes, I know that you do not care. Save both of us time and leave out obvious, irrelevant, statements. Clearly you intended that to in some way belittle/ "get" me. And, I will once more say, this makes you look bad and makes it more difficult for me to take your position seriously. I said that I personally know many gays for the sole purpose of removing any notion that I am either ignorant or that I "hate" gays. Clearly this was lost on you, however.
          Next, all the "bigot" accusations. Once more this makes it very difficult for me to take you seriously. You cannot "prove" that I am a "bigot", nor can I "prove" that I am not a "bigot", therefore these accusations are irrelevant and beyond the purpose of me stating my opinions here. I plead you again to keep your argument relevant, and logical. Your whole accusation falls under the guise that anybody that opposes gay "marriage" is a "bigot". This statement alone is beyond the realm of reality.
          Lastly, my "condescending" use of quotation marks; I use them around gay "marriage" because I do not consider it to be marriage, therefore I consider the subject to be false and only call it gay "marriage" for lack of a better term. Thus, I insert quotation marks to show that I do not recognize it's so-called legitimacy.
          
             My next post will include sources for you guys; but before I continue, I just want to ask this fellow to please keep any responses cordial and for them to be valuable responses that actually add something to the discussion. You say that you will not respond further until I provide sources (which I am about to do), likewise, I will not respond to you further unless your replies contain something of value and abstain from frivolous and trial accusations. I'd like a relatively serious discussion.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Vladimir on March 13, 2014, 06:21:44 PM
      I see you are dodging all of the questions, Vlad...

       Give me a bit of time, Goldwater; I have many responses to attend to haha. I'm going to spend a bit of time and pull up my sources next. If you have questions after that, then I'll get to them.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The world will shine with light in our nightmare on March 13, 2014, 06:39:36 PM
          About my faith; I recognize this and that is exactly why I chose to leave that argument out. I chose to go along the logical/statistical/factual/what-have-you side. Thus, please keep the Jesus bashing out of it.

      Well, you obviously didn't leave it out, otherwise it wouldn't have been in your post.  And please, the last thing I am is a 'Jesus-basher."

      Quote
           Secondly; my/many many people through history's view on the definition of marriage is "superior" because of a few things. First off, I will note briefly that the term "marriage" as is used today (not the simple unions between men and women used before in Greece, Rome, etc) was created by Christianity. Either way, my so-called "superior" definition is the definition that has been time-tested and time-proven to be the most effective and lasting of any unions between any 2 people. It is the definition that has been widely recognized as the "purpose" of marriage in our society and the definition which is the most logical. Now, if you want to allow gay "marriage" to be legal, than you'd have to redefine the definition of marriage and thus invalidate all marriages by the previous definition. If you want to allow gay "unions", then that is a different argument entirely.

      I fail to see how giving the same rights that everyone else has to gay couples invalidates the integrity of straight marriages.  As far as definitions go, no word is written in stone.  Language is an evolving thing, otherwise we would all be speaking the same language as our ancient ancestors.  Social institutions are evolving, as well, and many languages use one word to refer to multiple things.  In either case, semantics has little bearing on why two consenting adults should be allowed to enter a marriage contract.

      Quote
          You then go on to state that nobody cares about how many gays I personally know. Before I continue, let me just state that that is a ridiculous statement. Of course nobody cares. I doubt you care about anything I could possibly say. Quite frankly, I don't care about anything you say either. Don't want to sound mean by saying these things, but it's the sad truth. This is the internet. Anything you say about yourself cannot be validated without myself personally going to your house and observing the said action/situation (Which, might I add, is a bit creepy :P). So, yes, I know that you do not care. Save both of us time and leave out obvious, irrelevant, statements. Clearly you intended that to in some way belittle/ "get" me. And, I will once more say, this makes you look bad and makes it more difficult for me to take your position seriously. I said that I personally know many gays for the sole purpose of removing any notion that I am either ignorant or that I "hate" gays. Clearly this was lost on you, however.

      I can just as easily say, "I have a black friend," and support Jim Crow laws.  Again, it really doesn't matter.  My point is, you can say whatever you want and that doesn't change the context of your views.  No one is going to excuse you for bigotry based on how many gay people you know.  You will be called a bigot, and rightly so.

      Quote
          Next, all the "bigot" accusations. Once more this makes it very difficult for me to take you seriously. You cannot "prove" that I am a "bigot", nor can I "prove" that I am not a "bigot", therefore these accusations are irrelevant and beyond the purpose of me stating my opinions here. I plead you again to keep your argument relevant, and logical. Your whole accusation falls under the guise that anybody that opposes gay "marriage" is a "bigot". This statement alone is beyond the realm of reality.

      But I can.  You openly oppose allowing gay couples to enjoy the same rights as straight couples.  The evidence speaks for itself.  Try saying to someone, "Y'know, I wish they'd bring slavery back.  That's not because I'm racist, or anything."  See how they react.

      Quote
          Lastly, my "condescending" use of quotation marks; I use them around gay "marriage" because I do not consider it to be marriage, therefore I consider the subject to be false and only call it gay "marriage" for lack of a better term. Thus, I insert quotation marks to show that I do not recognize it's so-called legitimacy.

      Okay.  I will continue to call you a bigot and refuse to recognize you as human-being to show that I don't recognize you as anything else.  Sound good?

      I'm going to call a shovel a shovel regardless of how much it hurts your feelings or "makes me look bad."  Get used to it.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Vladimir on March 13, 2014, 07:04:34 PM
      I see you are dodging all of the questions, Vlad...

          Whelp, I spent about 30 minutes readying a post and citing sources, but it says I cannot post links until I have 20 posts. So, you guys decide; should I remove the links or just wait until I have 20 posts and insert the entire thing? (Copy-pasted the whole post into a word document).


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Vladimir on March 13, 2014, 07:13:16 PM
          About my faith; I recognize this and that is exactly why I chose to leave that argument out. I chose to go along the logical/statistical/factual/what-have-you side. Thus, please keep the Jesus bashing out of it.

      Well, you obviously didn't leave it out, otherwise it wouldn't have been in your post.  And please, the last thing I am is a 'Jesus-basher."

      Quote
           Secondly; my/many many people through history's view on the definition of marriage is "superior" because of a few things. First off, I will note briefly that the term "marriage" as is used today (not the simple unions between men and women used before in Greece, Rome, etc) was created by Christianity. Either way, my so-called "superior" definition is the definition that has been time-tested and time-proven to be the most effective and lasting of any unions between any 2 people. It is the definition that has been widely recognized as the "purpose" of marriage in our society and the definition which is the most logical. Now, if you want to allow gay "marriage" to be legal, than you'd have to redefine the definition of marriage and thus invalidate all marriages by the previous definition. If you want to allow gay "unions", then that is a different argument entirely.

      I fail to see how giving the same rights that everyone else has to gay couples invalidates the integrity of straight marriages.  As far as definitions go, no word is written in stone.  Language is an evolving thing, otherwise we would all be speaking the same language as our ancient ancestors.  Social institutions are evolving, as well, and many languages use one word to refer to multiple things.  In either case, semantics has little bearing on why two consenting adults should be allowed to enter a marriage contract.

      Quote
          You then go on to state that nobody cares about how many gays I personally know. Before I continue, let me just state that that is a ridiculous statement. Of course nobody cares. I doubt you care about anything I could possibly say. Quite frankly, I don't care about anything you say either. Don't want to sound mean by saying these things, but it's the sad truth. This is the internet. Anything you say about yourself cannot be validated without myself personally going to your house and observing the said action/situation (Which, might I add, is a bit creepy :P). So, yes, I know that you do not care. Save both of us time and leave out obvious, irrelevant, statements. Clearly you intended that to in some way belittle/ "get" me. And, I will once more say, this makes you look bad and makes it more difficult for me to take your position seriously. I said that I personally know many gays for the sole purpose of removing any notion that I am either ignorant or that I "hate" gays. Clearly this was lost on you, however.

      I can just as easily say, "I have a black friend," and support Jim Crow laws.  Again, it really doesn't matter.  My point is, you can say whatever you want and that doesn't change the context of your views.  No one is going to excuse you for bigotry based on how many gay people you know.  You will be called a bigot, and rightly so.

      Quote
          Next, all the "bigot" accusations. Once more this makes it very difficult for me to take you seriously. You cannot "prove" that I am a "bigot", nor can I "prove" that I am not a "bigot", therefore these accusations are irrelevant and beyond the purpose of me stating my opinions here. I plead you again to keep your argument relevant, and logical. Your whole accusation falls under the guise that anybody that opposes gay "marriage" is a "bigot". This statement alone is beyond the realm of reality.

      But I can.  You openly oppose allowing gay couples to enjoy the same rights as straight couples.  The evidence speaks for itself.  Try saying to someone, "Y'know, I wish they'd bring slavery back.  That's not because I'm racist, or anything."  See how they react.

      Quote
          Lastly, my "condescending" use of quotation marks; I use them around gay "marriage" because I do not consider it to be marriage, therefore I consider the subject to be false and only call it gay "marriage" for lack of a better term. Thus, I insert quotation marks to show that I do not recognize it's so-called legitimacy.

      Okay.  I will continue to call you a bigot and refuse to recognize you as human-being to show that I don't recognize you as anything else.  Sound good?

      I'm going to call a shovel a shovel regardless of how much it hurts your feelings or "makes me look bad."  Get used to it.


          It's pretty ridiculous to equate a lack of allowance for gay "marriage" to slavery. Texas doesn't have gay "marriage", and my cousin's doing just fine. He's recently got a new boyfriend and brought him over for my New Year's party. He's a nice guy too. But, I may have missed their shackles and whipping scars and the dogs that were chasing them down for escaping their plantation ;). I never stated that I advocated suppression of gays in any kind or extermination of them or what have you. I simply said that gay "marriage" should not be considered "marriage". Am I a promoter of slaughter of the gay populace for this horrid offence? I'd think that the overwhelming majority of people would disagree with you.
         Anyhow, trying to speak to you logically is impossible. I even resorted to your class of rhetoric to reply. But, like I've said, I will stop responding to you if you continue to fail to make a legitimate statement.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The world will shine with light in our nightmare on March 13, 2014, 07:16:47 PM
          About my faith; I recognize this and that is exactly why I chose to leave that argument out. I chose to go along the logical/statistical/factual/what-have-you side. Thus, please keep the Jesus bashing out of it.

      Well, you obviously didn't leave it out, otherwise it wouldn't have been in your post.  And please, the last thing I am is a 'Jesus-basher."

      Quote
           Secondly; my/many many people through history's view on the definition of marriage is "superior" because of a few things. First off, I will note briefly that the term "marriage" as is used today (not the simple unions between men and women used before in Greece, Rome, etc) was created by Christianity. Either way, my so-called "superior" definition is the definition that has been time-tested and time-proven to be the most effective and lasting of any unions between any 2 people. It is the definition that has been widely recognized as the "purpose" of marriage in our society and the definition which is the most logical. Now, if you want to allow gay "marriage" to be legal, than you'd have to redefine the definition of marriage and thus invalidate all marriages by the previous definition. If you want to allow gay "unions", then that is a different argument entirely.

      I fail to see how giving the same rights that everyone else has to gay couples invalidates the integrity of straight marriages.  As far as definitions go, no word is written in stone.  Language is an evolving thing, otherwise we would all be speaking the same language as our ancient ancestors.  Social institutions are evolving, as well, and many languages use one word to refer to multiple things.  In either case, semantics has little bearing on why two consenting adults should be allowed to enter a marriage contract.

      Quote
          You then go on to state that nobody cares about how many gays I personally know. Before I continue, let me just state that that is a ridiculous statement. Of course nobody cares. I doubt you care about anything I could possibly say. Quite frankly, I don't care about anything you say either. Don't want to sound mean by saying these things, but it's the sad truth. This is the internet. Anything you say about yourself cannot be validated without myself personally going to your house and observing the said action/situation (Which, might I add, is a bit creepy :P). So, yes, I know that you do not care. Save both of us time and leave out obvious, irrelevant, statements. Clearly you intended that to in some way belittle/ "get" me. And, I will once more say, this makes you look bad and makes it more difficult for me to take your position seriously. I said that I personally know many gays for the sole purpose of removing any notion that I am either ignorant or that I "hate" gays. Clearly this was lost on you, however.

      I can just as easily say, "I have a black friend," and support Jim Crow laws.  Again, it really doesn't matter.  My point is, you can say whatever you want and that doesn't change the context of your views.  No one is going to excuse you for bigotry based on how many gay people you know.  You will be called a bigot, and rightly so.

      Quote
          Next, all the "bigot" accusations. Once more this makes it very difficult for me to take you seriously. You cannot "prove" that I am a "bigot", nor can I "prove" that I am not a "bigot", therefore these accusations are irrelevant and beyond the purpose of me stating my opinions here. I plead you again to keep your argument relevant, and logical. Your whole accusation falls under the guise that anybody that opposes gay "marriage" is a "bigot". This statement alone is beyond the realm of reality.

      But I can.  You openly oppose allowing gay couples to enjoy the same rights as straight couples.  The evidence speaks for itself.  Try saying to someone, "Y'know, I wish they'd bring slavery back.  That's not because I'm racist, or anything."  See how they react.

      Quote
          Lastly, my "condescending" use of quotation marks; I use them around gay "marriage" because I do not consider it to be marriage, therefore I consider the subject to be false and only call it gay "marriage" for lack of a better term. Thus, I insert quotation marks to show that I do not recognize it's so-called legitimacy.

      Okay.  I will continue to call you a bigot and refuse to recognize you as human-being to show that I don't recognize you as anything else.  Sound good?

      I'm going to call a shovel a shovel regardless of how much it hurts your feelings or "makes me look bad."  Get used to it.


          It's pretty ridiculous to equate a lack of allowance for gay "marriage" to slavery. Texas doesn't have gay "marriage", and my cousin's doing just fine. He's recently got a new boyfriend and brought him over for my New Year's party. He's a nice guy too. But, I may have missed their shackles and whipping scars and the dogs that were chasing them down for escaping their plantation ;). I never stated that I advocated suppression of gays in any kind or extermination of them or what have you. I simply said that gay "marriage" should not be considered "marriage". Am I a promoter of slaughter of the gay populace for this horrid offence? I'd think that the overwhelming majority of people would disagree with you.

      Way to miss the entire point.

      Quote
         Anyhow, trying to speak to you logically is impossible. I even resorted to your class of rhetoric to reply. But, like I've said, I will stop responding to you if you continue to fail to make a legitimate statement.

      Thank you for ignoring half my post.

      I don't care if you decide to not respond anymore.  You will still be challenged on your assertions.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Vladimir on March 13, 2014, 07:26:16 PM
          About my faith; I recognize this and that is exactly why I chose to leave that argument out. I chose to go along the logical/statistical/factual/what-have-you side. Thus, please keep the Jesus bashing out of it.

      Well, you obviously didn't leave it out, otherwise it wouldn't have been in your post.  And please, the last thing I am is a 'Jesus-basher."

      Quote
           Secondly; my/many many people through history's view on the definition of marriage is "superior" because of a few things. First off, I will note briefly that the term "marriage" as is used today (not the simple unions between men and women used before in Greece, Rome, etc) was created by Christianity. Either way, my so-called "superior" definition is the definition that has been time-tested and time-proven to be the most effective and lasting of any unions between any 2 people. It is the definition that has been widely recognized as the "purpose" of marriage in our society and the definition which is the most logical. Now, if you want to allow gay "marriage" to be legal, than you'd have to redefine the definition of marriage and thus invalidate all marriages by the previous definition. If you want to allow gay "unions", then that is a different argument entirely.

      I fail to see how giving the same rights that everyone else has to gay couples invalidates the integrity of straight marriages.  As far as definitions go, no word is written in stone.  Language is an evolving thing, otherwise we would all be speaking the same language as our ancient ancestors.  Social institutions are evolving, as well, and many languages use one word to refer to multiple things.  In either case, semantics has little bearing on why two consenting adults should be allowed to enter a marriage contract.

      Quote
          You then go on to state that nobody cares about how many gays I personally know. Before I continue, let me just state that that is a ridiculous statement. Of course nobody cares. I doubt you care about anything I could possibly say. Quite frankly, I don't care about anything you say either. Don't want to sound mean by saying these things, but it's the sad truth. This is the internet. Anything you say about yourself cannot be validated without myself personally going to your house and observing the said action/situation (Which, might I add, is a bit creepy :P). So, yes, I know that you do not care. Save both of us time and leave out obvious, irrelevant, statements. Clearly you intended that to in some way belittle/ "get" me. And, I will once more say, this makes you look bad and makes it more difficult for me to take your position seriously. I said that I personally know many gays for the sole purpose of removing any notion that I am either ignorant or that I "hate" gays. Clearly this was lost on you, however.

      I can just as easily say, "I have a black friend," and support Jim Crow laws.  Again, it really doesn't matter.  My point is, you can say whatever you want and that doesn't change the context of your views.  No one is going to excuse you for bigotry based on how many gay people you know.  You will be called a bigot, and rightly so.

      Quote
          Next, all the "bigot" accusations. Once more this makes it very difficult for me to take you seriously. You cannot "prove" that I am a "bigot", nor can I "prove" that I am not a "bigot", therefore these accusations are irrelevant and beyond the purpose of me stating my opinions here. I plead you again to keep your argument relevant, and logical. Your whole accusation falls under the guise that anybody that opposes gay "marriage" is a "bigot". This statement alone is beyond the realm of reality.

      But I can.  You openly oppose allowing gay couples to enjoy the same rights as straight couples.  The evidence speaks for itself.  Try saying to someone, "Y'know, I wish they'd bring slavery back.  That's not because I'm racist, or anything."  See how they react.

      Quote
          Lastly, my "condescending" use of quotation marks; I use them around gay "marriage" because I do not consider it to be marriage, therefore I consider the subject to be false and only call it gay "marriage" for lack of a better term. Thus, I insert quotation marks to show that I do not recognize it's so-called legitimacy.

      Okay.  I will continue to call you a bigot and refuse to recognize you as human-being to show that I don't recognize you as anything else.  Sound good?

      I'm going to call a shovel a shovel regardless of how much it hurts your feelings or "makes me look bad."  Get used to it.


          It's pretty ridiculous to equate a lack of allowance for gay "marriage" to slavery. Texas doesn't have gay "marriage", and my cousin's doing just fine. He's recently got a new boyfriend and brought him over for my New Year's party. He's a nice guy too. But, I may have missed their shackles and whipping scars and the dogs that were chasing them down for escaping their plantation ;). I never stated that I advocated suppression of gays in any kind or extermination of them or what have you. I simply said that gay "marriage" should not be considered "marriage". Am I a promoter of slaughter of the gay populace for this horrid offence? I'd think that the overwhelming majority of people would disagree with you.

      Way to miss the entire point.

      Quote
         Anyhow, trying to speak to you logically is impossible. I even resorted to your class of rhetoric to reply. But, like I've said, I will stop responding to you if you continue to fail to make a legitimate statement.

      Thank you for ignoring half my post.

      I don't care if you decide to not respond anymore.  You will still be challenged on your assertions.

          I want to be challenged for my assertions. If I didn't, I wouldn't be spending time typing all this :)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Vladimir on March 13, 2014, 07:35:11 PM
      Also, I'm open to other arguments as well. But, I don't want to leave off on the gay thing unfinished... just need to keep finding ways to make semi-meaningless posts so I can get my count to 20 and be able to post all of my sources :)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: H.E. VOLODYMYR ZELENKSYY on March 14, 2014, 10:39:12 PM
      "I'm also opposed to taking rights from others in order to benefit other individuals" - Is this not the foundation of modern society?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Flake on March 15, 2014, 05:18:00 PM
      A modern Socialist society maybe.

      lol


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Cassius on March 15, 2014, 06:21:26 PM
      "I'm also opposed to taking rights from others in order to benefit other individuals" - Is this not the foundation of modern society?

      To some extent, it is among the foundation stones of every society that has ever existed. I mean, some of us right-wingers, myself included, talk a big game about "left-wing social engineering'. We're correct, in the sense that the left does like to engage in social engineering (through the tax system, through education etc.). But, and this is a big but, so do we (or at least a few of us). I mean, take a few of my views, such as on keeping most drugs criminalised, supporting restrictions on Sunday shopping and censoring obscene publications. All of those count as some form of social engineering. The truth is, everybody supports it to some extent.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: H.E. VOLODYMYR ZELENKSYY on March 15, 2014, 08:41:27 PM
      "I'm also opposed to taking rights from others in order to benefit other individuals" - Is this not the foundation of modern society?
      A modern Socialist society maybe.

      So how's the public fire department working out for you?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: ajackson on March 17, 2014, 12:52:09 AM
      I have a general mish mash of positions that could be summarized as "vaguely libertarian, centrist Republican".

      On social issues; I adhere to the theory that liberty should be maximized such that we are free to administrate our lives in any manner we wish so long as the equal rights of others are not violated in any manner by our actions. I'm far from a radical Liberatrian, but I am pro-drug legalization and anti-surveillance state. I am generally opposed to social engineering and "progressive" regulations such as smoking and school prayer bans.

      On economics; For starters, I want to abolish the federal reserve and the private central banking system in favor of a truly federal central bank that issues debt-free currency and that is backed  by either gold and silver or a bundle of several commodities which includes gold and silver.

      Beyond that;
      • I want to replace as much welfare spending as possible with direct cash payments in the form of refundable tax credits.
      • I am opposed to Obamacare, but my plan involves replacing the entire bill with the public option - a government run insurance company that offers below market rates, forcing downward pressure on prices in the private sector - I oppose the personal mandate.
      • I am not opposed to a progressive tax system, but do believe rates should be flatter. I want the child and EITC credit expanded (in accordance with the first bullet), and fewer brackets (I like some of the proposals for two brackets). I support abolishing the corporate tax.

      These would the issues I'm most focused on at the moment.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TNF on March 25, 2014, 10:07:26 AM
      Social Policy
      Abortion: Allow on demand at any stage of pregnancy, with no questions asked, no frivolous restrictions placed upon it by state legislatures and completely free of charge.
      Drugs: Legalize 'em.
      Censorship: No thank you.
      Gay Marriage: I'm partial to the 'end marriage and give everybody a civil union' school of thought, but I think the time when that might have been a possibility has largely passed, so I'm obviously in favor of marriage equality and am favorable toward the idea of further re-defining marriage and allowing more people to get in on the action (i.e. legalization of group marriage) in years to come.
      Death penalty: No thank you.
      Prostitution: Legalize it.
      Church and State: Ban religious schools, restrict religion in the public sphere, and tax churches proportional to their income.
      Stem cell research: Support (not living in 2003)
      PATRIOT Act: Repeal it.
      Gun control: Completely opposed, legalize all guns and require gun training courses in schools. Ideally replace the standing army with citizens' militia, same goes for the police force (assuming we're also abolishing most of the criminal code in favor of a more restitution-oriented kind of criminal code, of course) and nationalize the gun industry. Very strongly supportive of "gun culture" and individual self defense.
      Assisted suicide: Legalize it.
      Gambling: Collectivize the gambling industry and make it a socially productive activity.

      Electoral Reform
      Term Limits: I oppose term limits in that they're anti-democratic. A better solution is to implement recall provisions for all elected officials, from members of Congress to the President.
      Statehood: For whom? Let the territories decide their own fate, err on the side of independence. Ideally redraw all state boundaries along cultural/geographic/economic lines.
      Voting Age: 16.
      Campaign Finance Reform: Ban all corporate donations, end corporate personhood, limit campaigning to two weeks only, completely cover all campaign expenses out of the public treasury.
      Gerrymandering: Adopt proportional representation for the House of Representatives on the D'hondt method, abolish the Senate.
      Voter ID: End voter registration, let anyone who can make it to the polls vote.

      Economic Issues
      Welfare: Universal basic income + National Healthcare + Universal housing program + $21 an hour minimum wage + Right to a Job + National Education
      Unions: Should essentially run the economy, very very very supportive, abolish all restrictions on them (Taft-Hartley, Landrum-Griffin, Hatch Act, ect), encourage their growth, ban scabs, require union shops and hiring halls, etc. Collectivize industry and allow unions to manage it wherever industry is collectivized.
      Privatization: Make a U-Turn and start collectivizing large industries, with vital sectors divided between state owners and worker owners. Eventually stamp out private enterprise altogether and transform the economy into a worker-owned and managed democratic enterprise. (i.e. socialism)
      Environment: something something free mass transit something something universal auto insurance something something national parks
      Minimum Wage: $21/hour
      Taxation: Land Value Tax pls
      Healthcare: NHS style, with the state owning the hospitals and allowing Nurses and Doctors' unions to manage them; the state should also own all drug companies and produce useful drugs for public consumption
      Trade: End "free trade," in favor of an industrial policy focused on employing Americans and creating products that are long lasting and cheap. Collectivize factories left here by ungrateful corporations and let workers own and manage them.
      Embargo: End it, recognize the Castro government and make amends to build a better relationship in Latin America.
      Pork: Ban
      Subsidies: Nationalize/collectivize any institution receiving federal dollars
      Military: End standing army in favor of citizen militias, end all overseas activity, bring troops home etc

      Foreign Policy
      War: Only if the US is attacked
      Israel-Palestine: Recognize Palestine, ignore Israel
      Draft: No, but favorable to the idea of universal national service in non-military settings, provided said service pays union wages to those employed by it (and because that's not likely, the answer is emphatically 'no')
      UN: Support, make more democratic and weaken the influence of the Security Council
      Nukes: Seek international treaty banning or placing them under UN control
      Foreign Aid: Cancel all debt owed to the US and leave them alone


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: H.E. VOLODYMYR ZELENKSYY on March 25, 2014, 02:30:30 PM
      Abortion: Allow on demand at any stage of pregnancy, with no questions asked, no frivolous restrictions placed upon it by state legislatures and completely free of charge.

      So you're saying that life begins at birth? How did you come to this conclusion?

      Gun control: Completely opposed, legalize all guns and require gun training courses in schools. Ideally replace the standing army with citizens' militia, same goes for the police force (assuming we're also abolishing most of the criminal code in favor of a more restitution-oriented kind of criminal code, of course) and nationalize the gun industry. Very strongly supportive of "gun culture" and individual self defense.

      What if the "self-defense" turns out to be unnecessary - would have acquitted George Zimmerman? Does "abolishing most of the criminal code" mean changing our punishment system or abolishing most criminal laws? What if a psycho goes and takes a cannon and kills a hundred people? Are you aware that a gun in the home is more likely to kill a child than an intruder?

      Voter ID: End voter registration, let anyone who can make it to the polls vote.

      What if they're not citizens? I don't think Venezuelans should be allowed to choose our leaders.

      Unions: Should essentially run the economy, very very very supportive, abolish all restrictions on them (Taft-Hartley, Landrum-Griffin, Hatch Act, ect), encourage their growth, ban scabs, require union shops and hiring halls, etc. Collectivize industry and allow unions to manage it wherever industry is collectivized.

      I'm inherently suspicious of anyone "essentially running" anything with no restrictions. What if unions go bad (and don't say they can do no wrong because of your union fetishism)?

      Military: End standing army in favor of citizen militias, end all overseas activity, bring troops home etc
      War: Only if the US is attacked
      Foreign Aid: Cancel all debt owed to the US and leave them alone

      I agree with most of this stuff, but what if, say, North Korea attacks South Korea and the only way to stop them is military intervention (Kim Jong-un is not one for diplomatic negotiation, after all)? Are we not obliged to defend our friend, an ally, and a democratic state from North Korean dictatorship? Secondly, what if South Korea's economy is devastated by the Second Korean War and they need our help to get back on our feet?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: H. Ross Peron on March 25, 2014, 07:44:42 PM
      Quote
      Church and State: Ban religious schools, restrict religion in the public sphere, and tax churches proportional to their income.

      What do you mean by the bolded portion?

      Quote
      Voter ID: End voter registration, let anyone who can make it to the polls vote.

      Would absentee voting and/or voting by mail still exist?





      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The world will shine with light in our nightmare on March 25, 2014, 07:50:37 PM
      Ban religious schools, restrict religion in the public sphere,
      Would 'religious schools' include seminaries and colleges?  If so, I guess I can kiss that M.Div goodbye. :(

      I'm also curious to know what the second part means.

      Quote
      Voter ID: End voter registration, let anyone who can make it to the polls vote.

      Do clarify.  So, anyone who drives to a voting booth gets to vote and not show or tell anyone anything, regardless of whether they've voted before that day?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: H.E. VOLODYMYR ZELENKSYY on March 25, 2014, 09:06:36 PM
      I assume Tiffany means no crosses on public land and suchlike.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TNF on March 25, 2014, 10:56:11 PM
      Quote from: AFJ
      So you're saying that life begins at birth? How did you come to this conclusion?

      Actually, I believe that life begins at conception, because it's honestly kind of bizarre to argue otherwise. I just don't place an overwhelming priority on PRESERVING LIFE AT ALL COSTS that a lot of folks do. In my mind, however, the rights of the mother, as the carrier of the child, outweigh the rights of the unborn child and she should have full bodily autonomy until that child is born.

      Quote
      What if the "self-defense" turns out to be unnecessary - would have acquitted George Zimmerman? Does "abolishing most of the criminal code" mean changing our punishment system or abolishing most criminal laws? What if a psycho goes and takes a cannon and kills a hundred people? Are you aware that a gun in the home is more likely to kill a child than an intruder?

      No sane advocate of self defense would permit so-called Stand Your Ground laws. Those go against the very spirit of self defense. When I say 'abolishing most of the criminal code', I mostly mean eliminating the causes of crime, gutting laws against victimless crimes, and changing our punishment system so that prisons are replaced by something more humane. I am definitely a prison abolitionist and support the end of the prison system as it currently exists. I don't think that a society that teaches children to use guns from a young age and make sure that said weaponry is properly maintained and taken care of is going to run into those kinds of problems. Plus, assuming want was eliminated, you wouldn't have the vast majority of crime, which involves property.

      Quote
      What if they're not citizens? I don't think Venezuelans should be allowed to choose our leaders.

      I support abolishing citizenship as a concept.

      Quote
      I'm inherently suspicious of anyone "essentially running" anything with no restrictions. What if unions go bad (and don't say they can do no wrong because of your union fetishism)?

      I favor a syndicalist economy, broadly speaking. Unions should be the basic economic unit of the economy and should hash out what the economy will look like, acting through workers' councils to plan production and distribution of goods. So long as internal union democracy is maintained, I have literally no problem with transferring the whole of private property and industry over to the workers themselves, acting through their unions.

      Quote
      I agree with most of this stuff, but what if, say, North Korea attacks South Korea and the only way to stop them is military intervention (Kim Jong-un is not one for diplomatic negotiation, after all)? Are we not obliged to defend our friend, an ally, and a democratic state from North Korean dictatorship? Secondly, what if South Korea's economy is devastated by the Second Korean War and they need our help to get back on our feet?

      South Korea is a big boy. It can defend itself. So long as the U.S. has commitments to South Korea, I would support honoring those commitments, but in the meantime I would like the U.S. to sever those commitments and let the South Koreans defend themselves. In the event of a Second Korean War I would hope that the U.S. would enact some kind of aid package to South Korea, with no strings attached, though of course I'm not naive enough to actually think the U.S. would do so without significant 'concessions' in the form of South Korean capital destroying unions, privatizing decision-making, etc.



      Quote from: GMB
      What do you mean by the bolded portion?

      No religious displays on public land, mostly.

      Quote
      Would absentee voting and/or voting by mail still exist?

      Definitely. In fact, voting would be as easy as possible, with multiple ways of doing it, from voting online (on extremely secure servers) to postal voting to absentee voting. I'd like to see elections moved to the weekend, starting on Friday and ending on Monday.



      Quote from: Scott
      Would 'religious schools' include seminaries and colleges?  If so, I guess I can kiss that M.Div goodbye. Sad

      I'm also curious to know what the second part means.

      Nah, I was mostly referring to private religious schools for persons under 18.

      See above on the second part.

      Quote
      Do clarify.  So, anyone who drives to a voting booth gets to vote and not show or tell anyone anything, regardless of whether they've voted before that day?

      One would assume that if they've been there once before a poll worker might notice? If not, I'm sure there'd be a way of writing down a name once you got in and voted, just for record-keeping purposes.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RTX on March 26, 2014, 08:52:18 PM
      Social Policy
      Abortion: Against, with exceptions for rape, mother's health, and severe fetal abnormalities that would render it unviable. I'd be ok with states deciding their own policy up to 24 weeks. No public funding whatsoever.
      Drugs: Decriminalize weed. Stop the drug war against the others, but keep illegal.
      Censorship: Against, except for illegal things
      Gay Marriage: The federal government doesn't issue marriage licenses, so I think it should be left up to the states to decide.
      Death penalty: Undecided. I can see both sides of the argument.
      Prostitution: Allow it, but heavily restrict where brothels can be set up
      Church and State: Keep separate. I have no issue with "In God We Trust" on the money, after all, they are technically Federal Reserve Notes.
      Stem cell research: Support, as long as it's not derived from embryos. Heavily support research.
      PATRIOT Act: Repeal. Also eliminate the DHS.
      Gun control: Keep it how it is now.
      Assisted suicide: Against.
      Gambling: Allow it

      Electoral Reform
      Term Limits: Against.
      Statehood: If 2/3 of the states agree, a territory can become a state, or a region of an existing state can break away and form a new state.
      Voting Age: 18
      Campaign Finance Reform: Companies and unions restricted from donating  
      Gerrymandering: It's going to exist as long as race plays an issue
      Voter ID: Completely support, and allow free access to an acceptable form of identification.

      Economic Issues
      Welfare: Should primarily be for those who cannot help themselves. For people who fall on hard times, there should be assistance, but only for a limited amount of time.
      Unions: I don't support mandatory membership in a union, and I think unions generally end up cannibalizing their members. There can be a mutually beneficial and respectful relationship though between businesses and unions where both sides work in good faith together without vilifying the other.
      Privatization: Privatize AMTRAK. Raise the Social Security age for people 40 and younger.
      Environment: Convert most government vehicles to natural gas or electricity and require all future non-law enforcement vehicles to be run on natural gas or electricity. Test pilot placing solar panels on government buildings. No carbon taxes or cap-and-trade. Against nuclear power.
      Minimum Wage: Tie it to inflation - with a cap of 3% per year. It adjusts every five years.
      Taxation: $1 income tax on the first $30,000. Cut other rates by 10%. Increase tariffs. Reduce the corporate tax. Eliminate the inheritance tax.
      Healthcare: Repeal Obamacare. Make the FDA more efficient in approving new drugs. Require labeling of GMOs. Remove fluoride from the water.
      Trade: Repeal NAFTA, CAFTA, and the other "free trade" agreements that hurt Americans. They are scams - true free trade agreements would be the repealing of the laws that originally created the impediments to trading freely, not passing bills that create rules of how to "freely" trade and set up trans-national courts that supersede US law. I'd rather spend a little more for American-made products.
      Embargo: Doesn't really matter to me.
      Pork: Each congressional district gets an equal amount of money each session to use for pork projects. Whatever the figure is cannot be exceeded. If it is, it is taken out of the representative's salary.
      Subsidies: I think it depends on a case-by-case basis, but generally against.
      Military: Close most overseas military bases and reduce the defense budget accordingly.
      Miscellaneous: Reenact Glass-Steagal. Support a Balanced Budget Amendment.

      Foreign Policy
      War: Non-interventonist. No wars, unless we're attacked or unless there is an immediate, verifiable threat
      Israel-Palestine: Recognize Palestine, substantially reduce foreign aid to Israel.
      Draft: Against.
      UN: Get the US out. The UN believes the government gives people their rights, instead of the people giving the government its rights. This is the antithesis of what the United States is about.
      Nukes: They're here to stay, might as well keep them to provide a good deterrent
      Foreign Aid: Drastically reduce foreign aid. Solve American problems first.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: daveosupremo on March 26, 2014, 10:10:49 PM
      Social Policy*
      Abortion: Only in cases of rape, incest and life of the mother. Focus on education and contraception as a means to curb unwanted pregnancies. Encourage charities and other non-governmental organizations to provide free vasectomies and tubal ligation surgeries.
      Drugs: No federal regulations for possession, but stricter penalties for trafficking. States should decide drug policies, not the federal government. Ideally, implement marijuana policies similar to Colorado and Washington. Harder drug use treated as a public health issue, while distribution remains a criminal offense. Tighter regulation of prescription drugs, up to and including revocation of medical licenses for over-prescribing medication.
      Censorship: None whatsoever, with the exception of child pornography.
      Gay Marriage: Get the government out of marriage. Legally binding contracts such as civil unions are okay for anybody, including among more than two partners. Marriage would become a largely religious institution, as it has been historically. Also, no tax incentives for civilly united couples (more on that later).
      Death penalty: I don’t like the idea of the government taking the lives of its own citizens, except in the case of treason and terrorism.
      Prostitution: “Selling is legal. F***ing is legal. Why isn’t selling f***ing legal?”~George Carlin. Prostitution should be legalized and regulated by the states.
      Church and State: Religious symbols are fine on public land, but federal money should not be used to erect them. Freedom of religion is not freedom from religion. No religious litmus test for public officials. Teachers can pray with students, but not compel students to participate. 
      Stem cell research: Fully support.
      PATRIOT Act: Repeal and replace it. No domestic spying. No storing of call records. Eliminate the TSA and DHS.
      Gun control: Completely opposed, legalize all guns and allow local school districts to provide firearm training to students. Allow non-violent felons to own guns after their sentences have been served. Implement stand-your-ground laws and castle doctrine in all 50 states.
      Assisted suicide: Against it, but encourage insurance companies to include mental health and counseling in health care plans.
      Gambling: Treat it like any other business. Allow casinos to go up anywhere, and tax them on their profits.
      *Because I believe that local governments should trump state governments, and state governments should trump federal in most cases, allow local and state governments to make specific changes to social policies implemented by the higher echelons, with the exceptions of abortion, capital punishment and assisted suicide.
      Electoral Reform
      Term Limits: Enact term limits on the three branches of government to prevent a ruling class of government oligarchs passing laws that do not apply to them. Nobody needs to spend 40 years in the senate. Term limits would not apply to individuals who move to a different branch (i.e. a two term senator can still run for president). This would apply to the Supreme Court as well.
      Statehood: No change. The will of the people of the territory, followed by the approval of congress.
      Voting Age: 18.
      Campaign Finance Reform: Free speech is free speech. Allow unlimited donations to political campaigns, to make politicians responsible for the content of their own commercials.
      Gerrymandering: No change.
      Voter ID: Implement and enforce voter ID laws in all 50 states.

      Economic Issues
      Welfare: Mandatory drug tests for all recipients. Able bodied individuals must be looking for a job or advancing education to increase marketability in order to collect welfare.
      Unions: Eliminate all public unions. There should be no legislation of any kind related to private sector unions.
      Privatization: As much as possible. Federal government should sell virtually all federal land back to the states. States should sell it as they see fit. Government industries should be privatized. Government research should be largely privatized.
      Environment: Approve Keystone. Drill ANWR and offshore. Stop all energy subsidies to green energy and oil companies. Deregulate the energy industry.
      Minimum Wage: Let states and localities decide minimum wage. Eliminate federal minimum wage.
      Taxation: Flat tax for corporations and individuals. Eliminate ALL loopholes, including for charity and marriage.
      Trade: Encourage free trade. Use sanctions on a case by case basis to encourage countries to see things our way.
      Embargo: Keep it in place, and work to encourage Cubans to implement change in their own country and elect more suitable leaders after the Castro’s are out of power.
      Pork: Ban
      Subsidies: Far too broad a topic to cover here. Cut some, leave some. Government shouldn’t be picking winners and losers, or altering the market.
      Military: Increase standards for soldiers, and kick out soldiers who do not meet the standards. Decrease the size of active military in favor of a larger National Guard and Reserve force, and focus on increased technology. Use the military to break enemy nations, not fix them. Audit the Department of Defense and cut redundant spending and programs (I have been active duty Army for 7 years, and I assure you there is a lot of redundancy and waste). End baseline budgeting for the military. Have individual units prepare budgets a year in advance and be able to provide a reason for every requested penny (this should actually apply to every cabinet level department). Leave Afghanistan. Close unnecessary bases worldwide, and bring troops home. If we’re going to police the world, we should do it from space and with missiles and aircraft carriers, not tens of thousands of soldiers just hanging out in Europe and Asia.  Increase the size of the Navy, and control the oceans. Also, get rid of all the contractors. I could go on all day, but there is some serious reform necessary in the DOD. Most importantly, make sure our technology is 10 times better than anyone elses, and never stop improving it.

      Foreign Policy
      War: Only if a matter of national security.
      Israel-Palestine: Let the Israelis and Palestinians sort it out. Recognize Israel’s sovereignty and borders and fully support them militarily if they are attacked.
      Draft: An emphatic No.
      UN: Should have no say whatsoever on U.S. domestic policy, or control of the internet. Increase our influence in the UN, or stop providing over 20% of its budget.
      Nukes: Keep every single one of ours, and prevent as many other countries as possible from getting them.
      Foreign Aid: Cancel debt owed to the US by the poorest nations. Stop automatic foreign aid. Allow countries to ask for aid on a case by case basis. Provide American made products, rather than cash. Provide training and aid to build infrastructure in impoverished nations, rather than feeding a money pit.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Goldwater on March 27, 2014, 12:18:08 AM
      Wait, Vlad was banned for his political views? I don't buy it.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: H.E. VOLODYMYR ZELENKSYY on March 29, 2014, 10:52:27 PM
      Quote
      What if they're not citizens? I don't think Venezuelans should be allowed to choose our leaders.

      I support abolishing citizenship as a concept.

      Does this mean abolishing all nations and living under one world government? Not saying that's a bad thing, just asking for clarification. Also not using subjects in sentences.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: H.E. VOLODYMYR ZELENKSYY on March 29, 2014, 10:53:00 PM
      Wait, Vlad was banned for his political views? I don't buy it.

      I'm told he posted actual Nazi propaganda, though it doesn't show up in his posting history and was presumably deleted.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RR1997 on April 08, 2014, 05:58:38 PM
      To quickly summarize my political beliefs, I consider myself a conservative on economic issues, a neocon on foreign policy, and socially centrist.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: MurrayBannerman on April 10, 2014, 02:21:56 PM
      Social Policy
      Abortion:[/b] I am pro-life. However, I do not believe it's within my rights to take this away from someone. I would rather incentivize adoption and make it a more attractive option for mothers who do not want to raise a child.
      Drugs: My main concern with this is pushing people away from jail who are users and pushing the distributors towards it. This would be done through decriminalization of some, if not all, recreational drugs, and placing very strong laws on the production and distribution of the drugs.
      Censorship: Thoroughly against it.
      Gay Marriage: Pro-gay marriage. More or less I don't see why it's my business. Marriage isn't a religious institution historically. I don't see why I should distort the facts to maintain an antiquated social norm.
      Death penalty: State issue. I don't believe I could carry this out in anything other than an extreme circumstance, ie Osama or Hitler.
      Prostitution: State issue.
      Church and State: Fine with where we're currently at, but common sense should rule this debate. If a town wants to put up a Christmas tree, let them.
      Stem cell research: Fully support this and the advancement of science in general.
      PATRIOT Act: Repeal it.
      Gun control: I'm fine with the imposition of some simple restrictions, ie background checks at gun shows. But, overall, I would want it to be coupled with a guarantee of the security of rights to gun owners and advancement of mental health studies.
      Assisted suicide: No.
      Gambling: I'd be in favor of some gambling reforms; however, I'm not sure what they'd be.

      Electoral Reform
      Term Limits: 20 for SCOTUS judges, 12 for Senate members, and 8 for House members.
      Voting Age: 18
      Campaign Finance Reform: Ban lobbying nearly completely and restrict donations to certain periods.
      Gerrymandering: Proportional.
      Voter ID: I'm very torn on this.

      Economic Issues
      Welfare: Reform social security, medicare, medicaid and replace Obamacare. Social security would be replaced for those under 40 with a private fund. Those private funds would have a safety net of a certain amount of dollars. Those making more than a certain amount will not receive SS. Most of my health reform will be discussed in the appropriate section. In terms of the impoverished, those who cannot help themselves should be given aid, but those who are generally poor should be pushed toward employment by offering skill training and like programs.
      Unions: They're basically dead. Localized unions without a nation, or state-wide, apparatus can be beneficial.
      Privatization: In favor of some privatization efforts.
      Environment: Very much pro-environmental progress. I may be skeptical of global warming timelines; however, there are only positive externalities to the progress of this. It will also help us grow our economy substantially if we become the leader in green energy.
      Minimum Wage: Australian, age based, system.
      Taxation: Cut the death tax to 10%. Cut corporate taxes and close loopholes. I'm in favor of taxes raises and cuts depending on the economic situation.
      Healthcare: Payment reform is required. Doctors should receive a salary, not payment based on the services they perform. Near complete elimination of paperwork. The costs associated with PAPER are astronomical. This baffles me. Deincentivize negative life choices like cigarette smoking. Cut the state restrictions on insurance companies and place national reforms on the industry. Tax reform on employer insurance coverage. Tort reform. Voucher, or similar, system with Medicare.
      I would also be infavor of an outside the box idea, like enrolling in an exchange of competitive bidding where companies would bid to cover your service. This would be a more free market option, but I'm not sure how it would work.
      Trade: Free trade.
      Embargo: End the embargo with Cuba. It will push them towards capitalism
      Pork: Ban
      Subsidies: In favor of them if they will return either a highly beneficial addition to the economy or something that is fantastic, but otherwise impossible.
      Military: Cut the waste. Efficiency is key for me in every part of the budget.

      Foreign Policy
      War: It's a foreign policy tool. One that I would use if needed. That said, I strongly prefer the use of other means to support the interests of this country.
      Israel-Palestine: Recognize Israel and negotiate an Arab mega-state similar to the Ottoman Empire and what was being planned with Hussein bin Ali.
      Draft: No. No. No.
      UN: The UN is fine, but I don't take them seriously. I'd do what I want.
      Nukes: Support a world wide proliferation effort.
      Foreign Aid: Support nations who need it. These nations do not need hefty sums to derive heavy returns. However, I would generally support a substitution of American products and training aid to nations.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: WillTheMormon on April 11, 2014, 01:40:40 PM
      I'll try:

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Absolutely opposed. Pro-life 100%
      Drugs: All should be illegal, including tobacco and alcohol. Caffeine should be legal but strongly regulated.
      Censorship: It's absolutely necessary to protect our children. I have a two-year-old niece so I know.
      Gay Marriage: Absolutely opposed. Marriage is between a man and a woman. Civil unions are a state issue. Just don't call it marriage.
      Death penalty: Absolutely opposed.
      Prostitution: Absolutely opposed. It's legal in my state but not my county.
      Church and State: Freedom of religion for all.
      Stem cell research: Absolutely opposed. The government under no circumstances should violate the sanctity of human life.
      PATRIOT Act: Necessary to keep us safe.
      Gun control: As an NRA member and firearms enthusiast, keep your hands off my guns government!
      Assisted suicide: Absolutely opposed. (See Abortion, Death Penalty and Stem Cells)
      Gambling: Absolutely opposed. Used to be a big gambler in college though.

      Electoral Reform
      Term Limits: Support them. Get the old bastards out of office!
      Voting Age: 18 is fine with me
      Campaign Finance Reform: Absolutely necessary to make sure everyone has a fair shot, eliminate the influence of corporate fat-cats on politics and leave the decision to the people!
      Gerrymandering: Should be done by a non-partisan commission. Strongly support the Tanner Proposal.
      Voter ID: Absolutely opposed as it disenfranchises the vote of the poor and minorities.

      Economic Issues
      Welfare: Strongly support it. Makes sure everyone has a fair shot in society.
      Unions: Strongly support them! Equal rights for the workers!
      Privatization: The Government needs to control some industries. The fat-cats can't become too powerful.
      Environment: Global warming and pollution are big problems. The government needs to act on them or the earth will suffer.
      Minimum Wage: Raise it! Even $10 is too low in my opinion. Make it at least $12.
      Taxation: Tax hikes for the rich! Everyone needs to pay their fair share, especially the top 1% as they have much more to pay.
      Healthcare: Obamacare is a great idea but horribly executed (plus it promotes abortion and contraception) so I oppose it. I strongly support universal healthcare though. The US needs to have something like the British NHS, not Obamacare.
      Trade: Needs to have some restrictions.
      Embargo: My co-worker's Cuban and we both agree the embargo's absolutely neccesary.
      Pork: Not really sure what that is??
      Subsidies: If the government was to pay for something why not?
      Military: Increase spending. It's a dangerous world out there!

      Foreign Policy
      War: Supported Iraq when it happened. Think we should stay in Afghanistan. Consider myself fairly hawkish. BTW, my dad and two of my uncles are Vietnam Veterans. Both my grandads fought in WWII.
      Israel-Palestine: Pro-Israel. The Jews need a homeland after the devastation the Holocaust caused them. The Muslims already have the rest of the peninsula plus Central Asia, half of Africa and Turkey.
      Draft: Unless there's another World War, no.
      UN: I like the UN but think it needs to be much stronger.
      Nukes: Get Iran and North Korea away from them!!!
      Foreign Aid: If a country is in trouble, we have to help them!


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Хahar 🤔 on April 11, 2014, 02:08:42 PM

      You're not a candidate for federal office. Saying something "should be left to the states" isn't an actual position.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: WillTheMormon on April 11, 2014, 02:31:06 PM

      You're not a candidate for federal office. Saying something "should be left to the states" isn't an actual position.

      I think each state should vote on whether civil unions for gay and lesbian couples should be legal or not. Either in the legislature or have a referendum though I prefer the latter over the former.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Хahar 🤔 on April 11, 2014, 02:37:11 PM

      You're not a candidate for federal office. Saying something "should be left to the states" isn't an actual position.

      I think each state should vote on whether civil unions for gay and lesbian couples should be legal or not. Either in the legislature or have a referendum though I prefer the latter over the former.

      That doesn't answer the question of what your actual position is on the matter.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: WillTheMormon on April 11, 2014, 04:57:47 PM

      You're not a candidate for federal office. Saying something "should be left to the states" isn't an actual position.

      I think each state should vote on whether civil unions for gay and lesbian couples should be legal or not. Either in the legislature or have a referendum though I prefer the latter over the former.

      That doesn't answer the question of what your actual position is on the matter.

      Well if I was voting on whether or not civil unions should be legalized in Nevada, I would vote no. Does this answer your question?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Maxwell on April 11, 2014, 05:18:23 PM
      Drugs: All should be illegal, including tobacco and alcohol. Caffeine should be legal but strongly regulated.
      Gun control: As an NRA member and firearms enthusiast, keep your hands off my guns government!

      This makes absolutely no sense.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The world will shine with light in our nightmare on April 11, 2014, 05:20:43 PM
      Caffeine should be legal but strongly regulated.

      This is a joke, right?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: WillTheMormon on April 11, 2014, 05:29:44 PM

      I know there's no way it's realistically happening but I'm a Mormon and I don't drink caffeine.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TJ in Oregon on April 11, 2014, 08:37:26 PM

      I know there's no way it's realistically happening but I'm a Mormon and I don't drink caffeine.

      Along those lines, are alcohol and caffeine considered equivalent in Mormonism? All the Mormons I know seem to be uncomfortable around people drinking alcohol but not bothered by coffee. Why is this?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Bojack Horseman on April 19, 2014, 04:44:19 PM
      End the war on drugs, pass ENDA, equal rights for LGBT, ban states from passing right to work, and end the War on Women.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Goldwater on April 19, 2014, 04:48:58 PM
      End the war on drugs, pass ENDA, equal rights for LGBT, ban states from passing right to work, and end the War on Women.

      I was unaware of this war. We clearly shouldn't be wasting our military's budget on such a costly and pointless endeavor.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Meursault on April 19, 2014, 04:50:51 PM

      I know there's no way it's realistically happening but I'm a Mormon and I don't drink caffeine.

      Do you think that the socio-political views of Mormonism ought to be extended to cover non-Mormons?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: H.E. VOLODYMYR ZELENKSYY on April 22, 2014, 08:47:41 PM

      I know there's no way it's realistically happening but I'm a Mormon and I don't drink caffeine.

      I live in a suburb and don't own a gun. Therefore gun ownership should be legal but strongly regulated.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Goldwater on April 22, 2014, 09:48:39 PM

      I know there's no way it's realistically happening but I'm a Mormon and I don't drink caffeine.

      I live in a suburb and don't own a gun. Therefore gun ownership should be legal but strongly regulated.

      I get the joke, but isn't that your actual view on gun control? :P


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: ElectionsGuy on April 22, 2014, 10:14:15 PM
      I'll try:

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Absolutely opposed. Pro-life 100%
      Drugs: All should be illegal, including tobacco and alcohol. Caffeine should be legal but strongly regulated.
      Censorship: It's absolutely necessary to protect our children. I have a two-year-old niece so I know.
      Gay Marriage: Absolutely opposed. Marriage is between a man and a woman. Civil unions are a state issue. Just don't call it marriage.
      Death penalty: Absolutely opposed.
      Prostitution: Absolutely opposed. It's legal in my state but not my county.
      Church and State: Freedom of religion for all.
      Stem cell research: Absolutely opposed. The government under no circumstances should violate the sanctity of human life.
      PATRIOT Act: Necessary to keep us safe.
      Gun control: As an NRA member and firearms enthusiast, keep your hands off my guns government!
      Assisted suicide: Absolutely opposed. (See Abortion, Death Penalty and Stem Cells)
      Gambling: Absolutely opposed. Used to be a big gambler in college though.

      Electoral Reform
      Term Limits: Support them. Get the old bastards out of office!
      Voting Age: 18 is fine with me
      Campaign Finance Reform: Absolutely necessary to make sure everyone has a fair shot, eliminate the influence of corporate fat-cats on politics and leave the decision to the people!
      Gerrymandering: Should be done by a non-partisan commission. Strongly support the Tanner Proposal.
      Voter ID: Absolutely opposed as it disenfranchises the vote of the poor and minorities.

      Economic Issues
      Welfare: Strongly support it. Makes sure everyone has a fair shot in society.
      Unions: Strongly support them! Equal rights for the workers!
      Privatization: The Government needs to control some industries. The fat-cats can't become too powerful.
      Environment: Global warming and pollution are big problems. The government needs to act on them or the earth will suffer.
      Minimum Wage: Raise it! Even $10 is too low in my opinion. Make it at least $12.
      Taxation: Tax hikes for the rich! Everyone needs to pay their fair share, especially the top 1% as they have much more to pay.
      Healthcare: Obamacare is a great idea but horribly executed (plus it promotes abortion and contraception) so I oppose it. I strongly support universal healthcare though. The US needs to have something like the British NHS, not Obamacare.
      Trade: Needs to have some restrictions.
      Embargo: My co-worker's Cuban and we both agree the embargo's absolutely neccesary.
      Pork: Not really sure what that is??
      Subsidies: If the government was to pay for something why not?
      Military: Increase spending. It's a dangerous world out there!

      Foreign Policy
      War: Supported Iraq when it happened. Think we should stay in Afghanistan. Consider myself fairly hawkish. BTW, my dad and two of my uncles are Vietnam Veterans. Both my grandads fought in WWII.
      Israel-Palestine: Pro-Israel. The Jews need a homeland after the devastation the Holocaust caused them. The Muslims already have the rest of the peninsula plus Central Asia, half of Africa and Turkey.
      Draft: Unless there's another World War, no.
      UN: I like the UN but think it needs to be much stronger.
      Nukes: Get Iran and North Korea away from them!!!
      Foreign Aid: If a country is in trouble, we have to help them!

      Ha! It seems me and you have the exact opposite viewpoints, except on guns. Any reason your pro-freedom on that issue in particular?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Illuminati Blood Drinker on April 27, 2014, 01:07:09 AM
      I'm a general progressive on most issues. End the war on drugs, down with Reaganomics, restore the New Deal, death to neoliberals, nationwide legal gay marriage, stringently pro-choice, peace and love, yada yada yada.

      I suppose the big difference between me and well, every other progressive on earth, is that I support a more authoritarian government - a dictatorship if need be - to enact these policies. This is because, democracy, while a good idea in theory, is far too easy to be corrupted for the interests of the power-hungry elite. The corporate media manipulates the people into voting against their own interests distressingly often. In an authoritarian government, however, the manipulation of the people would have little to no effect, because the people would not control the government to begin with.

      Now, of course, lack of popular control of the government is a bad thing when we are discussing fascist governments like Hitler's Germany or Mussolini's Italy. But in my ideal state, the lack of popular control would not be a problem, because the government would act on behalf of the people, like a caring parent acts on behalf of their children, while not allowing them full control over their own affairs for the same reason a caring parent does not allow children to control their own affairs, because manipulators can push them into making terrible decisions for themselves.

      So, there's that. I dunno what you call my ideology. Authoritarian paternalist progressivism?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TNF on April 27, 2014, 01:57:39 PM
      Destroy capitalism.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mechaman on April 30, 2014, 09:15:29 PM

      F-

      The Requirements for the paper are at least 1500 words.  Son, you got to quit drinking.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Maxwell on May 03, 2014, 08:19:45 PM
      I'm a general progressive on most issues. End the war on drugs, down with Reaganomics, restore the New Deal, death to neoliberals, nationwide legal gay marriage, stringently pro-choice, peace and love, yada yada yada.

      I suppose the big difference between me and well, every other progressive on earth, is that I support a more authoritarian government - a dictatorship if need be - to enact these policies. This is because, democracy, while a good idea in theory, is far too easy to be corrupted for the interests of the power-hungry elite. The corporate media manipulates the people into voting against their own interests distressingly often. In an authoritarian government, however, the manipulation of the people would have little to no effect, because the people would not control the government to begin with.

      Now, of course, lack of popular control of the government is a bad thing when we are discussing fascist governments like Hitler's Germany or Mussolini's Italy. But in my ideal state, the lack of popular control would not be a problem, because the government would act on behalf of the people, like a caring parent acts on behalf of their children, while not allowing them full control over their own affairs for the same reason a caring parent does not allow children to control their own affairs, because manipulators can push them into making terrible decisions for themselves.

      So, there's that. I dunno what you call my ideology. Authoritarian paternalist progressivism?

      Dear god.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TNF on May 03, 2014, 08:23:43 PM
      I'm a general progressive on most issues. End the war on drugs, down with Reaganomics, restore the New Deal, death to neoliberals, nationwide legal gay marriage, stringently pro-choice, peace and love, yada yada yada.

      I suppose the big difference between me and well, every other progressive on earth, is that I support a more authoritarian government - a dictatorship if need be - to enact these policies. This is because, democracy, while a good idea in theory, is far too easy to be corrupted for the interests of the power-hungry elite. The corporate media manipulates the people into voting against their own interests distressingly often. In an authoritarian government, however, the manipulation of the people would have little to no effect, because the people would not control the government to begin with.

      Now, of course, lack of popular control of the government is a bad thing when we are discussing fascist governments like Hitler's Germany or Mussolini's Italy. But in my ideal state, the lack of popular control would not be a problem, because the government would act on behalf of the people, like a caring parent acts on behalf of their children, while not allowing them full control over their own affairs for the same reason a caring parent does not allow children to control their own affairs, because manipulators can push them into making terrible decisions for themselves.

      So, there's that. I dunno what you call my ideology. Authoritarian paternalist progressivism?

      Sounds like Leninism to me.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: ElectionsGuy on May 03, 2014, 09:57:54 PM
      I'm a general progressive on most issues. End the war on drugs, down with Reaganomics, restore the New Deal, death to neoliberals, nationwide legal gay marriage, stringently pro-choice, peace and love, yada yada yada.

      I suppose the big difference between me and well, every other progressive on earth, is that I support a more authoritarian government - a dictatorship if need be - to enact these policies. This is because, democracy, while a good idea in theory, is far too easy to be corrupted for the interests of the power-hungry elite. The corporate media manipulates the people into voting against their own interests distressingly often. In an authoritarian government, however, the manipulation of the people would have little to no effect, because the people would not control the government to begin with.

      Now, of course, lack of popular control of the government is a bad thing when we are discussing fascist governments like Hitler's Germany or Mussolini's Italy. But in my ideal state, the lack of popular control would not be a problem, because the government would act on behalf of the people, like a caring parent acts on behalf of their children, while not allowing them full control over their own affairs for the same reason a caring parent does not allow children to control their own affairs, because manipulators can push them into making terrible decisions for themselves.

      So, there's that. I dunno what you call my ideology. Authoritarian paternalist progressivism?

      You know there's something wrong when government is being compared to caring parents.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Meursault on May 04, 2014, 09:37:12 AM
      I vacillate a lot, becausd I hate idees fixees. Most of the time my views hover somewhere between egoist anarchism, Sorellian syndicalism, the more intellectual anti-biologist strains of protofascism, and surrealism. All of it is aesthetic. Politics is aesthetic.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: FEMA Camp Administrator on May 05, 2014, 06:09:18 PM
      I'm a general progressive on most issues. End the war on drugs, down with Reaganomics, restore the New Deal, death to neoliberals, nationwide legal gay marriage, stringently pro-choice, peace and love, yada yada yada.

      I suppose the big difference between me and well, every other progressive on earth, is that I support a more authoritarian government - a dictatorship if need be - to enact these policies. This is because, democracy, while a good idea in theory, is far too easy to be corrupted for the interests of the power-hungry elite. The corporate media manipulates the people into voting against their own interests distressingly often. In an authoritarian government, however, the manipulation of the people would have little to no effect, because the people would not control the government to begin with.

      Now, of course, lack of popular control of the government is a bad thing when we are discussing fascist governments like Hitler's Germany or Mussolini's Italy. But in my ideal state, the lack of popular control would not be a problem, because the government would act on behalf of the people, like a caring parent acts on behalf of their children, while not allowing them full control over their own affairs for the same reason a caring parent does not allow children to control their own affairs, because manipulators can push them into making terrible decisions for themselves.

      So, there's that. I dunno what you call my ideology. Authoritarian paternalist progressivism?

      I think "the worst" suffices for a name.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: rpryor03 on May 06, 2014, 10:53:41 AM
      Social Policy:
      Abortion: Pro-life, with exceptions for rape, incest, and the mother's health.
      Gay Marriage: There is no fathomable reason not to legalize it.
      Drugs: Legalize marijuana, lower the drinking age to 18.
      Stem Cell Research: Stem Cell research saves lives.
      Death Penalty: For capital punishment in extreme cases (e.g. Murder)
      Gun control: Institute universal background checks, as well as a registry.
      Affirmative Action: Race based AA is nothing more than reverse discrimination.
      Prostitution: Do not legalize.
      Euthanasia: Terminally ill patients should be allowed to end their lives.

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: Do not increase it and tie it to inflation
      Welfare: Cut welfare off after 2 years.
      Right-to-Work: Fully support Right-to-Work.
      Taxation: Cut taxes for everyone.
      Healthcare: Privatize it.
      Social Security: Privatize it.
      Trade: Free trade is great.
      Education: More funding to education, allow school vouchers.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Yes, with amendments.


      Foreign Policy and National Security
      Afghanistan: Pull out.
      Iraq: It's not an issue anymore.
      Iran: Diplomacy is the best course of action.
      Syria: The United States has no interest getting involved.
      Cuba: End the travel ban and trade embargo.
      Military Spending: Do not cut.
      PATRIOT Act: A disgusting bill. Repeal certain sections.
      NSA Spying: Blatantly unconstitutional.
      Palestine: Recognize Palestine.
      Israel: Israel is our ally.
      Immigration: Make the legal immigration process much simpler, deport all illegal aliens.
      Guantanamo Bay: it's an embarrassing chapter in American history and it needs to be shut down

      Environment
      Climate Change: Climate change is real.
      Green Energy: Invest in alternate energy. It's good for the environment, creates jobs, and helps us achieve energy independence
      Keystone XL Pipeline: It's worth it.

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College: Don't abolish it.
      Gerrymandering: All districts should be drawn using the shortest split-line method.
      Term limits: We already have term limits, it's called voting out incumbents. Legislating is a complicated process, and we don't need congress filled with inexperienced legislators.
      Voter ID: Should be mandatory.
      Compulsory Voting: It creates more problems than it solve.
      Voter Registration: Voter registration should be automatic.
      Statehood: If a majority of citizens of a territory support statehood, than that territory should receive statehood.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on May 19, 2014, 12:37:25 PM
      Social Policy
      Abortion:[/b] I am pro-life. However, I do not believe it's within my rights to take this away from someone. I would rather incentivize adoption and make it a more attractive option for mothers who do not want to raise a child.
      Drugs: My main concern with this is pushing people away from jail who are users and pushing the distributors towards it. This would be done through decriminalization of some, if not all, recreational drugs, and placing very strong laws on the production and distribution of the drugs.
      Censorship: Thoroughly against it.
      Gay Marriage: Pro-gay marriage. More or less I don't see why it's my business. Marriage isn't a religious institution historically. I don't see why I should distort the facts to maintain an antiquated social norm.
      Death penalty: State issue. I don't believe I could carry this out in anything other than an extreme circumstance, ie Osama or Hitler.
      Prostitution: State issue.
      Church and State: Fine with where we're currently at, but common sense should rule this debate. If a town wants to put up a Christmas tree, let them.
      Stem cell research: Fully support this and the advancement of science in general.
      PATRIOT Act: Repeal it.
      Gun control: I'm fine with the imposition of some simple restrictions, ie background checks at gun shows. But, overall, I would want it to be coupled with a guarantee of the security of rights to gun owners and advancement of mental health studies.
      Assisted suicide: No.
      Gambling: I'd be in favor of some gambling reforms; however, I'm not sure what they'd be.

      Electoral Reform
      Term Limits: 20 for SCOTUS judges, 12 for Senate members, and 8 for House members.
      Voting Age: 18
      Campaign Finance Reform: Ban lobbying nearly completely and restrict donations to certain periods.
      Gerrymandering: Proportional.
      Voter ID: I'm very torn on this.

      Economic Issues
      Welfare: Reform social security, medicare, medicaid and replace Obamacare. Social security would be replaced for those under 40 with a private fund. Those private funds would have a safety net of a certain amount of dollars. Those making more than a certain amount will not receive SS. Most of my health reform will be discussed in the appropriate section. In terms of the impoverished, those who cannot help themselves should be given aid, but those who are generally poor should be pushed toward employment by offering skill training and like programs.
      Unions: They're basically dead. Localized unions without a nation, or state-wide, apparatus can be beneficial.
      Privatization: In favor of some privatization efforts.
      Environment: Very much pro-environmental progress. I may be skeptical of global warming timelines; however, there are only positive externalities to the progress of this. It will also help us grow our economy substantially if we become the leader in green energy.
      Minimum Wage: Australian, age based, system.
      Taxation: Cut the death tax to 10%. Cut corporate taxes and close loopholes. I'm in favor of taxes raises and cuts depending on the economic situation.
      Healthcare: Payment reform is required. Doctors should receive a salary, not payment based on the services they perform. Near complete elimination of paperwork. The costs associated with PAPER are astronomical. This baffles me. Deincentivize negative life choices like cigarette smoking. Cut the state restrictions on insurance companies and place national reforms on the industry. Tax reform on employer insurance coverage. Tort reform. Voucher, or similar, system with Medicare.
      I would also be infavor of an outside the box idea, like enrolling in an exchange of competitive bidding where companies would bid to cover your service. This would be a more free market option, but I'm not sure how it would work.
      Trade: Free trade.
      Embargo: End the embargo with Cuba. It will push them towards capitalism
      Pork: Ban
      Subsidies: In favor of them if they will return either a highly beneficial addition to the economy or something that is fantastic, but otherwise impossible.
      Military: Cut the waste. Efficiency is key for me in every part of the budget.

      Foreign Policy
      War: It's a foreign policy tool. One that I would use if needed. That said, I strongly prefer the use of other means to support the interests of this country.
      Israel-Palestine: Recognize Israel and negotiate an Arab mega-state similar to the Ottoman Empire and what was being planned with Hussein bin Ali.
      Draft: No. No. No.
      UN: The UN is fine, but I don't take them seriously. I'd do what I want.
      Nukes: Support a world wide proliferation effort.
      Foreign Aid: Support nations who need it. These nations do not need hefty sums to derive heavy returns. However, I would generally support a substitution of American products and training aid to nations.

      Its really interesting how there is a bigger trend to consider oneself  pro-life but not being interested in arresting people for abortions. A trend for the better in that people are looking for workable and non-violent solutions?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TJ in Oregon on May 23, 2014, 09:16:36 PM
      Stem Cell Research:Absolutely opposed

      Do you mean embryonic stem cell research or literally all stem cell research? If all, please explain as I've never encountered anyone with that view before.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: H.E. VOLODYMYR ZELENKSYY on May 23, 2014, 10:12:31 PM

      I know there's no way it's realistically happening but I'm a Mormon and I don't drink caffeine.

      I live in a suburb and don't own a gun. Therefore gun ownership should be legal but strongly regulated.

      I get the joke, but isn't that your actual view on gun control? :P

      Oh, yes.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: GaussLaw on May 29, 2014, 10:36:17 PM

      Now, of course, lack of popular control of the government is a bad thing when we are discussing fascist governments like Hitler's Germany or Mussolini's Italy. But in my ideal state, the lack of popular control would not be a problem, because the government would act on behalf of the people, like a caring parent acts on behalf of their children, while not allowing them full control over their own affairs for the same reason a caring parent does not allow children to control their own affairs, because manipulators can push them into making terrible decisions for themselves.


      It's people like you that make me want to dash to the GOP, even though I disagree a lot with their policies.

      I'll get more detailed later, but the essence is:
      Foreign policy:  depends on the situation; support strong military but also one that does not get involved easily
      Social Issues:  I'm liberal on abortion/gay marriage, but oppose legalizing drugs/prostitution and support restrictions like Stop and Frisk, wiretapping, etc.(tend to value security over civil liberty, except in egregious violations like the NSA)
      Economic issues:  Reform Medicare/Medicaid/Social Security, invest more in alternative energies, keep tax code progressive but reduce business taxes, expand aid to poor, promote upward mobility


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: H.E. VOLODYMYR ZELENKSYY on May 30, 2014, 08:10:28 PM
      Reform Medicare/Medicaid/Social Security

      expand aid to poor, promote upward mobility

      Something's not right here...


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: GaussLaw on May 30, 2014, 08:28:42 PM
      Reform Medicare/Medicaid/Social Security

      expand aid to poor, promote upward mobility

      Something's not right here...

      Reform doesn't necessarily mean gut.  For instance, I am in favor of means-testing so richer people are not eligible for as much in social security benefits as well as possibly removing the income cap for social security taxes.  Medicare/Medicaid need reform to keep them solvent and not blowing a hole in our budget, as anyone who reads CBO graphs can attest to. 

      We spend far less on a lot of aid to the poor compared to "the big 3"(I know Medicaid helps poor people, but I'm talking about a lot of community-based stuff as well as certain investments in education).

      For instance, I favor a strong, strong investment in Boys and Girls clubs for after-school programs and a significant emphasis on STEM fields. With regards to upward mobility, in addition to education, I am a big believer in spending more on job training and vocational education for all ages.  A lot of money should also be deployed on the ground to help address root problems with gangs.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Donerail on May 31, 2014, 04:02:08 PM
      Socially: I'm personally fairly conservative on social issues, but a lot of that's overridden by some sort of libertarianism. I'm not a SJW, I don't support removing religious references from currency, I support exemptions for religious organizations/charities from the contraception mandate, and I support a ban on abortions after around 20 weeks. But I'm pro-SSM, anti-death penalty, and want to legalize assisted suicide - I don't like the government getting to decide who gets to die and when and who can get married. Not a really cohesive policy here - mushy centrism. Not the stuff I like to talk about.

      Domestically: A lot more liberal than my position on social issues. I oppose internet regulation, the Patriot Act, gerrymandering, drug prohibition, voter ID, and Citizens United. Probably the only ones I lean conservative on is opposition to increased gun control (especially things like an 'assault weapons' ban) and race-based affirmative action. I support term limits so long as they're not strict term limits - I think 8 years is too short for a legislator, but something longer (double that?) could work. It's about balancing legislative experience with turnover. I support most of Obamacare, but health policy isn't an area of expertise.

      Economics: Raise the minimum wage and index it to inflation. Condition welfare on working, looking for work, or being enrolled in job training or education programs. Stop subsidies for massive agribusinesses. Protect pension plans for government employees. The military is where we can make the most cuts without harming the average American. Reform the corporate tax system to go after companies like General Electric, and reduce our rates in relation to whatever revenues we can get from that - having the world's highest rate doesn't make sense, but neither does having major companies avoiding taxes.

      Foreign Policy: Much more peaceful than we have now. Cut military spending, ground the drones, stop spying on our allies, stop giving ridiculous amounts of aid to Israel, end the embargo on Cuba, give constitutional trials to foreign terror suspects, and so on. I support engaging with the UN.

      Education: I support increasing education funding. I like the concept of Common Core but believe it has been implemented extremely poorly.

      Environment: My environmental policy is generally pro-science and pro-clean energy. I support taking steps to incentivize the development of green energy, I oppose expanding offshore drilling, and I believe in global warming. I'm pro-fracking, pro-nuke, pro-Keystone and pro-GMO, however, because they don't prevent anywhere near the kind of environmental threat global warming does. I support feeding the hungry and new sources of clean(er) energy.

      Immigration: Give a temporary amnesty for non-violent criminals currently working in the US, give their children citizenship (and in-state tuition), and offer a path to citizenship. They should get access to the same basic services (subsidized healthcare) we give to others. I oppose forcing them to learn English or deporting them on minor charges - focus on just deporting violent criminals.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Oldiesfreak1854 on June 01, 2014, 09:58:36 AM
      I'll try:

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Absolutely opposed. Pro-life 100%
      Drugs: All should be illegal, including tobacco and alcohol. Caffeine should be legal but strongly regulated.
      Censorship: It's absolutely necessary to protect our children. I have a two-year-old niece so I know.
      Gay Marriage: Absolutely opposed. Marriage is between a man and a woman. Civil unions are a state issue. Just don't call it marriage.
      Death penalty: Absolutely opposed.
      Prostitution: Absolutely opposed. It's legal in my state but not my county.
      Church and State: Freedom of religion for all.
      Stem cell research: Absolutely opposed. The government under no circumstances should violate the sanctity of human life.
      PATRIOT Act: Necessary to keep us safe.
      Gun control: As an NRA member and firearms enthusiast, keep your hands off my guns government!
      Assisted suicide: Absolutely opposed. (See Abortion, Death Penalty and Stem Cells)
      Gambling: Absolutely opposed. Used to be a big gambler in college though.

      Electoral Reform
      Term Limits: Support them. Get the old bastards out of office!
      Voting Age: 18 is fine with me
      Campaign Finance Reform: Absolutely necessary to make sure everyone has a fair shot, eliminate the influence of corporate fat-cats on politics and leave the decision to the people!
      Gerrymandering: Should be done by a non-partisan commission. Strongly support the Tanner Proposal.
      Voter ID: Absolutely opposed as it disenfranchises the vote of the poor and minorities.

      Economic Issues
      Welfare: Strongly support it. Makes sure everyone has a fair shot in society.
      Unions: Strongly support them! Equal rights for the workers!
      Privatization: The Government needs to control some industries. The fat-cats can't become too powerful.
      Environment: Global warming and pollution are big problems. The government needs to act on them or the earth will suffer.
      Minimum Wage: Raise it! Even $10 is too low in my opinion. Make it at least $12.
      Taxation: Tax hikes for the rich! Everyone needs to pay their fair share, especially the top 1% as they have much more to pay.
      Healthcare: Obamacare is a great idea but horribly executed (plus it promotes abortion and contraception) so I oppose it. I strongly support universal healthcare though. The US needs to have something like the British NHS, not Obamacare.
      Trade: Needs to have some restrictions.
      Embargo: My co-worker's Cuban and we both agree the embargo's absolutely neccesary.
      Pork: Not really sure what that is??
      Subsidies: If the government was to pay for something why not?
      Military: Increase spending. It's a dangerous world out there!

      Foreign Policy
      War: Supported Iraq when it happened. Think we should stay in Afghanistan. Consider myself fairly hawkish. BTW, my dad and two of my uncles are Vietnam Veterans. Both my grandads fought in WWII.
      Israel-Palestine: Pro-Israel. The Jews need a homeland after the devastation the Holocaust caused them. The Muslims already have the rest of the peninsula plus Central Asia, half of Africa and Turkey.
      Draft: Unless there's another World War, no.
      UN: I like the UN but think it needs to be much stronger.
      Nukes: Get Iran and North Korea away from them!!!
      Foreign Aid: If a country is in trouble, we have to help them!
      You sound like a New Deal-style populist.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Cranberry on June 03, 2014, 10:24:26 AM
      I just realized I didn't do this when I registered, so here we go:

      Social Policy:
      Abortion: Already starting with a tough one. I find it quite funny how everyone here has total positions, yet I don't think any of them would know what to do if they were in that situation. I think, you must be really desperate if you consider it, and even more desperate if you want to do it. And the guilt and shame you have for the rest of your life must be very hard to bear. So totally legalizing it? I don't know, maybe...
      GaySame Sex Marriage: It's a shame that we even have to discuss this in the 21st century. Of course legalize!
      Drugs: Well, I think we can all agree the War on Drugs has failed. And should it really be the government's responsibility to save one from oneself? (I know I have a really libertarian approach here) So, legalize most of them, I'd say, maybe all of them, I don't really know. De-criminalize of course all drug-issues.  
      Stem Cell Research: I don't think the government should be in the way of scientific progress.
      Death Penalty: I for one don't think I'm in the position to judge over a person's right to live. I don't particular like the death penalty, even for the most horrendous crimes.
      Gun control: Excessive control, but more important educate young people that they use their guns, if they have to do, in an appropiate way.
      Prostitution: Well, if they do it willingly, why not? Stronger measures against pimps and forced prostritution, though.
      Euthanasia: If a person, or this person's next relative should the person not be able to react anymore, really wants it; why should we let them suffer?

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage:Raise it to 14$ for now, then bind it to economical growth rate. Rise other wages until a certain level by the same percentage, though.
      Welfare: Everyone should have a low basic income exactly or a bit over the poverty line, which should be below the lowest wages however. People working part-time and earning less than this basic income should be paid a part of it, that makes their income higher.
      Right-to-Work: Such laws are barbaric.
      Taxation: Cut taxes for the poor, increase them for the rich.
      Healthcare: Completely public-owned single-payer system.
      Social Security: Keep your private hands off social security!
      Trade: The idea of Free Trade is great, the world however is uneuqal, and not until every nation is at about the same level, and every human being has the same chances, free trade will always be at the expense of one or the other trade partner.                          
      Education: All forms of education shall be free, as education is the key to a nation's success. Especially fund lesser priviliged areas, while no further funding to more priviliged areas, until every student has equal chances and an equal position to start his life from.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: As long as a government is able to repay its debts, why shouldn't it make new, when it needs money? The whole system is odd, and at some time will crash, but until then - why not making new debts? It is evidently working, as long as the economy is working.


      Foreign Policy and National Security

      Afghanistan: Should have never got in.
      Iraq: Should have never got in.
      Iran: Diplomacy is far better than a war.
      Syria: It's very hard to tell who's bad and who's good in Syria. Help the people with huminitarian aid, but else keep out.
      Cuba: Oh come on... If you legitemately want to keep the embargo up, you should make one to China as well.
      Military Spending: Cut extremely.
      PATRIOT Act: I can't really combine that piece of legilsation with the american ideal of Freedom, you all are so proud of. Can you help me, 'muricans?
      NSA Spying: Not even considering that they are spying on allies, I wouldn't want that as American. Practically the same answer as above.
      Palestine: Should have been recognized a long time ago. (My government is no better here, though.)
      Israel: Of course, Isreal has a perfectly legitimate right to exist. It should however not recieve any better treatment than Palestine. (Here you have it - I'm a nazi)
      Immigration: Make it miuch easier to come to your country, 'muricans. (After all, maybe at some point I would like to get there too :P)
      Guantanamo Bay: Well, apart that the area is technically Cuban territory, that prison there is a violation of about every international treaty I can come up with. I'd be ashamed if I were an American.

      Environment
      Climate Change: Climate change is happening. We should do everything we can to slow it down, and minimize its effects.
      Green Energy: In my dream world, the total electricity would be gained by water, wind, sun, geothermics... every single one of these futuristic technolgies little green men from sector X7B-T will teach us of.
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Kill it with fire!

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College: It makes presidential elections different from every other country's. That's about the only positive thing I can come up with.
      Gerrymandering: Multi-member districts drawn by an independent, non-partisan comission.
      Term limits: I think the current way of doing things is sufficient.
      Voter ID: I'm quite a fan of the Austrian system - you get sent your invitation to voting, you take that letter to the poll, you vote. Plus - voting per letter is the future!
      Compulsory Voting: If people don't want to vote and decide their future, why should they be forced to?
      Voter Registration: Voter registration should be automatic.
      Statehood: If the people in the territory are for statehood - boom, you become a state. Puerto Rico and DC should be - DC maybe as part of Maryland.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Famous Mortimer on June 10, 2014, 04:47:56 AM
      Social Policy:
      Abortion: Legal up to 24 weeks on demand. Legal after that in cases of rape, incest, or if the mother's life is in danger. Sex education in schools. Free birth control. Discourage people from having children they can't afford.
      Same Sex Marriage: Legalize it nationwide.
      Drugs: Legalize and regulate marijuana. Decriminalize use of other drugs but make their manufacture and sale illegal.
      Stem Cell Research: The government should fund fetal stem cell research using unused embryos from IVF treatments (as long as IVF is still legal, which it shouldn't be)
      Death Penalty: Only for serious crimes, multiple murders, etc.
      Gun control: Weird position. Repeal second amendment but don't ban guns. Guns should be a privilege, not a right.
      Affirmative Action: End affirmative action. I'm open to reparations for those still living who were excluded from the original Social Security program (mostly minorities) and for those put in jail for non-violent drug offenses (largely minorities)
      Prostitution: Legalize and regular. Prostitution isn't particularly more dehumanizing than cleaning toilets and it pays much much better.
      Euthanasia: Legalize for adults who can get cleared by a psychologist.

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: Minimum wage should be $15
      Welfare: Everyone should get a guaranteed minimum income of about $1000 a month. Everyone. If they work, they get their pay on top of the $1000.
      Right-to-Work: I'm for right to work. Most unions are pretty crappy, also, I think unions are a little too libertarian-y for my taste. The state should ensure people are paid a fair wage for their work, they shouldn't have to fight for it.
      Taxation: Tax the rich more. Even if you take a billionaire 75% he will still have more money than he could spend in his life.
      Healthcare: Socialized medical and dental. Also take over medical schools. Free tuition to anyone smart enough to pass.
      Social Security: Unnecessary under my plan because everyone's getting the free money already.
      Trade: Free trade only with nations with an roughly comparable standard of living and who agree to an international minimum wage.                       
      Education: National curriculum.  Free college to those smart enough to be admitted.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Balancing the budget has no real benefit other than allowing right-wing politicians to brag.


      Foreign Policy and National Security
      Afghanistan: The invasion was justified but we should get out now. Back as secular of a dictator as we can find.
      Iraq: The invasion was unjustified. Back as secular of a dictator as we can find.
      Iran: Talk to them but don't be super friendly.
      Syria: Stay out of it for the most part. Encourage the secular opposition to make a deal with the government.
      Cuba: Normalize relations.
      Military Spending: Cut extremely. Get rid of all bases in Europe.
      PATRIOT Act: Mostly fine. If you have nothing to hide, you shouldn't be scared. The state has no interest in harassing innocent people.
      NSA Spying: Same as PATRIOT Act.
      Palestine: Mostly horrible people but you can't kill them so I guess just try to encourage moderation, however fruitless it might be.
      Israel: The two state solution is dead. One state will happen sooner or later. Hopefully Arab moderates + Jewish moderates can outmaneuver the divided theocrats.
      Immigration: I'm for immigration as long as the immigrants are smart and culturally liberal. As of right now, most of the people we get are semi-literate and only qualified to clean toilets. All they do is drive down wages and tax the welfare system. They don't even improve their own lives that much.
      Guantanamo Bay: I'm fine with torture as long as we're sure the people are guilty. I'm sure we accidentally rounded up some Afghan turd farmers, which is unfortunate.

      Environment
      Climate Change: Pollution is bad.
      Green Energy: Pollution is bad.
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Jobs aren't worth it.

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College: Get rid of it. I don't even mind that it's elitist (I'm elitist), it's just that at this point, it's basically random. People no longer vote based on how large their state is (if they ever did at all) so it's outlived it's purpose.
      Gerrymandering: PR
      Term limits: Anti-democratic.
      Voter ID: Yes as long as we have free national ID cards.
      Compulsory Voting: No strong feelings. How about make it mandatory but have no punishment for not doing it?
      Voter Registration: Voter registration should be automatic.
      Statehood: DC should be a state. Puerto Rico should either be independent or a state, none of this both ways crap. If they want to become a state though, their school system has to start teaching primarily in English. If you want to be part of a country, you have to be able to communicate with most people in that country.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TNF on June 10, 2014, 09:17:19 AM
      And the award for delusional position of the century goes to...

      Social Policy:
      Abortion: Legal up to 24 weeks on demand. Legal after that in cases of rape, incest, or if the mother's life is in danger. Sex education in schools. Free birth control. Discourage people from having children they can't afford.
      Same Sex Marriage: Legalize it nationwide.
      Drugs: Legalize and regulate marijuana. Decriminalize use of other drugs but make their manufacture and sale illegal.
      Stem Cell Research: The government should fund fetal stem cell research using unused embryos from IVF treatments (as long as IVF is still legal, which it shouldn't be)
      Death Penalty: Only for serious crimes, multiple murders, etc.
      Gun control: Weird position. Repeal second amendment but don't ban guns. Guns should be a privilege, not a right.
      Affirmative Action: End affirmative action. I'm open to reparations for those still living who were excluded from the original Social Security program (mostly minorities) and for those put in jail for non-violent drug offenses (largely minorities)
      Prostitution: Legalize and regular. Prostitution isn't particularly more dehumanizing than cleaning toilets and it pays much much better.
      Euthanasia: Legalize for adults who can get cleared by a psychologist.

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: Minimum wage should be $15
      Welfare: Everyone should get a guaranteed minimum income of about $1000 a month. Everyone. If they work, they get their pay on top of the $1000.
      Right-to-Work: I'm for right to work. Most unions are pretty crappy, also, I think unions are a little too libertarian-y for my taste. The state should ensure people are paid a fair wage for their work, they shouldn't have to fight for it.
      Taxation: Tax the rich more. Even if you take a billionaire 75% he will still have more money than he could spend in his life.
      Healthcare: Socialized medical and dental. Also take over medical schools. Free tuition to anyone smart enough to pass.
      Social Security: Unnecessary under my plan because everyone's getting the free money already.
      Trade: Free trade only with nations with an roughly comparable standard of living and who agree to an international minimum wage.                      
      Education: National curriculum.  Free college to those smart enough to be admitted.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Balancing the budget has no real benefit other than allowing right-wing politicians to brag.


      Foreign Policy and National Security
      Afghanistan: The invasion was justified but we should get out now. Back as secular of a dictator as we can find.
      Iraq: The invasion was unjustified. Back as secular of a dictator as we can find.
      Iran: Talk to them but don't be super friendly.
      Syria: Stay out of it for the most part. Encourage the secular opposition to make a deal with the government.
      Cuba: Normalize relations.
      Military Spending: Cut extremely. Get rid of all bases in Europe.
      PATRIOT Act: Mostly fine. If you have nothing to hide, you shouldn't be scared. The state has no interest in harassing innocent people.
      NSA Spying: Same as PATRIOT Act.
      Palestine: Mostly horrible people but you can't kill them so I guess just try to encourage moderation, however fruitless it might be.
      Israel: The two state solution is dead. One state will happen sooner or later. Hopefully Arab moderates + Jewish moderates can outmaneuver the divided theocrats.
      Immigration: I'm for immigration as long as the immigrants are smart and culturally liberal. As of right now, most of the people we get are semi-literate and only qualified to clean toilets. All they do is drive down wages and tax the welfare system. They don't even improve their own lives that much.
      Guantanamo Bay: I'm fine with torture as long as we're sure the people are guilty. I'm sure we accidentally rounded up some Afghan turd farmers, which is unfortunate.

      Environment
      Climate Change: Pollution is bad.
      Green Energy: Pollution is bad.
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Jobs aren't worth it.

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College: Get rid of it. I don't even mind that it's elitist (I'm elitist), it's just that at this point, it's basically random. People no longer vote based on how large their state is (if they ever did at all) so it's outlived it's purpose.
      Gerrymandering: PR
      Term limits: Anti-democratic.
      Voter ID: Yes as long as we have free national ID cards.
      Compulsory Voting: No strong feelings. How about make it mandatory but have no punishment for not doing it?
      Voter Registration: Voter registration should be automatic.
      Statehood: DC should be a state. Puerto Rico should either be independent or a state, none of this both ways crap. If they want to become a state though, their school system has to start teaching primarily in English. If you want to be part of a country, you have to be able to communicate with most people in that country.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Illuminati Blood Drinker on June 10, 2014, 10:41:21 PM
      You had to quote the entire post to point that out?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Anti Democrat Democrat Club on June 11, 2014, 01:43:01 AM
      Social Policy:
      Abortion: Legal on demand, but do everything to promote birth control so that there is actual teen pregnancy
      Same Sex Marriage: Federal legalization. We shouldn't be running our society on a book.
      Drugs: Legalize marijuana. I see many functioning members of society who smoke, and it's really not that bad. Don't punish them because some sh*thead gets behind a car.
      Stem Cell Research: Fund it.
      Death Penalty: Abolish it.
      Gun control: I only go as far as background checks, and even then it took a crazy guy being a mile away from me to fully embrace them.
      Affirmative Action: Status quo.
      Prostitution: Legalize/regulate. I don't see it as demoralizing at all.
      Euthanasia: Legalize, as long as they're cleared by a psych.

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: $15 and a union.
      Welfare: Around the poverty line, but below the minimum wage.
      Right-to-Work: Horrible.
      Taxation: The rich can afford high taxes.
      Healthcare: Single-payer, with a ban on for-profit healthcare. Obamacare does not go far enough.
      Social Security: Keep out of the corporation's hands.
      Trade: Fundamentally unequal.                   
      Education: Free college education for those above a 3.0 in high school. Encourage vo-tech schools, do not fund religious schools of any kind.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: No.


      Foreign Policy and National Security
      Afghanistan: Supported initially, but should have left a while ago.
      Iraq: Never should have entered. Was the result of a former oil baron using the US Army as his personal mercenaries to further his own personal wealth.
      Iran: Encourage good relations.
      Syria: Stay out. Let NATO decide.
      Cuba: Normalize relations.
      Military Spending: Cut back on nonessentials.
      PATRIOT Act: A blatant violation of our constitutional rights.
      NSA Spying: Same as PATRIOT Act.
      Palestine: Stay out.
      Israel: Stay out.
      Immigration: Provide a path to citizenship for nonviolent immigrants. We're America, goddamnit. Pass a DREAM Act, and give families citizenship.
      Guantanamo Bay: Should be shut down.

      Environment
      Climate Change: We're hastening it.
      Green Energy: Obvious yes.
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Why bear the risks of Canadian oil being exported to other countries?

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College: Undemocratic.
      Gerrymandering: Make it illegal.
      Term limits: Undemocratic.
      Voter ID: Undemocratic.
      Compulsory Voting: Not really big on this.
      Voter Registration: Voter registration should be compulsory, though.
      Statehood: DC should become a state. No taxation without representation. Puerto Rico should be allowed to decide whether to become their own country or not. Allow the Pacific Territories to become states if they want to as well.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Rockefeller GOP on June 18, 2014, 08:57:07 PM
      SOCIAL POLICY
      Abortion: I'm pro-choice except in the third trimester.  If it's third trimester, I think it should only be legal in the cases of rape, incest or if the life of the mother is in danger.
      Same-Sex Marriage: I support it, and I do not think it should be left to any states.
      Drugs: I support legalizing marijuana, but I'm not sure about how I feel about harder drugs ... I might support legalizing use of harder drugs only if they're being used in a private home, but again I'm quite conflicted on this.
      Stem-Cell Research: I am morally conflicted on it, but at this point I support it, assuming its research helps save lives in the future.
      Death Penalty: I oppose it in most cases, but I support it for child rapists/murderers ... Sorry, I'm not going to defend that opinion in any other way than I think those people have lost their right to life.
      Gun Control: I support universal background checks but nothing past that ... It infringes on law-abiding citizens' rights and does not work.
      Affirmative Action: I'm against it.  It's outdated and racist, both to Whites and minorities.
      Prostitution: I oppose it.  There's too much potential for human trafficking, and that's reason enough to oppose it, but the penalty shouldn't be overly severe.
      Euthanasia: I guess I support it with serious moral reservations ... It just seems wrong, but if that person is able to consent, who am I to say anything?
      Immigration: I support amnesty to those who have families here.  It's just not fiscally practical to deport all of those people ... I also support an easier path to citizenship.  With that said, once we've taken care of that stuff, crack down on border security.

      FISCAL POLICY
      Minimum Wage: I support tying it to inflation from this point forward, but I do not support making it a comfortable, long term living wage; that defeats the purpose.  It also kills jobs if it gets too high.
      Welfare: It's necessary at a certain fundamental level, but it is often abused and needs to be reformed.
      Unions: Outdated and irrational organizations that are bad for business.
      Taxation: Cut taxes on everyone, including the successful, I mean "rich."  I'm not sure if I support a flat tax, but everyone should pay less than they do now.
      Healthcare: Privatize it.
      Social Security: It's important and was a decent idea, though it wasn't managed very well (as we're seeing now).
      Trade: I would have been a protectionist back in the day because that's what would have been good for American businesses in our developing economy, but in the modern era, American businesses benefit much more from more neoliberal policies that enable free trade.
      Education: I support vouchers.
      BBA: I support it with a few emergency situations where we could go over our limit.

      FOREIGN POLICY
      I'm mostly a hawk and a believer in peace through strength.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TJ in Oregon on June 18, 2014, 11:44:10 PM
      SOCIAL POLICY
      Abortion: I'm pro-choice except in the third trimester.  If it's third trimester, I think it should only be legal in the cases of rape, incest or if the life of the mother is in danger.
      Stem-Cell Research: I am morally conflicted on it, but at this point I support it, assuming its research helps save lives in the future.

      What leads someone to be morally conflicted over stem cell research and pro-choice at the same time? Generally people who have doubts about the morality of stem cell research are referring to embryonic stem cell research and have a problem with destroying embryos. I haven't really encountered anyone who has unambiguously voiced moral qualms about induced pluripotent "adult" stem cell research. What are your concerns here?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Rockefeller GOP on June 19, 2014, 10:43:31 AM
      SOCIAL POLICY
      Abortion: I'm pro-choice except in the third trimester.  If it's third trimester, I think it should only be legal in the cases of rape, incest or if the life of the mother is in danger.
      Stem-Cell Research: I am morally conflicted on it, but at this point I support it, assuming its research helps save lives in the future.

      What leads someone to be morally conflicted over stem cell research and pro-choice at the same time? Generally people who have doubts about the morality of stem cell research are referring to embryonic stem cell research and have a problem with destroying embryos. I haven't really encountered anyone who has unambiguously voiced moral qualms about induced pluripotent "adult" stem cell research. What are your concerns here?

      Exactly what you stated, and I should also say that I have serious moral issues with abortion and most definitely oppose it personally.  However, I have come to the personal decision that no one can make that decision except for the woman; I think it sets a dangerous precedent to force (by law) a human being to extract something from their own body, even if that thing is alive.  I know that might sound like a horrific view to someone who's pro-life, but always remember that abortion is a deeply conflicting view for the majority of people on both sides of the debate.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TNF on June 19, 2014, 11:23:39 AM
      Abortion: Allow on demand at any stage of pregnancy, with no questions asked, no frivolous restrictions placed upon it and completely free of charge. I do think that reducing the number of abortions performed is a worthwhile goal, however, and as such I think that access to birth control and contraception be made complete free of charge (and widely distributed), a national day care program established, paid parental and sick leave established, and stipends for stay at home parents.
      Drugs: The War on Drugs is a complete failure. Legalize cannabis, psilocybin muhrooms, dimethylytyptamine (DMT), lsysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), MDMA, and mescaline and set the legal purchase age at 16. End imprisonment for all persons currently incarcerated for non-violent drug offenses and use the savings from doing so to create a robust rehabilitation regime for those addicted to the hard stuff. Bring the whole pharmaceutical sector (and the existing recreational drug sector) under the control of a state monopoly and use this state monopoly to control the production of and the flow of drugs, with the intent of eventually phasing out the production of the most harmful substances to human health and wiping out extremely addictive, dangerous substances. Ban drug advertising. Lower the drinking age (and the smoking age) to 16, and repeal existing laws that prevent public intoxication and drinking on public transit.
      Censorship: Censorship often does far more harm than it does good and too often conforms to the biases of the censor. I for one think that it's ridiculous that event a hint of nudity gets a program an 'R' or 'TV-MA' rating or banishes it to the wee hours of the morning when extremely violent programs are given laxer ratings in the same context. I oppose all prudery and censorship that represses human sexuality, because doing so is in part responsible for a whole host of ills and limits the right to self-expression. I think that sex and nudity are things that should be normalized, because they are completely and totally normal human activities. To that extent I favor ending television restrictions on broadcasting nudity or sex, ending purchase age requirements for pornographic material, and support sex positive sexual education in schools, that is, normalizing sexuality instead of making it something dirty or repressing it. End radio and television bans on profanity, sexuality, discussion of or onscreen/on air drug use, and nudity.  
      Marriage: Same-sex marriage should be made fully legal where it is not legal already, as should polyamorous marriages. We should end financial support of the two-parent nuclear family via the tax code and public propaganda campaign and instead embrace an emerging conception of an alternative family structure, which could include as many or as few persons as those involved like.
      Capital Punishment: I oppose capital punishment and likewise oppose life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. I think that Norweigan sentencing laws (which cap the amount of time a person can be incarcerated) are extremely progressive and something that would be worth looking into implementing here in the states.
      Sex Work: Legalize sex work and give a large degree of control over the newly legalized sector to sex workers themselves. Some regulation will undoubtedly be required (in the interest of public health) but minimize it where possible to promote worker self-management. Allow for the establishment of co-operative brothels by sex workers, and vigorously prosecute those who abuse or seek to enslave or otherwise take advantage of sex workers.
      Church and State: I strongly support restricting religious displays in public spaces and eliminating religious influence in government and public life as a whole. Religious schools and homeschooling should be banned entirely, religious institutions should be taxed, all references to "God" should be removed from official documents of the United States government (and all streets or buildings named after religious figures renamed), religious displays on public property should be banned (as should the posting of the Ten Commandments anywhere on public property), circumcision (both male and female) should be banned entirely, and schools should be held accountable if they proselytize in the classroom or hold prayers before or after any kind of school-wide event. In an ideal world, we'd also drop the Christian calendar in favor of the French Revolutionary calendar, but unfortunately I think that's even less likely than everything else I've proposed thus far.
      Scientific research: The state should fund a hell of a lot more scientific research than it currently does. We need long term, heavy commitments to research and development. I want to see American space colonies, American lunar colonies, and American Mars colonies before I die. I want supersonic, automated planes that can get you from New York to Los Angeles in 45 minutes. I want a national high speed rail network. We can do all these things, we just have to invest in them. And I think we should and that we should be the world leader in all things scientific.
      Surveillance programs: End them and move to restrict the amount of surveillance that is being conducted on every single one of us by the private sector every single day. Heavily restrict advertising (limit it to trade journals), stop keeping files on private citizens who have never committed a crime, end the use of background checks except in a few sectors (i.e. it would still be good to run background checks to prevent child molesters from becoming preschool teachers), ban drug testing, etc. On the whole the surveillance state needs to be smashed, and it's appendages utterly crushed.
      Gun control: Gun sales should be perfectly legal for all persons over the age of 16. We should teach gun safety from a young age (no one should be able to graduate high school without having passed a gun safety course) and encourage everyone to own a gun and be responsible for his or her own self-defense. I strongly support efforts to expand gun ownership, although there are some new manifestations of this that I think are psychotic (the so-called 'Castle Doctrine' and 'Stand Your Ground' laws) and counterproductive. I believe that the armaments industry (including the whole of the defense sector) should be nationalized and used to produce stable, safe, and reliable weaponry for the masses.  
      Assisted suicide: There's literally no reason not to legalize it. If you oppose legalizing it, you're an awful person. End of story. Persons in ill health or in old age should be able to peacefully end their lives if they so choose, without interference from the state. On this same token, I don't necessarily view so-called "active" euthanasia as a bad thing, at least when it comes to persons that are obviously not capable of making decisions for themselves or are simply unable to function otherwise. The Groningen Protocol (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Groningen_protocol) of the Netherlands is, I think, a fairly progressive leap forward in this regard, and I would say that this is something we should implement here, as well.
      Gambling: This is one sector that would be better off under state control, since the sector often serves as a front for organized crime and it also often leads to a whole host of social ills. But what would a nationalized gambling sector look like? Well I think that, for starters, if you're going to have organized gambling, it should be used in such a way that it promotes positive social development, rather than utterly negative social degeneration, which is what capitalist gambling enterprises ultimately do. The lottery could be converted, for example, into a system whereby a ticket purchased corresponds with a treasury bond, and thus has a value that can be cashed in either immediately or over a period of time, providing not only an avenue for the United States to engage in fiscal expansion when necessary, but also providing the average person with something more meaningful than a $2 scratch-off card in which you win literally nothing. Casinos and the like could be used to generate revenue for a state education program, or could be used to fund programs for gambling addicts, or used to acquire other industrial sectors, which could pave the way out of capitalism in the first place. I'm not sure. Like I said, this is one of the tougher ones for me, I'm not really sure how best to go about it.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TNF on June 19, 2014, 11:48:03 AM
      Term Limits: All public officials should be elected for short terms and be subject to recall. No public official should make more than what the averaged skilled worker makes.
      Statehood: I'm really partial to the idea of having a single "statehood or independence" vote in every one of the remaining territories as a means of firmly ending the colonial status of said territories, once and for all. Furthermore, I think that state boundaries really need to be re-drawn to reflect the reality on the ground in 2014. Why should North Dakota exist as one state and California not exist as like, five different states? Every major city in excess of one million persons should be considered it's own state, and should have a Governor and state legislature and get to send representatives to DC independent of the surrounding area.
      Voting Age: Lower the overall age of majority to 16. We baby people too much for too long in this country. People should be fully prepared to be financially and socially independent at age 16; high school should end at this age, you should be able to buy a beer, get a full time job, and vote at age 16.
      Campaign Finance Reform: Fix this problem by not having elections as the means of selecting public officials. Every public office should be selected by drawing lots.
      Voter ID: Abolish voter registration in favor of automatic registration for anyone aged 16 and up.
      Welfare: We should make the Swedish look stingy. Phase out most cash payout programs in favor of an unconditional, universal basic income program adjusted for inflation that would feasibly allow someone to survive without having to have an additional income on top of it. Wage labor should be thus made a choice, not a requirement, in order to survive. This will have the effect of raising the price of labor, which will encourage employers to invest more in labor-saving devices, which will ultimately have the effect of automating all employment (or at least, most of it) which can of course pave the way for the ultimate abolition of capitalism in favor of a post-work, post-capitalist economy (i.e. socialism) wherein there is abundance for all and the fruits of our collective labor are not appropriated by parasites. But in the meantime, we need socialized medicine (on the Cuban model), socialized housing (end homelessness by guaranteeing everyone the right to a home; housing co-operatives should be given massive state support and should be used as a means to drive private housing into the dirt), the minimum wage should be tripled and automatically adjusted for inflation, increases in worker productivity, and regional differences in the cost of living (but it should never be adjusted below the national floor). Tipping should be banned and tipped employees paid a living wage. Everyone who wants a job should be guaranteed one through public employment as yet another alternative to private wage labor (think a worker-managed version of the WPA that pays good wages), and education should be fully free of charge from top to bottom, with the state paying for your education as long as far as your skills and abilities will take you.
      Unions: Repeal all anti-union laws and instead aggressively promote not just unionization, but worker ownership. Require labor representation on corporate boards, convert the largest sectors of the economy to worker-owned co-operative industries (with the intent of collectivizing all industry into worker-owned co-operative industry), adopt union control over hiring and firing in every industry, and give unions full control of the workplace, with the ultimate goal of abolishing the separation of ownership and management in favor of worker ownership and worker management of the means of production.
      Privatization: I am in favor of going the opposite route and instead support taking over major industries and handing them over to their workers to own and manage. This should eventually be expanded to the whole of the economy, with the goal of eradicating capitalist private enterprise in favor of worker-owned and worker-managed co-operative enterprise.
      Environment: I consider myself an ecosocialist. I do not think that the survival of the species and that the survival of the planet are compatible with the continuation of capitalism. As such, I support any and all efforts to reduce the negative impact of capitalist enterprise on the planet. Fracking should be banned in it's entirety. Coal and oil usage should be phased out in favor of nuclear power, and we should put a lot of money into developing nuclear fusion technology (and space mining is going to be a big part of that, especially with all the Helium-3 resting on the lunar surface). Solar power should likewise be heavily invested in. Abolish public transit fees and rapidly expand the use of zero-carbon or low-carbon transport.
      Minimum Wage: See Welfare.
      Taxation: Individual taxation is decidedly bourgeois in character, and that's part of why I'm not really fixed on the idea. I think that it is important, especially as we move toward a socially owned, zero-carbon economy, to move away from individual modes of taxation in favor of a more collective approach. For starters, I think that we need to begin to seriously consider a green shift in taxation to tax those activities which are ecologically destructive and harmful on the whole to society at-large. I oppose regressive taxation in all it's forms, however, and would want any new taxation levied to be strongly progressive in character.
      Healthcare: See Welfare.
      Trade: I am no "free trader" in the sense that that term is applied today. I believe that trade should be actively managed, not to produce a trade surplus or allow a trade deficit, but to achieve a trade balance and to actively support activities which are necessary for the wellbeing of the American people. Worker-owned enterprises should be prioritized in this regard as an alternative to globe-hopping private capitalists, who should be turned away if they do not invest in the United States. If a foreign company wants to sell it's products in the United States, it should be required to make every product it intends to sell here, using American labor, and should be unionized, with significant worker input and control over the shop floor. Strict capital controls should be enacted to prevent the further hemorrhaging of the national industrial base. Those companies that yet still seek to move production overseas should automatically lose the right to any property used for production in the United States (which should be turned over to its workers) and should be required to pay hefty, severance fees to the communities they exit for each job lost as a result of capital flight.
      Cuban Embargo: End the embargo and the travel ban and embrace the opportunity to rebuild a positive relationship with the Cuban government.
      Subsidies: If it receives federal dollars, it should be taken into public ownership and be turned over to its workers for management.
      Military: Remove all U.S. troops from foreign soil, shutdown all foreign military bases, disband all aggressive military alliances and withdraw from existing collective security agreements. Cut the military budget in half, end it's propaganda operations (advertising, recruitment in high schools and colleges), and thin out the ranks of the armed forces, starting with officers first. Automate as much as possible, and invest heavily in robotic infantry and drone technology. Ground all human pilots in favor of drones.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RR1997 on June 19, 2014, 12:02:08 PM
      I forgot to do this when I first signed up, so I'll do it now.

      Social Policy:
      Abortion: I find abortion to be immoral, but I still support keeping it legal, though I am moving to the right on this issue.
      Same Sex Marriage: Of course we should legalize gay marriage! It's a shame that this is even up for discussion!
      Drugs: Legalize marijuana, but that's it. Keep other drugs like heroin, cocaine, etc. illegal. We should also end the War on Drugs, which has obviously failed.
      Stem Cell Research: I don't think the government should be in the way of scientific progress.
      Death Penalty: I support the death penalty, but only in very extreme cases.
      Gun Gontrol: I oppose any new gun control legislation.
      Affirmative Action:Affirmative action based on race is basically discrimination, and I'm a minority that dosen't qualify for AA (I'm Indian, the Asian kind.) I strongly oppose race based AA.
      Prostitution: Even though I personally support prostitution, I support having the states decide.

      Overall, I consider myself to be centre-left on social issues.

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage:Raise it to $10.
      Welfare: I strongly support welfare reform.
      Right-to-Work: I personally support it, but the states should decide.
      Taxation: I support across the board tax cuts, and I believe tax cuts do help stimulate the economy.
      Healthcare: I oppose Obamacare, and support a privitized health care system.
      Social Security: Don't privitize SS, keep it is as it is.
      Trade: Free trade is a great thing. In this modern day and age, we can't impose protectionist tarriffs and extreme regulations, though I agree that there needs to be some regulations. I also support free trade agreements like NAFTA. We've been living in a global economy since the end of the Cold War, which is a good thing. I think most protectionist are either die-hard leftist, or right-wing, nationalists.
      Education: I strongly oppose school vouchers.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: I support a Balanced Budget Amendment.
      Enviroment: We need more incentives and laws to help protect the environment.
      Deregulation:I support it.

      Overall, I cosider myself to be centre-right on economic issues

      Foreign Policy and National Security
      Afghanistan: Starting the war was a good decision, but I believe we should end the war by the end of this year.
      Iran: Diplomacy is far better than war.
      Cuba: Keep the embargo.
      Military Spending: Keep as is.
      Immigration: I support a path to citizenship, and making it easier to come to this country. I believe that immigration is good for the economy, and my parents are immigrants, which influences my decision on this a lot. I don't see any legitimate argument against a path to citizenship.
      Guantanamo Bay: Keep Guantanamo Bay open.

      Overall, I consider myself to be moderately neoconservative on foreign policy.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TNF on June 19, 2014, 12:54:22 PM
      War: No war but the class war. The United States should only respond militarily if it is attacked by another nation-state. End the War on Terror, withdraw all troops from abroad, and commit ourselves to a policy of non-interventionism. Embrace Russia and China (and welcome them into the family of nations) rather than hurtle toward confrontation with both of them.
      Israel-Palestine: Strongly support the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination. Remove all U.S. aid and support of Israel, break off diplomatic relations with the Israelis, and pass something like the Anti-Apartheid Act of the 1980s to end U.S. investments in Israel. Either the Israelis will come to the negotiating table and recognize Palestinian statehood, or it will cease to receive aid and protection from the United States. If it should refuse to do so, treat Israel as a rogue state and support all efforts to cripple it's internal economy and paralyze it's foreign trade.
      Draft: Abolish the standing army in favor of universal military training. Graduation from high school should require that one undergo basic military training and be on reserve for call up for military service in the event of a war. Make no distinction between male, female, or genderqueer persons in terms of who is called up for service.
      UN: Abolish the Security Council in favor of a unicameral global parliament, with resolutions applicable to all member states and the establishment of a UN armed forces.
      Nukes: Seek international treaty banning nuclear weapons.
      Foreign Aid: Cancel third world debt, give no aid to nations with marked human rights violations, and expand the Peace Corps.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Illuminati Blood Drinker on June 21, 2014, 04:03:14 PM
      Social Issues
      Gay Marriage: Legalize it. What's your problem?
      Drug War: Legalize pot, keep the harder stuff (cocaine, heroin, etc.) illegal, but focus on rehabilitation not punishment. End the Drug War. Actually educate kids on drugs as opposed to the horrible D.A.R.E. "DRUGS ARE BASICALLY HITLER AND SATAN DON'T DO THEM EVER YOU DIE HORRIBLY AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!!!1111!!1"
      Abortion: Strongly pro-choice and supportive of defending Roe v. Wade. Repeal all transvaginal ultrasound laws. Legalize abortion up to the third trimester. Keep partial-birth abortion legal.
      Prostitution: Legalize and regulate it, much like the Netherlands or Germany.
      Stem-Cell Research: Meh. As long as it's not hurting people I don't have much of a problem.
      Education: Repeal NCLB and end similar initiatives. Institute a national federalized curriculum. Provide secondary education for all free of charge.
      Capital punishment: Switch to inert gas asphyxiation in all cases.

      Economic Issues
      Taxation: Set up a progressive tax system with large tax increases on the rich.
      Minimum Wage: Institute a guaranteed minimum income for all.
      Healthcare: Switch to a nationalized healthcare system.
      Social Security: No privatization!
      Free Trade: You mean destroying American labor?
      Unions/Right-to-work: Repeal all right-to-work laws and defend unions at all costs.

      Foreign Policy
      Intervention: Only intervene to support a genuine, home-grown revolution or to prevent human rights abuses. I support interventions along the lines of Libya in 2011. Otherwise, only use military force when we are attacked.
      Afghanistan: End the war and withdraw all troops by this year's end.
      Iraq: Travesty.
      Iran: End sanctions and normalize relations. The Iranians aren't trying to build nukes, so allow them to use nuclear power.
      Cuba: End the embargo.
      Guantanamo: SHUT DOWN EVERYTHING
      PATRIOT Act: Repeal, repeal, repeal.

      Other/Miscellaneous
      Term Limits: It's called "voting out incumbents".
      Campaign Finance: Ban all donations by large corporations. Money is not speech. Switch to full federal funding for all campaigns.
      Electoral College: Abolish and switch to popular vote.
      FPTP: Switch to MMP or IRV.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: jamesyons on June 22, 2014, 11:29:48 AM
      Social Issues:
      Abortion: strongly oppose it all cases except when life of mother is in danger, incest, and rape
      Affirmative action: strongly opposed to it
      Assisted suicide: support it
      Crime: strongly support stop-and-frisk, Israeli style profiling in airport security
      Death penalty: support it, although not often
      Drugs: oppose legalization because legalization causes higher crime and unintended consequences, more widespread usage, support medical marijuana
      Gay marriage: oppose legalization, although I am moving more liberally on it
      Gun control: support some legislation, but also believe there should be less gun-free zones
      Prostitution: oppose legalization, but let states regulate it
      Stem cell research: lukewarmly support it

      Economic Issues:
      Balanced budget amendment: support
      Education: support vouchers, charter schools
      Free trade: strongly support it
      Healthcare: repeal ACA except preexisting conditions, children stay on plan until 26, people should be given tax incentives and vouchers to buy health care
      Minimum Wage: should not be increased, leads to higher prices, hurts the poor deeply
      Medicare: I support Ryan plan, Medicare should be privatized
      Social security: retirement age should be raised to 68, institute chained-CPI, social security should be privatized, (Social Security and Medicare have to be privatized in order to be there for future generations)
      Subsidies: end them all
      Taxation: there should a flat tax, tax system should not punish success
      Unions: strongly oppose unions, support right-to-work laws

      Electoral reform:
      Compulsory voting: oppose it, people should have the right to decide if they want to vote or not
      DC Statehood: strongly support (taxation without representation)
      Electoral college: get rid of it
      Instant runoff-voting: support, cheaper solution to making sure candidate wins 50%
      Gerrymandering: should be banned, Iowa style system
      Primaries: support semi-open primaries (no meddling from other side), but allow independents to vote
      Term-limits: strongly oppose (undemocratic)
      Voter ID: strongly support, come on it is not difficult to have a photo with you to vote
      Voter registration: support election-day registration
      Miscellaneous: support voting at any precinct (Lubbock), eliminate conventions (undemocratic)

      Environment:
      Climate change: not much evidence it is happening
      Green energy: should not be aided, let them compete on their own
      Keystone XL: support it, either way the oil will be sold, better to have it be transported by safer pipelines than rail, also better to have it used in US with higher environmental standards than China

      Foreign policy:
      Afghanistan: should leave in a few years, leave a contingent force
      Cuba: support embargo, Cuba's communism, lack of freedom, human rights' abuses are unacceptable
      Guantanamo: nothing wrong with it
      Iraq: support it, should have left a contingent there, deterrent against Iran, current problems: stay out until new government, do not support Iranian puppet Al-Maliki
      Israel: strongly support Israel
      Military spending: no change
      NSA spying: support it
      Patriot Act: support continuation of it with more restrictions
      Palestine: no Palestinian state until they  denounce terrorism (Hamas), stop harassment of Israel


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: SomeOne on June 29, 2014, 10:26:52 PM
      My core political beliefs match as close to those of  Ronald Reagan (RIP) as anyone's. 


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: They put it to a vote and they just kept lying on July 22, 2014, 02:28:50 PM
      Copied the skeleton from others. Update, not much has changed.

      Social Issues
      Gay Marriage: 100% in favour of.
      Drug War: Start with legal pot, then progressively move into legalizing harder drugs.
      Abortion: 100% pro-choice, in favour of federal funding. Make it as convenient as is necessary, for when it is necessary.
      Stem-Cell Research: 100% in favour of.
      Education: Absolutely against common core. As a future teacher, I'm not at all a fan of the federal government creating a blanket educational standard. Leave curriculum creation to the individual districts and their teachers.
      Capital punishment: 100% against.

      Economic Issues
      Taxation: Progressive income tax, topping out around 90% for the wealthiest 1%. Bottom 10% pay no taxes.
      Minimum Wage: Would prefer a guaranteed income, but starting with $15/hr and going from there would likely work out better.
      Healthcare: Implement a UK-type system.
      Social Security: Don't privatize it, for the love of god.
      Free Trade: Impractical and morally unsound. Prefer fair trade.
      Unions/Right-to-work: 100% pro union.

      Foreign Policy
      Intervention: Very weary of military use. Would prefer cutting the military budget drastically and removing all bases from around the world, but I can't politically say that using military to prevent human rights abuses is wrong.
      Afghanistan: End it.
      Iraq: Should've ended a long time ago.
      Iran: Stop fearing them.
      Cuba: End the embargo.
      Guantanamo: Why is it still open?
      PATRIOT Act: Scrap that crap.

      Other/Miscellaneous
      Term Limits: It's called "voting out incumbents". (thanks, Patriotic Progressive)
      Campaign Finance: Ban all donations by large corporations. Money is not speech. (thanks, Patriotic Progressive)
      Electoral College: Abolish and switch to popular vote. (thanks, Patriotic Progressive)
      FPTP: Switch to MMP or IRV. (thanks, Patriotic Progressive)

      ya boi is still a crazy commie bastard.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: hcallega on July 24, 2014, 11:45:09 PM
      As of now, socially and fiscally center-left. Foreign policy really can't be classified in left-right terminology, but I'd call myself a neo-liberal ala Bill Clinton.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Maxwell on July 26, 2014, 02:52:34 AM
      Economic Issues -
      Taxation: We have to keep the revenue levels we have at the moment, so I support lowering our rates but closing tax loopholes and eliminating deductions to create a revenue neutral system. Top rate hopefully around 25% or 28%.
      Minimum Wage: Abolish the national minimum wage.
      Healthcare: Repeal Obamacare, replace with a healthcare system with some key changes like health savings accounts, lawsuit reform, and prize funding for research.
      Social Security: I support privatizing the system, as long as it means reducing the burden of the system. Raising the retirement age is something I'm for, but I'm not for reducing benefits in sneaky ways like lowering the inflation rate (especially to one that is lower than the current one we have).
      Free Trade: Free Trade is the ultimate equalizer. It funds small foreign countries latter Labor revolutions, while keeping prices lower in our country. Fair trade hurts the people it intends to help, while sticking us with the bill.
      Unions/Right-to-work: I support right-to-work laws, I don't think I can be any clearer than that.

      Foreign Policy
      Intervention: We should only intervene when there's a direct threat to our ability to be free. But at the same time, I don't agree with putting unnecessary constraints on our troops ability to fight. Doing so means that our enemies have the advantage, considering there is the possibility that some enemies won't be following those same rules.
      Afghanistan: The war should've ended a long time ago, starting with pulling troops out right at the death of Osama Bin Laden. We've tampered with the Middle east for far too long.
      Iran: The Middle East is the fundamental example of US interventionism gone wrong. We can't predict what people will do here, and as a result, we shouldn't put American people in harms way. Whether Iran gets nukes or not, it's not our business.
      Cuba: The embargo to Cuba is an old relic used by people to start red fearing again. Enough with it. End the embargo, and continue to end trade barriers across the world.
      Guantanamo: The United States I want to live in should not torture, and should not harbor people in secret prisons where we don't know what happens to them. We must end Guantanamo Bay or, like internment of the Japanese, it will be a deadly stain in our history.
      PATRIOT Act: Repeal this and other bills that intend to violate Americans right to privacy.

      Other/Miscellaneous
      Term Limits: Supportive in the abstract, but in reality, I'm not sure how much it would really achieve. I would support five terms in the House and three terms in the Senate, enough to gain some seniority without overstaying your welcome.
      Campaign Finance: The solution to Campaign Finance is disclosure, disclosure, disclosure. What the Democrats did to Koch is what I want to see everybody doing, pointing out who is beholden to whom. Therefore, SuperPACs must go. However, although the effect of money in politics is toxic, I believe that we must continue to allow free people to decide how to help their own candidates.
      Electoral College: The Electoral College has gone against the grain only a few times, I don't think it really matters.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: tarheel-leftist85 on July 28, 2014, 02:36:48 AM
      Economic Issues

      Taxes: Eliminate any taxes on real economic activity - including sales taxes* and income taxes associated with a paycheck, but heavy taxes on capital gains and inheritance. Taxes don't pay for spending under a fiat money system; instead, taxes "unprint" money. Right now, whatever nominal tax rates are, we destroy money associated with real economic activity while allowing money to pool with a super-elite. The job of the Democratic Party is to (1) perpetuate the myth that they can't give people popular programs because there isn't "enough" tax revenue to "pay" for it (funny how that's not the case with the bailouts and QE perpetuity), (2) play good cop by saying they'll "raise" taxes on the wealthy (income taxes don't touch the truly wealthy, as they simply play with money).

      * Excise taxes are debatable - not a revenue "source," but if the objective is to curtail harmful behavior.

      Jobs Guarantee: We need a permanent jobs guarantee to achieve full employment. "Raising" the minimum wage does nothing for people who are unemployed or underemployed. It only drives a wedge between the bottom 99.9%. If everyone willing and able to work can find a job, they'll be more likely to secure multiple job offers, and - ceteris paribus - they'll pick the higher paying job.  This decision aggregates to push everyone's wages up.  But, ZOMG, inflation?!  (1) Taxes can be used to remove "excess" money beyond the point of full employment, (2) Inflation is really the result of a concentrated financial sector levering the price of commodities.  The jobs guarantee should have a few national-scale projects but also many locally-decided projects.  The program doesn't need to be "paid" for with tax revenue or borrowing.  We print the money, and instead of a budget constraint or arbitrary ratio, we have two functional constraints on printing: (1) price stability, and (2) full employment.  Again, taxes can remove any money beyond these functional constraints.

      Health Care: Single-payer or NHS-type arrangement, more medical universities with free tuition for those who agree to serve in critical needs areas for 10+ years.

      Banking: End the Fed and restore Article I, Section 8, Clause 5. Break up the TBTF banks, bring up charges on executives for securities and mortgage fraud, lifetime ban on serving in the FIRE sector for employees at the SEC and other "regulatory" bodies, and capitalize public banks at the state level to loan to small businesses and farmers.

      Social Security: There isn't a closet where the money is kept; it's fungible. So, expand benefits such that people aren't beholden to 401(k)s or other "investments." The program cannot go broke. Too bad we're never as cautious or fiscally prudent about bailing out the banks. We just print the money.


      Social Issues
      Generally, I believe, people will be more tolerant and accepting if they don't believe that they're being screwed by a system.  The Democrats parading around with their "tolerance" trope - similar to a Goldman Sachs rainbow-washing - is just cover for their policies that are wreaking havoc on the bottom 99.9%. As much as I get vilified here, I haven't seen anyone engage this argument head on.  It's ok (and for many Democrats, it's desirable) to "compromise" on economic issues, anyone who isn't on board with gay marriage as a political issue (for instance, they think marriage has no place as a government institution) is a bigot.  Democrats, like Goldman Sachs, hide behind their rainbow-washing.

      Foreign Policy
      Much of what's on the TV is kabuki.  We need to begin to divorce ourselves from military contractors.  Also, with a contained FIRE sector, there will be much less "American" "interest" to spur "humanitarian" interventions around the world.  One of the early telltale signs that Obie wasn't against imperialist endeavors, despite his "opposition" to "stupid wars" was the failure to explain that opposition in economic terms - that these "endless wars" only provide blank checks in perpetuity to the private military firms and allow the FIRE sector to further speculate on commodities.

      Miscellaneous
      Congress chosen by lottery. Delegations for each state are chosen on an at-large basis.

      I'll never vote Repub, but I know enough to know that Democrats really are the more effective evil and can really get away with the things one would normally suspect from Repubs.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: WalterMitty on August 09, 2014, 06:58:48 PM
      wilsonian progressive.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Rockefeller GOP on August 12, 2014, 11:23:50 PM

      If you mean Woodrow Wilson, then you might want to invest in some more liberal economic views...


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Redalgo on August 14, 2014, 12:22:38 AM
      Liberalism is combined with a non-Marxisant form of market socialism intended to disperse power out over the population and enable each person to use at least the minimum in basic resources needed by them to grow, partake in public life, and meaningfully exercise their rights in pursuits of happiness regardless of their socioeconomic backgrounds.

      Influences on my worldview come in bits and pieces from figures including Aristotle, Rousseau, Locke, Rawls, Montesquieu, Bernstein, Eucken, Bourdieu, Glaserfeld, Vasak, Haidt, and (far less today than in the past) Trotsky.


      Budget: Raise income taxes on all brackets, eliminate the corporate tax, scale down national defense, then revisit healthcare reform. Reforms for Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security are on the table.

      Civil Liberties: The Constitution should recognize a set of individual rights that mostly overlaps with those protected today. Property rights are less emphasized yet not entirely neglected, either.

      Civil Rights: Bigotry and unjust discrimination should be opposed with education, regulation, and anti-poverty measures. Affirmative action is alright in moderation but ineffective as a standalone policy.

      The Economy: Markets are regulated, property rights reformed (e.g. collectivization), and a basic income guaranteed to every citizen set to local poverty lines. Salary controls affect inequality of compensation ratios within each co-op. Sole proprietorships continue but corporations and partnerships are banned due to their authoritarian designs. State intervention is mostly avoided in favour of setting up a regulatory framework in which competition may run its course. Some deregulation may be prudent.

      Education: Teach civics and critical, free thinking; finance basic research, cultural institutions, and exploration in space. Within an overarching framework of objectives there should be flexibility for the curricula of different states to vary.

      Elections: I support public-financing, proportional representation, and multi-party politics. There should be a formalized role for academia to educate voters and public officials on subjects of political relevance.

      Environment: Market failures on issues like animal rights, pollution, and sustainability necessitate some state involvement. I propose nuclear fission as a stopgap replacement of coal, favour electric cars, and oppose increases to fossil fuel production by affluent countries.

      Gun Rights: Licensed, registered ownership is alright for small arms and most light weapons; some control is reasonable.

      Healthcare: The established system in the U.S. is dysfunctional; almost any Western alternative would be more practical.

      Immigration: Work visas, amnesty, higher migrant quotas, increased foreign aid, mercy for seekers of asylum, etc.

      International Issues: Countries ought to negotiate for mutual gains, respond to humanitarian crises, and form a global federation. Regional unions are appropriate on the way. Elimination of WMDs, cluster bombs, and mines is sought.

      Religion: The state should be neutral on supernatural issues, respecting all religions but focusing on individual rights.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: ElectionsGuy on August 14, 2014, 02:29:48 AM
      Economic/Governmental Issues:

      Budget/Deficit: Balance the budget in one year, by cutting almost half of what we spend now. Cut spending before cutting taxes, to balance the budget quick.
      Free Trade: 100% Pro-Free Trade.
      Taxes: Abolish the IRS. Fair Tax would be ideal, if not, one flat or slightly progressive tax on income with a low rate (15% or less). No other taxes. Either way, the tax would be much lower than they are now, and much simpler. No special deductions or loopholes.
      Right to Work: Completely support, no one should be forced into union agreements and dues for employment purposes.  
      Education: No federal funding or standards, all education managed at the state and local levels. A voucher system would be great so children aren't stuck at failed schools.
      Departments: I would eliminate the department of Education, HUD, Homeland Security, Energy, Interior, and Transportation. I would put Veterans Affairs as part of defense, and put Commerce and Labor back together.
      Social Security: Support privatizing the system for people to control their retirement with their money. Spending for social security will keep rising unless we privatize it, no way around that.
      Role of Government: To uphold the constitution, protect civil liberties, defend itself from foreign dangers, and carry out due process.

      Foreign Policy:

      Iran: They don't pose a serious threat to our national security. They won't even get a nuclear weapon soon, and even if they did, they have a minute fraction of the power we have to defend ourselves in case of emergency.
      Federal Aid: Eliminate all federal aid, except for military aid in wartime. No one should be paying tax dollars to prop up governments in our "national interest".
      Non-interventionist: Don't get involved with the rest of the world unless someone attacks or is a direct threat to the US, its that simple.
      Afghanistan War: Pull all troops out now. This should've been done a long time ago.
      Draft: I oppose drafting in all circumstances
      Cuba: Normalize all relations with Cuba, like we all said in the other thread, this is long overdue.
      Foreign Bases: I would remove almost (if not) all bases from around the world. There's no reason we need to have them, and there's no foreign bases in the US. Less international spending means more money for national defense at home, where it belongs.
      Military/Defense Spending: We can cut probably about half of what we spend right now and still be just as powerful of a country. Most of the cuts would be international spending, rather than actual defense spending.


      Other Issues:

      NDAA and Patriot Act
      : Repeal both of these unconstitutional acts.
      NSA Spying: I would make it illegal for the government to wiretap or collect personal data on a huge database.
      Gun Issues: The only restrictions to the right of owning a weapon would be background checks on a persons health and criminal history, and a required license.
      Stop and Frisk: Terrible, racist, unconstitutional policy that strengthens the police state.
      Electoral College: Eliminate it, replace with a simple popular vote nationwide. Who ever gets the plurality of the votes wins. The EC misrepresents votes and puts all the pressure on a few battleground states. We need all the votes to count equally nationwide, plus more people in overwhelmingly partisan states would feel like their vote actually counts.
      Term Limits: I fully support term limits for appointed judges, for somewhere around 15 years. Unlike politicians, who have elections and primaries, most judges serve for life until they die or want to retire.
      Immigration: I support securing the border, and starting a pathway to citizenship for current illegal immigrants, which is the same process that legal immigrants would go through. The process should be effective enough to assimilate them into American culture quick. I think that immigrating here should be easier than it is now, and that anyone who wants to come here to work should be able to do so with a work visa. Those who overstay their visa should get deported, and those with a violent record or are felons should get deported. I don't support any restrictions or quotas on legal immigration whatsoever.
      Affirmative Action: Completely oppose, for things like job or college applications, the content, merit, and substance of the application should be whats judged. No one should be boosted or downgraded based on race, income, sex, etc. I also oppose quotas in the workplace to have a certain number of x group.
      War on Drugs: End immediately, legalize and decriminalize all drugs, and heavily regulate highly addictive and possible dangerous ones. Less people actually do drugs if they're legal (Portugal did this). The government should have no say in what we smoke, eat, or drink.

      Social Issues:

      Abortion: I think a woman should be able to get an abortion if she needs. I don't favor government restricting abortions. As long as we keep contraception widely available then unwanted pregnancies should keep dropping. This is probably the issue I've moved most to the left on and could take arguments for limiting late-term abortions with exceptions, but for now this is my position.
      Same-sex marriage: I favor getting government out of marriage and letting it be a private contract between a couple or possibly more than 2 people.
      Prostitution: Legalize it
      Death Penalty: Against, the state shouldn't have the power to take another life, no matter how bad the criminal may be.
      Doctor-assisted suicide: This should be a possibility.
      In General: I don't support legislating morality, I think that is between private individuals on what they want to do. I'm also strongly against censorship in the media.

      Overall: Classical Liberal, Neoliberal, Non-Interventionist, Socially Libertine, Libertarian.

      I just needed to do this because my last one looks extremely stupid. If you have questions about a topic that I didn't cover, just ask.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: SWE on August 14, 2014, 10:05:37 AM
      Right to Work: Completely support, no one should be forced into a union.
      Right to Work doesn't keep people from being forced into a union. We already have that under federal law.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: ElectionsGuy on August 14, 2014, 03:43:05 PM
      Right to Work: Completely support, no one should be forced into a union.
      Right to Work doesn't keep people from being forced into a union. We already have that under federal law.

      Sorry about that, I exaggerated quite a bit.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Deus Naturae on August 14, 2014, 11:53:49 PM
      Economic Issues

      Taxation: First off, abolish all forms of hidden taxation. Since tax withholding laws require employers to subtract income and payroll tax from workers' salaries before employees ever see the money, many people have no idea how much they're paying. I've met several people who are under the impression that they pay no income tax despite the fact that they're in a qualifying bracket. Corporate taxation is really a tax on consumers (because the cost of taxation has to be made up by raising prices), but people are completely unaware of how much the tax is and many just blame businesses for hiking prices. As for my "ideal" form of Federal taxation, I'd say the least bad system would be one where the feds require each State to pay a certain amount, and the State governments can each decide to raise their required amount. That way, people have more say over what kind of taxes they pay and really bad ideas don't get forced on the entire nation. Absent that, the FairTax is probably the best proposal with any chance of being enacted, since at least with that we can clearly see how much we're paying and everybody has an incentive to push down the tax rate.

      Health Care: Get rid of insurance regulations requiring procedures people will never need like hair implants, eliminate tax distortions and HMO subsidies that have created a system of "insurance" that prevents people from paying for anything out of pocket and comparing prices, abolish hospital licensing requirements that prevent countless medical facilities from being built or expanded on, prevent the FDA from delaying life-saving drugs for years, abolish patents that prevent new drug development, get rid of physician licensing and medical school regulations that allow the AMA and other interest groups to limit the number of doctors and push costs up, and limit non-economic damages for medical malpractice and medical device malfunction cases. Do all of those things, and health care costs will plummet, without any need for taxpayer-funded schemes like Obamacare, Medicaid, or Medicare.

      Money/Credit: End the Fed, repeal legal tender laws, and abolish the Greenback. Allow competing forms of money and deregulate interest rates so that artificially easy credit can't create phony booms which turn into catastrophic busts. With the hidden regressive inflation tax gone, the poor and middle class will be in much better shape and our economy will no longer be victim to central bank-created booms and busts.

      Minimum Wage: Abolish. Wage floors discriminate against low-skilled workers and prevent low-income individuals from entering the labor force. If you set the minimum price of a burger at $20, no one is going to buy crappy McDonald's burgers. Same goes for labor. If you set the minimum price of an hour's worth of labor at $7.25, no one is going to want to hire a low-skilled worker who can't provide that much value. So, poor people with bad education and few valuable skills are unable to get jobs, can't acquire useful training in the first place, and remain perpetually unemployed and in poverty.

      Unions: Ideally employers should be able to set their own conditions of employment, which includes requiring employees to join a union. However, as long as employers are banned from requiring employees to NOT join a union (on top of a bunch of other government-granted union powers), the opposite should also be illegal.

      Foreign Policy:

      Foreign Presence: Withdraw all foreign bases and troops. All of our foreign bases are either unnecessary (like those in Europe) or counterproductive (like those in the Middle East and Asia). Stop occupying foreign countries and making their residents hate us and stop paying for the defense of developed countries like Germany and Israel.

      Wars/Interventions: Invading and imposing our wills on foreign countries will never solve anything, even if they're in the middle of a civil war or suffering under a tyrant. We always create more enemies and unintended consequences.

      Foreign Trade: Unconditional free trade with every country. If a good can be produced at lower cost in a foreign country, it should be and will benefit us in the long run. Free trade allows capital to flow from rich to poor countries and allows for the spread of new ideas to oppressed and/or primitive locations.

      Foreign Aid: Stop propping up oppressive governments and distorting foreign economies. Free trade is the way to help the third world develop.

      Social Issues:

      War on Terror: Repeal the Patriot Act and defund the NSA. People have a right to control their personal information and share it with others as they see fit. Terrorism suspects have the right to due process and should be judged before a jury like any other suspected criminal. Close Guantanamo and ban torture practices. Abolish the TSA and let airports handle their own security.

      Drugs: Legalize all drugs and don't tax any of them. Stop jailing drug addicts and creating violent, cartel-dominated black markets (which is the result of taxation as well as criminalization). People shouldn't need any kind of license to grow a plant in their own home or on their own farm.

      Gun Rights: People have a right to defend their own persons and property. Allow people to own and carry firearms without a license, as is the case in Vermont. No restrictions on magazines or certain types of firearm.

      Marriage: Abolish marriage licenses and get the government out of marriage altogether. No special tax treatment for married couples. Allow any two (or more) people to commonly own property if they wish, but no need to bring government licensing of relationships into it.




      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: NickCT on August 28, 2014, 02:37:50 PM
      Social Policy:
      Abortion: Pro-choice, keep abortion safe, legal, and rare.
      Gay Marriage: Fully supportive of LGBT rights.
      Drugs: I see no reason to legalize recreational use of marijuana.
      Stem Cell Research: Stem Cell research saves lives, and is completely necessary.
      Death Penalty: Supportive, but make sure it is done properly and humanely.
      Gun control: Institute universal background checks, and ban high-capacity ammunition magazines.  Undecided on a national gun registry, but lean in opposition.
      Affirmative Action: Racially-based affirmative action is reverse discrimination, and I don't support it.
      Women's Rights: I support an ERA and the passage of equal pay.

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: A small increase ($10.10 is too high) and balance it with targeted cuts for small businesses.
      Welfare: Cut welfare off after 2 years.
      Right-to-Work: Fully support Right-to-Work.
      Taxation: Cut taxes only when the government can afford it, and start with middle class/low-income Americans.
      Healthcare: It is too late to repeal the ACA, instead we must improve the law by getting rid of the medical device tax, and allowing the purchase of health insurance across state lines.
      Social Security: Remove the FICA Cap to expand Social Security's solvency.
      Education: More funding to education, allow school vouchers.  Additionally, we need to get rid of Common Core, set federal graduation standards (including a foreign language requirement), and eliminate teacher tenure.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: No.

      Foreign Policy and National Security
      Iran: Diplomacy is the best course of action.
      Iraq/Syria: We have a responsibility to protect human rights around the world, and we need to target ISIS through air strikes and the like.  No ground invasion.
      Military Spending: There certainly exists waste in the Department, find it and eliminate it.
      PATRIOT Act: An unfortunate necessity in the 21st Century.
      NSA Spying: Needed to protect our national interests and security.
      Israel/Palestine: We must recognize Israel's blatant disregard for human life, but it is wrong to say that their actions are not justified.  I ultimately side with Israel, but I'm not blind about the errors in their ways.
      Immigration: Make the legal immigration process much simpler, strengthen the border, and then provide a pathway to citizenship for illegals.

      Environment
      Climate Change: Climate change is real, and the U.S. must lead the world in combatting it.
      Green Energy: Invest in alternate energy. It's good for the environment, creates jobs, and helps us achieve energy independence.
      Keystone XL Pipeline: We need this pipeline to create jobs, and I believe it is worth it.

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College: Undecided, but lean towards supporting it.  I'm not convinced eliminating the College would solve our problems.
      Gerrymandering: We need strict reform of Gerrymandering.
      Presidential term: The president should serve one six-year term without the ability to run for reelection.  This would make the Office more effective and help combat a lot of the government's problems.
      Public Financing: Complete public financing of campaigns, removing outside groups and the like will do a great deal to helping our political system.  I used to hate the idea, but the inability of Congress to work has changed my mind.
      Term limits: Term limits would do more harm than good.
      Voter ID: I have no problem with Voter ID's, Connecticut has had the law for as long as I can remember, but the recent attempts in the South are clearly being done for political reasons.  We should want to prevent voter fraud, but we should help qualified voters get identification.
      Voting: I support instant-run-off voting.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: New_Conservative on September 09, 2014, 02:28:44 AM
      Domestic Policy

      Do you support the Patriot act? Yes, but limit the scope of the government’s powers.
      Do you support affirmative action programs? No
      Are you in favor of decriminalizing drug use? No, we should pass tougher drug laws.
      Should the federal government regulate the internet to deter online piracy? No, the government should prosecute copyright violators but not regulate the internet.
      Should corporations and unions be permitted to fund advertisements backing political candidates through political action committees (Super PACS)?
       Yes, any restriction on campaign spending violates the first amendment.
      Should there be term limits set for members of Congress? Yes, term limits are a necessary political apparatus to prevent corruption in our government S
      Should the redrawing of Congressional districts be controlled by an independent, non-partisan commission? Yes
      Should federal government limit funds to public schools that do not meet performance standards? No
      Should every person purchasing a gun be required to pass a criminal and public safety background check? Yes, except for private transfer of ownership between family members
      Should Marijuana be legalized? Yes. Legalize, tax and regulate marijuana.

      The Environment

      Is Global Warming a threat to the environment? No, global warming and cooling are natural cycles beyond our control
      Should the U.S. expand offshore oil drilling?: Yes
      Should National Parks continue to be preserved and protected by the federal government? Yes, but allow increased public access.
      Should the federal government continue to give tax credits and subsidies to the wind power industry? No, traditional energy sources including oil, coal and nuclear power will be reliable energy sources for many years to come.
      Should the United States require labeling of genetically engineered foods? Yes, consumers have a right to know what is in their food
      Do you support the use of hydraulic fracking to extract oil and natural gas resources? Yes, but increase oversight.
      Should the US provide incentives for heavy duty trucks to run on natural gas or alternative fuel? No


      The Economy

      Should the government raise the federal minimum wage? No
      Should pension plans for federal, state and local government workers be transitioned into private plans? Yes, pension spending is out of control and must be reduced
      Should Wall Street executives be criminally charged for their roles in the 2008 subprime mortgage crisis?No, lawmakers are more to blame for allowing the subprime mortgage crisis to occur
      Should state gas taxes automatically increase with inflation? No, gas taxes are already too high.
      Do you support Obama's MyRA savings account initiative for workers who don't have access to a 401k? No, the plan is redundant and inferior to Roth IRA plans S
      Should the government make cuts to public spending in order to reduce the national debt?  Yes
      Should the federal government subsidize U.S. farmers? Yes
      Should able-bodied, mentally capable adults who receive welfare be required to work? No, but in order to receive benefits they should be looking for a job or enrolled in education and job training programs
      Should the U.S. reduce corporate income tax rates?  Yes
      [/b]Would you favor removing the state income tax and replacing it with a higher sales tax?[/b] No

      Immigration

      Should illegal immigrants be given access to government-subsidized healthcare? No
      Should illegal immigrants working in the U.S. be granted temporary amnesty? No, fine companies that employ illegal immigrants
      Should law enforcement be allowed to detain illegal immigrants for minor crimes so that federal immigration authorities can take custody of them? Yes
      Should illegal immigrants be offered in-state tuition rates at public colleges within their residing state? No
      Do you support stronger measures to increase our border security? Yes
      Should children of illegal immigrants be granted citizenship? Yes, if they were born here
      Should immigrants to the U.S. be required to learn English? No, America has and always will be a melting pot of diversity


      Foreign Policy

      Should the U.S. continue to support Israel? Yes
      Should the U.S. maintain a presence at the United Nations? Scale back our current involvement
      Should foreign terrorism suspects be given constitutional rights?  No, they are not U.S. citizens and should be subject to enhanced interrogation methods.
      Should the military fly drones over foreign countries to gain intelligence and kill suspected terrorists? Yes, the U.S. needs to use all means necessary to combat terrorism.
      Should the U.S. continue NSA surveillance of its allies? Yes, surveillance of all foreign countries is essential to tracking potential terrorist threats.
      Should the United States end its trade embargo and travel ban on Cuba? Yes, lift the travel ban but keep some provisions of the embargo in place
      Somewhat
      important
      Should the government decrease military spending?  Do not change current military budget

      Social[/b]
      Should the government require health insurance companies to provide free birth control? No
      Should the federal government allow the death penalty? Yes.
      Should the U.S. remove references to God from currency, federal buildings, national monuments and other aspects of government? No
      Should terminally ill patients be allowed to end their lives via assisted suicide? Yes
      What is your stance on abortion? Pro-choice, I don't agree with it but it's not my right or the government's to ban abortion
      Do you support the legalization of same sex marriage? Yes

      2014 MA Ballot Propositions

      Should Massachusetts prevent construction of 3 planned resort casinos within the state? No, these resorts create thousands of jobs and stimulates the local economy.
      Should we regulate profit margins, CEO compensation, and financial disclosure of hospitals that accept government funds? No, limiting economic incentives decreases the innovation and competency of service

      Education
      Do you support the adoption of Common Core national educational standards?  No

      Healthcare[/u]

      Do you support the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Obamacare)? No, open the markets so insurers can compete across state lines and drive down costs.

      I think of myself as an economic capitalist and social centrist. Milton Friedman is the public figure I'd say most resembles me politically, but that is arguable because I think he was a lot further right than I am on economic issues and more libertarian than me on social issues.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Bigby on September 09, 2014, 10:52:02 PM
      Economics:

      Right-to-Work Laws: I support a federal right-to-work law. Private workers deserve the right to choose if they want to be represented by a union or not. However, I feel getting forced unionism out of the lawbooks would be easier at a state level and thus support state right-to-work laws as well.

      Minimum Wage Raise: Part of me wants to say yes, but I fear that raising the minimum wage would have the opposite effect than intended. Normally, when the minimum wage increases, prices increase, workers are laid off, and the economy all-around suffers. Due to economic realism, either keep the minimum wage as-is or raise it only slightly. I oppose the proposed $10.10 minimum wage and definitely oppose any higher amount.

      Environmentalism: I have nothing against people going green, but it should not be forced down the throats of the citizens. Overt regulation kills economic growth. Allow green tech and organizations to exist, but keep them in the private sector. People deserve the right to choose for themselves.

      Corporate Welfare/Bailouts: No, no, and no. Businessmen should take care of themselves like everyone else. No government money should be granted to failing companies.

      Corporate Tax Rate: The United States has the second highest corporate tax rate behind Japan. It is small wonder why American businesses continue to flee the country for those with less hefty tax rates. Reduce the tax rate to at least 20% if not lower.

      Healthcare: Free-market solutions are the best ones. Repeal Obamacare and give the people of America their medical freedom back. In fact, allow insurance firms to compete across state lines. That way, Americans receive even more choice.

      Gas Tax: These are already too high. States should pass laws to lower taxes at their level while the federal government does the same with its tax.

      Spending: Spending must be cut substantially yet steadily. We currently borrow 4 cents for every 10 cents. If we could slash that off and create a slight surplus, we can reverse this 17 trillion and growing deficit. If possible, I would like to see a Balanced Budget Amendment passed. I'd also like to see a law that blocks pay from Congress if they do not form a budget in time.

      Social Security and Medicare: These programs are fine and must be saved. Cut entitlements as a means to prevent these two programs from fading away. Social Security is already technically your money, so it's even more incentive to save the program. Privatize Social Security if there is no way to save it otherwise.

      Regulations: Strip away all regulations save for a bare-bones minimum. Recently added regulations, especially ones added by President Obama, have stifled our economic recovery. You can't rebound if you are restricted with what your business is permitted to do. Small businesses especially need deregulation as they are hurt even more than big businesses are.

      Welfare: Tighten the standards to receive welfare; capable individuals can lie far too easily to gain disability or unemployment under the current system. Also, introduce mandatory drug testing and punish those who fail them. If you are not incapable of working, then you should not receive welfare.

      Education (As a future educator, these issues are especially important to me:

      Common Core: Repeal these standards in every state they exist in. Return the curriculum to the state level. Not only do these standards lessen the intelligence and success of our students, but they also worsen the leftist bias in education.  They are all-around negative standards.

      Department of Education: We've always had public education in the United States, but originally, education fell to the states. The federal Department of Education installed by Jimmy Carter should either be severely reduced in size or done away with entirely. Again. education belongs to the states.

      Affirmative Action: Simply nothing but racism, sexism, or any form of discrimination in reverse. All students should be treated equally. As such, affirmative action should be banned. However, private organizations may still offer scholarships to certain groups if they wish, as long as it remains on their dime. Quotas must also be avoided.

      Tenure: Teachers should not be granted immunity because of seniority. This system creates complacency. If older teachers were not granted what is basically diplomatic immunity, then they would perform better.

      Grade-Based-Pay: I oppose this. Even great teachers receive sorry students in certain schools. Their wallets should not be punished for the faults of the students and the school systems. Although this is not entirely related, I am also skeptical of limiting funding to public schools that perform poorly. I believe the emphasis should be on reforming standards instead.

      No Child Left Behind: Repeal immediately, no questions asked. It has been an absolute failure.

      Vouchers and Charter Schools: Both are great ideas. Not only do they offer more school choice, but they also encourage competition to excel among schools. Instead of sliding further into stagnation, public schools would be forced to improve.

      This is only part one. I exceeded the maximum length limit.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Bigby on September 09, 2014, 10:52:55 PM

      And now for part two:

      Domestic Policy/Security:

      Patriot Act: This must be repealed entirely for the sake of the American people. This bill violates so many amendments, especially the 1st, 4th, and 5th Amendments. Ditto for the NDAA.

      NSA: This also violates the Bill of Rights tremendously. Disband the agency and obey the 4th Amendment entirely. You cannot search someone with a search warrant, and this agency does not seem to understand that.

      Drug Laws: Marijuana should be legalized and treated the same way alcohol is. Allow anyone of 18 years of age or older to purchase it and smoke it either in private or at a facility that has a permit. (Marijuana permits should be granted so restaurants, clubs, and other facilities may allow the consumption of marijuana.) Speaking of alcohol, the drinking age should also be lowered to 18. End the unsuccessful War on Drugs while we're at it.

      Prison Reform: Although I wholeheartedly support the free market, the prison system should not be privatized. Private prisons are failing us; criminals run free. Also, many private prisons have quota systems which gather up innocents just to achieve said quotas. If the federal and state governments were smarter with their budgets, then it would not be necessary in the first place to build private prisons.

      Gun Control: I am absolutely opposed to any new gun control legislation. Not only is this a deep violation of the 2nd Amendment, but gun control always has the opposite effect than intended. When citizens are not allowed to arm themselves, crime and murder rates increase. Even worse, the government becomes bolder with other freedoms it tries to take away once their citizens are disarmed. As a result, the 2nd Amendment must be defended at any cost. On a side note, the age to own pistols, assault weapons, and other non-hunting weapons should be lowered to 18 and all state concealed carry licenses should be guaranteed valid by the federal government in all 50 states.

      Abortion: I am unsure about this issue on a personal level, though I generally lean pro-choice. Women should have a right to control their bodies. However, I do support certain restrictions on the practice. I support the 20-week ban that has been adopted in Texas, and I believe other states should adopt a similar ban. I also support a ban on partial birth abortion; it not nearly as morally gray as abortion before birth. A big deviation I have from other pro-choice individuals is that I think Planned Parenthood should no longer receive any federal funding. It is an extremely racist organization founded with racially-motivated intentions. Therefore, Planned Parenthood must go.

      Gay Rights: Homosexual couples deserve the same rights that heterosexual couples receive in the realm of marriage. This includes marriage, adoption, military service, hospital visits, and many more benefits. As long as religious institutions are not forced to recognize gay marriages on a religious level if they do not wish to do so, then there is no issue period.

      Gambling and Prostitution: Both should become legal with minimal regulation. Ensure the minimum age limit of 18 for all participants is included in the laws legalizing these acts federally. Both should be run by the private sector like any other business.

      Immigration: No matter the circumstances, illegal immigrants must never receive amnesty. Secure our borders and prevent any more massive waves of illegals from flooding the nation. If they have already broken the law by arriving without documentation, what guarantees they'll obey any other law? Illegal immigrants, not being citizens, do not have the right to healthcare, college scholarships, or any other right reserved for American citizens. Legal immigration should be allowed and encouraged. As long as you obey our immigration process, then you are welcome to emigrate to this country.

      Censorship: Stop violating the 1st Amendment. For TV, the FCC must be disbanded immediately. If you don't like what your kids view on the television, it is your duty to regulate what they watch, not the government's. Furthermore, I oppose internet censorship as well. Proposed bills such as SOPA are purely horrible ideas that should never become laws. Freedom of expression on any medium, whether it is television, the internet, radio, or any other medium, should always be paramount.

      Foreign Policy:

      Israel: Israel is the standard bearer of freedom in the Middle East and must not be abandoned. That does not mean obey its every request, but our friendship with Israel matters.

      The United Nations: The U.N. seems to support what the US opposes and opposes what the US supports. If we must remain in the organization, we should severely reduce our funding to the organization and evict them from Manhattan. Ideally, we should not be part of the organization whatsoever.

      Drone Strikes: At the moment, I oppose sending attack drones without a formal declaration of war. These informal attacks via drones seem to be causing more harm than good.

      Interventionism vs Isolationism: Unless the United States is directly attacked by a foreign enemy, the affairs of the world are not our own. We cannot even defend the border with Mexico, yet we bleed ourselves dry defending foreign nations. The Cold War is over, and thus we should withdraw all troops overseas and deploy them on our borders for security reasons. It is time to protect our homeland.

      Congressional Declarations of War: We have not declared war via congressional vote since WWII, and it has affected our foreign and military policy negatively. For one, we must start enforcing the War Powers Resolution of 1973. Moreover, if the President sends troops overseas, he or she must receive approval from Congress within 90 days or recall said troops. Keep our espionage policy as is, but we must return the power of war to Congress where it belongs.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on September 10, 2014, 04:45:41 PM
      What does it mean for insurance companies to "compete across state lines"? Should there be some sort of law saying that states can't restrict the production or purchase to/from out of state individuals and businesses?

      My take on it is that it is a reform that is similar to the savings/loans liberalization of the 80s where South Dakota all the sudden was where everyone got credit cards from.  I could see Wal-Mart getting into the insurance/hospital business, even more so than just $30 nurse station and $4 prescription plans. It could be a way to provide minimal universal coverage through libertarian means or it could mean mass speculation that eventually leads to a bubble, a burst and then monopolization.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Incipimus iterum on September 22, 2014, 09:19:34 AM
      Abortion: Pro-choice, Personally Pro-life
      Gun Control: Pro gun support more background Checks
      Same-sex Marriage: Personally Against but not my job to tell others what to do leave it to the States
      Campaign Finance reform: Overturn Citizens United More strict campaign finance reform and Term Limits
      Education: States Know Better how to manage there local education systems, goverment can help by providing federal aid
      Taxes: Reform the tax code get rid off loopholes, penalize companys that outsource jobs
      more to come
       


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Free Bird on September 27, 2014, 07:05:22 PM
      Based from NickCT but changed to my own
      Social Policy:
      Abortion: Pro-choice, keep abortion safe, legal, and rare, but only during the first trimester.
      Gay Marriage: Fully supportive of LGBT rights.
      Drugs: Follow the Portugal model.
      Stem Cell Research: Stem Cell research saves lives should be expanded.
      Death Penalty: Only for murder.
      Gun control: Institute universal background checks,but nothing else. Sharply oppose national registry
      Affirmative Action: Racially-based affirmative action is reverse discrimination, and I support its full repeal.
      Women's Rights: I support an ERA and the passage of equal pay.

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: A small increase ($10.10 is too high) and balance it with targeted cuts for small businesses.
      Welfare: Cut welfare off after 2 years.
      Right-to-Work: Fully support Right-to-Work.
      Taxation: Cut taxes across the board. Repeal all sales and estate taxes, and instill tariffs and consumption taxes instead.
      Healthcare: Make doctors' paychecks come from taxes, like postal workers
      Social Security: Privatize, but keep the federal part, too
      Education: More funding to education, allow school vouchers.  Additionally, we need to get rid of Common Core and eliminate teacher tenure.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Aye

      Foreign Policy and National Security
      Iran: Diplomacy is the best course of action.
      Iraq/Syria: We aren't the police of the world, but ISIS killed Americans. That justifies attack in my book
      Military Spending: There certainly exists waste in the Department, find it and eliminate it.
      PATRIOT Act: Destroy it
      NSA Spying: Destroy this also.
      Israel/Palestine: We must recognize Israel's blatant disregard for human life, but it is wrong to say that their actions are not justified.  I ultimately side with Israel, but I'm not blind about the errors in their ways.
      Immigration: Make the legal immigration process much simpler, strengthen the border, and then provide a pathway to citizenship for illegals.

      Environment
      Climate Change: It aint real, but still act like it was and take action to prevent it
      Green Energy: Invest in alternate energy. It's good for the environment, creates jobs, and helps us achieve energy independence, but maintain oil
      Keystone XL Pipeline: We need this pipeline to create jobs, and I believe it is worth it.

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College: Destroy it. Popular vote
      Gerrymandering: Keep it nonpartisan
      Presidential term: The president should serve one six-year term without the ability to run for reelection.  This would make the Office more effective and help combat a lot of the government's problems. (Never thought of this. Good idea.)
      Public Financing: Complete public financing of campaigns, removing outside groups and the like will do a great deal to helping our political system.  I used to hate the idea, but the inability of Congress to work has changed my mind.
      Term limits: No more than twelve years in the legislative branch, for a total of twenty four if you want to be in both houses
      Voter ID: I have no problem with Voter ID's, Connecticut has had the law for as long as I can remember, but the recent attempts in the South are clearly being done for political reasons.  We should want to prevent voter fraud, but we should help qualified voters get identification.
      Voting: I support instant-run-off voting.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: New_Conservative on October 09, 2014, 03:15:23 PM
      Based from NickCT but changed to my own
      Social Policy:
      Abortion: Pro-choice, keep abortion safe, legal, and rare, but only during the first trimester.
      Gay Marriage: Fully supportive of LGBT rights.
      Drugs: Follow the Portugal model.
      Stem Cell Research: Stem Cell research saves lives should be expanded.
      Death Penalty: Only for murder.
      Gun control: Institute universal background checks,but nothing else. Sharply oppose national registry
      Affirmative Action: Racially-based affirmative action is reverse discrimination, and I support its full repeal.
      Women's Rights: I support an ERA and the passage of equal pay.

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: A small increase ($10.10 is too high) and balance it with targeted cuts for small businesses.
      Welfare: Cut welfare off after 2 years.
      Right-to-Work: Fully support Right-to-Work.
      Taxation: Cut taxes across the board. Repeal all sales and estate taxes, and instill tariffs and consumption taxes instead.
      Healthcare: Make doctors' paychecks come from taxes, like postal workers
      Social Security: Privatize, but keep the federal part, too
      Education: More funding to education, allow school vouchers.  Additionally, we need to get rid of Common Core and eliminate teacher tenure.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Aye

      Foreign Policy and National Security
      Iran: Diplomacy is the best course of action.
      Iraq/Syria: We aren't the police of the world, but ISIS killed Americans. That justifies attack in my book
      Military Spending: There certainly exists waste in the Department, find it and eliminate it.
      PATRIOT Act: Destroy it
      NSA Spying: Destroy this also.
      Israel/Palestine: We must recognize Israel's blatant disregard for human life, but it is wrong to say that their actions are not justified.  I ultimately side with Israel, but I'm not blind about the errors in their ways.
      Immigration: Make the legal immigration process much simpler, strengthen the border, and then provide a pathway to citizenship for illegals.

      Environment
      Climate Change: It aint real, but still act like it was and take action to prevent it
      Green Energy: Invest in alternate energy. It's good for the environment, creates jobs, and helps us achieve energy independence, but maintain oil
      Keystone XL Pipeline: We need this pipeline to create jobs, and I believe it is worth it.

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College: Destroy it. Popular vote
      Gerrymandering: Keep it nonpartisan
      Presidential term: The president should serve one six-year term without the ability to run for reelection.  This would make the Office more effective and help combat a lot of the government's problems. (Never thought of this. Good idea.)
      Public Financing: Complete public financing of campaigns, removing outside groups and the like will do a great deal to helping our political system.  I used to hate the idea, but the inability of Congress to work has changed my mind.
      Term limits: No more than twelve years in the legislative branch, for a total of twenty four if you want to be in both houses
      Voter ID: I have no problem with Voter ID's, Connecticut has had the law for as long as I can remember, but the recent attempts in the South are clearly being done for political reasons.  We should want to prevent voter fraud, but we should help qualified voters get identification.
      Voting: I support instant-run-off voting.

      This confused me a bit.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: SUSAN CRUSHBONE on October 12, 2014, 10:39:36 AM
      Social Policy:
      Abortion: pro-choice but provide free birth control to everyone so it isn't necessary as often
      Gay Marriage: support (sane)
      Drugs: drug use of any kind should be decriminalised, marijuana fully legalised
      Stem Cell Research: fully support
      Death Penalty: sociopathic and immoral
      Gun control: support background checks & state registries. oppose restrictions on what kinds of guns can be sold
      Affirmative Action: is an inadequate solution. however i strongly support maintaining it until the root causes of racial inequality are eradicated (if ever)
      Women's Rights: support an equal rights amendment, nationwide introduction of "yes means yes" consent laws, equal pay, etc

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: replace w/ guaranteed minimum income independent of employment
      Welfare: see above
      Right-to-Work: no
      Taxation: higher capital-gains and property taxes, cap on inheritance, lower sales taxes
      Healthcare: support a fully single-payer system
      Social Security: see above, folded into the minimum income program
      Education: integrate all schools (incl. private schools) by race and income, greatly increase funding.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: f()ck no. not while people still follow the cult of norquist.

      Foreign Policy and National Security
      Iran: actually one of the better countries in the region. try to improve our relationship
      Iraq/Syria: the us should have intervened in syria long ago.
      Military Spending: significantly reduce
      PATRIOT Act: eww no
      NSA Spying: ^^
      Israel/Palestine: diplomatic recognition of palestine as an independent state. israel must stop further settlements but the current ones can remain
      Immigration: eliminate most restrictions on immigration altogether. border control should only be used to prevent smuggling and the like.

      Environment
      Climate Change: is the biggest problem. unilateral geo-engineering is the only solution.
      Green Energy: support.
      Keystone XL Pipeline: oppose.

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College: against. hopefully the npvc will render it irrelevant soon
      Gerrymandering: have the courts draw the districts
      Presidential term: abolish term limits
      Public Financing: strongly support. at the very least citizens united should be overturned
      Term limits: no
      Voter ID: support if said id's are free and easily available
      Voting: expand early/postal voting


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: SWE on October 12, 2014, 01:03:27 PM
      Social Issues:
      Abortion: Free, legal, and on demand at any point during pregnancy with no restrictions and no questions asked. Provide free birth control, comprehensive sex education in schools, paid maternity leave, and a national day care service to reduce the need for abortion.
      Drugs: Legalize all of them, with 16 as the legal purchase age. Nationalize the pharmaceutical and recreational drug sectors.
      Marriage: Ideally marriage should be abolished, but if we must have it, it should be allowed equally. Legalize Same-sex marriage, polygamy, and incest.
      Capital Punishment: The state should not have the power to end its citizens lives.
      Prostitution: Legalize and ban pimping.
      Gun Control: The right to bear arms is a necessary human right. Nationalize the arms sector.
      Affirmative Action: Guarantee everyone a job
      Stem Cell research: Support (living in 2014)
      Euthanasia: The terminally ill should be allowed to end their lives on their own terms. Legalize assisted suicide.

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: $22/hr along with a guaranteed minimum income
      Welfare: Institute a guaranteed minimum income, making wage labor a choice
      Health care: Institute the Cuban model of socialized medicine
      Taxation: Make the tax structure as progressive as possible. Higher taxes on the top income taxes, a 100% estate tax, abolish sales taxes and sin taxes
      Unions: Give workers full control of the work place. Until then, protect the right of workers to organize. Repeal all anti-union legislation like Taft-Hartley, no right to work, protect the right to strike, and ban scabbing.
      Education: Support the Democratic education model. Ban private schools.
      Trade: Repeal free trade agreements like NAFTA and CAFTA
      Balanced Budget Amendment: lol
      Privatization: Bring all industry into democratic public ownership
      Environment: Should be a top priority. Heavy investment in alternative energy.

      Foreign Policy and National Security:
      Iran: Diplomacy with Iran. End all sanctions.
      Iraq War: Never should have happened
      Afghanistan: End the War in Afghanistan and bring home all American troops.
      ISIS: Provide humanitarian aid to local people fighting against ISIS, but no direct military action
      Syria: Provide humanitarian aid to the rebels, but no direct military action
      Cuba: End the trade embargo and travel ban and seek an alliance with Cuba
      Military Spending: Cut drastically
      Government Surveillance: Should be completely illegal
      Israel/Palestine: Israel has no right to exist. Support a single, free, secular, democratic Palestinian state with equal rights for all its inhabitants
      Immigration: Open borders and amnesty for all illegal immigrants
      Guantanamo Bay: Return to Cuba
      Nukes: Seek an international treaty banning nuclear weapons
      Draft: There should never be a draft.

      Government:
      State: Smash the state
      Form of Government: Direct Consensus Democracy.
      Legal Courts: Settle all legal disputes with juries, not judges


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Chunk Yogurt for President! on October 25, 2014, 02:36:38 PM
      Social:

      Abortion: Illegal with exception for mother's life
      Assisted Suicide: Opposed
      Death Penalty: Opposed
      War on Drugs: Opposed
      Gun Control: Opposed
      PATRIOT Act: Opposed
      Illegal Immigration: End benefits to illegals

      Economic:

      Monetary: Gold Standard, End the Fed
      Taxes: Repeal 16th Amendment, replace with low tariffs
      Spending: Drastically cut
      Regulations: Deregulate
      Healthcare: Privatize
      Corporations: End subsidies

      Foreign Policy:

      Afghanistan: Pull out immediately
      Iraq: Never go back
      Israel/Palestine: End US support of Israel
      Iran: End sanctions
      Saudi Arabia: End Alliance
      Russia: Develop peaceful relations
      Foreign Aid: End it
      UN: Leave
      NATO: Leave
      Military Spending: Cut by at least 50%


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: user12345 on October 26, 2014, 02:38:42 PM
      Social:
      Abortion: Pro-Choice, personally Pro-Life in all cases but rape, incest, danger to mothers life but I don't believe in forcing my views on others.
      Gay Marriage: Legalize it!
      Drugs: Fully legalize marijuana and decriminalize all other drugs.
      Death Penalty: Only for mass murderers, treason, and terrorism.
      Gun control: Universal background checks, assault weapon ban.
      Affirmative Action: Necessary.
      Prostitution: Decriminalize it.
      Euthanasia: Only with the recommendation of multiple doctors with a patient who has a irreversible disease.

      Economy:
      Minimum Wage: Increase to $10.10 now, $15 soon.
      Welfare: No changes needed.
      Right-to-Work: Only right to work for less, repeal all "right to work laws"
      Taxation: Minor changes for the middle class, raise on the 1% and make sure all corporations pay their taxes fully.
      Healthcare: Socialize it.
      Social Security: Expand it.
      Education: More funding to education, repeal common core and replace with something new that includes the basics of common core.


      National Security
      Afghanistan: Get out.
      Iraq: Air strikes, arm Kurds only.
      Iran: End the embargo.
      Syria: Air strikes.
      Cuba: Repeal embargo, become an ally.
      Military Spending: Cut, a lot.
      PATRIOT Act: Repeal, repeal, repeal.
      NSA Spying: Only use on suspected terrorists.
      Palestine: Recognize Palestine.
      Israel: Stop giving them aid until they allow Palestine to become independent.
      Immigration: Amnesty for all undocumented immigrants. Reform immigration system.
      Guantanamo Bay: Close it now, Return the land to Cuba.

      Environment
      Climate Change: Climate change is natural and man made. Cut emissions now, taper off use of coal.
      Keystone XL Pipeline: No, no, and nope.

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College: Abolish.
      Gerrymandering: Districts should be created by independent commissions.
      Term limits: Leave them how they are.
      Voter ID: Not necessary.
      Voter Registration: Voter registration should be automatic.
      Statehood: Allow DC, Puerto Rico to become states.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Emperor Charles V on November 02, 2014, 11:07:14 AM
      Social:
      Abortion: 100% Pro-Life, I believe abortion is never justified, even in cases of rape/incest
      Gay Marriage: I am completely for it but also take the extra step further and believe the government should completely take itself out of marriage and make it a private institution. The only threat to the sanctity of marriage is government regulation of what should be a private matter.
      Drugs: Legalize everything! The government should have no say what people put in their bodies
      Death Penalty: Completely opposed to it
      Gun control: 100% for Second Amendment gun rights and am an NRA member, people need to defend themselves
      Affirmative Action: I am completely opposed to it and I think it's racist and doesn't fulfill it's purpose of giving minorities equal opportunities to succeed
      Prostitution: Completely legalize it. It's a business and I believe the government shouldn't interfere in ANY business regardless of how "moral" it is
      Euthanasia: Completely opposed
      Stem Cell Research: support regular, completely oppose embryonic

      Economy:
      Minimum Wage: This is a state issue (having a federal minimum wage is bogus IMO) and raising it only will cost more jobs
      Welfare: I do believe it's necessary unlike some more radical libertarians but people should be required to work
      Right-to-Work: Yes, this is common sense, people should have a choice in whether or not they want to join a union
      Taxation: Abolish the federal income tax (repeal the 16th Amendment) and the IRS, change "progressive" taxes to flat taxes
      Monetary Policy: bring back the gold standard, end the fed!
      Corporation Subsidies: Hell no
      Balanced Budget Amendment: yes, this is common sense IMO
      Healthcare: Repeal Obamacare, it's a state issue, privatize it but if states want to pass their own health care laws, go ahead, abolish the Department of Health and Human Services
      Social Security: Leave it the way it is
      Education: 100% a state issue, abolish the Department of Ed, common core is a train wreck

      National Security
      Afghanistan: Get out, opposed to the war since the beginning
      Iraq: The war was a horrible mistake, get completely out
      Iran: So what if they develop a nuclear weapon, they do not threaten our national security.
      Syria: Please no war with them, please no.
      Cuba: End the embargo.
      Military Spending: Cut it, we spend WAY too much on useless wars
      PATRIOT Act: Get ing rid of this horrible piece of legislation!
      NSA Spying: NO!!!!!
      Palestine & Israel: The United States does not need to police this area. I do support a two state solution but we don't need excessive U.S. military involvement in the region for that to happen.
      Immigration: I am pro-immigration reform. Though I do think we should increase border security we need to have a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants and make it much easier for immigrant to get into this country with the proper documentation in the first place. We are a country of immigrants and immigration should be safe, easy and efficient.
      Guantanamo Bay: Close it, it's useless

      Environment
      Climate Change: I'm sorry but I'm not buying the "scientific proof" that humans cause it. Sure it's happening but nothing outside of natural cycles.
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Common sense, will create thousands of jobs.

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College: I am 100% for national popular vote but keep the electoral college for ceremonial purposes. So in other words, states will allocate electors based on who wins the National Popular Vote, not who wins in the states
      Gerrymandering: Independent commissions
      Term limits: these should be set by the states but I think the best option is 4 two-year terms for the House and 2 six-year terms for the Senate.
      Voter ID: Completely opposed. Voter fraud is barely a problem and come on, do we need a national ID card to combat a very small problem?
      Voter Registration: Should be automatic, see no reason why it shouldn't be
      Statehood: should be completely up to the territory who wants to be a state and is best accomplished via referendum


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Oakvale on November 02, 2014, 11:33:36 AM
      I'd just like to point out that "it should be left to the states" or whatever is not an actual position. It's like saying "foreign policy should be left to the federal government". Yes, and?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Goldwater on November 02, 2014, 11:52:35 AM
      I'd just like to point out that "it should be left to the states" or whatever is not an actual position. It's like saying "foreign policy should be left to the federal government". Yes, and?

      I remember when I first joined this forum that was my answer to just about every social issue. Not so much anymore.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Attorney General, LGC Speaker & Former PPT Dwarven Dragon on November 02, 2014, 11:02:48 PM
      Social:

      Abortion: Illegal, except in cases of rape, incest, and life of the mother. No federal funding. Open to legal abortion in cases where the fetus is known to have severe genetic disabilities (e.g. those that make one have a vegetable-style life), but no further than that.

      Gay Marriage: I personally am O.K. with civil unions and am opposed to full marriage, but this is really something that should be left up to states, not activist judges or the federal government.

      Drugs: Full legalization of Marijuana with a substantial excise tax, just like we have for Tobacco. Everything else stays illegal, but focus on rehabilitation and not punishment.

      Death Penalty: Only if it is a first-degree murder case with irrefutable evidence that the defendant is guilty, approved by at least two jury trials. Dramatically reduce time spent on death row, and switch to far quicker method of death (Personally, I don't really see what's the big deal with beheading. They're going to die no matter what method you use, so why not do a quick beheading rather than a lethal injection that doesn't kill right away and even fails to kill on rare occasions?) .

      Gun Control: Expand background checks to all gun shows and the entire internet. Open to assault weapons ban. Nothing else.

      Affirmative Action: Opposed. This is just a bunch of prejudice against whites.

      Prostitution: Opposed, but would probably just leave it up to the states if I was in the federal government as there are much bigger issues to deal with.

      Euthansia: Allowed, but only in cases where the patient and/or all living parents have given willful consent and there is a 0% chance of recovery.

      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Opposed.

      Fiscal:

      Federal Minimum Wage: Raise gradually ($0.75 - $1) each year towards an ultimate goal of $12. After that, raise each year according to inflation.

      Welfare: Yes, but require one to be working or be enrolled in some sort of job training program

      Right to Work: Yes, but in a way that still keeps unions intact.

      Income Tax: Substantially reduce loopholes and deductions, open to very small rate decrease for those making less than $200,000 (e.g. 1-2%).

      FAIR Tax: Opposed

      Corporate Tax: Drastically reduce loopholes and deductions, lower top rate to 28%.

      Balanced Budget Amendment: Yes. Require a balanced budget by fiscal 2030, with exceptions for declared war that is actually being fought (i.e. congress can't use this exception unless U.S. soldiers are actually fighting in the country we've declared war against), and severe recessions (underemployment >= 15%) .

      Healthcare: Keep ObamaCare, but revise it. I have many things in mind: 40 hours, not 30 hours, should be considered full-time, work to dramatically lower premiums, allow a small number of health insurance companies that provide most but not all 'Obamacare-mandated' benefits to still exist for people that don't need full coverage (ex. people that don't need maternity-related services), continue to improve the website, have open enrollment year-long, repeal the medical device tax, forbid business owners from laying off or firing people solely because of Obamacare-related costs, and require all hospitals and doctors to accept insurance policies purchased on the website, no exceptions.

      Medicare: Gradually raise retirement age for people under 55.

      Social Security: Eliminate payroll tax cap but lower payroll tax rate to 4.2% for those making under $200,000. Gradually raise retirement age for people under 55.

      Common Core: Opposed.

      Foreign:

      Afghanistan: Get Out. We've been there long enough.

      Further Action in Iraq: Opposed.

      Iran: Leave them alone.

      Israel: Continue to be an ally, but respect its sovereignty and do not dictate its foreign or domestic policy.

      Syria: Leave them alone.

      Cuba: End the travel ban, gradually reestablish U.S.-Cuba trade.

      Military Spending: Cut it by $200 Billion immediately, then freeze for 15 years - no exceptions, not even for inflation, unless approved by a 2/3 majority of both houses of congress and the president.

      Foreign Economic Aid: I support the 'Newt Gingrich' view here. Eliminate it completely, and then have countries justify why we should give them a penny.

      PATRIOT Act: Substantially weaken

      Guantanamo Bay: Keep it open, but give potential prisoners a full jury trial in federal court.

      Immigration Reform: Support the 'Marco Rubio' plan passed by the U.S. Senate in 2013.

      Other:

      Keystone XL: Approve as long as U.S. actually uses some of the oil itself rather than exporting all of it.

      Electoral College: Abolish, institute NPV with IRV.

      Gerrymandering: Eliminate with shortest-splitline method

      Congressional Term Limits: 6 terms for the house, 2 for the senate

      Statehood of Puerto Rico: Supportive

      Voter ID: Opposed. It's biased to favor republican-leaning voters and fraud isn't even a nominal problem on a national scale.








      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on November 04, 2014, 10:32:18 AM
      Social:

      Abortion: Illegal, except in cases of rape, incest, and life of the mother. No federal funding. Open to legal abortion in cases where the fetus is known to have severe genetic disabilities (e.g. those that make one have a vegetable-style life), but no further than that.

      Gay Marriage: I personally am O.K. with civil unions and am opposed to full marriage, but this is really something that should be left up to states, not activist judges or the federal government.

      Drugs: Full legalization of Marijuana with a substantial excise tax, just like we have for Tobacco. Everything else stays illegal, but focus on rehabilitation and not punishment.

      Death Penalty: Only if it is a first-degree murder case with irrefutable evidence that the defendant is guilty, approved by at least two jury trials. Dramatically reduce time spent on death row, and switch to far quicker method of death (Personally, I don't really see what's the big deal with beheading. They're going to die no matter what method you use, so why not do a quick beheading rather than a lethal injection that doesn't kill right away and even fails to kill on rare occasions?) .

      Gun Control: Expand background checks to all gun shows and the entire internet. Open to assault weapons ban. Nothing else.

      Affirmative Action: Opposed. This is just a bunch of prejudice against whites.

      Prostitution: Opposed, but would probably just leave it up to the states if I was in the federal government as there are much bigger issues to deal with.

      Euthansia: Allowed, but only in cases where the patient and/or all living parents have given willful consent and there is a 0% chance of recovery.

      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Opposed.

      Fiscal:

      Federal Minimum Wage: Raise gradually ($0.75 - $1) each year towards an ultimate goal of $12. After that, raise each year according to inflation.

      Welfare: Yes, but require one to be working or be enrolled in some sort of job training program

      Right to Work: Yes, but in a way that still keeps unions intact.

      Income Tax: Substantially reduce loopholes and deductions, open to very small rate decrease for those making less than $200,000 (e.g. 1-2%).

      FAIR Tax: Opposed

      Corporate Tax: Drastically reduce loopholes and deductions, lower top rate to 28%.

      Balanced Budget Amendment: Yes. Require a balanced budget by fiscal 2030, with exceptions for declared war that is actually being fought (i.e. congress can't use this exception unless U.S. soldiers are actually fighting in the country we've declared war against), and severe recessions (underemployment >= 15%) .

      Healthcare: Keep ObamaCare, but revise it. I have many things in mind: 40 hours, not 30 hours, should be considered full-time, work to dramatically lower premiums, allow a small number of health insurance companies that provide most but not all 'Obamacare-mandated' benefits to still exist for people that don't need full coverage (ex. people that don't need maternity-related services), continue to improve the website, have open enrollment year-long, repeal the medical device tax, forbid business owners from laying off or firing people solely because of Obamacare-related costs, and require all hospitals and doctors to accept insurance policies purchased on the website, no exceptions.

      Medicare: Gradually raise retirement age for people under 55.

      Social Security: Eliminate payroll tax cap but lower payroll tax rate to 4.2% for those making under $200,000. Gradually raise retirement age for people under 55.

      Common Core: Opposed.

      Foreign:

      Afghanistan: Get Out. We've been there long enough.

      Further Action in Iraq: Opposed.

      Iran: Leave them alone.

      Israel: Continue to be an ally, but respect its sovereignty and do not dictate its foreign or domestic policy.

      Syria: Leave them alone.

      Cuba: End the travel ban, gradually reestablish U.S.-Cuba trade.

      Military Spending: Cut it by $200 Billion immediately, then freeze for 15 years - no exceptions, not even for inflation, unless approved by a 2/3 majority of both houses of congress and the president.

      Foreign Economic Aid: I support the 'Newt Gingrich' view here. Eliminate it completely, and then have countries justify why we should give them a penny.

      PATRIOT Act: Substantially weaken

      Guantanamo Bay: Keep it open, but give potential prisoners a full jury trial in federal court.

      Immigration Reform: Support the 'Marco Rubio' plan passed by the U.S. Senate in 2013.

      Other:

      Keystone XL: Approve as long as U.S. actually uses some of the oil itself rather than exporting all of it.

      Electoral College: Abolish, institute NPV with IRV.

      Gerrymandering: Eliminate with shortest-splitline method

      Congressional Term Limits: 6 terms for the house, 2 for the senate

      Statehood of Puerto Rico: Supportive

      Voter ID: Opposed. It's biased to favor republican-leaning voters and fraud isn't even a nominal problem on a national scale.








      You are more a "mainstream" Conservative Republican than an Independent.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Attorney General, LGC Speaker & Former PPT Dwarven Dragon on November 10, 2014, 05:19:18 PM
      Social:

      Abortion: Illegal, except in cases of rape, incest, and life of the mother. No federal funding. Open to legal abortion in cases where the fetus is known to have severe genetic disabilities (e.g. those that make one have a vegetable-style life), but no further than that.

      Gay Marriage: I personally am O.K. with civil unions and am opposed to full marriage, but this is really something that should be left up to states, not activist judges or the federal government.

      Drugs: Full legalization of Marijuana with a substantial excise tax, just like we have for Tobacco. Everything else stays illegal, but focus on rehabilitation and not punishment.

      Death Penalty: Only if it is a first-degree murder case with irrefutable evidence that the defendant is guilty, approved by at least two jury trials. Dramatically reduce time spent on death row, and switch to far quicker method of death (Personally, I don't really see what's the big deal with beheading. They're going to die no matter what method you use, so why not do a quick beheading rather than a lethal injection that doesn't kill right away and even fails to kill on rare occasions?) .

      Gun Control: Expand background checks to all gun shows and the entire internet. Open to assault weapons ban. Nothing else.

      Affirmative Action: Opposed. This is just a bunch of prejudice against whites.

      Prostitution: Opposed, but would probably just leave it up to the states if I was in the federal government as there are much bigger issues to deal with.

      Euthansia: Allowed, but only in cases where the patient and/or all living parents have given willful consent and there is a 0% chance of recovery.

      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Opposed.

      Fiscal:

      Federal Minimum Wage: Raise gradually ($0.75 - $1) each year towards an ultimate goal of $12. After that, raise each year according to inflation.

      Welfare: Yes, but require one to be working or be enrolled in some sort of job training program

      Right to Work: Yes, but in a way that still keeps unions intact.

      Income Tax: Substantially reduce loopholes and deductions, open to very small rate decrease for those making less than $200,000 (e.g. 1-2%).

      FAIR Tax: Opposed

      Corporate Tax: Drastically reduce loopholes and deductions, lower top rate to 28%.

      Balanced Budget Amendment: Yes. Require a balanced budget by fiscal 2030, with exceptions for declared war that is actually being fought (i.e. congress can't use this exception unless U.S. soldiers are actually fighting in the country we've declared war against), and severe recessions (underemployment >= 15%) .

      Healthcare: Keep ObamaCare, but revise it. I have many things in mind: 40 hours, not 30 hours, should be considered full-time, work to dramatically lower premiums, allow a small number of health insurance companies that provide most but not all 'Obamacare-mandated' benefits to still exist for people that don't need full coverage (ex. people that don't need maternity-related services), continue to improve the website, have open enrollment year-long, repeal the medical device tax, forbid business owners from laying off or firing people solely because of Obamacare-related costs, and require all hospitals and doctors to accept insurance policies purchased on the website, no exceptions.

      Medicare: Gradually raise retirement age for people under 55.

      Social Security: Eliminate payroll tax cap but lower payroll tax rate to 4.2% for those making under $200,000. Gradually raise retirement age for people under 55.

      Common Core: Opposed.

      Foreign:

      Afghanistan: Get Out. We've been there long enough.

      Further Action in Iraq: Opposed.

      Iran: Leave them alone.

      Israel: Continue to be an ally, but respect its sovereignty and do not dictate its foreign or domestic policy.

      Syria: Leave them alone.

      Cuba: End the travel ban, gradually reestablish U.S.-Cuba trade.

      Military Spending: Cut it by $200 Billion immediately, then freeze for 15 years - no exceptions, not even for inflation, unless approved by a 2/3 majority of both houses of congress and the president.

      Foreign Economic Aid: I support the 'Newt Gingrich' view here. Eliminate it completely, and then have countries justify why we should give them a penny.

      PATRIOT Act: Substantially weaken

      Guantanamo Bay: Keep it open, but give potential prisoners a full jury trial in federal court.

      Immigration Reform: Support the 'Marco Rubio' plan passed by the U.S. Senate in 2013.

      Other:

      Keystone XL: Approve as long as U.S. actually uses some of the oil itself rather than exporting all of it.

      Electoral College: Abolish, institute NPV with IRV.

      Gerrymandering: Eliminate with shortest-splitline method

      Congressional Term Limits: 6 terms for the house, 2 for the senate

      Statehood of Puerto Rico: Supportive

      Voter ID: Opposed. It's biased to favor republican-leaning voters and fraud isn't even a nominal problem on a national scale.








      You are more a "mainstream" Conservative Republican than an Independent.
      i'd be laughed out of the republican party because I don't support full repeal of ObamaCare, the Paul Ryan budget, or tax cuts for the wealthy. I'd be laughed out of the democratic party because i'm not fond of obama and because i'm not left enough on social issues or entitlements. I'm also a big proponent of compromise. That's why i'm an independent.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on November 15, 2014, 10:21:13 AM
      Social:

      Abortion: Illegal, except in cases of rape, incest, and life of the mother. No federal funding. Open to legal abortion in cases where the fetus is known to have severe genetic disabilities (e.g. those that make one have a vegetable-style life), but no further than that.

      Gay Marriage: I personally am O.K. with civil unions and am opposed to full marriage, but this is really something that should be left up to states, not activist judges or the federal government.

      Drugs: Full legalization of Marijuana with a substantial excise tax, just like we have for Tobacco. Everything else stays illegal, but focus on rehabilitation and not punishment.

      Death Penalty: Only if it is a first-degree murder case with irrefutable evidence that the defendant is guilty, approved by at least two jury trials. Dramatically reduce time spent on death row, and switch to far quicker method of death (Personally, I don't really see what's the big deal with beheading. They're going to die no matter what method you use, so why not do a quick beheading rather than a lethal injection that doesn't kill right away and even fails to kill on rare occasions?) .

      Gun Control: Expand background checks to all gun shows and the entire internet. Open to assault weapons ban. Nothing else.

      Affirmative Action: Opposed. This is just a bunch of prejudice against whites.

      Prostitution: Opposed, but would probably just leave it up to the states if I was in the federal government as there are much bigger issues to deal with.

      Euthansia: Allowed, but only in cases where the patient and/or all living parents have given willful consent and there is a 0% chance of recovery.

      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Opposed.

      Fiscal:

      Federal Minimum Wage: Raise gradually ($0.75 - $1) each year towards an ultimate goal of $12. After that, raise each year according to inflation.

      Welfare: Yes, but require one to be working or be enrolled in some sort of job training program

      Right to Work: Yes, but in a way that still keeps unions intact.

      Income Tax: Substantially reduce loopholes and deductions, open to very small rate decrease for those making less than $200,000 (e.g. 1-2%).

      FAIR Tax: Opposed

      Corporate Tax: Drastically reduce loopholes and deductions, lower top rate to 28%.

      Balanced Budget Amendment: Yes. Require a balanced budget by fiscal 2030, with exceptions for declared war that is actually being fought (i.e. congress can't use this exception unless U.S. soldiers are actually fighting in the country we've declared war against), and severe recessions (underemployment >= 15%) .

      Healthcare: Keep ObamaCare, but revise it. I have many things in mind: 40 hours, not 30 hours, should be considered full-time, work to dramatically lower premiums, allow a small number of health insurance companies that provide most but not all 'Obamacare-mandated' benefits to still exist for people that don't need full coverage (ex. people that don't need maternity-related services), continue to improve the website, have open enrollment year-long, repeal the medical device tax, forbid business owners from laying off or firing people solely because of Obamacare-related costs, and require all hospitals and doctors to accept insurance policies purchased on the website, no exceptions.

      Medicare: Gradually raise retirement age for people under 55.

      Social Security: Eliminate payroll tax cap but lower payroll tax rate to 4.2% for those making under $200,000. Gradually raise retirement age for people under 55.

      Common Core: Opposed.

      Foreign:

      Afghanistan: Get Out. We've been there long enough.

      Further Action in Iraq: Opposed.

      Iran: Leave them alone.

      Israel: Continue to be an ally, but respect its sovereignty and do not dictate its foreign or domestic policy.

      Syria: Leave them alone.

      Cuba: End the travel ban, gradually reestablish U.S.-Cuba trade.

      Military Spending: Cut it by $200 Billion immediately, then freeze for 15 years - no exceptions, not even for inflation, unless approved by a 2/3 majority of both houses of congress and the president.

      Foreign Economic Aid: I support the 'Newt Gingrich' view here. Eliminate it completely, and then have countries justify why we should give them a penny.

      PATRIOT Act: Substantially weaken

      Guantanamo Bay: Keep it open, but give potential prisoners a full jury trial in federal court.

      Immigration Reform: Support the 'Marco Rubio' plan passed by the U.S. Senate in 2013.

      Other:

      Keystone XL: Approve as long as U.S. actually uses some of the oil itself rather than exporting all of it.

      Electoral College: Abolish, institute NPV with IRV.

      Gerrymandering: Eliminate with shortest-splitline method

      Congressional Term Limits: 6 terms for the house, 2 for the senate

      Statehood of Puerto Rico: Supportive

      Voter ID: Opposed. It's biased to favor republican-leaning voters and fraud isn't even a nominal problem on a national scale.








      You are more a "mainstream" Conservative Republican than an Independent.
      i'd be laughed out of the republican party because I don't support full repeal of ObamaCare, the Paul Ryan budget, or tax cuts for the wealthy. I'd be laughed out of the democratic party because i'm not fond of obama and because i'm not left enough on social issues or entitlements. I'm also a big proponent of compromise. That's why i'm an independent.

      That's probably the full extent that they will get unless SCOTUS vetoes Obamacare or the GOP gets a supermajority and can't reconcile through the Ryan budget in the senate.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Attorney General, LGC Speaker & Former PPT Dwarven Dragon on November 15, 2014, 03:12:32 PM
      Social:

      Abortion: Illegal, except in cases of rape, incest, and life of the mother. No federal funding. Open to legal abortion in cases where the fetus is known to have severe genetic disabilities (e.g. those that make one have a vegetable-style life), but no further than that.

      Gay Marriage: I personally am O.K. with civil unions and am opposed to full marriage, but this is really something that should be left up to states, not activist judges or the federal government.

      Drugs: Full legalization of Marijuana with a substantial excise tax, just like we have for Tobacco. Everything else stays illegal, but focus on rehabilitation and not punishment.

      Death Penalty: Only if it is a first-degree murder case with irrefutable evidence that the defendant is guilty, approved by at least two jury trials. Dramatically reduce time spent on death row, and switch to far quicker method of death (Personally, I don't really see what's the big deal with beheading. They're going to die no matter what method you use, so why not do a quick beheading rather than a lethal injection that doesn't kill right away and even fails to kill on rare occasions?) .

      Gun Control: Expand background checks to all gun shows and the entire internet. Open to assault weapons ban. Nothing else.

      Affirmative Action: Opposed. This is just a bunch of prejudice against whites.

      Prostitution: Opposed, but would probably just leave it up to the states if I was in the federal government as there are much bigger issues to deal with.

      Euthansia: Allowed, but only in cases where the patient and/or all living parents have given willful consent and there is a 0% chance of recovery.

      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Opposed.

      Fiscal:

      Federal Minimum Wage: Raise gradually ($0.75 - $1) each year towards an ultimate goal of $12. After that, raise each year according to inflation.

      Welfare: Yes, but require one to be working or be enrolled in some sort of job training program

      Right to Work: Yes, but in a way that still keeps unions intact.

      Income Tax: Substantially reduce loopholes and deductions, open to very small rate decrease for those making less than $200,000 (e.g. 1-2%).

      FAIR Tax: Opposed

      Corporate Tax: Drastically reduce loopholes and deductions, lower top rate to 28%.

      Balanced Budget Amendment: Yes. Require a balanced budget by fiscal 2030, with exceptions for declared war that is actually being fought (i.e. congress can't use this exception unless U.S. soldiers are actually fighting in the country we've declared war against), and severe recessions (underemployment >= 15%) .

      Healthcare: Keep ObamaCare, but revise it. I have many things in mind: 40 hours, not 30 hours, should be considered full-time, work to dramatically lower premiums, allow a small number of health insurance companies that provide most but not all 'Obamacare-mandated' benefits to still exist for people that don't need full coverage (ex. people that don't need maternity-related services), continue to improve the website, have open enrollment year-long, repeal the medical device tax, forbid business owners from laying off or firing people solely because of Obamacare-related costs, and require all hospitals and doctors to accept insurance policies purchased on the website, no exceptions.

      Medicare: Gradually raise retirement age for people under 55.

      Social Security: Eliminate payroll tax cap but lower payroll tax rate to 4.2% for those making under $200,000. Gradually raise retirement age for people under 55.

      Common Core: Opposed.

      Foreign:

      Afghanistan: Get Out. We've been there long enough.

      Further Action in Iraq: Opposed.

      Iran: Leave them alone.

      Israel: Continue to be an ally, but respect its sovereignty and do not dictate its foreign or domestic policy.

      Syria: Leave them alone.

      Cuba: End the travel ban, gradually reestablish U.S.-Cuba trade.

      Military Spending: Cut it by $200 Billion immediately, then freeze for 15 years - no exceptions, not even for inflation, unless approved by a 2/3 majority of both houses of congress and the president.

      Foreign Economic Aid: I support the 'Newt Gingrich' view here. Eliminate it completely, and then have countries justify why we should give them a penny.

      PATRIOT Act: Substantially weaken

      Guantanamo Bay: Keep it open, but give potential prisoners a full jury trial in federal court.

      Immigration Reform: Support the 'Marco Rubio' plan passed by the U.S. Senate in 2013.

      Other:

      Keystone XL: Approve as long as U.S. actually uses some of the oil itself rather than exporting all of it.

      Electoral College: Abolish, institute NPV with IRV.

      Gerrymandering: Eliminate with shortest-splitline method

      Congressional Term Limits: 6 terms for the house, 2 for the senate

      Statehood of Puerto Rico: Supportive

      Voter ID: Opposed. It's biased to favor republican-leaning voters and fraud isn't even a nominal problem on a national scale.








      You are more a "mainstream" Conservative Republican than an Independent.
      i'd be laughed out of the republican party because I don't support full repeal of ObamaCare, the Paul Ryan budget, or tax cuts for the wealthy. I'd be laughed out of the democratic party because i'm not fond of obama and because i'm not left enough on social issues or entitlements. I'm also a big proponent of compromise. That's why i'm an independent.

      That's probably the full extent that they will get unless SCOTUS vetoes Obamacare or the GOP gets a supermajority and can't reconcile through the Ryan budget in the senate.
      But you still have to support full repeal of ObamaCare to be a republican. Also, I don't think republicans will push for year-long open enrollment, or either of these:

      Quote
      forbid business owners from laying off or firing people solely because of Obamacare-related costs, and require all hospitals and doctors to accept insurance policies purchased on the website, no exceptions.

      You also can't support military spending cuts if you're a republican, or leaving Iran alone.

      Basically, my platform fails to meet the basic litmus tests of either party. I could pose myself as a conservative democrat or a liberal republican with relative ease, but I'd never be able to win the primary.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Goldwater on November 16, 2014, 06:01:28 PM
      Party: Republican
      Ideology: Conservative

      I'll go issue by issue. No need for long explanations.  Basically, a conservative Republican who has a few liberal views (global warming for one), but is uniformly otherwise conservative, pro-civil liberties, and is an internationalist that believes in America projecting her power.
      ...

      That's interesting, considering I expected someone named after Calvin Coolidge to be something along the lines of a isolationist or non-interventionist. Considering my own political views, I'll call that a pleasant surprise. ;)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Kallo on November 17, 2014, 05:19:25 PM
      Party: Independent (Usually vote democrat)
      Ideology: Progressive

      Social Policy:
      Abortion: Pro-choice, keep abortion safe, legal, and rare.
      Gay Marriage: Fully supportive of LGBT rights.
      Drugs: Marijuana for medical purposes, keep everything else illegal.
      Stem Cell Research: Stem Cell research saves lives, and is completely necessary.
      Death Penalty: In favor, not happy with the fuss that's been made over it regarding the recent botched executions.
      Gun control: Bring in background checks, ban assault weapons.
      Affirmative Action: Very bad idea, we should be choosing on ability, not on race.
      Women's Rights: Introduce equal pay legislation.

      Economic Issues:
      Federal Spending: Do not support the Ryan budgets, no cuts to social agencies.
      Minimum Wage: Large increase in minimum wage, give tax cuts to smaller businesses who can't handle the raise.
      Taxation: Raise taxes on the rich, introduce a progressive taxation system.
      Healthcare: Support social healthcare, but don't agree with certain aspects of the ACA
      Social Security: Make sure hard working Americans benefit
      Education: Drastically increase funding to our broken education system, pay teachers more, keep and expand common core.

      Foreign Policy and National Security:
      Iran: Diplomacy is the best course of action.
      Iraq/Syria: Stop air strikes on ISIS, it is only inflaming the situation, instead provide support to Kurdish fighters and other forces against ISIS without directlly attacking them, we cannot afford it.
      Military Spending: Cut military operations and spending.
      NSA Spying: Necessary
      Immigration: Increase border control, but come to agreement on a possible amnesty, need immigration reform.

      Environment
      Climate Change: Call out and shame the politicians who deny climate change, start passing legislation to reduce its impact.
      Green Energy: Shift our reliance on oil to renewable energy.
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Against, instead subsidise companies willing to create jobs with renewable energy

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College: Should be reviewed, Al Gore won popular vote in 2000 but only lost due to electoral college
      Gerrymandering: Use independent groups to reform the current US districts
      Campaign Finance: Repeal citizens united, strict public financing of elections.
      Term limits: Against
      Voter ID: Used as a base for republicans to stop democrats voting, repeal voter ID laws.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Murica! on November 28, 2014, 10:20:39 PM
      Complete social anarchist with anarcho-syndicalist organization with a free market. So yeah, that pretty much explains it.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Colbert on November 30, 2014, 05:40:24 PM

      Social:

      Abortion: limited to 3 months, no refund,
      Assisted Suicide: Opposed
      Death Penalty: strongly for
      gay marriage : opposed
      stem cell search : in favor of
      affirmative action : banned for ten thousand years. Constitutionnaly illegal
      prostitution : legalized and profits to prostitute AND the state
      Drugs: legalization, drugs are sold by the state (i.e. the "federal state" in american point of view)
      sport gambling : illegal
      religious freedom : in favor, but (for France, catholicism must be official state religion, not to convert, but for the financial protections of monuments, and against relativism with islam, judaism or protestant sects
      Gun Control: yes
      PATRIOT Act: Opposed
      Illegal Immigration: 0 immigrants, and even send immigrants home
      jails : one cell by prisonner. no cellphone, smartphone. Internet and tv booked only to disciplined prisoners. Cleaning made by prisonners. Cooking too. And production of food, if it is geographically possible

      Economic:

      Monetary: a money based on real wealth of nation
      Taxes: progressive personal income, no local taxes, customs taxes
      Spending: balanced budget for normal spends
      Regulations: Deregulate, but not too much
      Healthcare: beveridged
      Corporations: single compulsory union for workers, idem for bosses (with the compulsory, a worker would not be stigmatized for is belonging to a corporation, and the syndicat would be less politised by leftists civil servants
      Protectionnism
      Strong railway web
      Taxation of dividends
      End of taxation of inheritance
      The main house of a family, the company of a family could'nt be divided for eachs heirs. Deserve to the first born. Financial compensation is offered to other heirs (only if it is possible, for the main house)
      Education : elitist system, less people with a graduate.
      Minimal wage : calculated as 50% od median wage (or + if necessary for decent life)
      Land : only people with the nationality could be landlords. Same thing for houses, buildings.

      Foreign Policy:

      Afghanistan: Pull out
      Iraq: bring back baath' party
      Israel/Palestine: support israel, with jerusalem for capital city, but without christian sancted places. Israel with 1967 borders. Golan to syria, Gaza and Cisjordania form state of palestine
      Iran: End sanctions
      Russia: Develop peaceful relations, with condition they stop to interfere in national sovereignty of east europe (baltic states, caucasus, ukraine)
      Foreign Aid: End it
      UN: creation of a new SDN with the ONLY goal of stopping wars. Each member would have the duty to lend 10% of his military forces to fight with the agressor of a SDN member.
      NATO: Leave
      Military Spending: same level


      no idea of my place in political spectrum in american political spectrum


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Wolverines34 on December 11, 2014, 02:02:38 AM
      Social Issues

      Abortion:Pro-Choice
      Gay Marriage:Support
      Capital Punishment:Strongly Support
      Marijuana Legalization:Oppose
      Immigration:Deport All Illegals & Ban on all immigration.
      Guns:Abolish all Gun Control Laws. Concealed carry, no restrictions on our right to bear arms!.

      Economic/Foreign Policy Issues

      Taxes:15% Flat Tax. Cut Taxes Across the board (exemption on taxes for poor).
      Social Security:Partial privatization.
      Healthcare:No Socialized medicine.
      Cigarette Tax:Abolish
      Cigarette Regulations:Abolish
      FCC:Abolish
      Education:Abolish Department of Education, bring back local control. Vouchers.
      Syria:Stay Out.
      Turkey:Kick them out of the NATO. Sanctions.
      Islam:Islam threatens liberal western values.
      Israel:Strongly support + more funding.
      UN:Get Out


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Murica! on December 11, 2014, 05:40:46 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion:Pro-Choice
      Gay Marriage:Support
      Capital Punishment:Strongly Support
      Marijuana Legalization:Oppose
      Immigration:Deport All Illegals & Ban on all immigration.
      Guns:Abolish all Gun Control Laws. Concealed carry, no restrictions on our right to bear arms!.

      Economic/Foreign Policy Issues

      Taxes:15% Flat Tax. Cut Taxes Across the board (exemption on taxes for poor).
      Social Security:Partial privatization.
      Healthcare:No Socialized medicine.
      Cigarette Tax:Abolish
      Cigarette Regulations:Abolish
      FCC:Abolish
      Education:Abolish Department of Education, bring back local control. Vouchers.
      Syria:Stay Out.
      Turkey:Kick them out of the NATO. Sanctions.
      Islam:Islam threatens liberal western values.
      Israel:Strongly support + more funding.
      UN:Get Out
      Um..."Liberal"


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Jerseyrules on December 11, 2014, 07:56:58 PM
      Party: Republican?
      Ideology: Moderate, centre-Right

      Basically, an overall centrist with some radical positions that (probably?) overall balance out.

      Social Issues

      Abortion: Support women's right to choose prior to 20 weeks.  The current Partial Term Abortion Ban Act is sufficient; my main concern is making sure that abortions do not occur when the fetus has already formed sensory organs unless at risk of the life of the mother.  Strongly support over the counter access to contraceptives, family planning, increased funding to adoption, etc., as alternatives to abortion.

      Guns: Pro-Second Amendment. Support universal background checks, but be cautious about any further federal restrictions on guns otherwise.

      Gay Rights: Pro-gay rights and gay marriage.  Make gays a federally protected class akin to women and minorities

      Euthanasia: I support euthanasia for terminal illnesses, along the lines of Oregon's Right to Die law.

      Religious Freedoms: Supportive. Supported the Alito majority decision in Hobby Lobby.  Oppose forcing religious institutions from distributing birth control, etc.

      Supreme Court: Balance the "living Constitution" approach supported by liberals with strict constructionist readings of the Constitution.  It should encompass a spectrum of different ideologies, chosen more for their unique experience than for their ideology (no "litmus test" for SCOTUS nominees).

      Death Penalty: Depends.  California's appeals process is notoriously long and expensive; I'd rather see them sent to hard labor which is less of a burden to the taxpayers and gives them the opportunity to repent/reform.

      War on Drugs: A failed idea. Decriminalize and legalize, as needed, except for heroin, meth, and cocaine. End the DEA's powers and oversight, except for heroin, meth, and cocaine. Legalize marijuana, completely.

      Affirmative Action: I'm comfortable with the status quo; no quotas, but race is a fair factor to consider in order to make a level playing field for university education and thus access to high-paying jobs.

      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Supportive

      Common Core: Supportive.  Our country needs a national framework when it comes to education; we can't have 50 vastly different sets of standards in a modern economy.  I have friends who moved from out of state and are either a year behind or a year ahead in different math and science classes.  Obviously local communities are best at determining the specifics, but at least have a rough national guideline for curriculum.

      Evolution: Clearly happened. Support local education boards teaching evolution as accepted science, and exclude religious teachings from science classes.

      Economic and Government Issues:

      Taxes: Close loopholes and lower rates.  Make a more efficient tax code rather than the bureaucratic mess we have now.  I think Simpson-Bowles was a good start.  Introduce a 5% VAT / national sales tax with a rebate for low income earners; almost every other wealthy nation has a VAT of some kind.

      Because of the risks posed by climate change, I would support gradually phasing out the special deductions given to oil companies.  Implement a cap-and-trade system over a carbon tax, as cap-and-trade is a market-based solution, which have nearly always worked better than strictly punitive reforms.

      Spending: Balance the budget, as much as possible each year. A BBA is impractical. I am generally supportive of cutting spending to balance the budget, in all areas, and auditing all levels of government, including Defense (with the caveat that I still, on balance, support Defense spending to be strong enough to protect the United States and to project global power). Regulations should be audited, revised and stripped if useless.  Give agencies the tools they need to enforce good regulations, and create red teams to allow new start-ups to navegate the red tape required for doing so to maintain global competitiveness.

      Defense Spending: The Pentagon should have as much as it needs to continue the United States' military and technological edge over every other nations, and our enemies combined. That said, it should be audited for waste annually, and contractors should win contracts based on an open bidding process.

      Trade: Complete free trader. I want a global trade pact that eliminates all trade barriers, subsidies, and support for local industries, with the caveat that developing nations are given 20 years to develop their industries to come into the trade pact as fully mature nations.  At the same time, we need to make reductions in our unfair competitive advantage in certain fields; farm subsidies should be phased out as soon as it is feasible to do so, both to encourage agriculturally-specialized nations to compete and to allow for cheaper goods for the American people.

      Social Security and Medicare Reform: The Age of Retirement must be raised, to at least 70.  The current system as it stands is not feasible looking into the future, and will bankrupt us if left unchecked.  Open to privatization plans in the future, but I need to do some more research as to how such proposals would work.  However, from a moral standpoint, allowing employees to keep the money they would be paying in payroll taxes and instead allowing them to save or invest them would be a huge benefit to lower-income households if coupled with informative / educational programs to help people plan for retirement.  See Medicare below

      ObamaCare: I support nearly everything in the bill, however I would have gone a step further.  It should have included a public option and also provided for allowing Medicare to negotiate with pharmaceudical companies for lower drug costs, etc.  Long-term, single-payer is almost undoubtedly a cost-effective method of reducing healthcare from the beheamoth it is today; it's simply impractical to be spending nearly 18% of our GDP on healthcare while nations like Canada and even the UK spend about half that.  We can also look at the Singaporean system as a model; there, healthcare is estimated at 3.9% of GDP because of price transparency and significant use of savings accounts except for the poor and elderly.  Their system is a near-perfect combination of the best of both worlds - private and public.  It's simply inefficient to be spending so much of our capital on healthcare when that money could be spent investing in our country's future (or bombs.  Whatever tickles your fancy).

      Right to Work: Support the right of states to pass such laws, but I'd be reluctant to impose such a system for private sector workers.  Public sector unions have a much different role; it must be recognized that such workers are supported by the taxpayers and thus there is a different role for public sector unions than private.  I like Germany's system in which many major companies grant their unions a seat at the table in board meetings as well as a vote in confirming the next CEO.  This would do wonders to alleviate tensions between unionized workers/unions and upper management.

      Federal Minimum Wage Hike: Support an increase in minimum wage, though increasing it too dramatically or too quickly would potentially be negative, there are studies supporting little to no detriment to employment if done gradually.

      Immigration, Foreign Issues, National Security:

      Immigration: Oppose a wall (impractical), but strongly believe that we should have a pathway to citizenship for illegal immigrants, on the condition they pay taxes. If convicted of violent crime, send them home.  Necessary to balance border security with compassion for the millions of illegal immigrants living here presently.

      Iraq and Afghanistan: Supported the War in Iraq and still do. (Bush corrected course in 2007 in Iraq). Support continued American involvement in the world, as someone who believes that America has a strong role to play on the global stage (the United States is the last best hope of mankind - meaning that America should not withdraw into Fortress America, but continue to project power and influence). Therefore, the United States should be actively fighting ISIS, etc. and working to develop a better governing coalition in both nations that can lead these nations into peace.  However we need to be building international coalitions along the lines of the Gulf War, and follow the Powell Doctrine when it comes to intervention: clear mission goal, clear plan of entrance, ensure we have the resources to win it quickly, go in with overwhelming force, have a clear exit strategy, and have a clear plan for what will happen once we leave.

      Syria:  Support the Freedom Syria fighters, fighting the Assad regime, but by leading an international effort to topple Assad and have a clear plan for a new coalition government once we're finished.

      Iran: Continue the Obama accords, and to slowly reintegrate Iran into the international community, while making them give up their nuclear ambitions. This is far better than the alternatives.

      PATRIOT Act: I support revamping it to accommodate the concerns of civil libertarians. I believe that reform is better than abolition.  It is important that we join with almost every other western nation by recognizing that such events occur when not anticipated.  Rather than having a law in place for bringing terrorists to justice after the fact, I'd rather prevent the attacks from occurring in the first place.  As of yet, we haven't seen a major attack on US soil since 9/11, with dozens of attacks stopped since then as a result of the Act, a commendable record.

      Israel: Balance Israeli and Palestinian interests.  Both sides have committed and continue to commit actions in defiance of international law and we must negotiate a two-state solution.  I believe that doing so will allow some of the hatred for Israel in many Muslim countries to be alleviated, as well as potentially allowing Palestine to serve as a moderating (READ: moderately pro-Western) voice in the Arab World akin to that of Turkey or Jordan.

      Global Warming: Climate change is real.  Let's stop the BS and actually fix the problem.  Period.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: ElectionsGuy on December 12, 2014, 05:22:55 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion:Pro-Choice
      Gay Marriage:Support
      Capital Punishment:Strongly Support
      Marijuana Legalization:Oppose
      Immigration:Deport All Illegals & Ban on all immigration.
      Guns:Abolish all Gun Control Laws. Concealed carry, no restrictions on our right to bear arms!.

      Economic/Foreign Policy Issues

      Taxes:15% Flat Tax. Cut Taxes Across the board (exemption on taxes for poor).
      Social Security:Partial privatization.
      Healthcare:No Socialized medicine.
      Cigarette Tax:Abolish
      Cigarette Regulations:Abolish
      FCC:Abolish
      Education:Abolish Department of Education, bring back local control. Vouchers.
      Syria:Stay Out.
      Turkey:Kick them out of the NATO. Sanctions.
      Islam:Islam threatens liberal western values.
      Israel:Strongly support + more funding.
      UN:Get Out

      You seem to have a severe case of xenophobia, my friend.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Murica! on December 12, 2014, 07:38:23 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion:Pro-Choice
      Gay Marriage:Support
      Capital Punishment:Strongly Support
      Marijuana Legalization:Oppose
      Immigration:Deport All Illegals & Ban on all immigration.
      Guns:Abolish all Gun Control Laws. Concealed carry, no restrictions on our right to bear arms!.

      Economic/Foreign Policy Issues

      Taxes:15% Flat Tax. Cut Taxes Across the board (exemption on taxes for poor).
      Social Security:Partial privatization.
      Healthcare:No Socialized medicine.
      Cigarette Tax:Abolish
      Cigarette Regulations:Abolish
      FCC:Abolish
      Education:Abolish Department of Education, bring back local control. Vouchers.
      Syria:Stay Out.
      Turkey:Kick them out of the NATO. Sanctions.
      Islam:Islam threatens liberal western values.
      Israel:Strongly support + more funding.
      UN:Get Out

      You seem to have a severe case of xenophobia, my friend.
      Ya think?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Representative MJM on December 12, 2014, 09:37:45 PM
      Party: Democratic
      Ideology: Very progressive. Want a welfare state where the government offers free public options for a wide range of infrastructure. Protect consumers and workers from companies which they cannot protect themselves against. Support a basic minimum income.

      Abortion: Pro-choice until the fetus develops senses (which is not definite time, but current scientific literature seems to suggest 20+ weeks gestation)
      Gay Marriage: Support
      Drugs: Legalize all drugs, available for use at 18
      Alcohol: Reduce age to 18
      Stem Cell Research: Support all forms
      Death Penalty: Oppose under all circumstances
      Gun control: Support universal background checks. No guns in public. Ban assault weapons and high capacity magazines.
      Affirmative Action: Oppose...this will never solve the problem at hand
      Prostitution: Legalize, but do not allow brothels

      Worker's Rights: Paid parental leave as in many countries like Sweden, for instance. Mandate combined vacation/sick/holiday pay of 25 days.
      Right-to-work: Oppose. These laws just oppress freedom of association.
      Corporate Welfare: Eliminate loopholes, particularly corporate inversion. Lower corporate income taxes, but ban negative income taxes.
      Minimum Wage: Very important. Even $10.10 is not sufficient, though.
      Capital Gains: Always tax as ordinary income
      Health Care: SINGLE PAYER
      Education: Charter schools are good, but most important thing we can do for education is make tuition free at public colleges and community colleges.
      Trade: Free Trade
      Social Security: In need of reform, but it is salvageable.

      NSA: Like many, I am not too big of a fan of its tactics
      ISIS: I support the war on terror. Air strikes are the way to go.
      Military Spending: This can be reduced so easily.
      Immigration: Amnesty. Promote legal immigration.
      Cuba: End the embargo.
      Foreign Aid: Support
      U.N.: Support
      Palestine: Try to work out a two state solution
      Puerto Rico: Ideally, we should let Puerto Rico become its own country, but let them determine that for themselves.

      Green Energy: Begin the move toward universal reliance on renewable energy like solar power to power electricity.
      Keystone XL: Oppose
      Nuclear Energy: Not the preferred method

      Voter ID: Makes sense, but government needs to issue free IDs.
      Campaign Finance: Rely solely on public funding for elections
      Gerrymandering: the voting system for the House of Representatives should change to become a mixed-member proportional system.
      Direct Election of Senators: Support


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Murica! on December 12, 2014, 11:38:50 PM
      Party: Democratic
      Ideology: Very progressive. Want a welfare state where the government offers free public options for a wide range of infrastructure. Protect consumers and workers from companies which they cannot protect themselves against. Support a basic minimum income.

      Abortion: Pro-choice until the fetus develops senses (which is not definite time, but current scientific literature seems to suggest 20+ weeks gestation)
      Gay Marriage: Support
      Drugs: Legalize all drugs, available for use at 18
      Alcohol: Reduce age to 18
      Stem Cell Research: Support all forms
      Death Penalty: Oppose under all circumstances
      Gun control: Support universal background checks. No guns in public. Ban assault weapons and high capacity magazines.
      Affirmative Action: Oppose...this will never solve the problem at hand
      Prostitution: Legalize, but do not allow brothels

      Worker's Rights: Paid parental leave as in many countries like Sweden, for instance. Mandate combined vacation/sick/holiday pay of 25 days.
      Right-to-work: Oppose. These laws just oppress freedom of association.
      Corporate Welfare: Eliminate loopholes, particularly corporate inversion. Lower corporate income taxes, but ban negative income taxes.
      Minimum Wage: Very important. Even $10.10 is not sufficient, though.
      Taxation: Let's just say progressive
      Capital Gains: Always tax as ordinary income
      Health Care: SINGLE PAYER
      Education: Charter schools are good, but most important thing we can do for education is make tuition free at public colleges and community colleges.
      Trade: Free Trade
      Social Security: In need of reform, but it is salvageable.

      NSA: Like many, I am not too big of a fan of its tactics
      ISIS: I support the war on terror. Air strikes are the way to go.
      Military Spending: This can be reduced so easily.
      Immigration: Amnesty. Promote legal immigration.
      Cuba: End the embargo.
      Foreign Aid: Support
      U.N.: Support
      Palestine: Try to work out a two state solution
      Puerto Rico: Ideally, we should let Puerto Rico become its own country, but let them determine that for themselves.

      Green Energy: Begin the move toward universal reliance on renewable energy like solar power to power electricity.
      Keystone XL: Oppose
      Nuclear Energy: Not the preferred method

      Voter ID: Makes sense, but government needs to issue free IDs.
      Campaign Finance: Rely solely on public funding for elections
      Gerrymandering: the voting system for the House of Representatives should change to become a mixed-member proportional system.
      Direct Election of Senators: Support
      Your a Social-Democrat not a Progressive.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Representative MJM on December 13, 2014, 05:20:23 PM
      Party: Democratic
      Ideology: Very progressive. Want a welfare state where the government offers free public options for a wide range of infrastructure. Protect consumers and workers from companies which they cannot protect themselves against. Support a basic minimum income.

      Abortion: Pro-choice until the fetus develops senses (which is not definite time, but current scientific literature seems to suggest 20+ weeks gestation)
      Gay Marriage: Support
      Drugs: Legalize all drugs, available for use at 18
      Alcohol: Reduce age to 18
      Stem Cell Research: Support all forms
      Death Penalty: Oppose under all circumstances
      Gun control: Support universal background checks. No guns in public. Ban assault weapons and high capacity magazines.
      Affirmative Action: Oppose...this will never solve the problem at hand
      Prostitution: Legalize, but do not allow brothels

      Worker's Rights: Paid parental leave as in many countries like Sweden, for instance. Mandate combined vacation/sick/holiday pay of 25 days.
      Right-to-work: Oppose. These laws just oppress freedom of association.
      Corporate Welfare: Eliminate loopholes, particularly corporate inversion. Lower corporate income taxes, but ban negative income taxes.
      Minimum Wage: Very important. Even $10.10 is not sufficient, though.
      Taxation: Let's just say progressive
      Capital Gains: Always tax as ordinary income
      Health Care: SINGLE PAYER
      Education: Charter schools are good, but most important thing we can do for education is make tuition free at public colleges and community colleges.
      Trade: Free Trade
      Social Security: In need of reform, but it is salvageable.

      NSA: Like many, I am not too big of a fan of its tactics
      ISIS: I support the war on terror. Air strikes are the way to go.
      Military Spending: This can be reduced so easily.
      Immigration: Amnesty. Promote legal immigration.
      Cuba: End the embargo.
      Foreign Aid: Support
      U.N.: Support
      Palestine: Try to work out a two state solution
      Puerto Rico: Ideally, we should let Puerto Rico become its own country, but let them determine that for themselves.

      Green Energy: Begin the move toward universal reliance on renewable energy like solar power to power electricity.
      Keystone XL: Oppose
      Nuclear Energy: Not the preferred method

      Voter ID: Makes sense, but government needs to issue free IDs.
      Campaign Finance: Rely solely on public funding for elections
      Gerrymandering: the voting system for the House of Representatives should change to become a mixed-member proportional system.
      Direct Election of Senators: Support
      Your a Social-Democrat not a Progressive.

      You're absolutely right; that would be a more accurate description. It is a force of habit to say I am a progressive because whenever I say I am a social democrat, people's minds tend to change that to democratic socialist, which I certainly am not.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: hopper on December 13, 2014, 10:15:34 PM
      Lets see:

      Social:


      Patriot Act: Oppose, it goes too far.

      Keep Go in the Public Sphere: Oppose

      Abortion-only in cases in life of the mother, incest, and rape.

      Affirmative Action-Oppose

      Drugs-only legal for medical use

      Guns- ban on assualt weapons, background checks.

      Same Sex Marriage-Support

      Voter ID-Support

      Death Penalty-Support only if person will be in jail for the rest of life.

      Economic-

      Taxes-need tax reform-progressive tax system.

      Heath Care-Private competition across stateline

      Privatize- Social Security, Oppose needs lockbox.

      Minimum Wage-Raise but carefully with no job losses(hard to do.!)

      Immigration Reform-Support, pay back taxes, go to the pack of line for citizenship.

      Support Fair Trade not free trade.

      Alternative Energy-Support if Alternative Energy is cleaner and more efficient than what we currently have.

      School Vouchers-Support if below poverty line.

      Right to Work-Support but don;t support union busting. Let the person choose if they want to be in the union or not.

      Idealogy:

      Probably Moderate Libertarian Liberal or Moderate Libertarian.

      Party:

      Republican


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: hopper on December 13, 2014, 10:24:05 PM
      Social:

      Abortion: Illegal, except in cases of rape, incest, and life of the mother. No federal funding. Open to legal abortion in cases where the fetus is known to have severe genetic disabilities (e.g. those that make one have a vegetable-style life), but no further than that.

      Gay Marriage: I personally am O.K. with civil unions and am opposed to full marriage, but this is really something that should be left up to states, not activist judges or the federal government.

      Drugs: Full legalization of Marijuana with a substantial excise tax, just like we have for Tobacco. Everything else stays illegal, but focus on rehabilitation and not punishment.

      Death Penalty: Only if it is a first-degree murder case with irrefutable evidence that the defendant is guilty, approved by at least two jury trials. Dramatically reduce time spent on death row, and switch to far quicker method of death (Personally, I don't really see what's the big deal with beheading. They're going to die no matter what method you use, so why not do a quick beheading rather than a lethal injection that doesn't kill right away and even fails to kill on rare occasions?) .

      Gun Control: Expand background checks to all gun shows and the entire internet. Open to assault weapons ban. Nothing else.

      Affirmative Action: Opposed. This is just a bunch of prejudice against whites.

      Prostitution: Opposed, but would probably just leave it up to the states if I was in the federal government as there are much bigger issues to deal with.

      Euthansia: Allowed, but only in cases where the patient and/or all living parents have given willful consent and there is a 0% chance of recovery.

      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Opposed.

      Fiscal:

      Federal Minimum Wage: Raise gradually ($0.75 - $1) each year towards an ultimate goal of $12. After that, raise each year according to inflation.

      Welfare: Yes, but require one to be working or be enrolled in some sort of job training program

      Right to Work: Yes, but in a way that still keeps unions intact.

      Income Tax: Substantially reduce loopholes and deductions, open to very small rate decrease for those making less than $200,000 (e.g. 1-2%).

      FAIR Tax: Opposed

      Corporate Tax: Drastically reduce loopholes and deductions, lower top rate to 28%.

      Balanced Budget Amendment: Yes. Require a balanced budget by fiscal 2030, with exceptions for declared war that is actually being fought (i.e. congress can't use this exception unless U.S. soldiers are actually fighting in the country we've declared war against), and severe recessions (underemployment >= 15%) .

      Healthcare: Keep ObamaCare, but revise it. I have many things in mind: 40 hours, not 30 hours, should be considered full-time, work to dramatically lower premiums, allow a small number of health insurance companies that provide most but not all 'Obamacare-mandated' benefits to still exist for people that don't need full coverage (ex. people that don't need maternity-related services), continue to improve the website, have open enrollment year-long, repeal the medical device tax, forbid business owners from laying off or firing people solely because of Obamacare-related costs, and require all hospitals and doctors to accept insurance policies purchased on the website, no exceptions.

      Medicare: Gradually raise retirement age for people under 55.

      Social Security: Eliminate payroll tax cap but lower payroll tax rate to 4.2% for those making under $200,000. Gradually raise retirement age for people under 55.

      Common Core: Opposed.

      Foreign:

      Afghanistan: Get Out. We've been there long enough.

      Further Action in Iraq: Opposed.

      Iran: Leave them alone.

      Israel: Continue to be an ally, but respect its sovereignty and do not dictate its foreign or domestic policy.

      Syria: Leave them alone.

      Cuba: End the travel ban, gradually reestablish U.S.-Cuba trade.

      Military Spending: Cut it by $200 Billion immediately, then freeze for 15 years - no exceptions, not even for inflation, unless approved by a 2/3 majority of both houses of congress and the president.

      Foreign Economic Aid: I support the 'Newt Gingrich' view here. Eliminate it completely, and then have countries justify why we should give them a penny.

      PATRIOT Act: Substantially weaken

      Guantanamo Bay: Keep it open, but give potential prisoners a full jury trial in federal court.

      Immigration Reform: Support the 'Marco Rubio' plan passed by the U.S. Senate in 2013.

      Other:

      Keystone XL: Approve as long as U.S. actually uses some of the oil itself rather than exporting all of it.

      Electoral College: Abolish, institute NPV with IRV.

      Gerrymandering: Eliminate with shortest-splitline method

      Congressional Term Limits: 6 terms for the house, 2 for the senate

      Statehood of Puerto Rico: Supportive

      Voter ID: Opposed. It's biased to favor republican-leaning voters and fraud isn't even a nominal problem on a national scale.








      You are more a "mainstream" Conservative Republican than an Independent.
      i'd be laughed out of the republican party because I don't support full repeal of ObamaCare, the Paul Ryan budget, or tax cuts for the wealthy. I'd be laughed out of the democratic party because i'm not fond of obama and because i'm not left enough on social issues or entitlements. I'm also a big proponent of compromise. That's why i'm an independent.
      Your like me almost. I could be to the left of you socially though but not too much.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: hopper on December 13, 2014, 10:38:24 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion:Pro-Choice
      Gay Marriage:Support
      Capital Punishment:Strongly Support
      Marijuana Legalization:Oppose
      Immigration:Deport All Illegals & Ban on all immigration.
      Guns:Abolish all Gun Control Laws. Concealed carry, no restrictions on our right to bear arms!.

      Economic/Foreign Policy Issues

      Taxes:15% Flat Tax. Cut Taxes Across the board (exemption on taxes for poor).
      Social Security:Partial privatization.
      Healthcare:No Socialized medicine.
      Cigarette Tax:Abolish
      Cigarette Regulations:Abolish
      FCC:Abolish
      Education:Abolish Department of Education, bring back local control. Vouchers.
      Syria:Stay Out.
      Turkey:Kick them out of the NATO. Sanctions.
      Islam:Islam threatens liberal western values.
      Israel:Strongly support + more funding.
      UN:Get Out
      Libertarian-Leaning Conservative. or Libertarian Conservative.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: OSR stands with Israel on December 14, 2014, 01:31:15 AM
      Economic and Fiscal Issues : Moderate Conservative
      Foreign Policy : Moderate Conservative
      Domestic Issues: Centrist
      Social Issues : Moderate Liberal


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Oakvale on December 14, 2014, 03:00:43 PM
      Economic and Fiscal Issues : Moderate Conservative
      Foreign Policy : Moderate Conservative
      Domestic Issues: Centrist
      Social Issues : Moderate Liberal


      Appropriate username.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Wolverines34 on December 15, 2014, 01:56:42 PM
      How is Islamism not a threat to western values or liberal democracy?. Everysingle islamic country has no rights for women, gays, or minorities. 71% of Danish Muslims believe that the danish cartoonist should be hanged...When any type of religion becomes that powerful in culture, it IS a threat to freedom. And right now, that threat is Islam.

      However, America has made this worse by continuing to intervene in the middle east. We should not get involved.

      More of a elaboration on my views.

      Taxes:Flatter and lower. 28% Tax Rate for the highest bracket, 10% for the lowest. The Very poor would pay no taxes. 10, 20, and 28% rates. Close loopholes.

      Immigration:Return to our 1920s immigration laws. All Illegals must be deported.

      Labor Unions:Support an alliance between Unions and Business like in Japan. It benifts everyone and increases wages and profits for both workers and business. Also cut business taxes.

      Middle East:Avoid getting involved. Kick Turkey out of NATO.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Murica! on December 15, 2014, 04:02:26 PM
      How is Islamism not a threat to western values or liberal democracy?. Everysingle islamic country has no rights for women, gays, or minorities. 71% of Danish Muslims believe that the danish cartoonist should be hanged...When any type of religion becomes that powerful in culture, it IS a threat to freedom. And right now, that threat is Islam.

      However, America has made this worse by continuing to intervene in the middle east. We should not get involved.

      More of a elaboration on my views.

      Taxes:Flatter and lower. 28% Tax Rate for the highest bracket, 10% for the lowest. The Very poor would pay no taxes. 10, 20, and 28% rates. Close loopholes.

      Immigration:Return to our 1920s immigration laws. All Illegals must be deported.

      Labor Unions:Support an alliance between Unions and Business like in Japan. It benifts everyone and increases wages and profits for both workers and business. Also cut business taxes.

      Middle East:Avoid getting involved. Kick Turkey out of NATO.
      Um.... LOL?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Jose Canseco on December 16, 2014, 08:01:37 PM
      1.spending tax
      2.steroid injections
      3.end wars & spending in sandy nations for spending in schools
      4.replace all textbooks with copies of Juiced: Wild Times, Rampant 'Roids, Smash Hits & How Baseball Got Big, by yours truley.
      5.end fatness

      #yeswecancanseco!


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Murica! on December 17, 2014, 09:21:29 AM
      1.spending tax
      2.steroid injections
      3.end wars & spending in sandy nations for spending in schools
      4.replace all textbooks with copies of Juiced: Wild Times, Rampant 'Roids, Smash Hits & How Baseball Got Big, by yours truley.
      5.end fatness

      #yeswecancanseco!
      Go away.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Del Tachi on December 22, 2014, 11:26:32 AM
      Overall: Big-government liberal Republican.  Could pass for an Andrew Cuomo or Amy Klobuchar Democrat, maybe.  

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Supportive of Roe v. Wade, and generally pro-choice.  However, I am not opposed to certain “informed consent” laws and mandatory waiting periods.  Minors seeking abortion should have to gain parental consent.
      Drugs: Continue the war on drugs with harsher penalties being applied to violators, including recreational users.  Enforce federal drug laws in States where marijuana has been legalized.
      Censorship: The government has the responsibility to censor objectionable material from the air and radio waves.  The fact that satellite communications are exempt from FCC content regulation should be enough to appease the anti-censorship crowd.
      Net Neutrality: Opposed; turning the Internet into a public good would decrease private investment into Internet infrastructure and thus make the internet less accessible to everyone.  
      Gay marriage: The equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment makes statewide bans on gay marriage unconstitutional.  SCOTUS should strike-down all statewide bans, and the Congress should pass legislation in order to ensure LGBT equality in employment, healthcare, housing, education and other areas.  
      Death penalty: Federal use of the death penalty is warranted in extreme circumstances; States can enact their own laws.  I personally do not oppose the death penalty on moral or religious grounds.
      Prostitution: Local and municipal jurisdictions should be allowed to make their own laws to fit their communities as prostitution’s major effects are on property values and local health.  I would not support the legalization of prostitution in my community as a matter of moral decency and preserving property values.  Stronger enforcement of federal laws concerning human trafficking and child exploitation.  
      Church & state: The state should stay out of religious affairs, and religious organizations and churches should be tax exempt with the exception of the monies they earn through commercial enterprises.  Forcing churches to forfeit their tax exempt status for making political stances is tantamount to “taxing” the First Amendment.  Individuals should be allowed to lobby and petition the state on behalf of the Church like any other citizen would be able to do for any other organization.  
      Affirmative action: Implement a quota system in federal hiring in order to ensure representation of minorities, women and LGBT Americans.  
      Hate crime laws: Crimes of corresponding severity should be treated similarly regardless of apparent motive.  No additional punishment should be levied for crimes perpetuated out of “hate.”  
      Immigration: Comprehensive immigration reform including blanket amnesty for all non-criminal illegals.  Strengthen border security.  Maintain birthright citizenship.  Stronger enforcement of existing federal laws.    
      Stem cell research: Support federal funding of stem cell research.  
      PATRIOT Act: Support the reauthorization and expansion of the PATRIOT Act in order to give the federal government more power to combat terrorism.  
      Gun Control: Status-quo.  Increase data sharing between state and federal agencies as a way to strengthen the effectiveness of federal background checks.  
      Assisted suicide: Ambivalent.  However, living wills are generally a bad idea and end-of-life decisions are best left to family members.  
      Gambling: Decisions should be left to local and municipal jurisdictions.  I would not support legal gambling in my community.  Heavily tax earnings gained through gambling and lotto.
      Organ donation: Status quo.  Opposed to universal or “opt-out” organ donation; follow wishes of next-of-kin in ambiguous cases.  Invest in non-market mechanisms (i.e., public service announcements) to increase organ donation.  

      Electoral Reform:
      Term limits: No term limits for Congress or judges, but keep the 22nd Amendment.  Keep the seniority system in place in Congress.  Opposed to term limits for Mississippi legislators or other statewide officials.  
      Statehood: Refer to popular referendums on statehood questions.  Allow for a referendum in Washington, D.C.  
      Voting age: Keep as is, but allow people who will turn 18 before Election Day to vote in primary elections.  
      Campaign Finance Reform: Status quo.  Political donations are free speech.  
      Voting system: Keep as is.  Allow States to experiment with proportional representation and multi-seat districts.  
      Gerrymandering:  Status-quo.  Opposed to “independent” redistricting committees.  
      Voter ID: Pass a national voter ID law requiring valid photo ID in order to cast a ballot for federal office.
      Primaries, Statewide: Opposed to partisan voter registration in Mississippi; support the current open primary system.  Consider implementation of a Louisiana-style “jungle primary.”  Allow all eligible Mississippi voters to vote in runoff elections, regardless of their previous participation in other parties’ primaries.
      Primaries, National:  The national parties should push for presidential primary reform where large, rotating batches of states are allowed to vote at once as a way to decrease the power that certain states (i.e., Iowa, New Hampshire) have on the presidential primary process.

      Economic Issues:
      Welfare: Block-grant Medicaid and send back to the States with federally-enforced support and eligibility standards.  Opposed to drug-testing for welfare eligibility.  
      Unions: Implement a national right-to-work law in order to diminish the influence of organized labor.  
      Education:  Complete federalization of K-12.  All public school teachers and school administrators become federal employees and all local/state financing of public education is removed.  Ban on charter schools and vouchers, and consider bans on private education if found to be Constitutional.  Fully implement Common Core.  Establish national benchmark standards for K-12 and require students to pass standardized tests in order to advance into the next grade.  By removing State funding for K-12, States should be able to put more resources into Higher Ed.      
      Privatization: Generally opposed.  Maintain current government assets associated with TVA and DRA.
      Environment: Implement cap-and-trade legislation with exemptions for non-major polluters.  Increase EPA funding.  
      Minimum wage: Oppose further increases in the federal minimum wage.  Expand the EITC.  
      Taxation: Keep the current progressive system for income taxation.  Experiment with shifting the tax burden back to the upper classes through consumption-based taxation (i.e., luxury goods taxes, real estate taxes).  Implement an income tax “surcharge” on incomes over a certain level, say $3 million.  Raise and lock the Social Security tax cap to cover 90 percent of all workers.  Reform and lower corporate taxes as a way to discourage outsourcing.  
      Healthcare: Repeal Obamacare.  Implement malpractice reform and allow insurers  to compete across state lines in order to decrease premiums.    
      Trade: Support free trade as way to bring down prices for consumers.  Trade to correct American trade deficit by encouraging American producers to export, especially in the agriculture sector.  
      Embargo: Use embargoes and sanctions as way to exert diplomatic pressure.  
      Pork: Overwhelmingly supportive.  Use “pork-barrel” projects as ways to promote local economic development.    
      Subsidies: Opposed to changes in the Federal Crop Insurance Program; generously subsidize struggling industries.  
      Military: Maintain current military funding levels, but shift more money into R&D and away from traditional ground forces.  Make more use of military contractors as a way to allow for funds to go further.    

      Foreign Policy

      War: Maintain a constant state of military readiness, and be willing to go to war whenever and wherever American interests are at stake.  Do not be afraid to go to war unilaterally.  Use reputation as a military juggernaut as a way to exert diplomatic pressure.  
      Israel-Palestine: Generally supportive of a two-state solution, but it most likely will have to occur on Israeli terms in order to be successful.  Increase support for Israel as it is the only secular democracy in the Middle East.  Call for an end to new settlements, but maintain that those living in settlements have a solely civilian status.  
      Draft:  Status-quo.
      UN: Use status as the UN’s largest financial contributor to encourage the organization into changing its role in a new, global environment.  Shift focus away from security issues and to humanitarian issues.  Use the UN as a global forum in which member nations may organize international relief efforts and financial aid.  Work through other international organizations (namely NATO) to deal with threats to international security.    
      Nukes: Maintain American nuclear arsenal.  Expand the “nuclear club” to more U.S. allies such as Canada, Australia and Germany.  
      Foreign Aid: Increase levels of foreign aid as a way to increase American presence and influence in the developing world.  


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Murica! on December 22, 2014, 11:35:19 PM
      Overall: Big-government liberal Republican.  Could pass for an Andrew Cuomo or Amy Klobuchar Democrat, maybe.   

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Supportive of Roe v. Wade, and generally pro-choice.  However, I am not opposed to certain “informed consent” laws and mandatory waiting periods.  Minors seeking abortion should have to gain parental consent.
      Drugs: Continue the war on drugs with harsher penalties being applied to violators, including recreational users.  Enforce federal drug laws in States where marijuana has been legalized.
      Censorship: The government has the responsibility to censor objectionable material from the air and radio waves.  The fact that satellite communications are exempt from FCC content regulation should be enough to appease the anti-censorship crowd.
      Net Neutrality: Opposed; turning the Internet into a public good would decrease private investment into Internet infrastructure and thus make the internet less accessible to everyone. 
      Gay marriage: The equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment makes statewide bans on gay marriage unconstitutional.  SCOTUS should strike-down all statewide bans, and the Congress should pass legislation in order to ensure LGBT equality in employment, healthcare, housing, education and other areas. 
      Death penalty: Federal use of the death penalty is warranted in extreme circumstances; States can enact their own laws.  I personally do not oppose the death penalty on moral or religious grounds.
      Prostitution: Local and municipal jurisdictions should be allowed to make their own laws to fit their communities as prostitution’s major effects are on property values and local health.  I would not support the legalization of prostitution in my community as a matter of moral decency and preserving property values.  Stronger enforcement of federal laws concerning human trafficking and child exploitation.   
      Church & state: The state should stay out of religious affairs, and religious organizations and churches should be tax exempt with the exception of the monies they earn through commercial enterprises.  Forcing churches to forfeit their tax exempt status for making political stances is tantamount to “taxing” the First Amendment.  Individuals should be allowed to lobby and petition the state on behalf of the Church like any other citizen would be able to do for any other organization. 
      Affirmative action: Implement a quota system in federal hiring in order to ensure representation of minorities, women and LGBT Americans. 
      Hate crime laws: Crimes of corresponding severity should be treated similarly regardless of apparent motive.  No additional punishment should be levied for crimes perpetuated out of “hate.” 
      Immigration: Comprehensive immigration reform including blanket amnesty for all non-criminal illegals.  Strengthen border security.  Maintain birthright citizenship.  Stronger enforcement of existing federal laws.   
      Stem cell research: Support federal funding of stem cell research. 
      PATRIOT Act: Support the reauthorization and expansion of the PATRIOT Act in order to give the federal government more power to combat terrorism.   
      Gun Control: Status-quo.  Increase data sharing between state and federal agencies as a way to strengthen the effectiveness of federal background checks. 
      Assisted suicide: Ambivalent.  However, living wills are generally a bad idea and end-of-life decisions are best left to family members.   
      Gambling: Decisions should be left to local and municipal jurisdictions.  I would not support legal gambling in my community.  Heavily tax earnings gained through gambling and lotto.
      Organ donation: Status quo.  Opposed to universal or “opt-out” organ donation; follow wishes of next-of-kin in ambiguous cases.  Invest in non-market mechanisms (i.e., public service announcements) to increase organ donation. 

      Electoral Reform:
      Term limits: No term limits for Congress or judges, but keep the 22nd Amendment.  Keep the seniority system in place in Congress.  Opposed to term limits for Mississippi legislators or other statewide officials.   
      Statehood: Refer to popular referendums on statehood questions.  Allow for a referendum in Washington, D.C. 
      Voting age: Keep as is, but allow people who will turn 18 before Election Day to vote in primary elections. 
      Campaign Finance Reform: Status quo.  Political donations are free speech. 
      Voting system: Keep as is.  Allow States to experiment with proportional representation and multi-seat districts. 
      Gerrymandering:  Status-quo.  Opposed to “independent” redistricting committees.   
      Voter ID: Pass a national voter ID law requiring valid photo ID in order to cast a ballot for federal office.
      Primaries, Statewide: Opposed to partisan voter registration in Mississippi; support the current open primary system.  Consider implementation of a Louisiana-style “jungle primary.”  Allow all eligible Mississippi voters to vote in runoff elections, regardless of their previous participation in other parties’ primaries.
      Primaries, National:  The national parties should push for presidential primary reform where large, rotating batches of states are allowed to vote at once as a way to decrease the power that certain states (i.e., Iowa, New Hampshire) have on the presidential primary process.

      Economic Issues:
      Welfare: Block-grant Medicaid and send back to the States with federally-enforced support and eligibility standards.  Opposed to drug-testing for welfare eligibility.   
      Unions: Implement a national right-to-work law in order to diminish the influence of organized labor. 
      Education:  Complete federalization of K-12.  All public school teachers and school administrators become federal employees and all local/state financing of public education is removed.  Ban on charter schools and vouchers, and consider bans on private education if found to be Constitutional.  Fully implement Common Core.  Establish national benchmark standards for K-12 and require students to pass standardized tests in order to advance into the next grade.  By removing State funding for K-12, States should be able to put more resources into Higher Ed.     
      Privatization: Generally opposed.  Maintain current government assets associated with TVA and DRA.
      Environment: Implement cap-and-trade legislation with exemptions for non-major polluters.  Increase EPA funding.   
      Minimum wage: Oppose further increases in the federal minimum wage.  Expand the EITC. 
      Taxation: Keep the current progressive system for income taxation.  Experiment with shifting the tax burden back to the upper classes through consumption-based taxation (i.e., luxury goods taxes, real estate taxes).  Implement an income tax “surcharge” on incomes over a certain level, say $3 million.  Raise and lock the Social Security tax cap to cover 90 percent of all workers.  Reform and lower corporate taxes as a way to discourage outsourcing.   
      Healthcare: Repeal Obamacare.  Implement malpractice reform and allow insurers  to compete across state lines in order to decrease premiums.   
      Trade: Support free trade as way to bring down prices for consumers.  Trade to correct American trade deficit by encouraging American producers to export, especially in the agriculture sector. 
      Embargo: Use embargoes and sanctions as way to exert diplomatic pressure.   
      Pork: Overwhelmingly supportive.  Use “pork-barrel” projects as ways to promote local economic development.   
      Subsidies: Increase agricultural subsidies; generously subsidize struggling industries. 
      Military: Maintain current military funding levels, but shift more money into R&D and away from traditional ground forces.  Make more use of military contractors as a way to allow for funds to go further.   

      Foreign Policy

      War: Maintain a constant state of military readiness, and be willing to go to war whenever and wherever American interests are at stake.  Do not be afraid to go to war unilaterally.  Use reputation as a military juggernaut as a way to exert diplomatic pressure. 
      Israel-Palestine: Generally supportive of a two-state solution, but it most likely will have to occur on Israeli terms in order to be successful.  Increase support for Israel as it is the only secular democracy in the Middle East.  Call for an end to new settlements, but maintain that those living in settlements have a solely civilian status. 
      Draft:  Status-quo.
      UN: Use status as the UN’s largest financial contributor to encourage the organization into changing its role in a new, global environment.  Shift focus away from security issues and to humanitarian issues.  Use the UN as a global forum in which member nations may organize international relief efforts and financial aid.  Work through other international organizations (namely NATO) to deal with threats to international security.   
      Nukes: Maintain American nuclear arsenal.  Expand the “nuclear club” to more U.S. allies such as Canada, Australia and Germany. 
      Foreign Aid: Increase levels of foreign aid as a way to increase American presence and influence in the developing world.   

      Um they just passed legislation to say that they're a Jewish state, so secular my ass.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: MalaspinaGold on December 22, 2014, 11:57:04 PM
      Overall: Big-government liberal Republican.  Could pass for an Andrew Cuomo or Amy Klobuchar Democrat, maybe.   

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Supportive of Roe v. Wade, and generally pro-choice.  However, I am not opposed to certain “informed consent” laws and mandatory waiting periods.  Minors seeking abortion should have to gain parental consent.
      Drugs: Continue the war on drugs with harsher penalties being applied to violators, including recreational users.  Enforce federal drug laws in States where marijuana has been legalized.
      Censorship: The government has the responsibility to censor objectionable material from the air and radio waves.  The fact that satellite communications are exempt from FCC content regulation should be enough to appease the anti-censorship crowd.
      Net Neutrality: Opposed; turning the Internet into a public good would decrease private investment into Internet infrastructure and thus make the internet less accessible to everyone. 
      Gay marriage: The equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment makes statewide bans on gay marriage unconstitutional.  SCOTUS should strike-down all statewide bans, and the Congress should pass legislation in order to ensure LGBT equality in employment, healthcare, housing, education and other areas. 
      Death penalty: Federal use of the death penalty is warranted in extreme circumstances; States can enact their own laws.  I personally do not oppose the death penalty on moral or religious grounds.
      Prostitution: Local and municipal jurisdictions should be allowed to make their own laws to fit their communities as prostitution’s major effects are on property values and local health.  I would not support the legalization of prostitution in my community as a matter of moral decency and preserving property values.  Stronger enforcement of federal laws concerning human trafficking and child exploitation.   
      Church & state: The state should stay out of religious affairs, and religious organizations and churches should be tax exempt with the exception of the monies they earn through commercial enterprises.  Forcing churches to forfeit their tax exempt status for making political stances is tantamount to “taxing” the First Amendment.  Individuals should be allowed to lobby and petition the state on behalf of the Church like any other citizen would be able to do for any other organization. 
      Affirmative action: Implement a quota system in federal hiring in order to ensure representation of minorities, women and LGBT Americans. 
      Hate crime laws: Crimes of corresponding severity should be treated similarly regardless of apparent motive.  No additional punishment should be levied for crimes perpetuated out of “hate.” 
      Immigration: Comprehensive immigration reform including blanket amnesty for all non-criminal illegals.  Strengthen border security.  Maintain birthright citizenship.  Stronger enforcement of existing federal laws.   
      Stem cell research: Support federal funding of stem cell research. 
      PATRIOT Act: Support the reauthorization and expansion of the PATRIOT Act in order to give the federal government more power to combat terrorism.   
      Gun Control: Status-quo.  Increase data sharing between state and federal agencies as a way to strengthen the effectiveness of federal background checks. 
      Assisted suicide: Ambivalent.  However, living wills are generally a bad idea and end-of-life decisions are best left to family members.   
      Gambling: Decisions should be left to local and municipal jurisdictions.  I would not support legal gambling in my community.  Heavily tax earnings gained through gambling and lotto.
      Organ donation: Status quo.  Opposed to universal or “opt-out” organ donation; follow wishes of next-of-kin in ambiguous cases.  Invest in non-market mechanisms (i.e., public service announcements) to increase organ donation. 

      Electoral Reform:
      Term limits: No term limits for Congress or judges, but keep the 22nd Amendment.  Keep the seniority system in place in Congress.  Opposed to term limits for Mississippi legislators or other statewide officials.   
      Statehood: Refer to popular referendums on statehood questions.  Allow for a referendum in Washington, D.C. 
      Voting age: Keep as is, but allow people who will turn 18 before Election Day to vote in primary elections. 
      Campaign Finance Reform: Status quo.  Political donations are free speech. 
      Voting system: Keep as is.  Allow States to experiment with proportional representation and multi-seat districts. 
      Gerrymandering:  Status-quo.  Opposed to “independent” redistricting committees.   
      Voter ID: Pass a national voter ID law requiring valid photo ID in order to cast a ballot for federal office.
      Primaries, Statewide: Opposed to partisan voter registration in Mississippi; support the current open primary system.  Consider implementation of a Louisiana-style “jungle primary.”  Allow all eligible Mississippi voters to vote in runoff elections, regardless of their previous participation in other parties’ primaries.
      Primaries, National:  The national parties should push for presidential primary reform where large, rotating batches of states are allowed to vote at once as a way to decrease the power that certain states (i.e., Iowa, New Hampshire) have on the presidential primary process.

      Economic Issues:
      Welfare: Block-grant Medicaid and send back to the States with federally-enforced support and eligibility standards.  Opposed to drug-testing for welfare eligibility.   
      Unions: Implement a national right-to-work law in order to diminish the influence of organized labor. 
      Education:  Complete federalization of K-12.  All public school teachers and school administrators become federal employees and all local/state financing of public education is removed.  Ban on charter schools and vouchers, and consider bans on private education if found to be Constitutional.  Fully implement Common Core.  Establish national benchmark standards for K-12 and require students to pass standardized tests in order to advance into the next grade.  By removing State funding for K-12, States should be able to put more resources into Higher Ed.     
      Privatization: Generally opposed.  Maintain current government assets associated with TVA and DRA.
      Environment: Implement cap-and-trade legislation with exemptions for non-major polluters.  Increase EPA funding.   
      Minimum wage: Oppose further increases in the federal minimum wage.  Expand the EITC. 
      Taxation: Keep the current progressive system for income taxation.  Experiment with shifting the tax burden back to the upper classes through consumption-based taxation (i.e., luxury goods taxes, real estate taxes).  Implement an income tax “surcharge” on incomes over a certain level, say $3 million.  Raise and lock the Social Security tax cap to cover 90 percent of all workers.  Reform and lower corporate taxes as a way to discourage outsourcing.   
      Healthcare: Repeal Obamacare.  Implement malpractice reform and allow insurers  to compete across state lines in order to decrease premiums.   
      Trade: Support free trade as way to bring down prices for consumers.  Trade to correct American trade deficit by encouraging American producers to export, especially in the agriculture sector. 
      Embargo: Use embargoes and sanctions as way to exert diplomatic pressure.   
      Pork: Overwhelmingly supportive.  Use “pork-barrel” projects as ways to promote local economic development.   
      Subsidies: Increase agricultural subsidies; generously subsidize struggling industries. 
      Military: Maintain current military funding levels, but shift more money into R&D and away from traditional ground forces.  Make more use of military contractors as a way to allow for funds to go further.   

      Foreign Policy

      War: Maintain a constant state of military readiness, and be willing to go to war whenever and wherever American interests are at stake.  Do not be afraid to go to war unilaterally.  Use reputation as a military juggernaut as a way to exert diplomatic pressure. 
      Israel-Palestine: Generally supportive of a two-state solution, but it most likely will have to occur on Israeli terms in order to be successful.  Increase support for Israel as it is the only secular democracy in the Middle East.  Call for an end to new settlements, but maintain that those living in settlements have a solely civilian status. 
      Draft:  Status-quo.
      UN: Use status as the UN’s largest financial contributor to encourage the organization into changing its role in a new, global environment.  Shift focus away from security issues and to humanitarian issues.  Use the UN as a global forum in which member nations may organize international relief efforts and financial aid.  Work through other international organizations (namely NATO) to deal with threats to international security.   
      Nukes: Maintain American nuclear arsenal.  Expand the “nuclear club” to more U.S. allies such as Canada, Australia and Germany. 
      Foreign Aid: Increase levels of foreign aid as a way to increase American presence and influence in the developing world.   

      Um they just passed legislation to say that they're a Jewish state, so secular my ass.
      No, they tried to and as a result the government fell.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Murica! on December 23, 2014, 10:43:59 AM
      Overall: Big-government liberal Republican.  Could pass for an Andrew Cuomo or Amy Klobuchar Democrat, maybe.   

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Supportive of Roe v. Wade, and generally pro-choice.  However, I am not opposed to certain “informed consent” laws and mandatory waiting periods.  Minors seeking abortion should have to gain parental consent.
      Drugs: Continue the war on drugs with harsher penalties being applied to violators, including recreational users.  Enforce federal drug laws in States where marijuana has been legalized.
      Censorship: The government has the responsibility to censor objectionable material from the air and radio waves.  The fact that satellite communications are exempt from FCC content regulation should be enough to appease the anti-censorship crowd.
      Net Neutrality: Opposed; turning the Internet into a public good would decrease private investment into Internet infrastructure and thus make the internet less accessible to everyone. 
      Gay marriage: The equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment makes statewide bans on gay marriage unconstitutional.  SCOTUS should strike-down all statewide bans, and the Congress should pass legislation in order to ensure LGBT equality in employment, healthcare, housing, education and other areas. 
      Death penalty: Federal use of the death penalty is warranted in extreme circumstances; States can enact their own laws.  I personally do not oppose the death penalty on moral or religious grounds.
      Prostitution: Local and municipal jurisdictions should be allowed to make their own laws to fit their communities as prostitution’s major effects are on property values and local health.  I would not support the legalization of prostitution in my community as a matter of moral decency and preserving property values.  Stronger enforcement of federal laws concerning human trafficking and child exploitation.   
      Church & state: The state should stay out of religious affairs, and religious organizations and churches should be tax exempt with the exception of the monies they earn through commercial enterprises.  Forcing churches to forfeit their tax exempt status for making political stances is tantamount to “taxing” the First Amendment.  Individuals should be allowed to lobby and petition the state on behalf of the Church like any other citizen would be able to do for any other organization. 
      Affirmative action: Implement a quota system in federal hiring in order to ensure representation of minorities, women and LGBT Americans. 
      Hate crime laws: Crimes of corresponding severity should be treated similarly regardless of apparent motive.  No additional punishment should be levied for crimes perpetuated out of “hate.” 
      Immigration: Comprehensive immigration reform including blanket amnesty for all non-criminal illegals.  Strengthen border security.  Maintain birthright citizenship.  Stronger enforcement of existing federal laws.   
      Stem cell research: Support federal funding of stem cell research. 
      PATRIOT Act: Support the reauthorization and expansion of the PATRIOT Act in order to give the federal government more power to combat terrorism.   
      Gun Control: Status-quo.  Increase data sharing between state and federal agencies as a way to strengthen the effectiveness of federal background checks. 
      Assisted suicide: Ambivalent.  However, living wills are generally a bad idea and end-of-life decisions are best left to family members.   
      Gambling: Decisions should be left to local and municipal jurisdictions.  I would not support legal gambling in my community.  Heavily tax earnings gained through gambling and lotto.
      Organ donation: Status quo.  Opposed to universal or “opt-out” organ donation; follow wishes of next-of-kin in ambiguous cases.  Invest in non-market mechanisms (i.e., public service announcements) to increase organ donation. 

      Electoral Reform:
      Term limits: No term limits for Congress or judges, but keep the 22nd Amendment.  Keep the seniority system in place in Congress.  Opposed to term limits for Mississippi legislators or other statewide officials.   
      Statehood: Refer to popular referendums on statehood questions.  Allow for a referendum in Washington, D.C. 
      Voting age: Keep as is, but allow people who will turn 18 before Election Day to vote in primary elections. 
      Campaign Finance Reform: Status quo.  Political donations are free speech. 
      Voting system: Keep as is.  Allow States to experiment with proportional representation and multi-seat districts. 
      Gerrymandering:  Status-quo.  Opposed to “independent” redistricting committees.   
      Voter ID: Pass a national voter ID law requiring valid photo ID in order to cast a ballot for federal office.
      Primaries, Statewide: Opposed to partisan voter registration in Mississippi; support the current open primary system.  Consider implementation of a Louisiana-style “jungle primary.”  Allow all eligible Mississippi voters to vote in runoff elections, regardless of their previous participation in other parties’ primaries.
      Primaries, National:  The national parties should push for presidential primary reform where large, rotating batches of states are allowed to vote at once as a way to decrease the power that certain states (i.e., Iowa, New Hampshire) have on the presidential primary process.

      Economic Issues:
      Welfare: Block-grant Medicaid and send back to the States with federally-enforced support and eligibility standards.  Opposed to drug-testing for welfare eligibility.   
      Unions: Implement a national right-to-work law in order to diminish the influence of organized labor. 
      Education:  Complete federalization of K-12.  All public school teachers and school administrators become federal employees and all local/state financing of public education is removed.  Ban on charter schools and vouchers, and consider bans on private education if found to be Constitutional.  Fully implement Common Core.  Establish national benchmark standards for K-12 and require students to pass standardized tests in order to advance into the next grade.  By removing State funding for K-12, States should be able to put more resources into Higher Ed.     
      Privatization: Generally opposed.  Maintain current government assets associated with TVA and DRA.
      Environment: Implement cap-and-trade legislation with exemptions for non-major polluters.  Increase EPA funding.   
      Minimum wage: Oppose further increases in the federal minimum wage.  Expand the EITC. 
      Taxation: Keep the current progressive system for income taxation.  Experiment with shifting the tax burden back to the upper classes through consumption-based taxation (i.e., luxury goods taxes, real estate taxes).  Implement an income tax “surcharge” on incomes over a certain level, say $3 million.  Raise and lock the Social Security tax cap to cover 90 percent of all workers.  Reform and lower corporate taxes as a way to discourage outsourcing.   
      Healthcare: Repeal Obamacare.  Implement malpractice reform and allow insurers  to compete across state lines in order to decrease premiums.   
      Trade: Support free trade as way to bring down prices for consumers.  Trade to correct American trade deficit by encouraging American producers to export, especially in the agriculture sector. 
      Embargo: Use embargoes and sanctions as way to exert diplomatic pressure.   
      Pork: Overwhelmingly supportive.  Use “pork-barrel” projects as ways to promote local economic development.   
      Subsidies: Increase agricultural subsidies; generously subsidize struggling industries. 
      Military: Maintain current military funding levels, but shift more money into R&D and away from traditional ground forces.  Make more use of military contractors as a way to allow for funds to go further.   

      Foreign Policy

      War: Maintain a constant state of military readiness, and be willing to go to war whenever and wherever American interests are at stake.  Do not be afraid to go to war unilaterally.  Use reputation as a military juggernaut as a way to exert diplomatic pressure. 
      Israel-Palestine: Generally supportive of a two-state solution, but it most likely will have to occur on Israeli terms in order to be successful.  Increase support for Israel as it is the only secular democracy in the Middle East.  Call for an end to new settlements, but maintain that those living in settlements have a solely civilian status. 
      Draft:  Status-quo.
      UN: Use status as the UN’s largest financial contributor to encourage the organization into changing its role in a new, global environment.  Shift focus away from security issues and to humanitarian issues.  Use the UN as a global forum in which member nations may organize international relief efforts and financial aid.  Work through other international organizations (namely NATO) to deal with threats to international security.   
      Nukes: Maintain American nuclear arsenal.  Expand the “nuclear club” to more U.S. allies such as Canada, Australia and Germany. 
      Foreign Aid: Increase levels of foreign aid as a way to increase American presence and influence in the developing world.   

      Um they just passed legislation to say that they're a Jewish state, so secular my ass.
      No, they tried to and as a result the government fell.
      So it didn't pass? Crap, I need to find better information.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Libertarian Socialist Dem on December 27, 2014, 07:18:28 PM
      Party:       Democrat
      Ideology:  Social Democrat with a Libertarian stripe

      Social Issues:

      Abortion: Strongly Pro-Choice until the point of viability.

      Gay Marriage: 100% in favor of, overturn state laws banning it at the federal level as discriminatory.

      War on Drugs: Legalize all drugs, abolish the DEA

      Prostitution: Legalize

      Stem Cell Research: Expand

      Affirmative Action: For but based on class instead of race

      Gun Control: kind of torn, I think that there's a strong left-wing case to be made in favor of allowing people to bear arms. I can't understand liberals wanting to give racist cops a monopoly on gun ownership in big citites. At the same time if you could implement some kind of background check to prevent mass shootings i'd be all for it. I really think though that overlaps with other issues also though like mental health.

      Gambling: Support legalizing but I disagree with how it's done. (see below)

      Immigration: The US is a nation of immigrants and I know that my ancestors were discriminated against by the WASPs when they first came here and I feel that people are hypocritical to oppose immigration. Yes it may depress wages somewhat but they're are other ways of stimulating them again. (see under economics)

      Civil Liberties: Abolish the Patriot Act, Espionage Act, end NSA spying and police militarization, ban the use of domestic drones by police departments.

      Other stuff: I guess i'm more socially libertarian then Socially Liberal since i've always had a problem with progressive paternalism. I think that sin taxes are fundamentally regressive and it annoys me how things like cigarette taxes and gambling are always tied to funding programs. It just seems like a bullsh**t way to avoid taxing the rich. I also think that bars should be able to allow smoking if they're adult only venues. Also the drinking age should be lowered to eighteen.

      Economics:

      Pro-Union, support single payer health care, free universal college education, guaranteed minimum income as a means of offsetting outsourcing. If we had guaranteed income it would be a boon to the economy as more people could leave their sh**tty jobs and either start businesses or pursue some creative venture. It would also be stimulus for those at the bottom. I also think that giving those at the bottom money directly is less demeaning to the poor then forcing them to be dependent on busy body social workers. Also institute a stock transaction tax and reinstate glass-stegal.

      Foreign Policy:

      Israel/Palestine: I believe that ethnic based states are fundamentally racist and if their ever could have been a two state solution it's been ruined by the nutty settlers moving onto what should have been Palestinian land. There should be one multiethnic secular state and I say this as a partial Jew myself.

      Iran: I think we should lift the sanctions and move towards better relations with Iran and away from Saudi Arabia.

      Afghanistan: Pull out already!

      Draft: 100000% opposed

      The US should remained engaged in the world and I think that under extreme circumstances intervention can be justified to prevent genocide but in general we should reorient our foreign policy towards one based on human rights and less in serving corporate interests.



      Overall: Basically a Libertarian Socialist as my name would imply or more accurately an (LSD) Libertarian Social Democrat. I also think that my politics are in some ways close to Christopher Hitchens before 9/11.

       



      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Murica! on December 28, 2014, 11:22:17 PM
      Social Issues:

      Abortion: Strongly Pro-Choice until the point of viability.

      Gay Marriage: 100% in favor of, overturn state laws banning it at the federal level as discriminatory.

      War on Drugs: Legalize all drugs, abolish the DEA

      Prostitution: Legalize

      Stem Cell Research: Expand

      Affirmative Action: For but based on class instead of race

      Gun Control: kind of torn, I think that there's a strong left-wing case to be made in favor of allowing people to bear arms. I can't understand liberals wanting to give racist cops a monopoly on gun ownership in big citites. At the same time if you could implement some kind of background check to prevent mass shootings i'd be all for it. I really think that overlaps with other issues also though like mental health.

      Gambling: Support legalizing but I disagree with how it's done. (see below)

      Immigration: The US is a nation of immigrants and I know that my ancestors were discriminated against by the WASPs when they first came here and I feel that people are hypocritical to oppose immigration. Yes it may depress wages somewhat but they're are other ways of stimulating them again. (see under economics)

      Civil Liberties: Abolish the Patriot Act, Espionage Act, end NSA spying and police militarization, ban the use of domestic drones by police departments.

      Other stuff: I guess i'm more socially libertarian then Socially Liberal since i've always had a problem with progressive paternalism. I think that sin taxes are fundamentally regressive and it annoys me how things like cigarette taxes and gambling are always tied to funding programs. It just seems like a bullsh**t way to avoid taxing the rich. I also think that bars should be able to allow smoking if they're adult only venues. Also the drinking age should be lowered to eighteen.

      Economics:

      Pro-Union, support single payer health care, free universal college education, guaranteed minimum income as a means of offsetting outsourcing. If we had guaranteed income it would be a boon to the economy as more people could leave their sh**tty jobs and either start businesses or pursue some creative venture. It would also be stimulus for those at the bottom. I also think that giving those at the bottom money directly is less demeaning to the poor then forcing them to be dependent on busy body social workers. Also institute a stock transaction tax and reinstate glass-stegal.

      Foreign Policy:

      Israel/Palestine: I believe that ethnic based states are fundamentally racist and if their ever could have been a two state solution it's been ruined by the nutty settlers moving onto what should have been Palestinian land. There should be one multiethnic secular state and I say this as a partial Jew myself.

      Iran: I think we should lift the sanctions and move towards better relations with Iran and away from Saudi Arabia.

      Afghanistan: Pull out already!

      Draft: 100000% opposed

      The US should remained engaged in the world and I think that under extreme circumstances intervention can be justified to prevent genocide but in general we should reorient our foreign policy towards one based on human rights and less in serving corporate interests.



      Overall: Basically a Libertarian Socialist as my name would imply or more accurately an (LSD) Libertarian Social Democrat. I also think that my politics are in some ways close to Christopher Hitchens before 9/11.

       


      Hate to break it to ya, but your not a Libertarian Socialist.
                                                                          -A Libertarian Socialist


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Libertarian Socialist Dem on December 30, 2014, 04:26:22 AM
      Social Issues:

      Abortion: Strongly Pro-Choice until the point of viability.

      Gay Marriage: 100% in favor of, overturn state laws banning it at the federal level as discriminatory.

      War on Drugs: Legalize all drugs, abolish the DEA

      Prostitution: Legalize

      Stem Cell Research: Expand

      Affirmative Action: For but based on class instead of race

      Gun Control: kind of torn, I think that there's a strong left-wing case to be made in favor of allowing people to bear arms. I can't understand liberals wanting to give racist cops a monopoly on gun ownership in big citites. At the same time if you could implement some kind of background check to prevent mass shootings i'd be all for it. I really think that overlaps with other issues also though like mental health.

      Gambling: Support legalizing but I disagree with how it's done. (see below)

      Immigration: The US is a nation of immigrants and I know that my ancestors were discriminated against by the WASPs when they first came here and I feel that people are hypocritical to oppose immigration. Yes it may depress wages somewhat but they're are other ways of stimulating them again. (see under economics)

      Civil Liberties: Abolish the Patriot Act, Espionage Act, end NSA spying and police militarization, ban the use of domestic drones by police departments.

      Other stuff: I guess i'm more socially libertarian then Socially Liberal since i've always had a problem with progressive paternalism. I think that sin taxes are fundamentally regressive and it annoys me how things like cigarette taxes and gambling are always tied to funding programs. It just seems like a bullsh**t way to avoid taxing the rich. I also think that bars should be able to allow smoking if they're adult only venues. Also the drinking age should be lowered to eighteen.

      Economics:

      Pro-Union, support single payer health care, free universal college education, guaranteed minimum income as a means of offsetting outsourcing. If we had guaranteed income it would be a boon to the economy as more people could leave their sh**tty jobs and either start businesses or pursue some creative venture. It would also be stimulus for those at the bottom. I also think that giving those at the bottom money directly is less demeaning to the poor then forcing them to be dependent on busy body social workers. Also institute a stock transaction tax and reinstate glass-stegal.

      Foreign Policy:

      Israel/Palestine: I believe that ethnic based states are fundamentally racist and if their ever could have been a two state solution it's been ruined by the nutty settlers moving onto what should have been Palestinian land. There should be one multiethnic secular state and I say this as a partial Jew myself.

      Iran: I think we should lift the sanctions and move towards better relations with Iran and away from Saudi Arabia.

      Afghanistan: Pull out already!

      Draft: 100000% opposed

      The US should remained engaged in the world and I think that under extreme circumstances intervention can be justified to prevent genocide but in general we should reorient our foreign policy towards one based on human rights and less in serving corporate interests.



      Overall: Basically a Libertarian Socialist as my name would imply or more accurately an (LSD) Libertarian Social Democrat. I also think that my politics are in some ways close to Christopher Hitchens before 9/11.

       


      Hate to break it to ya, but your not a Libertarian Socialist.
                                                                          -A Libertarian Socialist

      How, because i'm not an anarchist?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TNF on December 30, 2014, 02:42:22 PM
      Identifying as a Democrat pretty well means you're not a socialist, no matter what you might claim to the contrary.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Murica! on December 30, 2014, 03:15:36 PM
      Social Issues:

      Abortion: Strongly Pro-Choice until the point of viability.

      Gay Marriage: 100% in favor of, overturn state laws banning it at the federal level as discriminatory.

      War on Drugs: Legalize all drugs, abolish the DEA

      Prostitution: Legalize

      Stem Cell Research: Expand

      Affirmative Action: For but based on class instead of race

      Gun Control: kind of torn, I think that there's a strong left-wing case to be made in favor of allowing people to bear arms. I can't understand liberals wanting to give racist cops a monopoly on gun ownership in big citites. At the same time if you could implement some kind of background check to prevent mass shootings i'd be all for it. I really think that overlaps with other issues also though like mental health.

      Gambling: Support legalizing but I disagree with how it's done. (see below)

      Immigration: The US is a nation of immigrants and I know that my ancestors were discriminated against by the WASPs when they first came here and I feel that people are hypocritical to oppose immigration. Yes it may depress wages somewhat but they're are other ways of stimulating them again. (see under economics)

      Civil Liberties: Abolish the Patriot Act, Espionage Act, end NSA spying and police militarization, ban the use of domestic drones by police departments.

      Other stuff: I guess i'm more socially libertarian then Socially Liberal since i've always had a problem with progressive paternalism. I think that sin taxes are fundamentally regressive and it annoys me how things like cigarette taxes and gambling are always tied to funding programs. It just seems like a bullsh**t way to avoid taxing the rich. I also think that bars should be able to allow smoking if they're adult only venues. Also the drinking age should be lowered to eighteen.

      Economics:

      Pro-Union, support single payer health care, free universal college education, guaranteed minimum income as a means of offsetting outsourcing. If we had guaranteed income it would be a boon to the economy as more people could leave their sh**tty jobs and either start businesses or pursue some creative venture. It would also be stimulus for those at the bottom. I also think that giving those at the bottom money directly is less demeaning to the poor then forcing them to be dependent on busy body social workers. Also institute a stock transaction tax and reinstate glass-stegal.

      Foreign Policy:

      Israel/Palestine: I believe that ethnic based states are fundamentally racist and if their ever could have been a two state solution it's been ruined by the nutty settlers moving onto what should have been Palestinian land. There should be one multiethnic secular state and I say this as a partial Jew myself.

      Iran: I think we should lift the sanctions and move towards better relations with Iran and away from Saudi Arabia.

      Afghanistan: Pull out already!

      Draft: 100000% opposed

      The US should remained engaged in the world and I think that under extreme circumstances intervention can be justified to prevent genocide but in general we should reorient our foreign policy towards one based on human rights and less in serving corporate interests.



      Overall: Basically a Libertarian Socialist as my name would imply or more accurately an (LSD) Libertarian Social Democrat. I also think that my politics are in some ways close to Christopher Hitchens before 9/11.

       


      Hate to break it to ya, but your not a Libertarian Socialist.
                                                                          -A Libertarian Socialist

      How, because i'm not an anarchist?
      It's because you don't call for the means of production to be collectivized.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Libertarian Socialist Dem on December 30, 2014, 03:43:53 PM
      Identifying as a Democrat pretty well means you're not a socialist, no matter what you might claim to the contrary.

      Really only in party registration because that's how I registered when I turned eighteen. It's a lot like Libertarians who registered as Republicans only to vote for Ron Paul. I'm no kind of party hack, in fact most of the Democratic Party as it currently exists I have no use for.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Libertarian Socialist Dem on December 30, 2014, 03:45:11 PM
      Social Issues:

      Abortion: Strongly Pro-Choice until the point of viability.

      Gay Marriage: 100% in favor of, overturn state laws banning it at the federal level as discriminatory.

      War on Drugs: Legalize all drugs, abolish the DEA

      Prostitution: Legalize

      Stem Cell Research: Expand

      Affirmative Action: For but based on class instead of race

      Gun Control: kind of torn, I think that there's a strong left-wing case to be made in favor of allowing people to bear arms. I can't understand liberals wanting to give racist cops a monopoly on gun ownership in big citites. At the same time if you could implement some kind of background check to prevent mass shootings i'd be all for it. I really think that overlaps with other issues also though like mental health.

      Gambling: Support legalizing but I disagree with how it's done. (see below)

      Immigration: The US is a nation of immigrants and I know that my ancestors were discriminated against by the WASPs when they first came here and I feel that people are hypocritical to oppose immigration. Yes it may depress wages somewhat but they're are other ways of stimulating them again. (see under economics)

      Civil Liberties: Abolish the Patriot Act, Espionage Act, end NSA spying and police militarization, ban the use of domestic drones by police departments.

      Other stuff: I guess i'm more socially libertarian then Socially Liberal since i've always had a problem with progressive paternalism. I think that sin taxes are fundamentally regressive and it annoys me how things like cigarette taxes and gambling are always tied to funding programs. It just seems like a bullsh**t way to avoid taxing the rich. I also think that bars should be able to allow smoking if they're adult only venues. Also the drinking age should be lowered to eighteen.

      Economics:

      Pro-Union, support single payer health care, free universal college education, guaranteed minimum income as a means of offsetting outsourcing. If we had guaranteed income it would be a boon to the economy as more people could leave their sh**tty jobs and either start businesses or pursue some creative venture. It would also be stimulus for those at the bottom. I also think that giving those at the bottom money directly is less demeaning to the poor then forcing them to be dependent on busy body social workers. Also institute a stock transaction tax and reinstate glass-stegal.

      Foreign Policy:

      Israel/Palestine: I believe that ethnic based states are fundamentally racist and if their ever could have been a two state solution it's been ruined by the nutty settlers moving onto what should have been Palestinian land. There should be one multiethnic secular state and I say this as a partial Jew myself.

      Iran: I think we should lift the sanctions and move towards better relations with Iran and away from Saudi Arabia.

      Afghanistan: Pull out already!

      Draft: 100000% opposed

      The US should remained engaged in the world and I think that under extreme circumstances intervention can be justified to prevent genocide but in general we should reorient our foreign policy towards one based on human rights and less in serving corporate interests.



      Overall: Basically a Libertarian Socialist as my name would imply or more accurately an (LSD) Libertarian Social Democrat. I also think that my politics are in some ways close to Christopher Hitchens before 9/11.

       


      Hate to break it to ya, but your not a Libertarian Socialist.
                                                                          -A Libertarian Socialist

      How, because i'm not an anarchist?
      It's because you don't call for the means of production to be collectivized.

      Good point, I guess that i'd be on the right-wing of any radical leftist movement just because i'm not a market abolitionist even though by the standards of American politics i'm basically a Commie.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Murica! on December 30, 2014, 07:43:05 PM
      Social Issues:

      Abortion: Strongly Pro-Choice until the point of viability.

      Gay Marriage: 100% in favor of, overturn state laws banning it at the federal level as discriminatory.

      War on Drugs: Legalize all drugs, abolish the DEA

      Prostitution: Legalize

      Stem Cell Research: Expand

      Affirmative Action: For but based on class instead of race

      Gun Control: kind of torn, I think that there's a strong left-wing case to be made in favor of allowing people to bear arms. I can't understand liberals wanting to give racist cops a monopoly on gun ownership in big citites. At the same time if you could implement some kind of background check to prevent mass shootings i'd be all for it. I really think that overlaps with other issues also though like mental health.

      Gambling: Support legalizing but I disagree with how it's done. (see below)

      Immigration: The US is a nation of immigrants and I know that my ancestors were discriminated against by the WASPs when they first came here and I feel that people are hypocritical to oppose immigration. Yes it may depress wages somewhat but they're are other ways of stimulating them again. (see under economics)

      Civil Liberties: Abolish the Patriot Act, Espionage Act, end NSA spying and police militarization, ban the use of domestic drones by police departments.

      Other stuff: I guess i'm more socially libertarian then Socially Liberal since i've always had a problem with progressive paternalism. I think that sin taxes are fundamentally regressive and it annoys me how things like cigarette taxes and gambling are always tied to funding programs. It just seems like a bullsh**t way to avoid taxing the rich. I also think that bars should be able to allow smoking if they're adult only venues. Also the drinking age should be lowered to eighteen.

      Economics:

      Pro-Union, support single payer health care, free universal college education, guaranteed minimum income as a means of offsetting outsourcing. If we had guaranteed income it would be a boon to the economy as more people could leave their sh**tty jobs and either start businesses or pursue some creative venture. It would also be stimulus for those at the bottom. I also think that giving those at the bottom money directly is less demeaning to the poor then forcing them to be dependent on busy body social workers. Also institute a stock transaction tax and reinstate glass-stegal.

      Foreign Policy:

      Israel/Palestine: I believe that ethnic based states are fundamentally racist and if their ever could have been a two state solution it's been ruined by the nutty settlers moving onto what should have been Palestinian land. There should be one multiethnic secular state and I say this as a partial Jew myself.

      Iran: I think we should lift the sanctions and move towards better relations with Iran and away from Saudi Arabia.

      Afghanistan: Pull out already!

      Draft: 100000% opposed

      The US should remained engaged in the world and I think that under extreme circumstances intervention can be justified to prevent genocide but in general we should reorient our foreign policy towards one based on human rights and less in serving corporate interests.



      Overall: Basically a Libertarian Socialist as my name would imply or more accurately an (LSD) Libertarian Social Democrat. I also think that my politics are in some ways close to Christopher Hitchens before 9/11.

       


      Hate to break it to ya, but your not a Libertarian Socialist.
                                                                          -A Libertarian Socialist

      How, because i'm not an anarchist?
      It's because you don't call for the means of production to be collectivized.

      Good point, I guess that i'd be on the right-wing of any radical leftist movement just because i'm not a market abolitionist even though by the standards of American politics i'm basically a Commie.
      Um...Please read my signature.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Libertarian Socialist Dem on December 30, 2014, 09:31:08 PM
      Social Issues:

      Abortion: Strongly Pro-Choice until the point of viability.

      Gay Marriage: 100% in favor of, overturn state laws banning it at the federal level as discriminatory.

      War on Drugs: Legalize all drugs, abolish the DEA

      Prostitution: Legalize

      Stem Cell Research: Expand

      Affirmative Action: For but based on class instead of race

      Gun Control: kind of torn, I think that there's a strong left-wing case to be made in favor of allowing people to bear arms. I can't understand liberals wanting to give racist cops a monopoly on gun ownership in big citites. At the same time if you could implement some kind of background check to prevent mass shootings i'd be all for it. I really think that overlaps with other issues also though like mental health.

      Gambling: Support legalizing but I disagree with how it's done. (see below)

      Immigration: The US is a nation of immigrants and I know that my ancestors were discriminated against by the WASPs when they first came here and I feel that people are hypocritical to oppose immigration. Yes it may depress wages somewhat but they're are other ways of stimulating them again. (see under economics)

      Civil Liberties: Abolish the Patriot Act, Espionage Act, end NSA spying and police militarization, ban the use of domestic drones by police departments.

      Other stuff: I guess i'm more socially libertarian then Socially Liberal since i've always had a problem with progressive paternalism. I think that sin taxes are fundamentally regressive and it annoys me how things like cigarette taxes and gambling are always tied to funding programs. It just seems like a bullsh**t way to avoid taxing the rich. I also think that bars should be able to allow smoking if they're adult only venues. Also the drinking age should be lowered to eighteen.

      Economics:

      Pro-Union, support single payer health care, free universal college education, guaranteed minimum income as a means of offsetting outsourcing. If we had guaranteed income it would be a boon to the economy as more people could leave their sh**tty jobs and either start businesses or pursue some creative venture. It would also be stimulus for those at the bottom. I also think that giving those at the bottom money directly is less demeaning to the poor then forcing them to be dependent on busy body social workers. Also institute a stock transaction tax and reinstate glass-stegal.

      Foreign Policy:

      Israel/Palestine: I believe that ethnic based states are fundamentally racist and if their ever could have been a two state solution it's been ruined by the nutty settlers moving onto what should have been Palestinian land. There should be one multiethnic secular state and I say this as a partial Jew myself.

      Iran: I think we should lift the sanctions and move towards better relations with Iran and away from Saudi Arabia.

      Afghanistan: Pull out already!

      Draft: 100000% opposed

      The US should remained engaged in the world and I think that under extreme circumstances intervention can be justified to prevent genocide but in general we should reorient our foreign policy towards one based on human rights and less in serving corporate interests.



      Overall: Basically a Libertarian Socialist as my name would imply or more accurately an (LSD) Libertarian Social Democrat. I also think that my politics are in some ways close to Christopher Hitchens before 9/11.

       


      Hate to break it to ya, but your not a Libertarian Socialist.
                                                                          -A Libertarian Socialist

      How, because i'm not an anarchist?
      It's because you don't call for the means of production to be collectivized.

      Good point, I guess that i'd be on the right-wing of any radical leftist movement just because i'm not a market abolitionist even though by the standards of American politics i'm basically a Commie.
      Um...Please read my signature.


      Touche good sir


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Murica! on December 30, 2014, 10:23:29 PM
      Social Issues:

      Abortion: Strongly Pro-Choice until the point of viability.

      Gay Marriage: 100% in favor of, overturn state laws banning it at the federal level as discriminatory.

      War on Drugs: Legalize all drugs, abolish the DEA

      Prostitution: Legalize

      Stem Cell Research: Expand

      Affirmative Action: For but based on class instead of race

      Gun Control: kind of torn, I think that there's a strong left-wing case to be made in favor of allowing people to bear arms. I can't understand liberals wanting to give racist cops a monopoly on gun ownership in big citites. At the same time if you could implement some kind of background check to prevent mass shootings i'd be all for it. I really think that overlaps with other issues also though like mental health.

      Gambling: Support legalizing but I disagree with how it's done. (see below)

      Immigration: The US is a nation of immigrants and I know that my ancestors were discriminated against by the WASPs when they first came here and I feel that people are hypocritical to oppose immigration. Yes it may depress wages somewhat but they're are other ways of stimulating them again. (see under economics)

      Civil Liberties: Abolish the Patriot Act, Espionage Act, end NSA spying and police militarization, ban the use of domestic drones by police departments.

      Other stuff: I guess i'm more socially libertarian then Socially Liberal since i've always had a problem with progressive paternalism. I think that sin taxes are fundamentally regressive and it annoys me how things like cigarette taxes and gambling are always tied to funding programs. It just seems like a bullsh**t way to avoid taxing the rich. I also think that bars should be able to allow smoking if they're adult only venues. Also the drinking age should be lowered to eighteen.

      Economics:

      Pro-Union, support single payer health care, free universal college education, guaranteed minimum income as a means of offsetting outsourcing. If we had guaranteed income it would be a boon to the economy as more people could leave their sh**tty jobs and either start businesses or pursue some creative venture. It would also be stimulus for those at the bottom. I also think that giving those at the bottom money directly is less demeaning to the poor then forcing them to be dependent on busy body social workers. Also institute a stock transaction tax and reinstate glass-stegal.

      Foreign Policy:

      Israel/Palestine: I believe that ethnic based states are fundamentally racist and if their ever could have been a two state solution it's been ruined by the nutty settlers moving onto what should have been Palestinian land. There should be one multiethnic secular state and I say this as a partial Jew myself.

      Iran: I think we should lift the sanctions and move towards better relations with Iran and away from Saudi Arabia.

      Afghanistan: Pull out already!

      Draft: 100000% opposed

      The US should remained engaged in the world and I think that under extreme circumstances intervention can be justified to prevent genocide but in general we should reorient our foreign policy towards one based on human rights and less in serving corporate interests.



      Overall: Basically a Libertarian Socialist as my name would imply or more accurately an (LSD) Libertarian Social Democrat. I also think that my politics are in some ways close to Christopher Hitchens before 9/11.

       


      Hate to break it to ya, but your not a Libertarian Socialist.
                                                                          -A Libertarian Socialist

      How, because i'm not an anarchist?
      It's because you don't call for the means of production to be collectivized.

      Good point, I guess that i'd be on the right-wing of any radical leftist movement just because i'm not a market abolitionist even though by the standards of American politics i'm basically a Commie.
      Um...Please read my signature.


      Touche good sir
      Comrade*


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Libertarian Socialist Dem on December 30, 2014, 10:58:21 PM
      Social Issues:

      Abortion: Strongly Pro-Choice until the point of viability.

      Gay Marriage: 100% in favor of, overturn state laws banning it at the federal level as discriminatory.

      War on Drugs: Legalize all drugs, abolish the DEA

      Prostitution: Legalize

      Stem Cell Research: Expand

      Affirmative Action: For but based on class instead of race

      Gun Control: kind of torn, I think that there's a strong left-wing case to be made in favor of allowing people to bear arms. I can't understand liberals wanting to give racist cops a monopoly on gun ownership in big citites. At the same time if you could implement some kind of background check to prevent mass shootings i'd be all for it. I really think that overlaps with other issues also though like mental health.

      Gambling: Support legalizing but I disagree with how it's done. (see below)

      Immigration: The US is a nation of immigrants and I know that my ancestors were discriminated against by the WASPs when they first came here and I feel that people are hypocritical to oppose immigration. Yes it may depress wages somewhat but they're are other ways of stimulating them again. (see under economics)

      Civil Liberties: Abolish the Patriot Act, Espionage Act, end NSA spying and police militarization, ban the use of domestic drones by police departments.

      Other stuff: I guess i'm more socially libertarian then Socially Liberal since i've always had a problem with progressive paternalism. I think that sin taxes are fundamentally regressive and it annoys me how things like cigarette taxes and gambling are always tied to funding programs. It just seems like a bullsh**t way to avoid taxing the rich. I also think that bars should be able to allow smoking if they're adult only venues. Also the drinking age should be lowered to eighteen.

      Economics:

      Pro-Union, support single payer health care, free universal college education, guaranteed minimum income as a means of offsetting outsourcing. If we had guaranteed income it would be a boon to the economy as more people could leave their sh**tty jobs and either start businesses or pursue some creative venture. It would also be stimulus for those at the bottom. I also think that giving those at the bottom money directly is less demeaning to the poor then forcing them to be dependent on busy body social workers. Also institute a stock transaction tax and reinstate glass-stegal.

      Foreign Policy:

      Israel/Palestine: I believe that ethnic based states are fundamentally racist and if their ever could have been a two state solution it's been ruined by the nutty settlers moving onto what should have been Palestinian land. There should be one multiethnic secular state and I say this as a partial Jew myself.

      Iran: I think we should lift the sanctions and move towards better relations with Iran and away from Saudi Arabia.

      Afghanistan: Pull out already!

      Draft: 100000% opposed

      The US should remained engaged in the world and I think that under extreme circumstances intervention can be justified to prevent genocide but in general we should reorient our foreign policy towards one based on human rights and less in serving corporate interests.



      Overall: Basically a Libertarian Socialist as my name would imply or more accurately an (LSD) Libertarian Social Democrat. I also think that my politics are in some ways close to Christopher Hitchens before 9/11.

       


      Hate to break it to ya, but your not a Libertarian Socialist.
                                                                          -A Libertarian Socialist

      How, because i'm not an anarchist?
      It's because you don't call for the means of production to be collectivized.

      Good point, I guess that i'd be on the right-wing of any radical leftist movement just because i'm not a market abolitionist even though by the standards of American politics i'm basically a Commie.
      Um...Please read my signature.


      Touche good sir
      Comrade*

      Touche my comrade


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: stegosaurus on January 23, 2015, 12:47:43 AM
      I'm a Rudy Giuliani Republican. Very conservative on foreign policy and national security issues, centrist on the economy, centrist to center-left on cultural issues.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Blair on January 24, 2015, 06:28:40 PM
      A weird mix of New Labour/Third Way/Clinton Democrat, combined with old fashioned liberalism, with a tendency for hawkish views in International relations.




      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Blair on January 24, 2015, 06:29:33 PM
      A weird mix of New Labour/Third Way/Clinton Democrat, combined with old fashioned liberalism, with a tendency for military intervention in International relations where it's clear a UN mandate can make a difference-Rwanda, Congo, Bosnia etc



      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Murica! on February 03, 2015, 12:44:04 PM
      Do to my recent move leftward I guess I have to change some things. I no longer support the "free" market and have moved towards a "to each according to their ability, to each according to their contribution." model i.e lower communism( unless your a Leninist then it's socialism). I have also added anarcho-individualism and anarcho-feminism to my ideology, but have continued my support of anarcho-syndicalism.
      And here's my new political compass.
      ()

      Economic Left/Right: -9.88
      Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: -10.00


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Murica! on February 05, 2015, 10:57:54 AM
      So... you basically became a boring leftist.

      Nice.
      wut


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TNF on February 05, 2015, 02:14:13 PM
      So... you basically became a boring leftist.

      Nice.

      As opposed to a liberal dolt like yourself, yes?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Intell on February 07, 2015, 07:15:14 AM
      Results: http://voteforpolicies.org.uk/survey/results/54D5FA7BE7143:

      Results:

      Labor- 44.44%
      Liberal Democrats- 33.33%
      Green- 11.11%
      Conservatives- 11.11%

      Crime:  Labour
      Democracy: Greens
      Economy: Liberal Democrats
      Education: Liberal Democrats
      Environment: Labour
      Europe: Liberal Democrats
      Health: Conservatives
      Immigration: Labour
      Welfare: Labour

      My Voting Preferences in the UK:

      1. Liberal Democrats
      2. Labour
      3. Greens
      4. Conservatives
      5. UKIP
      6. BNP


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Intell on February 07, 2015, 07:57:11 AM
      Going to put this quiz the politics quiz list page.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: VPH on February 14, 2015, 07:04:44 PM
      Healthcare System: I see Obamacare as an important step to the future. However, I believe the true goal should be universal single payer healthcare. Focus on preventive care first. I support patent reform and tort reform to lower costs.
      Social Security: Raise the contribution cap, lower benefits for the rich possibly
      Taxes: I believe in a progressive but simpler income/corporation tax, where loopholes for the rich and corporations are closed. Also, I love the idea of a Robin Hood Tax. Don't mind high sin taxes too.
      Campaign Finance: Strict limits on donations and reforms for more transparency need to be enacted.
      Banking: Pass Glass Steagall, break up big banks, don't bail out banks, support community banking.
      Federal Reserve: Nationalize it.
      Minimum Wage: Raise to $12.00 an hour and index for inflation thereafter
      Free Trade: Prefer fair trade over free trade, implement protective tariffs against human rights abusers.
      Unions: I support strong unions and stand against "right to work".
      Welfare Reform: Crack down on waste and fraud, end "workfare"
      Farm Regulation: Change the regulatory system to be fair towards family farmers, legalize hemp, legalize raw milk, loosen rules on urban farming.
      GMO's: Label them, but they have very beneficial potential.
      Environmental Regulations: Carbon tax or cap and trade are necessary, ensure that polluters are severely punished
      Energy: Pivot away from oil, coal, and gas and towards nuclear, solar, wind, and fusion power
      Cars: End the stupid ban on personally importing cars newer than 25 years old, stop inspecting cars before re-registration, lower regulations on carmakers
      Education: Ensure that schools are well funded. Fight the race-to-the-top standardized testing mentality that currently pervades schools.
      Foreign Conflicts: Generally isolationist, although I do believe in drone strikes and airstrikes as a form of limited military intervention. Any intervention should be done multilaterally and constitutionally.
      Iran: Ease sanctions on them, work towards a nuclear deal.
      Cuba: End the embargo once and for all.
      Palestine: Recognize the Palestinian nation.
      Surveillance: Not much of a problem with the Patriot Act. Make sure it stays within legal bounds, but preserve the NSA for national security purposes.
      Foreign Aid: No problem with it, as long as we follow up to make sure it ends up in the right hands.
      Military Budget: We really need to cut it. Now.
      Gun Control: Ban assault rifles, institute universal gun and ammo background checks
      Marijuana: Keep it illegal, but shift away from imprisonment and more to punitive fines.
      Smoking: Ban smoking in public places except for smokeshops, bars, and a few designated smoking areas.
      Gay Marriage: Equal rights yo, this is 2015
      Abortion: Personally strongly opposed to abortion, but I am pro-choice. Safe, rare, and legal. Birth control needs to have widespread use.
      Prostitution: Completely oppose legalization.
      Feminism: I support gender equality, but do not consider myself a "feminist" per se.
      Affirmative Action: Strong supporter of race-based affirmative action. I also support gender based affirmative action in some cases.
      College: I believe that for public colleges, the US needs to shift to the Oregon Plan.
      Police Brutality: Police officers need to use body cameras. More crisis training and non lethal methods need to be emphasized. Police militarization should be scaled back.
      Immigration: Multiculturalism strengthens our nation. Help undocumented immigrants attain documented status and eventually citizenship.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: #TheShadowyAbyss on February 21, 2015, 04:16:10 AM
      Social Policy:
      Abortion: Personally Pro-Life, but let the individual woman decide.
      Same Sex Marriage: Let each state decided whether to legalize it or not.
      Drugs: Legalize marijuana now.
      Stem Cell Research: Support and fund it.
      Death Penalty: Let each state decide what to do with it.
      Gun control: Law-abiding, responsible citizens do not and should not need to ask anyone's permission or approval to engage in a peaceful activity. Gun ownership, by itself, harms no other person and cannot morally justify criminal penalties.
      Affirmative Action: Get rid of it, it is a form of reverse racism and is outdated in itself, candidates should be selected based on qualifications, not race.
      Prostitution: Legalize/regulate. .
      Euthanasia: Legalize.

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: 79% of all economists agree that the minimum wage increases unemployment. Minimum wage laws and mandated benefits drive up the cost of employing additional workers
      Welfare: Liberals and conservatives both have fundamental flaws when it comes to "welfare", we are trillions of dollars in debt and can't afford to shell out the trillions of dollars in Welfare spending, last year we spent $668 billion in welfare and $3.7 trillion over the course of the last 6 years.
      Right-to-Work: Somewhat opposed to it, but employers should not be forced into labor unions, nor should they have enormous powers.
      Taxation: One flat tax rate for all, like the FAIR tax..
      Healthcare: Get the government out of health care, let's have competing health care companies that drive the market and benefits, Obamacare was a disaster.
      Social Security: Privatize it.
      Trade: Free Trade, 'nuff said.                  
      Education: Abolish the Department of Education, let the states and local boards decide what to do with education.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: YES!


      Foreign Policy and National Security
      Afghanistan: Shouldn't have been there in the first place.
      Iraq: Never had WMD's, shouldn't have interfered.
      Iran: Encourage good relations.
      Syria: Stay out of the conflict entirely.
      Cuba: Normalize relations.
      Military Spending: Cut back on nonessentials.
      PATRIOT Act: Abolish it now, it is a fundamental violation of the Constitution and our Rights.
      NSA Spying: End spying now.
      Palestine: Recognize Palestine, but don't give out foreign aid.
      Israel: Israel is an ally, but end foreign aid, encourage them to end settlements.
      Immigration: Immigration Law Should Reflect Our Dynamic Labor Market, eliminate most, if not all, restrictions on immigration.
      Guantanamo Bay: Should be shut down.

      Environment
      Climate Change: Yes, we're hastening it.
      Green Energy: Tes.
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Build it.

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College: The Electoral College imposes a two-party system and needs to be abolished in favor of popular vote.
      Gerrymandering: Benefits the party in power, eliminate it.
      Term limits: It's called voting.
      Voter ID: Do not support it at all.
      Compulsory Voting: No
      Voter Registration: If the person doesn't want to register, don't force them.
      Statehood: Allow D.C., and Puerto Rico decide if they want to become states.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: #TheShadowyAbyss on February 21, 2015, 04:19:37 AM
      Social Policy:
      Abortion: Personally Pro-Life, but let the individual woman decide.
      Same Sex Marriage: Let each state decided whether to legalize it or not.
      Drugs: Legalize marijuana now.
      Stem Cell Research: Support and fund it.
      Death Penalty: Let each state decide what to do with it.
      Gun control: Law-abiding, responsible citizens do not and should not need to ask anyone's permission or approval to engage in a peaceful activity. Gun ownership, by itself, harms no other person and cannot morally justify criminal penalties.
      Affirmative Action: Get rid of it, it is a form of reverse racism and is outdated in itself, candidates should be selected based on qualifications, not race.
      Prostitution: Legalize/regulate. .
      Euthanasia: Legalize.

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: 79% of all economists agree that the minimum wage increases unemployment. Minimum wage laws and mandated benefits drive up the cost of employing additional workers
      Welfare: Liberals and conservatives both have fundamental flaws when it comes to "welfare", we are trillions of dollars in debt and can't afford to shell out the trillions of dollars in Welfare spending, last year we spent $668 billion in welfare and $3.7 trillion over the course of the last 6 years.
      Right-to-Work: Somewhat opposed to it, but employers should not be forced into labor unions, nor should they have enormous powers.
      Taxation: One flat tax rate for all, like the FAIR tax..
      Healthcare: Get the government out of health care, let's have competing health care companies that drive the market and benefits, Obamacare was a disaster.
      Social Security: Privatize it.
      Trade: Free Trade, 'nuff said.                  
      Education: Abolish the Department of Education, let the states and local boards decide what to do with education.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: YES!


      Foreign Policy and National Security
      Afghanistan: Shouldn't have been there in the first place.
      Iraq: Never had WMD's, shouldn't have interfered.
      Iran: Encourage good relations.
      Syria: Stay out of the conflict entirely.
      Cuba: Normalize relations.
      Military Spending: Cut back on nonessentials.
      PATRIOT Act: Abolish it now, it is a fundamental violation of the Constitution and our Rights.
      NSA Spying: End spying now.
      Palestine: Recognize Palestine, but don't give out foreign aid.
      Israel: Israel is an ally, but end foreign aid, encourage them to end settlements.
      Immigration: Immigration Law Should Reflect Our Dynamic Labor Market, eliminate most, if not all, restrictions on immigration.
      Guantanamo Bay: Should be shut down.

      Environment
      Climate Change: Yes, we're hastening it.
      Green Energy: Tes.
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Build it.

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College: The Electoral College imposes a two-party system and needs to be abolished in favor of popular vote.
      Gerrymandering: Benefits the party in power, eliminate it.
      Term limits: It's called voting.
      Voter ID: Do not support it at all.
      Compulsory Voting: No
      Voter Registration: If the person doesn't want to register, don't force them.
      Statehood: Allow D.C., and Puerto Rico decide if they want to become states.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Intell on February 26, 2015, 07:28:43 PM
      Gonna copy LibertarianRepublican topics, and do my views.

      Social Policy:

      Abortion: Personally and Morally, Pro-Life, but i believe the individual woman should decide what to do with her own body.
      Same Sex Marriage: Legalise SSM across the nation.
      Drugs: Legalise, Regulate and Tax any drug, it's is the individual's freedom to do whatever the individual wants to do even if it hurts himself.
      Stem Cell Research: Legalise and fund it.
      Death Penalty: Should be legal, but with full due-process and full evidence that the accused is guilty.
      Gun control: Establish full background checks, ban guns for the mentally ill, those on drugs and dangerous felons. Ban Assault Weapons, heavily regulate other guns. Apart from that, let individual's have guns for liberty, freedom and to defend themselves.
      Affirmative Action: Support it, though I would rather have Class-Based Affirmative Action.
      Prostitution: Legalise and Regulate.
      Euthanasia: Legalise but make sure the patient is in a correct state of mind, when he makes the decision.

      Economic Issues:

      Minimum Wage: Increase to $15 an hour, people deserve fair wages that is roughly kept up with inflation. The $15 minimum wage, will be kept up with inflation.
      Welfare: See the creation of a welfare state, our neediest citizens need welfare in order to survive. Keep welfare the way it is. Fund this by ending Corporate loopholes, more corporate taxes and a more progressive tax system. 
      Right-to-Work: Split on it, labour unions are a great thing, but people shouldn't be forced to join them. Saying that Right-To-Work does damage a union and worker's ability and right to collectively bargain, an ability and right I fully support.
      Taxation: VERY progressive taxes, taxes that are going up by 1% by the increments of $10 000. Benefits every except the very rich. Increase corporate taxation and close corporate tax loopholes. Lower small business taxes and subsidise small business from taxes when they are starting off. 
      Healthcare: Public-Option, let everyone have a choice to have universal free healthcare but don't force them in them. An extra 5% healthcare tax, with my tax plain is not really a lot. Let people join private healthcare insurance, if they want.
      Social Security: Expand social security, for the poor and middle class. Cut social security for those making over $200 000 an year, they don't need social security.
      Trade: Expand Fair Trade with nearly every country.                 
      Education: Institute CommonCore for schools that need it, do not for school that are already doing well. Increase Education funding,let parents have school voucher but also support public school by giving them more funding. Oversee Private and Public schools with a basic  curriculum, that lays out simple teaching guidelines.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Support

      Foreign Policy and National Security

      Afghanistan: Fight Taliban, with airstrikes, ground troops for humanitarian reasons,  don't kill innocent civilian in the process.
      Iraq: Taking out Saddam Hussein was a good thing, we should've gone after that. End the War in Iraq but do start an war on ISIS.
      Iran: Start Relations with Iran, try to make a peace-deal between Iraq and the US. Try nearly all means before again imposing sanctions.
      Syria: Provide Humanitarian Fund, stay out of the Conflict.
      Cuba: Normalise relations, end embargo, end travel ban, try to commercialise Cuba with Capitalism.
      Military Spending: Cut back on nonessentials.
      PATRIOT Act: Abolish it, Un- Constitutional and a violation of our privacy and freedom.
      NSA Spying: Abolish NSA, end spying.
      Palestine: Recognise Palestine, start diplomatic and peace talks with them. Give them foreign aid, for humanitarian reasons.
      Israel: Keep them as an ally, end foreign aid with them, support them but not coddle them, to no means.
      Immigration: Be stricter on Illegal Immigrants, Expand legal immigaration to the US.
      Guantanamo Bay: End it now, despicable place.

      Environment

      Climate Change: Real and Man-Made
      Green Energy: Expand, provide more funds to Green Energy.
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Would Support, with environmental regulations and if the Oil was being kept in the US for the people, not for big corporations. In it's current idea, oppose it.

      Electoral Reform

      Electoral College: Abolish, in favour of the Popular Vote.
      Gerrymandering: Establish, independent congressional drawing group. Eliminate Gerrymandering,
      Term limits: Support, 2 terms for senate, 4 terms for house.
      Voter ID: Fundamentally Oppose
      Compulsory Voting: Definitely not.
      Voter Registration: No forced registration, make it easier for citizens to register as a voter.
      Statehood: Allow DC, Puerto Rico, and other habited  US territories, to become states with a referendum in their territory.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: KingCountyRepublican on March 06, 2015, 12:27:51 AM
      Social Policy:
      Abortion: Pro choice in the first two trimesters, pro life after.
      Same Sex Marriage: Nationwide legalization.
      Drugs: Legalize marijuana now.
      Stem Cell Research: The benefits far outweigh any potential costs.
      Death Penalty: Nationwide ban.
      Gun control: Law-abiding, responsible citizens do not and should not need to ask anyone's permission or approval to engage in a peaceful activity. Gun ownership, by itself, harms no other person and cannot morally justify criminal penalties.
      Affirmative Action: Get rid of it, it is a form of reverse racism and is outdated in itself, candidates should be selected based on qualifications, not race. Rewrite certain parts of Title IX.
      Prostitution: Legalize/regulate. .
      Euthanasia: Legalize for those in extreme pain.

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: A small hike to around $8.50 per hour.
      Welfare: Expand EITC, no to drug testing recipients and limit to a max of 5 years.
      Right-to-Work: Completely opposed.
      Taxation: Slightly lowered taxes, with a top rate of 35-37%.
      Healthcare: Tax credits and vouchers, expand free clinic programs.
      Social Security: Allow private investment.
      Trade: Free Trade, 'nuff said.                  
      Education: Abolish the Department of Education, let the states and local boards decide what to do with education.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: YES!


      Foreign Policy and National Security
      Afghanistan: Finishing withdrawing troops.
      Iraq: See above.
      Iran: Pressure the new government to accept UN inspectors.
      Syria: Stay out of the conflict entirely.
      Cuba: Normalize relations if fair elections are held.
      Military Spending: Cut back on procurement, look to cut waste.
      PATRIOT Act: Abolish it now, it is a fundamental violation of the Constitution and our Rights.
      NSA Spying: End spying now.
      Palestine: Recognize Palestine, but don't give out foreign aid.
      Israel: Israel is an ally, but end foreign aid, encourage them to end settlements.
      Immigration: Increase quotas,deploy national guard and create a pathway to citizenship for children.

      Environment
      Climate Change: Yes, we're hastening it.
      Green Energy: Tes.
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Build it.

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College: The Electoral College imposes a two-party system and needs to be abolished in favor of the STV.
      Gerrymandering: Benefits the party in power, eliminate it.
      Term limits: It's called voting.
      Voter ID: Support in some cases, if they are easy to access.
      Compulsory Voting: No
      Voter Registration: If the person doesn't want to register, don't force them.
      Statehood: Allow D.C., and Puerto Rico decide if they want to become states.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mechaman on March 23, 2015, 05:10:09 AM
      Ideology: Social Ecologist/Green Anarchist/Georgist, or something or other

      Social Policy:
      Abortion: The right to one's own body is a fundamental human right.  I support abortion up to the date of birth, with funding provided by a universal healthcare system.
      Marriage: The institution is a joke.  Get rid of government recognition of this outdated social construct and let people sort it out on their own.
      Drugs: The War on Drugs is the new Jim Crow.  It has put millions and millions of poor and minority Americans into prison and left many families fatherless and motherless.  The results of the War on Drugs is far worse than the alternative reality where we did nothing at all to address drug addiction, leaving us with a yearly bill in the hundreds of billions if not trillions in government welfare expenditures to maintain a stigmatized underclass that cannot find decent paying jobs to live off of.  I support the immediate end of the War on Drugs with no hesitation or gradualism and the replacement of the punitive clauses of it with an emphasis on free drug rehabilitation treatment for those who seek it.  Those who choose a life of drugs, being fully aware of the consequences of such from years of public education and health and safety campaigning, should be allowed to do so.
      I take the same view of alcohol, soda, tobacco, and many other "vices" that the modern day Puritan movement want to strongly regulate to death.
      Stem Cell Research: This issue is so 1999, but support.  Whatever helps us get more sciency and advanced with our medicine the better.
      Death Penalty: Obviously immoral.  I don't really think there is much more that needs to be said here.
      Gun control: Generally not a fan of it, but I am not really a fan of the American gun culture either.  The idea that one needs a gun to feel free is a very concerning one.  I feel, however, that most efforts to regulate guns will fail pretty hard simply due to the number of guns on the streets and I feel very wary of giving the State (especially as it is) a monopoly on firepower.  Correcting the root causes of social inequality would do a lot more to correct the problem of gun violence and ultimately the paranoid gun culture than half arsed attempts at regulating ownership would (I know I know IT WORKS IN EUROPE! doesn't necessarily mean it will work here).
      Affirmative Action: I would say keep it, but my position on public education would make it necessary.  However, if we exclude my support of nationalization of college campuses, I believe that Affirmative Action needs to be reworked to change the focus to those of low income rather than ethnic origins.  I believe this would still allow many disadvantaged non-whites to pursue college degrees and professional jobs while also allowing many often overlooked poor whites to do the same.  The poor are poor, regardless of their race.
      Prostitution: Full bloody legalization. In the 19th century Prostitution was actually one of the best paying and safest (I know, shocking) jobs for women of the era.  Then the freaking "Progressives" came in and changed all of that by stigmatizing prostitution as some sort of mad dog social ailment and thus helped lead the crusade to ban it in the vast majority of US States.  Ever since then women in such positions now find themselves the pawns of violent and abuses Johns who rob them of a good amount of their earnings.  There is nothing inherently wrong with making an earning via sexual intercourse, as long as it is consensual.
      Euthanasia: Again, a person has a right to their own body.  If they choose to take their own life, that is their choice.  Oh sure, I do support funding for anti-suicide programs and other measures, but if someone willingly wants to end it for good, we shouldn't have punitive laws in place that punishes them if they fail or their kin if they succeed.  Rather than having a society that prefers to hang themselves from their closet hangers or cut their throat open and leaving their master kitchen a bloody mess, howse about we at least give them a relatively clean and safe medical process?  Just a thought.

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage:
      Obviously I support raising it.  However, we must be very smart with how we pursue this.  In the current system we operate under a blanket raise to $15/hr would be unwise.  And really, let us not ignore the overall problem of the Cost of Living that is causing us every few years to consider raising the wage.  Rather, I would support a Guaranteed Income for all households matching the number of dependents reliant on that income for food, water, and shelter.  If we wage a few less wars this would be very easy to afford.  Other than that, in regards to wage work, I would support any efforts (even including tax credits for small businesses) to increase the minimum wage to a level to provide not just a survivable but comfortable living for most people.
      Welfare: See my previous post on the Guaranteed Income.  This would be given to all Americans to provide basic survival (food, water, shelter) for themselves and their families.  Right now programs like Medicare and Medicaid work fine, but will become redundant if we adopt a Single Payer Healthcare system.
      "Right-to-work" Fundamentally fascistic laws passed to stifle the influence of the working man in this country.  Anybody should have the right to join/form a union if they want to, regardless of what their boss(es) might think.  This is not a socialistic/communistic issue, this is an issue of liberty.  And when workers cannot organize in the workplace we might as well be back in the Gilded Age.
      Taxation: Land Use Taxation now.  The ownership of land is a crime against the earth.  As such we should recognize it as such with 100% taxation of it (payable by those with the means to do so).  Ideally, this should replace all other forms of taxation as the most ideal way to combat real societal inequality.  The taxation of income, even the "progressive" system we have in the US, does very little to nothing to combat the wealth gap and even encourages it by the economic model of Capitalism which demands the economy be run by solvent businesses.  Under a socialistic system funded by revenue from the value of the land itself, we would not have this problem.
      Corporations: Should be illegal.
      Healthcare: I support Single Payer obviously.  This idea that you should pay for healthcare is one of the biggest moral failings of the American experience.  Policemen don't ticket you to come to your house in response to a burglary.  Firemen don't print you an invoice after putting out a fire.  Why, oh why, should we pay thousands of dollars just for an ambulance ride!!!!!!!!?  A publicly owned and ran healthcare system might not pay their doctors hundreds of thousands of dollars, but it would save most Americans hundreds of thousands of dollars of emergency care costs as well as save them from the evil and parasitic entity known as the "Insurance Industry".  Like I noted earlier, in the event that we do have Single Payer, we should dissolve Medicare and Medicaid as those programs would no longer be necessary.
      Social Security: I would support abolishing Social Security and replace it with an additional system to make payments out to those people who are unable to work (for a wide variety of reasons).  As I am no fan of the Protestant Work Ethic, I would be much in favor of including Artists, Writers, and other liberal arts types who do not rely on a regularly occurring source of income.  Ideally, wealth should be eliminated to avoid all of these convoluted program ideas.
      Trade: Supportive of real free trade, which is being made a mockery of with so-called "Free Trade Agreements". Real free trade recognizes the freedom of movement for labor.  Really, what we need to do is tear down the borders and allow unlimited freedom of movement.  This would allow the labor movement unlimited access to the worldwide market and act as a liberation for the oft abused third world.
      Education: We need to destroy the privilege of the Ivy League and other high cost institutions of learning.  Further, we need to destroy the mentality that everyone needs a college education just to make a survivable living (the sin for which I lay at the feet of the evil college loan industry).  Both of these can be done quite easily with full nationalization of education in this country.  This will free millions from the cycle of debt slavery as well as loosen employer perceptions of what a college education really amounts to in many positions (which is, jack sh*t).  Obviously, some subjects like Accounting, Engineering, and Medicine you need advanced education for, but why in the blue hell would you need one for welding sh*t or working on a train?
      Deficits, The Debt, etc.: I think the current fetishization of the debt, both by Democrats and Republicans, is both ironic and idiotic.  For starters, that we live in a society where both parties have scores of politicians who are vying to be in the bragging spot about "Balanced Budgets" says a lot about us.  This idea that a government should be ran like a business is a dangerous one.  If government is making a profit then it is robbing the people, plain and simple.  Debt is and always will be necessary for the running of a state.
      But at the same time we cannot be welcoming of excessive debt, which in most cases is oft the result of an abusive, violent, and authoritarian state that is getting off on the misfortune of others (whether that be drug addicts or oil producing nations).  I am sure that if we waged a few dozen less wars and threw a few less million people into federal penitentiary, we might be a bit closer to that budget surplus than merely raising the income tax rate five percent and then calling it a day.

      More might come.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Randy Bobandy on April 13, 2015, 02:49:40 PM
      I'm updating this since my last post here

      Social Policy:

      Abortion: Promote abortion as a reasonable alternative to childbirth
      The Drug War: Legalize any and all drugs
      Stem Cell Research: Encourage
      Death Penalty: Ban
      Gun control: Confiscate and destroy all firearms
      Affirmative Action: Created by our capitalist overlords as yet another way of distracting minorities from institutionalized discrimination. In a free and equal society we wouldn't even be discussing this--minorities would have the same opportunities to begin with.
      Prostitution, Euthanasia, same sex marriage:

      Economic Issues:

      Minimum Wage: Raise to $22
      Welfare: Provide everyone with a basic income regardless of their working status
      Right-to-Work: Dumbest thing I've ever heard of
      Taxation: Increase tax rates to the 99% range, redistribute property evenly
      Healthcare: A basic human right and should be treated as such--provide everyone with free access to quality healthcare
      Social Security: See my stance on welfare
      Trade: One of many ways that the richer classes control the poorer classes, by having dominion over natural resources. Ideally our natural resources would belong to everyone, and everyone would have equal access regardless of their socioeconomic status
      Education: See my stance on healthcare
      Balanced Budget Amendment: lol

      Foreign Policy and National Security

      Afghanistan: Not our problem
      ISIS: Funded and armed by the U.S., much like al-Qaeda. Stop sticking our nose where it doesn't belong and maybe things like ISIS wouldn't be so much of a problem.
      Iran: Again, if we didn't stick our nose where it didn't belong Iran wouldn't be so offended by the U.S.
      Syria: Who cares?
      Cuba: The greatest country in the world
      Military Spending: Abolish the military
      PATRIOT Act: Repeal
      Palestine: Support 100%
      Israel: Has no right to exist
      Immigration: As someone who wants desperately to leave the U.S., I don't really get why people want to come here, but it's whatever. Let them
      Guantanamo Bay: Close it up

      Environment

      Climate Change: Will literally kills us all unless we abolish capitalism
      Green Energy: Invest in this
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Oppose wholeheartedly

      Electoral Reform

      Do away with elections. Replace the current system with a dictatorship of the proletariat.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: SWE on April 25, 2015, 12:39:29 PM
      Social Issues:
      Abortion: Free, legal, and on demand at any point during pregnancy with no restrictions and no questions asked. Provide free birth control, comprehensive sex education in schools, paid maternity leave, and a national day care service to reduce the need for abortion.
      Drugs: Legalize all of them, with 16 as the legal purchase age. Nationalize the pharmaceutical and recreational drug sectors. Provide a free drug rehabilitation program to those who need it.
      Marriage: Marriage is an outdated social institution that should be abolished in favor of free sexual expression, but if we must have it, it should be allowed equally. Legalize Same-sex marriage, polygamy, and incest.
      Capital Punishment: On principal I have no objection to ending the lives of scum like murderers and rapists, but the state cannot be trusted with the power to end its citizens lives, and the only circumstances I can see myself condoning the death penalty would be in the context of a civil war or violenct revolution.
      Prostitution: Legalize but ban pimping.
      Gun Control: The right to bear arms is a necessary human right. Nationalize the arms sector.
      Affirmative Action: Guarantee everyone a job
      Stem Cell research: Support (living in 2015)
      Euthanasia: The terminally ill should be allowed the dignity to end their lives on their own terms. Legalize assisted suicide.

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: $22/hr to keep up with worker productivity, on top of a guaranteed minimum income
      Welfare: Institute a guaranteed minimum income, making wage labor a choice. All citizens should be guaranteed the right to high quality housing, health care, education, and anything else needed to maintain a decent standard of living.
      Health care: Institute the Cuban model of socialized medicine
      Taxation: Abolish regressive sales taxes and sin taxes. Replace an income tax with a tax on land ownership, income derived from property ownership, income derived from capital gains, inheritance, and other parasitic economic activity.
      Unions: Give workers full, democratic control of the work place. Until then, protect the right of workers to organize. Repeal all anti-union legislation like Taft-Hartley, no right to work, protect the right to strike, and ban scabbing.
      Education: Teach to each students individual talents as opposed to a rigid, one-size-fits-all curriculum. Give students more autonomy in deciding what courses to take, while increasing the amount of autonomy in each grade the student moves up in. Ban private schools and homeschooling.
      Trade: Repeal so-called "free trade" agreements like NAFTA and CAFTA and instead pursue a true free trade policy allowing for the unlimited movement of labor between borders.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: The deficit is not a major issue. Government cannot be run like a business because its job is to protect its citizens, not to run a profit, and in doing so it is essentially robbing its citizens.
      Privatization: Bring all industry into democratic public ownership
      Environment: Potecting our natural environment should be a top priority. Heavy investment in a worker controled alternative energy sector to wean us off of dangerous fossil fuels. Ban harmful practices like fracking.

      Foreign Policy and National Security:
      Iran: End all sanctions against Iran and allow Iran to pursue a peaceful nuclear program.
      Iraq War: Never should have happened
      Afghanistan War: A mistake. Terrorism cannot be fought with military power from an imperialist power, which would just create more hate and more terrorism. Support the efforts of Middle East governments and local groups to bring those responsible for the September 11th attacks to justice.
      ISIS: Provide humanitarian aid to local people fighting against ISIS, but no direct military action
      Syria: Provide humanitarian aid to the rebels, but no direct military action
      Cuba: End the trade embargo and travel ban and seek an alliance with Cuba
      Military Spending: Replace the standing army with an armed working class.
      Government Surveillance: Should be completely illegal
      Torture: Prohibit the use of torture in any circumstances
      Israel/Palestine: Israel has no right to exist. Support a single, free, secular, democratic Palestinian state with equal rights for all its inhabitants
      Immigration: Open borders and amnesty for all illegal immigrants. Abolish the concept of citizenship.
      Guantanamo Bay: Return to Cuba.
      Nukes: Seek an international treaty banning nuclear weapons. Work to convert existing nuclear weapons to be used for peaceful nuclear power.
      Draft: There should never be a draft. If a war does not have the popular support that it needs to force citizens to serve, then that nation has no business being involved in that war.
      United Nations: Replace with a single, socialist worldwide government to protect the interests of the working class

      Government:
      Right to Vote: Guaranteed for everyone starting at age 16 and not taken away after that for any reason. Abolish voter registration, Voter ID laws, and other restrictive measures and allow anyone who makes it to the polls to vote.
      Organization of Government: Abolish the Executive branch and Senate, in favor of a larger House of Representatives elected every 3 years via proportional representation and subjected to immediate recall. All decisions by Congress must be approved by a nationwide referendum. Allow elections for judges, but do not require reelections for judges, allowing them to serve for life unless recalled.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: fenrir on April 29, 2015, 12:50:02 PM
      I'm surprised people keep calling themselves pro-life and then in the same sentence, type that they'd let the individual make the choice. You do realize that makes you 100% pro-choice, right?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: SingingAnalyst on May 12, 2015, 03:16:49 PM
      I consider myself pretty independent. There aren't many things that get to me on a visceral level, so I tend to look at politics more detached and academically and statistically (I teach high school AP Statistics). I lean somewhat more R than D, but I like some Libertarian and Green ideas as well. I voted for Jill Stein in the last Presidential election; though Gary Johnson was closer to some of my views, he wasn't on the ballot in MI. I just didn't want to vote for Obama or Romney. By 2014 I was in a more conservative mood and for the most part joined in the national, if temporary, move toward the GOP.

      My views on specific issues (abortion, gay marriage, minimum wage, etc.) tend to be nuanced, though I try to side with the underdog. I do feel something must be said on the subject of abortion, however. We often think "pro-life" vs. "pro-choice"; however, I have heard of more than one person who has advocated that in certain cases abortion should be *mandatory*, thus taking the choice away from the mother.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: SingingAnalyst on May 12, 2015, 03:21:58 PM
      I'm surprised people keep calling themselves pro-life and then in the same sentence, type that they'd let the individual make the choice. You do realize that makes you 100% pro-choice, right?
      I include myself in that category. I have supported a neighborhood crisis pregnancy center because I believe they do, in fact, provide a valuable service for women and children (and that that makes me "pro-life"). At the same time I believe abortion is a very personal choice, not one that should be made by politicians.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: OSR stands with Israel on May 20, 2015, 11:15:01 PM
      Social Issues:

      Abortion: Strongly Pro-Choice until the point of viability.

      Gay Marriage: 100% in favor of, overturn state laws banning it at the federal level as discriminatory.

      War on Drugs: Legalize all drugs, abolish the DEA

      Prostitution: Legalize

      Stem Cell Research: Expand

      Affirmative Action: For but based on class instead of race

      Gun Control: kind of torn, I think that there's a strong left-wing case to be made in favor of allowing people to bear arms. I can't understand liberals wanting to give racist cops a monopoly on gun ownership in big citites. At the same time if you could implement some kind of background check to prevent mass shootings i'd be all for it. I really think that overlaps with other issues also though like mental health.

      Gambling: Support legalizing but I disagree with how it's done. (see below)

      Immigration: The US is a nation of immigrants and I know that my ancestors were discriminated against by the WASPs when they first came here and I feel that people are hypocritical to oppose immigration. Yes it may depress wages somewhat but they're are other ways of stimulating them again. (see under economics)

      Civil Liberties: Abolish the Patriot Act, Espionage Act, end NSA spying and police militarization, ban the use of domestic drones by police departments.

      Other stuff: I guess i'm more socially libertarian then Socially Liberal since i've always had a problem with progressive paternalism. I think that sin taxes are fundamentally regressive and it annoys me how things like cigarette taxes and gambling are always tied to funding programs. It just seems like a bullsh**t way to avoid taxing the rich. I also think that bars should be able to allow smoking if they're adult only venues. Also the drinking age should be lowered to eighteen.

      Economics:

      Pro-Union, support single payer health care, free universal college education, guaranteed minimum income as a means of offsetting outsourcing. If we had guaranteed income it would be a boon to the economy as more people could leave their sh**tty jobs and either start businesses or pursue some creative venture. It would also be stimulus for those at the bottom. I also think that giving those at the bottom money directly is less demeaning to the poor then forcing them to be dependent on busy body social workers. Also institute a stock transaction tax and reinstate glass-stegal.

      Foreign Policy:

      Israel/Palestine: I believe that ethnic based states are fundamentally racist and if their ever could have been a two state solution it's been ruined by the nutty settlers moving onto what should have been Palestinian land. There should be one multiethnic secular state and I say this as a partial Jew myself.

      Iran: I think we should lift the sanctions and move towards better relations with Iran and away from Saudi Arabia.

      Afghanistan: Pull out already!

      Draft: 100000% opposed

      The US should remained engaged in the world and I think that under extreme circumstances intervention can be justified to prevent genocide but in general we should reorient our foreign policy towards one based on human rights and less in serving corporate interests.



      Overall: Basically a Libertarian Socialist as my name would imply or more accurately an (LSD) Libertarian Social Democrat. I also think that my politics are in some ways close to Christopher Hitchens before 9/11.

       


      Hate to break it to ya, but your not a Libertarian Socialist.
                                                                          -A Libertarian Socialist

      Libertarian and Socialist are not possible as Liberatarian is the most pro free market, anti governemnt party while socialist is the opposite


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Murica! on May 21, 2015, 11:58:03 AM
      Social Issues:

      Abortion: Strongly Pro-Choice until the point of viability.

      Gay Marriage: 100% in favor of, overturn state laws banning it at the federal level as discriminatory.

      War on Drugs: Legalize all drugs, abolish the DEA

      Prostitution: Legalize

      Stem Cell Research: Expand

      Affirmative Action: For but based on class instead of race

      Gun Control: kind of torn, I think that there's a strong left-wing case to be made in favor of allowing people to bear arms. I can't understand liberals wanting to give racist cops a monopoly on gun ownership in big citites. At the same time if you could implement some kind of background check to prevent mass shootings i'd be all for it. I really think that overlaps with other issues also though like mental health.

      Gambling: Support legalizing but I disagree with how it's done. (see below)

      Immigration: The US is a nation of immigrants and I know that my ancestors were discriminated against by the WASPs when they first came here and I feel that people are hypocritical to oppose immigration. Yes it may depress wages somewhat but they're are other ways of stimulating them again. (see under economics)

      Civil Liberties: Abolish the Patriot Act, Espionage Act, end NSA spying and police militarization, ban the use of domestic drones by police departments.

      Other stuff: I guess i'm more socially libertarian then Socially Liberal since i've always had a problem with progressive paternalism. I think that sin taxes are fundamentally regressive and it annoys me how things like cigarette taxes and gambling are always tied to funding programs. It just seems like a bullsh**t way to avoid taxing the rich. I also think that bars should be able to allow smoking if they're adult only venues. Also the drinking age should be lowered to eighteen.

      Economics:

      Pro-Union, support single payer health care, free universal college education, guaranteed minimum income as a means of offsetting outsourcing. If we had guaranteed income it would be a boon to the economy as more people could leave their sh**tty jobs and either start businesses or pursue some creative venture. It would also be stimulus for those at the bottom. I also think that giving those at the bottom money directly is less demeaning to the poor then forcing them to be dependent on busy body social workers. Also institute a stock transaction tax and reinstate glass-stegal.

      Foreign Policy:

      Israel/Palestine: I believe that ethnic based states are fundamentally racist and if their ever could have been a two state solution it's been ruined by the nutty settlers moving onto what should have been Palestinian land. There should be one multiethnic secular state and I say this as a partial Jew myself.

      Iran: I think we should lift the sanctions and move towards better relations with Iran and away from Saudi Arabia.

      Afghanistan: Pull out already!

      Draft: 100000% opposed

      The US should remained engaged in the world and I think that under extreme circumstances intervention can be justified to prevent genocide but in general we should reorient our foreign policy towards one based on human rights and less in serving corporate interests.



      Overall: Basically a Libertarian Socialist as my name would imply or more accurately an (LSD) Libertarian Social Democrat. I also think that my politics are in some ways close to Christopher Hitchens before 9/11.

       


      Hate to break it to ya, but your not a Libertarian Socialist.
                                                                          -A Libertarian Socialist

      Libertarian and Socialist are not possible as Liberatarian is the most pro free market, anti governemnt party while socialist is the opposite
      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libertarian_socialism


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Leinad on June 04, 2015, 07:28:16 AM
      Same Sex Marriage: Same-sex marriage, polygamy, human-animal marriage, human-object marriage, human-concept marriage, etc. should all be legal. Of course, as long as it's consensual.

      How can you have consent with things that can't give consent, such as animals, objects, and concepts?

      Also, I totally disagree with your views on Euthanasia. Making it mandatory to end people's lives simply because they're old is truly barbaric. I think that if people are clearly thinking they should have the ability to do it, but ending one's life just because they're a "burden" is just terrible.

      That being said, your foreign policy is spot on. Ditto on the death penalty.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Leinad on June 04, 2015, 10:34:37 PM
      Social Policy:

       - Abortion: I'm against it on the grounds that a fetus is a human life and ending human lives is one of the few things the government has the right to make illegal. But I support comprehensive sex-ed, birth control, day care, adoption, and anything else to help with unwanted pregnancies.
       - Same Sex Marriage: Legalize all marriage between consenting adults. Conservatives often ask where does it end. Simple: it ends with consent. Although I'd rather see the government remove itself from marriage altogether, it's a matter of people, not the government.
       - Drugs: Legalize. It hurts no one who doesn't consent to it.
       - Death Penalty: Abolish it. The government (or a jury enforcing government laws and punishments) has no right whatsoever to end a person's life, or decide who deserves to die.
       - Gun control: Some gun control, but I think we need to allow people the right to responsible gun ownership. If we ban guns outright, the only people who will have guns are bad people and the government, two groups I don't want to use force unopposed.
       - Affirmative Action: I'm mostly opposed to it. We need to change the system from the grassroots level. The government can't legislate quality any more than it can legislate morality.
       - Prostitution: Legalize and regulate. Like drugs, it hurts no one who doesn't consent to it.
       - Euthanasia: Allow it for people who can make decisions on their own. Don't make it mandatory.
       - Speech: I believe in free speech, not hate speech. Censorship of any kind is a violation of the 1st amendment. I believe in freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of the press, freedom of association, and freedom of cartoonists.

      Economic Issues:

       - Minimum Wage: Don't raise it, that leads to inflation.
       - Welfare: Make it more voluntary, and don't help people who don't need it. Try to teach people to fish instead of giving them fish, metaphorically speaking.
       - Right-to-Work: I support it, but I understand the need for labor unions, and the help they provide for the worker.
       - Taxation: Make taxes as low as possible. While there is need for money to help people, I think it's bad for the government to take things from people without their consent.
       - Healthcare: Try to privatize it. I understand that poor people need healthcare, but I don't think the government is the best way to do that.
       - Social Security: Work on privatizing it. It's running out of money.
       - Trade: Free trade.
       - Education: I support school vouchers and am skeptical of common core. Homeschooling can often be a better system, don't restrict that at all.
       - Balanced Budget Amendment: We need one. Government spending is out of hand.

      Foreign Policy and National Security

       - Middle East: Don't go to war there. Work to end terrorism and improve living conditions with the UN and other allies. But don't go to war at all, and also don't work together with either dictators or terrorists, even if it's in opposition to another threat.
       - Cuba: Normalizing relations was a good idea. Try to encourage democracy there.
       - PATRIOT Act: END IT NOW!!!
       - NSA Spying: Only on people we have real evidence need to be spied on.
       - Israel/Palestine: Try to find a peaceful solution, respecting Palestine's rights but also not abandoning Israel as our ally.
       - Immigration: I'm a moderate on illegal immigration: you want to keep bad guys out, and you want to have them follow the law, but you also don't want to deport good people who want to live in this great nation of ours. I'm a big supporter of legal immigration, I think it's a key part of what makes America America. Maybe deport people like Ann Coulter who are against it.
       - Guantanamo Bay: Close it.
       - Draft: Constitutional amendment to permanently abolish the draft. The government has no right whatsoever to force a person to abandon their life to risk it in what's probably an unjust war in the first place.
       - United Nations: Work with them to achieve goals such as peace and human rights, but don't give up autonomy at all.

      Environment

       - Climate Change: I think it's probably real, but I would support more proof for the many people who think it isn't. If it is real, it's probably our biggest concern.
       - Green Energy: Try to support it within the free market. I'm pro-green energy, but anti-subsidies.
       - Keystone XL Pipeline: Support it, but be careful.

      Electoral Reform

       - Voting System: Enact a form of proportional representation in congress. Either STV or MMP.
       - Electoral College: Either abolish it or make it not winner-take-all.
       - Gerrymandering: Enact laws to minimize gerrymandering.
       - Term limits: I support consecutive term limits, but where they can return after setting out a term.
       - Perks and Privileges for Politicians: Eliminate them. They're our employees, not divinely-favored nobility. They should have the same rights and restrictions as the rest of us, no more, no less.
       - Voter ID: Cautiously support it to protect voter fraud, but I'm skeptical that it won't hurt more than it would help.
       - Compulsory Voting: Never. We're better off if people who don't understand how important voting is don't get a say in the system. And I'm against making anything compulsory at all.
       - Statehood: Let in DC, PR, and anyone else.
       - Organization of Government: Limit the power of both the executive and judicial branches. The power should be held in a representative, proportional congress. Also give state and local government's more power relative to the federal government, but with the main goal to give the individual sovereign power over themselves.

      Overall I'm for limited government. The government should be there to ensure our rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, not to enforce "equality" or some moral standard.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Samantha on June 07, 2015, 03:54:08 AM
      Social issues
      Abortion: I believe that women (and men) should have complete control over their bodies, and therefore support the right to abortion, for reasons of conveneience or otherwise.
      LGBT/Feminism: I support marriage equality and, as a transgendered person, support laws that protect our human dignity and the destigmatization of our gender identity. I am also a feminist and support all efforts to kill the rape culture and end gender discrimination. I am personally opposed to prostitution, but a woman should feel free to sell her body if she wants to do so voluntarily.
      Drugs/Tobacco/Etc: I oppose subjecting minor vices to regressive taxation, let alone criminalization. Legalize all drugs, repeal all sin taxes, set a uniform age of majority for access to these substances. Drug addiction should be dealt with as a medical condition.
      Gun Control: Generally opposed. I am more concerned with demilitarizing the police than disarming the public.
      Immigration: I support the free movement of people and full blanket amnesty for undocumented workers.
      Death Penalty: I oppose the state murdering people as a punishment, especially given the abundant imperfections in our justice system.

      Economic issues
      Labor: I believe in worker solidarity and empowerment through democratization of the work place and horizontal organization. Collective bargaining rights should be fiercely protected.
      Safety net: Strongly support subsidizing for food, housing, transportation, and internet access for the working class.
      Minimum Wage: I am of the belief that business are unfairly dumping their labor costs on the safety net when the pay wages that their employees could not realistically live on. I support the 15$/hr mimimum wage as advocated by 15Now.
      Taxation: I support returning the capital gains and federal income tax rate to 1956 levels. I'm fine with the current corporate rate, I care more about closing he loopholes that allow big businesses to pay little to no taxes.
      Trade: I support punitive tariffs on abusers of human rights, even if that means less cheap stuff to choose from at Walmart.
      Social Security: Abolish the cap on pay roll taxes so that they are more progressive, oppose all privatization.
      Health Care:  I completely reject the ACA as a working class funded handout to the private health insurance industry. I want it repealed and replaced with a national health service that provides free comprehensive medical care and prescriptioms for all.

      Foreign Policy/National Security:
      Military Intervention/Spending: I am categorically opposed to imperalism and favor a smaller, exclusively domestic military. I am not an isolationist, I do support keeping solidarity with international worker struggles and people's liberation movements in the form of material support.
      Human rights: I oppose maintaining full diplomatic and economic relations with human rights abusers such as China, Saudi Arabia, etc
      NSA/PATRIOT Act: 100% opposed to trading civil liberties for security. The undisputed right to privacy should be written into the constitution.
      ISIS: We shouldn't legitamize ISIS as a "country" with a declaration of war. Overall, it's the responsibility of the countries in the region to dismantle ISIS, the US has nothing to gain by dedicating its self to another protracted military conflict with a loosely organized terrorist group.

      Misc.
      Electoral reform: Support implementing IRV, proportional representation, public financing of elections, and abolishing ballot access laws that discriminate against third parties. I oppose term limits.
      Arts/Public Radio: I strongly support subsidizing the arts, museums, commercial free public radio, and other culturally beneficial institutions
      Education: K-12 should be well funded, through tax dollars and not weird gimmicks like standardized testing and sin taxes, with the goal being to teach to each students potential.  Support providing university and trade school free of charge.
      Environment/Energy: Climate change is real, anthropogenic, and bad. I support  enacting tough carbon emission standards, even at the cost of economic output. I also  support nationalizing the energy sector.
      Banking: I support nationalizing the banking system and prosecuting the crooked Wall Street executives responsible for the Great recession.
      Gambling: Ambivalent. It's ultimately a bad thing for the working class, but it's the sort of indiscretion that I prefer not to criminalize.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Bojack Horseman on June 12, 2015, 09:19:22 PM
      Social Policy:

       - Abortion: Pro-choice. Banning abortion only results in women resorting to illegal and unsafe methods of abortion. We should teach comprehensive, LGBT-inclusive sex education in schools, as well as make contraception affordable and accessible to all women, regardless of socioeconomic class, in order to reduce the abortion rate, and reduce teen pregnancy.

       - Same Sex Marriage: Same-sex marriage bans are unconstitutional per 14th Amendment. Consenting adults who aren't related and are of sound mind should be able to get married, no matter their gender or sexual orientation.

      - Transgender issues: Regardless of how one feels about people who identify as a gender other than their assigned sex, I believe that we must work to end discrimination, and that includes gender identity. Nobody should ever be fired or kicked out of their home simply because of their gender identity or sexual orientation.

      - Drugs: The War on Drugs has been a colossal failure that has resulted in our country leading the world in the number of people incarcerated per capita. Legalizing recreational drugs and treating it as a public health issue through education and PSA campaigns, much like we did about condoms during the AIDS crisis, is the best way to reduce drug dependency. I strongly support legalizing marijuana and levying a tax on cannabis.

       - Death Penalty: Support only when the crime is heinous and disgusting enough, as well as there no possibility of the defendant being innocent. However I strongly oppose the death penalty the way Texas uses it, and quite honestly, if I'm a governor and a death penalty repeal bill hits my desk, I'd sign it.
       
      - Gun control: To quote Ronald Reagan, "I support the right to own a firearm for sport or defense of a home, however an AK-47 is not a sporting weapon." I support an assault weapons ban, and Brady background checks. I also support banning open carry in public.

      - Affirmative Action: Neutral.

      - Prostitution: Legalize and regulate.

      - Euthanasia: I support assisted suicide. Having had to watch a loved one die a prolonged, painful death, I do believe that those who are terminally ill and of sound mind should be able to end their lives with assistance from a doctor.

      - Speech: I believe in the First Amendment and free speech. Of course, that inevitably results in despicable nonsense being spread, but free speech does not mean consequence-free speech.

      Economic Issues:

      - Minimum Wage: Raising the minimum wage doesn't make inflation go up, inflation going up results in the need for a raise in the minimum wage. $7.25 today has about the same buying power as $4.23 did the day minimum wage went up to $7.25. I support raising the minimum wage to $10.10/hour, as this has the same buying power today as $7.25 did on that day in 2007.

       - Welfare: Don't punish the poor. Give aid, as well as free educational and job training opportunities at a local community college. To quote William Winter, a Democrat who served as Governor of Mississippi from 1980-1984 once said, "The road out of the poorhouse runs right through the schoolhouse."

       - Right-to-Work: Right-to-Work is a misnomer. It has nothing to do with the right to find gainful employment, it is nothing more than a ploy to weaken unions. It allows workers to enjoy all the benefits of union membership, including the pay and benefits, without paying dues to the union that bargained for that contract. States that have so-called "Right-to-Work" laws see lower wages, fewer benefits, and fewer worker protections.

      - Taxation: The rich should pay their fair share in taxes, and the tax burden should never be shifted onto the lower earners. A flat tax is a major tax hike on the lowest income Americans, and a major tax cut for the richest 1% of Americans. I support a progressive tax structure that gives tax relief to the working and poor, those that need help the most, and makes the rich pay their fair share.

      - Healthcare: I support a single-payer health care system. The current for-profit system and its exorbitant costs have bankrupted too many Americans. The Affordable Care Act was a good stop-gap measure, however America needs single-payer.

      - Social Security: Don't privatize Social Security, just get rid of the tax cap. Currently, only the first $118,500 of income is subject to the Social Security tax. Most Americans have every dime of their income taxed to pay for Social Security, but just 5% of Americans don't. If we get rid of the cap, Social Security would be able to pay a livable pension to the elderly and disabled-the two groups who make up the majority of people living in poverty in America-and still be overfunded.

       - Trade: I oppose any so-called "free trade" deal. Ross Perot was right back in 1992 when he warned America that if we passed NAFTA, "you'll hear a giant sucking sound of all the jobs going to Mexico." NAFTA, the Chinese Free Trade Agreement, and every other trade agreement we've signed have devastated America's manufacturing sector. President Obama likes to talk about seeing products that say, "Made in America," but now he champions a trade agreement that will further harm our manufacturing sector and put even more Americans out of work. I'll stand up to any President, Democratic or Republican, and fight against any trade agreement.

      - Education: I oppose school vouchers, and believe that we must improve education by investing in it. Republicans continue to cut education and funnel taxpayer dollars to for-profit charter schools. This is wrong. If we actually worked to improve public education and kept it adequately funded instead of presiding over its funeral, we can fix education.

      - Balanced Budget Amendment: I oppose a Balanced Budget Amendment. This would hamper our national defense, and hurt our economy.

      Foreign Policy and National Security

      - Middle East: I oppose preemptive wars, and believe in diplomacy over force. War is not a peaceful solution, and shouldn't be used as a first resort.

       - Cuba: I support normalizing relations with Cuba and ending the embargo.

      - PATRIOT Act: I support the USA FREEDOM Act, and believe the Patriot Act is unconstitutional.

      - NSA Spying: I believe the Fourth Amendment is clear: that the government must have a warrant to conduct a search.

      - Israel/Palestine: I support a two-state solution.

      - Immigration: I support the DREAM Act. People who were brought here as children through no fault of their own should be able to stay in the United States and earn citizenship if they follow the law and are productive members of society. Our Border Patrol is working hard around the clock to keep drugs and human traffickers out of the United States, and I believe we can increase funding and resources to them without passing laws that encourage racial profiling.

      - Guantanamo Bay: I support closing Guantanamo Bay, and I oppose detention without trial.

      - Draft: I oppose the draft and believe that no one should ever be forced into military service against their will.

      - United Nations: I support the UN and believe we should be held accountable to international law and not above it.

      Environment

      - Climate Change: Climate change is a real threat at this very moment. It's no coincidence that after two centuries of unregulated pollution, we're now seeing some of the most extreme weather patterns in documented human history. We must take steps now to protect our environment and natural resources before it's too late.

      - Green Energy: Clean, renewable energy is the future of our economy and the way toward a cleaner environment. We need to invest in green energy.

      - Keystone XL Pipeline: I oppose the Keystone XL Pipeline. Far too many people are going to lose their homes and land to eminent domain to build the pipeline, and many others will see their property values slashed to build a pipeline that sends Canadian oil to the Gulf of Mexico to be shipped to China. To hurt thousands of everyday Americans just to create 55 permanent jobs isn't worth it.

      Electoral Reform

      - Voting System: First past the post.

      - Electoral College: Ban states from using a district plan to prevent a rigged vote.

      - Gerrymandering: I support a constitutional amendment to ban gerrymandering, that would constitutionally require Congressional and state legislative districts to be drawn fairly.

      - Term limits: I oppose term limits for Congress and state legislators, and support consecutive term limits for Governors. I support the 22nd Amendment, though I think a better idea would be to have a single, six-year term.

      - Perks and Privileges for Politicians: Status quo.

      - Voter ID: Voter ID is a thinly disguised way of preventing people who tend to vote Democratic from voting. Republicans are trying to win elections by blocking their opponents from voting. This is the most unpatriotic thing I've ever heard of. We need to expand voting hours and make it easier to vote, not allow Republicans to pick and choose who gets to vote based on who they're going to vote for.

      - Compulsory Voting: If everyone voted, we wouldn't have a lot of the problems we currently do with our government. It should be mandatory.

      - Statehood: If Puerto Rico, Guam, the Virgin Islands, or any other territory wants to become a state, they should be allowed to do so.
       
      - Organization of Government: We have three branches of government with checks and balances to prevent each from growing too large. The judicial branch's job is to strike down laws that are unconstitutional, in spite of public opinion.

      Please describe my beliefs. Am I a Democrat, liberal, socialist, libertarian, none of the above/all of the above?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Oak Hills on June 13, 2015, 08:08:52 PM
      Please describe my beliefs. Am I a Democrat, liberal, socialist, libertarian, none of the above/all of the above?

      You sound like a generic liberal Democrat to me.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: WVdemocrat on June 17, 2015, 09:55:28 PM
      Social Issues
      Abortion: Support, including late term abortions.
      Gun control: Support background checks, mental health exams, caps on magazines, and I support an assault weapons ban. No other country as advanced as ours has this many mass shootings. This needs to stop. Enough nonsense from the NRA. People lean on ideology regarding this issue. It's an epidemic. People are dying. Children are dying. It's time to stop this.
      SSM: Support. It's a basic right. Right-wingers can guise it as whatever they want, it's hateful to oppose this.
      Marijuana: Legalize and tax.
      Death penalty: Firmly opposed.
      Affirmative Action: Support
      Prostitution: Legalize and regulate. It would kill the sex trafficking black market to legalize this. It would bring sex workers out of the shadows and allow them to live a safe and secure life. Also, make sure that sex workers have a way out of the industry if they want. I've seen a number of statistics which say more than a supermajority of prostitutes would get out if they had other options.
      Assisted suicide: If the patient is in a rational state of mind and suffering from an incurable condition, I support this.

      Foreign Policy and National Security
      PATRIOT Act: Vehemently opposed. Clear overstep of government powers.
      ISIS: The actions of the Bush administration in Iraq, especially in disbanding the Iraqi Army, and the failure of Bush and Obama to negotiate a provision to leave a residual force in Iraq created an environment in which groups like ISIS can thrive. Obama's policies on this are mostly effective. We don't need to re-invade Iraq and we don't need a four-way ground war in Syria. We need to form a coalition of regional powers to supplement our airstrikes with a strong ground force. Sending additional advisers is a good step. But, read my lips: No ground troops.
      Russia: Unfortunately, Mr. Putin got away with his takeover of Crimea and faced no long term consequences. We need to make it clear to Putin that this type of aggression will not be tolerated. His actions were the enemy of freedom.
      Cuba: I support lifting the embargo and fully normalizing relations with Cuba.
      Israel/Palestine: It is terrifying to see the Republican Party move against a two-state solution. It is the only way forward. Both groups deserve their own state. Jerusalem should become an international city, under the control of neither Israel nor Palestine.
      Immigration: I support the DREAM Act, and I support simplifying the legal immigration process. I support a path to citizenship for those who are currently here illegally, aside from criminals. We are a nation of immigrants, we should embrace all who want to come here. Multiculturalism is one of the central tenets of this nation.
      Guantanamo Bay: Close Guantanamo Bay.

      Economic Issues
      Trade: I am very reluctant to support free trade agreements, but I believe globalization as a broad concept is probably inevitable. But, we should not globalize for the sake of globalizing. Support free trade agreements if they don't hurt American business and American workers. Too many trade agreements hurt us.
      TPP: They need to publicly detail what exactly is in this. Until then, I'm opposed. The "trust us, this one is different" rhetoric is what we heard before NAFTA. I want them to woo me with the environmental and labor standards. :P
      Minimum Wage: I support raising the minimum wage to a living wage. $15 an hour at least. No one who works 40 hours a week should live in poverty.
      Taxation: I support a progressive tax rate based on ability to pay.
      Social programs: The positions which people who receive welfare benefits find themselves in is a very vulnerable position. It would be easy to take advantage of these people. They pay into these programs in the form of taxes so that if they ever find themselves down on their luck, they won't slip into poverty. If you ever find yourself in a situation like that, you'll be damn glad we have these programs.
      School vouchers: I oppose vouchers for school choice. We can't abandon public schools. It is one of the tenants of life in America. We need to invest more heavily in public schooling to ensure a fair and quality education for all.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Opposed. It's too rigid and doesn't accept that sometimes the federal government will run deficits. I am opposed to running long-term deficits, however. That would be fatal.

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral college: Abolish the electoral college
      Gerrymandering: Non-partisan committees should handle redistricting
      Congressional term limits: I'm ambivalent, but lean towards supporting this.
      Mandatory voting: Opposed. It is an expression of free speech to not vote, and the people who don't vote are usually low-information voters. I don't want the future of America to be in the hands of people who just don't care. Let them stay home if they want to.
      Voter ID: People can show their driver's license when they show up to vote, I have no problem with that, but the plain fact is voter ID laws disproportionately affect Democrat-leaning demographics. It's advocates know this. Opposed.

      Science
      Climate change: This is a real and growing threat. All of the climate change deniers need to stop politicizing this serious issue which impacts our environment and our world in dangerous ways.
      Carbon emissions: I support a carbon tax to limit carbon emissions.
      Green energy: I support the further development of alternative energies and I support subsidies for this research.
      Stem cell research: I fully support stem cell research. It is my belief that government needs to stop regulating genetic research to death with ethical regulations. As far as I'm concerned, we should go as far with this technology as we possibly can.
      Labels for GMOs: Of course I support this, but we shouldn't scare people with it. GMOs are not inherently unhealthy. But, people have a right to know what they're eating.
      Keystone XL: I am fully opposed to the construction of this pipeline. It will bring dirty oil down from the Alberta tar sands, through dozens of vulnerable waterways (including the Yellowstone River), to be sold to China. No way, Jose.
      Deforestation: This destroys habitats for thousands of different species. It's time to get serious about stopping deforestation. There is very little political will to do something about it, but we need to take aggressive action against it.
      NASA/space exploration: We need to re-invigorate our space program. There has been virtually no political will for space exploration since the 1970s. It's time to stop pussy-footing around with abortion and same sex marriage, and start focusing on things which are really going to matter hundreds of years from now. Enough with this ridiculous austerity, give NASA proper funding.
      Conservation efforts: It's time to get serious. We are witnessing the Great Holocene Extinction right now. It's time to end our push into the wild habitats of animals, pushing them to extinction and wiping out a world of biodiversity. We need to take serious action now.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: PJ on July 07, 2015, 05:15:38 AM
      Abortion: Discourage abortion through expanded access to birth control, comprehensive sex education, paid parental leave, and a national daycare program. Abortion should remain legal, and like all healthcare procedures, should be free of cost.

      LGBT Rights: Full equality under the law for all gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender citizens. Hate crime laws are a bad idea however, as the judicial system can not accurately determine whether or not a crime is based on hate.

      Feminism: Equal pay for women needs to be enforced. Add the equal rights amendment to the constitution. Discrimination based on gender must be eliminated from society.

      Marriage: Marriage should be between any number of consensual adults. Governments should continue to recognize marriage as long as there is a popular demand for it.

      Drugs: End the failed War on Drugs. Legalize all recreational drugs with no minimum consumption age and no sin tax. Essentially, usage of recreational drugs should not result in legal punishment. Establish a rehabilitation program for those who need it. Ban advertising for any controlled substance.

      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Full funding should be directed to any science with the potential to save lives.

      Death Penalty: I don't trust the government to carry out the death penalty or life imprisonment. The strictest punishment should be life imprisonment with the possibility of parole.

      Prisons: Ban private prisons, end mandatory minimum sentences, grant voting rights to felons, and make sure that prisoners are treated ethically.

      Gun Control: Focusing on the societal causes of violence would be much more effective at reducing incidences of gun violence. That being said, there needs some basic restrictions on gun ownership, such as background checks for gun purchases.

      Police Brutality: Serious reforms are needed to prevent occurrences of police brutality, such as ending militarization of police departments and serious penalties for racial profiling and brutality, but I'm skeptical of the effectiveness of body cameras.

      Affirmative Action: Through public works programs and the like, the government should guarantee a right to a job for all of its citizens. This would eliminate the need for Affirmative Action in the hiring process.

      Prostitution: Legalize and strictly regulate in order to prevent sex slavery and the spread of STDs. Exploitative business models such as pimping should be banned.

      Euthanasia: End of life decisions are no one's business but their own. Legalize.

      Speech: Increased restrictions on advertising  are necessary, but any form of expression should remain legal.

      Gambling: If someone wants to gamble, that's their business, but it should be actively discouraged, and public lotteries should be abolished.

      Net Neutrality: Enforce net neutrality and expand it to apply to all electronic devices.

      Church and State: Separation of church and state must be maintained, but purely symbolic debates like under God in the pledge of allegiance are meaningless wastes of time. As long as non-profits remain tax-exempt, churches should fall under that category. Businesses do not have the right to exert religious beliefs on their employees, and the Hobby Lobby decision should be reversed.

      Organ Donation: Should be designed as an opt-out program, we need to respect bodily autonomy, but unless an individual specifically requests otherwise, their organs have the potential to save lives and should be utilized.

      Minimum Wage: Raise minimum wage to $15 an hour. Promote unionization so that workers can negotiate higher wages as necessary.

      Welfare: Most welfare programs that include some form of cash payment to the recipient should be replaced with a basic minimum income adjusted for the cost of living.

      Unionization: Organizing a union should be as easy as possible. Unionization is important to ensure that the rights of workers are maintained. Repeal nonsense like right-to-work and Taft-Hartley. I'm sympathetic to the concept of workplace democracy, and it should be encouraged as an alternative business model. Some worker's rights should be enforced by the government, such as a reduction of the workweek to 35 hours.

      Taxation: Taxation should be steeply progressive. The primary taxes should be capital gains, income, and inheritance. Abolish corporate income and sales taxes.

      Monetary Policy: Oppose nonsense like the gold standard.

      Healthcare: Clearly a right. Eliminate the age restriction on Medicare to expand its benefits to all citizens.

      Social Security: Absorb into a minimum income program for all. Cutting Social Security is not an option.

      Trade: Replace the current free trade agreements with loosening of restrictions of labor between borders.

      Pork: A pretty illegitimate form of funding. Ban and grant equal funding to all local governments. 

      Education: Free of charge from preschool to graduate school. Common Core needs to be revamped into a decentralized national curriculum that focuses less on teaching to the test; with a couple of exceptions, schools should generally have the same format for which courses they offer. While standardized tests serve a purpose, their importance needs to be reduced and they should play a much smaller part in the educational system. The idea that evolution should not be a part of educational curriculums needs to killed with fire. I'm sympathetic to the idea of phasing out homeschooling and private schooling for minors altogether.

      Corporations: Require that all corporate management boards have 50% of seats reserved for union representatives.

      Banking: Nationalize the banking industry and model the program similarly to the Bank of North Dakota.

      Arts: Due to global dominance of American pop culture, I recognize that subsidization of the arts is not as necessary here as it is in other countries. I do still support public television and radio, and subsidization of museums and public art.

      Budget: Deficits serve a purpose and a balanced budget amendment in the name of financial responsibility would be pointless and destructive.

      Space Exploration: Return space exploration funding to Cold War levels, with the eventual goal of colonization of other planets. Space is a fragile area, and I oppose allowing private investment in it.

      Environment: Nationalize the energy sector in order to facilitate a quick transition to renewable energy without negative effects on the consumer or workers in the energy industry. Upgrade the EPA to a full-scale department with increased powers. National parks and the like should be expanded and actively promoted as both a method to conserve the natural environment and spend time outdoors.

      Animal Rights: Should be advanced legally, but only when it's practical for humanity. Asking for universal vegetarianism is impractical, but excessively cruel activities like animal use in circuses should be banned.

      Farming: End current farm subsidies, legalize hemp and raw milk, and promote environmentally friendly farming practices.

      GMOs: Labeling GMOs creates a needless fear over harms that do not exist. Monsanto is a crooked corporation however, and should probably be taken into public ownership.

      Transportation: Build a national high speed rail system, expand public transit and make it free of charge. Alternatives to automobiles need to made as available as possible.

      Iran: We should actively discourage any country from owning nuclear weapons, although sanctions will not necessarily achieve the desired goal. Exert diplomatic pressure.

      Iraq: The Iraq War was unnecessary, but created a dangerous power vacuum. In order to combat ISIS, we should continue with airstrikes, arming the Kurds, and humanitarian aid.

      Afghanistan: While the original intervention was justified, troops should be withdrawn at this point.

      Syria: I support fighting ISIS there, and Assad is the lesser of two evils in this case.

      Cuba: Embargoes are idiotic. End it and normalize relations.

      Russia: Oppose Russian imperialism and don't recognize annexation of Crimea, but sanctions are ineffective.

      Military Spending: Cut by approximately 50% or so, which would still leave us with the largest military on the globe. End the propaganda campaigns which grant the military extensive privileges with recruiting on campuses.

      Government surveillance: The government has no right to violate civil liberties and granting it this ability comes with dangerous consequences. The NSA should be massively scaled down, and its abolition or reabsorption into other agencies should be considered. The Department of Homeland Security should be merged with the Department of Justice.

      Torture: Return Guantanamo Bay to Cuba and end any cruel or unusual punishment carried out by the government.

      Israel/Palestine: While the notion of nation states on the whole is ridiculous, and the Israelis and Palestinians should be able to coexist in the same secular state, that's not going to happen. The U.S. needs to stop taking sides in the conflict and actively promote Palestinian self-determination and the secularization of both states.

      Immigration: Amnesty should be granted to all U.S. residents and becoming a citizen should be made easier, although complete open borders are an impractical solution. Immigration quotas should be less focused on skilled workers and more focused on refugees; we have the capacity to accept many more of them, and the moral imperative to do so.

      Nuclear Weapons: Would ideally be eliminated from society, but the only practical way to do this is multilaterally through an international treaty. Nuclear energy should not be included as part of any transition to renewable energy.

      Draft: Abolish the selective service and the notion that citizens are obligated to fight wars for the government.

      Foreign Aid: Humanitarian aid is noble on the surface, but we need to ensure corrupt governments aren't taking advantage of it.

      NATO: Really served its purpose during the Cold War, but is an irrelevant organization now. Dissolve it.

      United Nations: Replace the current organization with a global elected parliament that could eventually evolve into a global government that has the ability to address pertinent global issues.

      Voting Age: I'm in favor of expanding suffrage as much as possible within reasonable limits, so the voting age should be lowered to 16. Voter ID laws should be abolished as they make voting more difficult. There should be a national voter registry in order to combat voter fraud instead.

      Mandatory Voting: Voting should be considered a civic duty, as long as a write-in/none of the above option is available.



      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: PJ on July 07, 2015, 05:16:04 AM
      Campaign Finance: The concept of campaign donations is the antithesis of democracy. Ban all monetary donations to campaigns and publicly fund elections.

      Primaries: Primaries should be designed as a national vote, with the focus eliminated from arbitrary early primary states.

      Executive Branch: Abolish the electoral college and elect the president with instant runoff voting. The powers of the presidency should be reduced, but term limits for president should be abolished, with elections held every two years.

      Legislative Branch: Abolish the senate and elect the House of Representatives with Mixed Member Proportional Representation. The constituency seats should be elected with instant runoff voting. Constituencies should be drawn by an independent commission.

      Judicial Branch: Judges should remain appointed and not subjected to term limits. I support a liberal interpretation of the constitution, but the document is outdated and should be updated for the 21st century.

      Statehood: Hold a statehood vs. independence vote for all current U.S. territories. With the exception of D.C., I would support independence for most territories. Redraw the 50 states to reflect the realities of 2015 so that all are approximately equal in population.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Clark Kent on July 07, 2015, 12:58:58 PM
      Copying the topics from LibertarianRepublican

      Social Policy:
      Abortion: Pro-life except when the mother's life is in danger. Abortion should be illegal in all cases except when the mother's life is in danger.
      Same Sex Marriage: Legalize it. It's already done now, though.
      Drugs: I personally oppose all drugs. That being said, we should let the states decide whether to legalize marijuana or not. But only marijuana. Everything else that's already illegal should stay that way.
      Stem Cell Research: Oppose embryonic stem cell research, but we should be funding more research on adult stem cells.
      Death Penalty: Abolish it.
      Gun control: Criminals already won't obey the law. Gun control won't work, and the right to bear arms is protected by the Constitution.
      Affirmative Action: Eliminate it. "Race" isn't a real thing, and continuing to pretend that it is only perpetuates racism and benefits the unqualified.
      Prostitution: Personally oppose, but legalize and regulate it.
      Euthanasia: Ban in all cases.

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: Let each state set its own minimum wage. Overall support a slight increase, along with a decrease in taxes.
      Welfare: Limit welfare to food stamps and shelter for children, the elderly, the permanently disabled
      Right-to-Work: Completely supportive. While I do (in theory) support unions, all men should have the right to refuse to join one if they want to work.
      Taxation: Since lower-income people already spend a higher percentage of their income on basic necessities, I do support a slightly progressive tax. That being said, the tax code needs to be reformed to be much simpler, and taxes need to be lower.
      Healthcare: Health insurance providers should be allowed to compete across state lines. States should allow low-income families to receive for tax credits if they can't afford insurance on their own, and subsidies if they still can't. Pay for all medical expenses for veterans.
      Social Security: Phase it out into privately owned retirement accounts. Social Security should eventually be privatized.
      Trade: Free trade, especially with our neighbors (Canada and Mexico) and highly developed allies (EU/NATO, Japan, South Korea, Australia/New Zealand). We should be working towards a Pan-American Free Trade Area, a Trans-Pacific Free Trade Area, and a Trans-Atlantic Free Trade Area.                  
      Education: Increase funding, but abolish Common Core and get rid of most standardized testing. Offer completely free education in public universities to veterans, and offer low/no-interest student loans to students from low-income families.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: In favor, but need to allow some exceptions in case of emergencies. This can and will be abused by liberal governments, but we cannot limit ourselves.


      Foreign Policy and National Security
      Afghanistan: Should train the Afghan military to protect their country from the Taliban. Support.
      Iraq: Should have intervened in 2002 or so. Should've trained the Iraqi military to defend their country better and left a token force to prevent the new government from depriving the Sunni minority of their rights.
      Iran: Improve relations and gradually open up, but keep them from getting a nuke. Encourage/pressure them to democratize.
      Syria: Should have backed the moderate rebels when they were still around. Should be involved fighting ISIS via airstrikes and indirect support for Middle Eastern countries.
      Cuba: Gradually open up. The best way to defeat Castro is with a Wal-Mart and McDonald's in Havana.
      Military Spending: Maintain but find ways to become more efficient
      PATRIOT Act: Replace it with the FREEDOM Act.
      NSA Spying: Get rid of spying on American citizens and our allies, but continue to spy on neutral and hostile nations.
      Palestine: Do not recognize Palestine, but pressure Israel to grant them equal rights and end settlements.
      Israel: Continue to be allied, but pressure them to grant equal rights to the Palestinians and end settlements.
      Immigration: Grant amnesty to all immigrants already here and make it much easier for immigrants to come here.
      Guantanamo Bay: Maintain but shut down the detainment center.

      Environment
      Climate Change: Not a big deal. Probably happening, but not entirely due to humans.
      Green Energy: Increase funding for research.
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Oppose, but not for environmental reasons. The Keystone XL Pipeline would cut through what is currently private property, and the government should not have the right to take that without the owners' permission.

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College: Abolish in favor of an instant runoff voting system based on the popular vote.
      Gerrymandering: Ban it and require that non-partisan organizations redraw the Congressional districts.
      Term limits: Yes. Two four-year terms for President, six two-year terms for House members, three six-year terms for Senators, one ten-year term for Supreme Court justices.
      Voter ID: Yes, but provide IDs upon registering to vote.
      Compulsory Voting: No.
      Voter Registration: Automatically register all citizens when they turn 18 and provide a free voter ID.
      Statehood: Make Puerto Rico a state and give DC one voting representative in the House, but no Senators.

      Also,

      Space: Increase funding for NASA and merge it into the DoD. Get a manned mission back to the Moon by 2025 and a manned mission to Mars by 2040.
      Size of Congess: Expand the size of the House to 537 (543 with Puerto Rico) using the Wyoming Rule.
      Voting Systems: Abolish our FPTP system and replace it with an instant-runoff voting system.
      Net Neutrality: Oppose. Government has no business telling internet providers what they can or can't do.
      Requirements for the Presidency: Eliminate the "natural-born" requirement for becoming President. Allow anyone who has been a US citizen for at least ten years, is at least 35 years old, and has lived here for 14 years to become President.

      Overall:

      Libertarian-leaning moderate conservative and neocon


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Free Bird on July 07, 2015, 09:01:43 PM
      Someone make sure darthebearnc never gets into office. Mandatory euthanasia defines Orwellian. Yeah, screw that Second Amendment!


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: JohnRM on July 07, 2015, 11:25:12 PM
      Ideology
      Social: Conservative
      Economic: Free market capitalist
      Foreign: Staunch nationalist
      Gov't Style: Republican


      Social Policy
      Abortion: Pro-Life: I do not oppose contraception or day-after pills.
      Same Sex Marriage: Indifferent. I opposed the Supreme Court decision for the sole reason that it took the decision out the hands of the states.
      Drugs / Narcotics: Illegal. I would also increase restrictions on pharmaceuticals. Americans are over-medicated. Severe cases need to be locked up, as they were in the past.
      Death Penalty: Permitted. I would apply stricter guidelines, increase the burden of proof, and streamline the process to decrease the time between conviction to execution. The penalty would also be expanded to apply to violent sexual criminals and child predators.
      Gun Control: Status Quo. I am willing to entertain requiring a license to purchase firearms with a reasonable process including background checks and training, but I have not heard any good proposals, yet.
      Affirmative Action: Prohibited. Individuals should be evaluated based on merit alone. Private industry and non-profits may operate as they wish.
      Prostitution: Illegal. Clients ought to receive much harsher penalties than prostitutes.
      Right to Die: Legal. The government should have no say in the matter, regardless of the circumstances.
      Public Education: State matter. The federal government should have no part in public education.
      PATRIOT Act: Supportive. Despite what most people think. The worst provisions have expired.
      NSA Spying: Opposed. The NSA doesn't need quite as much power as they claim.
      Immigration: Reformed. Streamline the process so that people don't need to come illegally. Immigrants are human beings deserving of the blessings of liberty. It's either that or we extend substantial foreign aid to Mexico, et al. in order to make life better for them there. Anyone?



      Economic Policy
      Minimum Wage: Status Quo. No one deserves a living wage simply because they work full-time. Some jobs are not meant to give someone a living. Emptying trash isn't worth paying $15/hr.
      Welfare/Social Security: Reduce it. Children, the disabled, and the elderly should have access to assistance. There need to be reasonable cuts and increased age-limits for retirement.
      Right-to-Work: Oppose it. I personally dislike unions, but companies ought to have the right to make deals with unions as they see fit.
      Taxation: Reduce it. The size of the federal government needs to be reduced.
      Obamacare: Reform it.. I can't honestly say that I know enough about the issue of healthcare, the law itself, or the effect that the ACA is having to make an informed judgement. I am not opposed to the style of the law in principle. The most important thing to me is that employees are no longer held hostage by their employers for their health insurance.
      Trade: Free Trade. Though, I would support the establishment of a preferential trading system among western nations and particularly the Anglosphere and Commonwealth.
      Federal Student Loans: Reform it. Introduce a system to provide increasingly better assistance based on merit/performance. Require a minimum GPA of 3.0 in order to receive additional federal loans. Students with a GPA of 3.75 or higher should have substantial loan amounts forgiven upon graduation, starting at 25 percent and increasing one percent per hundredth.
      Climate Change: Address it. I believe that climate change is occurring and that it is the result of human activity. We need to address the issue before it addresses us.
      Alternative Energy Subsidies: Supportive. Wind, solar, and other alternatives with merit ought to be subsidized to a reasonable degree by the government, both in research and development and manufacturing.
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Indifferent. Leave it to the states and localities in which it is to be laid.



      Foreign Policy
      Afghanistan: Supportive. The country should be garrisoned indefinitely with enough troops and capability to prevent the return of terrorist training camps and interdict cross-border activity.
      Iraq: Opposed. There was absolutely no reason to invade Iraq. Nothing that was accomplished was worth the blood and treasure.
      Iran: Containment. Exhaustive diplomacy should be undertaken to come to an agreement, but I would support all military measures necessary if diplomacy should fail.
      ISIS/Syria: Containment. Continue to support opposition with arms, airstrikes, and other services. If ISIS threatens to spread into Saudi Arabia or elsewhere, more aggressive measures may be necessary.
      Cuba: Normalize relations. If we're willing to do business with countries like China, Saudi Arabia, and elsewhere, why not Cuba? They're not special.
      Military Spending: Status Quo. Cancel the F-35. Purchase additional F-18s, an additional tranche of F-16s and F-15s, and...I don't know what the Marines will do. The F-35 sucks.
      Israel/Palestine: Pro-Israel. Try living in a virtual foxhole your entire life. Then you can talk to me about it (the conflict).
      Terror War Detainees: Indifferent. You either have to give them constitutional rights like all criminals or you have to treat them like POWs. Make up your/my mind. I don't care which, but I'm sick of dealing with this issue.



      Constitutional/Government Reform
      Presidential Elections: Abolish it. Have the president chosen by the states and confirmed by the Senate, or something similar.
      Senatorial Elections: Abolish it. Return the power of appointment to the state legislatures.
      Gerrymandering: Abolish it. Establish independent bodies to draw congressional districts.
      Term limits: Reform it. Increase the presidential term to six years and prohibit a second term. Limit Senatorial service to two terms. Establish a federal office service limit of 1 years. Individuals become ineligible to run for federal office after their 15th year of service.
      Voter ID Laws: Unnecessary. Little or no voter fraud actually takes place.
      Compulsory Voting: Unnecessary. The fewer people who vote, the more valuable my vote is.
      DC Statehood: Supportive, with a caveat. The District of Columbia has to be somehow merged into the State of Maryland.
      Puerto Rico Statehood: Opposed. Puerto Rico should remain a territory for now.



      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Crumpets on July 08, 2015, 08:56:28 PM
      Social policy:
      Abortion: Pro-choice. I have some personal qualms about abortions after viability, but don't think that the government should be in the business of legislating personal medical decisions. Government and schools should expand (non-abstinence) sex-ed and access to birth control, particularly IUDs. Insurance companies should be required to cover birth control and abortions if they are for-profit.
      Marriage: A fundamental right for every loving couple.
      Drugs: End the war on drugs, provide for free, anonymous addiction treatment for anyone who needs it. Use of any drug should not be illegal, although trading, selling, and producing dangerous and addicting drugs such as heroin should be illegal.
      Stem Cell Research: Support wholeheartedly as well as federal funding for it.
      Death Penalty: I can be talked into or out of it on a case-by case basis, although I'd say the against side tends to have better arguments. Lean in favor of repealing.
      Gun control: Used to be much more libertarian on this issue, but recently have come to support much greater restrictions both on guns and ammunition. I see no reason to own battlefield-style guns on the streets of America, and I believe everyone wishing to own a gun should undergo a background check and a training course. This would apply to intra-family transfers as well as gun shows, online sales, etc.
      Affirmative Action: Only economic, not racial, and only as a tie-breaker between equally qualified candidates.
      Prostitution: Netherlands-style system.
      Euthanasia: Like abortion, I see no need for the government to legislate personal medical decisions.
      Vaccines: Obviously I favor vaccines, but like euthanasia and abortion nobody should go to jail because their views aren't in line with the common consensus. That being said, if children want to attend public school, they should be vaccinated.
      Feminism: Extremely and proudly feminist.

      Economic issues:
      Minimum Wage: There is no practical correlation between the minimum wage and unemployment on the national scale. https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/82/Funnel_Graph_of_Estimated_Minimum_Wage_Effects.jpg
      However, minimum wage should only be a single component of larger wage reforms including caps on bonuses and a general return to holding employees in higher esteem than shareholders.
      Welfare: Scandinavian-style system.
      Right-to-Work: Like it in theory, hate it in practice. Generally opposed as a consequence.
      Taxation: Support a progressive income tax. Eliminate sales tax.
      Healthcare: Ideally, I'd support a single-payer system. That not being feasible in modern America, I think Obamacare is an acceptable compromise.
      Social Security: See welfare.
      Trade: I support free trade, although the government should put taxes and penalties on buying from countries with poor labor laws and perhaps even questionable political systems. Thus, we should be allowed to do business with Iran and Cuba, as well as China and Bangladesh, although the price of goods from these countries would reflect their true cost.                  
      Education: It is important to have certain national and even international standards to ensure that students will not feel at a dramatic disadvantage as they move between schools and levels of education. Support free universal pre-K and 2 years of free community college.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: It sounds great in theory, but so does an "Unemployment never goes above 5%" Amendment.

      Foreign policy and national security
      Afghanistan: Increase soft power, decrease hard power.
      Iraq: Largest foreign policy mistake since Vietnam bar none. For now, the best we can do is aid the Iraqi government when our help is requested but ensure that our aid goes to official forces and not the Shi'a proxies.
      Iran: We may not like their government because of what they did in '79, but that is no excuse to abandon the people and write them all off as anti-American or terrorists. We need to support local NGOs and maintain cordial relations with the Rouhani administration, which has made a point to reach out to our nation.
      Syria: Ensure that the bordering nations have the support they need to ensure their protection, as well as innocent civilians. If that includes airstrikes within Syria, so be it.
      Cuba: Went there in 2013. Great country. Not condoning the Castro regime, but seriously, it's 2015 not 1962.
      Military Spending: Much of modern technology was popularized because it was first used in the military. If we really want to spend more than any other country by a dramatic margin, use that funding to modernize NOT expand our military. We can remake out army to fight the wars of the 21st century and improve our economic standing.
      PATRIOT Act: Stupid law. Repeal it entirely, and then if there's anything we really can't do without, we can vote on it piece-by-piece.
      NSA Spying: I don't really have a problem with bulk collection of meta-data, although it's clear that it has compromised our legitimacy among our allies. On balance, I think the program should be eliminated.
      Palestine: Support Fatah, and push for expansion of PA-controlled areas to promote democracy.
      Israel: Support Israel from external threats, but internal threats are its own problem. Israel should further take responsibility for the thousands of people living in areas of de facto Israeli control, but ineligible to participate in their government. Settlements should end immediately and without condition.
      Immigration: The vast majority of "issues" with our immigration system are born from our antiquated visa system, not our borders. Make it easier for people to get and renew their visas, and stop pretending that Donald Trump or Lou Dobbs "has a point." It's race-baiting pure and simple, just like it was when it was the Irish, the Italians, and the Chinese.
      Guantanamo Bay: Should be closed immediately, accompanied with a formal apology from the President. Dangerous criminals should face trial under the framework of the Constitution, and all others either extradited to the appropriate country or released without prejudice.

      Environment
      Climate Change: It's real, it's our fault, and it's our responsibility to either try to cut back on pollution or start preparing for the effects that will result from not changing our ways. Yes, the Earth is naturally going to have climate fluctuations over time, but these alone cannot explain the dramatic increase in temperatures we have seen in recent decades, nor can mere "statistical noise."
      Green Energy: Obviously.
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Ambivalent as long as it does not go through protected areas, although I think the economic benefits have been largely overstated.

      Electoral reform:
      Electoral College: Abolish it.
      Gerrymandering: I'd much prefer an at-large, proportional voting system on a state-by-state basis.
      Term limits: As far as I can tell, the old-timers in Congress don't tend to be the problem.
      Voter ID: Violates the 24th Amendment, and is wholly about trying to prevent "their type" from voting.
      Compulsory Voting: Sure, as long as people can still make protest votes (Mickey Mouse, blank votes, etc.)
      Voter Registration: Automatic with voluntary opt-out (Oregon system)
      Statehood: Self-determination (simple popular vote majority) for anybody that wants to enter, Constitutional amendment required for anybody that wants to leave.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Atlas Has Shrugged on July 13, 2015, 12:25:55 AM
      Someone make sure darthebearnc never gets into office. Mandatory euthanasia defines Orwellian. Yeah, screw that Second Amendment!
      The joke went right over your head.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TNF on July 25, 2015, 12:24:10 PM
      Political Philosophy: I consider myself an orthodox Trotskyist (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orthodox_Trotskyism). This means that unlike the majority of ostensibly 'Trotskyist' groups in the United States (and elsewhere), I do not shirk from unconditional defense of the remaining deformed workers' states (China, Cuba, Vietnam, Laos, North Korea) against internal counterrevolution and imperialist attack, while also calling for the workers of these countries to overthrow their respective Stalinist bureaucracies. As far as I am concerned, non-support for these deformed workers' states against the imperialist powers is tantamount to stabbing the international proletariat in the back, and I don't consider persons who claim the mantle of Trotsky and don't support defense of the gains of the socialist revolution in these countries to be revolutionaries in any sense. At best, they're social democrats with goatees, and at worst, they're counterrevolutionaries.

      Social Issues

      Abortion: Abortion should be free and available on demand. All laws which discriminate against younger women, or require parental consent, or any other kind of invasive procedure in order to get an abortion (e.g. mandatory sonograms) should be repealed. The labor movement should mobilize to defend abortion clinics against attacks from far-right, anti-abortion terrorist groups.

      Drugs/Legalization: All drugs should be legal. The War on Drugs is a war against the working class, specifically the most oppressed sectors of it, black and brown youth in America. All persons jailed for drug offenses should be released from prison.

      Euthanasia: All persons should have the right to end their own life, should they see fit. I personally don't see any reason to limit that right to persons who are terminally ill, either. If you'd rather take an early exit from life than stay for the long haul, that's your right, and no one should be able to force you to stick around against your will.

      Gay Rights: Nothing short of full legal equality should be the norm for LGBTQ persons. Of course, under capitalism, true equality is impossible, but we must move in the direction of enforcing protections against the use of what divides us (race, gender, orientation, age, etc, etc.) by the ruling class to cause infighting amongst ourselves and weaken our position. The labor movement must fight for inclusive contract language to protect LGBTQ persons and must stand for the defense of LGBTQ persons against homophobic or transphobic attack.

      Gun Control: If guns are banned, only racist cops and the Klan (often one and the same!) will have guns. Gun control should be fought at every step of the way and the working class should arm itself for the defense of picket lines, its most oppressed sectors (e.g. the black population, which is subject to death by cop at any given moment in America), abortion clinics, etc, etc. There should be no compromise of the right to armed self-defense.

      Immigration: Immigrants should be protected from discrimination on the job, in getting access to government services, and from deportation by a militant labor movement. The immigrant worker is not the enemy of the American-born worker, but his or her comrade in the class struggle. The real enemy is the boss, and there's nothing the boss fears more than multiracial labor solidarity.

      Prostitution: We should demand nothing short of the full legalization of sex work. At the end of the day, all work under capitalism is a kind of prostitution, in which the laborer sells not only his or her ability to labor, but his or her dignity. Full legalization of sex work will not only make it easier for sex workers to organize, strike, and collectively bargain, but also make it harder for the kinds of abuses that occur on the black market to continue going on.

      Separation of Church and State: The separation of church and state is a vital cornerstone of the bourgeois revolution that must be defended and extended in the coming proletarian revolution. I do not reject the defense of this vital gain of our first revolutionary upheaval in the United States, nor do I make excuses for religious fundamentalism or seek to build alliances with reactionary organizations that deal in religious opiate (which is more than you can say of pseudo-left groups like the ISO, which cheered on the Iranian Revolution and whose sister party, the UK Socialist Workers' Party, has formed alliances with Islamists in the past). Religion, whatever its origins, is now a component part of the capitalist system, and is used to confound and confuse, to divide and defeat. The labor movement must become a school for unity across religious lines, and ultimately, a movement united against religion, which will always act as the enemy of proletarian power when the hour of decision is near.

      Scientific Research: This category was originally 'Stem Cell Research', but given that it is 2015 and not 2005 anymore and no one really still has any issues with 'Stem Cell Research', I figured that I would change it to incorporate my views more broadly on scientific research. I am not a 'green', nor am I an 'environmentalist'. I am a Promethean communist and want to see man conquer (not 'live in harmony with') nature, because only the conquest of nature can make communism a real possibility. I support all scientific research that furthers that goal, and reject the anti-scientific, romantic garbage of the 'environmental movement', and its pseudo-left apologists.

      Smoking Bans: I am totally opposed to smoking bans and restrictions on smoking in both indoor and outdoor facilities. The anti-smoking campaign is fairly obviously a campaign against working class people, who are more likely to smoke than other segments of society, for obvious reasons. Its also interesting that the current bout of anti-smoking hysteria started in the late 1980s, a period in which capital began searching for ways to make workers more productive (how convenient then, that states would begin adopting workplace smoking bans!) and wring out more surplus value from them. I think you should be able to smoke wherever you want, whenever you want, and the liberal busy-bodies should butt out. Likewise, I oppose bans on public intoxication and having an open container of alcohol in public, and would obviously oppose any such bans on the use recreational drugs should they end up becoming legal.

      Affirmative Action: I support defense of affirmative action, as affirmative action is one of the few methods whereby black Americans can continue on in higher education. However, I reject fundamentally the premise behind Affirmative Action, which is that education is a 'scarce' good that requires us to compete for access to it. The answer, then, is the nationalization of the university system, making education at every level completely free of charge, the abolition of the administration (let the students and their teachers manage their own education), and living stipends for all students.

      Miscellaneous:
      • I support the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment.
      • I oppose the security state and would like to see the whole of it abolished.
      • I oppose all efforts to police the Internet, be it to remove or censor content (I oppose all censorship efforts by the capitalist state or it's lackeys, be it the Christian fundamentalist right or the feminist pseudo-left) or to prosecute copyright violations.
      • I oppose attempts by the state to regulate what goes on in the bedroom. Like I said above, I support the legalization of sex work, but I'll go further and say that I oppose any and all laws which prohibit sexual activity in which effective consent is given by the parties involved. I oppose age of consent laws, am in favor of abolishing 'sex offender' registries (which are more or less designed to incite lynch mobs), and am completely opposed to locking someone up for viewing 'forbidden images', reading the wrong stories on the Internet, or offending the sexual mores of the majority in anyway. That said, none of what I wrote in this bullet should be interpreted to include any non-consensual sexual activity, which should obviously be punished with the utmost severity.
      • I oppose the administering of the death penalty by the capitalist state.
      • I support comprehensive, sex-positive sex education, from a young age. I am opposed to sexual prudery no matter how it's framed (and these days its more fashionable to clothe it in feminist garb than in that of the church) and oppose age restrictions on viewing and purchasing pornographic material. Sex is a normal biological process, and shouldn't be put on a pedestal or viewed as dirty. We all (well, this is Atlas Forum, so most all) of us do it at some point in our lives and most of the time we don't do it to have kids, we do it for pleasure. And that's fine.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TNF on July 25, 2015, 12:39:31 PM
      Economic Issues

      Taxation: I oppose the capitalist state taking with the one hand what it allows us to keep from the other (in the form of pithy amount of value we're allowed to keep from our daily toil). Most egregious is the widespread use of regressive taxation (on things like booze, cigarettes, license fees, etc., etc.), because of its disproportionate impact upon working class budgets. I strongly oppose tax increases matted out by the bourgeois state on the working class in particular, and recognize of course that 'tax hikes on the rich' under capitalism are fundamentally not all that effective, given the ability of the rich to dodge taxation by moving their money overseas, bribing legislators to create loopholes, etc, etc.

      Education: As I noted in the Affirmative Action section, I support nationalizing higher education, making it free for all, abolishing the administration, and giving all students a living stipend. Likewise, for public education, I support much of the same, absolving students and parents of all fees and educating students in a manner which prepares them for the rough and tumble of capitalist society, at least under our present epoch. Education should be polytechnical and democratic, and students should be encouraged to work with both their brains and their brawn, rather than falling neatly into one category of work or the other.

      Environment: See Scientific Research. I am not an environmentalist or a 'green' in any real respect, and I support the ultimate subjugation of nature to human needs. I oppose capitalist-led climatic change and support efforts to rein it in, but I am not fundamentally opposed to 'climatic change' in general, and think that fundamentally altering the climate of the earth (and in the future, other planets) to suit human needs is a worthwhile endeavor.

      Social Security: The Social Security system is designed, not as a kind of universal pension program, but as a stopgap measure to prevent extreme poverty among workers who have been given the opportunity to 'retire' for lack of ability to continue meaningful work under the capitalist system. I support defending the system against attack by neoliberal privatizers, but I also think the system itself is woefully inadequate. Every person should be guaranteed a pension and should be able to take it whenever they want, provided they've hit the age of at least fifty-five (55). Any such pension should guarantee a living income for the retired, so they don't have to go back to work if they choose not to (which is ultimately what Social Security requires so many of them to do).

      Unions: The labor movement must become a school for communism. But before we can even get to that stage, we have to have a labor movement in this country. Only 6 percent of private sector workers are union members, which is a good part of why the whole country has gone down the shitter the past few decades. The unorganized must be organized, especially in the South, which is fast becoming the new industrial heartland of the United States. I oppose all efforts at state intervention into the internal affairs of unions or the class struggle, be it by hired thugs by management, the scab army (e.g. the police), or the National Labor Runaround Board. Unions should be internally democratic, with officers not paid more than the average worker, and should be organized along industrial lines.

      Health Care: There's no excuse for anything less than full, universal health coverage. This should include all aspects of care (especially dental care, which is often neglected in existing 'universal' systems) and should be fully socialized, along the lines of the British NHS.

      Energy: The energy sector should be nationalized and energy production shifted away from oil and toward nuclear power. Contrary to what the greenies might tell you, we don't have the capacity at the moment for solar power or wind power to run the entirety of the economy, and even if we did, there's no reason that we necessarily should adopt these kinds of power as the building block for our society, as both would (at the present juncture) result in a massive lowering of living standards for the population. Nuclear power is clean and will sustain our living standards while allowing countries in the underdeveloped world to catch up to those standards and provide for the ultimate eradication of poverty under a socialized economic system.

      Miscellaneous:
      • I strongly support the development of driverless cars and the use of automation (under a socialist system, of course) to reduce the need for human labor and extend free time for everyone. Likewise, I support a 30 hour workweek, with further reductions contingent upon the widespread adoption of labor-saving devices across the economy.
      • I support the nationalization of the banking sector, which will of course make it a hell of a lot easier to expropriate the wealth of the bourgeoisie when the time comes.
      • I support the establishment of workers' committees in every town and city that would have the power to regulate wages and prices. Ultimately, of  course, I support the creation of workers' councils that would not only regulate wage and price rates, but also act as the component part of a system of nested workers' councils whereby the working class would rule society itself.
      • I support equal pay for women, paid leave, access to twenty-four hour socialized daycare, and ultimately, the socialization of domestic labor entirely. The individual family is the primary unit of women's oppression, and should be done away with under socialism, where cooperative living arrangements, free love, and the raising of children by the entire community would replace the individual home, straightjacket monogamy, and the parceling out of domestic labor and child rearing.
      • I oppose union-busting schemes like 'workfare/welfare-to-work' and prison labor, both of which I think should be prohibited outright. No person should go without a job, and no one should be paid less than union wages on the job. Prisons should be abolished and persons subject to correctional authority be allowed to live in their own homes and continue their own lives while they pay back their debt to society.
      • I support a ban on most forms of advertising.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TNF on July 25, 2015, 12:58:39 PM
      Foreign Policy Issues.

      Military Spending: Shrink the military of the bourgeois state to the size that you can drown it in the bath tub. No, seriously. I oppose the massive military budgets enacted yearly by the U.S. imperialist state and would like to see the military dismantled, bit-by-bit. Military recruiters should be kicked off of campuses across the country and the working class should organize its own militias and self-defense groups to protect picket lines, stop police brutality, and defend abortion clinics, etc, etc.

      Islamic State: The United States should withdraw from Middle East entirely, and should immediately disengage from its ongoing conflict with the Islamic State.

      Afghanistan: See Islamic State. It's really too bad the Soviet Union was driven out of Afghanistan by religious lunatics funded by the United States in the late 1980s.

      Ukraine: I support Novorossiya in its fight against the fascist-led government in Kiev, and reject all attempts to deny the Novorossiyans their right to self-determination. Russia is not instigating anything in Ukraine, the United States and its lackeys in Kiev are. We should respect the Crimea referendum as legitimate and allow for the integration of Novorossiya into Russia proper, if they so choose.

      Diplomacy/Sanctions: Sanctions are war through the backdoor.

      Miscellaneous:
      • I oppose the 'War on Terror' and support the withdrawal of U.S. troops and closure of all U.S. military bases from every country in which there are U.S. military bases.
      • I oppose Zionism and support the overthrow of the Israeli (and Palestinian) governments by an Israeli working class united with their Palestinian brothers and sisters. The only solution to the Arab-Israeli conflict is a unified, socialist federation of the Middle East!
      • I support China, Vietnam, Cuba, Laos, and North Korea against internal counterrevolution and imperialist attack. I support proletarian political revolution in all these countries to overthrow the Stalinist bureaucracies which currently run them and replace these with a dictatorship of the proletariat, committed to extending the gains of these countries' respective revolutions across the globe.

      Electoral Issues/Government

      Voting Regulations: I oppose all efforts by the bourgeois state at curtailing the ability of anyone in the United States to vote. Likewise, I support all efforts at opening up the electoral system, lowering the voting age, and making sure that all voices (even those I disagree with personally) are heard in political debates.

      Elections: I think that the President's proposal for mandatory voting is stupid, and likewise I think that in the case of elections, at the present juncture, there's really no one worth voting for. I could see myself voting for someone on the basis of critical support, but nothing really further than that at this point. As a Leninist, I definitely support participation in bourgeois legislatures, but from a revolutionary oppositionist standpoint. Candidates should run to propagate the need for proletarian revolution, and if they win, they should gum up the works as much as possible from within the bourgeois legislature.

      The Senate: I support abolishing the Senate, as well as abolishing the whole of the existing state apparatus. The working class should form workers' councils, which should move to take power from the bourgeois state and establish themselves as the sole political power in the United States, which should become something like a United Council Socialist States of America, or something like that.

      Referenda: Depends on the issue at hand, but in general I don't oppose using referendum votes as a way of propagating a political line consistent with proletarian revolutionism. Often referenda provide a better means of propaganda, as there are no tendencies toward 'lesser evilism' in a vote of yes or no on a particular issue.

      Electoral College: See The Senate. I support abolishing all executive offices of the bourgeois state and transferring all power to workers' councils.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: 🦀🎂🦀🎂 on July 25, 2015, 05:21:01 PM
      Political Philosophy - I'm not rigidly defined by anything. Don't interpret that as me calling myself "pragmatic", ugh, which is a gross word used by fools who kid themselves into thinking they have no idealogy. I am just of the firm belief that everybody on earth; whatever their gender, ethnicity, orientation, class or circumstances of birth; deserves a good life - to be educated up to their desired limits, given quality healthcare throughout their life and to have a meaningful and productive life ( definitions of "meaningful" and "productive" are up or grabs).

      Social Issues:

      Abortion: should be available, and ideally free (no-questions asked) until the end of the second trimester. (After that only for medical issues and other special circumstances - obviously very few women go for abortions for funzies during the third trimester, so it's not like that's too much of a burden. Obviously parental consent is an ageist sham, and thugs should not be allowed to protest and harass clinics/their patients.

      Animal Rights: all sentient beings should be granted rights. Personhood status should be granted to simians and cetaceans; and their use in entertainment, invasive experimentation and food should be banned. Factory farming, and (eventually, with increased research into faux foods) the widespread consumption of meat and dairy should be discouraged and phased out.

      Drugs: soft drugs legalised, hard drugs treated as medical issue and given free to addicts. Treat all soft drugs like Tobacco and Alcohol - in that we should be distrustful of their industries but recognise them as necessary evils.

      Euthanasia: legalise for any reason, but with enough checks that people aren't being coerced into it by unscrupulous individuals.

      Gender and Sexual minority rights: (normal) full legalisation of; crack down on discrimination in all sectors, school bullying and transgender people should be allowed to change their gender without surgery.

      Guns: ugh (non-American, normal). No need for ( non-decorative) guns unless you're a farmer, although defensive weapons like pepper spray should be legal. As I do not support rich aristocratic psychos or those who seek to emulate them, I oppose recreational hunting.

      Immigration: as a long-term goal, open borders should be the dream. Rich countries should be forced to take in more refugees and asylum seekers; and the UK should introduce birthright citizenship.

      Prostitution: although I feel the industry is largely moot in the Internet era, I think the Nordic Model makes the most sense at this point in time.

      Separation of Church and State: yeah, disestablish CofE; ban funding of religious schools (even, nay, especially in Northern Ireland). Obvious.

      Affirmative Action: should be done, but only as a crude and temporary measure to fix existing ills. I support gender quotas for boardrooms, legislatures and the civil service until they became unnecessary; and racial quotas in certain contexts (e.g. South Africa).



      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: VPH on July 25, 2015, 09:23:52 PM
      Healthcare System: I see Obamacare as an important step to the future. However, I believe the true goal should be universal single payer healthcare. Focus on preventive care first. I support patent reform and tort reform to lower costs.
      Social Security: Raise the contribution cap, lower benefits for the rich possibly
      Taxes: I believe in a progressive but simpler income/corporation tax, where loopholes for the rich and corporations are closed. Also, I love the idea of a Robin Hood Tax. Don't mind high sin taxes too.
      Campaign Finance: Strict limits on donations and reforms for more transparency need to be enacted.
      Voter ID: I oppose these provisions
      Gerrymandering: Control redistricting via independent commissions
      Voting Age: Lower to 16 on the local level
      New States: DC and Puerto Rico should both be admitted
      Banking: Pass Glass Steagall, break up big banks, don't bail out banks, support community banking.
      Federal Reserve: Nationalize it.
      Minimum Wage: Raise to $12.00 an hour and index for inflation thereafter
      Free Trade: Prefer fair trade over free trade, implement protective tariffs against human rights abusers.
      Unions: I support strong unions and stand against "right to work".
      Welfare Reform: Crack down on waste and fraud, end "workfare"
      Farm Regulation: Change the regulatory system to be fair towards family farmers, legalize hemp, legalize raw milk, loosen rules on urban farming.
      GMO's: Label them, but they have very beneficial potential.
      Environmental Regulations: Carbon tax or cap and trade are necessary, ensure that polluters are severely punished, ratify the Kyoto Protocol
      Energy: Pivot away from oil, coal, and gas and towards nuclear, solar, wind, and fusion power
      Cars: End the stupid ban on personally importing cars newer than 25 years old, stop inspecting cars before re-registration, lower emissions regulations on carmakers
      Education: Ensure that schools are well funded. Fight the race-to-the-top standardized testing mentality that currently pervades schools.
      Foreign Conflicts: Generally isolationist, although I do believe in drone strikes and airstrikes as a form of limited military intervention. Act when necessary to end major human rights violations or extreme regional instability. I do not like ground wars though. Any intervention should be done multilaterally and constitutionally.
      Iran: Ease sanctions on them, work towards a nuclear deal.
      Cuba: End the embargo once and for all.
      Russia: Preserve economic sanctions, provide military aid to Ukraine, and station troops in Europe
      ISIS: Ramp up airstrikes and surveillance, work with Iran
      Palestine: Recognize the Palestinian nation. End military aid to Israel and treat both nations equally.
      Surveillance: Not much of a problem with the Patriot Act. Make sure it stays within legal bounds, but preserve the NSA for national security purposes.
      Foreign Aid: No problem with it, as long as we follow up to make sure it ends up in the right hands.
      Drones: I think drone strikes are effective, efficient, and should be used to fight terror
      Military Budget: We really need to cut it. Now. Cut Pentagon overhead costs, cut the active combat budget, cut wasteful spending, but keep the A-10 and F-35 going
      Gun Control: Ban assault rifles, institute universal gun and ammo background checks
      Marijuana: Keep it illegal, but shift away from imprisonment and more to punitive fines.
      Smoking: Ban smoking in public places except for smokeshops, bars, and a few designated smoking areas.
      Gay Marriage: Equal rights yo, this is 2015
      Abortion: Personally strongly opposed to abortion, but I am pro-choice until around viability (22 weeks or so is a good cutoff imo), at which point I am pro-life with the usual exceptions. Safe, rare, and legal. Birth control needs to have widespread use.
      Prostitution: Completely oppose legalization.
      Physician Assisted Suicide: Oppose
      Feminism: I support gender equality, but do not consider myself a "feminist" per se.
      Affirmative Action: Strong supporter of race-based affirmative action. I also support gender based affirmative action in some cases.
      College: I believe that for public colleges, the US needs to shift to the Oregon Plan.
      Police Brutality: Police officers need to use body cameras. More crisis training and non lethal methods need to be emphasized. Police militarization should be scaled back.
      Crime: Fight crime using a data based approach to predict and preempt criminal activity
      Immigration: Multiculturalism strengthens our nation. Help undocumented immigrants attain documented status and eventually citizenship.
      Edits in italics.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TNF on July 29, 2015, 01:27:13 AM
      Why was this unpinned? Surely it's more relevant to this board than say, "Which Disney Princess' politics do you agree with the most? ???"


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: World politics is up Schmitt creek on July 30, 2015, 03:38:30 AM
      I'm going to be using TNF's rubric for issues, with some modifications. Leaving out foreign policy because my views on it are kind of all over the place; leaving out electoral issues and government for when it's not four-thirty in the morning.

      Political philosophy. Christian Left. I consider most of my politics to derive directly or indirectly from the practical implications of my religious beliefs, which are Catholic (so far within the Anglican tradition) with a grounding in an understanding of the nature of being that owes some debt to Jewish theology. If I hold a political position that doesn't in some way develop from my religious beliefs I see that fact as a problem to be fixed. My very broad-strokes ideal for society is one in which people freely come to a point where they can uphold and respect personal and cultural traditions, and in which those traditions are constituted and put into practice in such a way as to produce just social outcomes. This means that I will sometimes come to a socialist position through conservative-influenced thinking, or to a conservative position through socialist-influenced thinking. Classical liberalism has relatively little influence on my thought since I conceive of the freedom through which people mediate their interactions with justice and tradition as a positive ontological entity that entails responsibilities of its own, rather than just an absence of coercion.

      Social Issues

      Abortion: I currently lack the mental and emotional acuity to develop a clear and specific position on this, beyond the standard religious-Left combination of strong personal disapprobation and lack of desire to see it banned.

      Drugs/Legalization: Drug possession or use should not itself be a criminal offense. Drug addiction is a moral issue but one with sociological and medical roots and sociological and medical solutions. 'Soft' drugs should probably not be illegal in any aspect. Harder drugs should remain illegal to produce and sell. I haven't developed a preference for how to produce or obtain whatever drugs may be necessary for addiction treatment.

      Euthanasia: My feelings on this are somewhat similar to my feelings about abortion, but with stronger personal disapprobation. I voted against the legalization of physician-assisted suicide in my state in 2012.

      Gay Rights: Obviously I support my own rights. I support pretty much every actual or proposed expansion of LGBT rights currently under serious political discussion with the exception of heterologous fertility treatments, but I'm beginning to get a little wary of some of the extremes of LGBT rhetoric and gender theory.

      Marriage and Family: I reject as chimerical and pernicious the idea that marriage and family life are inherently or fundamentally oppressive forces. I also reject the idea that the married couple (and optionally children)--absent extended and collateral relations, friends, mentors/protegees, associates, well-wishers, et cetera--stands alone as the acme of human interpersonal relationships. Many of the problems plaguing the modern family unit could be solved by increased emphasis on and support for extended families and other such social connections.

      Gun Control: The revolutionary-socialist position on this that TNF articulates would be appealing if I thought that it had any real chance. In reality America's experience with guns has been almost wholly negative. This includes guns in the hands of those who in mainstream political discourse are seen as the people who 'should' have them, law enforcements officers and (somewhat less overwhelmingly negatively) soldiers.

      Immigration: I support freedom of movement. The current tension that exists between immigrant labor and native-born American labor in terms of regulations and wages is a function of the prevailing economic system and ought to be ameloriated or erased upon its reform or elimination.

      Prostitution: The Nordic model is the most sensible and compassionate response to the problem of prostitution.

      Separation of Church and State: I'm less than entirely wedded to this in theory, but in practice it is necessary at least until such time as existing religious institutions can be purged of elements and influences that cause them not to live up to their full promises. The demand that you hear in some corners of American liberalism these days to 'tax the churches!' makes no sense under the terms of the current US tax code except as a way to penalize and discriminate against religion.

      Scientific Research: I'm opposed to transhumanism for religious reasons; I honestly, really don't care about the space program; I'm interested in scientific research mostly for purposes of disease cures (the basic limitations of the human form emphatically not being understood as 'disease'), environmental preservation, and energy production.

      Smoking Bans: I support prohibitions on smoking in most public places, and fail to see why anybody with a more than superficial concern for the health and welfare of the public wouldn't. If secondhand smoking didn't exist or hadn't been as conclusively demonstrated to be a problem then my views on this would be different.

      Affirmative Action: I support affirmative action for what it is, but I have a lot of sympathy with the position that the scarcity of educational placements and jobs that creates the need for it is artificial and should be reduced or eliminated by any means necessary. I support the full socialization of higher education and radical reduction or elimination of tuition fees.

      Economic Issues

      Taxation: As long as liberal capitalism obtains as the prevailing economic system I advocate making taxation as progressive as possible. To this end I'm especially opposed to regressive sales, value-added, and 'sin' taxes; in the latter case this is not the right way to legislate moral behavior and only succeeds in further punishing people who are for the most part already in marginal and perilous situations.

      Education: I support free, public, and up to a point mandatory education from kindergarten through university, and view the perceived conflict between giving students a well-rounded humanities education and preparing them for 'careers'/'the real world'/STEM fields (let's be honest about what we mean here) as a destructive illusion. Students should be taught both general and specialized knowledge, and should be specifically taught habits of information acquisition and study, as to be able to pursue their interests independently both alongside and after their formal education. Religious conviction should be the only permissible reason not to place a child in a local public school.

      Environment: I'm deeply emotionally invested in conservation, and see it as a profound moral responsibility.

      Social Security: Social Security is insufficient for its purposes and, far from being privatized, should be expanded into a genuine, respectable pension system.

      Unions: Both public and private sectors should be unionized to the greatest extent possible, and unions should be politically active and advocate democratic socialist policies.

      Health Care: Full, universal, nationalized health care, including mental and dental.

      Energy: The energy sector should move away from fossil fuels towards almost literally anything else possible.

      Agriculture: Agricultural policy should be focused on minimizing environmental impact, breaking the backs of big agribusiness conglomerates and encouraging smaller-scale farming, and discouraging (certainly not banning, probably not even rendering socially unacceptable, but discouraging) the consumption of large amounts of meat. I don't know enough about agriculture to know whether or not this is a 'pick two of three' situation, but if it is, I'd prioritize the first two.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Intell on August 21, 2015, 11:09:21 PM
      Political Philosophy: I consider myself an religious left, with a strong consideration of community. I believe that the community is more important than the individual, and that society should have laws protecting community norms. I believe we need to peruse economic equality, through government and have some reasonable restrictions on freedom to live in a safe and morally righteous society.

      Social Issues

      Abortion:
      The right to life, supersedes the right to choose. A woman does not have the freedom, to abort a child as that is taking away the life of the fetus. Whether, the fetus is alive then, it will eventually be alive, and a person should not be judged on what it currently is, but what it can be.

       I support laws restricting abortion, except to save the life of the mother, rape or severely under-age pregnancy ( -14). I oppose straight out blanket laws banning abortion, in all but those case as there may be some exceptions in where the abortion needs to happen, even though it is the morally wrong thing to do.

      I also believe there should be no government money, directly going to fund abortion companies or funding for abortions.

      Drugs/Legalization:
      Drugs, are a threat to society, and depending on their level of danger should be banned or not banned. Drugs should be decriminalized, and people who take drugs should be put into rehabilitation instead of jail. Marijuana and other light drugs, can also be legalized if society is ready for that.

      Euthanasia: On the whole, Euthanasia should not be legal, however there should be some exceptions for people who are suffering from sever conditions, with no hope for recovery, or are in immense pain.

      Gay Rights:
      Gay Rights should be supported and Same-Sex marriage should be legalized. However, a church has a right to deny marriage to same-sex couples as it is a private entity and operates under religious values, and is the one giving out marriage licenses.

      Gun Control: Gun Control is essential and needed in any civilized society. We as a society, should have gun restrictions, gun registration, and psychological tests for anyone who wants to use a gun. Anyone using a gun should have their guns restricted from them, until they complete and pass these tests to make sure they are sane people. Some guns, including assault weapons and military weapons should be banned from society, including cops and only be used in terrorist cases or in the military.

      Immigration: There should be an increase in legal immigration in a country, Immigrants are an essential part of the country that they come to and are an enrichment to society. However we should not have open borders, and we should regulate whoever comes into the country, to ensure that they will not cause harm to society. Immigrants should also be required to learn the native language of the country that they come to.

      Immigration Laws should be followed, and Illegal Immigrants should not stay in the country, until they apply for citizenship the legal way, Illegal Immigrants can get a pathway to citizenship after they have gone back to their home country.

      Prostitution:
      We should legalese Prostitution, not because I approve for it, because we need to make sure everyone in the Prostitution business is being treated fairly, and that women or men are being treated with dignity. We also need to regulated actions going on in the Prostitution business and not legalizing it, will not make this possible.

      Separation of Church and State: The separation of church and state is necessary is an government system, to make sure that one faith is not holding more power than others. However, Prayers should be allowed in school and in public places, if it is not mandatory, and it is not directed at a specific religion. Religious references in public, are alright as they hold the religious beliefs of the nation.

      Scientific Research:
      I support scientific research in topics and to further our knowledge about the world, however there are some things that science cannot solve. I do not oppose GMO's and acknowledge that they are prefectly safe to eat, however consumers have a right to know what is in their foods, and I would not eat GMO's because they are not grown naturally, even if they do not have any health effects on the body.

      Smoking Bans: I support smoking bans in public ( or anywhere other than in a private home), to stop passive smoking in public, and exposure to smoke for children. I support banning second hand smokes, and support raising 'sin' taxes on smoking, to try to force people out of smoking. I support providing money from 'sin' taxes raised to help people that addicted to smoking and try to help them to force quitting. I support restricting smoking ads and the availability of cigarettes in shops.

      Affirmative Action: I oppose affirmative action, as it disregards the white working class, in comparison to the black working class, and the fact of the working class and middle class in their attempts of finding an education, based on academic level, and not because of race.

      However I dot see the necessity of affirmative action, in some cases, where groups were oppressed, like apartheid in South Africa, and the caste system in India and Nepal. However, this would not be needed, if we made tertiary education public, and free for all, and providing vouchers for talented students to go onto private colleges free of charge.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Intell on August 22, 2015, 01:34:20 AM
      Economic Issues

      Taxation: I strongly support a very progressive tax rate with 90%+ for those making more than $ 1 000 000, and making sure the tax rate, does not go above 15% for those earning less than $ 100 000. I also support having no tax rates on those earning less than $ 25 000, except public good tax rates. We should increase tax rates on corporations, while reducing tax rates on starting and small business. End corporate tax loopholes, and favors is a given.

      Education:
      Make education nationalized, while allowing private and charter schools. Allow fee, education from childcare- to university and mandatory K-12 education taken care by the government. However talented students and students in failing schools should get vouchers to go to private or charter schools, giving them the opportunity to pursue a better education.

      Environment:
      I am an environmentalist, and I support laws protecting the environment, always against corporations exploiting the environment, carbon emission laws and I support the Carbon tax. We are stewards of the world, we are one with nature and we have a responsibility to protect and preserve the environment for future generations.

      However, this does not mean I am fully opposed to using the environment for human needs, we need to control the environment and use as little as we need, as future generations will need to use the environment, just like us and it is our responsibility to sustain the environment for future generations and for our children.

      Social Security: Social Security is an essential aspect of society, and it provides people with people to live their life with dignity. Social security should be protected at all costs, there should be opposition of privatization of social security at all costs and social security should be expanded to more working and middle class families, and should be given to more than those in poverty and the elderly, this along with the welfare state should be expanded in society.

      Unions: Unions are essential to the employee and the worker, in the fact that they provide service to the worker in getting a good working conditions, a proper wage and the fact that they keep the employer in check. However, I do not believe that everyone should be forced into joining a union, I still recognize all good things they do to society, while acknowledging there are some unions, that have become monopolistic, and profit-driven, that do not protect and help the worker but instead help their personal money motive and gain.

      Health Care: Full Universal Single-Payer Health Care is needed in needed any civilized, modern society as an universal right.

      Energy:
      We should nationalize the energy sector, and get the profits of energy consumption back to the people. We should strive for the use of green industry as the future, and provide aid to green energy to peruse solar, wind etc. energy sources to use in the future. However currently, Oil, Gas, Coal etc. are the most reliable choice and we should use them as a means to provide electricity and energy until Green sources  of energy can be used.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Classic Conservative on August 26, 2015, 07:26:48 PM
      Social Policy:
      Abortion: Pro Life in all cases except endangerment of mothers life and underage children ie: younger than 16
      Gay Marriage: Gays and Lesbians should have the chance to marry, but government officials don't need to marry gays and religious liberty overules your right to marry.
      Drugs: Against
      Stem Cell Research: Undecided
      Death Penalty: Support
      Gun control: Do not support at all, the 2nd Admendment states the specifically "The right of the people to keep and bear arms SHALL NOT BE INFRINGED"
      Affirmative Action: Get rid of it immediately racist against whites and others
      Prayer in School: Allow all students to pray and have mandatory school prayers every morning

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: Let the states decide not the Feds
      Right-to-Work: In all 50 states and then get rid of unions
      Taxation: Lower all teases flat tax of 13.5%
      Healthcare: Free Markets
      Social Security: Expand it
      Education: School Choice Programs in all 50 states support also homeschooling, private and religious schools
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Support
      Personhood Admendment: Support
      Term Limits Admendment: Support
      Gold Standard: Bring it back

      Foreign Policy and National Security
      Iran: Take the current deal of the region, get the hostages back and then increase sanctions and get rid of the current government
      Iraq/Syria: We have the obligation to the people of Iraq ever since The Iraq War
      Military Spending: Increase
      PATRIOT Act: No
      NSA Spying: Unconstitutional get rid of it
      Israel/Palestine: Only recognize Israel don't recognize Palestine give Israel, their land back allow settlements
      Immigration: Deport every illegal alien in the country let legal immigration prosper though

      Environment
      Climate Change: Not Real
      Green Energy: Support
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Build it Now

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College: Undecided
      Gerrymandering: Don't Really Care
      Presidential term: Only 2 Terms
      Public Financing: No
      Term limits: Yes see above
      Voter ID: Support  if said id's are free and easily available
      Voting: See Massachusetts
      UN- Withdraw get rid of Agenda 21
      DOE- Get rid of
      EPA- Get rid of


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TJ in Oregon on August 26, 2015, 08:30:02 PM
      It's been a few years since I've made one of these, so here goes:

      Social Policy:
      Abortion: Ban abortion, with only an exception when necessary to save the life of the mother (using the the word 'abortion' to mean in this case removing portions of the Fillopian tube containing an ectopic pregnancy).
      Gay Marriage: Personally oppose, but accept that the law is settled. Oppose any efforts to require private citizens to participate in gay wedding ceremonies.
      Drugs: Against legalization. We ought to focus on rehabilitation rather than punishment, but still against legalizing.
      Stem Cell Research: For stem cell research unless it uses embryonic stem cells, which is less and less common as we've made significant improvements with induced pluripotency in recent years.
      Death Penalty: Oppose except for the exceedingly rare scenario where it is necessary to protect the public.
      Gun control: Generally oppose in that I believe every adult without a criminal record and with a clean bill of mental health should be permitted to own one. I support property owners' rights to forbid people from bringing guns on their property. Support background checks if done reasonably. Oppose AWB.
      Affirmative Action: Oppose but think it's a low priority. I grow weary of whites complaining about it, but do still think the job ought to go to the most qualified individual.
      Prayer in School: I certainly support optional prayer and/or a moment of silence. Teacher-led prayer in public schools is a bridge too far and problematic in a ton of ways.

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: A system like the current one is the right setup: a federal minimum and states being permitted to set their own. Somewhere in the vicinity of $10/hr is about the right figure in most places. Understandably, loaded areas may set higher.
      Right-to-Work: I'm torn on it. On one hand, I don't like the unions being able to require dues for all employees if the employee does not believe the union represents their interests. On the other hand, if the union bargains collectively, non-paying employees would be free-riders, which also isn't fair.
      Taxation: Support progressive income taxation. I think the curve should be a continuous logistical function rather than brackets now that calculators have been invented. Would work to eliminate the sales tax.
      Healthcare: Support the general idea of exchanges, not so thrilled with the individual mandate, and oppose the contraceptive mandate. Not sure what else can be done to reduce the cost without sacrificing quality, perhaps incentivizing medical schools to increase their acceptance rates?
      Social Security: Raise the retirement age. Would support adding a privatized option in parallel, though the public portion may need to be subsidized from the privatized part.
      Education: Oppose common core if federal money is attached, otherwise support it. I think testing needs to be rewritten to be sensible and actually challenging, particularly in math and science. I think we've dumbed things down too much be focusing so heavily on the percentage who pass and fail. Support voucher programs for impoverished areas.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Nominally support, but it's probably a pipe dream.
      Personhood Admendment: Support (more than nominally :P), but also probably a pipe dream.
      Term Limits Admendment: Oppose. I really don't think term limits accomplish much of anything, except for executive office since that is just too powerful.
      Gold Standard: Oppose. The gold market is even more screwed up than currency if that's even possible. Support independent centralized banking. Oppose congressional audits and scrutiny. The last thing we need is Congress trying to run the Fed.

      Foreign Policy and National Security
      Iran: All options are bad. Would try to put tough sanctions to stop them from gaining nuclear weapons, which probably won't work, so we are again left with bad options.
      Iraq/Syria: Again, all options are bad. There's just no one left for us to arm in this one.
      PATRIOT Act: Support but only in the strictest possible interpretation. Oppose warrantless data collection.
      NSA Spying: Oppose if done without warrants.
      Israel/Palestine: "Support" Israel (whatever that means), but does not mean agreeing and backing up Israel's every decision. Israel needs to either recognize the legitimacy of a Palestinian state or make the Palestinians Israeli citizens.
      Immigration: Secure the border and begin a worker program for those already here illegally and who haven't committed any other crimes. After the mass normalization of those already here begin actually enforcing immigration law.

      Environment
      Climate Change: Incentivize nuclear power and alternative energy research. Allow research on nuclear waste reprocessing. Incentivize wind.
      Green Energy: See above.
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Grant approval, if anyone still wants it with fuel prices where they are now.

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College: Leave alone.
      Gerrymandering: Commissions are probably the answer, but require supermajorities to prevent rogue commissioners. Try to figure out what the heck the VRA actually requires and what it doesn't.
      Presidential term: Keep as is.
      Public Financing: Don't waste the money. With elections as they are it is irrelevant.
      Voter ID: Push for a national non-required voter ID. Let states then decide their regulations.
      UN: Continue as a member, but do not surrender actual power to the organization. Keep the US as a democracy.
      DOE: Keep but reduce their duties. End the tying of federal funds to state education policies.
      EPA: Keep. The EPA serves a necessary purpose in protecting the US from catastrophies such as what happened in China last week. Chemicals can be very dangerous things when treated improperly. Respect that.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RINO Tom on August 27, 2015, 02:35:58 PM
      I haven't done this in a while (I think, I can't remember, LOL), so here we go:

      Ideology
      Social: Liberal, with a few conservative positions
      Economic: Pro-business, generally in favor of free-market capitalism
      Foreign: Mixed, usually more interventionist than most
      Political Registration: Republican


      Social Policy
      Abortion: Pro-choice until the third trimester.  Is that somewhat "arbitrary"?  Sure.  However, there reaches a point where there is clearly a viable living being that (unfortunately for the woman, sure, but also unfortunately for the fetus) happens to be helplessly inside another living thing.  At that point, I believe we must start weighing the needs of both living beings, and so I only support abortions for special circumstances (rape, incest, health of the mother, etc.).
      Same Sex Marriage: Completely support, and I view it as a civil right.  Also, it is a moronic issue for the Republican Party to continue to debate about.  GIVE IT UP.
      Drugs / Narcotics: Support legalization of marijuana and decriminalization of all drugs, with the exception of large-scale drug dealers.  No one should spend time in jail for getting caught doing a bump of cocaine in his or her own home, and we should treat drug addiction as something we need to treat, not something we need to punish.
      Death Penalty: Very conflicted - I do not "oppose the death penalty," but I think it should only be used in the rarest of circumstances ... unfortunately, you can't make laws on a case-by-case basis, and I'm not sure what "policy" I'd have for it.
      Gun Control: Support universal background checks, non-public gun registration, waiting periods and an assault rifle ban, but I find the idea of banning all guns (for everyone except for the government and the cops that haven't exactly proven they're the most trustworthy with them) very troublesome in principle.  I admit that after things like the disturbing murder the other day, I call these views into question ... but I don't think innocent individuals somewhere else - who have a gun for self-defense against home invasions or random attacks, just in case - should be punished because there are psychos out there.  I'll admit I question these views every time the debate comes up, as I think everyone should do about all of their views.
      Affirmative Action: Support, but only for socioeconomic status.  Race-based affirmative action was necessary in this country for decades, but it's simply not anymore.  Not to mention, it's patronizing to minorities, and a poor, disadvantaged White person should not be shunned aside for a Black or Hispanic person who grew up with every financial advantage.
      Prostitution: I used to support legalizing it, but my dad has kind of changed my view on it.  I think human trafficking is too much of a concern, so I prefer we keep it illegal, but there shouldn't be punishments too severe for women who feel they have nowhere else to turn; the brunt of the punishment should be on those who are running the schemes.
      Right to Die: Also very conflicted on this one ... I have deep emotional objections to ending human life, but I find it somewhat absurd in a sense to tell someone who's ready to die peacefully - especially when they're terminally ill or something - that they just can't.
      PATRIOT Act/NSA Spying: Oppose.  Individual liberty should trump security, in general.  However, that doesn't equate to scaling back all intelligence that is vital to government providing security; there's always a middle ground with a fine line.
      Immigration: Grant legal amnesty to all those who are here now.  Let me be clear, this is SO unfair to those waiting in line (which describes someone I know personally who is literally a doctor and pregnant with her husband's child and yet can't get here), but it's not feasible to deport millions of people.  Once amnesty is granted, CRACK DOWN on the border to stop true, illegal immigration.  After that, make it much easier to become a citizen and take away the incentive to come here illegally.


      Economic Policy
      Minimum Wage: Index it to inflation and have that be our policy going forward.  A $15 minimum wage is just ridiculous.
      Welfare/Social Security: Make it what it should have always been: a temporary helping hand to help people get on their feet and rise up.  It shouldn't be handed out like candy, and it shouldn't be cushy enough that it should in any way be an enviable position.
      Right-to-Work: Support.  Period.
      Taxation: Keep tax rates where they are, and do not raise them.  Reduce corporate taxes; corporations aren't big scary monsters, they're job creators made up of people.
      Obamacare: For God's sake, either make it liberal enough to work (single payer) or conservative enough to work (more privatized), but Obamacare is a moderate hero option that is just stalling things until there's demand for government funded healthcare insurance; I gotta say, it's a brilliant move by Democrats.  Of course, my personal objection to single payer is that our government is going to need to find a way to pay for it, and that's going to be by taxing "rich" people out the a*s.
      Trade: Completely support free trade.  Protectionism had its time and place (the frickin' 1800s), but now it's simply a small-minded policy to "keep wages up" ... a temporary measure.
      Climate Change: Address it ASAP.  Battling climate change must be a government priority that crafts most of our policies and laws.  It's pathetic that the United States - the de facto world leader and role model - isn't taking the lead on fighting it.  This is one issue I'm "anti-business" and "pro-tax" on, as I would completely support penalty taxes on businesses that don't meet carbon emission standards.
      Alternative Energy Subsidies: Support, for reasons above.
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Indifferent, to be honest ... I've heard so many conflicting things on it, and I don't care enough to learn more.


      Foreign Policy
      Afghanistan: It's frankly naive and "principled" for the sake of being "principled" to oppose having a significant presence there.  It was barely a decade ago that this nation was harboring a terrorist group responsible for murdering 3,000 of our innocent citizens.
      Iraq: I supported the war at the tender age of 11 (LOL), but I now see that it was probably a mistake.  At the very least, its post-war execution was a total disaster.  However, I'm an optimist, and I think George W. Bush at the very least should be somewhat remembered for removing a murderous dictator from power.
      Iran: Totally undecided ... don't know enough about the Iran deal yet to say I support or oppose it, but in general I don't support the type of anti-Israel rhetoric that's just as retarded and knee-jerk as blindly pro-Israel rhetoric.  Iran is a nation that shouldn't be trusted, and you're derranged if you don't think keeping them from getting nuclear weapons in the future is imperative to world safety.
      ISIS: Take them out with every measure short of troops on the ground.  This group has been denounced by al Queda ... let that sink in.
      Cuba: Normalization of relations was long overdue, and I'm glad it's been done.
      Military Spending: We could definitely use a reduction.  I feel people support increased spending because they think it says something about "who they are," when we frankly just don't need to, and we could afford to cut spending wherever possible in our federal budget.  This is an obvious starting point.
      Israel/Palestine: Generally pro-Israel, as I support a (semi-secular) democracy being protected in the Middle East, especially when it's surrounded by nations and regimes that hate it, but that doesn't mean they get a blank check and unconditional support.
      Terror War Detainees: The United States is above torture.  Period.

      Summed up in a general sense:  Oh boy, this is NOT going to score me points on Atlas, LOL!  I'm a pro-business Republican who believes in upward mobility, individual responsibility and strong governmental intervention when civil rights are under attack.  I believe that to be what Abraham Lincoln would have wanted his party to be in the Twenty-First Century, and it's what I'll strive to make the Republican Party again.  I realize that this will get me called a "Moderate Hero" and get me mocked as a stereotypical "socially liberal, fiscally conservative" moron, but there's a world outside Atlas, and that's just a way to describe a set of views - a description that happens to describe my views semi-accurately.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: FEMA Camp Administrator on August 29, 2015, 12:12:12 PM
      Too lazy to think out an entirely coherent ideology. Opposed to free trade and deindustrialization and support the rather vague notion of making it easier to become employed for the disadvantaged, as having people unemployed or paid incredibly low causes agitation for the socialization of industry and universalization of services. Having a strong national industry rather than paid unproductivity seems preferable. Conservative on abortion, but not "tough on crime", as based on what I've read, it appears an unnuanced and troglodytic response to criminal justice issues, and not entirely sure on "gay" issues.  Obviously, we shouldn't heed the calls of leftists to entirely uproot our language or social structure to appease people who don't know how to interact with each other. On foreign policy, it's like eh, whatever. Not terribly opposed to wire tapping, as I'm hoping to go into the intelligence analysis industry. Government should work to promote civic virtues, otherwise, in situations where parents are either unable (the poor), or too stupid to (the rich) indoctrinate their children properly, they'll likely get modes of behavior from media figures and view both economic and social hedonism as signs of a "good life". God need not be invoked, but hopefully civic leaders could do as much as necessary to imply such. The above policies could hopefully also help erase racial issues as well. A nation steeped in the basics of respect, hard work, (limited) tolerance, and compassion would hopefully result. In my view, people these days are coming out of "the system" with a few basic viewpoints: "have a good time!" "I'm better than this stuff/other people." "I'm special" and so on. For this nation to succeed, and, in doing so, help the world, this must be corrected.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: DavidB. on September 03, 2015, 07:53:34 PM
      Well, time for me to do this since I don't want to go to sleep yet :3 I'm not so sure as to what I should call my ideology: it is a mix of Zionism, conservatism, capitalism, and libertarianism. That is not going to make me popular, but I was never here for that anyway.

      Ideology
      Social issues: Libertarian when it comes to government intervention, conservative when it comes to values.
      Economic policy: Free-market capitalist/fiscal conservative/libertarian-light, with the exception of healthcare.
      Foreign policy: Anti-supranationalist. Hawk. Neocon, except for the fact that I believe in spreading real freedom instead of democracy. Slightly libertarian when it comes to privacy issues.

      Social Issues

      Abortion: Abortion should be legal until ten weeks of pregnancy. No tax-payer money should flow to abortion clinics. My stance isn't really consequent and I'm the first one to admit that, but consequent views on abortion are by definition bizarre and undesirable.

      Drug legalization: All drugs should be legal. The War on Drugs has not only been ineffective, it has been immoral. The government does not have the right to decide what one does with one's own body. The quality of popular drugs will increase if legalized. However, charity-based organizations for addiction treatment need to be supported by the government from a healthcare perspective, and the government should voice strong opposition to drug use: ruining your own body might be your own choice, but it is immoral. The government should certainly not provide places to use drugs.

      Euthanasia: All people have the right to end their own lives, and euthanasia should be legal. However, a trajectory with a medic and a psychologist should be manadatory - ending your life is a method of last resort, it should not be an easy way out. In a community-based, decentralized society focused on the family, the amount of suicides - skyrocketing in our individualistic, materialistic society - will decrease.

      LGBT rights: Equal marriage should be legal: the government should treat all citizens equally. At the same time, the government has no right to force people to do business with anybody. While governments do not have the right to discriminate, citizens do. Of course, a homophobic company should be boycotted by the public, but that's up to consumers. No tax-payer money should be spent on transgender surgery, but it should be legal for people to finance this privately, even though a trajectory with a psychologist would be preferable.

      Gun control: I am generally favoring the American status-quo, although open carry should be legal everywhere. I support stand-your-ground laws and I oppose Constitution-Free Zones where guns are banned. Everyone should, ideally, know how to shoot and how to defend themselves.

      Immigration: In the US, I am a moderate on immigration, supporting reform while opposing giving citizenship or residency to illegals. In Europe, I am against mass immigration from the third world, but in favor of giving educated people from Western countries residency. I support the free movement of goods and services that the EU established, but I would like to see this enforced in an intergovernemental treaty, not enforced by the dictatorial EU. I support Denmark's short-lived effort to take back control over its borders from the EU bureaucrats. In general, I support a combination of Canada's immigration laws for high-potential immigrants and a policy even stronger than Denmark's for low-potential-high-cost immigrants who have values that clash with Western ones (these people should be discouraged to come). If you're a serious/violent criminal and you have two passports, you should lose your Dutch passport (and right to residency in the Netherlands) after three strikes.

      Prostitution: Prostitution is degrading and immoral, but it should be legal in order to protect prostitutes. However, pandering and streetwalking should be outlawed: women are not objects and pandering leads to abuse and crime. Programs for prostitutes to leave "the world" should be supported. This seems closest to the Danish model to me.

      Affirmative action: I am fundamentally opposed to affirmative action, as it is racist, whereas governments should treat all citizens equally. However, private organizations are free to implement "affirmative action" policies and any other racist policies if they wish so, because there is no such thing as a right not to be discriminated against by private actors. Of course, this should lead to a public boycott.

      Economic Issues

      Taxation: Taxes are necessary, but too much taxation is theft. A flat income tax of around 20% should do the trick. I oppose taxing savings and I despise any form of "death tax". I am also against VAT.

      Balanced budget amendment: Should be implemented in all countries, ideally.

      Minimum wage: Against. Minimum wages hurt the working class and lead to unemployment. In general, a constitutional provision should force the government to restrain its influence on the economy.

      Healthcare: A moral government doesn't let its poor citizens die of illness. I support providing basic public healthcare. If one wants more than that, one should look for private options. However, healthcare is one of the issues on which I'm more liberal in practice than in theory: I don't really mind if the government does more regarding healthcare. Some European countries have excellent systems. In practice, I would probably support a more (/truly) privatized version of the Dutch healthcare system. Obamacare is the worst of both worlds. Either single-payer or total privatization would be better.

      Right-to-Work: I obviously support this. Companies should hire and fire people as they please.

      Trade: I fully support free trade. That has to do with understanding basic economics. I support the free trade zone within the EU, I support TTIP, and if I would be American, I would certainly support NAFTA. I am against protectionism and tariff walls, which always hurt your own economy.

      Climate Change (why is this listed under "economy"?): Help Third World countries prepare for the worst regarding sea-level rise, which should be the focus point of foreign aid (which should be cut for other things, except for furthering of national interests). Try to reduce emissions somewhat. Let the market do its work in finding solutions for this problem.

      Foreign Policy:
      EU: I support the single market, the free movements of goods and persons, and the deregulation the EU brought about. I oppose supranationalism. I support far-reaching reforms to stop the "ever closer union" from becoming a federal superstate. Brussels should be there for effective, intergovernmental opt-in cooperation. In practice, I am sceptical about the chances this kind of reforms have, so I support leaving the EU. I support the idea of a Northern European common currency for financially responsible countries.

      Intelligence: While I think intelligence services are moral, legitimate, and necessary, spying on ordinary citizens has gone too far. Citizens should not be seen as a threat - citizens should be safe from threats, and the government shouldn't curb one's freedom. I support privacy laws to keep the government and overly "interested" companies out of people's business. I support some parts of the Patriot Act, but oppose others.

      NATO: I'm ashamed by the European tendency to let the US pay for our expenses just because Europeans have become pacifist progressives. The NATO is a great organization and the Netherlands should spend 5% of its GDP on Defense before 2020 - at this moment, we don't even reach the bare minimum of 2% required of NATO members. The world is a dangerous place and civilized countries should stand together in fighting evil.

      Cuba: Normalization of the relations is essentially a good thing, but it should have gone slower. Now, the Obama administration has once again showed its defeatist face.

      Afghanistan: The worst victim of geopolitical games. This place will obviously be taken over by terrorists again. I see no real reason to be here anymore.

      Iraq/Syria/ISIS: Give the Kurds and the Assyrians their own state. Bomb the hell out of ISIS. Establish "safe zones" for refugees. It's going to be a mess anyway, but let's make it somewhat less of a mess.

      Iran: I'm totally opposed to the deal. The US and the NATO should make sure Iran will never have nuclear bombs - of which not Israel, but the Persian people would be the biggest victims: they will be hijacked by a dangerous regime - and the military option should have a prominent place at the negotiation table. Iran needs to improve its human rights policy drastically. Regime change should be supported and if the current situation doesn't change, military involvement might be a good option.

      Israel: The eternal homeland of the Jewish people. No territorial compromise is acceptable (except for Gaza, a lost cause). In the long run, we should be moving toward a situation in which Arabs and Jews will peacefully live together, as good neighbors in one country. On the short term, increasing Jewish presence in Yehuda and Shomron is essential. Israel should immediately ban NGOs that seek to end its existence as a Jewish state from operating in Israel (including Yehuda and Shomron). Terrorists should get the death penalty and soldiers' rights should be preserved better. Jews should have the right to pray at the Temple Mount. Israel should gradually become independent from US aid: let's work together as equals. Egypt should be pushed by the US and Israel into incorporating Gaza. Recognize "Palestine"... as a terrorist organization.

      UN: The playfield for dictators. All decent countries should leave this joke of an organization.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Oldiesfreak1854 on October 30, 2015, 09:46:14 AM
      Isn't Illinois open primary?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RINO Tom on October 30, 2015, 12:31:00 PM

      Well, I actually live and vote in Iowa City, IA, but I think Illinois has a weird system (maybe Mr. Illini  or someone else can answer?); I believe it's open primary, but you are required to vote in whatever primary you did the last time or something funky?  I don't know.

      In Iowa, there's partisan registration, but you can actually change your party at the polling place.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Oldiesfreak1854 on November 02, 2015, 08:55:00 PM

      Well, I actually live and vote in Iowa City, IA, but I think Illinois has a weird system (maybe Mr. Illini  or someone else can answer?); I believe it's open primary, but you are required to vote in whatever primary you did the last time or something funky?  I don't know.

      In Iowa, there's partisan registration, but you can actually change your party at the polling place.
      I understand that Illinois is semi-open primary: you don't register with a party, but you have to publicly declare which primary you're voting in.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: SATW on November 03, 2015, 02:01:26 PM
      Writing my views now, will post later.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Extrabase500 on November 06, 2015, 08:50:58 PM
      SOCIAL
      Abortion: Pro-Life, abortion illegal in all cases except the life of the mother.
      Same-sex marriage: State issue. Support gay marriage at sate level.
      Capital Punishment: Strongly Support
      Euthanasia: Strongly Oppose
      Guns: Strongly Pro-Gun/Pro-Second Amendement. Oppose all gun control and repeal all gun control laws. Adopt concealed carry nationwide.
      Prostitution: LEGAL

      ECONOMIC
      Taxes: Abolish estate tax, corporate tax, cigarette tax, gas tax, and capital gains. Switch to a flat tax rate of 13.5%. ABOLISH IRS.
      Environment: NO to UN backed international "climate" agreements like Kyoto. support clean up of lands & rivers. Work for more alternative energy; nuclear is a good source to replace oil. no to carbon taxes.
      Social Security Allow some privatization
      Immigration: Deport illegals, ten year ban on legal immigration, and END birthright citizenship. Punish companies that hire illegals. Build wall along US/Mexican border.
      Trade: Tariffs on china, repeal NAFTA and FAIR TRADE. No to TPP.
      Spending: Reduce spending and work towards balancing budget. Eliminate foreign aid, department of homeland security, department of agriculture, department of education, and cut corporate welfare and the military budget. Also raise retirement age for social security.
      Healthcare: REPEAL Obamacare.
      Education: Strongly support school vouchers and homeschooling. Return schools to STATE level abolish department of education and OPPOSE common core/no child left behind.
      Other: For Marijuana legalization/drug legalization, for prison reform, for tort reform, and for abolishing smoking restrictions. Abolish the CIA and NSA. Massively increase space funding. Allow FUSION CANDIDCY. Oppose intervention in syria, iraq, and libya and support abolishing the CIA and FBI. Also support term limits and repeal 17th amendment. Bring back the Gold Standard and abolish the FED now!


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Maxwell on November 08, 2015, 10:56:30 PM
      Ideology
      Social: Strongly liberal
      Economic: Left-leaning, with some skepticism for certain programs and their effectiveness
      Foreign: Moderate dove
      Political Registration: Democrat


      Social Policy
      Abortion: Pro-Choice.
      Same Sex Marriage: Support. Old Issue. It's a civil right.
      Drugs / Narcotics: Legalization of marijuana and legalization of harder core drug with stiff regulations and taxation, as well as complete release of those in prison only for drug useage, and a better rehabilitation system for those addicted.
      Death Penalty: Absolutely, morally opposed. No one is deserving of death. I don't believe anything good comes out of vengeance.
      Gun Control: Universal background checks, and licensing and registration for all guns. If it takes this long drawn out process to be able to use a car, the same should be true for guns. Limitation of magazines is also something I'm supportive of. Beyond that I am skeptic of certain gun control measures like the assault weapon ban.
      Affirmative Action: We should re-instate for socioeconomic class, not on race.
      Prostitution: Supportive of legalization, but crack down on human trafficking.
      Right to Die: The right to die is one's own choice, and I support the ability to make that decision.
      PATRIOT Act/NSA Spying: I oppose, but I do believe we need a system to keep tabs on terror. The way the NSA has been doing things is wrong, and we need to put safeguards in place so that it is only terror suspects whose records are kept track of, not American citizens.
      Immigration: Legalize immigrants here, raise wage rates H1B Visas, and crack down on businesses who employee illegal immigrants. I believe these three will make our immigration system better. And added with that, increase the amount of legal immigrants that can immigrate, so to solve our massive aging problem by putting more workers into the system.


      Economic Policy
      Minimum Wage: We should hike the minimum wage, though I think we should do so on a step by step basis. A $15 hike in one instance I think will make those who already have $15 an hour jobs be completely devalued. I think we should have a $15/Hr minimum wage by 2025 through a gradual increase.
      Welfare: Welfare is fine at the moment, I suppose. We could do a better job at helping people at the bottom, maybe better job training, I just don't know.
      Social Security: I'm not against raising the retirement age. Not because I want to shaft seniors, but because I don't think Social Security was designed to handle so many seniors. Probably to 68 or 69. I think that's a better way to save the program than to keep playing with the Chained CPI.
      Right-to-Work: Lean against. I'd have to think about this one more now.
      Taxation: Cut corporate taxes, not because I love corporations but because it's not particularly effective. Raise regular tax rates with a top rate of 50%. Create tax credits to incentivize hiring people in America. Cutting taxes goes directly into the pocket of those whose taxes you cut, which is why I don't think supply side has been especially effective in its stated goal. I think, in order for wealth to trickle down, you have to incentivize the trickling down itself.
      Obamacare: It's a good system that tries to do what Single Payer does through private healthcare, and I want to wait and see how effectively it reduces cost, but my end goal would be a Single Payer system. At the same time, we need to keep going our incredibly innovative medical technology industry, which requires a certain level of competition. Maybe that's how Obamacare fits together.
      Trade: I support free trade. Protectionism worked very well for our country a long time ago, but I'm not sure that, at our size, we could implement it and make it work. At the same time, though, we need to make sure we are developing our economic interests instead of cutting ourselves at the expense of #freetrade.
      Climate Change: We move in the right direction on Climate Change through the tax code. Punish carbon polluters and reward those who make realistic goals and achieve them. I'm absolutely pro-nuclear, and hope we can expand that at the expense of coal.
      Alternative Energy Subsidies: We have to be pretty well-researched on their impact on the environment in other potentially deadly ways, but otherwise supportive.
      Keystone XL Pipeline: There is no issue I care less about. Nowadays I wouldn't support it because the economic benefit is little. Obama's tactical move on this was pretty perfect.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Kingpoleon on December 14, 2015, 10:20:19 PM
      Well, time for me to do this since I don't want to go to sleep yet :3 I'm not so sure as to what I should call my ideology: it is a mix of Zionism, conservatism, capitalism, and libertarianism. That is not going to make me popular, but I was never here for that anyway.

      Ideology
      Social issues: Libertarian when it comes to government intervention, conservative when it comes to values.
      Economic policy: Free-market capitalist/fiscal conservative/libertarian-light, with the exception of healthcare.
      Foreign policy: Anti-supranationalist. Hawk. Neocon, except for the fact that I believe in spreading real freedom instead of democracy. Slightly libertarian when it comes to privacy issues.

      Social Issues

      Abortion: Abortion should be legal until ten weeks of pregnancy. No tax-payer money should flow to abortion clinics. My stance isn't really consequent and I'm the first one to admit that, but consequent views on abortion are by definition bizarre and undesirable.

      Drug legalization: All drugs should be legal. The War on Drugs has not only been ineffective, it has been immoral. The government does not have the right to decide what one does with one's own body. The quality of popular drugs will increase if legalized. However, charity-based organizations for addiction treatment need to be supported by the government from a healthcare perspective, and the government should voice strong opposition to drug use: ruining your own body might be your own choice, but it is immoral. The government should certainly not provide places to use drugs.

      Euthanasia: All people have the right to end their own lives, and euthanasia should be legal. However, a trajectory with a medic and a psychologist should be manadatory - ending your life is a method of last resort, it should not be an easy way out. In a community-based, decentralized society focused on the family, the amount of suicides - skyrocketing in our individualistic, materialistic society - will decrease.

      LGBT rights: Equal marriage should be legal: the government should treat all citizens equally. At the same time, the government has no right to force people to do business with anybody. While governments do not have the right to discriminate, citizens do. Of course, a homophobic company should be boycotted by the public, but that's up to consumers. No tax-payer money should be spent on transgender surgery, but it should be legal for people to finance this privately, even though a trajectory with a psychologist would be preferable.

      Gun control: I am generally favoring the American status-quo, although open carry should be legal everywhere. I support stand-your-ground laws and I oppose Constitution-Free Zones where guns are banned. Everyone should, ideally, know how to shoot and how to defend themselves.

      Immigration: In the US, I am a moderate on immigration, supporting reform while opposing giving citizenship or residency to illegals. In Europe, I am against mass immigration from the third world, but in favor of giving educated people from Western countries residency. I support the free movement of goods and services that the EU established, but I would like to see this enforced in an intergovernemental treaty, not enforced by the dictatorial EU. I support Denmark's short-lived effort to take back control over its borders from the EU bureaucrats. In general, I support a combination of Canada's immigration laws for high-potential immigrants and a policy even stronger than Denmark's for low-potential-high-cost immigrants who have values that clash with Western ones (these people should be discouraged to come). If you're a serious/violent criminal and you have two passports, you should lose your Dutch passport (and right to residency in the Netherlands) after three strikes.

      Prostitution: Prostitution is degrading and immoral, but it should be legal in order to protect prostitutes. However, pandering and streetwalking should be outlawed: women are not objects and pandering leads to abuse and crime. Programs for prostitutes to leave "the world" should be supported. This seems closest to the Danish model to me.

      Affirmative action: I am fundamentally opposed to affirmative action, as it is racist, whereas governments should treat all citizens equally. However, private organizations are free to implement "affirmative action" policies and any other racist policies if they wish so, because there is no such thing as a right not to be discriminated against by private actors. Of course, this should lead to a public boycott.

      Economic Issues

      Taxation: Taxes are necessary, but too much taxation is theft. A flat income tax of around 20% should do the trick. I oppose taxing savings and I despise any form of "death tax". I am also against VAT.

      Balanced budget amendment: Should be implemented in all countries, ideally.

      Minimum wage: Against. Minimum wages hurt the working class and lead to unemployment. In general, a constitutional provision should force the government to restrain its influence on the economy.

      Healthcare: A moral government doesn't let its poor citizens die of illness. I support providing basic public healthcare. If one wants more than that, one should look for private options. However, healthcare is one of the issues on which I'm more liberal in practice than in theory: I don't really mind if the government does more regarding healthcare. Some European countries have excellent systems. In practice, I would probably support a more (/truly) privatized version of the Dutch healthcare system. Obamacare is the worst of both worlds. Either single-payer or total privatization would be better.

      Right-to-Work: I obviously support this. Companies should hire and fire people as they please.

      Trade: I fully support free trade. That has to do with understanding basic economics. I support the free trade zone within the EU, I support TTIP, and if I would be American, I would certainly support NAFTA. I am against protectionism and tariff walls, which always hurt your own economy.

      Climate Change (why is this listed under "economy"?): Help Third World countries prepare for the worst regarding sea-level rise, which should be the focus point of foreign aid (which should be cut for other things, except for furthering of national interests). Try to reduce emissions somewhat. Let the market do its work in finding solutions for this problem.

      Foreign Policy:
      EU: I support the single market, the free movements of goods and persons, and the deregulation the EU brought about. I oppose supranationalism. I support far-reaching reforms to stop the "ever closer union" from becoming a federal superstate. Brussels should be there for effective, intergovernmental opt-in cooperation. In practice, I am sceptical about the chances this kind of reforms have, so I support leaving the EU. I support the idea of a Northern European common currency for financially responsible countries.

      Intelligence: While I think intelligence services are moral, legitimate, and necessary, spying on ordinary citizens has gone too far. Citizens should not be seen as a threat - citizens should be safe from threats, and the government shouldn't curb one's freedom. I support privacy laws to keep the government and overly "interested" companies out of people's business. I support some parts of the Patriot Act, but oppose others.

      NATO: I'm ashamed by the European tendency to let the US pay for our expenses just because Europeans have become pacifist progressives. The NATO is a great organization and the Netherlands should spend 5% of its GDP on Defense before 2020 - at this moment, we don't even reach the bare minimum of 2% required of NATO members. The world is a dangerous place and civilized countries should stand together in fighting evil.

      Cuba: Normalization of the relations is essentially a good thing, but it should have gone slower. Now, the Obama administration has once again showed its defeatist face.

      Afghanistan: The worst victim of geopolitical games. This place will obviously be taken over by terrorists again. I see no real reason to be here anymore.

      Iraq/Syria/ISIS: Give the Kurds and the Assyrians their own state. Bomb the hell out of ISIS. Establish "safe zones" for refugees. It's going to be a mess anyway, but let's make it somewhat less of a mess.

      Iran: I'm totally opposed to the deal. The US and the NATO should make sure Iran will never have nuclear bombs - of which not Israel, but the Persian people would be the biggest victims: they will be hijacked by a dangerous regime - and the military option should have a prominent place at the negotiation table. Iran needs to improve its human rights policy drastically. Regime change should be supported and if the current situation doesn't change, military involvement might be a good option.

      Israel: The eternal homeland of the Jewish people. No territorial compromise is acceptable (except for Gaza, a lost cause). In the long run, we should be moving toward a situation in which Arabs and Jews will peacefully live together, as good neighbors in one country. On the short term, increasing Jewish presence in Yehuda and Shomron is essential. Israel should immediately ban NGOs that seek to end its existence as a Jewish state from operating in Israel (including Yehuda and Shomron). Terrorists should get the death penalty and soldiers' rights should be preserved better. Jews should have the right to pray at the Temple Mount. Israel should gradually become independent from US aid: let's work together as equals. Egypt should be pushed by the US and Israel into incorporating Gaza. Recognize "Palestine"... as a terrorist organization.

      UN: The playfield for dictators. All decent countries should leave this joke of an organization.

      92.5%. Right to work, taxation, and abortion are the only ones I have anything more than minor disagreements with you on.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: windjammer on March 10, 2016, 08:20:20 PM
      Economy
      Minimum wage: I support increasing the minimum wage. A minimum wage is a necessity. Companies are much more powerful than workers on the labour market, so their wages are lower that they should be, so a rise will improve the standard of living and in the end will have more positive than negative effects on jobs.

      Labor Unions: I have become less supportive of them. But I still believe they need to become stronger in ordre to raise the wage, boosting the economy. RTW is totally bullsh**t.

      Free-Trade: I completely support free-trade. Protectionism is a rightwing policy that just creates private monopoly.

      Education: skills needed in the workforce will always be higher and higher. So this is necessary to spend more and more.

      Heath Care: very left-wing, I dont want to let people die.

      Social Issues
      Abortion: Should be available until 12 weeks of pregnancy. I dont like that at all at personal level but I understand it has to be legal.

      SSM: fully supportive of that obviously.

      Death Penalty: I oppose it completely. (Catholic)

      Immigration: I support it, it is necessary when population is becoming older and older.

      Euthanasia: I oppose it. I believe it will end up killing too many people for economic gains. I dont want to take the risk. It should be decriminalized for some cases though.

      Alcohol, drugs and cigarettes : I personally hate that. Smoking is disgusting, alcoholic people vomit everywhere. These things are clearly  the reason how the western culture can be totally degenerate sometimes. But let that be legalized because the war on these stuffs doesnt work. But it needs to be heavily taxed.

      Foreign policy:

      Iran deal: I obviously support it. Iran will be a powerful ally in the region.

      War: I m interventionist, I dont want other Hitlers to come to power because of "muh pacifism". But at the same time, we need not to be bellicists a la Iraq war.

      Israel: This isnt an issue I know many things. I m right now really pro-Palestine and against Israël who I believe is oppressing the pzlestinians. However, I do recognize that my views are highly being influenced by my friends who are very against Israël. I used to think that any hyper pro Israël would be the reincarnation of Israël. M'y views are evolving though as I realize that I really some of them. So if any pro Israël could explain me why they support Israël by PM, that would be cool. I will likely remain pro-palestinian, but I think it would be useful to have the opinion of the pro israel side.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Asian Nazi on March 10, 2016, 08:35:08 PM
      Ideology
      Social: Communist
      Economic: Communist
      Foreign: Communist
      Political Registration: N/A


      Social Policy
      Abortion: Pro-Choice
      Same Sex Marriage: Support
      Drugs / Narcotics: Are bad
      Death Penalty: Support, but don't trust the American state to implement it
      Gun Control: Militias should be legal, otherwise ban ban ban
      Affirmative Action: We should start younger
      Prostitution: Should be illegal
      Right to Die: I always support people dying
      PATRIOT Act/NSA Spying: who care
      Immigration: Open borders


      Economic Policy
      Minimum Wage: Abolish all wages
      Welfare: All people should be given jobs by the government, but those who cannot work should be allowed to live decently
      Social Security: weaksauce
      Right-to-Work: People who support "right-to-work" laws should be shot
      Taxation: I love taxes
      Obamacare: A decent start
      Trade: Bad
      Climate Change: Cannot be fixed by capitalism
      Alternative Energy Subsidies: lol
      Keystone XL Pipeline: dead issue


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RFayette on March 10, 2016, 09:04:06 PM
      Time for an update:

      Ideology
      Social: Fairly conservative, but somewhat less so than from my fundamentalist phase
      Economic: Nationalist conservative
      Foreign: Reserved
      Political Registration:  Republican (despite I avatar)

      Social Policy
      Abortion: 100% pro-life except for life of mother and rape/incest
      Same Sex Marriage: Mildly oppose
      Drugs / Narcotics: Decriminalize, but heavily tax and strongly deter use;
      Death Penalty: Support, expand its use to more crimes and reduce time between sentence and execution
      Gun Control: 100% oppose
      Affirmative Action: Only based on class
      Prostitution: Keep it illegal
      Right to Die: Assisted suicide should not be permitted IMO
      PATRIOT Act/NSA Spying: support, but pretty indifferent
      Immigration: Close the border, limit future immigration, deport or require most of those here illegally now to get out, except those who have been in the USA for 7+ years or so.  Also get rid of the H1B program to raise wages for skilled workers in the IT field.


      Economic Policy
      Minimum Wage: Raise it to $9-10 or so and index it to inflation.  Exempt areas with high unemployment if they vote to do so.
      Welfare: Block-grant to states
      Social Security:  privatize and/or block-grant
      Right-to-Work: Support
      Taxation: Flat national sales tax is the ideal
      Obamacare: Not a big fan, though I'm OK with expanding Medicaid and some of the cost controls, I don't like the mandates
      Trade: Re-negotiate NAFTA, TPP, etc. to help protect American workers.  
      Climate Change: Invest more in alternative energy research, spend more on infrastructure to improve transmission efficiency in our grid
      Alternative Energy Subsidies: support for R&D, not for existing companies
      Keystone XL Pipeline: support


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: OSR stands with Israel on April 30, 2016, 05:52:50 PM
      Economic and Fiscal Issues : Moderate Conservative
      Foreign Policy : Moderate Conservative
      Domestic Issues: Centrist
      Social Issues : Moderate Liberal


      Now it is

      Economic and Fiscal Issues: Conservative
      Foreign Policy: Moderately Conservative
      Domestic Policy :Moderately Conservative
      Social Issues : Centrist


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: 15 Down, 35 To Go on April 30, 2016, 06:26:21 PM
      Ideology

      Social: Far-right
      Economic: As right as it gets, but these issues are less important than social ones
      National Security: Neo-con


      Social Policy:
      Abortion: 100% pro-life- THE MOST IMPORTANT ISSUE FACING OUR COUNTRY TODAY
      Gay Marriage: Marriage should be between one man and one woman.  Of course, no one should have to provide service to a gay "wedding".
      Drugs: Against
      Stem Cell Research: None from aborted babies, adult stem cell research is fine
      Death Penalty: Support in the most extreme of cases
      Gun control: Oppose
      Affirmative Action: Completely unconstitutional
      Prayer in School: Allow individual students to pray as they choose
      Transgender Bathrooms: Use bathrooms based on your birth gender (I have never been given proof that transgenderism is a real thing)

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: $0.00
      Right-to-Work: In all 50 states and then get rid of unions
      Taxation: National sales tax (we got along just fine with no income tax pre-1913)
      Healthcare: Remove all restrictions on the free market, focus on HSAs to make consumers more cost-conscious
      Social Security: Privatize it
      Education: School choice and vouchers.  Make options for what grade school to go to more like college choices.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Support
      Personhood Admendment: Support
      Term Limits Admendment: Oppose
      Free Trade: Support 100%- NAFTA, NATO, and the TPP make us all better off.  We should have no trade restrictions with any country that we aren't trying to punish.

      Foreign Policy and National Security
      Iran: Do not negotiate with terrorists
      Iraq/Syria: Do anything necessary to combat ISIS
      Military Spending: Increase
      PATRIOT Act: Absolutely, and people who say no baffle me
      NSA Spying: If you don't like it, what are you hiding?
      Israel/Palestine: Support our only ally in a hostile region
      Immigration: Make legal immigration easier, but crack down on border security.  We can't reasonably deport every illegal immigrant, but we have to never give illegals citizenship.

      Environment
      Climate Change: Natural, the Earth has gone through cycles forever
      Green Energy: Let the free market decide
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Support

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College Reform: Oppose
      Gerrymandering: Keep it as it is
      Presidential term: Only 2 Terms
      Public Financing: No
      Term limits: No
      Voter ID: Support to combat voter fraud
      Primaries: More caucuses


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Murica! on April 30, 2016, 07:57:10 PM
      Ideology

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: $0.00
      Right-to-Work: In all 50 states and then get rid of unions
      Taxation: National sales tax (we got along just fine with no income tax pre-1913)
      Healthcare: Remove all restrictions on the free market, focus on HSAs to make consumers more cost-conscious
      Social Security: Privatize it
      Education: School choice and vouchers.  Make options for what grade school to go to more like college choices.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Support
      How morally righteous of you.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Intell on April 30, 2016, 08:08:32 PM
      Ideology

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: $0.00
      Right-to-Work: In all 50 states and then get rid of unions
      Taxation: National sales tax (we got along just fine with no income tax pre-1913)
      Healthcare: Remove all restrictions on the free market, focus on HSAs to make consumers more cost-conscious
      Social Security: Privatize it
      Education: School choice and vouchers.  Make options for what grade school to go to more like college choices.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Support
      How morally righteous of you.

      Such a christian and a moral person.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Deblano on May 14, 2016, 03:41:56 PM
      DISCLAIMER: Some of my answers on positions may be very vague. Also, some of my positions are basically the same as Speaker Kent’s

      Ideology

      Social: Relatively Liberal
      Economic: center-right, tend to be pro-business
      Foreign policy: “Realist”, focus more on what the geopolitical experts are saying
      Environment: Liberal. We need to clean up the environment, promote sustainable energy, and deal with climate change.

      Social Policy:
      Abortion: Pro-choice, but keep the ban on partial-birth abortion. Keep abortion safe, legal, and rare by providing contraception and sex education as opposed to restricting abortion excluding partial-birth abortion.
      Same Sex Marriage: Strongly support keeping gay marriage legal and strongly support anti-discrimination acts for LGBT people. LGBT citizens deserve equal lives and rights that heterosexuals have regardless of who they love or what gender they identify as.  
      Drugs: Legalize marijuana and LSD, but oppose legalization of “hard drugs” such as cocaine, heroin, etc. Focus on rehabilitation for those suffering from drug addictions, rather than punishment
      Death Penalty: Neutral, but lately I tend to lean against it due to the fact that innocent people have been put to death.
      Gun control: It’s fine to increase measures to keep guns out of the hands of the mentally ill, but banning certain types of guns and restricting ammo is a “feel good measure” with no results. People deserve the 2nd amendment right to protect themselves and their families.
      Affirmative Action: It’s a noble cause, but it’s seriously flawed. It should be significantly reformed or repealed.
      Prostitution: Personally oppose, but legalize and regulate it.
      Euthanasia: Legalize it, but make sure that the patient is fully aware what he/she is doing and has actively discussed with their doctor.

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: Keep the minimum wage as it is, but promote tax credits as an alternative to increasing the minimum wage. However, if the individual states or cities want to increase their minimum wage, let them.
      Welfare: I have to research more on this before I make an informed opinion.
      Right-to-Work: Lean towards supporting Right-To-Work. I support private sector unions, but I’m against public sector unions, which have become significantly corrupt.
      Taxation: I support a progressive tax as opposed to a flat tax, but reduce taxes for middle/lower class citizens, reduce taxes on small businesses, and significantly cut corporate taxes while closing loopholes that allow them to hide money overseas.
      Healthcare: I’m admittedly wishy-washy on healthcare. As long as the method prevents Americans from suffering extraordinarily high bills, and doesn’t blow a hole in the deficit, I support it. Obamacare should have its flaws reformed, but it should not be repealed as millions of Americans already depend on it. Singapore's healthcare system would probably be the best for this nation as opposed to single-payer healthcare
      Social Security: I used to be in favor of privatizing social security, but I have since then switched to supporting social security. It is dangerous to trust people’s retirement savings to the mercy of the stock market, god forbid a massive crash happen again. Take off the wage cap, expand benefits, and slightly increase the social security payroll tax of .33% to cover the deficit.
      Trade: Strongly support free trade, as it benefits a lot of people (especially the poor and developing nations) and keeps prices low. Protectionism and tariffs in general are dangerous ideas that will make the economy spiral out of control.
      Education: (Copying Speaker Kent’s position) Increase funding, but abolish Common Core and get rid of most standardized testing. Offer completely free education in public universities to veterans, and offer low/no-interest student loans to students from low-income families. Support school vouchers as well.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Lean against it. It’s a noble cause, but the idea of government planning the budget like a household is nothing but a bumper-sticker slogan that has no basis in reality. There are more pragmatic ways that we can reduce spending, especially in a recession.

      Foreign Policy and National Security
      Afghanistan: (Copying Speaker Kent’s position) Should train the Afghan military to protect their country from the Taliban. Support.
      Iraq: We should have not intervened, but an Iraq War was inevitable due to US/Iraqi tensions even before 9/11. Leaving Iraq so early only helped create a power vacuum that made Sunni/Shia tensions explode and lead to the rise of ISIS. However, it would have been impossible to convince the public to let the US stay longer in Iraq.
      Iran: Support the current Iran deal, and only consider military action against Iran if it is absolutely certain that they will get a nuke, which Iran is currently unlikely to anyways.
      Syria: (Copying Speaker Kent’s position) should have backed the moderate rebels when they were still around. Should be involved fighting ISIS via airstrikes and indirect support for Middle Eastern countries.
      NATO/Russia: It's too late to abolish NATO without creating a power vacuum, but focus on reforming membership and also focus more on the danger of hybrid war rather than training for conventional warfare. However, Russia is highly unlikely to mess with the Baltic States due to the fact that it creates very little benefit and many problems for Russia, excluding the issue of a war with NATO. Do not accept Sweden and Finland into NATO as it will worsen tensions with Russia and make hardliners even more paranoid. Putin in general is a very rational and realist leader, and thus I don't lose any sleep over thought of war with Russia while he is at the controls.
      Cuba: Open up relations with Cuba and promote trade with them. The embargo has failed to improve human rights and denies us economic investment opportunities.
      PATRIOT Act: The FREEDOM Act is a better compromise.
      NSA Spying: Stop spying on our allies, it only ruins our reputation abroad.
      Israel/Palestine: No opinion
      Immigration: Personally oppose amnesty for illegal immigrants, but it is our only option at this point due to the amount of them in this country. Increase border security, and allow states to decide how to manage their border with Mexico to prevent another mass influx of illegal immigrants.
      Guantanamo Bay: Keep Guantanamo Bay open, but end the use of torture there, and make sure suspected terrorists receive a fair trial before sending them there to make sure no innocent person has been sent there by accident.

      Environment

      Climate Change: It won’t kill us all, but it will cause serious trouble to areas such as the Netherlands, Bangladesh, Florida, the Gulf States, etc. Work to reduce emissions and try to get China and India to do the same.
      Green Energy: The transition will have to be slow due to the amount of people that depend on fossil fuel related jobs, but support transition to alternative energy. Strongly promote the construction of more nuclear power plants in safe locations

      Keystone XL Pipeline: Oppose both for environmental and private property reasons.

      Electoral Reform (Pretty much Speaker Kent’s positions)
      Electoral College: Abolish in favor of an instant runoff voting system based on the popular vote.
      Gerrymandering: Ban it and require that non-partisan organizations redraw the Congressional districts.
      Term limits: Yes. Two four-year terms for President, six two-year terms for House members, three six-year terms for Senators, one ten-year term for Supreme Court justices.
      Voter ID: Yes, but provide IDs upon registering to vote.
      Compulsory Voting: No.
      Voter Registration: Automatically register all citizens when they turn 18 and provide a free voter ID.
      Statehood: Don’t make Puerto Rico a state due to their economic troubles, but make DC a state and give them one voting representative in the House, but no Senators.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Human on June 21, 2016, 05:16:11 PM
      Ideology

      Social: Left-wing
      Economic: Centrist
      Foreign policy: “Realist”
      Environment: Liberal. We need to clean up the environment, promote sustainable energy and deal with climate change.

      Social Policy:
      Abortion: Pro-choice, I guess.
      Same Sex Marriage: Strongly support
      Drugs: Legalize marijuana, for both recreational and medical purposes. Keep "hard drugs" like cocaine and heroin illegal. Raise the smoking age to 21.
      Death Penalty: Support, but it should be used extremely rarely.
      Gun control: I support background checks, closing the gun show loophole, and prohibiting firearms to the individuals on the no-fly list.
      Affirmative Action: I deeply oppose race-based affirmative action.
      Prostitution: Support
      Euthanasia: Legalize it
      Immigration: I support immigration reform. Most illegal immigrants should be granted amnesty. I strongly oppose deporting illegals and building a wall along the southern border. Immigrants are good for the economy. H1-B visas are also good for the economy.

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: Raise it to $12 an hour.
      Welfare: I support requiring welfare recipients to work.
      Right-to-Work: Lean towards supporting Right-To-Work.
      Taxation: I support eliminating the sales tax, cutting income taxes, and maintaining current tax rates for all other forms of taxation. I believe that mild tax cuts help the economy. 
      Healthcare: I support Obamacare, but oppose a single-payer system.
      Social Security: I support expanding Social Security benefits. We shouldn't cut Social Security or privatize it.
      Trade: I strongly support free trade. I support TPP, NAFTA, etc.
      Education: We should implement a school voucher program. I support repealing No Child Left Behind. We should increase funding for education.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: This is an unrealistic idea.
      Tort Reform: Support

      Environment:
      Climate Change: I believe that climate change is real. We should increase environmental regulations in order to combat climate change.
      Green Energy: We should heavily invest in green energy.
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Oppose both for environmental and private property reasons.



      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Intell on September 27, 2016, 08:53:38 PM
      Politcal Matrix Test
      * (Critical)

      1. The right to individual autonomy is important, even if it threatens collective security:
      (Usually Disagree)

      2. The government should penalize organizations that practice outsourcing.
      (Agree*)

      3. Giving faith-based charities the same government resources as secular organizations is a good idea.
      (Disagree)

      4. We should increase foreign aid to countries struggling with poverty.
      (Usually Disagree)

      5. We should increase funding for education.
      (Neutral)

      6. Heterosexual couples should receive higher marital recognition than same-sex couples. (Disagree*)

      7. Overall, free trade hurts more than it helps.
      (Agree*)

      8. We should reduce the number of government programs substantially.
      (Neutral)

      9. Abortion should be illegal or very heavily restricted.
      (Neutral)

      10. The government should fund museums, theaters, and other cultural institutions that are unable to survive independently.
      (Agree)

      11. The government should subsidize health insurance for those who cannot easily afford it.
      (Agree*)

      12. The government should work to reduce children's exposure to offensive radio and television content.
      (Neutral)

      13. It is unfair that wealthier people pay higher tax rates.
      (Disagree*)

      14. The minimum wage should be raised.
      (Neutral)

      15. Marijuana should be legalized.
      (Usually Disagree)

      16. Society focuses too much on forcing equality at the expense of real merit.
      (Usually Agree)

      17. Violating individual rights is acceptable when it comes to fighting terrorism.
      (Neutral)

      18. Current levels of government regulation on industry are excessive.
      (Neutral)

      19. The government should provide basic needs for all people.
      (Agree*)

      20. The death penalty should be an option for serious crimes.
      (Neutral)

      21. We should reduce the difficulty of immigration.
      (Usually Disagree)

      22. Union workers should be protected against being fired during strikes.
      (Usually Agree*)

      23. Prostitution should be legalized.
      (Usually Disagree*)

      24. Flag burning should be banned.
      (Usually Disagree)

      25. I support affirmative action.
      (Usually Disagree)

      26. The government should impose tariffs to protect industries from foreign competition.
      (Agree*)

      27. Physician-assisted suicide should be legal if the patient is capable of informed, rational consent.(Usually Disagree)

      Economic Score: (-4.00)
      Social Score (0.00)





      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Young Conservative on October 18, 2016, 04:51:41 PM

      Overview
      Social: Conservative
      Economic: Free Market Capitalism
      National Security: Moderately NeoConservative
      Party Affiliation : Republican (The Lincoln/Reagan Kind, not the Donald Trump facade)
      -
      Social Policy:
      Abortion: ProLife
      Gay Marriage: I support Civil Unions, not marriage.
      Drug Laws: I support strong drug laws.
      Stem Cell Research: None from aborted babies, adult stem cell research is fine
      Death Penalty: Oppose
      Increased Gun control: Oppose
      Prayer in School: Allow individual students to pray as they choose
      Transgender Bathrooms: Use bathrooms based on your birth gender

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: Do Not increase
      Right-to-Work: Support
      Taxation: Flat or FairTax
      Healthcare: Repeal ACA, open state lines to allow competition
      Social Security: Roll Back the payout date to account for life expectancy increases.
      Education: School choice and vouchers. 
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Support
      Term Limits Admendment: The PEOPLE are the term limits.
      Free Trade: Support

      Foreign Policy and National Security
      [/b
      ]Iran: Tear the Iran deal in half.
      Iraq/Syria: Use military force to crush ISIS swiftly
      Military Spending: Increase
      PATRIOT Act: OPPOSE, It is Unconstitutional
      NSA Spying: OPPOSE, it is unconstitutional
      Israel/Palestine: STRONGLY support Israel
      Immigration: Step1- Secure the border and establish E-Verify (if a faucet is overflowing, first turn off the water, then handle the water left inside) ; step 2- streamline the legal immigration process and reform it; step 3- have those here illegally for over 10 years with no criminal record put in the back of the line to apply for citizenship. NO citizenship until the border is secure and almost all illegal immigration is handled. NO SWEEPING AMNESTY

      Environment
      Climate Change: It is natural
      Green Energy: Free the market and stop subsidizing green energy AND oil, gas, etc
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Support

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College Reform: Oppose
      Gerrymandering: Independent commission
      Presidential term: Only 2 Terms
      Public Financing: No
      Term limits: It is called having elections.
      Voter ID: Support
      Primaries: Adopt the democrat system of universal allocation per state percentage; allow state to determine primary or caucus; no super delegates


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: 15 Down, 35 To Go on October 18, 2016, 05:24:13 PM
      Overview
      Social: Conservative
      Economic: Conservative
      National Security: Hawkish
      Party Affiliation : Republican

      Social Policy:
      Abortion: 100% Pro-Life, no exceptions
      Gay Marriage: 1 Man, 1 Woman, Always
      Drug Laws: Keep all illegal drugs illegal and take societial steps to lower alcohol use
      Stem Cell Research: Never from aborted babies, otherwise fine
      Death Penalty: Support only for mass murder
      Increased Gun control: Oppose
      Prayer in School: Allow individual students to pray as they choose
      Sex: Work in the culture to stigmatize any sex outside of a serious relationship.  Strongly condemn hookups and one night stands.
      Transgender Bathrooms: Oppose- you are a man or a woman at birth and can't change it
      Religious Liberty/Freedom of Conscience: No one who doesn't want to should have to have anything to do with a gay "wedding"
      Discrimination: Discrimination is generally wrong, but businesses should have the right to discriminate against anyone for any reason.  Then, the free market will cause people to boycott the establishment if they are really being discriminatory.

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: Abolish
      Right-to-Work: Support
      Taxation: Consumption tax, abolish income tax
      Healthcare: Repeal Obamacare, open state lines to allow competition, encourage use of HSA's
      Social Security: Gradually phase out
      Education: School choice and vouchers. 
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Support
      Term Limits Admendment: The PEOPLE are the term limits.
      Free Trade: Support without limits.  This has been one of the most discouraging things about 2016.

      Foreign Policy and National Security
      Iran: Repeal the Iran Deal and try to establish a secular democracy or kingdom
      Iraq/Syria: Use military force to crush ISIS swiftly
      Military Spending: Increase
      PATRIOT Act: Support to stop terrorism
      NSA: Support to stop terrorism
      Israel/Palestine: Support Israel, our only ally in the region
      Immigration: Crack down on border security to make sure no more illegals enter the country.  Abolish sanctuary cities.  But, allow anyone who will benefit our economy to come here legally.

      Environment
      Climate Change: Naturally occurring, nothing to worry about
      Green Energy: Free the market and stop subsidizing green energy AND oil, gas, etc
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Support

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College Reform: Oppose
      Gerrymandering: Let states handle it
      Presidential term: Only 2 Terms
      Public Financing: No
      Term limits: It is called having elections.
      Executive Agencies: Abolish about half of them, including the EPA
      Voter ID: Support
      Early Voting: Support (in-person only)
      Absentee Voting: Not unless you are actually outside the state for the entire early voting period and on Election Day.  No voting by mail.
      Primaries: Close primaries and award more delegates to states with caucus systems.  Let the voters vote in some shape or form on the delegates (I like Tennessee's system, but several are fine).  Some hybrid between proportional and WTA, moving closer to WTA (but never all the way there- maybe semi-proportional statewide and WTA by congressional district) as the convention grows closer.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The world will shine with light in our nightmare on October 18, 2016, 06:38:08 PM
      Ideology
      Social: Civil libertarian
      Economic: Social democrat
      Foreign: Left-wing nationalist.  (Mostly) non-interventionist.
      Political Registration: Registered D in North Carolina, soon-to-be unaffiliated

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Completely pro-choice.  Support repealing the Hyde Amendment.
      Same Sex Marriage: Strongly support.
      Drugs / Narcotics: Legalize marijuana and decriminalize all drugs.  Reduce or streamline regulations for prescription medications.  Abolish the DEA.
      Stem Cell Research: Support.
      Death Penalty: Oppose.  I also believe that life imprisonment should be limited to heinous crimes and that prisons should be rebuilt to isolate inmates and focus on rehabilitation for criminals, similar to Norway.
      Gun Control: Mostly oppose.  Support background checks.
      School Prayer: Support voluntary, non-led prayer.  I also believe students should be allowed to form private religious and Bible Study groups if they desire.
      Affirmative Action: Mixed/Lean against.
      Prostitution: Legalize it and regulate it, but don't glamorize sex work as a profession.  Ban pimping.
      Bathrooms: Ridiculous non-issue; either open gender neutral bathrooms or let transgender people go to the bathroom that matches their gender.
      Right to Die: Support in all circumstances; I believe an individual should legally be allowed to end their life for any reason.

      Economic Policy
      Minimum Wage: I'm very sympathetic to #FightFor15 and adjusting the minimum wage to inflation, provided that the tax system is reformed for small businesses to afford it.
      Welfare: Expand benefits in exchange for reforming the tax code (see below).
      Social Security: Lower the retirement age to 55.  Eliminate the payroll tax cap.
      Education: Fix broken schools instead of closing them.  Repeal Common Core and NCLB.  Reform the curriculum and teaching in general in a way that's similar to Finnish education.
      Right-to-Work: Completely oppose.
      Taxation: Adopt a VAT tax model similar to Canada and European countries.  The US has the most progressive tax code of any other developed country, but revenue is not distributed in a progressive manner.  So as far as taxation and spending are concerned, on principle I'd favor a less progressive tax code in exchange for more progressive wealth redistribution.
      Obamacare: Keep most parts of it, expand on it and introduce a public option.  Negotiate drug prices and give families and individuals tax credits if their monthly spending on prescriptions exceeds a certain portion of their income.  (This is basically Hillary Clinton's plan.)
      Trade: Re-negotiate NAFTA and existing trade deals which curtail environmental and labor protections.  Oppose TPP.
      Climate Change: Implement a carbon tax or cap-and-trade and invest in renewables.  Support the Paris Agreement.
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Oppose.
      Poverty: Pass a stimulus bill for impoverished states and communities, especially those where jobs have been displaced thanks to increased automation and outsourcing.  Retrain coal workers and people in manufacturing to work in more advanced fields of their respective industries.

      Foreign Policy and National Security
      Iran: Support the Iran Deal.
      Iraq/Syria: Aid NATO and Russia to defeat ISIS.
      Military Spending: Drastically reduce, close down military bases where they are no longer necessary, and gradually shrink US influence on foreign affairs in general.
      PATRIOT Act: Repeal unwarranted wiretapping and library records provisions.
      NSA: Reform the department and only collect private information if a warrant is issued on an individual.
      Israel/Palestine: Endorse peace negotiations and Palestinian statehood, but slash funding to Israel and scale down US involvement in the Middle East.
      Immigration: Divert attention from "securin muh border" and focus more on visa overstays, which is a much bigger problem in the immigration debacle.  Penalize employers who hire and exploit undocumented migrants for cheap labor.  Support a comprehensive pathway to citizenship with job training and English programs.

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College Reform: Strongly support.  Abolish the electoral college and elect the President via popular vote, with instant-runoff/ranked voting.
      Gerrymandering: Switch to a proportional voting system for each state.
      Public Financing: Support.
      Term limits: Oppose.
      Voter ID: Oppose.
      Early Voting: Support expanding.
      Absentee Voting: Support expanding.
      Primaries: Make all primaries open and abolish caucuses and superdelegates.  I'm partial to the more radical change to a 'National Primary Day' with IRV, but it's not something I've spent much time thinking about.

      I'm neutral on the question of continuing to let Iowa and New Hampshire hold the first contests, but if we had to switch I'd prefer a state which best adequately represents all racial groups and has a good mix of rural and urban voters.  (Missouri and North Carolina might be good fits for that.)

      Corruption/Lobbying/Government Reform/etc.
      - Prohibit ex-politicians from working for lobbying firms
      - Prohibit lobbyists from bundling political contributions for politicians
      - Mandate full disclosure of campaign contributions


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: HisGrace on October 18, 2016, 11:50:00 PM
      Ideology

      Social: Cultural moderate with libertarian instincts
      Economic: Far right
      Foreign Policy: Somewhere in between a Nixonian realist and non-interventionist
      Political Registration: Registered as a Republican to vote in the presidential primary, view myself as an NPA

      Social Policy
      Abortion: I used to be hard-line Pro-Life because that was the environment I was raised in. Ultimately if you were to repeal Roe vs. Wade or somehow ban abortion in all 50 states the results would be pretty catastrophic. I'd support keeping Roe vs. Wade but regulating abortion far more than Democrats want to do.

      Same-Sex Marriage: Support
      Drugs: Legalize weed, decriminalize hard drugs
      Stem-Cell Research: Support
      Death Penalty: Oppose, simply because the risk of executing an innocent person far exceeds whatever "benefits" you get from capital punishment. I don't see anything morally wrong with a murderer being executed, though.
      Gun Control: Generally pro-gun
      Affirmative Action: Against unless there's some kind of practical justification for it, like hiring more black police officers in a black neighborhood or getting more Aboriginal doctors in Australia since they're the only ones who go to the aboriginal areas, exc.
      Prostitution: Legalize and regulate
      Bathrooms: I genuinely don't care, as in, I don't care if transpeople use the bathroom they want or if you have to use the bathroom of your birth gender. The fact that people view this as important enough to be discussed at the presidential level is pathetic.
      Euthanasia: Support with the proper safeguards.

      Economic Policy

      Minimum Wage: Abolish
      Social Security: Raise the retirement age and/or means test it, amongst some other structural reforms too complex to get into here.
      Right to work: Oppose, one of my surprising positions
      Taxation: In a perfect world I'd abolish the income tax, but at present I'd start a 50ish percent tax on the wealthy and keep other taxes the same to reduce the deficit.
      Obamacare: Repeal and replace with either a voucher system or just keeping the popular elements of the bill while getting rid of the exchanges/individual mandate and adding some market reforms, like buying across state lines (I throw up a little in my mouth on the rare occasion when I agree with Trump)
      Trade: Support TPP and keeping NAFTA as is. I'm open to other trade deals. I'm about as Neo-liberal as it gets.
      Keystone: Support
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Support something like it with plenty of exceptions. Unless there's a specific "excuse" the government shouldn't run a deficit.
      Term Limits: Support

      Foreign Policy and National Security
      Iran Deal: Support
      Syria: Focus on destroying ISIS
      Military Spending: Cut by about a quarter, closing non strategically important bases is a good way to start.
      Patriot Act: Oppose
      Israel/Palestine: They're not perfect but I generally support Israel
      Immigration: Before Trump and his nonsense I would have been considered somewhat hawkish on this. Send the National Guard to the border and give block grants to police forces in border areas. Don't build a wall, it won't work and is a waste of money. Grant amnesty to non-violent illegals already here, make immigration simpler and easier, and create a guest worker program.
      Russia: Work at improving relations, don't antagonize them for no reason, coexist. The United States and Russia (as well as China) working together and having peace is vital to the security of the world. Do all of this without becoming a sock-puppet apologist for Putin's regime, like Trump is.
      Afghanistan: It seems like we should really be out of there by now.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: evergreenarbor on October 19, 2016, 02:16:53 AM
      Ideology

      Social: Largely liberal with some left-wing communitarian impulses
      Economic: Left-wing
      Foreign Policy: Noninterventionist in most cases
      Political Registration: No party registration in WA; would register as a Democrat if there was

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Pro-choice, willing to accept some restrictions on late-term abortion
      Same-Sex Marriage: Support strongly
      Drugs: Decriminalize all drugs (Portugal model), legalize marijuana
      Stem-Cell Research: Support
      Death Penalty: Oppose strongly
      Gun Control: Support
      Affirmative Action: Support
      Prostitution: Unsure - the most important thing is eliminating trafficking and abuse
      Bathrooms: I'm trans and I like not being harassed when I use the bathroom. Gender and sex are distinct and people should use the bathroom that corresponds with their gender identity (or a gender-neutral bathroom).
      Euthanasia: Support

      Economic Policy
      Minimum Wage: Raise and tie to inflation
      Social Security: Keep public and don't raise the retirement age
      Right to work: Oppose strongly (likes unions)
      Taxation: Increase taxation on wealthy, reduce WA sales tax and introduce a state income tax
      Obamacare: Protect/expand, but I would prefer universal healthcare
      Trade: Generally pro-trade if labor rights and the environment are protected (anti-TPP)
      Keystone: Oppose strongly
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Oppose
      Poverty: Address poverty through government intervention: higher minimum wage, better unemployment benefits, improving schools, etc.

      Political Reform
      Electoral College: Abolish, replace with national popular vote with ranked choice voting
      Gerrymandering: Establish nonpartisan commissions in each state to redraw districts (works well for Washington)
      Public financing: Support strongly
      Term limits: Neutral, lean oppose
      Voter ID laws: Oppose strongly
      Early/absentee voting: Support strongly
      Vote by mail: Support strongly
      Voter registration: Automatically register all citizens at 18 years old
      Primaries: Make all primaries open. Use only primaries to allocate delegates, not caucuses. Establish regional rotation in primaries: one cycle the South goes first, the next the Midwest goes first, etc.

      Foreign Policy and National Security
      Iran Deal: Support strongly
      Syria: Too messy for me to come up with an answer
      Military Spending: Cut waste wherever possible
      Patriot Act: Oppose strongly
      Israel/Palestine: Both are seriously flawed. Israel has a right to exist but shouldn't be putting so many settlements in Palestinian territory and it should respect the rights of all of its citizens regardless of religion or ethnicity. Pro two-state solution.
      Immigration: Make it easier to immigrate legally, address root causes of illegal immigration (poverty in Latin America/Asia)
      Russia: Oppose Russian actions in Ukraine and Syria without antagonizing them to the point of war
      Afghanistan: Withdraw troops as soon as possible

      Environmental Issues
      Climate change: The biggest threat facing our planet. Anyone who doesn't believe it exists is scientifically illiterate.
      Green energy: Switch to green energy as quickly as possible.
      Coal: End coal mining as soon as possible, establish some sort of program to help coal miners re-integrate into the workforce to avoid turning West Virginia into a giant Youngstown


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Santander on October 19, 2016, 02:18:55 AM
      Overview
      Social: Conservative
      Economic: Moderate Conservative
      National Security: Assertive
      Party Affiliation: Republican

      Social Policy:
      Abortion: Pro-life, but will support measures that make exceptions for rape, incest and life of the mother. Criminalize sex-selective abortions
      Same-sex marriage: Prefer civil unions, but accept the law of the land as long as religious liberties are respected
      Drug Laws: Oppose legalization of marijuana or any other drugs, but support sentencing reform
      Stem Cell Research: Oppose embryonic stem cell research
      Death Penalty: Reserve for military use for treason, mutiny, sedition and terrorism
      Increased Gun control: Oppose
      School Prayer: Promote student-led school prayer and religious expression
      Transgender Bathrooms: Ambivalent - a solution in search of a problem
      Religious Liberty: Support unequivocally, but religious liberty cannot always be a bulwark for businesses against serving people they are morally opposed to
      Discrimination: Support anti-discrimination laws for both public and private entities, including on the grounds of sexual orientation
      Euthanasia: Strongly oppose, and support heavy criminal penalties for all involved in such activities
      Prostitution: Oppose legalization, increase scrutiny for single women seeking tourist or language school visas to enter the US from countries known to export sex workers

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: Oppose in principle at the federal level, but any minimum wage laws passed at either state or federal level should be indexed to inflation
      Right-to-Work: Oppose
      Income Taxation: Abolish worldwide taxation and switch to territorial flat taxation for coporations and moderately progressive residency-based taxation for individuals
      Healthcare: Repeal every single word of Obamacare, strongly oppose universal healthcare
      Food Stamps/Section 8: Oppose
      Social Security: Transition to a sliding scale retirement savings subsidy
      Education: Oppose vouchers, support the public school system
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Oppose
      Term Limits: Oppose
      Free Trade: Support in principle, but trade policy should be weaponized to achieve American foreign policy goals

      Foreign Policy and National Security
      Iran: Withdraw from Iran deal
      Iraq/Syria: Ground invasion to destroy ISIS
      Military Spending: Fund with whatever levels required to achieve foreign policy goals, but require more financial accountability from the Pentagon
      PATRIOT Act: Support
      NSA: Support
      Israel/Palestine: Stand unequivocally with Israel and assist in efforts for a permanent two-state solution
      Immigration: Crack down on illegal immigration, greatly reduce family-based migration, abolish birthright citizenship, crack down on Indian abusers of H-1B visas. Tighten immigration quotas from nations other than the EU, Canada and Mexico.

      Environment
      Climate Change: It's real, but our research efforts should be on adapting our lifestyles to the changing conditions instead of trying to reverse history. The market will become more efficient if environmental externalities are priced into the market, but not through carbon taxes or cap and trade
      Green Energy: Oppose subsidies or other preferential treatment because they create a culture of dependency on government regarding green technologies and solutions and artificially redirect the flow of capital in the market
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Support
      Environmental Reporting: Support voluntary triple bottom line and other holistic reporting systems for both private and public entities

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College Reform: Oppose
      Gerrymandering: Non-partisan drawing of districts
      Presidential term limits: Support status quo
      Public Financing: Oppose
      Term limits: Oppose for all offices other than President
      Executive Agencies: Reform to meet the constitutional duties of the federal government in the modern age
      Voter ID: Support
      Early Voting: Support, with cause
      Absentee Voting: Support, with cause, but abolish expat voting for expats who have lived abroad for more than 5 years
      Primaries: Abolish, end partisan voter registration and require parties to fund and organize their own caucuses for candidate nomination


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: OSR stands with Israel on October 19, 2016, 02:58:21 AM
      Update

      Overview
      Social: Moderate
      Economic: Conservative
      Foreign Policy: Assertive


      Social Policy:
      Abortion: Pro Choice for first 4 months
      Same-sex marriage: Prefer civil unions, but accept the law of the land
      Drug Laws: Legalize Pot , and reduce sentences for nonviolent drug crimes
      Death Penalty: Support
      Increased Gun control: Increase for assault rifles
      School Prayer: Student choice
      Discrimination: Support anti-discrimination laws for both public and private corporations, including on the grounds of sexual orientation, but small business refusing some services shouldnt count in anti discrimination laws.

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: Raise to 10 dollars and index to inflation
      Right-to-Work: Support
       Taxation: 0,8,16,24,32 as income tax rates , and removing many deductions for people making over a million dollars except if they hire a lot of people or invest a lot of money into the economy
      Healthcare: Status quo
      Regulations: Increase Regulations on Banks but significantly decrease on small business
      Welfare: Make people who receive welfare get job training, or work on an infrastructure project
      Social Security: Raise age to 68
      Education: Support Vouchers for kids in failing schools, but also funding better tutoring services in schools.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Opposes but support balancing the budget without increasing taxes in years of economic expansion .

      Foreign Policy and National Security
      Iran: Support Iran deal but with inspections every 6 months with threat to double the sanctions if the violate the treaty
      War on ISIS: Go all out to defeat them including ground forces
      Afghanistan: Leave
      Philosophy: Dont get involved unless it directly affects US security and interests
      Military Spending: Cut spending by 15-25% , by eliminating cold war relics and waste
      PATRIOT Act: Oppose
      NSA: Support with a warrant
      Israel/Palestine: Stand  with Israel and assist in efforts for a permanent two-state solution
      Immigration: Support more skilled immigrants to come here and get green cards, and punish employees for hiring illegal immigrants

      Environment
      Climate Change: It's real, and  our research efforts should go to create more financially efficient alternative energy products.
      Green Energy: Support tax credits



      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College Reform: End winner take all and go to proportional
      Gerrymandering: Non-partisan drawing of districts
      Presidential term limits:  status quo
      Financing: Only people who will be represented by the candidate in the election should be able to donate to it
      Term limits: Oppose for all offices other than President
      Voter ID: Support
      Early Voting: Support, with cause
      Absentee Voting: Support
      Primaries: Make it directly proportional


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Santander on October 19, 2016, 04:26:35 AM
      Economic: Conservative

      Taxation: 0,8,16,24,32 as income tax rates , and removing many deductions for people making over a million dollars except if they hire a lot of people or invest a lot of money into the economy
      Healthcare: Status quo
      Regulations: Increase Regulations on Banks but significantly decrease on small business
      Welfare: Make people who receive welfare get job training, or work on an infrastructure project
      Social Security: Raise age to 68


      Foreign Policy: Assertive

      Foreign Policy and National Security
      Iran: Support Iran deal but with inspections every 6 months with threat to double the sanctions if the violate the treat
      Afghanistan: Leave
      Philosophy: Dont get involved unless it directly affects US security and interests
      Military Spending: Cut spending by 15-25% , by eliminating cold war relics and waste
      PATRIOT Act: Oppose
      NSA: Support with a warrant
      I think you need to look up what the words Conservative and Assertive mean.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Sir Mohamed on October 19, 2016, 08:52:59 AM
      Ideology
      Social: Liberal and progressive; somewhat between center-left and left
      Economic: I believe in free markets and capitalism, but regulations are necessary, government must protect the poor and the middle-class
      Foreign: Favor diplomacy, military action only for self-defense and anti-terrorism operations. Decrease military spending
      Political Registration: Proud Democrat

      Social Policy
      Abortion: 100% pro-choice
      Same Sex Marriage: Support
      Drug policy: Decriminalize, but tax and regulate
      Death Penalty: Oppose
      Gun Control: Strongly support/demilitarize cops
      Prostitution: Legalize it with strong regulations
      Right to Die: Assisted suicide should be permitted in cases of illness like cancer
      PATRIOT Act/NSA Spying: mainly oppose, but in favor of surveillance of terrorist suspects
      Immigration: Reform the current system, offer a pathway to citizenship for illegals who did not commit crimes
      Guantanamo: Unconstitutional, close it.


      Economic Policy
      Minimum Wage: Raise it to $15 nationally and automatic raises with inflation
      Welfare: Generally support
      Social Security:  strengthen the system, expand benefits
      Right-to-Work: Oppose
      Taxation: Raise taxes on wealthy, close loopholes for big corporations. Cut taxes for middle-class and working poor
      Obamacare: Support, though I prefer single-payer
      Trade: Support, though agreements should be held to higher standards
      Climate Change: Move to 100% renewable energy within the next decades. Regulate pollution. Ban fracking.
      Keystone pipeline: oppose
      Fiscal policy: Oppose balanced-budget amendment. Deficit spending when necessary, but minimalize and pay back depth in econmoic sound times. Cut defense spending to lower deficit.
      Equal pay for equal work: strongly support
      Wall Street: Support strong regulations. Never again should taxpayers rescue big banks.

      Other stances:
      Citizens United: Must be overturned
      Gerrymandering: Establish non-partisan redistricting commission
      Term limits: Oppose
      Primaries: Only open primaries; delegates awarded only proportionally
      Common core: Support


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: OSR stands with Israel on October 19, 2016, 09:31:38 AM
      Economic: Conservative

      Taxation: 0,8,16,24,32 as income tax rates , and removing many deductions for people making over a million dollars except if they hire a lot of people or invest a lot of money into the economy
      Healthcare: Status quo
      Regulations: Increase Regulations on Banks but significantly decrease on small business
      Welfare: Make people who receive welfare get job training, or work on an infrastructure project
      Social Security: Raise age to 68


      Foreign Policy: Assertive

      Foreign Policy and National Security
      Iran: Support Iran deal but with inspections every 6 months with threat to double the sanctions if the violate the treat
      Afghanistan: Leave
      Philosophy: Dont get involved unless it directly affects US security and interests
      Military Spending: Cut spending by 15-25% , by eliminating cold war relics and waste
      PATRIOT Act: Oppose
      NSA: Support with a warrant
      I think you need to look up what the words Conservative and Assertive mean.

      Except it clearly is conservative as the economic plan supports tax cuts and major ones at that for the middle class and small business, replaces welfare with workfare , deregulates the economy in every area except the bank sector , and I support cutting domestic spending


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Tiger front on October 19, 2016, 10:22:41 AM
      Overview
      Social: Conservative
      Economic: Conservative
      National Security: Lean hawkish
      Party Affiliation : Republican

      Social Policy:
      Abortion: Pro-life, exception for danger for mother's health
      Gay Marriage: Oppose
      Drug Laws: Keep all illegal drugs illegal
      Stem Cell Research: Oppose
      Death Penalty: Support for mass murder
      Increased Gun control: Oppose
      Prayer in School: Support for student-led prayer
      Transgender Bathrooms: Oppose - there are only men and women
      Religious Liberty/Freedom of Conscience: Support for religious liberty and
      Discrimination: No discrimination, but I oppose affirmative actions

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: Not increase
      Right-to-Work: Support
      Taxation: Abolish income tax
      Healthcare: Repeal Obamacare, no to nationalizing of healthcare
      Social Security: Support for privatized Social Security
      Education: School choice, oppose Common Core
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Support
      Term Limits Admendment: Oppose
      Free Trade: Strongly support

      Foreign Policy and National Security:
      Iran: Not involve for now
      Iraq/Syria: Crash ISIS with military
      Military Spending: Increase
      PATRIOT Act: Support
      NSA: Support, it can stops terrorism
      Israel/Palestine: Support for Israel
      Immigration: Stronger border security, support for legal immigration

      Environment:
      Climate Change: Exists, but isn't so serious problem
      Green Energy: Let market decide about it
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Support

      Electoral Reform:
      Electoral College Reform: Oppose
      Gerrymandering: Let states decide
      Presidential term: 2 terms
      Public Financing: Oppose
      Term limits: Oppose, term limits are election
      Executive Agencies: Abolish some of them
      Voter ID: Support
      Early Voting: Support
      Absentee Voting: Oppose
      Primaries: Close primaries, oppose superdelegates


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: President Johnson on October 23, 2016, 06:08:49 AM
      Ideology in general
      Social: Liberal/progressive
      Economic: Moderate, Social market economy, fiscal conservative
      Foreign: Diplomacy first, use force when needed. Lean to oppose regime change

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Pro-choice
      Same Sex Marriage: Support
      Drug policy: Allow soft drugs, regulate sale and tax; hard drugs should remain illegal
      Sentencing laws: Support tough sentencing laws for violent crime
      Gun Control: Support common-sense regulations like background checks
      Prostitution: Legalize with strong regulations
      Right to Die: Support assistance for deadly illnesses
      Immigration: Support path to citizenship, reform immigration system, deport criminals, secure border
      Guantanamo: Close

      Economic Policy
      Minimum Wage: Raise to $15 nationally and automatic raises with inflation
      Welfare: Support as long as not abused
      Right-to-Work: Support; but support also strong unions
      Fiscal policy: Fiscal conservative. Make government more efficent, fight waste and fraud.
      Taxation: Progressive tax. Raise taxes on wealthy, cut for small businesses and middle class
      Banking sector: Strong regulations to avoid another recession
      Obamacare: Support, but prefer universal health care
      Trade: Support free trade, but should not interfere with common interests and lower certain standards.
      Climate Change: Should be taken very seriously. Fight emmissions, move to renewables.
      Keystone pipeline: Oppose

      Other issues:
      Presidential term: expand to five years, two consecutive terms allowed (Senate also five years, House 2,5 years. No term limit).
      Primaries: Move them from April to June; shortens endless campaigns in combination with a five-year term
      Line-item veto: support
      Electoral college: Abolish; vote by popular vote
      Gerrymandering: Nonpartisan commission for redistricting
      Supreme Court: Appointments for 12 years. No re-appointment.
      Campaign finance: should be more transparent; mixed between public and private funding. End super-pacs.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Santander on October 23, 2016, 04:44:22 PM
      Economic: Conservative

      Taxation: 0,8,16,24,32 as income tax rates , and removing many deductions for people making over a million dollars except if they hire a lot of people or invest a lot of money into the economy
      Healthcare: Status quo
      Regulations: Increase Regulations on Banks but significantly decrease on small business
      Welfare: Make people who receive welfare get job training, or work on an infrastructure project
      Social Security: Raise age to 68


      Foreign Policy: Assertive

      Foreign Policy and National Security
      Iran: Support Iran deal but with inspections every 6 months with threat to double the sanctions if the violate the treat
      Afghanistan: Leave
      Philosophy: Dont get involved unless it directly affects US security and interests
      Military Spending: Cut spending by 15-25% , by eliminating cold war relics and waste
      PATRIOT Act: Oppose
      NSA: Support with a warrant
      I think you need to look up what the words Conservative and Assertive mean.

      Except it clearly is conservative as the economic plan supports tax cuts and major ones at that for the middle class and small business, replaces welfare with workfare , deregulates the economy in every area except the bank sector , and I support cutting domestic spending
      Again, look up the definition of Conservative. If you are pulling levers based on dollar figures, you do not actually have a coherent ideology.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Attorney General, LGC Speaker & Former PPT Dwarven Dragon on December 07, 2016, 09:53:46 PM
      Thought I would update this since it's been over two years:

      Social:

      Abortion: Illegal, except in the case of the life of the mother. No federal funding. Open to legal abortion in cases where the fetus is known to have severe genetic disabilities (e.g. those that make one have a vegetable-style life), and would approve a rape/incest exception if it was the only way to get a nationwide abortion ban passed, but no further than that.

      Gay Marriage: It's settled law. Enough Said.

      Drugs: Lower the drinking age to 18. Full legalization of Marijuana for those 18 and older with a substantial excise tax. For other currently illegal drugs, fully and honestly reevaluate their current scheduling according to medical use and user risk, and make a decision on partial or full legalization based on that. However, end long prison terms for non-violent offenders and instead enroll them in a mandatory treatment program, perhaps with 1-3 years in prison for repeat offenders.

      Death Penalty: Only allowed if it is a first-degree murder case with irrefutable evidence that the defendant is guilty, approved by at least two separate guilt-determining jury trials (the second trial would happen automatically given a guilty verdict in the first, no appeal approval process required). Dramatically reduce time spent on death row, and use the guillotine instead of lethal injection.

      Gun Control: Expand background checks to all gun shows and the entire internet. Undecided on Assault Weapons Ban. Nothing else.

      Affirmative Action: Opposed. This is just a bunch of prejudice against whites.

      Prostitution: Opposed, but would probably just leave it up to the states if I was in the federal government as there are much bigger issues to deal with.

      Euthansia: Allowed, but only in cases where the patient and/or all living parents have given willful consent and there is a 0% chance of recovery.

      Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Opposed.

      Fiscal:

      Federal Minimum Wage: Raise gradually ($0.75 - $1) each year towards an ultimate goal of $15. After that, raise each year according to inflation.

      Welfare: Yes, but require one to be working or be enrolled in some sort of job training program after the first six months.

      Right to Work: Yes, but in a way that still keeps unions intact.

      Income Tax: Substantially reduce loopholes and deductions, open to very small rate decrease for those making less than $200,000 (e.g. 1-2%).

      FAIR Tax: Opposed

      Corporate Tax: Drastically reduce loopholes and deductions, lower top rate to 28%.

      Balanced Budget Amendment: Yes. Require a balanced budget by fiscal 2032, with exceptions for declared war that is actually being fought (i.e. congress can't use this exception unless U.S. soldiers are actually fighting in the country we've declared war against), and severe recessions (underemployment >= 15%) .

      Healthcare: Keep ObamaCare, but revise it. I have many things in mind: 40 hours, not 30 hours, should be considered full-time, work to dramatically lower premiums, allow a small number of health insurance companies that provide most but not all 'Obamacare-mandated' benefits to still exist for people that don't need full coverage (ex. people that don't need maternity-related services), continue to improve the website, switch birth control to being covered just like any other prescription with a reasonable co-pay, repeal the medical device tax, forbid business owners from laying off or firing people solely because of Obamacare-related costs, and require all hospitals and doctors to accept insurance policies purchased on the website, no exceptions.

      Medicare: Gradually raise retirement age for people under 55.

      Social Security: Eliminate payroll tax cap but lower payroll tax rate to 4.2% for those making under $200,000. Gradually raise retirement age for people under 55.

      Common Core: Opposed.

      Foreign:

      Afghanistan: Get Out. We've been there long enough.

      Further Action in Iraq: Opposed.

      Iran: I support the Iran Deal.

      Israel: Continue to be an ally, but respect its sovereignty and do not dictate its foreign or domestic policy.

      Syria: Leave them alone.

      Cuba: End the travel ban, gradually reestablish U.S.-Cuba trade.

      Military Spending: Cut it by $200 Billion immediately, then freeze for 15 years - no exceptions, not even for inflation, unless approved by a 2/3 majority of both houses of congress and the president.

      Foreign Economic Aid: I support the 'Newt Gingrich' view here. Eliminate it completely, and then have countries justify why we should give them a penny.

      Entering into War: Must always be formally declared by congress. Enforce the War Powers Act. Only enter into war if we have been attacked or there is a very serious risk of us being attacked.

      PATRIOT Act: Support in its current form

      Guantanamo Bay: Keep it open, but give potential prisoners a full jury trial in federal court.

      Immigration Reform: Support the 'Marco Rubio' plan passed by the U.S. Senate in 2013.

      Other:

      Keystone XL: Approve as long as U.S. actually uses some of the oil itself rather than exporting all of it.

      Standing Rock: Find a route that doesn't impede on Native American territory

      Energy: Support North American Energy Independence. Pro-Coal. Let the market work out renewable energy use.

      Climate Change: It exists, but the claims that Florida will sink into the ocean in 50 years or whatever are probably hogwash. Undecided on the exact extent of government actions that are merited to try to address it.

      Teaching Creationism/Teaching Evolution: Evolution should be taught, but teachers should openly address the question of divine involvement or control, and present arguments on both sides of that question. Young Earth Creationism and "Gap Theory" should not be taught.

      Electoral College: Keep

      Gerrymandering: Eliminate with shortest-splitline method

      Size of U.S. House: Increase to 600 members

      Congressional Term Limits: 6 terms for the house, 2 for the senate

      Statehood of Puerto Rico: Supportive

      Voter ID: No strong opinion either way. Would read proposed bill carefully before making a decision.



      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Orthogonian Society Treasurer on December 08, 2016, 05:38:22 PM
      me irl

      ()


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: VPH on December 08, 2016, 06:23:16 PM
      Ideology
      Social: Conservative on some issues left leaning on others
      Economic: Center-left, populist
      Foreign: Realist
      Registration: Democrat (and always will be) and Liberal Party of Canada

      Social
      Abortion: Pro-life yet semi pro-choice. I believe abortion should be made as rare as possible and that it should be banned after 20 weeks with the regular exceptions. I strongly oppose repealing the Hyde Amendment.
      Immigration: The system needs to be reformed to provide those here currently with a path to citizenship and to make the legal immigration easier. I'm generally pretty pro-immigrant.
      Same Sex Marriage: I think marriage equality is great.
      Death Penalty: I oppose the death penalty.
      Drug Policy: Shift away from prison time for low-level drug possession-potheads should not be imprisoned. For harder drugs, focus more on rehabilitation, drug education to encourage avoidance, and cracking down on pill mills/over-prescription. Also make sure officers can administer Narcan.
      Guns: I support the second amendment. I also believe background checks should be universal and am conflicted on an assault rifle ban.
      Euthanasia: I do support physician assisted suicide.
      Black Lives Matter: BLM has brought many important issues to the forefront of the political debate and I can confidently say I believe Black Lives Matter.
      Transgender Issues: I don't care what bathroom people are in-this is a ploy to distract folks from real issues. Also we need to fight hate crimes against Trans people.
      Political Correctness: We'd all be better off if people just respected eachother. However, PC, while useful as a concept, has its limits and is often abused.
      Muslim Ban/Testing: Trump's ideas about Muslims are Islamophobic and bigoted.

      Economic
      Taxes: I support a more progressive tax code (and a simpler one) where corporate loopholes and offshore loopholes are closed. The tax system (through EITC) should also be used to combat poverty.
      Social Security/Medicare: Lift the taxable income cap, target waste and fraud, very gradually raise the retirement age.
      Trade: I strongly oppose TPP and believe that NAFTA was done recklessly. Killing TPP is a priority but I recognize that going back on NAFTA would not work out. Global trade is important but needs to be done right.
      Healthcare: Ideally the US would move to a Medicare-for-all system. With the ACA in place however, there needs to be more incentives to help small business, reform of the Cadillac Tax, opened drug importation from Canada, and enforcement of anti-trust laws to tackle high prices.
      Deficit/Debt: Make the government more efficient. Target waste, consolidate redundancies, computerize records, etc.
      Minimum Wage: Raise the federal minimum to $12 an hour and allow states and localities to increase it further. Close the server loophole.
      Campaign Finance Reform: Overturn Citizens United immediately.
      Unions: I support card-check bills and strongly oppose RTW. Supporting unions is a great way to bolster the middle class.
      Energy: All of the above for now with a transition to green energy. Build Keystone XL and DAPL but invest more in incentives and research on renewable energy.
      Job Creation: Invest in infrastructure, especially in disadvantaged areas.
      Education: Lower interest rates on student loans and work with colleges to curb rising overhead costs. Also allow for refinancing of student loan debt and perhaps even loan forgiveness in some cases. For K-12, I strongly support public schools.

      Foreign
      ISIS: Continue airstrikes and work with regional allies to totally defeat the group. Also provide humanitarian aid to the region to counteract ISIS' ideological pull.
      Russia: Be tougher on Russia over their abuses and expansionary drive.
      China: We must recognize that China is one of our close partners and also a potential threat. Work with diplomatic and economic might to counteract expansion while collaborating on common ground like fighting climate change.
      Cuba: Open up more diplomatic and economic channels. Close Gitmo.
      Iran: I support the Iran Deal.
      Israel/Palestine: I think the US needs to be the face of reason that discourages violence and seeks a two-state solution. Israel is a key ally of ours and we should maintain that strong bond while working with them to bring about peace.
      Syria/Refugees: The US needs to step up and take more refugees (with proper screening processes of course) but also needs to urge nations like Saudi Arabia to take more. Also, we should provide aid to those in camps and villages ravaged by violence.
      NATO: We should continue full support for NATO.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: SATW on December 08, 2016, 06:40:23 PM
      Economic Issues: Fiscal Conservative/Economic Libertarian
      Taxes:
      - Strong opponent of progressive taxation.
      - Supportive of a flat tax system but would like some minor to medium level adjustments to ensure economic stability.
      - Supportive of eliminating national corporate tax and support lowering state corporate taxes.
      - Oppose the estate tax, carbon tax and sin/luxury tax.
      - Believe that states have a right to eliminate state income taxes, if it is feasible (FL, TX, TN, NH etc...)

      Healthcare:
      - Oppose Obamacare
      - Oppose Universal Healthcare and Single Payer Healthcare
      - Supporting raising the Medicare age to 67 and implementing necessary reforms to save the program.
      - Support minor to modest cuts in medicare/medicaid, if needed, but oppose gutting either program.
      - Support Medical Malpractice/Tort Reform and limiting the influence of powerful trial lawyers.
      - States have the right to reform their healthcare systems how they want as long as it does not supersede other states' systems or policies.

      Social Security:
      - Supporting raising the retirement age to either 67 or 69.
      - Support a partial privatization and/or a full privatization of social security (prefer the latter) and would like to see a phasing out of the program. If a privatization process begins then it must be ensured that older people still receive their owed social security benefits.
      - Would support create of online courses that teach people how to properly save money for short, medium or long periods of time. This surely would cost less then social security currently does.

      Minimum Wage:
      - Oppose granting a $15 (or $20) minimum wage in general and especially for fast-food workers.
      - Oppose minimum wage increases in general with the exception of adjusting for inflation.
      - Speaking of minimum wage, am also against a basic universal income.
      - The minimum wage system should be reformed and broken up by career field and cost of living in a specified area.
      - Every state has a right to raise or lower the minimum wage and honestly would prefer all minimum wage decisions to be made on the state and local level with little to no input from the federal government.

      Welfare and Unemployment Benefits:
      - I support a minimal welfare system and prefer to have a working requirement for it (but this should not be a federal requirement and believe each state should decide if it is appropriate or not).
      - I support keeping unemployment benefits intact but oppose extending it for people who were rightfully fired and/or were fired and subsequently convicted of a serious felony.
      - I strongly oppose giving welfare and/or unemployment benefits to illegal immigrants.
      - I like the idea of drug-testing welfare recipients but there needs to be a cost effective method of enforcing this. If forced to choose, I would tenuously support enacting this type of policy but with heavy reservations due to cost.
      - Job training programs should be mandatory immediately for anyone receiving welfare benefits.
      - Ending welfare abuse, where it is being caused by poor people or rich people (yes, the latter does happen), should be a top priority of the federal government. People who abuse the system should receive hefty fines, a felony on their record and jail time.  

      Education:
      - I support charter schools and private voucher programs.
      - I support promoting private schools, religious and secular, but not with state or federal money.
      - I support our public schools and believe massive reforms need to be undertaken to improve the quality of education in this country.
      - After school programs in inner-cities DO work and need to be promoted. It benefits everyone to support programs that keep kids off the streets. Would prefer for these programs to be funded through private organizations and means but I also support public schools engaging in efforts with organizations to former partnerships.
      - I strongly oppose teacher's unions, especially in states like New Jersey. That being said, our teachers are underpaid in many states and I support finding ways to increase teacher's pay in reasonable manners.
      - I oppose the elimination of the Department of Education. I agree that localization is very important and should be promoted but the DOE has a real purpose and should not be allowed to be dismantled.
      - I oppose common core standards.
      - I support homeschooling. I don't think it's a bad method of education as long as they are following required protocols and procedures set by the government.

      Free Trade:
      - Strong supporter of free trade policies and oppose protectionism.
      - Strong supporter of NAFTA and TPP.
      - However, I also understand the concerns of working-class workers and believe there are ways to alleviate the effects of free trade on them without hindering the benefits of trade. We, for some reason as a country, think we are locked in a game of intensity of preferences when in reality we could provide a good compromise.
      - One way to do this would be by promoting job training programs that would specialize manufacturing workers in more profitable careers. This way when free trade washes away some outdated professions we can avoid mass lay offs in areas like Northeastern OH and PA.
      - I'd prefer if private companies and corporations engage in this themselves and perhaps we could provide incentive for them to do this by lowering corporate taxes or signal support for future free trade agreements in the future. However, if this is not feasible, I would not oppose limited government funding for these job training programs.
      - This is clearly an issue I agree more with Hillary Clinton (and neoliberals) then Donald Trump on but there are some aspects of his policy that I'm not opposed to. The U.S. should want to strengthen its rewards in its agreements with China, India and Japan.
      - I support the idea of a European Union, meaning an organization that strengthens ties via free trade and market economics, but I cannot support the current structure of the EU we all know. I supported Brexit and will likely support other reasonable efforts to leave the EU by other countries (key word: reasonable).

      Immigration:
      - I don't just see this as a national security issue but also as an economic issue, which is why I put it here.
      - I oppose amnesty and open border policies but I also support compromise.
      - I support adopting the e-verify system to help stop criminal illegals from coming into the country.
      - I support building a stronger border fence/security fence.
      - I support deporting illegal immigrant criminals and illegal immigrants who are abusing entitlement programs.
      - I oppose allowing illegal immigrants to obtain welfare and unemployment benefits as noted earlier and also oppose letting them obtain driver's licenses.
      - I oppose granting citizenship to illegal immigrants but I do support a provision of the DREAM Act that allows people to obtain citizenship after serving in the military. I think military and/or national service via charity work (etc...etc...) would be a good measure to enforce.
      - I, however, oppose the DREAM Act as a whole. I also oppose granting working VISAs to illegal immigrants who came in as illegal immigrants. It is not America's obligation to find work for non-citizens. I do want to make a distinction and state that I'm not against working VISAs for immigrants or people from other countries staying here for work. I am just against granting working VISAs for people who came in illegally.
      - I also would like to propose a plan that would grant citizenship to permanent U.S. residents w/ valid green cards (assuming they pass background/criminal checks and have lived in the U.S. as perma. residents for a minimum of 10 years). These people have been here legally for a long time and deserve to be citizens.
      - I also supporting renewing green cards and VISAs for people who came to America legally but for whatever reason could not renew their green card or VISA. Requirements for this would be 1) having a job or a reason for being in the US 2) having a clean criminal and background history.
      - Ultimately, I believe in legal immigration and oppose illegal immigration. I want to promote the legal usage of our process and discourage coming into the country illegally.

      Deficits and Budgets:
      - Balancing the budget should be a priority for the government.
      - Best way to start is by cutting the fatty, unnecessary elements in each department (do we really need Item A this year? can we hold off on that for a few years? etc...etc...)
      - Prefer to see entitlements cut over defense of national security budgets but I think everything will likely need to be cut a bit to balance the budget in an effective and stable manner.
      - I support a balanced budget amendment but I'd like one less strict then the one my fellow Conservatives usually call for. I think it should have some exceptions for war times or natural disasters and other dire situations like that.  

      Environmental and Energy Issues:
      - I oppose the idea of a carbon tax and also oppose cap and trade style policies.
      - I side with businesses over environmentalists when it comes to regulations and taxes.
      - I oppose the EPA's war on coal.
      - I support fossil fuel usage as a reliable source of energy.
      - I support diversifying our energy resource pool by engaging in domestic offshore drilling, drilling for Marcellus Shale and fracking. I also support diversifying where we get our foreign oil from and also support investing in natural gas and nuclear energies. Diversification politics is even more important for the EU when dealing with Russia and Iran.
      - I oppose public funding of windmills or other wind-based forms of energy. I do support private research and implementation of more progressive and environmentally friendly resources if businesses choose to do so.
      - I believe climate change is natural and that man has no effect on it one way or another. Therefore, we should engage in pro-business, pro-economic growth policies on energy issues.
      - I am a strong supporter of Hunter's rights but I also support strictly enforcing the regulations relating to the endangering species list (fines, jailtime etc...). I also support the rules in place for when hunting season can and does occur.
      - Animal cruelty is a severe problem and must be tackled. This includes enforcing harsh penalties for cockfighting, dogfighting etc...

      Other:
      - I support auditing and ending the Federal Reserve.
      - I support right to work on a state level but oppose a federal bill
      - I oppose overregulating Wall Street despite my weariness towards them.
      - I am very opposed to populist economics promoted by both sides (Trump/Buchanan on the right; Sanders/Warren on the left).

      Will make separate post for social/foreign policy issues.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: SATW on December 08, 2016, 07:59:58 PM
      Social Issues: Moderate to Conservative

      Abortion:
      - Pro-Life, with exceptions for rape and when a mother's life is endangered.
      - Oppose embryonic stem cell research but support adult stem cell research.
      - Support overturning Roe v. Wade and support a federal ban.
      - Support defunding Planned Parenthood.
      - Support Personhood amendment.

      LGBT Equality:
      - Support Marriage equality and LGBT Adoption.
      - Support ENDA strongly.
      - Support the Matthew Shepard Act.
      - Believe every public university should have resources to support at-risk LGBT youth.
      - Support banning "conversion therapy" and oppose public money going to "conversion therapy"

      Drugs:
      - War on Drugs has not been successful, thus far, and needs to be reorganized ASAP.  Like education, I think our efforts against drugs can and should be localized.
      - Part of this localization effort requires the repeal of the federal ban on marijuana. I think the federal government's overzealous focus on pot has had devastating effects on society. Let states decide if they want to legalize it or not but it should not be a criminal offense, unless one is dealing. 
      - Another step in the localization effort would be to focus on each state's biggest drug epidemics. Heroin, Meth, Crack all have bad epidemics in key areas of the country. We should be focusing our efforts on tackling the drug dealers spreading these drugs and not on some college kid smoking weed.
      - Go after drug cartels and drug dealers harder then ever before. They are a menace on our society.
      - I support the legalization of medicinal marijuana and also support legitimate medical research on marijuana. 

      Voter ID Laws:
      - I support photo and non-photo ID Voter laws.
      - Photo ID options: License, passport, driver's permit, a simple ID card from the DMV.
      - Non-Photo ID options: social security cards, voter registration #, birth certificate.

      Gerrymandering:
      - Independent Redistricting Commission in every state. Tired of people on both sides whining about muh gerrymanders by the other side.

      Congressional Term Limits:
      - Generally against term limits for Congress but I could see myself supporting a solution that has a 24 year limit for the U.S. House and a 24 year limit for the U.S. Senate.
      - I'm big on preserving seniority in Congress but I am also against congressional lifers (people serving like 50 years until they die).


      2nd Amendment:
      - Strong supporter of the 2nd Amendment.
      - Oppose most forms of gun control.
      - Support criminal and background checks.
      - Oppose bans on AR-15s, or other semi-auto's.
      - Oppose waiting period for gun purchases.
      - Support bans on suspects listed on a terror watch list.

      Vaccines:
      - I trust medical professionals, doctors, nurses, scientists and 100% support the usage of vaccines to help people.
      - Anti-Vaxxers are crazy conspiracy theorists and pose a danger not only to themselves but to others as well.

      Death Penalty:
      - Strong supporter of the death penalty on the state and federal level.
      - Believe that each state has a right to ban or not ban the usage of the death penalty.
      - I only support using the death penalty for heinous and serious crimes such as terrorism, sadistic crimes against humanity, murder/mass murders/serial killers, serial rapists, serial pedophiles etc...

      Law and Order Issues/National Security:
      - For localities and states, I support law and order anti-crime measures to keep our societies safe. This includes the death penalty, the broken windows theory, the three strikes law etc...
      - Also support stop-and-frisk policies.
      - On the federal level, I strongly support the work the NSA engages in. I also support the TSA but believe that there is much room for improvement there.
      - I support the PATRIOT Act.
      - I proudly support our law enforcement officials.
      - We need to do a better job on educating the youth about sexual assault and rape and how to prevent it, how to help the victims and how to properly handle these situations in the public sphere. Of course, people convicted of rape and sexual assault deserve to be punished to the fullest extent of the law.  On the same note, there needs to be an effort to counter fake rape and sexual assault reports as well, as rare as they may be.

      Affirmative Action:
      - Oppose affirmative action, especially in regards to college education.

      Civil Rights Issues:
      - I obviously oppose all forms of bigotry, sexism and racism but people have a right to think and speak in bigoted manners. They just cannot act on those pretenses in a physical or threatening manner.
      - I strongly believe in promoting equality in the form of opportunity. Everyone, regardless of race, religion, gender or sexuality has a right to have the opportunity to succeed in the public forum.
      - I especially focus on countering antisemitism as I am Jewish. I specifically believe that antisemitism on college campuses is a severe and growing problem in the U.S., Canada, Europe and other places.
      - Clearly, we have some work to do in our country in relations to the African-American community but I strongly oppose Black Lives Matter (BLM) as I think they are extreme in actions and rhetoric and do nothing to better the situation.  I think a dialogue needs to be opened up between legitimate organizations on both the people of color's side and the law enforcement side. Community outreach, compassion and bridging of differences is the only way we will be able to solve anything.
      - Finally, I believe diversity in friend groups and culture is a positive and should not be feared.

      Freedom of Speech and Political Correctness:
      - Supporting civil rights causes is almost always a positive but social justice warriors have taken their pursuit of justice to a very dangerous extreme. I oppose SJWs with an undying passion and believe that they are against freedom of speech and freedom of expression when they disagree with an opinion.
      - Everyone has a right to freedom of speech in a public forum, even if that opinion is controversial, unpopular or bigoted. Safe Spaces are jokes and should not be allowed or encouraged. People who get "triggered" need to grow up.
      -  However, freedom of speech does not mean one is void of all consequences that may occur. A private company has a right to fire a racist if it violates their vision for their workplace and mission statement. Private organizations, like twitter, do not have an obligation to let you do whatever you want on their time or domain.
      - I despise people who burn the American flag but it is a form of legitimate political expression and should not be banned.

      Other Social Issues:
      - Oppose Prostitution legalization but it is a state issue.
      - Oppose euthanasia and assisted suicide but it is a state issue.
       


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: JGibson on December 08, 2016, 09:00:27 PM
      Ideology
      Social: Very liberal
      Economic: left-populist
      Foreign: Pragmatic
      Registration: Democrat

      Social
      Abortion/Reproductive Rights: Proudly pro-choice. Supports repeal of Hyde Amendment, against TRAP Laws, personhood movement, pro-Planned Parenthood funding.
      Immigration: The system needs to be reformed to provide those here currently with a path to citizenship and to make the legal immigration easier. I'm generally pretty pro-immigrant.
      Marriage Equality/LGBTQ Issues: I think marriage equality is great. Proudly supportive of LGBTQ rights. Against Indiana SB101/Missouri SJR39/North Carolina HB2-style RFRA laws.
      Death Penalty: I am weakly supportive of the DP in certain cases.
      Religious Freedom: Strong supporter of religious freedoms for all faiths and those with no faith belief at all.
      Marijuana Legalization: Strongly in favor of legalizing it for both medical and recreational usage.
      Guns: Generally pro-Gunsense and pro-2A (not in the way that NRA/GOA crowd mean it). Support gun background checks and Assault Weapons Ban. Also support conceal carry.
      Euthanasia: I am against euthanasia and assisted suicide.
      Black Lives Matter/Police/Criminal Justice Reform: Strong supporter of criminal justice and police reform and #BlackLivesMatter. Such stance doesn't make me "anti-police."
      Transgender Issues: I strongly believe that trans people have the right to enter the bathrooms/locker rooms of the gender matching their identity and that transphobia be condemned.
      Sex Education: I strongly support sex education in schools, starting from middle school.
      Education: Lower interest rates on student loans and work with colleges to curb rising overhead costs. Also allow for refinancing of student loan debt and perhaps even loan forgiveness in some cases. For K-12, I strongly support public schools.
      Muslim Ban/Testing: Trump's ideas about Muslims are Islamophobic and bigoted, and flatly unconstitutional as well.
      Voting Rights: Fully reinstate and expand the VRA of 1965. Voter ID laws are a tool of voter suppression.

      Economic
      Taxes: I support a more progressive tax code (and a simpler one) where corporate loopholes and offshore loopholes are closed. The tax system (through EITC) should also be used to combat poverty.
      Social Security: No increase of the retirement age minimum. In fact, it should be decreased to 55. Expand, not dismantle.
      Medicare/Medicaid: Expand, not repeal, both Medicaid and Medicare.
      Trade: I strongly oppose TPP and believe that NAFTA was done recklessly.
      Health Care: PPACA was a mostly good start. Public option is the way to go.
      Welfare/Food Stamps: Strongly pro-food stamps. Attempts to eliminate/reduce are forms of poor-shaming. Drug-testing for food stamps is a costly idea.
      Minimum Wage: Strongly pro-increase of a minimum wage to at least $10. Server increased to $6.
      Campaign Finance Reform: Overturn Citizens United v. FEC and McCutcheon v. FEC immediately.
      Unions: I support card-check bills and strongly oppose RTWFL. Supporting unions is a great way to bolster the middle class.
      Energy: Clean energy. Against fracking. NO to KXL and DAPL.
      Job Creation: Invest in infrastructure, especially in disadvantaged areas.

      Foreign
      ISIS: Continue airstrikes and work with regional allies to totally defeat the group. Also provide humanitarian aid to the region to counteract ISIS' ideological pull.
      Russia: Be tougher on Russia over their abuses and expansionary drive.
      North Korea: The USA should partner with allies to take down Kim Jong-Un if he strikes the USA.
      China: We must recognize that China is one of our close partners and also a potential threat. Work with diplomatic and economic might to counteract expansion while collaborating on common ground like fighting climate change.
      Cuba: Close Gitmo, end embargo.
      Iran: I support the Iran Deal.
      Iraq: The 2003 Iraq invasion was a massive mistake.
      Israel/Palestine: Favorable to the 2-state solution, and BOTH Israel and Palestine are at fault for the hostilities.
      Syria/Refugees: The US needs to step up and take more refugees (with proper screening processes of course) but also needs to urge nations like Saudi Arabia to take more. Also, we should provide aid to those in camps and villages ravaged by violence.
      Turkey: While they have been one of our long time allies, their continuing slide towards full-on dictatorship is very worrisome.
      Venezuela: Chávez and Maduro have wrecked Venezuela beyond repair.
      NATO: We should continue full support for NATO.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: SATW on December 08, 2016, 09:14:51 PM
      Foreign Policy: Neoconservative/Hawk

      Alliances:
      - The United States should always stand by its allies across the world, especially those that are democracies.
      - Examples: UK, Israel, Canada, Japan, Australia, and countries of the EU.
      - I am 100% in support of increasing foreign aid to our allies, in terms of military aid, technological/scientific aid, financial aid and humanitarian aid. In many cases our allies cooperate with us and provide useful information relating to cyber-security, counterterrorism and other fields.
      - In relations to some of our more controversial, non-democratic allies (Egypt, Saudi Arabia, China, Jordan, Azerbaijan etc...) I believe we should also support them in many cases, as they are our allies for often very important reasons. This is especially important in relation to the Middle East where power and trust are valued over anything else. However, we do have a right to question these non-democratic countries when it is in our interests to do so.

      War on Terrorism/Radical Islam:
      - The United States and the world as a whole should remain vigilant in its efforts to counter, defeat and destroy terrorist organizations and terrorist cells. A Government's main responsibility is to protect its own people and to protect its own interests.
      - One of our main goals should be to weaken/destroy (preferably the latter) ISIS and its offshoots in Iraq, Syria, the Sinai and Libya.
      - Another main goal should be to stabilize Syria. The humanitarian situation there is depressingly disturbing and the international community's reaction has been...lacking. Obviously, it easier said then done. I always don't want to create the impression that only the US should be involved in stabilizing Syria and alleviating the suffering there. The entire world, especially the western world has an obligation to stabilize Syria's borders. I honestly think cooperation with Russia is the only way that a possible ending to this bloody civil war is even remotely foreseeable.
      - After those two quagmires get addressed, the world can then focus on tackling other terrorist organizations, such as Hamas, Hezbollah, al-Shaabab, Boko Haram, Al Qaeda, al-Nusra and others. the world will also need to address the two elephants in the room - Iran and Turkey.

      Turkey:
      - Obviously, a difficult situation for the western world here. Turkey is on the border of Europe, separating us from ISIS in Syria, and is in NATO. They should be a trusted ally but because of Erdogan's insane power trip things have become extremely problematic.
      - Since the coup, Erdogan has purged all of Turkey of secular leaders, of pro-democracy teachers, journalists and military officers. I honestly think this is grounds for sanctions on Turkey and a discussion of Turkey's future in NATO.
      - Turkey has threatened to jump to the Shanghai Bloc, if this is done then Turkey should be suspended from NATO.
      - Also, in light of Turkey's continued anti-democratic actions, I believe we should renew the international community's opposition to revisionist history and formally recognize the the Armenian Genocide. It is imperative that countries like the U.S., Israel, the U.K. and Germany all do so on a national level.

      Iran:
      - Iran is one of the biggest threats to world stability at the moment. They are determined to continue sponsoring terrorism abroad, especially with Hezbollah as its proxy and are even more determined to obtain nuclear weapons.
      - I vehemently oppose the Iran Nuclear Deal negotiated by the P5+1 and I believe it will go down as a historic mistake that will only worsen the state of the middle east in the long run.  I think that increased sanctions would have been a better alternative until we were able to get a better deal.
      - Iran's military threats are not the only thing concerning about their quests. They want to gain economic control of the region for then anything else, which of course includes the oil markets. This would bring Europe to its knees economically and leave them no choice but to cave to pressure created by Iran.

      Israeli-Palestinian Conflict:
      - I have long supported the two-state solution for a very long time but I am starting to look for other alternatives. I am not convinced that the Palestinian leadership wants peace with Israel nor do I think a solution will be finalized anytime soon.
      - I also side with Israel on most issues relating to the conflict. Mainly on security and counterterrorism issues. I also side with Israel, mostly, on settlements (especially in relation to East Jerusalem and the Gush Etzion region of Judea and Samaria).
      - I believe reform within the Palestinian Authority is the only way a two state solution is salvageable, but sadly, I don't see that occurring anytime soon.
      - I believe the U.N., most of the western media and a good amount of western countries are appeasing the Palestinians and that this is very much apart of the reason why they aren't taking peace seriously.

      U.S. Military/Defense Issues/Veterans Issues:
      - U.S. Military should always be prepared for the worst and should always be updated with high tech weaponry and intelligence.
      - The Defense Department should continue its cooperation with important allies such as Israel, the UK, Australia, India etc... in fields such as cyber security, military tech advancement and training ops.
      - I am a huge supporter of the U.S. military and am thankful for all the sacrifices they make for us.
      - In relations to Veterans' issues, I truly believe our country has done our veterans a disservice. The VA is a circus show and clearly needs to be reformed. We have a serious backlog problem (relating to benefits) and it must be addressed ASAP. I don't see how anyone can propose creating new benefits plans for veterans when we haven't even cleared our current, giant stack of owed benefits.

      Russia:
      - I have changed my views on Russia recently. We need to continue an increase in sanctions and to continue opposing Putin's lack of respect for human rights in his country and abroad.
      - Our policy in the Middle East when it comes to Russia needs to be more aggressive in diplomatic terms. We need to weaken it's influence as it has its fingers deep in Assad's Syria and in Iran. Russia emboldens Iran by continuously selling it high grade weapons and by ignoring Iran's sponsorship of terrorism. 
      - In regards to Russia's European expansionist policies, I think its clear we need to put our foot down and increase pressure and sanctions on them. Russia was threatening out diplomats last year and we had no response except to ask them to halt their harassment. Extremely pathetic response. 
      - Russia respects power confidence more then anything else and they have not seen any of that under Pres. Obama, and this has not gotten better under Pres. Trump.


      China and the South China Sea:
      - We must continue to assert our strength and opposition to China's claims to the South China Sea.
      - Our allies' security in Asia  depends on it (Japan, S. Korea, Taiwan etc...).
      - In general, I believe we need to adjust our policy on China. Especially in relations to Taiwan. I believe we need to move away from the One China policy and start moving towards accepting Taiwan into the community of nations in a reasonable time frame.
      - I do strongly support maintaining close and intimate ties, economically, with China but it should be made clear that our foreign policies are clearly opposite of each other's and that the United States will not abandon its positions because of pressure from Beijing.

      The Philippines:
      - Duterte is a sociopath. The world should continue to monitor his activities and words over the coming months. I would prefer to denounce him formally at the UN but, unfortunately, it seems that the people of his country wanted this type of leadership.
      - We should be ready to sanction him if he starts engaging in more ludicrous behavior and if he starts to engage in anti-democratic activities (i.e. curbing the media, etc...)


      Promoting Democracy:
      - I strongly support promoting countries, organizations and people that engage in pro-democracy activities. This includes supporting the State of Israel and Taiwan against its enemies.
      - I also support the creation of an independent and democratic Kurdistan in Iraq and believe the world has not done nearly enough to support the Kurds in their historic aspirations for freedom. I also believe the world has not done enough to support the Pershmerga.
      - It is a known fact that the International community is not always keen on territories or conflicted areas seeking independence. This is because it is difficult to create an environment for these new countries to succeed in. The Czech Republic and Slovakia have been, for years, a gold standard example of successful separation and independence. Neither country is perfect but they have been recent examples of successful countries that separated from previous, existing alliances/countries.
      - I think we should be evaluating potential areas of the world that want independence and, as a international community, determine if independence is sustainable or desirable. For example, I think many would agree that the South Sudan experiment has been a failure on almost every level.
      - The said could be partially said about Kosovo, which sits as Europe's most impoverished nation at the moment.
      - I believe in promoting democracy in areas of the world where it is sensible to do so. Not every country is ready for democracy and that must be understood. This is especially important to remember when dealing with allies of our allies who aren't necessarily democratic.  



      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: JA on December 14, 2016, 09:21:48 PM
      Ideology
      Social: Social Justice, Left-wing
      Economic: Progressive, Social Democratic (Scandinavian Model)
      Foreign Policy: Realist
      Environment: Environmentalist, Green

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Pro-choice, legal partial birth
      Same-Sex Marriage: Strongly support
      Drugs: Legalization of marijuana; decriminalization of all other drugs with the focus on rehabilitation instead of punishment for offenders
      Death Penalty: Strongly oppose in all situations
      Gun Control: Support background checks, mental health screening, closing the gun-show loophole, a mandatory firearm safety course, and strict ban on all automatic and semi-automatic weapons
      Affirmative Action: Support as a way of improving the socioeconomic position of disadvantaged groups and representation of these groups in all industries and fields
      Prostitution: Strongly oppose. While I do not oppose it as a personal choice, per se, it cannot be legalized since it would further objectify the human body to be exploited for profit. We must end the existence of situations that would compel a person into prostitution, not legalize the practice
      Euthanasia: Strongly support. Should be an option for a terminally ill patient of any age
      Immigration: Grant amnesty to all non-violent undocumented immigrants. Dramatically increase our refugee intake and slash the cost and regulations associated with immigration, while focusing on increasing skilled immigration and decreasing unskilled
      Black Lives Matter: Strongly support
      Transgender Issues: Legislate against any discrimination aimed at LGBTQ persons. Gender and sex are not the same; one is a socially constructed identity, the other is a biological reality. No one is born a boy/man or girl/woman, but they are born a male or female
      Political Correctness: Sometimes it goes too far by censoring, harassing, intimidating, and bullying anyone who may not be aware of the most recent sociological findings. However, it has been an overall net good as it has encouraged us to be more empathetic, polite, and sensitive
      Muslim Ban: Pure Islamophobia arising from a total misunderstanding and fear of Islam and the Muslim community

      Economic Issues
      Minimum Wage: Establish a national living wage of $15 per hour set to rise with inflation. Also establish a basic minimum income of a negotiable rate – ideally 25% of the median personal income for a county
      Welfare: Safeguard and expand the welfare state. Ensure food security for all Americans, provide adequate living assistance, paid maternity and paternity leave of at least 1 year each, paid sick leave, 2 weeks guaranteed paid holidays, and subsidized childcare
      Social Security: Lift the taxable income cap and protect it from misuse of its funds by Congress
      Healthcare: National single-payer system based on Medicare-for-all. Open the market to drug imports from abroad
      Trade: Opposition to corporate controlled “free trade” deals such as TPP. Renegotiate our trade agreements to ensure our trade partners meet minimum standards for environmental regulation, labor rights, workers’ safety, fair wage laws, no currency manipulation, and no unfair regulations on American businesses
      Deficit/Debt: Maximize efficiency, streamline all governmental agencies, consolidate agencies and eliminate redundancies, abolish the NSA, gut the military and defense budget, focus on implementing cost saving technologies, and make it publicly available and readily accessible to see where all funds are going, the budgets of every agency and department, and who voted for what funding
      Campaign Finance Reform: Overturn Citizens United and pass a Constitutional Amendment limiting campaign donations to individual contributions of $100 or less (set to adjust for inflation)
      Unions: Strongly support. Completely overturn the Taft-Hartley Act, strengthen public and private sector unions, and abolish all right-to-work laws
      Energy: Invest heavily in green energy with the intent of revolutionizing our energy sector. Incentivize businesses and individuals to go green with tax breaks, implement cap and trade, partially nationalize all companies exploiting our natural resources, and begin reducing fracking and offshore drilling
      Job Creation: Invest in a massive infrastructure redevelopment program; create the world’s largest green energy industry; incentivize businesses to create jobs in underprivileged areas (inner cities and Appalachia especially); dramatically increase investment in STEM, research, education, and creating the world’s best internet connection and distribution
      Education: Tuition free public universities, refinancing of student loan debt, universal pre-k, end school segregation that further disadvantages lower income and minority students, implement an educational system modeled after Finland’s, and ensure all students are extensively taught the science behind anthropogenic global warming and evolution, critical thinking rather than rote memorization, budgeting and finances, civics, empathy and tolerance, and sexual education (beginning in kindergarten)
      Taxes: Institute a steep, but gradual progressive income tax with the maximum rate of 60%; increase taxes on unhealthy foods and drinks, alcohol, cigarettes, and marijuana; implement a VAT on par with that of most European countries; implement a strict 60% tax on speculation and income derived from investments; maintain the current corporate tax rate, but eliminate all loopholes and save deductions only for specified domestic, positive investments

      Foreign
      ISIS: Focus on providing humanitarian aid to the region in cooperation with the UN. Continue targeted tactical airstrikes intended solely to weaken their infrastructure without endangering civilian lives. Pressure the Gulf States and Turkey to cease any potential cooperation and business they may have with the terrorist state
      Russia/NATO: Reaffirm our commitment to the NATO alliance, pursue international condemnation against Russia for their domestic human rights violations and war crimes in Syria, and arm the government in Ukraine to combat the Russian foreign fighters
      China: Address the country’s currency manipulation and rampant human rights violations. But pursue this agenda strategically, without trying to anger a country with which we would benefit more from trade and cooperation
      Cuba: Completely normalize relations. Close Guantanamo Bay
      Iran: Pursue international condemnation of Iran’s rampant human rights abuses. Protect the Iran Nuclear Deal as the best safeguard against Iran obtaining nuclear weapons
      Israel/Palestine: A two-state solution is the only option. Israel must be pressured to cease all new construction in the West Bank, reach a mutually beneficial agreement over Jerusalem, and recognize the human rights and dignity of the Palestinians. The Palestinian leadership must accept that the Israeli state will continue to exist and gain control over its citizens who engage in terrorist acts
      Syria/Refugees: Alleviate the pressure on Europe and Syria’s neighbors by taking in at minimum 200,000 Syrian refugees. We must also negotiate using our leverage for the Gulf States to take in refugees or at least provide funding for host countries (which we should as well). Iran, Russia, and Syria must be pressured to act in accordance with international laws of warfare and allow humanitarian aid. The situation in Syria is too complex for external players to make any positive contribution by picking sides; we should only ensure the minimum number of civilians suffer as a result


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Shadows on January 02, 2017, 04:31:17 PM
      Ideology : Left leaning progressive with strong libertarian streak on social, civil liberties & foreign policy

      ]Social Policy

      Abortion: Pro-choice

      Same-Sex Marriage: Strong support

      Drugs: Legalize all drugs, treat as mental illness, open rehab & awareness programs

      Death Penalty:
      Strong opposition in all cases

      Gun Control: Background checks, mental health screening, closing the gun-show loophole, National Referendum or State Ballot poll on all automatic and semi-automatic weapons

      Affirmative Action: No (support more investment in poor communities, affordable housing etc)

      Prostitution:
      Legalize

      Euthanasia:
      Undecided

      Sex Education : Strong supporter

      Immigration: Amnesty for non-violent. Increase refugees considerably, make immigration easier for skilled people & increase skilled people intake

      Black Lives Matter:
      Strongly support

      Transgender Issues: Pro Transgenders

      Muslim Ban: Oppose strongly

      Economic Issues

      Minimum Wage:  $15 per hour & indexed to inflation.

      Universal Basic Income : Oppose now, re-evaluate in 10-15 years depending on unemployment, tax revenue, deficit, demographic breakup

      Welfare: Paid maternity and paternity leave for first 2 children, paid sick leave, subsidized childcare, expand food security programs

      Social Security: Lift the taxable income cap & dis-allow looting

      Healthcare: Single Payer, allow drug imports

      Trade: Free Trade with countries having comparable wages & environmental norms. Otherwise free trade but allow sectoral tariffs for industries with high paying & job intensive sectors like automobiles

      Deficit/Debt: Reduce gradually, start with 50B reduction every year, reduce Military spending drastically year by year & increase taxes on very wealthy, close corporate loopholes. Balance the budget in 7-8 years. Support high deficit in recession (Keynesian) & poor economy years but deficits should be cut down soon

      Campaign Finance Reform: Overturn Citizens United, maintain current individual cap

      Unions: Strong support, overturn Reagan's disastrous policies

      Energy: Tax breaks for Renewable R & D, Subsidies for Solar/Wind, 10 Year Moratorium on all off-shore drilling.

      Environment - Ban Fracking, impose Carbon Tax, Increase Emission standards for Cars, Boost public transport in big cities, Increase R & D & funding for hybrid/electric cars

      Job Creation:
      Massive infra program spending 4T in 10 years. Support green jobs

      Education:
      Tuition free college, refinance debt, include climate change in text books

      Taxes: Progressive taxes with maximum tax between 50-55%, same current corporate tax rate, tax breaks for people earning less than 150K

      Glass Steagal - Yes, break the banks

      Aid - Only humanitarian & strictly for poor countries. No aid to countries which aids terrorists tacitly

      Foreign

      ISIS: Ensure Turkey & Sunni countries don't buy ISIS Oil & don't support them. Use Drones but decrease usage to reduce civilian casualties. Work with Gulf Countries, NATO, Russia to beat ISIS. Ensure Gulf states have soldiers on the ground. Stop funding Rebels/Al Qaeda in Syria, decide on Assad only after ISIS is taken care.

      Russia/NATO:
      Ease relations with Russia for 6 months, lift all sanctions & try to be friends with the condition that they leave Syria, don't support people in Ukraine. Try to mend relations. If not go back to strong sanctions. Support NATO but refuse to pay beyond current share. Pull out of bases if they refuse to pay but give them a 3 year time limit.

      Japan/South Korea : No nuclear weapons, give them 3 year time-frame for full reimbursement, otherwise pull out troops

      China: Scrap FTA with China. Deal strictly to reduce greenhouse emission by China & to control North Korea. if China misbehaves - Open to declare Taiwan as nation. Open to support Tibet.  There is no currency manipulation (I live & breathe economics, I can explain)

      Cuba:
      Normalize relations & end of Guantanamo

      Iran: Protect Nuclear Deal, condemn support for terrorism but try to normalize relations. Iran used to be a secular state & still has a large moderate population (look at Saudi). Try to control all weapon sales to Iran globally (to reduce it)

      Israel/Palestine: 2 state, stop all Israeli Settlements, borders after 1967, Jerusalem co-sharing. Oppose radical Netanyahu & try to isolate him

      Saudi Arabia : Weapons embargo to Saudi Arabia who will just send those Weapons to ISIS, Al Qaeda or fight in Yemen Gradually cut ties with this fundamental extremist group. Would even support sanctions in 10 years time as they are spreading the poison of Wahhabi Islam in the world

      Pak : Tie all aid to defense certification of  countering terrorism In the future, put trade restrictions & other strict methods to stop support of terrorists & Haqqani network which are killing people in Afghan. Co-operate with civil government to secure nukes so that terrorists don't get it

      Syria/Iraq/Afghan - Withdraw all ground forces (only air-strikes)

      Turkey - Try diplomatically otherwise combine NATO actions as they have lost it

      Electoral -

      Voter ID - Currently no, yes in 10-15 years with gradual phasing in

      Gerrymandering - No, formation of independent body to avoid this

      Term Limits
      - Oppose

      Primaries - Open, same day reg, proportional delegates, No Super delegates

      GE - Decide by Popular Vote or ensure proportional allotment of state votes & electoral votes by population for each state

      Automatic Registration - Yes

      Early/Absentee Voting - Yes

      Holiday in State, GE & Primary Elections - Yes (Target massive turnout)

      Public funding of elections - Yes & Ban all corporate funding
      Others -

      Patriot Act - Strongly oppose

      Snowden - Pardon, commend him for exposing the crooks

      Keystone, Dakota - Strongly oppose

      Puerto Rico - Referendum & abide by decision

      Statehood DC, PR - Abide by referendum results

      Nukes - Bilateral  treaty with Russia to reduce Nukes under 500, then work with other nations to get everyone below 100, No nukes for North Korea, wait & watch with Pak & diplomatically engage


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Goldwater on January 31, 2017, 02:12:30 PM
      Rather than list every specific issue, I will try to describe my views in general terms of how I tihnk:

      Economics: Pro-trade, pro-competition, anti-monopoly. This generally leads me to right wing economic conclusions, such as thinking taxes should be as low as feasibly possible, though not always. For example, I am strongly opposed to "corporate welfare" (such as farm subsidies), because allowing businesses to fail is one of the essential parts to making free market competition work, but I do think the government should provide a social safety net and that the public sector should be involved in the few areas where competition doesn't work,  such as police and (more controversially) healthcare.

      Social issues: Basically the standard libertarian spiel about how people should be allowed to do things that don't violate the rights of others, with the caveat that I have no qualms about punishing people who do violate the rights of others to the fullest extent of the law. I'm also generally supportive of the policies and the military, seeing these institutions as being necessary to protect and enforce people's rights and liberties, both domestically and abroad. This combination of views is what leads to the weird quark of me generally being libertarian on social issues, while also being "hawkish" and supportive of things like the death penalty.

      Foreign policy: To but quite simply, globalization. I think that free trade, liberal immigration laws, and global cooperation are all net positives that we should strive for whenever possible. While I am not necessarily an "abolish all borders" extremist, since that frankly seems unworkable to me, I do think we should try to become more globally integrated, not less, and that while it's obviously not possible to solve all the world's problems, we can't just turn a blind eye to  suffering and tyranny in other countries either. I am strongly against pulling out of organizations like NATO and UN and think that, despite their flaws, we are better off with them than without them, and I am frankly very concerned about the nationalism and anti-globalization trends that are happening to recently, to the point that I am almost becoming a single issue voter.

      Overall: I don't know what to call this fricking mess of an ideology or philosophy or whatever, do you? :P


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Devout Centrist on January 31, 2017, 05:49:10 PM
      Rather than list every specific issue, I will try to describe my views in general terms of how I tihnk:

      Economics: Pro-trade, pro-competition, anti-monopoly. This generally leads me to right wing economic conclusions, such as thinking taxes should be as low as feasibly possible, though not always. For example, I am strongly opposed to "corporate welfare" (such as farm subsidies), because allowing businesses to fail is one of the essential parts to making free market competition work, but I do think the government should provide a social safety net and that the public sector should be involved in the few areas where competition doesn't work,  such as police and (more controversially) healthcare.

      Social issues: Basically the standard libertarian spiel about how people should be allowed to do things that don't violate the rights of others, with the caveat that I have no qualms about punishing people who do violate the rights of others to the fullest extent of the law. I'm also generally supportive of the policies and the military, seeing these institutions as being necessary to protect and enforce people's rights and liberties, both domestically and abroad. This combination of views is what leads to the weird quark of me generally being libertarian on social issues, while also being "hawkish" and supportive of things like the death penalty.

      Foreign policy: To but quite simply, globalization. I think that free trade, liberal immigration laws, and global cooperation are all net positives that we should strive for whenever possible. While I am not necessarily an "abolish all borders" extremist, since that frankly seems unworkable to me, I do think we should try to become more globally integrated, not less, and that while it's obviously not possible to solve all the world's problems, we can't just turn a blind eye to  suffering and tyranny in other countries either. I am strongly against pulling out of organizations like NATO and UN and think that, despite their flaws, we are better off with them than without them, and I am frankly very concerned about the nationalism and anti-globalization trends that are happening to recently, to the point that I am almost becoming a single issue voter.

      Overall: I don't know what to call this fricking mess of an ideology or philosophy or whatever, do you? :P
      These are largely my positions, with perhaps a bit more lean towards the center on economics. I have problems with the Libertarians exhorting the benefits of the Fair tax, something I despise.

      On the whole, though, this sounds exactly like me.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: JustinTimeCuber on February 21, 2017, 11:31:47 PM
      Ideology : Bernie Bro / Kyle Kulinski viewer / Social Democrat
      Social Policy

      Abortion: Pro-choice up to viability, then life of the mother, yada yada

      Same-Sex Marriage: duh

      Drugs: The fact that marijuana is illegal is a f**king joke. Legalize, tax, and regulate all drugs.

      Death Penalty:
        Not *morally* opposed, but practically opposed, because sometimes we get the wrong person

      Gun Control: Background checks, gun show loophole, high capacity magazine ban

      Affirmative Action: Probably not a good idea, better ways to support minorities & women

      Prostitution:
      It's not my problem.

      Euthanasia:
      Obviously support. Who the hell am I to tell someone that they have to go through potentially days or weeks of pain before finally dying?

      Sex Education : Duh

      Immigration: Moderate. Give amnesty to people who are here and who aren't criminals, but enforce immigration law. If you catch a bad hombre (or mujer we're not sexist here) crossing the border then deport them.

      Black Lives Matter:
      Support the platform, but some of their people are kinda dumb (those knuckleheads who shut down a Bernie Sanders speech or rally or something because he wasn't talking about their specific issue 100% of the time)

      Transgender Issues: duh

      Muslim Ban: "I'm Donald Trump, and I don't approve this Constitution message.)

      Economic Issues

      Minimum Wage:  Increase slowly to $15, then adjust to inflation

      Universal Basic Income : Probably not but worth looking at.

      Welfare: Paid m'paternity leave and sick leave, strengthen social safety net

      Social Security: Lift the cap and the minimum benefit

      Healthcare: National healthcare system, allow dangerous Canadian drugs to be smuggled in by Bernie and Amy Klobuchar.

      Trade: Way too complicated to explain here. In general, for some free trade but don't support TPP, NAFTA, PNTR w/ China

      Deficit/Debt: Chill. It's not as big a deal as right wingers pretend it is. I think it would be a good idea to have lower deficits though when possible.

      Campaign Finance Reform: Constitutional amendment necessary

      Unions: No RTW laws

      Energy: Look into clean energy

      Environment - Lots of complicated things but in general implement green policies.

      Job Creation:
      Rebuild awe crumbling inferstructure! I'm Bunnie Sandas.

      Education:
      free$hit (public tuition for public colleges/universities)

      Taxes: Bunnie Sandas' plan is pretty good.

      Glass Steagal - Yeeh, duh

      Aid - Humanitarian aid where it's sensible.

      Foreign

      ISIS: End the drone strikes, stop funding the goddamn terrorists

      Russia/NATO:
      Let's not be close allies with Putin, but let's not provoke them and start WWIII. Make him know that he can't just annex parts of sovereign nations.

      Japan/South Korea : Defend South Korea and Japan from North Korea by intimidation. Don't occupy places but make Kim know that if he does an act of war, he's dead.

      China: No more PNTR. Put pressure on them to better control emissions.  Don't provoke them by recognizing Taiwan as an independent country.

      Cuba:
      Guantanamo = dead, open up relations

      Iran: The nuclear deal was pretty solid.

      Israel/Palestine: 57 state solution

      Saudi Arabia : Saudi Arabia is a rogue state. They behead people in public for sorcery and officially call all atheists terrorists.

      Pak : What's pakistan

      Syria/Iraq/Afghan - gtfo of them

      Turkey - I don't know what's happening in turkey either I'm dumb lol

      Electoral -

      Voter ID - No

      Gerrymandering - No, mathematical formula put into place

      Term Limits
      - Bad idea

      Primaries - This is impossible practically but if I were designing a system from scratch, all states vote on the first weekend in June by IRV. The winner actually wins.

      GE - Popular vote

      Automatic Registration - Yes

      Early/Absentee Voting - Yes, expand it somewhat

      Holiday in State, GE & Primary Elections - Just make it on the weekend

      Public funding of elections - You should have to get a certain number of signatures and then your funding is completely public, otherwise you have to self finance. No donations.
      Others -

      Patriot Act - RIP

      Snowden - Make him Sec. of homeland security to piss off the establishment

      Keystone, Dakota - RIP

      Puerto Rico - statehood referendum

      Statehood DC, PR - yes unless they vote not to

      Nukes - Ideally: RIP
      Practically: Do what we can with deals like the Iran Deal to stop any spread of nukes.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Famous Mortimer on February 22, 2017, 10:18:43 PM
      Updating since I became a fascist:


      Ideology : Simple answer: Social democrat, snowflake answer: Statist liberal
      Social Policy

      Abortion: Pro-choice but no public funding unless rape, incest, or life of the mother is in danger

      Same-Sex Marriage: For

      Drugs: Legalize all drugs

      Death Penalty:
       Support but only for extraordinarily crazy crimes

      Gun Control: Repeal the Second Amendment, guns as a privilege, not a right. Broadly legal but require a license and all guns in a national gun database

      Affirmative Action: Made sense in the 70s, not anymore. Get rid of it.

      Prostitution:
      Legalize it. No worse than any other job.

      Euthanasia:
      Support but only with approval of panel of doctors.

      Sex Education : For.

      Immigration: Legalize all non-violent illegals already here. Deport violent ones. No new immigration, legal or illegal, for 10 years. Maybe allow like 20k a year but only if they are sponsored by an employer who will pay them 200k. Constitutional amendments ending birthright citizenship and making English the official language.

      Black Lives Matter:
      BLM is dumb but support a policy of police reform. Stop hiring violent low IQ jocks as cops. Instead take advantage of our growing pool of underemployed social science majors.

      Transgender Issues: However people want to identify is their own business. Trans people should have all the same protection as everyone else. Protecting them under hate crime laws would be fine too. No government funded HRT for minors though.

      Muslim Ban: I support a ban on all new immigration. It is wrong to single out groups by national origin or religion though.

      Economic Issues

      Minimum Wage:  Increase to $15. Adjust for inflation. Let the businesses that can't afford it go out of business, as long as universal healthcare is established beforehand.

      Universal Basic Income : Yes but very basic and everyone gets it regardless of whether or not they work, so as not to incentivize failure.

      Welfare: Universal healthcare and UBI.

      Social Security: Replaced by UBI

      Healthcare: Full Communism. Doctors who protest should be publicly executed or else forced out of medicine and forbidden from ever having a job that pays more than minimum wage.

      Trade: Fair trade not free trade.

      Deficit/Debt: Sky's the limit. Crank it to 12.

      Campaign Finance Reform: Seemed like a good idea but turned out it wasn't. If billionaires want to waste money paying conservatives to vote how they would have anyway, let them.

      Unions: Not for the public sector. Hopefully government social policy will render them less necessary in the private sector as well.

      Energy: Hydrogen.

      Environment - Error on the side of not fuccin up da earf

      Job Creation:
      Build a new American capitol city in the middle of West Virginia. Build bullet trains connecting all cities with more than 100k. Light rail inside each city with more than 100k. Colonize the moon and Mars.

      Education:
      Ban teachers unions. Ban private schools. Ban home schooling. Create three tracks in the public school system: One for dummies, one for smarties, and a tiny one of elites who will go to an American version of École Polytechnique where they will be trained to be hipster philosopher kings

      Taxes: 50% bottom rate. 90% top rate.

      Glass Steagal - Yeah but more socialist.

      Aid - Third world nations will be offered funds on par with the Marshall Plan if they submit to 10 years of direct rule by the UN.

      Foreign

      ISIS: Fund the Kurds. Let Russia bomb on behalf of Assad.

      Russia/NATO:
      Get rid of NATO, not for Russia's sake but just cus it's dumb.

      Japan/South Korea : If they want us to withdraw, withdraw. Maybe set up a new base in the Thai Redshirt Republic just in case.

      China: Cordial relations but don't s their d

      Cuba:
      Normalize relations. Thank for them being the only country that discourages their people from immigrating here. Maybe try to get permanent lease on Gitmo out of the deal.  Gitmo is good. The prisoners there are hardcore Jihadists with no hope for reform.

      Iran: Offer full normalization and help with alternative fuel plan in return for scrapping nuclear deal. Side with Shi'its over Sunnis in general.

      Israel/Palestine: Israel is done for. Start planning to relocate Jewish refugees.

      Saudi Arabia : IDK no good policies here

      Pak : Let Modi annex

      Syria/Iraq/Afghan - Fund the PKK and the PUK

      Turkey - Cordial but don't s their d

      Electoral -

      Voter ID - Every citizen gets a free ID. It's required to vote.

      Gerrymandering - Some form of state based PR and/or IRV.

      Term Limits
      - Anti-democratic. No.

      Primaries - Randomly pick order of states every 4 years. IRV.

      GE - Popular vote, democracy, IRV.

      Automatic Registration - Yes

      Early/Absentee Voting - Not unless you got a good excuse

      Holiday in State, GE & Primary Elections - Yes

      Public funding of elections - Yeah but not that much. Free air time on TV
      Others -

      Patriot Act - Good. Make eternal. I support the any secret provisions of the PATRIOT Act that the public doesn't know about as well.

      Snowden - Don't care.

      Keystone, Dakota - No but also get rid of all special status for Native Americans.

      Puerto Rico - If they want to become a state, they can switch to teaching English in their schools. If they don't want to do that, cut them off.

      Statehood DC, PR - Yes. Would also back just merging with Maryland. Washington, Maryland could be the US capitol.

      Nukes - They're out there already so keep a couple but limit the arsenal to just enough to blow up the world twice.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Santander on February 22, 2017, 10:24:24 PM
      Is this a somewhat ironic statement aimed at disarming the opposition?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Famous Mortimer on February 22, 2017, 10:30:32 PM
      Is this a somewhat ironic statement aimed at disarming the opposition?

      Read my earnest positions and decide for yourself :*


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: 🕴🏼Melior🕴🏼 on February 22, 2017, 11:45:03 PM
      Ideology
      Social: Stuanch progressive liberal nanny-statist
      Economic: Pro-business liberal. I'm a proud believer in capitalism and free markets, but I also support a strong welfare state to help those in need and tough government regulations on certain industries to protect consumers.
      Foreign: "Realist"
      Political Registration: Democrat

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Pro-choice
      Same Sex Marriage: Support
      Drug policy: I believe in legalizing marijuana for both recreational and medical purposes. I support ending the War on Drugs. However, I also support heavy sin taxes (especially on cigarettes) and raising the smoking age.
      Death Penalty: I wouldn't necessarily say I support the death penalty. I believe that the death penalty should only be used very rarely (like maybe once every year at the absolute most) and only for the most heinous crimes.
      Gun Control: I support background checks and banning guns for those on the No Fly List. However, I oppose banning "assault" weapons, and I also believe that gun control laws should vary by location (New York City should have stricter gun laws than rural Ohio)
      Prostitution: Legalize it
      Euthanasia: Reluctantly support
      PATRIOT Act/NSA Spying: Reluctantly support
      Immigration: I am a strong supporter of immigration reform. Immigration is good for our country.
      Guantanamo: Close it


      Economic Policy
      Minimum Wage: I support increasing the minimum wage.
      Welfare: Support
      Social Security: I'm strongly opposed to cutting or privatizing Social Security.
      Right-to-Work: Oppose
      Taxation: We should keep income taxes at current levels. We should abolish corporate taxes. However, we should raise the capital gains tax and taxing carried interest like regular income. We should also close any loopholes to make sure the wealthy pay their fair share.
      Obamacare: Support, but I oppose universal health care.
      Trade: I'm a strong supporter of free trade. I'm pro-TPP and pro-NAFTA.
      Climate Change: Climate change is real. We should impose heavy regulations to help combat climate change.
      Keystone pipeline: Oppose
      Fiscal policy: I oppose any form a balanced-budget amendment. More government investment on things like infrastructure and the economy is good. Cutting government spending is bad for the economy.
      Equal pay for equal work: Strongly support
      Wall Street: This is an issue that I disagree with most Democrats on. I support repealing Dodd-Frank. I believe that the financial industry should be deregulated. I believe that many Democrats wrongly blame Wall Street for our problems. Wall Street gets an unfair amount of hate. However, we should also reinstate Glass-Stegall.

      Other stances:
      Gerrymandering: Establish non-partisan redistricting commission
      Term limits: Oppose
      Common core: Support


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The_Doctor on February 23, 2017, 01:36:03 PM
      Stole this from Frodo.  (INcluding some of the wording)

      Ideology

      Social: Libertarian/Right
      Economic: Center-Right
      Foreign: Neoconservative/Realist
      Registration: Republican

      Social

      Abortion/Reproductive Rights: Pro-life, favor the Hyde Amendment, and oppose abortions in all cases but the mother's life. Roe should be overturned.
      Marriage Equality/LGBTQ Issues: Support sending marriage to the states. Generally supportive of LGBTQ rights. I oppose the NC transgender law, support the Indiana RFR law.
      Death Penalty: Strongly favor the death penalty upon DNA confirmation or absolute confirmation of a crime. Should be also applicable for rape.
      Religious Freedom: Strong supporter of religious freedoms for all faiths and those with no faith belief at all. Favor religious liberty laws for bakers and other businesses.
      Drug Legalization: Strongly in favor of legalizing it for both medical and recreational usage. Likewise favor LSD legalized and all classes of drugs being decriminalized.
      Guns: Oppose the assault weapons ban, oppose gun regulation. Also support conceal carry. Support background checks and closing the gunshow loophole.  
      Euthanasia: I am for euthanasia and assisted suicide as an individual right.
      Black Lives Matter/Police/Criminal Justice Reform: Strong supporter of criminal justice and police reform and #BlackLivesMatter. Such stance doesn't make me "anti-police." I however also believe in cameras to help cops and the community. Likewise, I would want to encourage "community policing."
      Transgender Issues: I strongly believe that trans people have the right to enter the bathrooms/locker rooms of the gender matching their identity and that transphobia be condemned.
      Sex Education: I strongly support sex education in schools, starting from middle school.
      Education: I believe in limiting the power of the Department of Education to set curriculum over the states. For colleges, I would pop the "student loan" bubble and restructure FAFSA aid to deflate that bubble.  
      Affirmative Action: Opposed to it, completely. Either class-based, or merit.
      Judges: Favor constructionist judges sitting on the Supreme Court and in the lower judiciary, that interpret the Constitution based on original intent, not a "living Constitution" text.

      Economic/Spending

      Taxes: I favor a two tax bracket of 35% and 20% with those making under $30,000 single having all income exempt from taxation, including payroll taxes. That said, tax reform should be enacted gradually so that our revenues match our spending and we aren't suddenly halving the revenue stream overnight.  I do favor a very strong estate tax of 65% on estates over $5 million.
      Trade: Unapologetic free trader, in favor of NAFTA, CAFTA, TPP (minus the biologics section), and want a global market free from subsidies, quotas, and restrictions on trade. Oppose, of course, all subsidies, restrictions on trade, imports taxes, etc.
      Social Security/Medicare: Significantly overhaul and limit benefits to the truly indigent and needy who need healthcare coverage and disability and other benefits to survive in old age. Didn't like their creation and believe we have a vastly expansive welfare state that needs curtailing.
      Budgets: Hold spending down alongside tax reform to gradually enact real spending reforms that allow us to balance our budget. A BBA is unfeasible, but in general, our spending should be slowly curtailed and I favored the House GOP's hardline on spending.
      Defense Spending: Limit defense spending to what we need to maintain America's hegemony.  Don't overspend, if we can help it. Cut down independent contracting in the defense industry.
      Minimum Wage: Oppose it as unnecessary. 5% of all workers work for the minimum wage and it hurts teen youths and others just entering teh job market.
      Labor Unions: Really hate them. End collective bargaining for public sector unions and support RTW states.
      Financial Regulation: Support financial regulation that is common sense. No 1000 pages of regulations. I oppose Glass-Steagall being reinstated and I oppose Dodd-Frank but I would support a variation of common sense liberal regulation and an extremely strong and independent SEC to regulate Wall Street.

      Foreign Policy

      Russia/NATO: Completely, unapologetically, and vehemently anti-Russia. Moscow is among our enemies and we should undermine it in Ukraine, Georgia, and Syria, and maintain (and tighten) sanctions on Moscow. The eventual goal is to break up Russia and force it to become a rump state incapable of challenging the United States. I also strongly favor NATO remaining in force to stop the Kremlin.
      Radical Islam: Use a mix of covert operations, drone strikes, and infiltration of radical Islamic groups to destroy them. The Muslim ban is stupid primarily because it converts swing Muslims in the Middle East and elsewhere from turning on the Mullahs and the radicals and deprives us of assets that would help us defeat the radicals. Eventually force the Muslim world to embrace a secular revolution that divorces power from the Mullahs in society and puts the Middle East on a road to peace and secular growth.
      Israel: Avowedly pro-Israel. She is our main Middle East ally and must remain so. We must defend Israel at all costs from her Arabic neighbors, who would like to see her wiped out.
      Immigration: All illegal immigrants in the country should be deported if they came after 2017. However, all prior illegal immigrants should have a pathway to citizenship provided they learn English and pay fines. e-Verify should be the standard for all businesses. No welfare benefits to illegal immigrants or education benefits. Expand legal quotas and require that all immigrants coming to the United States have a college education or some sort of essential skills.
      Iran: Support the deal on Iran on the grounds that it removes an enemy of the United States from the table and frees our hands in the Middle East.

      Environment

      Climate Change: It is real and we need to impose a revenue-neutral carbon tax (that would return all revenues to small businesses and taxpayers).
      EPA: Maintain strong support for the EPA. Our planet is our future and we need to balance growth with environmental protection, but let's not hesitate to challenge corporate polluters and stand up to them.

      Healthcare

      ObamaCare: HP law but maintain it on the books. Limit the Medicare expansion. Enact sweeping changes to healthcare law that would lower costs while expanding the pool of covered people. Limit subsidies to those who maintain a healthy BMI and don't smoke.
      Drug patents: Consider broad patents of 10 years and then allow them to become considered generic. End re-buying of patents to hike drug prices. Allow drug importation from Canada.

      Political

      Gerrymandering: Let it continue. It's a practice as old as the Republic and we will be fine if state legislatures and governors - elected representatives - dictate the lines.
      Campaign Finance Reform: No limits - but likewise, no 503(c) groups and no advocacy groups that hide donors. All donors must be disclosed, and no soft money in politics. No donations from unions and corporations allowed. All donations must be individual - based.
      Term Limits: As Mitch McConnell said, we have them. They're called elections.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Virginiá on February 23, 2017, 02:37:29 PM
      Gerrymandering: Let it continue. It's a practice as old as the Republic and we will be fine if state legislatures and governors - elected representatives - dictate the lines.

      Why though? Just because it is old doesn't make it right. The fact that it helps politicians stay in power is why it has gone on for so long - it is incredibly difficult to get someone to vote for something that may cost them their job, or their ability to push their agenda via party majorities.

      If it is about elected officials - you can still mandate bipartisan commissions made of legislators that have rules prohibiting partisan/incumbent gerrymandering. Yes, the maps can still end up skewed one way or another, but it can be reduced and open to litigation if the commission ignores the rules. The absurdity of what is going on now, aided by technology and tons of data on voting patterns makes gerrymandering far too damaging to be ignored any longer.

      Look at the North Carolina delegation - 10-3 Republican. In a state that only leans Republican and is highly polarized. There is no way that delegation represents NC as a whole. It represents one party at the expense of the other because that one party got to draw the lines, and because of that, those 10 seats are largely noncompetitive in all but a good-sized backlash against the GOP.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Lexii, harbinger of chaos and sexual anarchy on February 23, 2017, 03:43:22 PM
      Ideology

      Social: Progressive/Civil Libertarian
      Economic: Center-left
      Foreign: Between idealist and wilsonian
      Registration: None

      Social

      Abortion/Reproductive Rights: Moderate,but pragmatically pro-choice
      Marriage Equality: Strong support
      Death Penalty: Strongly oppose in all cases
      Religious Freedom: I don't have a problem with differentiating legally between essential and non-essential gooda and services (not that I support them in practice) to
      Drug Legalization: Strongly in favor of legalizing it for both medical and recreational usage. Likewise favor LSD legalized and all classes of soft and medium drugs being decriminalized or legalized. I support an Uruguay or Colorado-like system, but allowing drugs from other origins.
      Guns: Oppose the assault weapons ban, Support background checks. I don't care about concealed carry
      Euthanasia: I am for euthanasia and assisted suicide.
      Black Lives Matter/Police/Criminal Justice Reform: Strong support
      Transgender Issues:I think anyone should go to whatever bathroom they choose, the government should work on insertion and suicide prevention peograms
      Sex Education: I strongly support sex education in schools, starting from the last years of elementary school
      Education: Strong supporter of public education, state-funded public university
      Prostitutioj: legalized and regulated
      Judges: supporter of a living Constitution,.

      ies.

      Environment

      Climate Change: It is real, but the costs of reducing it are staggeringly high, and probably prohibitively so.
      EPA: Probably does too much, but environmental protection on a Federal level is probably warranted, especially if it affects interstate issues. Not a fan of pollution from fracking chemicals.
      Healthcare




      Political

      Gerrymandering:  Independent Commission
      Campaign Finance Reform: No limits, but enforced transparency on large donationd
      Term Limits: I support term limits, but you can ran again after one election
      NATO: Opposed
      Israel: America should be opposed to or critical of Israel's most radical measures, and should work with Palestine to guarantee a state of law and transparency
      Immigration: As close as you can get to open borders while still maintaining proper vetting, easy legal way to citizenship, maintaining b birthright citizenship, no quotas, no immigration or travel bans, no deportation for crimes
      Iran: Support the deal on Iran, but it's still a bad deal

      Environment

      Climate Change: It is real, and the US should do everything it can to avoid it getting even worse, by participating in international deals (Tokyo, Paris), subsidizing sustainable energy sources, and slowly de-subsidizing oil, gas and coal
      EPA: it needs to be a very strong, and independent, agenxy

      Healthcare

      ObamaCare: It's very than the previous system but it's still awful. I support a public free-for-all healthcare system, with private competition

      Medical Drugs: Patents should be significantly shorter, smaller companies should be able to lease these parents. And parents shouldn't matter in case of a real emergency/epidemic.
      I support importing drugs from other countries and some drugs should be subsidized by the healthcare system


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The_Doctor on February 23, 2017, 04:01:20 PM
      Gerrymandering: Let it continue. It's a practice as old as the Republic and we will be fine if state legislatures and governors - elected representatives - dictate the lines.

      Why though? Just because it is old doesn't make it right. The fact that it helps politicians stay in power is why it has gone on for so long - it is incredibly difficult to get someone to vote for something that may cost them their job, or their ability to push their agenda via party majorities.

      If it is about elected officials - you can still mandate bipartisan commissions made of legislators that have rules prohibiting partisan/incumbent gerrymandering. Yes, the maps can still end up skewed one way or another, but it can be reduced and open to litigation if the commission ignores the rules. The absurdity of what is going on now, aided by technology and tons of data on voting patterns makes gerrymandering far too damaging to be ignored any longer.

      Look at the North Carolina delegation - 10-3 Republican. In a state that only leans Republican and is highly polarized. There is no way that delegation represents NC as a whole. It represents one party at the expense of the other because that one party got to draw the lines, and because of that, those 10 seats are largely noncompetitive in all but a good-sized backlash against the GOP.

      I don't want to clutter this thread so I'll put up a new thread answering this later in this forum. :)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Blackacre on February 23, 2017, 04:44:29 PM
      Stole the format from TD, though with some alterations to the topics, and a ton of alterations to the answers

      Ideology

      General: Liberal in the mould of Hillary Clinton
      Social: Liberal, though not at full SJW level
      Economic: Slightly to the right of Bernie Sanders
      Foreign: Diplomacy enthusiast
      Registration: Democrat

      Social

      Abortion/Reproductive Rights: Pro-choice. Abortion should be safe, legal, easily accessible in all parts of the country, and rare. I favour increased access to contraceptives and other policies that would reduce the abortion rate without denying access to anybody. Also I am very pro-PP
      Marriage Equality/LGBTQ Issues: Pro-SSM, Pro-LGBTQ rights, pro-laws that would forbid an employer from discriminating against LGBTQ employees, against "Bathroom Bills" and for increased access to resources to help trans people transition if they so choose.
      Death Penalty: Appose, on the grounds that there's always the possibility for DNA evidence to exonerate somebody already convicted, and you can't exonerate a dead person. Also, for heinous crimes, I think life in prison is both crueler and cheaper.
      Religious Freedom: This country is for people of all faiths and for people of no faith. Any effort to put laws on the books that favor one religion over another, in any way, is unacceptable. I'm also against the idea of using religion as a shield against beneficial laws. FWIW, I'm Jewish.
      Drug Legalization: Weed should be legal for medical and for recreational use in all 50 states, and people incarcerated over weed charges should be freed. For other drugs, in general I think treating drugs as a public health problem rather than a criminal one is best for society, but also people who sell drugs like cocaine and heroin should be punished.
      Guns: Oppose concealed carry, support gun-free zones. My ideal gun law would tax ammo and implement a very strict background checks program, but otherwise leave most firearms unbanned. So I'm against an assault weapons ban. 
      Euthanasia: I am for euthanasia and assisted suicide as an individual right. (TD's words but I agree with him)
      Black Lives Matter/Police/Criminal Justice Reform: Criminal justice reform is essential. Systems of mass incarceration for low-level offenses, the school-to-prison pipeline, mandatory minimums, private prisons, all those things are HP and, in practice, very racist. Basically I agree with John Oliver every time he talks about the criminal justice system. I sympathise with BLM, and I believe in police accountability, including body cameras and an independent system to hold police accountable. I also oppose stand your ground laws.
      Transgender Issues: I strongly believe that trans people have the right to enter the bathrooms/locker rooms of the gender matching their identity and that transphobia be condemned. (also TD's words, also we are in agreement)
      Sex Education: I support comprehensive sex education, and it should start in middle school, but we need to make absolute sure that it's handled well by the schools. Abstinence-only is not acceptable.
      Education: Our school system is a hot mess, incredibly antiquated, and it'll be very difficult to reform, but it needs to be done. Administrators tend to be terrible, many systems aren't designed around modern-day students, (like high school starting at 7:30 AM) and the current system overall is really good at teaching kids to hate themselves and take tests, but not much else. Charter schools are a cool idea as a laboratory for alternate models for education, but are prone to mismanagement, and when a charter finds a really good structure for teaching kids then public schools should take it and run.
      Affirmative Action: In a perfect world we wouldn't need this, but at the moment we do because of systems of inequality. Maybe one day we'll phase this out when it becomes an antiquated solution, but for now it's kind of necessary, as much as I don't like it.
      Judges: I support the living document interpretation of the constitution. Our laws and documents should be interpreted in ways that are relevant to a society beyond the imagination of the founders.

      Economic/Spending

      Taxes and Spending: I'm a Keynesian at heart, meaning that I think spending should be up when the economy's in trouble and down when it isn't. Kind of a "tax and spend" liberal when the times call for it. All tax systems should be progressive, the rich need to pay their fair share, (I support a top tax rate of 45-50% for income over $500k) and current corporate loopholes that allow the richest to stash their money to get out of being taxed need to be closed. Also, the IRS should do people's taxes for them (with an opt-out system ofc) to make it more painless and pennies need to go.
      Social Security/Medicare: End the tax loophole that allows income over $110k to avoid being taxed when it comes to social security. Keep medicare.
      Infrastructure: This should be our next big stimulus. Repair roads/bridges/dams/highways, and then create a national high speed rail/bullet train service. This would bind the country together in a polarising time, potentially cause urbanisation to affect places outside the coasts, and create all kinds of economic growth, both in creating jobs building the thing and because it makes travel much, much easier.
      Defense Spending: Limit defense spending to what we need to maintain America's hegemony.  Don't overspend, if we can help it. Cut down independent contracting in the defense industry. (TD's words, but I agree)
      Minimum Wage: Set the national min wage to roughly $9-10/hr and then tie the min wage to inflation or the cost of living. The idea is that a 40 hr work week should be enough to clear the poverty line, at the very least. However, the Fight for 15 is best off limited to cities and wealthier states, because the cost of living is higher there.
      Labor Unions: I love them with all my heart. Repeal RTW, repeal Taft-Hartley, create a national right to organise.
      Financial Regulation: Support reinstating Glass-Stegall, support Dodd-Frank. The financial sector cannot get away with murder.

      Foreign Policy

      Russia/NATO: VERY pro-Nato, anti-Russia. I generally hate Autocracies, and Putin is among the worst of them. Weakening NATO is terrifying
      Radical Islam: Don't use that phrase. It conflates the terrorism we're fighting and Islam as a religion, which are not the same thing. Calling it Radical Islam plays into the hands of ISIS and makes Muslim Americans uneasy; we cannot do this. Having said that, terrorist groups and repressive societies that wear the face of Islam are reprehensible; while I opposed the Iraq War I reluctantly support Drone Strikes as long as they don't kill innocents, and I support fighting ISIS. The Muslim ban was a terrible, terrible thing because it conflates Islam and Terrorism.
      Israel: Israel is the Problematic Best Friend of the US. We should acknowledge the questionable actions it's taken, and push it to be better, (possible including a two-state solution or political reforms that make Israel work for both its Jews and Muslims) but at the end of the day, the world is better with Israel than without it, and we must protect it.
      Immigration: I favour opening up immigration laws to allow more immigrants, and giving all undocumented immigrants living in the United States (except those who have committed a felony) a path to citizenship. Give instant citizenship to DREAMers. Border walls don't work so we shouldn't do them.
      Iran: Support the deal on Iran on the grounds that it removes an enemy of the United States from the table and frees our hands in the Middle East. (again, TD's words and I agree with him)

      Environment

      Climate Change: It is real and we need to impose a revenue-neutral carbon tax (that would return all revenues to small businesses and taxpayers). (TD's words, I agree) But in addition to that we should invest heavily in solar and wind power, abide by the Paris agreement, and aim to eventually phase out fossil fuels.
      EPA: Maintain strong support for the EPA. Our planet is our future and we need to balance growth with environmental protection, but let's not hesitate to challenge corporate polluters and stand up to them. (TD's words, but we agree)

      Healthcare

      ObamaCare: Keep it on, actually, expand it, make the medicaid expansion mandatory, set up exchanges in all 50 states, and add the public option. Single-payer is fantastic but the ACA with a public option is basically single-payer but with added bells and whistles.

      Political

      Gerrymandering: End that crap NOW. Either create a national redistricting commission tasked with creating as many swing districts as possible or implement STV. Also the Senate should be proportional.
      Electoral College: I support the Interstate Compact.
      Statehood: Should be given to DC and Puerto Rico.
      Campaign Finance Reform: Return to where we were before Citizens United.
      Term Limits: For Presidents only.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Santander on February 23, 2017, 04:45:34 PM
      About time for me to do another one of these.

      Ideology
      Social: Conservative
      Economic: Liberal (as in freedom), with a populist streak
      Foreign Policy: Western chauvinist and Zionist
      Registration: Republican, but Democrat at heart

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Oppose, with exceptions for rape, incest, life of the mother, and for Jews; criminalize sex-selective abortion and punish the mother and/or father
      Same-Sex Marriage: Oppose, but accept the law of the land
      Religious Liberty: Strongly support, but I do not consider requiring bakers to bake cakes for same-sex wedding receptions to be a violation of religious liberty
      Drugs: Strongly oppose drug legalization, increase criminal penalties for using soft drugs
      Death Penalty: Support for military use and for terrorists
      Gun Control: Background checks are fine, but the Second Amendment must be protected
      Affirmative Action: Criminalize all diversity programs
      Prostitution: Strongly oppose
      Euthanasia: Strongly oppose, make it illegal to seek or aid someone in seeking euthanasia overseas, and charge anyone involved with murder
      Immigration: Deport all illegal immigrants discovered by DHS through the course of their regular duties, end family immigration for all except spouse and dependent children, tighten quotas on immigration from non-Western countries
      Transgender Issues: Let private businesses determine their own bathroom access rules, oppose recognizing self-identified gender on government documents that list sex, oppose bullying (sane)

      Economic Issues
      Minimum Wage: Ideally, it would be abolished, but indexing the current one to inflation would help put the issue to bed; the idea of a minimum "living wage" is abhorrent
      Welfare: Abolish SNAP, Section 8, EITC, SSI and similar state-level programs; streamline TANF or abolish and move to a universal income supplement, perhaps administered through the tax system
      Social Security: Transition to mandated individual savings with income supplements for financially distressed seniors
      Healthcare: Repeal Obamacare and move to a market-based health system based on transparent pricing and cash payments for services; keep Medicaid for low-income Americans
      Trade: Support free trade with friendly countries that we share cultural/moral values with such as most countries in the Americas and Europe, oppose anything even approaching free trade with hostile nations such as Vietnam or China
      Deficit/Debt: Reduce the scope of government first, then we can talk about the bottom line
      Campaign Finance: The status quo is fine
      Unions: Support, abolish right-to-work nationwide, and encourage average workers to become more involved with their unions to reduce the influence of hardline activists in organized labor
      Energy: All of the above policy - let the market sort it out
      Job Creation: Government doesn't create jobs, and working is a lifestyle choice
      Education: Generally oppose vouchers (support for practicing Jews and Catholics to attend private religious schools) and homeschooling, restore prayer and nativity plays in public schools, strongly emphasize cultural education, make basic education only compulsory until age 12
      Higher Education: Greatly reduce government loan/grant programs to deflate the education bubble, end government funds going to proprietary schools, regulate the word "university" in every state
      Taxes: Moderately progressive or flat individual income tax and abolish worldwide taxation; abolish all deductions except for charitable giving including the education and mortgage interest deductions; abolish carried interest; reduce the corporate tax and switch to territorial taxation; abolish FICA (since SS and Medicare will be abolished/reformed); index federal excise taxes to inflation

      Foreign
      ISIS: Work with Russia and make the sand glow
      Russia: Improve relations with Russia to defend Christendom from external threats, but make it clear we stand with NATO allies
      China: Remove diplomatic recognition and recognize Taiwan until the CPC is removed from power and every single member of its leadership is executed
      Cuba: Treat them like any other country that the US imposes sanctions on
      Iran: Prevent them from getting a nuclear weapon at all costs
      Israel/Palestine: Stand unapologetically with Israel and support a one-state solution with Israel remaining a Jewish state with Jerusalem as its eternal and undivided capital; move the embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem
      Syria/Refugees: Accept Christian refugees only, help non-Christian refugees settle in culturally compatible countries


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: (Still) muted by Kalwejt until March 31 on February 23, 2017, 04:57:16 PM
      Ideology

      Social: Libertarian/Right
      Economic: Near far right
      Foreign: generally non-interventionist

      Social

      Abortion/Reproductive Rights: Favor the Hyde Amendment, but don't have any specific abortion stance. Don't really care about the fate of the fetus. Roe should be overturned, as it's a perversion of the Constitution.
      Marriage Equality/LGBTQ Issues: I think same-sex marriage is bad. Not supportive of LGBTQ "rights". I strongly support the NC transgender law, think the Indiana RFR law is too weak.
      Death Penalty: Strongly favor the death penalty upon DNA confirmation or absolute confirmation of a crime.  
      Religious Freedom: Strong supporter of religious freedoms for all faiths and those with no faith belief at all. Favor religious liberty laws for bakers and other businesses. Also strongly support separation of religion and state.
      Drug Legalization: Weakly in favor of legalizing it for both medical and (more tepidly) recreational usage. Likewise favor LSD legalized.
      Guns: Oppose the assault weapons ban. Also support concealed carry. Support background checks. Like abortion, this is not a huge issue for me.
      Euthanasia: I am for euthanasia and assisted suicide as an individual right.
      Black Lives Matter/Police/Criminal Justice Reform: Both police unions and #BlackLivesMatter are generally horrible movements. Abusive police officers are treated too leniently in this country, and so are Black criminals (and some White ones).
      Transgender Issues: LOLNo.
      Sex Education: I oppose sex education in schools.
      Prostitution: I support legalization.
      Education: I favor vastly expanding the power of the Department of Education to set curriculum over the states in a spirit of national equity so long as it exists, but preferably eliminating it, as it's a wasteful big government program. I support cutting funding for lower education and raising it for higher education. Teacher salaries are fine where they are; arguments can be made for cutting them to save money or raising them to attract talent. However, I think the only legitimate argument to be made for free government-run schools is to encourage childbearing.
      Affirmative Action: Opposed to it, completely. Either class-based, or merit.
      Judges: Favor constructionist judges sitting on the Supreme Court and in the lower judiciary, that interpret the Constitution based on original intent, not a "living Constitution" text.
      PATRIOT Act: Strongly opposed. Abolish all unconstitutional mass surveillance.
      Indian policy: Abolish the reservations and tribal governments; nobody else has them. Treat Native Americans just like anyone else.

      Economic/Spending

      Taxes: I support completely eliminating the capital gains tax. Taxes should be cut overall, with a greater share of taxes being exacted from wages.
      Trade: Unapologetic free trader, in favor of NAFTA, but not CAFTA or TPP, and want a global market free from subsidies, quotas, and restrictions on trade. Oppose, of course, all subsidies, restrictions on trade, imports taxes, etc. However, this is hardly my biggest issue.
      Social Security/Medicare: Significantly overhaul and limit benefits to the truly indigent and needy who need healthcare coverage and disability and other benefits to survive in old age. Didn't like their creation and believe we have a vastly expansive welfare state that needs curtailing.
      Budgets: Hold spending down alongside tax reform to gradually enact real spending reforms that allow us to balance our budget. A BBA is unfeasible, but in general, our spending should be slowly curtailed. The House approach to cutting spending is weak and does not go anywhere near far enough.
      Defense Spending: Cut it by 90%.
      Minimum Wage: Oppose entirely.
      Labor Unions: Not a fan. End collective bargaining for public sector unions and support RTW states.
      Financial Regulation: I oppose Dodd-Frank. Otherwise, don't know enough to comment.
      Welfare: Support benefit cuts. Opposed to universal basic income due to revenue collection issues.

      Foreign Policy

      Russia/NATO: Completely, unapologetically, and vehemently pro-Russia. Moscow is the most moral major power in the world and we should accept all its acts in Ukraine, Georgia, and Syria, and completely eliminate post-2013 sanctions on Moscow. The eventual goal is a multipolar world. I also strongly favor abolishing NATO due to its terrorist nature.
      Radical Islam: A temporary shutdown on Muslims entering the United States is more than warranted. Trump's ban does not go far enough. There are simply too many Muslim terrorist attacks in the U.S. Support defeating ISIS by all serious partners. Turkey is not a serious partner, and nuking Turkey for its support of terrorist activity should definitely be on the table. At the very least, an ouster of Erdogan is warranted.
      Israel: America should emulate it, but not become its puppet and servant.
      Immigration: All illegal immigrants in the country should be deported, including DACA beneficiaries. No welfare benefits to illegal immigrants or education benefits. Expand legal quotas and require that all immigrants coming to the United States have a college education or some sort of essential skills. Legal immigrants should also be barred from welfare. A return to the national origins quota system is suboptimal, but superior to the current system.
      Iran: Support the deal on Iran on the grounds Iran has been so mistreated by the United States over the course of these many decades. Iran has no intention to acquire a nuclear weapon, and it really doesn't matter if it does.
      Foreign Aid: Eliminate all foreign aid to Ukraine and Mexico, as well as various other loser countries. Maybe also cut it to some winner countries, like Israel, who are ripping us off so badly.
      Cuba: Support normalized relations here.
      China: The two-China policy should be on the table. U.S. should build its own islands in the South China Sea and not recognize China's completely improper claims to it.

      Environment

      Climate Change: It is real, but the costs of reducing it are staggeringly high, and probably prohibitively so.
      EPA: Probably does too much, but environmental protection on a Federal level is probably warranted, especially if it affects interstate issues. Not a fan of pollution from fracking chemicals.
      Healthcare

      ObamaCare: HP law. Eliminate it and replace it with something very terrific. Limit the Medicare expansion, get rid of the pre-existing condition and individual mandates, as well as most, if not all, of the other mandates. Enact sweeping changes to healthcare law that would lower costs while expanding the pool of people who pay out of pocket.
      Drug patents: Consider broad patents of 10 years (if that many; patents should be limited in length to the minimum proper to spur innovation) and then allow them to become considered generic, if necessary to spur innovation. Allow drug importation from Canada.

      Political

      Gerrymandering: Let it continue. It's a practice as old as the Republic and we will be fine if state legislatures and governors - elected representatives - dictate the lines. Proportional representation is a freedom idea.
      Campaign Finance Reform: No limits.
      Term Limits: Strongly support Ted Cruz's term limits amendment. Necessary to drain the swamp of people like John McCain and Sheldon Silver.
      Automatic Registration: Nay
      Early Voting: Much as we love it in North Carolina for the data it gives, I am opposed on principle.
      Primaries: Shorten schedule to one month, with Iowa going the first week, New Hampshire the second, South Carolina the third, and the rest of the country fourth. Convention happens the following month. Support states deciding their own delegate allocation rules, but like the simplicity of Winner-Take-All.
      Puerto Rican and DC Statehood: I'd sooner support annexing British Columbia and Baja California. So, LOLNo.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: parochial boy on February 23, 2017, 05:10:48 PM
      The problem with a "summary of political beliefs" is that there is a difference between what I think is politically realistic, and what I actually think would be the ideal way of running things.

      For instance, I would quite hapilly abolish the concept of private property, but in practice, that isn't something that is realistic - so I go for nationalisation of key industries, universal basic income, worker councils and things like that.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: heatcharger on February 26, 2017, 01:12:41 AM
      Mine is kinda long so I'll break it into three parts...


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: OSR stands with Israel on February 26, 2017, 01:56:37 AM
      Economic Issues: Solidly Conservative


      Taxes:

      - Support cutting income tax massively and would bring the overall code down to 0,10,20,30 percent.
      - Support cutting corporate tax rate down to 25%
      - Support Raising capital gains taxes to 27.5%
      - Oppose carbon taxes at federal level, would support at state level if income taxes are cut by same amount
      - Oppose of shore tax havens and would require them to be disclosed
      - Oppose sales tax
      - Support cutting property tax rate by 50%


      Regulations:

      -Support creating an independent advisory board to do a cost/benefit analysis on every new regulation proposed  and  require all regulations proposed to be approved by the board or the house only after that cost benefit analysis is released publicly .

      - Support massively  cutting regulations on small business

      - Support reinstating Glass Stegall

      - Support moderately cutting regulations on other businesses

      Minimum Wage:

      - Support raising min wage to 10.50 an hour and indexing to inflation
      -Oppose totally 15 dollar wage


      Healthcare:

      - Allowing insurance to be sold across state lines
      - Allowing medicine to be imported from Canada

      Social Security:

      - Support Raising retirement age to 68

      Welfare Benefits:
       
      - Support transitioning welfare to workfare(though basic benefits such as food stamps will still be provided like now without work requirement but others will require it)

      - If you do not want to work you will have to do a job training program to get welfare

      - Welfare money cant be spent on drugs/alcohol

      Budget

      -Support across the board spending cuts on everything expect VA benefits and infrastructure  

      - Support a Balanced Budget Amendment except in times of recession and war

      - Support auditing any department what receives more then 50 billion in the federal budget

      - Support cutting all pork-barrell spending from the Budget

      - would expand reagan mexico city policy too all international non profit organizations


      Labor:

      -Support Right to Work Laws
      - Support Taft Hartley
      - Believe striking against public safety should be illegal
      - Support 8 hour work day, banning child labor , work safety regulations


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: crazy jimmie on February 26, 2017, 07:26:48 AM
      Abortion: From a policy perspective abortion needs to remain legal. Sorry guys, hangers are to hang clothes up with not to perform medical procedures.

      Same-Sex Marriage: Strongly support. At first I was for civil unions until people are okay with gay marriage Hehe.

      Drugs: Marijuana should be legalized for sure and perhaps most drugs. I am not a huge fan of government intervention in these issues as it is pointless and a strain on law enforcement. However I do support punishments on use of drugs if they contributed to an accident or crime. That would place Alcohol on par with weed.

      Death Penalty: Opposed except in the most egregious circumstances. Seems barbaric.

      Gun Control:  It is an issue that is unwinnable. It is not like everyone will just turn their guns in just because they are made illegal. Plus the Second Amendment protects our gun rights.

      Affirmative Action: Unfortunately it is a necessary evil.

      Immigration: A nation does have a right to restrict who can and can not come into their country. However immigration is a plus for our nation, not a minus. While we advertise ourselves as the nation of opportunity I am not fight against illegal immigration. If your car breaks down in the middle of the night a Mexican is likely to be the one who comes to fix your car. Plus Muslim immigrants and refugees are trying to escape terrorism not bring it with them.

      Minimum Wage: I am opposed to a federal minimum wage. Circumstances and cost of living vary wildly throughout the United States, though I could be talked into a 10.00 per hour minimum wage nationally. A 15/20 dollar per hour minimum wage could create economic chaos in the rural Midwest.

      Welfare: Very few people actually oppose all welfare. Even if the right can make compelling arguments against welfare programs, we can not be a developed nation without them. There are people on hard luck, have mental illnesses, or unskilled due to circumstances beyond their control.

      Healthcare: No ObamaCare. We must have medicare for all. It is the only practical solution and replacement to ObamaCare.

      Trade: Yea yea yea, I concede it is true that trade agreements like NAFTA have accelerated job losses in the Rust Belt. That contributed to Donald Trump's victory. But here is the kicker, dismantling all free trade agreements will not bring those unskilled high paying jobs back. We must embrace the new economy. I am not a Luddite so I strongly believe new positions will be created and some positions that can be automated are not practical to automate. Free trade has helped keep inflation and our cost of living low.

      Deficit/Debt: Deficit spending is good in a recession of course. We must close most tax loop holes to contribute to keeping our national debt from getting out of control. National debt is not necessarily bad but it is bad when it exceeds GPD and you are borrowing from social security.

      Unions: We must gut all public sector unions. I am okay with unions in the private sector.

      Energy: Sorry coal boys, green energy is the future. I am not one to want to end all fossil fuel usage over night but for the sake of our climate we must transition to green energy. I do not know if conservatives get high off coal or gasoline but we need to embrace the future not the past.

      Taxes: I mirror Mitt Romney. Keep the rates lower but close most of the deductions and loop holes.

      Foreign Policy tl;dr DOVE. Bush is the reason why I usually vote Democratic.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: heatcharger on February 26, 2017, 11:49:41 AM
      Following SATW's format:

      Economic Issues: Fiscal Liberal/Economic Neoliberal/Political Pragmatist
      Taxes:
      - In favor of a more progressive tax policy with higher tax brackets, but not across the board increases.
      - In favor of increasing the estate tax from 40% to 45%.
      - In favor of implementing a carbon tax and other sin/luxury taxes.

      Healthcare:
      - Support the Affordable Care Act
      - In favor of a public insurance option.
      - Supporting raising the Medicare age to 67 and implementing necessary reforms to save the program.
      - Support minor to modest cuts in Medicare, if needed, but opposed to Ryan-esque measures.

      Social Security:
      - Supporting raising the retirement age to either 67 or 69.
      - Support a partial privatization at a very modest rate.

      Minimum Wage:
      - Oppose granting a $15 minimum wage.
      - Support a federal minimum wage indexed to inflation yearly to end this matter for good hopefully. States would still have the ability to increase their minimum wage if they feel necessary.

      Welfare and Unemployment Benefits:
      - Support the current state of welfare.
      - Interested in the idea of a universal basic income, but needs more time to become politically salient.

      Education:
      - Strongly against voucher programs.
      - Strongly in favor of universal pre-K education. Not only is early education vital for the development of kids of all socioeconomic backgrounds, but parents who work have one less thing to worry about, which can be a godsend for many.
      - Strongly support after-school programs.
      - Somewhat opposed to teacher's unions. There's a little too much room for foul play.
      - Support raising teacher's salaries via federal or state funding. Teachers play a pivotal role in making sure our young people are ready adults.
      - Support Common Core standards, but some measures need to be tweaked.
      - Skeptical of charter schools and mostly against, but see the value of some of them especially in inner cities where public schools are neglected.
      - Opposed to the idea of free college, but support initatives seeking to reduce the student debt burden (basically Hillary Clinton's plan).
      - In favor of making community college tuition-free.

      Free Trade:
      - Strong supporter of free trade policies and oppose protectionism. "Buy American, Hire American" would hurt the middle-class the most, as they spend a larger proportion of their income on consumer goods.
      - Strong supporter of NAFTA and TPP.
      - Support job retraining programs for former manufacturing workers and others affected by globalization, and these programs should be funded both through federal funding and by private companies who would be given incentives to do so. However, this is ultimately a futile endeavor in the long-run. This is why a UBI may eventually become necessary.
      - Want to make sure that the United States stays the dominant trade superpower in the world. By leaving the TPP, we are allowing China to gain foothold in global trade and potentially surpass us.

      Immigration:
      - Amnesty should be given to undocumented immigrants already living in the United States.
      - Support a less draconian e-Verify system.
      - Against a stupid and wasteful border wall.
      - Support deporting illegal immigrants who commit violent crimes.
      - Support the DREAM Act.
      - Support slight tweaks to the VISA system.
      - Opposed to an unconstitutional Muslim ban.
      - Understand that we already have extreme vetting for immigrants and refugees.

      Deficits and Budgets:
      - Balancing the budget should be a goal, but not a requirement.
      - Support cuts to national defense spending.
      - Support cuts to Social Security, and Medicare, as reducing the debt is vital if not for the growing interest we pay on it.

      Environmental and Energy Issues:
      - Support the idea of a carbon tax, although would be fine with cap-and-trade as well. I'm willing to hear the arguments for both, but ultimately I favor a carbon tax more as generating government revenue from this would be a boon.
      - Support Obama and his EPA's tyrannical war on coal. The advent of natural gas is the reason coal is dying, not the EPA.
      - In favor of phasing out fossil fuel as the main energy source.
      - However, I seek American energy independence in the short-term, which is why I'm not completely against the Keystone XL pipeline, mostly for geopolitical reasons in the Middle East.
      - In the long-term though, clean energy should take precedence, and am in favor of public funding of solar and wind energy.
      - Climate change is obviously real, and the issue of climate refugees, particularly in Bangladesh, Florida, Netherlands, etc., will become a major crisis soon enough. Fighting climate change will require global cooperation, and that starts with maintaining the Paris Agreement.

      Other:
      - Against auditing the Federal Reserve. Rand Paul and Ted Cruz have no business being involved in that.
      - Support reinstating Glass-Steagal. I'm generally in favor of regulating Wall Street but not to a detrimental level.
      - Economic populism is a threat, especially when delivered by charlatans like Donald Trump and to a lesser extent, Bernie Sanders.

      I'll post social and foreign policy issues later.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: heatcharger on February 26, 2017, 12:09:29 PM
      Social Issues: Progressive

      Abortion:
      - Pro-choice. I probably would be fine with a third-trimester ban, but otherwise, women have the right to do what they want. I don't want mothers raising children when they're miserable doing it.
      - Also, whether a fetus is alive or not is all semantics. Women will get abortions anyway, so let's work to make sure they're safe.
      - Support maintaining Planned Parenthood.
      - Support repealing the Hyde Amendment.
      - Opposed to how Republicans use abortion as a wedge issue. I'm also fine with personally-pro-life politicians but not if they actively make it harder for women to get abortions.

      LGBT Equality:
      - Tolerant of same-sex marriage.
      - Support the ENDA.
      - Highly skeptical of transgenderism and believe there is no such thing as gender fluidity, but ultimately, "bathroom" laws are a giant smokescreen by Republicans to distract from things that actually matter, and so people should use whatever bathroom they are comfortable with. However, I have many concerns about the logistical problems that arise by allowing people to identify with either gender.

      Drugs:
      - The War on Drugs has been a failure, unless of course, the goal is to incarcerate more minorities.
      - Marijuana should be rescheduled and made no longer a federal crime whether it be the use of or distribution of the plant.
      - Support the legalization of medicinal marijuana and support the further research of the drug.

      Voter ID Laws:
      - Against voter ID laws simply because it's a waste of time and money. Voter fraud is not a real problem.

      Gerrymandering:
      - Support switching to a parliamentary system with proportional representation. Geographic representation was an issue in 1789, but in our highly interconnected world, politics is not that local anymore.
      - More realistically, I support switching to nonpartisan, software-generated districts based on average distance to the center of their district. Basically this guy's proposal. (http://bdistricting.com/2010/)

      Congressional Term Limits:
      - I'd be fine with a 4-term limit on Senators and a 12-term limit on Congressmen just to get fresh blood.

      2nd Amendment:
      - In favor of universal background checks.
      - Support bans on suspects listed on a terror watch list.
      - Support an assault weapons ban.
      - Opposed to how Republicans use guns as a wedge issue. The NRA has way too much influence. However, Democrats should be a little more ambivalent on this because there are many people who agree with their policies except for the rhetoric on guns.


      Vaccines:
      - Anti-vaxxers are a threat to society.

      Death Penalty:
      - Support the death penalty in only the most severe cases.

      Law and Order Issues/National Security:
      - Strongly opposed to stop-and-frisk.
      - NSA does some good things and doesn't get any credit for it, but they should attempt to be a little more transparent although not to a fault.
      - Police need new hiring protocols to weed out bad apples.
      - Support body cameras.
      - Support ending for-profit policing.
      - Strongly against private prisons.
      - Support our nation's law enforcement, but not when they are actively breaking down communities. However, people need to learn to respect the rule of law, and when injustices are committed, they should work within the system to prevent further incidents.

      Affirmative Action:
      - Could use modifications, but still a good policy on balance.

      Civil Rights Issues:
      - Black lives matter. Whether the movement is an annoyance or not, the message should be universally supported.

      Freedom of Speech and Political Correctness:
      - Political correctness is a made-up issue.
      - Don't care if anyone burns the flag because it doesn't matter.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The Govanah Jake on February 27, 2017, 06:52:14 PM
      Ideology

      Social: Libertarian Left
      Economic: Slight Left to Centre Left
      Foreign: Liberal or Non-interventionist
      Registration: None, Independent

      Social

      Abortion/Reproductive Rights: For Abortion in cases of Rape, Incest, or other forms of forced sex and should be much easier to get in the earlier stages and oppose the states rights issue to the Abortion Issue. However Late termination of Pregnancy around the third trimester i believe should have some sort of ban or made harder to do to the more developed and aware Fetus. Im in favor of Planned Parenthood and support repealing the Hyde Amendment. Moderate
      Death Penalty: Against the Death Penalty uniformly Very Liberal
      Religious Freedom: Support everyone's right to believe what they want to believe. They should not be forced to do something that goes against there believes and in the case of the bakers issue, The baker should not be forced to bake a cake for gay couples even if the religous clause is bullsh**t. Center Right
      Drug Legalization: Support Marijuana legalization in all 50 states and all non lethal drugs should also be legalized. These all should be Legalized, Taxed, and Regulated. It can be up to the states on how they want to do these 3 Ls and on what drugs can be legalized which can be done through popular referendums (End the Drug War!) Standard Liberal
      Guns: Support the second amendment strongly and People have the right to bear arms but can support can minimal gun background checks and learning. Moderate
      Euthanasia: Support the Right to Suicide. Very Liberal
      Transgender Issues: I personal believe there are and should only be two genders minus of course intersex which is genetic. But i will respect someone else's decision if they did. As for the Bathroom issue, The Government should not have the power to force this and should be up to the local and state levels and the actual businesses itself. This whole issue is stupid and a third bathroom with both urinals and stalls for them would solve this. Centre Right to Moderate
      Sex Education: Support Middle School and High School Sex Education Standard Position
      Education: Support School Choice and abolish common core Center Right
      Affirmative Action: Against it. Just a way to discriminate. Right Wing
      Judges: Judges should follow the Constitution as it was. Center Right to Moderate

      Economic/Spending

      Taxes: I favor a form of Progressive Taxation. Create a 45% tax bracket for those making over 10 Million, 40% tax on those making 2-10 Million, 30-35% tax bracket for those making 500,000 to 2 Million, a 30% tax for those making 250,000 to 500,000, 25% for those making 100,000 to 250,000, 15% for those making 50,000 to 100,000 and a 5% tax for those under that. Against offshore safe havens and we should limit loopholes through this. Liberal/Progressive
      Trade: Support Protectionism when it comes to trade. Against TPP and favors a Resigning of NAFTA and supports Fair Trade. Standard Liberal
      Social Security/Medicare: Supports both and slight lowering of the retirement age from 67 to 65 Standard Left
      Budgets: Support some form of a Balanced budgets amendment. Moderate
      Defense Spending: Lower it massively. Military spending makes up 54% of the discretionary budget which is massively too high for a country not a threat with war. Should be cut by 45-65% and used for domestic programs at home. Very Liberal
      Minimum Wage: Should be raised nationally to 11.50-12.50$ per hour however it should be tied to inflation so as the price of living increases so does the wage. The 11.50$ per hour can be made both higher or lower depending on a states cost of living. Slight Left
      Labor Unions: Support Labor Unions in both Private and Public Sectors. Can negotiate with Company owners for worker issues. Liberal
      Financial Regulation: Support Rein-station of Dodd-Frank and there should be much more regulation of Wall Street and big business and should be held to account. In case of future recessions there should be no bailing out of them. Also i support lower regulations of Smaller business. Progressive

      Foreign Policy

      Russia/NATO: I support Russia in its standoff with Nato as Nato has increasingly expanded to its borders. I support the Annexation of Crimea, there actions in Georgia, and a Russian backed recognized state in Donbass. There should be less tensions with Russia and we should loosen up sanctions on them. I also support NATO existence as a Defensive organization however should stop its aggressive path towards Russia. Pro-Russian
      Radical Islam: Oppose Radical Islam on all counts. We should work with allies in the Middle East to oppose it and defeat it like the kurds. We should also work with Assad's Syria and Russia to defeat ISIS. Oppose Trumps Travel Ban as it does more Harm then good and most Terrorists that have attacked in America were not from those 7 country but from the Gulf and Pakistan. We should also distance ourselves from Saudi Arabia and Pakistan and the Other Gulf states and recognize them for who they are at exporting Radical/Wahhabi Islam around the World. Standard Liberal
      Israel: I Support Israels Right to Exist and sympathizes with them more then the Palestinians. However we much support a Two State Solution and stop always being on Israels Side. We must force them to make Concessions and in the end hopefully form a Israel and a Palestine. If Israel doesn't agree we can tell Israel that the US will give up there UN vote in UN Resolutions. Standard Liberal
      Immigration: Support a very tough Border. Dont agree with a wall as Immigrants will just find a way around it. For the Millions of Illegals already here, i think it is too time consuming to try to deport all and instead find a way to Citizenship. I also agree that the US should fight the Root problem which is crime in Mexico and Central America to try to stop the massive Illegal Immigration. The Illegals should also be barred from Welfare and Government functions.
      I support around 5,000 Refugees to be able to live in the US however they should be brutally checked and made sure they dont have terrorist motives and are actual refugees. I support out of these 5,000 that they be representative of the Religion of there Country. For instincts, for every 100 Syrian Muslim Refugees there is 10 Syrian Christian Refugees to represent the 90-10 Muslim Christian Percentage in Syria. Right Wing
      Iran: Supports the Iran Deal and we should end some sanctions on Iran. We should continue to watch there Nuclear Program and should act more friendly to them. Moderate
      Environment

      Climate Change: Its Real and no matter if its Man Made or Not, we should take drastic measures to fix it Liberal
      EPA: Strongly Support and we should continue to Protect the environment Very Liberal

      Healthcare

      ObamaCare: Support it however i think it goes to little and we should push for a much more reasonable Single Payer with some competition or Choice System. However i have a feeling that America will end up having a expanded Obamacare with more broad coverage Standard Progressive
      Drug patents: Should take around 10 years but beside that, dont have much to say Moderate

      Political

      Gerrymandering: We should end this sh**t Very Liberal
      Electoral College: I support it however also support a clause in which when no one reaches 270, the one with the most Electoral Votes wins instead of it going to the House and Senate. Moderate
      Campaign Finance Reform: There should no Large Donations from Large Donors. Support a Bernie Style way of finacing Campaigns. Very Liberal
      Freedom of Speech: Support it always. Neither Left or Right. True American Position.
      Term Limits: There should be Term Limits for the House and Senate. Liberal


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: mencken on March 26, 2017, 12:46:07 PM
      I shall distinguish between my old, deplorable political opinions (mencken 1.0), and my new, enlightened philosophy (mencken 2.0)

      Abortion:
      Use money in the welfare/food stamp budget to fully subsidize abortions and contraception for those who cannot afford it.
      Use money in the Medicaid budget to fully subsidize abortions and contraception for those who cannot afford it.
      Death Penalty:
      Abolished for the judicial system. Convicted murderers forfeit their personhood to their victim's estate, whereupon the next-of-kin are free to do with it as they see fit.
      Abolished uniformly. Convcited murderers sent to rehabilitation for six month before returning to society as changed men.
      Religious Liberty:
      Nonsensical term. People ought to be free to associate with whom or what they want regardless of pseudoreligious justification.
      Life imprisonment for those who refuse to actively participate in any celebration of alternate lifestyle (with special waivers from this statute for observant Muslims)
      Drug Legalization:
      Legalize them all, with appropriate surgeon general's warning that nobody will read anyway.
      Use money in the Medicaid budget to fully subsidize marijuana for those who cannot afford it.
      Affirmative Action:
      Gross violation of equality under the law. Banned from institutions receiving federal funding for educational purposes.
      All minorities (except Asians and Jews) shall be guaranteed at least twice the representation in an institution as their representation in the applicant pool.
      Immigration:
      See here (https://uselectionatlas.org/FORUM/index.php?topic=213601.msg4667182#msg4667182).
      Automatic citizenship for all undocumented immigrants currently present and for all claiming refugee status. Those currently in the immigration queue move to fourth in the line behind the above groups and their extended families and friends.
      Guns:
      Existing background checks and waiting period for purchase, concealed carry and open carry.
      Banned except for police use. Misdemeanor offense for toy guns or extending the middle and index finger in a suspicious manner.

      Taxes:
      Abolish personal and corporate income taxes and estate taxes. Fund government services with user fees, property (sales) taxes, excise taxes, and tariffs (capped at 10% each)
      One-time 60% wealth tax on households over $10 million; double tax burden on brackets over $100,000; half tax burden on brackets under $50,000.
      Health Care:
      Individual mandate for catastrophic coverage and/or health saving accounts over a specified amount. Insurance purchasable by individuals rather than employers. Price caps on patent-protected prescription drugs.
      Universal public option, ban on private health care
      Social Security/Medicare:
      Allow individuals to earmark Social Security/Medicare taxes toward their parents' benefit.
      Need-based Social Security/Medicare benefits. No benefits for seniors in households over $500,000.
      Welfare:
      Restructure welfare system to gradually tapir off benefits/avoid creating disincentive toward marginal increase in earned income.
      Expand the requirement for need-based eligibility to 300% of the poverty line.
      Labor:
      End minimum wage, ban on public sector unions, freeze federal hiring, eliminate Wagner Act
      Raise minimum wage to $30/hour, freeze private-sector firing, require companies to give labor unions 30% of stock.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The world will shine with light in our nightmare on May 05, 2017, 08:37:24 PM
      Updating this.  Some planks were taken from another user.

      Ideology
      Social: Civil libertarian
      Economic: Social democrat
      Foreign Policy: Civic nationalist/Non-interventionist/Anti-Wilsonian

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Pro-choice, especially for the first two trimesters.  Oppose mandatory counseling/waiting periods.  Oppose the Hyde Amendment.  Neutral on late-term abortions; abortions that are performed past the second trimester are so rare that they are hardly worth legislating against... Women generally would not abort at this stage in this pregnancy unless there is a severe fetal abnormality or if the woman's life is in danger.

      Same-Sex Marriage: Strongly support.  I'm generally against laws that force religious businesses to cater or service weddings, but I can see justification if the clientele are without local alternatives.

      Conversion Therapy: Ban it entirely.  Conversion therapy is complete pseudoscience and should be treated the same way as any other illegitimate and dangerous 'health remedy.'

      Transgender Issues: This is an issue that's way overhyped by the media but the conservative backlash against RESTROOMS is ridiculous.  Support nondiscrimination laws and ordinances and oppose so-called "religious freedom" laws.  I also believe that sex and gender are separate concepts.

      Drugs: Legalization of marijuana and LSD; decriminalize the possession, but not sale, of other drugs.  Decriminalize the selling of small amounts of cocaine.  Abolish the DEA.

      Death Penalty: Oppose.

      Gun Control: Oppose bans on assault weapons and gun registries.  Neutral on magazine/clip limits.  Support open and concealed carry.  Support mandatory gun safety features, background checks, and closing the gun show loophole.  Ban armor-piercing bullets.

      Ideally, I would support mandatory firearm safety courses, but I'm resigned to the fact that guns are part of American culture and that such a requirement would be met with fierce resistance.  I also believe that states and localities should set their own gun laws; what works for Chicago probably wouldn't work for places like Alaska and Montana.  Illegal gun transfers and sales should be prosecuted and existing laws should be strictly enforced.

      Affirmative Action: I oppose mandatory quotas.

      Prostitution: I am very opposed to prostitution on moral and personal grounds, but I don't think government should ban the practice, especially since porn is effectively prostitution with a camera.  Regulate prostitution and mandate that contraceptives be used.  I don't believe in shaming sex work, but I don't support glamorizing it, either.

      Euthanasia: Strongly support, provided that the patient is of sound mind.  I believe that a person has the fundamental right to end his or her own life for any reason.

      Immigration: Create a pathway to citizenship for all non-violent undocumented immigrants.  Deport or imprison violent undocumented immigrants.  Require immigrants to assimilate into the culture regardless of religion or country of origin.  Offer free English courses and require fluency as a prerequisite to full citizenship, but oppose making English the "official language" of the United States.  Prosecute businesses that hire and exploit illegal immigrants out of good wages.

      Police Issues/Black Lives Matter: I strongly support the goals of BLM and police reform.  Require body cameras and accountability.  Allow for community policing and downgrade police firearms.  The justice system should be reformed so that officers are held accountable - no more "blue shield."

      Free Speech/Political Correctness: Political correctness is cancer.  I am a free speech absolutist and I'm completely against government censoring controversial opinions.  Stigmatizing discussion of certain topics is anti-liberal and impedes social progress and personal growth.  At the same time, college campuses and student bodies have the right to not entertain public speakers and to hold peaceful protests; nobody is entitled to a platform.

      School Prayer: Support voluntary, non-led prayer.  I also believe students should be allowed to form private religious and Bible Study groups if they desire.

      Muslim Ban: Islamaphobia is wrong and so are religious litmus tests period.  Anyone who's willing to assimilate into the culture and be a productive member of society should not be disqualified from entering the United States.

      PATRIOT ACT/NSA Spying: Completely opposed to warrantless wiretapping.

      TSA: Abolish it.  Let airports manage their own security in accordance with federal standards.

      Economic Issues
      Minimum Wage: Establish a national living wage of $15 per hour set to rise with inflation.

      Welfare: Safeguard and expand the welfare state. Ensure food security for all Americans, provide adequate living assistance, paid maternity and paternity leave of at least 1 year each, paid sick leave, 2 weeks guaranteed paid holidays, and subsidized childcare and universal pre-k.

      Social Security: Lift the taxable income cap.  Social Security is solvent until 2033 and there is no “crisis.”  Ideally, the retirement age would be lowered so as to expand job opportunities for young people.

      Healthcare: I would support a single-payer/Medicare-for-all program although I am unsure if this would be the best model for the United States.  I think that single-payer should be tested first in states like New York or California before adopting a national model.  Currently I’m most in favor of a nationwide “public option” or Medicare buy-in program, as well as co-ops or Germany-style “sickness funds,” to compete with private insurance companies.

      Allow drug imports from Canada and countries which tightly regulate their drug markets for safety.  Subsidize families that spend more than a certain portion of monthly income on prescription drugs, either through reimbursement or tax credits.

      Globalization/Trade: I don’t much like globalization itself but I don’t believe that protectionism is the solution to the drawbacks.  International institutions and corporations have used globalization purely for self-enrichment at the expense of the environment, human rights, labor protections, indigenous cultures, and civil liberties.  I support alter-globalization and fair trade as opposed to neoliberalism and corporate-friendly trade deals.

      Deficit/Debt: Maximize efficiency, streamline all governmental agencies, consolidate agencies and eliminate redundancies, abolish the NSA, slash the military and defense budget, focus on implementing cost saving technologies, and make it publicly available and readily accessible to see where all funds are going, the budgets of every agency and department, and who voted for what funding.

      Campaign Finance Reform: Pass a Constitutional amendment that would repeal Citizens United and require transparency.

      Unions: Strongly support. Completely overturn the Taft-Hartley Act, strengthen public and private sector unions, and abolish all right-to-work laws.

      Energy: Invest heavily in green energy with the intent of revolutionizing our energy sector. Incentivize businesses and individuals to go green with tax breaks, implement cap and trade, partially nationalize all companies exploiting our natural resources, and begin reducing fracking and offshore drilling.  Retrain coalminers and help them transition to safer jobs in the energy industry.

      Job Creation: Invest in a massive infrastructure redevelopment program and fund public projects that use American-made steel and resources.  Incentivize businesses to create jobs in underprivileged areas, both rural and urban.  Expand broadband to rural areas.

      Education: I favor the Finnish model on education.  Replace “drill, kill, bubble-fill” testing and promote innovative learning.  Allow teachers more autonomy over class material and give students say in the curriculum.

      I believe that higher education should have a much smaller role whereas high school should have a more lasting impact on a student’s learning.  (Ideally, college would only be geared toward STEM students and aspiring lawyers, but we’ve reached the point where that’s impossible.)  I do not favor incentivizing STEM degrees at the expense of the humanities as I believe that disciplines such as art and philosophy are undervalued in society.

      However, I support tuition-free public universities and refinancing student loan debt as well as universal pre-k.

      I strongly oppose bans on homeschooling.

      Taxes: Taxes in the United States are among the most progressive in the world yet poverty and inequality remain high because money is not redistributed progressively.  I would support higher taxes across the board only under the condition that welfare is more generous.  Otherwise, I support lowering taxes for low-income people and support drastically reducing if not eliminating state sales taxes.  I also favor slashing the Corporate Tax.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The world will shine with light in our nightmare on May 05, 2017, 08:37:50 PM
      Foreign
      NATO: As a nationalist and someone who generally opposes military alliances, I do not support NATO as an institution and, before Trump’s election, would have strongly supported US withdrawal from the pact.  However, so long as Trump and Putin are a problem, I would oppose any move that resembles a pro-Russia gesture.

      ISIS: I support humanitarian aid to the region in cooperation with the UN, but I wish to see the United States largely reduce its role on the world stage and especially the Middle East.  If the United States can bomb a bunch of ISIS thugs without collateral damage, great.  Get rid of ISIS and leave.

      China: Address the country’s currency manipulation and rampant human rights violations.

      Cuba: Completely normalize relations and close Guantanamo Bay.

      Iran: Support the Iran Deal.  The international community should condemn Iran’s human rights abuses and support efforts to promote tolerance and equality.  No war or regime change.

      Israel/Palestine: The United States should act as a peaceful mediator without favoring either party in the conflict.  A two-state solution is the best option, but unfeasible under current circumstances.

      Syria/Refugees: Alleviate the pressure on Europe and Syria’s neighbors by taking in at minimum 200,000 Syrian refugees, with special preference for women, children, LGBT people, and persecuted religious minorities.  All refugees must be assimilated.

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College Reform: Strongly support.  Abolish the electoral college and elect the President via popular vote, with instant-runoff/ranked voting.

      Gerrymandering: Switch to a proportional voting system for each state.

      Public Financing: Support.

      Term limits: Oppose.

      Voter ID: Oppose.

      Early Voting: Support expanding.

      Absentee Voting: Support expanding.

      Primaries: Make all primaries open and abolish caucuses and superdelegates.  I'm partial to the more radical change to a 'National Primary Day' with IRV, but it's not something I've spent much time thinking about.

      I'm neutral on the question of continuing to let Iowa and New Hampshire hold the first contests, but if we had to switch I'd prefer a state which best adequately represents all racial groups and has a good mix of rural and urban voters.  (Missouri and North Carolina might be good fits for that.)

      Corruption/Lobbying/Government Reform/etc.
      - Prohibit ex-politicians from working for lobbying firms
      - Prohibit lobbyists from bundling political contributions for politicians
      - Mandate full disclosure of campaign contributions


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The world will shine with light in our nightmare on May 05, 2017, 08:58:54 PM
      It wouldn't be a bad idea to sticky this thread...


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Torie on May 07, 2017, 07:41:32 AM
      I was asked by a poster to sticky this thread, so I am going to do so, at least for awhile while interest continues to be displayed in participating. Thank you.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The world will shine with light in our nightmare on May 07, 2017, 08:00:57 PM
      Thanks.  I just figure this thread better serves the purpose of the board than "Who was the best and worst senator from Idaho in the last fifty years?" being made three times a year.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TexasSecessionist on May 08, 2017, 10:50:23 PM
      I'm new here, so I'll go ahead.

      Basically, all my political views can be summed up in a simple phrase: taxation is theft. Apart from that, I'm pro-state sovereignty and pro-original intent of the Constitution. Support decentralization, oppose

      From there, essentially all my policy positions can be fairly easily deduced, but to be more specific, I'll use some of the categories others have used (I don't want to make it all up).

      Ideology: PALEOLIBERTARIAN

      Social: Cultural conservative (Southern Baptist), libertarian property rights. Non Aggression Principle (NAP).
      Economic: Property rights, free market capitalism. Austrian School of Economics.
      Foreign Policy: Non-interventionist.
      Political Registration: Unaffiliated, lean Libertarian, Constitution, and Federalist (newer)

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Pro-life. Abortion is aggression (rape, incest, and life of the mother debatable)

      Same-Sex Marriage: Morally opposed, but government should have no role in the institution. Make it a contract if you want, but no government prohibition/sanction.

      Conversion Therapy: No opinion; government should have no say.

      Transgender Issues: Let private businesses do what they want; let states/localities do what they want; oppose specific regulations about bathrooms.

      Drugs: Morally opposed; legalize it all.
      Death Penalty: Oppose; too expensive, morally questionable.

      Gun Control: Unconstitutional on federal level, violation of NAP. Totally against.

      Affirmative Action: Ridiculous and unconstitutional.

      Prostitution: Morally opposed; should be legal.

      Euthanasia: Morally opposed; probably should be legal.

      Immigration: In a truly private property society, it would not be an issue; until then, respectable controls on immigration but make it easier to get here. No welfare, no citizenship, definitely no voting. Should be a state issue, not federal, as the power to regulate immigration is not in the Constitution.

      Police Issues/Black Lives Matter: Government police are acting immorally and unethically by working for such an institution; however, they are often wrongly accused and are important on some level (private or public) in society. Black Lives Matter is essentially evil.

      Free Speech/Political Correctness: Free speech should always be upheld. PC is silly.
      School Prayer: Not in government schools (though I'd eliminate them), but a good idea in principle.

      Muslim Ban: No, at least not yet, and certainly not nationwide.

      PATRIOT ACT/NSA Spying: Unconstitutional.

      TSA: Unconstitutional on federal level.

      Economic Issues
      Monetary Policy: End the Fed, end government monopolies on currency.
      Minimum Wage: Unconstitutional (on federal level) and anti-liberty. Economically negative.

      Welfare: Unconstitutional on federal level; completely eliminate, but fairly slowly.

      Social Security: Unconstitutional; introduce opt out for those under 30; privatize. Eliminate new workers.

      Healthcare: Get the government out of healthcare.

      Globalization/Trade: Completely Free trade always. National sovereignty; no entangling alliances (NATO, UN, etc.)
      Deficit/Debt: Severely reduce spending. Slowly pay back debt.

      Campaign Finance Reform: Eliminate all restrictions, as they are unconstitutional and violations of free speech.
      Unions: Mostly evil organizations, esp. public sector. Eliminate public sector unions, but allow workers to do whatever they want as far as collectives. Eliminate laws in favor of unions and right to work laws.

      Energy: Free market.

      Job Creation: Free markets create jobs. Governments eliminate them.
      Education: Eliminate government schools.

      Taxes: Taxation is theft. Completely eliminate mandatory taxation. Until then, repeal the 16th amendment and institute a state rate proportional tax.

      Foreign
      NATO: Get out.
      UN: Get out.
      ISIS: Get out.

      China: Free trade, try to get help with North Korea.
      North Korea: who the hell knows? Messed up situation.
      Cuba: Free trade.
      Iran: Free trade.
      Israel/Palestine: Support Israel, but no foreign aid. They'll be okay. If you want to help them fight, go fight, or donate (which I would).

      Syria/Refugees: Stop accepting the vast majority. Stop interference in their war.
      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College Reform: Absolutely opposed. The Electoral College is one of the only parts of the Constitution that still preserves the concept of federalism and state sovereignty.
      Gerrymandering: State issue.
      Public Financing: Theft.
      Term limits: No opinion.
      Voter ID: Support.
      Early Voting: Oppose.
      Absentee Voting: Mostly opposed.
      Primaries: Eliminate government support for primaries, and parties should make them closed (if they want).
      Voting: Too many people vote that are uninformed. Possibly introduce the Informed Voter Act (which I created as a concept).


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: mvd10 on May 11, 2017, 05:04:15 AM
      Ideology

      Social: Liberal/Libertarian
      Economic: Centre-right/Right-wing
      Foreign: Neoconservative/Realist

      Social

      Abortion/Reproductive Rights: Leaning pro-choice, but it should be discouraged.
      Marriage Equality/LGBTQ Issues: Strongly support gay marriage.
      Death Penalty: Not a fan.
      Religious Freedom: Businesses should be able to deny service to everyone for any reason.
      Drug Legalization: End the war on drugs.
      Guns: Increased background checks, but no European-style gun control.
      Euthanasia: Support euthanasia and assisted suicide under certain conditions.
      Black Lives Matter/Police/Criminal Justice Reform: Strongly support criminal justice reform.
      Transgender Issues: Trans people have the right to enter the bathroom of the gender matching their identity.
      Education: Crush the teachers' unions and increase education spending.
      Affirmative Action: Opposed to it.
      Judges: Generally support appointing conservative judges

      Economic/Spending

      Taxes: Enact a VAT while cutting taxes on income and capital. Provide tax rebates if necessary. Also repeal the corporate income tax. Tax reform should be as revenue neutral as possible.
      Social Security: Raise the retirement age and cut benefits for everyone except the poorest.
      Budgets: A BBA is unrealistic so I oppose it. But reducing long-term deficits should be a priority.
      Defense Spending: Don't cut it unless other NATO countries finally start boosting their defense budgets.
      Minimum Wage: Oppose it.
      Labor Unions: Limit their power. Pass a national Right to Work law.
      Financial Regulation: Oppose reinstating Glass-Steagall. There needs to be some financial regulation but there are a lot of unnecessary rules in Dodd-Frank.
      Trade: Strongly support free trade deals like NAFTA, TPP and TTIP. Also strongly support globalization.

      Foreign Policy

      Russia/NATO: Pro-NATO. Strongly oppose stronger ties with Russia when Putin still is around.
      Radical Islam: Oppose the Muslim ban, but support strong efforts to defeat terrorist organizations.
      Israel: Pro-Israel. Israel is a liberal democracy and one of America's strongest and most stable allies in a volatile region. They do go too far sometimes, but they still are much better than the alternatives.
      Immigration: I support comprehensive immigration reform (like the 2013 bill).
      Iran: It isn't a really good deal, but tearing it apart would make the situation even worse.

      Environment

      Climate Change: It is real. The US should enact a carbon tax and use the revenue to cut other taxes.

      Healthcare

      Universal healthcare: Support universal healthcare (but oppose single-payer). I wouldn't mind raising a VAT to provide for healthcare vouchers for every single American. I prefer something like the Swiss healthcare system.
      Medicare: Cut medicare spending. Undecided on Ryan's medicare plan.

      Political

      Gerrymandering: Independent commissions (if that's possible).
      Campaign Finance: No limits.
      Term Limits: They're called elections.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: OSR stands with Israel on May 12, 2017, 01:39:50 AM
      https://8values.github.io/results.html?e=40.9&d=37.8&g=49.2&s=46.3

      Moderate Conservative


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: tallguy23 on May 12, 2017, 02:16:41 AM
      https://8values.github.io/results.html?e=68.9&d=57.4&g=65.4&s=75.6 (https://8values.github.io/results.html?e=68.9&d=57.4&g=65.4&s=75.6)

      Social Liberalism


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Tancred on May 13, 2017, 06:36:14 AM
      I am an old school Catholic labor Democrat. I am pretty liberal on economics but conservative on most social issues. I have voted for both parties in the past. I voted for Donald Trump in 2016 but for the Democrats on the rest of the ballot.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: JustinTimeCuber on May 18, 2017, 08:05:38 PM
      So apparently people are posting their 8values results

      Economic: Socialist
      75.6% Equality, 24.4% Markets
      Equality +51

      Diplomatic Axis: Peaceful
      35.1% Nation, 64.9% World
      World +30

      Civil Axis: Liberal
      74.2% Liberty, 25.8% Authority
      Liberty +49

      Societal Axis: Very Progressive
      14.8% Tradition, 85.2% Progress
      Progress +70

      Lazily flattening this to the political compass, that translates to an economic score of -4 and a social score of -6.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Kingpoleon on June 01, 2017, 02:28:44 PM
      Social:
      Guns: Ban all those that have been in military use at any time in the preceding thirty years. Make other dangerous and former military weapons require a specific permit for each separate one. Mandate background checks, a 96 hour waiting period, and a mental health test.
      Marriage: Support federal SSM.
      Abortion: Federal ban after 24 weeks with exceptions for rape, incest, mother's life, and sometimes mother's health. Allow states to ban after 12 weeks, with mandatory exceptions as above.
      Immigration: Background check, 72 hour waiting period. Generally open borders, but must register before entering country.
      Affirmative action: Federal agencies must use.
      Transgender bathroom: Allow businesses to determine.

      Economics:
      Healthcare: Collins-Cassidy(with modifications) eventually to Wyden-Bennett.
      Budget: Balance by replacing welfare with basic income for those at or below 200% of their state's poverty line. Basic income - 66.67% of the state's average personal income.
      Taxes: Federal sales tax of 2.5%; those at or below 250% of the poverty line or in the immediate family of a military member(who was wounded or has served for 5+ years)/veterans are exempt. Something similar to the Simpson-Bowles plan on taxes.
      Regulations/Intervention: Centralize authority, localize solutions. Have agencies like the EPA work alongside community leaders rather than intervene "for" them. Mandate state subsidization of 25% of the costs of the parts that work in their state. Re-implement Glass-Steagall.
      Overall: Somewhat similar to the Simpson-Bowles plan with the above modifications.

      Foreign policy/trade:
      - Prioritize India as an ally.
      - Trade deal with Canada, India, Japan, South Korea, Australia, Singapore, Taiwan, and Australia. Perhaps include Germany, France, Spain, and the U. K.
      - Attempt to transition more into Indian imports rather than Chinese imports.
      - Slowly weaken and eventually cut ties with Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey.
      - Ask for democratic concessions in Cuba once Castro dies. In exchange, offer some small amount of money, release of the embargo, and eventual immigration/emigration.

      Reform:
      - Allow Puerto Rico to become a state.
      - Allow D. C. to have 2 Senators and a Representative.
      - Total donations to all PACs and campaign supporting a candidate may not exceed $2,500 per individual. Minors may not be given money by parents to donate.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: jate88 on June 13, 2017, 08:58:46 PM
      Pro-LGBTQIA+, pro-sex work, pro separation of church and state, prochoice, pro-feminist, pro-black lives matter, pro-renewable energy

      Everybody should be able to have their basic survival needs met but if you want to set up a game beyond that where people can compete for more wealth and they and their families aren't punished with death for losing or refusing to participate then go ahead.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Young Conservative on June 15, 2017, 10:00:43 PM
      Ideology

      Social: Right
      Economic: Right
      Foreign: Center-Right

      Social

      Abortion/Reproductive Rights: Strongly Pro-Life
      Gay Marriage: Opposed.
      Death Penalty: Opposed (I'm ProLife, obviously)
      Religious Freedom: Businesses should be able to deny service to individuals for ONLY religious reasons.
      Drug Legalization: Oppose legalization. Oppose most medical marajuana (not all)
      Guns: Strong Second Amendment Supporter.
      Euthanasia: Strongly Opposed
      Police/Criminal Justice Reform: Support reform, but I also support our police officers who risk their lives daily. Although, I see no reason body cameras shouldn't be instituted.
      Education: No common core, no tenure, bonuses based on performance.
      Affirmative Action: Income based makes far more sense than race.
      Judges: Literalists.

      Economic/Spending

      Taxes: Flat Tax or Consumption Tax. Rand Paul's tax plan was wonderful
      Social Security: Raise the retirement age and reduce benefits or the social security trust fund will run out.
      Budgets: Pass a balanced budget amendment and stop deficit spending while we have so much debt.
      Defense Spending: There's waste. It needs to be addressed and audited
      Minimum Wage Increase:  Oppose
      Labor Unions: Pass Right to Work Nationally.
      Financial Regulation: Repeal Dodd Frank
      Trade: Pro-Free Trade, No Tariffs, No Border Adjustment Tax

      Foreign Policy

      Russia/NATO: Pro-NATO. Anti-Putin
      Radical Islam: Fight it until it is dust and force Middle Eastern nations to confront it.
      Israel: Support
      Immigration: Secure the Border, then handle the people here. Deport Criminal offenders.
      Iran: Shred the Iran deal.

      Environment

      Climate Change: Mostly Natural.
      Pollution: Be Reasonable- This applies to both sides.

      Healthcare

      Universal healthcare: Absolutely Ridiculous Proposition for America
      Medicare: Current spending is unsustainable.

      Political

      Gerrymandering: Unless every state commits to independent redistricting, no state should have to individually.
      Campaign Finance: Money is a form of speech
      Term Limits: Term limits are elitist and imply citizens can't make their own decisions.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: vanguard96 on June 16, 2017, 11:52:35 AM
      I shall distinguish between my old, deplorable political opinions (mencken 1.0), and my new, enlightened philosophy (mencken 2.0)

      Abortion:
      Use money in the welfare/food stamp budget to fully subsidize abortions and contraception for those who cannot afford it.
      Use money in the Medicaid budget to fully subsidize abortions and contraception for those who cannot afford it.
      Death Penalty:
      Abolished for the judicial system. Convicted murderers forfeit their personhood to their victim's estate, whereupon the next-of-kin are free to do with it as they see fit.
      Abolished uniformly. Convcited murderers sent to rehabilitation for six month before returning to society as changed men.
      Religious Liberty:
      Nonsensical term. People ought to be free to associate with whom or what they want regardless of pseudoreligious justification.
      Life imprisonment for those who refuse to actively participate in any celebration of alternate lifestyle (with special waivers from this statute for observant Muslims)
      Drug Legalization:
      Legalize them all, with appropriate surgeon general's warning that nobody will read anyway.
      Use money in the Medicaid budget to fully subsidize marijuana for those who cannot afford it.
      Affirmative Action:
      Gross violation of equality under the law. Banned from institutions receiving federal funding for educational purposes.
      All minorities (except Asians and Jews) shall be guaranteed at least twice the representation in an institution as their representation in the applicant pool.
      Immigration:
      See here (https://uselectionatlas.org/FORUM/index.php?topic=213601.msg4667182#msg4667182).
      Automatic citizenship for all undocumented immigrants currently present and for all claiming refugee status. Those currently in the immigration queue move to fourth in the line behind the above groups and their extended families and friends.
      Guns:
      Existing background checks and waiting period for purchase, concealed carry and open carry.
      Banned except for police use. Misdemeanor offense for toy guns or extending the middle and index finger in a suspicious manner.

      Taxes:
      Abolish personal and corporate income taxes and estate taxes. Fund government services with user fees, property (sales) taxes, excise taxes, and tariffs (capped at 10% each)
      One-time 60% wealth tax on households over $10 million; double tax burden on brackets over $100,000; half tax burden on brackets under $50,000.
      Health Care:
      Individual mandate for catastrophic coverage and/or health saving accounts over a specified amount. Insurance purchasable by individuals rather than employers. Price caps on patent-protected prescription drugs.
      Universal public option, ban on private health care
      Social Security/Medicare:
      Allow individuals to earmark Social Security/Medicare taxes toward their parents' benefit.
      Need-based Social Security/Medicare benefits. No benefits for seniors in households over $500,000.
      Welfare:
      Restructure welfare system to gradually tapir off benefits/avoid creating disincentive toward marginal increase in earned income.
      Expand the requirement for need-based eligibility to 300% of the poverty line.
      Labor:
      End minimum wage, ban on public sector unions, freeze federal hiring, eliminate Wagner Act
      Raise minimum wage to $30/hour, freeze private-sector firing, require companies to give labor unions 30% of stock.

      Virtually signaled! 


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: This account no longer in use. on June 16, 2017, 12:01:37 PM
      Oh hey Eharding


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: vanguard96 on June 16, 2017, 05:51:16 PM
      My 8 values results
      Libertarian Capitalism

      https://8values.github.io/results.html?e=22.0&d=42.6&g=71.2&s=54.8

      Economic Axis - Capitalist
      Markets 78% - Equality 22%
      Diplomatic Axis - Balanced
      Nation 57.4% - World 42.6
      Civil Axis - Liberal
      Liberty 71.2% - Authority 28.8%
      Societal Axis - Neutral
      Tradition 45.2% - Progress 54.8%

      Anyone else try the 8 Values quiz of 70 questions which importantly distinguishes military action and other aspects not really fleshed out as much in the S/E axis we have here.

      Also how about this one?

      What type of right winger are you?
      http://www.gotoquiz.com/what_type_of_right_winger_are_you_1

      I left the one about which dictator do you admire blank (#22)

      I got:
      Quote
      Your Result: Libertarian
       
      89%
      You are a libertarian. You favor small government all around and might consider yourself a minarchist. Libertarians favor a laissez-faire economy, personal freedoms, a noninterventionist foreign policy, and want to limit government to just the "basic" functions. You might be a fan of Ron Paul.
       
      69%Constitutionalist
       
      56%Alt Lite
       
      40%Paleoconservative
       
      24%National Capitalist
       
      20%Neoconservative
       
      9%Alt-right
       
      1%Christian Fundamentalist
       
      0%Fascist
       
      0%National Socialist

      How about you?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: vanguard96 on June 19, 2017, 09:08:00 AM
      Ideology:
      I am a fierce individualist and supporter of natural rights and the equality of all before the law. I am for the negative rights as spelled out in the Constitution of what the government should not do.

      I firmly believe in the mantra of "the freer the markets, the freer the minds." Without economic freedom how can one truly live a life of prosperity without resorting to force or fraud.

      As Rand wrote, "the individual is the smallest minority" and collectivist rule by democracy is still non-consensual.

      I support private property rights - from private property we avoid the troubles with the 'common good' which always will result in a decision that will not benefit all equally and will result in some being hurt.

      The fundamental idea of not authorizing force against others unless attacked or in imminent danger of attack is a good guiding principle to have.

      I advocate the reduction of the destructive and interventionist power of the state. Private, free-market solutions are revolutionizing many unheard of areas. We must continue to push back against the advances of the powerful corporatist, crony capitalist, welfare state which uses fiat currency and central banking to finance wars of imperialist expansion that are against the interests of those looking for both peace and prosperity for this world.

      Some of the key influences on my positions: Ron Paul, Ludwig von Mises, Murray Rothbard, Milton Friedman, Thomas Sowell, Ayn Rand, Tom Woods, Vanessa Beeley, Glenn Greenwald, F.A. Hayek, Leonard Reed

      My favorite libertarian charity - Institute for Justice
      My favorite libertarian publication - Reason
      My favorite libertarian foundation - Foundation for Economic Education (FEE)
      My favorite libertarian Facebook page - Being Libertarian
      My favorite current Libertarian Party member - Larry Sharpe (former VP candidate and possible NYC mayoral candidate)
      My favorite current libertarian Senator - still Rand Paul. I met him 2 years ago on the campaign trail.
      My favorite current libertarian Congressman - Thomas Massie
      My favorite libertarian podcast - Contra Krugman - Tom Woods and Bob Murphy take apart Paul Krugman's New York Times columns
      My favorite libertarian book - For A New Liberty by Murray Rothbard



      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Santander on June 19, 2017, 10:19:08 AM
      Terrifying views.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: vanguard96 on June 19, 2017, 12:31:00 PM
      Non sequitur


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: publicunofficial on June 22, 2017, 02:03:58 PM

      That's actually the summary of his political beliefs.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on June 23, 2017, 11:50:09 AM

      Only if you don't think Trump should literally be a king. Trump almost sounds like a title than a name.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: tschandler on June 25, 2017, 07:57:17 PM
      Ideology

      Social: Libertarian
      Economic: Neoliberal
      Foreign: Realist

      Social

      Abortion/Reproductive Rights: Abortion should be legal on demand until viability.  After that only to save a mother's life.  No public funding.
      Marriage Equality/LGBTQ Issues: Gay Marriage doesn't bother me.  It is settled law.
      Death Penalty: Right in concept, horrible in execution.
      Religious Freedom: Businesses should be able to deny service to everyone for any reason.
      Drug Legalization: End the war on drugs. Marijuana should be legalized.
      Guns: Repeal the NFA on suppressors.  50 state reciprocity of Concealed Carry Licenses.
      Euthanasia: Support euthanasia and assisted suicide under certain conditions.
      Black Lives Matter/Police/Criminal Justice Reform: Strongly support criminal justice reform.
      Transgender Issues: An extremely unimportant issue.  Most modern businesses have a family bathroom.  That should really be the end of that issue.
      Education: Crush the teachers' unions and increase education spending.
      Affirmative Action: Opposed to it.
      Judges: Judges in the mold of Reason/CATO not Heritage.

      Economic/Spending

      Taxes: Enact a VAT while cutting taxes on income and capital.
      Social Security: Raise the retirement age and cut benefits for everyone except the poorest.
      Budgets: A BBA is unrealistic so I oppose it. But reducing long-term deficits should be a priority.
      Defense Spending: Don't cut it unless other NATO countries finally start boosting their defense budgets.
      Minimum Wage: Oppose it.
      Labor Unions: Limit their power. Pass a national Right to Work law.
      Financial Regulation: Oppose reinstating Glass-Steagall. There needs to be some financial regulation but there are a lot of unnecessary rules in Dodd-Frank.
      Trade: Strongly support free trade deals like NAFTA, TPP and TTIP. Also strongly support globalization.

      Foreign Policy

      Russia/NATO: Pro-NATO. Strongly oppose stronger ties with Russia when Putin still is around.  NATO should make its commitments to increase defense spending.
      Radical Islam: Oppose the Muslim ban, but support strong efforts to defeat terrorist organizations.
      Israel: Pro-Israel. Israel is a liberal democracy and one of America's strongest and most stable allies in a volatile region. They do go too far sometimes, but they still are much better than the alternatives.
      Immigration: I support comprehensive immigration reform (like the 2013 bill).
      Iran: It isn't a really good deal, but tearing it apart would make the situation even worse.
      India: We should cultivate a productive relationship with India.  The world's largest democracy with a highly religious population under attack from Radical Islam.  Our relationship with India should be one of stewardship like the UK/US Special Relationship.  

      Environment

      Climate Change: Is complicated.  It is likely real but every solution to the problem involves those who rent seek in the name of the Environment.
      Energy: Markets not politics should determine energy policy.   Renewables and Nuclear should be a key part of an all of the above energy policy.  One size doesn't fit all.

      Healthcare

      Universal Healthcare:  Medicare for all the eliminates the redundancies in Federal Healthcare spending.  

      Political

      Gerrymandering: Independent Commissions and end the Federal involvement in state elections.  IE stop creating token Democratic districts in the Deep South.
      Campaign Finance: No limits.
      Term Limits: They're called elections.  Encourage intraparty differences through the primary system.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Kingpoleon on June 25, 2017, 11:49:57 PM
      tschandler: Would you support replacing welfare with a basic income of up to, say, $20,000 for those who make less than $20,000?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TheSaint250 on June 30, 2017, 10:25:14 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion:
      -Pro-choice
      -Personally pro-life, but wouldn't consider banning
      -Defund Planned Parenthood

      LGBTQ+ Rights:
      -Strongly in favor of
      -Anyone can use whichever bathroom they want

      Guns:
      -Expand background checks
      -Prevent criminals and mentally challenged from getting guns

      Religious Freedom:
      -Protect it
      -While I do not believe gay marriage conflicts with religion, others do, and government shouldn't force bakers to bake the cake, for example

      Immigration:
      -Strengthen border control
      -Amnesty for illegal immigrants
      -Do not cancel or restrict H1-B visas

      Death Penalty:
      -Don't like it, but it's necessary in some cases

      Confederate Flags/Monuments:
      -Despise them
      -In favor of states removing them and placing them into museums or other designated "historical" sites

      Drugs:
      -Let states decide on medical and recreational marijuana
      -Personally against decriminalization of drugs

      Education:
      -Abolish Common Core
      -Give more power to state and local governments
      -Severely restrict or get rid of Department of Education
      -Pro-school choice

      Affirmative Action:
      -Against
      -Contributes to higher minority drop-out rates
      -Discriminates against non-minorities

      Economic Issues

      Taxes:
      -Impose flat tax of 10%-20%

      Trade:
      -Pro-free trade, but ensure that such trade doesn't hurt Americans and American businesses and industries
      -Re-negotiate NAFTA

      Minimum Wage:
      -Increase to $10.10
      -Look to increase further over time

      Foreign Policy

      NATO:
      -Strongly in favor of
      -Push for other nations to meet spending requirements

      United Nations:
      -Scale back U.S. involvement, especially in light of UN's  aggressive approach towards Israel

      Israel:
      -Strongly in favor of
      -Continue supplying with foreign aid
      -Help improve and fund defense technology
      -Move U.S. embassy to Jerusalem

      Nations I Am Strongly Against:
      -Russia
      -Iran
      -North Korea

      Interventionism:
      -Against
      -Stay out of Syrian Civil War

      Defense/Military Spending:
      -Increase

      Environmental Issues

      Climate change:
      -Real
      -Caused naturally and by humans
      -Place and keep on restrictions that limit carbon dioxide output

      Renewable energy:
      -Invest in solar and wind power
      -Phase out fossil-fuel usage

      Electoral Reform and Government

      Presidential Elections:
      -Abolish Electoral College
      -Enact two-round popular-vote system (France's system is the best example)

      House Elections:
      -Very, very slightly in favor of proportional voting system

      Redistricting/Gerrymandering:
      -Strongly in favor of independent redistricting commissions

      Term Limits:
      -Two six-year terms for senators
      -Four two-year terms for representatives

      isidewith.com Results

      Party: 56% Republican
      Ideology: Centrist


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Gay Republican on July 29, 2017, 09:40:07 AM
      Just copying the format of the poster before me
      Social Issues

      Abortion:
      Definitely Pro-Choice but not Pro-Abortion (an issue I really had with the Clinton campaign).  Planned Parenthood should have full funding but there needs to be a lot more emphasis towards alternatives like adoption (perhaps giving tax credits to adoptive parents?).  This is one issue I strongly disagree with the Republican orthodoxy on and the sooner we move away from the pro-life position we'll be able to do much better in suburbs and among educated professionals.

      LGBTQ+ Rights:
      Obviously in favor of.  I do disagree with the Trumps Administration's recent decision that sexual orientation is not protected by federal anti-discrimination laws.  As for the whole bathroom issue thing?  The only thing disturbing about it is people thinking about what genitalia the person taking a dump next to them has.  When I use a restroom I'm thinking about taking care of business, not whether or not there is a dickless man stalking me.  And obviously anybody who is willing to give their life in service to our country deserves to be in the armed forces.

      Guns:
      Okay with basic background checks but in general support the right to bear arms.  People shouldn't have to jump through hoops just to get basic self-defense for their home or person.  It is a cruel reality but if you live in a major urban area you have to be prepared to defend yourself.  You can't escape all violence just because you live in "the good part of town" or there are police cars around every corner.  The police aren't there to prevent you from getting mugged, they are only there to report the crime after it happens.

      Religious Freedom:
      As long as said religion is non-violent and doesn't try to force their morality on people it should be given the same rights to practice as other religions.  If it's a religion with moderates and radicals in it obviously we shouldn't ban the practice of it however it should not be an insane idea that occasionally police and federal law enforcement officials investigate places of worship and various sects.  I definitely am not one of those Republicans who thinks Islam is conspiring to take over America but we should stop blaming ourselves and racism and start considering that maybe there is a (again) radicalized and violent portion of Islam in this country that seeks to hurt people.

      Immigration:
      Not an easy fix.  I think The Wall was an overkill idea.  We already had a border fence put up about a decade ago, what happened to that?  I think a much easier solution would be to have law enforcement officials enforce the laws they have on the book instead of creating more draconian laws that officials are going to ignore anyway.  That said this country is not some free-for-all that people can just come over to and give nothing back in return.  If you are going to live here you better be ready to contribute.  WE should continue to issue work visas and the like (if not increase them) and help immigrants find jobs to support and legitimatize their status.  Okay with amnesty if the people naturalized promise to find jobs and stay in the US for at least 10 years.

      Death Penalty:
      Strongly Support.  Let's dispel with this notion that there aren't evil people in this world who just had a bad life.  There are terrible evil people.  People who lack a conscience and wouldn't think twice about breaking into your house and killing everybody in it (including the dog).  That is why we have the death penalty.  So while a lot of you are guilt ridden over the prospect of some mass murderers blood being on your hands I can guarantee you many of them sleep like a freaking baby after what they do.

      Confederate Flags/Monuments:
      Not a fan of them.  If a government entity wants to remove them from government owned property they should be able to do that just like a private entity would.  Private citizens should have the right to fly the flag if they want to.  Frankly the Confederate Flag issue is the Flag Burning issue of our times.  Nobody cares.

      Drugs:
      Legalize Marijuana NOW!!!!!!  It's a harmless drug, it helps people with cancer treatments, and prohibition has only resulted in overcrowded prisons and fatherless neighborhoods.  How can anybody seeing those results conclude there is anything "just" about our drug laws?  We should be prosecuting real criminals, like those monsters who sell actual dangerous sh*t like heroin to children.

      Education:
      Definitely should be more authority given to state and local governments.  I'm definitely not a fan of the national testing standards tests or one size fits all solutions like Common Core.  Public school teachers definitely need a lot more independence in their course materials so that they can with their own unique perspectives encourage kids to think critically and independently.  Route education is BAD for this country.

      Affirmative Action:
      I'm sure it had a purpose at one time but now days not so much.  That and I'm not comfortable with some of the inherent racial implications in AA policy, namely the idea that blacks and Hispanics are just stupid or Asians having to score higher on the test due to some IQ algorithim.  Ideally this needs to be reworked from having race as a qualifier to being income based.  A lot of working class people do not have the time or the energy to fully dedicate themselves to studying to get the best grades in school vs. upper class kids who are practically coached on how to get the highest test scores possible to get into the best schools possible.

      Economic Issues

      Taxes:
      I'd say keep taxes kind of where they are at.  The issue isn't really with the revenue we're getting but more with how it's being used.  We need to get much smarter with how we allocate our resources so that each tax dollar is being used efficiently.  However, I definitely do not support the old logic of pushing reduced taxes to force people to reduce spending because that has been proven to not work and be counterintuitive.

      Trade:
      Pro-Free Trade in theory.  We need to do a much better job negotiating trade agreements rather than just getting them pushed through for the publicity.  We definitely should not return to protectionism (which didn't prevent millions from losing their jobs during the Great Depression) but it's becoming clearer that Free Trade isn't the silver bullet solution people made it out to be.  There are obviously benefits and drawbacks to it.  A more balances approach like Fair Trade might be ideal policy.

      Minimum Wage:
      Should be indexed to the cost of living.  With the explosion of housing costs we can't continue having an economy where someone earning $10/hr is expected to somehow live in an area where the average rent for a 1 bedroom apartment is $1500 a month.  However, we shouldn't push for a $15 minimum wage in an area where that wage is practically middle class.  Again, we need realism in our economic policies and not just Talking Points liberal or conservative solutions to everyday problems.

      Foreign Policy

      NATO:
      Definitely in support of.  We also need to encourage other countries in NATO to increase spending so that our defense networks over the Atlantic and the Mediterranean is much stronger.  I want to emphasize though that NATO needs to be a strictly defensive organization and not one that goes into the business of nationbuilding.

      United Nations:
      Mixed.  The UN Peacekeeping Forces are a vital part of the UN in intervening in humanitarian crises in Africa, Southeast Asia, and other parts of the third world.  However, in a lot of cases the UN has also made some joke decisions and it's bias in regards to some countries (especially Israel) is suspect.  We should stay involved and assert our right to protest bad decisions by the UN Security Council.

      Israel:
      I support Israel.  For all of the bad things a lot of activists say about it it is still one of a very few areas in the Middle East where LGBT individuals can live safe and free lives.  Obviously as a gay man I consider that an important factor, especially considering a lot of the radical Muslim countries surrounding it have extreme anti-LGBT laws (some even consider engaging in homosexual relations to be a capital crime, meaning death).  Israel also has a lot more respect for civil liberties and democratic institutions.  With that said we should take a lead in encouraging Israel to find more humanitarian solutions to the Palestinian issue rather than just resettling them in the Gaza Strip.  The US should continue to provide financial, military, and humanitarian aid to Israel.

      Interventionism:
      Against as a general rule of thumb.  We're still paying the consequences for our intervention into Iraq in 2003 and now a lot of the Middle Eastern's problems are spilling over into Europe.  Generally when you break something you fix it.  That wasn't done when we left Iraq.  Ideal military policy should only be focused on defending us and our allies from external attacks.  There is no such thing as a "defensive invasion".

      Defense/Military Spending:
      We need to be much smarter with defense policy.  It does not look good when Congress is taking years to get a good healthcare policy down but will thrown hundreds of billions of dollars to a fighter jet program.  We need to scale back on our military presence overseas and bring a lot of those troops back home where they can contribute to help building our communities.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Proudconnh on July 30, 2017, 11:38:16 PM
      Basically a Libertarian Traditionalist (I only sort of made that up), with a strong support for Agrarianism. I always find myself in opposition to the government of the day. I am basically a political malcontent. To quote Wikipedia on the Tory party following the General Election of 1747:

      "The Tories had become an irrelevant group of country gentlemen who had resigned themselves to permanent opposition."

      So that is me, an irrelevant Burkean Conservative who is in permanent opposition, a conscientious objector to the 21st Century.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: JA on August 04, 2017, 08:01:20 AM
      () (https://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/download/pdf/Manifesto.pdf)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mike Thick on August 04, 2017, 03:10:21 PM
      Don't remember if I ever posted this, but here goes. Format, and some planks, borrowed from Scott.

      Ideology
      Social: Libertarian-ish
      Economic: Social democrat
      Foreign Policy: It's complicated
      Political Registration: Democratic in CA (PreReg)

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Pro-choice. Oppose mandatory counseling/waiting periods. Oppose the Hyde Amendment. Support protection of late-term abortions, as they are extremely rare and almost always occur in cases where there's a medical necessity.

      Same-Sex Marriage: Strongly support, as well as measures to protect the access of LGBT access to the same services as straight people.

      Conversion Therapy: Ban it, for obvious reasons.

      Transgender Issues: Support allowing transgender people to use the restroom corresponding to their gender, and their right to serve in the military if they so choose.

      Drugs: Legalization of marijuana, for the time being, as well as decriminalization of some of the harder stuff. I'd be open to legalizing those other drugs after we get a broader view of how pot legalization works out over the next few years.

      Death Penalty: Oppose unconditionally.

      Gun Control: Oppose bans on assault weapons and gun registries. Support reasonable magazine/clip limits. Support open carry in some places, concealed carry in fewer places. Support mandatory gun safety features, background checks, and closing the gun show loophole.

      This should, of course, be very localized. I would support some kind of regular test of psychological stability and knowledge of gun safety, like how you have to renew your driver's license, but this is probably not politically feasible.

      Affirmative Action: Bigly support -- it's a way to give underserved communities a leg up, and more diversity on campuses is a good thing.

      Prostitution: I don't really think it's the government's job to legislate this sort of thing, and I could support this as long as it's monitored to make sure that the prostitutes are there voluntarily and contraceptives/condoms are used.

      Euthanasia: Ambivalent. Suffering through terminal illness is awful, but I also don't believe that people have a right to end their life, and I think that it's immoral to end the life of another.

      Immigration: Create a pathway to citizenship for all non-violent undocumented immigrants. Deport or imprison violent undocumented immigrants. Offer free English courses, and require basic knowledge as a prerequisite to citizenship, but oppose making English the "official language" of the United States. Prosecute businesses that hire and exploit illegal immigrants out of good wages. Expand legal immigration (H1Bs, green cards, etc) drastically, and remove steps from the bureaucracy required for admission.

      Police Issues/Black Lives Matter: I strongly support the goals of BLM and police reform. Require body cameras and accountability. Encourage community policing.  The justice system should be reformed so that officers are held accountable - no more "blue shield."

      Free Speech/Political Correctness: Some level of "political correctness" as a social norm is necessary to keep politics from descending into a blithering mass of personal hatred and bigotry, but I support the right of anyone to say anything and my right to call them a hateful asshole for saying it. :P

      School Prayer: I don't think it's really appropriate, but religious clubs are alright.

      Muslim Ban: Islamaphobia is wrong and so are religious litmus tests period.  Anyone who's willing to assimilate into the culture and be a productive member of society should not be disqualified from entering the United States.

      PATRIOT ACT/NSA Spying: Completely and unconditionally opposed to warrantless wiretapping. Privacy is a human right.

      TSA: Abolish it. Let airports/airlines manage their own security in accordance with federal standards.

      Economic Issues
      Minimum Wage: Establish a national living wage of $15 per hour set to rise with inflation.

      Welfare: Safeguard and expand the welfare state. Ensure food security for all Americans, provide adequate living assistance, paid maternity and paternity leave of at least 1 year each, paid sick leave, 2 weeks guaranteed paid holidays, and subsidized childcare and universal pre-k. Implement a UBI for economic stability and general welfare.

      Social Security: Lift the taxable income cap.  Social Security is solvent until 2033 and there is no “crisis.”  Ideally, the retirement age would be lowered so as to expand job opportunities for young people.

      Healthcare: I would support a single-payer/Medicare-for-all program. Currently I’m most in favor of a nationwide “public option” or Medicare buy-in program, as well as co-ops or Germany-style “sickness funds,” to compete with private insurance companies.

      Allow drug imports from Canada and countries which tightly regulate their drug markets for safety. Subsidize families that spend more than a certain portion of monthly income on prescription drugs, either through reimbursement or tax credits.

      Globalization/Trade: I think free trade is a net plus for the economy, but

      Deficit/Debt: Maximize efficiency, streamline all governmental agencies, consolidate agencies and eliminate redundancies, abolish the NSA, slash the military and defense budget, focus on implementing cost saving technologies, and make it publicly available and readily accessible to see where all funds are going, the budgets of every agency and department, and who voted for what funding.

      Campaign Finance Reform: Amend the Constitution to exempt political contributions from free speech, and allow Congress to establish reasonable regulations and (possibly) publicly fund campaigns.

      Unions: Strongly support. Completely overturn the Taft-Hartley Act, strengthen public and private sector unions, and abolish all right-to-work laws.

      Energy: Invest heavily in green energy with the intent of revolutionizing our energy sector. Incentivize businesses and individuals to go green with tax breaks, implement cap and trade, partially nationalize all companies exploiting our natural resources, and begin reducing fracking and offshore drilling by gradually restricting permits. Retrain workers on the fossil fuel sector and help them transition to other jobs.

      Job Creation: Invest in a massive infrastructure redevelopment program a la Roosevelt's public works programs. Heavily incentivize businesses to create jobs in underprivileged areas, both rural and urban. Expand broadband to all people, including rural areas.

      Education: More autonomy for schools and teachers over curriculum, ideally by reducing the effects of standardized testing on said schools. Free tuition for public universities and pre-k, and no ban on homeschooling.

      Taxes: Reduce the corporate tax rate, while closing loopholes and such. Sales taxes should be minimal, and income taxes should be very progressive.

      Foreign Policy
      Basically, the U.S. should play an active role in the liberal order. We should respond proportionally to humanitarian crises on a case-by-case basis, and prevent singular actors from gaining hegemony over their regional neighbors and our allies via bullying. However, most of the failed military ventures by the U.S. post-WWII can be explained by a failure to decide where the best theater to prevent said aggression is, so caution is extremely important.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: fhtagn on August 15, 2017, 09:55:18 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion
      - Personally wouldn't have an abortion
      - Do not support bans under 20 weeks
      - Pro-choice until point of viability, after that point only in extreme cases of risks to the mother or baby
      - Support Planned Parenthood

      LGBTQ+ Rights
      - Support same sex marriage and adoption
      - Sexual orientation should be protected by anti-discrimination laws
      - Anyone can use whichever bathroom they wish
      - Do not support conversion therapy
      - No issue with LGBTQ+ citizens in the military

      Guns:
      - Support background checks
      - Prevent those who are unfit from obtaining a gun (ex. extreme cases of mental/psychological disability, those who have a record of violent crime - especially gun related charges, etc.)
      - Do not support gun bans and magazine limits
      - Do not support registries
      - Support both open and concealed carry

      Drugs
      - Support full legalization of marijuana
      - Support decriminalization of harder stuff, prefer focusing on addiction as a mental illness vs. a crime

      Religious Freedom
      - Should be protected
      - The government should not force citizens or businesses to operate against their religious views

      Death Penalty
      - Generally oppose, but do support for extreme cases where the crime is especially heinous and there is no doubt about who committed the crime (ex. serial killers, terrorists, etc.)

      Euthanasia
      - Support as long as the patient is terminally ill and expected to live 6 months or less
      - Patient must be of sound mind to make the decision, must not be a result of mental illness
      - Doctor cannot be forced to perform the procedure, but should be able to recommend one who will

      Prostitution
      - Should be legal as long as all participants are of legal age and consent to the act
      - Ensure contraceptives/condoms are used and ensure regular STD testing takes place

      Immigration
      - Create a pathway to citizenship for all non-violent immigrants, deport ones who are violent
      - Oppose making English official language, but basic knowledge should be required
      - Support expansion of legal means of immigration
      - Protect illegal immigrants by prosecuting businesses and individuals who take advantage of them for low wages and bypassing other labor laws

      Affirmative Action
      - Oppose
      - I do acknowledge how it has benefited minorities, however there are many issues I personally find with it today.
      - Presently feel the issue more of a class/income divide rather than race
      - Encourages reverse discrimination/racial tension
      - Devalues personal achievement, lowers standards, and holds people less accountable

      Confederate Flags/Monuments
      - History should not be erased, do not support removing
      - Should be protected from desecration
      - Would prefer a plaque or sign placing them in context vs removal or placement in museums
      - If people want to fly it, let them fly it.

      Political Correctness
      - Some arguments make sense, but people these days take it too far
      - Know your audience and try not to be a jerk
      - It's not that serious

      Economic Issues

      Minimum Wage
      - Should be increased, but rate should determined based on cost of living in the areas where people reside, though support keeping a reasonable federal minimum wage to avoid people being taken advantage of
      - Should take into account whether or not someone has dependents
      - Adjust with inflation
      - Businesses should not be placed at risk

      Trade
      - Free trade is great in theory, but we would be better off re-negotiating and doing a better job with future deals so American businesses and industries are not harmed.
      - Support tariffs on select imports to protect American industries.

      Taxes
      - No huge issues with current tax rates, though we need to be better about how we are using the money
      - Simplify the tax code to make it easier for people to understand

      Unions
      - I acknowledge that they do very good things for workers, but they also do terrible things, too.
      - Limit their powers, crack down on corruption
      - Support right to work

      Social Security
      - Raise the retirement age
      - Allow for the most benefits to go to lower income individuals, reduce benefits to those who are in higher income brackets.

      Foreign Policy

      Russia/NATO
      - Pro-NATO
      - Do not support strengthening ties with Russia while Putin is in power.

      Radical Islam
      - Do not support Muslim ban, but support improving screening process
      - Terrorist organizations should be taken seriously, empower countries where they are occupying to drive radicals out on their own. Hold them accountable, we should not be in charge of policing the world.

      Israel
      - Both sides have done bad things, but I generally find Israel to be less bad.
      - Overall support, but we should not tolerate when they do terrible things.

      Iran
      - Not a huge fan of the deal, but we would be worse off scrapping it

      Environment

      Climate Change
      - Climate change is real, is one of the most serious threats facing our nation and our planet today.
      - Caused both by humans and is natural
      - In favor of putting in place limits on carbon dioxide output

      Renewable Energy
      - Support investing in solar, wind, and hydroelectric power.
      - Support phasing out of fossil fuel usage
      - Support other forms of clean energy (such as nuclear) until renewable sources are economically feasible.

      Healthcare

      Universal Healthcare
      - Support universal healthcare
      - Mixed feelings, but lean opposed to single payer

      Medicare
      - I realize how people benefit from it, but it is currently unsustainable.
      - Take necessary measures to reduce spending, but avoid hurting the people who most need it.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Saint Milei on August 20, 2017, 05:19:02 PM
      Did this before but let's see what has changed. I borrowed from Scott I guess?

      Ideology
      Social: Libertarian-ish
      Economic: Conservative/Libertarian
      Foreign Policy: Libertarian
      Political Registration: Republican

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Pro-life except for when the mother's life is at risk.

      Same-Sex Marriage: Government shouldn't be involved in marriage. Let consenting adults decide who they want to be involved with.

      Conversion Therapy: If it's run by the private sector, I don't care.

      Transgender Issues: Unsure.

      Drugs: All drugs should be legal

      Death Penalty: The state does not have the right to execute someone

      Gun Control: No bans on guns. I am open to having gun licences for people once they are 18 and 21, but no registration of guns or bans on what weapons one can hold


      Affirmative Action: Opposed to but there is room for some of the policies.

      Prostitution: Legal

      Euthanasia: Legal

      Immigration: Open borders once the welfare state is abolished.

      Police Issues/Black Lives Matter: Police brutality should have heavy repercussions. Body cameras should be implemented. Individuals should have the right to defend themselves against the police force.

      Free Speech/Political Correctness: PC sucks.

      School Prayer: Schools have a moment of silence for this. That's all that's needed.

      Muslim Ban: Muslim bans are illegal but banning refugees from Muslim countries is not the same thing

      PATRIOT ACT/NSA Spying: Abolish the NSA and the Patriot Act

      TSA: Abolish

      Economic Issues
      Minimum Wage: Abolish

      Welfare: Abolish and replace with UBI (Don't really agree with but meh)

      Social Security: Privatize

      Healthcare: Abolish Obamacare.

      Globalization/Trade: Support free trade but oppose deals like NAFTA.

      Deficit/Debt: Cut spending and stop borrowing.

      Campaign Finance Reform: No need for reform besides removing restrictions.

      Unions: Unions are cancer

      Energy: Private sector

      Job Creation: private sector

      Education: Private sector

      Taxes: Flat tax of 14%. Everyone making under 100k does not pay it.

      Foreign Policy
      Only go to war as last resort. Sanctions are an act of war. Foreign aid is unconstitutional. Get rid of bases in other countries.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Thomas on August 23, 2017, 01:13:15 AM
      Social Policy
      Abortion: It depends, but its solely the mother's decision

      Same-Sex Marriage: Support it and the government should stay out of it

      Transgender Issues: No opinion

      Drugs: Some should be illegal, some legal

      Gun control: Guns should never be banned, but I support background checks

      Immigration: Close borders if country gets overpopulated

      Economic Issues
      Minimum Wage: Raise it a liitle bit

      Welfare: Keep some in place

      Social Security: Privatize

      Trade: Support Free Trade

      Deficit/Debt: Cut the deficit, lower the debt

      Energy: Privatize

      Job Creation: Privatize

      Education: Privatize

      Taxes: In my opinion, taxes to the federal government are unnecessary we should abolish taxes. but if we must have taxes then I support lowering them.

      Foreign Policy
      We should be isolationist and pull U.S troops out of Korea, the Middle East and wherever else they are stationed at. We should stay out of foreign affairs and attack, if attacked first








      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: _ on August 28, 2017, 06:16:42 PM
      Ideology

      Social:  Libertarianish
      Economic:  Conservative/Libertarian

      Issues

      Social Issues

      Abortion:  Legal until First Trimester

      SSM:  100% Support

      Transgender Issues:  Leave the Bathroom issue to the states,  personally I'd allow them to go into bathroom they Identify as.   

      Marijuana:  Full Legalization

      Death Penalty:  Neutral

      Euthanasia:  Support

      Gun Control:  Background Checks, no need for automatic weaponry, oppose Assault Weapon bans, oppose National Gun Registry.

      Affirmative Action:  Oppose

      Immigration:  Support legal immigration, we need tighter border security (no wall), support Pathway to Citizenship, Support Ban on Immigration/Travel from violent Nations/Regions.

      Refugees:  Support bringing in Syrian Refugees after vetting.

      Prostitution:  Full Legalization

      Patriot Act/Government Surveillance:  Fully Oppose, fighting terrorism does not require infringing upon right to privacy. 

      Free Speech/PC:  Oppose "Hate Speech" laws, but if you're a racist, sexist, etc.,  you're going to get rightfully called out for it.


      Economic Issues

      Minimum Wage:  Increase National Minimum Wage to $9.25, consider incremental increases from 9.25 to adjust for Inflation.

      Taxes:  Change to 4 Brackets, 7.5%, 12.5%, 20%, 35%.  Corporate Tax Rate to 22.5%.  Eliminate loopholes and deductions for Corporations and Millionaires/Billionaires. 

      Trade:  Pro-Free Trade but focus on mainly Bilateral Trade Agreements.

      Welfare State:  "Thou Shalt not Repeal"

      Healthcare:  Status Quo

      Unions/RTW:  Workers have a right to choose whether or not to join a Union, but Unions should not be curtailed.

      Regulation/Environment:  Global Warming is real, Green Energy companies should remain private.  Minimal Emission Regulation.

      Corporate Bailouts:  No

      Education:  Allow School Vouchers, repeal Common Core and return Standards/Curriculum to States.


      Foreign Policy/Misc.

      Every Damn War we're in:  Just get out before we ruin things even more than we already have.

      Iran:  Diplomacy before war.

      Israel:  Cut off all "aid" and cease being an ally.

      NATO:  Support, make allies pay fair share.

      Russia:  Attempt to improve relations.

      Term Limits:  The people are the term limit.

      Gerrymandering:  Non Partisan Commission draws districts.

      Early/Absentee Voting:  Support

      Voter ID:  Lean Support, though there are clearly electoral motives behind Voter ID Laws.

      Public Financing:  Support, and any party/candidate that is able to get on ballot in all 50 states should receive Public Funding and be allowed into the Debates.

      Electoral College:  Lean Support, proportional system would be better.

      Voting Age:  18



      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: SATW on August 28, 2017, 09:44:52 PM

      Russia:
      - I have changed my views on Russia recently. We need to continue an increase in sanctions and to continue opposing Putin's lack of respect for human rights in his country and abroad.
      - Our policy in the Middle East when it comes to Russia needs to be more aggressive in diplomatic terms. We need to weaken it's influence as it has its fingers deep in Assad's Syria and in Iran. Russia emboldens Iran by continuously selling it high grade weapons and by ignoring Iran's sponsorship of terrorism.   
      - In regards to Russia's European expansionist policies, I think its clear we need to put our foot down and increase pressure and sanctions on them. Russia was threatening out diplomats last year and we had no response except to ask them to halt their harassment. Extremely pathetic response.  
      - Russia respects power confidence more then anything else and they have not seen any of that under Pres. Obama, and this has not gotten better under Pres. Trump.



      Changed my Russia policy.

      And also have my views on Latin America policy here:

      Latin America:
      - The United States should seek stronger relations with allies such as Colombia and Argentina. I think these two countries have the potential to be the long-term leaders of democracy and influence in that region. I think they will be important assets in stabilizing the region and opposing autocratic dictatorships in the region.
      - I am a staunch opponent of the Castro Regime in Cuba and support restoring the embargo fully. We need to demand the release of all political prisoners in Cuba. I believe one day Cuba will be free and democratic, but until that day I oppose any relations w/ Cuba.
      - I am also a fierce opponent of Bolivarian Socialism and Peronism. Two political plagues that need to never return.
      - I am especially active in opposing the disgusting Maduro Regime in Venezuela. The United States must continue to put pressure on the Regime and continue placing sanctions on the regime. We should support those in the opposition who are fighting against the regime. Democracy must be restored in Venezuela. OAS has been doing better at playing a productive role in opposing the Maduro Regime, but it still needs to do more and the U.S. can play a positive role in encouraging them to do so.
      - I'm also not a fan of Evo Morales of Bolivia who reminds me of Moe from the Three Stooges. He's more of a nuisance than anything else, though. Just wanted to state my dislike for him.
      - President Macri of Argentina wants to implement a Marshall Plan for Argentina to help rebuild the economy and to restore infrastructure. I support this move. So much so that I want a multi-country coalition to commit to a Latin America-wide Marshall Plan. Preferably would like the U.S., Colombia and Argentina to lead the way on this.
      - In regards to Mexico, I believe we need to maintain relations, obviously. Same goes for the Central American countries, but the illegal immigration problem needs to be addressed. I think it can be best addressed by tackling the drug cartel problem. The illegal immigration issue will not go away with a strong alliance (much stronger than it currently is) with Mexico on defeating the cartels. There is too much to go into in regards to details and requests, but overall we need to have a relationship w/ Mexico based on common goals related to international and geopolitical concerns not just on separate domestic concerns.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: America's Sweetheart ❤/𝕿𝖍𝖊 𝕭𝖔𝖔𝖙𝖞 𝖂𝖆𝖗𝖗𝖎𝖔𝖗 on August 30, 2017, 06:48:36 PM
      Social Issues

      I'm basically as far to the left as someone can be when it comes to social issues, although I personally believe abortion is wrong. I'm pro-choice, 100% pro SSM and LGBT rights, believe in marijuana legalization (harder drugs should be decriminalized, but not legalized), I strongly believe in the separation of church and state and  a secular federal government. I'm not sure if gun control and immigration are typically considered social issues, but I consider them to be social issues so I'll cover them here. On immigration, I believe our legal immigration system should be drastically simplified, I believe in a pathway to citizenship for Illegals who have not committed violent crimes while here. felon illegals should be deported. I don't support "The Wall", but I do support securing the current border and hiring more border control agents if necessary. as for gun control, I am generally very pro-2A, but do favor universal background checks and making it as hard as is humanly possible for mentally unstable people to purchase guns.


      I'll post my other political views whenever I find the time.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The Govanah Jake on August 31, 2017, 12:08:18 PM
      Social: Libertarian
      Economic: Centre Left
      Foreign: Paleoconservatism
      Registration: None

      Social

      Abortion/Reproductive Rights: For Abortion in cases of Rape, Incest, or other forms of forced sex/rape, should be much easier to get in the earlier stages. Opposition to individual control of abortion by states, should be decided by federal government as a whole. Individual states can tweak that here and there if they want however. However Late termination of Pregnancy around the third trimester i believe should have some sort of ban or made harder to do to the more developed and aware fetus and a nervous system which a important sign of that fetus being able to feel pain. I'm in favor of Planned Parenthood and but don't support repealing Hyde act. Instead support strengthening of already existing options for federal funds for the mother in the amendment itself. Moderate/Average Pro-Choice but not really a important issue


      Death Penalty: Against the death penalty uniformly even in cases of murder and terrorism (which should be dealt with life and prison and depending on the severity some forms of torture like isolation from light) and believe life's should not be killed because that person killed other. Support rehabilitation for some criminals but i agree that it does not work for every one. Support leaner sentences for non murder/rape/incest or any other crimes which involved another person. Generally Liberal/Far-Left. Issue (On a scale of 1 to 10 on importance: 5)


      Religious Freedom: Support everyone's right to believe what they want to believe. They should not be forced to do something that goes against there believes and should not be forced to bake a cake for gay couples even if the religious clause is a lie by the Federal or State Government. Libertarian (On a Scale of 1 to 10 on importance: 4)

       
      Drug Legalization: Support Marijuana legalization in all 50 states which can be done by the states or as a act by the federal government and all drugs which have been studied and shown to not lead to death should be legalized to the public over the age of 21 and should be classified in the same category as alcohol. These all should be Legalized, Taxed, and extremely regulated. It can be up to the states on how they want to enact Legalization, Taxation, and Regulation and on what drugs can be legalized which can be done through popular referendums. Also End the Drug War!(Not neocon hack). Standard Liberal Position. (On a scale of 1 to 10 on importance: 7)


      Guns: Support the second amendment strongly and people have the right to bear arms from a potential tyrannical government but can support minimal gun background checks and education on guns laws. Standard Moderate (On a scale of 1 to 10 on importance: 6)


      Euthanasia: Support the Right to Suicide if they can perform rational thought and conversation and understand what they will do. Support some kind of agreement between person performing Euthanasia and his/her family or spouse in which 1 or more close people to that people have to agree to the act to perform the act of euthanasia. Libertarian. (On a scale of 1 to 10 on importance: 4)


      Transgender Issues: I personal believe there are/should only be two genders (minus of course intersex which is genetic). But i will respect someone else's decision if they were Transgender. Bathroom issue, the Government should not have the power to force this and should be up to the local and state levels and the actual businesses itself. This whole issue is dumb and a third bathroom with both urinals and stalls for them would solve this. Libertarian (On a scale of 1 to 10 on importance: 3)


      Sex Education: Support Middle School and High School sex education and promotion of the use of forms of sexual protection education. Don't think this should be left or right issue so i will say "Standard Position". (On a scale of 1 to 10 on importance: 6)


      Education: Support school choice and abolish common core. Parents should have the option to have a wide variety of options of schools to go to, both public and private. Common core requirements are uncalled for and should be up to the schools themselves on how to evaluate a student. Libertarian/Center Right (On a scale of 1 to 10 on importance: 5)



      Affirmative Action: Against it. Just a way of reverse racism and hurts minority students more Should be banned and lost to history. Right Wing. (On a scale of 1 to 10 on importance: 4).


      Judges: Judges should follow the Constitution as it was. Center Right to Moderate (On a scale of 1 to 10 on importance: 5).


      Economic/Spending

      Taxes: I favor a form of progressive taxation. Create a 45.5% tax bracket for those making over 5 Million annually, 40.5% tax on those making 2-10 million annually, 30-35.5% tax bracket for those making 750,000 to 2 million, a 30% tax for those making 250,000 to 750,000, 25% for those making 100,000 to 250,000, 15% for those making $50,000 to $100,000 and a 5% tax for those under that. Raise on other Tax rates including Estate tax rates of 55% over a million and 44.5% over 500,000. Also support lowering of tax rates including a nationwide lowering of the sales and also of the property tax. Against offshore safe havens and we should limit loopholes through this.
      Standard Progressive. (On a scale of 1 to 10 on importance: 8 ).



      Trade: Support Protectionism when it comes to trade. Against TPP and favor a rewriting of NAFTA and support of Fair Trade. Standard Liberal/Paleoconservative/Old Right.  (On a scale of 1 to 10 on importance: 7).


      Social Security/Medicare: Supports both and slight lowering of the retirement age from 67 to 64 Standard Progressive  (On a scale of 1 to 10 on importance: 6).


      Budgets: Support a negotiated Balanced budgets amendment. Centrist.  (On a scale of 1 to 10 on importance: 2)


      Defense Spending: Lower it massively. Military spending makes up 54% of the discretionary budget which is massively too high for a country not at threat with war. Should be cut by 45-65% and used for (and when you start to say "How you paying for the damn programs ya commie") domestic programs at home. Very Liberal/Paleocon/Libertarian.  (On a scale of 1 to 10 on importance: 8 ) .


      Minimum Wage: Should be raised nationally to 11.50-12.50$ per hour however it should be tied to inflation so as the price of living increases so does the wage. The 11.50$ per hour can be made both higher or lower depending on a states cost of living. Center Left (On a scale of 1 to 10 on importance: 6).


      Labor Unions: Support Labor Unions in both Private and Public Sectors. Can negotiate with Company owners for worker issues and should be strengthen. Progressive  (On a scale of 1 to 10 on importance: 7)


      Financial Regulation: Support Rein-station of Dodd-Frank plus much more regulation on wall street and national/multi national corporations stationed in the US and should be held to account as any other company and should be checked for potential illegal action. In case of future recessions there should be no bailing out of these company's. Also i support lower regulations of smaller business however. Progressive (On a scale of 1 to 10 on importance: 9).

      Foreign Policy

      Russia/NATO: I support Russia in its standoff with NATO as NATO has increasingly expanded to its borders. I support the annexation of Crimea, there actions in Georgia, and also a Russian backed recognized state in Donbass to end the war there. There should be less tensions with Russia and we should loosen up sanctions on them. I also support NATO existence as a defensive organization however should stop its aggressive path towards Russia. Anti-War/Pro-Russian  (On a scale of 1 to 10 on importance: 6)


      Radical Islam: Oppose Radical Islam on all counts. We should work with allies in the Middle East to oppose it and defeat it like the kurds. We should also work with Assad's Syria and Russia to defeat ISIS. Oppose Trumps Travel Ban as it does more Harm then good and most terrorists that have attacked in America were not from those 7 country but from the Gulf and Pakistan. We should also distance ourselves from Saudi Arabia and Pakistan and the oOther Gulf states and recognize them for who they are at exporting Radical/Wahhabi Islam around the World. Standard Liberal  (On a scale of 1 to 10 on importance: 8 )


      Israel: I Support Israels Right to Exist and sympathizes with them more then the Palestinians. However we much support a Two State Solution and stop always being on Israels Side. We must force them to make Concessions and in the end hopefully form a Israel and a Palestine. If Israel doesn't agree we can tell Israel that the US will give up there UN vote in UN Resolutions. Standard Liberal (On a scale of 1 to 10 on importance: 6)


      Immigration: Support a very tough border. Don't agree with a wall as immigrants will just find a way around it and would be a waste of tax payers dollars. For the Millions of Illegals already here, i think it is too time consuming to try to deport all and instead find a way to Citizenship. I also agree that the US should fight the root problem which is crime in Mexico and Central America to try to stop the massive Illegal Immigration. The Illegals should also be barred from Welfare and Government functions.
      I support around 5,000 middle eastern refugees to be able to live in the US however they should be brutally checked and made sure they don't have terrorist motives and are actual refugees. I support out of these 5,000 that they be representative of the Religion of there Country. For instance, for every 100 Syrian Muslim Refugees there is 10 Syrian Christian Refugees to represent the 90-10 Muslim Christian Percentage in Syria. Right Wing to Center Right/Paleoconservative. (On a scale of 1 to 10 on importance: 6).



      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The Govanah Jake on August 31, 2017, 12:08:50 PM
      Healthcare



      ObamaCare: Support it however i think it goes to little and we should push for a much more reasonable Single Payer with some competition or Choice System. Or a multi payer system within a universal healthcare program. However i have a feeling that America will end up having a expanded Obamacare with more broad coverage. Standard center left  (On a scale of 1 to 10 on importance: 7)


      Drug patents: Should take around 10 years but beside that, dont have much to say. Hopefully neither left or right.  (On a scale of 1 to 10 on importance: 2)



      Political



      Gerrymandering: We should end this sh**t. Nonpartisan? (On a scale of 1 to 10 on importance: 6)


      Electoral College: I support it however also support a clause in which when no one reaches 270, the one with the most Electoral Votes wins instead of it going to the House and Senate. Also support proportional representation of electoral votes. For example: Candidate A wins Montana 55%-44%. He receives 2 of its electoral votes while the other candidate wins the 1. Moderate  (On a scale of 1 to 10 on importance: 5)


      Campaign Finance Reform: There should be no large donations from large donors of at least $5,000. Regulate any loop holes to this. Support a progressive grassroots small donation or self financing style way of financing Campaigns. Progressive. (On a scale of 1 to 10 on importance: 9).


      Freedom of Speech: Support it always except in cases of endangerment and those listed in the first amendment. Neither Left or Right. True American Position.


      Term Limits: There should be Term Limits for the House and Senate. Liberal


      Iran: Supports the Iran Deal and we should end some sanctions on Iran. We should continue to watch there Nuclear Program and should act more friendly to them. Moderate (On a scale of 1 to 10 on importance: 5) .



      Climate Change: Its real and no matter if its man made or not, we should take drastic measures to fix it. Progressive (On a scale of 1 to 10 on importance: 5).


      EPA: Strongly Support and we should continue to protect the environment and produce clean air and water and protection of national parks and non existing national parks. Environmentalist/Hopefully neither left or right. (On a scale of 1 to 10 on importance: 7)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The Govanah Jake on August 31, 2017, 12:09:33 PM
      ^^
      Some adjustments from the last time i listed these


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Alabama_Indy10 on September 11, 2017, 09:03:15 AM
      Ideology: Moderate Conservative

      Abortion: Pro Life with the normal exceptions

      Climate Change: Is real.

      Same-Sex Marriage: I believe it is a settled issue.

      Drugs: Support marijuana legalization

      Death Penalty: Strongly Support

      Euthanasia: Oppose

      Gun Control: Strongly pro-gun rights

      Affirmative Action: Strongly oppose

      Political correctness: Not a fan.

      Immigration: Secure the border. Know who we are letting in. Supports DACA and would support DREAM Act

      Muslim Ban: Would support a travel ban from high-risk countries

      Minimum Wage: Support an increase. Not $15 though

      Energy: All of the above, including coal.

      War/Foreign: Lean hawk. We should make sure we are the strongest country in the world but I do not support regime change or nation building.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: America's Sweetheart ❤/𝕿𝖍𝖊 𝕭𝖔𝖔𝖙𝖞 𝖂𝖆𝖗𝖗𝖎𝖔𝖗 on September 11, 2017, 05:06:12 PM
      Ideology: Moderate Conservative

      Abortion: Pro Life with the normal exceptions

      Climate Change: Is real.

      Same-Sex Marriage: I believe it is a settled issue.

      Drugs: Support marijuana legalization

      Death Penalty: Strongly Support

      Euthanasia: Oppose

      Gun Control: Strongly pro-gun rights

      Affirmative Action: Strongly oppose

      Political correctness: Not a fan.

      Immigration: Secure the border. Know who we are letting in. Supports DACA and would support DREAM Act

      Muslim Ban: Would support a travel ban from high-risk countries

      Minimum Wage: Support an increase. Not $15 though

      Energy: All of the above, including coal.

      War/Foreign: Lean hawk. We should make sure we are the strongest country in the world but I do not support regime change or nation building.


      I must say, I wasn't expecting someone with a blue Alabama avatar to be this reasonable.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Kingpoleon on September 11, 2017, 10:22:39 PM
      Ideology: Moderate Conservative

      Abortion: Pro Life with the normal exceptions

      Climate Change: Is real.

      Same-Sex Marriage: I believe it is a settled issue.

      Drugs: Support marijuana legalization

      Death Penalty: Strongly Support

      Euthanasia: Oppose

      Gun Control: Strongly pro-gun rights

      Affirmative Action: Strongly oppose

      Political correctness: Not a fan.

      Immigration: Secure the border. Know who we are letting in. Supports DACA and would support DREAM Act

      Muslim Ban: Would support a travel ban from high-risk countries

      Minimum Wage: Support an increase. Not $15 though

      Energy: All of the above, including coal.

      War/Foreign: Lean hawk. We should make sure we are the strongest country in the world but I do not support regime change or nation building.


      Interesting. What about healthcare, income taxes, a federal sales tax, NASA, and welfare? Those are the main issues I see you left out.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The world will shine with light in our nightmare on September 20, 2017, 06:44:13 PM
      I'm going to add to mine another issue that I've been having a change of heart on.  Gambling.  I don't want to ban it altogether, but regulate the sht out of it.  18+ only, inspect the casinos, discourage online video poker (you can't really ban it and I don't like the government regulating the internet unless absolutely necessary), no state lotteries.

      I know, I know, "but it's my money i do what i want with it!!!", nanny states suck, etc.  And if you're vacationing with your SO in Vegas it's a fun thing to do for maybe an hour or two.  But that's it.  Routine gambling is quite probably the worst way to try to make money, yet arguably the most enticing.  How can one reasonably look at a poor Joe spending half his paycheck on video slot machines (LOL) as anything other than the victim of a scam?

      I don't care if you smoke.  I don't care if you drink.  But addiction to anything is harmful and should be called for what it is.  (And no, I am not trying to stigmatize addicts.  Addiction is very common in both sides of my family.)

      And yes, I changed my mind on this from watching the new Adam Ruins Everything episode.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Dr. MB on September 21, 2017, 11:34:40 PM
      Ideology: Populist Left-libertarian

      Abortion: Up to 1st trimester only

      Climate Change: Is real.

      Same-Sex Marriage: Support. The government shouldn't be involved in marriage.

      Drugs: I support legalization of recreational marijuana, magic mushrooms; decriminalize all others (except for krokodil and fentanyl/other highly

      Death Penalty: Oppose except for those convicted of genocide, war crimes, and mass murder

      Euthanasia: I don't agree with it and think it should be legal only for completely aware people with absolutely no chance of survival.

      Gun Control: I support the 2nd amendment and some background checks. No bans.

      Affirmative Action: Oppose

      Political correctness: Don't agree with it. It's your right to free speech, so you can be as politically correct or incorrect as you want.

      Immigration: Pathway to citizenship for DREAMers and long-term illegals.

      Muslim Ban: It's not the worst thing in the world but I wouldn't implement it if I was POTUS.

      Minimum Wage: Increase $12 minimum, higher in some states

      Universal Basic Income: Decently good idea, but I'd prefer other options first

      Energy: Support hydroelectric, geothermal as priorities, wind somewhat and nuclear/fossil fuels/coal as a last resort.

      War/Foreign: Non interventionist

      Healthcare: Support a universal plan

      Trade: Support fair trading policies and prevention of outsourcing.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TPIG on September 22, 2017, 12:00:16 PM
      Ideology: Very Conservative

      Abortion: Believe it should only be allowed in cases of rape, incest, and risk to the mother's life. Life begins at conception!

      Climate change: Is real, but I don't like much of the alarmist rhetoric surrounding the issue. Climate models are notorious for over-estimating the actual increases in global temperatures. The transition to green energy should be market-led.

      Same-Sex Marriage
      : Don't support. The government has no right to redefine such a fundamental societal institution for the sake of "inclusivity". I however, understand that the nation-wide legalization of SSM will almost certainly never be reversed.

      Religious Liberty: Businesses should be able to deny service to people asking them to engage in behavior that runs contrary to the owner's religious beliefs. You can't force a private establishment to take your money. Capitalism requires a VOLUNTARY exchange on both sides.

      Drugs: I support medical marijuana, but not recreational, and don't believe in decriminalizing or legalizing hard drugs.

      Death Penalty: Should be an option for the most serious crimes. Some people have simply forfeited their right to life with their incredibly heinous actions.

      Euthanasia: Generally opposed, doctors are supposed to save people. However, in cases where there is absolutely no chance of survival, that option should be given to the patients and their families.

      Gun Control: Very supportive of the 2nd amendment. No bans on assault weapons, certain magazine capacities, or silencers. Support basic background checks to ensure mental stability of the buyer.

      Affirmative Action: A racist policy that should not be allowed. Setting lower standards for minorities does not help them!

      Political Correctness: People should be allowed to say what they want, when they want, as long as it does not DIRECTLY cause harm to others (none of that, "You attacked my identity" nonsense)

      Immigration: Very supportive of legal immigration. People should be able to come here, assimilate, and build a life for themselves, but it has to be done legally. No amnesty for illegal immigrants, and the wall should be built.

      Trade: Very libertarian in this area. Free trade makes nations involved better off. Cheaper goods lead to increases in purchasing power for everyone, especially for the poorest in society. No tariffs, quotas, or other impediments to trade.

      Minimum wage: Government should not interfere into the private agreements between the buyers and sellers of labor (businesses and workers) as to what wages should be. Free markets naturally increase wages as productivity increases and companies compete for workers. Minimum wages force lower skilled workers out of the workforce by making them less valuable to companies.

      Universal basic income: Strongly opposed. We don't need another entitlement.

      Energy: No subsidies for any energy companies, whatsoever (be they oil or green energy).I favor an "All of the above" approach to energy. The sources that provide the best, cheapest, and most efficient energy to consumers will come out on top.

      Foreign Policy: I believe in peace through strength, but not nation-building. We should defend our interests wherever they're threatened but not look for ways to start new wars.

      Israel: We have a moral obligation to ally with and defend the only true bastion for freedom and equality in the Middle East.

      Healthcare: I support a free market approach to healthcare. Increased competition will lower prices and increase access to care for everyone in society. Single payer drastically increases demand for healthcare while doing nothing to increase its supply, leading to shortages and inefficiencies.




      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Kingpoleon on September 29, 2017, 03:54:35 PM
      Quote
      Overall, the tax code should be reformed into a more progressive, streamlined system.
      I find it strange to end such detailed policy with such vague words. "Reform," "More progressive... system," and "streamlined system" are buzzwords - they could mean almost anything, and so mean nothing.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Idaho Conservative on September 30, 2017, 12:44:55 AM
      Social Policy
      Abortion: Allow on demand at any stage of pregnancy, with no questions asked, no frivolous restrictions placed upon it by state legislatures and completely free of charge.
      Drugs: Legalize 'em.
      Censorship: No thank you.
      Gay Marriage: I'm partial to the 'end marriage and give everybody a civil union' school of thought, but I think the time when that might have been a possibility has largely passed, so I'm obviously in favor of marriage equality and am favorable toward the idea of further re-defining marriage and allowing more people to get in on the action (i.e. legalization of group marriage) in years to come.
      Death penalty: No thank you.
      Prostitution: Legalize it.
      Church and State: Ban religious schools, restrict religion in the public sphere, and tax churches proportional to their income.
      Stem cell research: Support (not living in 2003)
      PATRIOT Act: Repeal it.
      Gun control: Completely opposed, legalize all guns and require gun training courses in schools. Ideally replace the standing army with citizens' militia, same goes for the police force (assuming we're also abolishing most of the criminal code in favor of a more restitution-oriented kind of criminal code, of course) and nationalize the gun industry. Very strongly supportive of "gun culture" and individual self defense.
      Assisted suicide: Legalize it.
      Gambling: Collectivize the gambling industry and make it a socially productive activity.

      Electoral Reform
      Term Limits: I oppose term limits in that they're anti-democratic. A better solution is to implement recall provisions for all elected officials, from members of Congress to the President.
      Statehood: For whom? Let the territories decide their own fate, err on the side of independence. Ideally redraw all state boundaries along cultural/geographic/economic lines.
      Voting Age: 16.
      Campaign Finance Reform: Ban all corporate donations, end corporate personhood, limit campaigning to two weeks only, completely cover all campaign expenses out of the public treasury.
      Gerrymandering: Adopt proportional representation for the House of Representatives on the D'hondt method, abolish the Senate.
      Voter ID: End voter registration, let anyone who can make it to the polls vote.

      Economic Issues
      Welfare: Universal basic income + National Healthcare + Universal housing program + $21 an hour minimum wage + Right to a Job + National Education
      Unions: Should essentially run the economy, very very very supportive, abolish all restrictions on them (Taft-Hartley, Landrum-Griffin, Hatch Act, ect), encourage their growth, ban scabs, require union shops and hiring halls, etc. Collectivize industry and allow unions to manage it wherever industry is collectivized.
      Privatization: Make a U-Turn and start collectivizing large industries, with vital sectors divided between state owners and worker owners. Eventually stamp out private enterprise altogether and transform the economy into a worker-owned and managed democratic enterprise. (i.e. socialism)
      Environment: something something free mass transit something something universal auto insurance something something national parks
      Minimum Wage: $21/hour
      Taxation: Land Value Tax pls
      Healthcare: NHS style, with the state owning the hospitals and allowing Nurses and Doctors' unions to manage them; the state should also own all drug companies and produce useful drugs for public consumption
      Trade: End "free trade," in favor of an industrial policy focused on employing Americans and creating products that are long lasting and cheap. Collectivize factories left here by ungrateful corporations and let workers own and manage them.
      Embargo: End it, recognize the Castro government and make amends to build a better relationship in Latin America.
      Pork: Ban
      Subsidies: Nationalize/collectivize any institution receiving federal dollars
      Military: End standing army in favor of citizen militias, end all overseas activity, bring troops home etc

      Foreign Policy
      War: Only if the US is attacked
      Israel-Palestine: Recognize Palestine, ignore Israel
      Draft: No, but favorable to the idea of universal national service in non-military settings, provided said service pays union wages to those employed by it (and because that's not likely, the answer is emphatically 'no')
      UN: Support, make more democratic and weaken the influence of the Security Council
      Nukes: Seek international treaty banning or placing them under UN control
      Foreign Aid: Cancel all debt owed to the US and leave them alone
      What?  BAN RELIGIOUS SCHOOLS?  You are quite the authoritarian.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Idaho Conservative on October 05, 2017, 01:15:39 AM
      I am a Libertarian Conservative
      Social Issues(very libertarian): legalize drugs, prostitution, gambling, gay adoption.  The federal government shouldn't define marriage as it is not a federal issue.  I also am opposed any censorship, safe spaces, trigger warnings, hate crime laws, and anti-discrimination laws applying to private businesses and private landlords.  Death penalty needs to be reformed and should only be used when there is no doubt of guilt and truly indisputable evidence proving the crime was committed  (basically an official confession or DNA evidence, ect.)  I also oppose gun control.  Also, I oppose NSA spying and strongly believe in the rights of the accused including habeas corpus and freedom from indefinite detention and freedom from unjustly long prison terms.  The only social issue where I am right wing is abortion.  I view and unborn child as a human being that deserves the same rights the government guaranties the born, the right not to be murdered.  To be honest, if you see abortion as an equivalent to murder it isn't socially authoritarian to believe people should be protected from murder.


      Economic Issues(conservative): I do not think the government should have a big role in regulating the economy.  Basically, I believe the government should protect customers form fraud, have basic workplace safety standards, standards that food, drugs, and items sold are safe to be consumed, anti-trust laws to prevent monopolies and ensure fair competition, a low, basic minimum wage, some environmental regulations, and basic bank regulations to prevent economic crashes.  That's it.  I think with minimal regulation the economy can function best and people can open up their own businesses.  As long as basic safety regulations exist and monopolies and bank crashes are prevented, the economy will do great.  Also, wages will rise as the economy does better.  As far as taxes go, the tax rate on the wealthy should not be raised and the tax code should be simplified eliminating loopholes.  Gradually, the brackets should be flattened and deductions should be capped to prevent shell games.  The middle class should receive the greatest tax break as extra spending money in the middle class will boost the economy.  Also, the corporate tax rate should be lowered so companies and incentivized not to move overseas.  When a company moves overseas, all assets leaving the country should be taxed.  In terms of spending, it needs to be cut greatly.  Entitlements need to be reformed so they don't go bankrupt and make the country bankrupt along with it.   Cut welfare programs and other wasteful studies.  Get the government out of education.  Medicare needs great reform and should gain the right to negotiate drug prices in order to cut costs for the taxpayer.  Also, we spend more on our military than the next 8 countries combined so we should stop increasing military spending and when we take military action that helps another nation, the nation we helped should reimburse the American taxpayer for the cost spent, including a lump sum for every wounded American soldier and for the family of every killed American soldier.   We must make across-the board-cuts so that we no longer increase the debt by 2030 and we pay back at least $50 billion in principal each year starting in 2035.  Pass a balanced budget constitutional amendment.

      This pretty much sums up my views.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Dr. MB on October 10, 2017, 05:29:02 PM
      Foreign
      NATO: I think we should renegotiate as it benefits Europe more than it benefits us.

      ISIS: ISIS was created as a result of the invasion of Iraq along with disastrous foreign policy since. Thankfully it seems to be getting smaller, but I do support strikes on their bases (not on civilian targets however).

      China and Russia: Both are corrupt dictatorships that we need to be allied with. It would be disastrous to have a war with either of them. We should continue trade and build better relations.

      Cuba: End all aspects of the embargo and build good relationship.

      Israel: I support a two state solution.

      Syria/Refugees: "Extreme vetting" as proposed by Trump. Admit a select number (no more than 5–10,000) every year and prioritize families over single men.

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College Reform: Abolish it and include the territories in a popular vote.

      Gerrymandering: Nothing should be taken into account besides population when drawing districts.

      Term limits: Oppose

      Voter ID: Oppose, and make all voting by mail.

      Primaries: Get rid of the delegates and choose the nominee by a direct popular vote held on one day. Allow anyone to vote in either party's primary.

      Statehood: Support D.C., Guam, and Puerto Rico as states. Also I think some should be split.

      Voting age: Lower to 16

      Corruption/Lobbying: Ban all corporate lobbying.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TheSaint250 on October 11, 2017, 06:27:49 PM
      Foreign
      NATO: I think we should renegotiate as it benefits Europe more than it benefits us.

      ISIS: ISIS was created as a result of the invasion of Iraq along with disastrous foreign policy since. Thankfully it seems to be getting smaller, but I do support strikes on their bases (not on civilian targets however).

      China and Russia: Both are corrupt dictatorships that we need to be allied with. It would be disastrous to have a war with either of them. We should continue trade and build better relations.

      Cuba: End all aspects of the embargo and build good relationship.

      Israel: I support a two state solution.

      Syria/Refugees: "Extreme vetting" as proposed by Trump. Admit a select number (no more than 5–10,000) every year and prioritize families over single men.

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College Reform: Abolish it and include the territories in a popular vote.

      Gerrymandering: Nothing should be taken into account besides population when drawing districts.

      Term limits: Oppose

      Voter ID: Oppose, and make all voting by mail.

      Primaries: Get rid of the delegates and choose the nominee by a direct popular vote held on one day. Allow anyone to vote in either party's primary.

      Statehood: Support D.C., Guam, and Puerto Rico as states. Also I think some should be split.

      Voting age: Lower to 16

      Corruption/Lobbying: Ban all corporate lobbying.

      You Oregonians (is that the right term?) love your voting by mail, don't you? ;)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: DavidB. on October 18, 2017, 11:21:30 AM
      Imagine trying this hard


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Kingpoleon on October 31, 2017, 08:46:52 AM
      - Allow states to ban abortion with >55% of the vote at/after 24 or 30 weeks, with exceptions for rape, incest, and life of the mother.
      - Fully support same sex marriage; should issue federal legislation upholding the ruling of SCOTUS.
      - Deport illegal immigrants convicted of felonies.
      - Path to citizenship for non-felon immigrants.
      - Secure border, raise immigration limits by 50% eventually, rigorous background checks and maximum of a four year wait time.
      - Fully support background checks and mental health tests to buy guns.
      - Healthy Americans Act.
      - Wyden-Ryan Medicare Reform.
      - Replace Social Security and all welfare besides SNAP/HUD funding with $12,000 relative basic income for those making below said amount and those past the age of 65 - say, $9,000 a year for unmarried people not past retirement, $21,000 a year for a couple not past retirement; $12,000 for unmarried people past retirement, $27,000 a year for a married couple past retirement.

      - Transaction Tax
      Wall Steet: 0.5%(+$125 B.)
      Bonds: 0.1%(+$75 B.)
      Derivatives: 0.05%(+$25 B.)
      Futures/Swaps: 0.02%(+$25 B.)

      - Capital Gains Tax
      0%/12.0%/16.0%

      - Payroll Tax
      15.0% payroll tax (6.5% from employer, 5.5% from employee, 1.5% each for Medicare)

      - Value-Added Tax(+$1.3 trillion)
      6.5%
      Rebate of up to $4,500 (with receipts) [$900 Credit each for up to five kids for married couple, or up to three kids for a single parent]

      - Income Tax:
      10%: <$10,000; <$20,000
      15%: $10,000-$30,000; $20,000-$60,000
      20%: $30,000-$75,000; $60,000-$150,000
      30%: $75,000-$175,000; $150,000-$225,000
      35%: $175,000-$325,000; $225,000-$400,000
      42.5%: $325,000-$400,000; $400,000-$475,000
      47.5%: >$400,000; >$475,000
      Child Tax Credit: $2,900 per child(up to 3 for single parent, up to 5 for married couple)

      - Raise gas tax by 10-15 cents, and spend the money on infrastructure. Cut back by 15-20 cents in three years.

      - Corporate Taxes:
      7.5%: <$300,000
      17.5%: $300,000-$750,000
      27.5%: $750,000-$20.75 million
      17.5%: >$20.75 million
      Streamline several deductions and tax credits

      Estate/Inheritance tax cut to 40%, lowered to $3.5 million

      - $10.50 federal minimum wage by 2022
      - $75 billion NASA spending, with the goal of two bases on the Moon by 2030 and at least one very major base/colony on Mars by 2035
      - $40 billion funding for Rojava, SNC, and the SDC - negotiate an alliance between these three groups.
      - Stronger alliance with India.(slowly cut our relations with Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Turkey.)
      - Free trade deal with Thailand, India, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Australia, Mexico, Canada, New Zealand, and Argentina.
      - Raise all military members’s salary by $2,000.
      - International coalition of Japan, South Korea, India, Russia, the European Union, Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, Canada, the U. K., and America should economically pressure China into forcing Kim Jong Un down and instating Kim Han Sol into a democratic transition. If they refuse, all countries involved will reduce trade with China by, say, 60%, and place certain sanctions on them. If we’re lucky, Wang Yang might be Xi Jinping’s successor, and if that happens we have a good shot at improving relations with China.
      - We should consider signing a trade deal with India, South Africa, Mozambique, Indonesia, Myanmar, Kenya, Australia and Uganda. This would allow us a strong trade boost in the Indian Ocean.
      - League of Free and Democratic Nations, inviting all nations with a 6.0 average(not counting the “Functioning of Government” score) to join; Switzerland, Iceland, Norway, Mauritius, Malta, Uruguay, and Botswana should be the governing members of this League


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: King Lear on December 09, 2017, 12:53:46 AM
      Economic views: I support single-payer healthcare, free-tuition at public universities, 15 dollar national minumum wage, raising the top marginal tax rate to 50%, eliminating the cap on social security taxes, and withdrawing from NAFTA and the WTO.
      Social views: I support abortion rights, same-sex marriage, a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, restoring the federal assault weapons ban, marijuana legalization, and abolishing capital punishment.
      Foreign policy views: I believe the United States should not use military action against any country that has not attacked us first and I believe we should close down most of our overseas military bases, and end all foreign aid along with withdrawing from NATO, finally I believe we should prioritize funding our Nuclear triad (which would have a No-first use policy) over our bloated conventional forces.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: YE on December 16, 2017, 12:27:50 AM
      Ideology
      Social: Center on some issues, left on others
      Economic: Social democrat
      Foreign Policy: Dovish
      Political Registration: D-NV

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Pro-choice. Support Planned Parenthood, support not allowing states to defund it and overturn the Hyde Amendment.

      Same-Sex Marriage: Duh.

      Transgender Issues: Use the restroom of their gender, not the one they were born with.

      Drugs: War on Drugs is a disaster. Legalize, tax, and regulate drugs, starting with weed, but one legalization at a time.

      Death Penalty: Oppose and pro-lifers who support this are massive hypocrites.

      Gun Control: Close gun show loophole and expand background checks. Anything else is too far, and I'd go as far as saying blue states go too far with this.

      Affirmative Action: Support.

      Prostitution: No; women shouldn't be bribec to have sex.

      Euthanasia: Oppose on moral grounds, along with physician assisted suicide.

      Immigration: Keep the border secure, deport criminals who are here illegally, citizenship to all illegals if they aren't criminals and pay taxes in 10 years.

      Police Issues/Black Lives Matter: Pro-BLM and oppose police brutality and hold officers accountable.

      Free Speech/Political Correctness: Pro-free speech, but the GOP are massive hypocrites on this. They are so quick to call college students at California who shut down right wing speakers SJW (correctly), but anytime a Democrat says something un-American, the have a thin skin and get defensive, basically becoming right wind SJW's. Political Correctness is necessary in order to protect politics from staying civil, and oftentimes "telling it how it is" is a code word for racism on the right

      School Prayer: Status quo.

      Muslim Ban: No.

      PATRIOT ACT/NSA Spying: Need a warrant


      Economic Issues
      Minimum Wage: Raise to $15 at a rate of 50 cents per year, then index to inflation.

      Social Security: Lift the taxable income cap, and cut the income tax rates to help pay for Medicare for All. Do not support expanding the program. And no Social Security is not broke contrary to whatever the GOP wants you to think.

      Healthcare: Support Medicare for All, similar to Bernie's bill, but phased in over a longer period of time. Second choice would be a public option. Also support drug imports from Canada, whose markets are already tightly regulated, and allow the federal government to negotiate drug prices with drug companies.

      Globalization/Trade: Support free trade in theory, but that doesn't make every free trade deal good. Oppose TPP, support re-negotiation of NAFTA.

      Deficit/Debt: Debt doesn't matter. Deficits don't if there's a recession, but do if the economy is good and all Americans are prospering.

      Campaign Finance Reform: Limits on donations to all campaigns, congressional campaign committees, and state/national parties, with guaranteed public funding. Gut SuperPacs and corporate Pac money. Also limit how much you could self-fund your campaign.

      Unions: Get rid of the Taft-Hartley Act that created right to work, which was created y the Republicans in attempt to undercut unions.

      Energy: Pro-solar. Pro-wind. Pro-nuclear. Anti-coal.

      Job Creation: A second new deal. Infrastructure redevelopment across the Rust Belt for not just better roads, but better sewer and drainage systems, as well nationwide broadband. Also need tighter building codes and larger seawalls to withstand natural disasters like hurricanes.

      Education: Support common core, make in-state college free, universal childcare, support full day kindergarten, and universal pre-K.

      Taxes: Raise marginal tax rates on wealthy when appropriate. Would like to see the top 1% pay as much as they did in an effective tax rates to prior to Reagan. Also support a carbon tax and a tax on Wall Street speculation. Repeal the Bill Clinton capital gains tax cut, Trump's income tax cuts, Bush's tax cuts, expand earned income tax credit, hijack the coporate tax rate back up to 30%.


      Other economic issues: Paid family medical leave by law (12 weeks for maternity leave 2 weeks for paternity leave). 10 days of vacation time by law.

      Foreign Policy
      Middle East: Get out. None of the countries unilaterally have attacked us. Fully support the Iran Deal. Oh, and quit funding Saudi Arabia as they continue to massacre civilians in Yemen and show respect to international law. I'm not a Pacifist, however. If there's a genocide or illegal occupation, aid, and if necessary, military should be used, but you have to go through the UN first.

      Syria Refuges: Support Obama era policies but we can only take so many and we have to ensure we maintain the proper vetting.

      Israel/Palestine: If I were alive in 1948, I wouldn't have favored the creation of Israel. But this is 2017, not 1948. Favor two internationally recognized states with 1967 border (and no the Palestine state should not be free of Jews Hamas). I'm no fan of Israel, but Palestine aren't exactly angels either. Oppose BDS, since pressure is needed on Palestine too.

      North Korea: Go back to Bill Clinton's foreign policy towards North Korea.

      Russia: Supported sanctions for electing melding, and annexing Crimea. But we should avoid war with them unless they attack us unilaterally.

      Climate Change
      Anthropogenic Climate change is real and is naturally occurring. Support increasing funding towards climate change, with an increased emphasis on aerosols. Oppose efforts to privatize NOAA. Support Paris Climate Agreement but it needs to be enforceable. Also increased money towards weather forecasting, most notably to improve the US based Global Forecast System.

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College Reform: Support to avoid the smaller states from being screwed over but expand the size of the house.

      Gerrymandering: Oppose. Support independent commission with guidelines on not splitting up COI for both congressional and legislative seats.

      Term limits: Oppose for legislative seats, support for executive seats.

      Voter ID: Oppose.

      Instant Run-off Voting: Support

      Primaries: Let the states decide, but all states should hold the presidential and statewide office primaries on the same day, eliminating the urge for caucuses.

      Statehood: Make D.C., Guam, and Puerto Rico as states, along with maybe the NMI and the Virgin Islands (or combine them with PR/Guam). Let American Samoa be its own nation or be annexed by Western Samoa.

      Voting age: Let states decide on whether it should be lowered to 16.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Jon698 on January 26, 2018, 07:43:07 PM
      Social Policy
      Abortion: Don`t care if you have one
      Drugs: Should be treated like alcohol, if you want it to be banned in your state or county then you can have it banned if you don`t then it will be legal there
      Gay Marriage: Support
      Death penalty: Support
      Church and State: Uphold First and Fourteenth Amendment
      Stem cell research: Support
      PATRIOT Act: Repeal as violation of Fourth Amendment
      Gun control: Fine where it is
      Assisted suicide: Neutral
      Gambling: Allow it

      Electoral Reform
      Term Limits: Only for president, vice-president and governors
      Statehood: Oppose none of the current territories are large enough or are too much like Latin and South American countries
      Voting Age: 18.
      Gerrymandering: Should be drawn by independent, non partisan commissions
      Voter ID: Support voter id laws

      Economic Issues
      Minimum Wage: Raise it
      Taxation: Keep present tax levels
      Healthcare: Support ACA, but it could be improved
      Military: Should have its budget cut and end pointless programs like the F-35

      Foreign Policy
      War: Should only defend countries that are being invaded
      Israel-Palestine: Israel should keep its current borders
      Nukes: Neutral
      Foreign Aid: Against when it is given to countries that are extremely corrupt since it would just be embezzled from


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Kingpoleon on January 27, 2018, 01:40:57 AM
      Social Policy
      Abortion: Don`t care if you have one
      Drugs: Should be treated like alcohol, if you want it to be banned in your state or county then you can have it banned if you don`t then it will be legal there
      Gay Marriage: Support
      Death penalty: Support
      Church and State: Uphold First and Fourteenth Amendment
      Stem cell research: Support
      PATRIOT Act: Repeal as violation of Fourth Amendment
      Gun control: Fine where it is
      Assisted suicide: Neutral
      Gambling: Allow it

      Electoral Reform
      Term Limits: Only for president, vice-president and governors
      Statehood: Oppose none of the current territories are large enough or are too much like Latin and South American countries
      Voting Age: 18.
      Gerrymandering: Should be drawn by independent, non partisan commissions
      Voter ID: Support voter id laws

      Economic Issues
      Minimum Wage: Raise it
      Taxation: Keep present tax levels
      Healthcare: Support ACA, but it could be improved
      Military: Should have its budget cut and end pointless programs like the F-35

      Foreign Policy
      War: Should only defend countries that are being invaded
      Israel-Palestine: Israel should keep its current borders
      Nukes: Neutral
      Foreign Aid: Against when it is given to countries that are extremely corrupt since it would just be embezzled from

      Is that code for “Puerto Rico and D. C. are too Hispanic?”


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Jon698 on January 27, 2018, 12:16:44 PM
      Social Policy
      Abortion: Don`t care if you have one
      Drugs: Should be treated like alcohol, if you want it to be banned in your state or county then you can have it banned if you don`t then it will be legal there
      Gay Marriage: Support
      Death penalty: Support
      Church and State: Uphold First and Fourteenth Amendment
      Stem cell research: Support
      PATRIOT Act: Repeal as violation of Fourth Amendment
      Gun control: Fine where it is
      Assisted suicide: Neutral
      Gambling: Allow it

      Electoral Reform
      Term Limits: Only for president, vice-president and governors
      Statehood: Oppose none of the current territories are large enough or are too much like Latin and South American countries
      Voting Age: 18.
      Gerrymandering: Should be drawn by independent, non partisan commissions
      Voter ID: Support voter id laws

      Economic Issues
      Minimum Wage: Raise it
      Taxation: Keep present tax levels
      Healthcare: Support ACA, but it could be improved
      Military: Should have its budget cut and end pointless programs like the F-35

      Foreign Policy
      War: Should only defend countries that are being invaded
      Israel-Palestine: Israel should keep its current borders
      Nukes: Neutral
      Foreign Aid: Against when it is given to countries that are extremely corrupt since it would just be embezzled from

      Is that code for “Puerto Rico and D. C. are too Hispanic?”

      No I meant that the government acts like the ones in Latin and South America and one of the major political parties are against statehood. Also I don`t know why you are talking about Washington D.C since only nine percent of its population is Hispanic.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Kingpoleon on January 28, 2018, 01:18:27 AM
      How does D. C. act like a Latin American government? How does Puerto Rico?

      Puerto Rico has a pretty successful government that, much like our own, has fallen too heavily into debt.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Jon698 on January 28, 2018, 11:16:31 AM
      How does D. C. act like a Latin American government? How does Puerto Rico?

      Puerto Rico has a pretty successful government that, much like our own, has fallen too heavily into debt.

      You were the one that brought up D.C. I was talking about the oversea territories.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Kingpoleon on January 28, 2018, 03:00:37 PM
      How does D. C. act like a Latin American government? How does Puerto Rico?

      Puerto Rico has a pretty successful government that, much like our own, has fallen too heavily into debt.

      You were the one that brought up D.C. I was talking about the oversea territories.

      Okay. How does Puerto Rico?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: America's Sweetheart ❤/𝕿𝖍𝖊 𝕭𝖔𝖔𝖙𝖞 𝖂𝖆𝖗𝖗𝖎𝖔𝖗 on February 15, 2018, 08:16:59 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion
      - Support a 20-week ban with the exception of danger to the life of mother
      - Support Planned Parenthood as long as funding isn’t used for abortions

      LGBTQ+ Rights
      - Support same sex marriage and adoption
      - Sexual orientation should be protected by anti-discrimination laws
      - Anyone can use whichever bathroom they want
      - Allow voluntary conversion therapy
      - No issue with LGBTQ+ citizens in the military

      Guns:
      - Support background checks
      - Prevent those who are unfit from obtaining a gun (ex. extreme cases of mental/psychological disability, those who have a record of violent crime - especially gun related charges, etc.)
      - Do not support gun bans and magazine limits
      - Support both open and concealed carry

      Drugs
      - Support full legalization of marijuana
      - Support decriminalization of harder stuff, prefer focusing on addiction as a mental illness vs. a crime

      Religious Freedom
      - Should be protected
      - The government should not force citizens or businesses to operate against their religious views

      Death Penalty
      - Support for extreme cases where the crime is especially heinous and there is no doubt about who committed the crime (ex. serial killers, terrorists, etc.)

      Euthanasia
      - Support as long as the patient is terminally ill and expected to live 6 months or less
      - Patient must be of sound mind to make the decision, must not be a result of mental illness
      - Doctor cannot be forced to perform the procedure, but should be able to recommend one who will

      Immigration
      - Create a pathway to citizenship for all non-violent immigrants, deport ones who are violent
      - Oppose making English official language, but basic knowledge should be required
      - Increase border security, but make the process of legally coming here easier

      Confederate Flags/Monuments
      - History should not be erased, do not support removing
      - Should be protected from desecration
      - Would prefer a plaque or sign placing them in context vs removal or placement in museums
      - If people want to fly it, let them fly it.

      Political Correctness
      - People these days take it way too far
      - Know your audience and try not to be a jerk
      - It's not that serious

      Economic Issues

      Minimum Wage
      - Should be increased, but rate should determined based on cost of living in the areas where people reside, though support keeping a reasonable federal minimum wage to avoid people being taken advantage of
      - Definitely no federal increase to $15
      - Adjust with inflation
      - Businesses should not be placed at risk

      Trade
      - Support some fair trade. It’s incredibly crucial to re-negotiate and doing a better job with future deals so American businesses and industries are not harmed.
      - Support tariffs on select imports to protect American industries.

      Taxes
      - No huge issues with current tax rates, though we need to be better about how we are using the money
      - Simplify the tax code to make it easier for people to understand

      Environment

      Climate Change
      - Climate change is real, and caused by humans and is natural
      - In favor of putting in place limits on carbon dioxide output

      Renewable Energy
      - Strongly support new forms of nuclear power
      - Support investing in solar, wind, and hydroelectric power.
      - Support phasing out of fossil fuel usage

      Used fhtagn’s format, didn’t need to change much.
      I'm very confused right now. you seem like an alt-right type and yet most of your stated views here are centrist or even slightly left-of-center.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: America's Sweetheart ❤/𝕿𝖍𝖊 𝕭𝖔𝖔𝖙𝖞 𝖂𝖆𝖗𝖗𝖎𝖔𝖗 on February 16, 2018, 08:15:55 PM
      I'm very confused right now. you seem like an alt-right type and yet most of your stated views here are centrist or even slightly left-of-center.

      Prolly because I don’t give af about certain social issues, the only ones that really matter to me are trade, immigration and energy... I’ve never been alt-right and it just looks like it cuz I troll 90% of the time. My views might be centrish I guess but ISideWith still has Trump at 84% for me.
      You sound moderate on immigration and energy as well, definitely not an alt-right reactionary type.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: YE on February 19, 2018, 03:44:43 AM
      Ideology
      Social: Center on some issues, left on others
      Economic: Social democrat
      Foreign Policy: Dovish
      Political Registration: D-NV

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Pro-choice. Support Planned Parenthood, support not allowing states to defund it and overturn the Hyde Amendment.

      Same-Sex Marriage: Duh.

      Transgender Issues: Use the restroom of their gender, not the one they were born with.

      Drugs: War on Drugs is a disaster. Legalize, tax, and regulate drugs, starting with weed, but one legalization at a time.

      Death Penalty: Oppose and pro-lifers who support this are massive hypocrites.

      Gun Control: Close gun show loophole and expand background checks. Anything else is too far, and I'd go as far as saying blue states go too far with this.

      Affirmative Action: Support.

      Prostitution: No; women shouldn't be bribec to have sex.

      Euthanasia: Oppose on moral grounds, along with physician assisted suicide.

      Immigration: Keep the border secure, deport criminals who are here illegally, citizenship to all illegals if they aren't criminals and pay taxes in 10 years.

      Police Issues/Black Lives Matter: Pro-BLM and oppose police brutality and hold officers accountable.

      Free Speech/Political Correctness: Pro-free speech, but the GOP are massive hypocrites on this. They are so quick to call college students at California who shut down right wing speakers SJW (correctly), but anytime a Democrat says something un-American, the have a thin skin and get defensive, basically becoming right wind SJW's. Political Correctness is necessary in order to protect politics from staying civil, and oftentimes "telling it how it is" is a code word for racism on the right

      School Prayer: Status quo.

      Muslim Ban: No.

      PATRIOT ACT/NSA Spying: Need a warrant


      Economic Issues
      Minimum Wage: Raise to $15 at a rate of 50 cents per year, then index to inflation.

      Social Security: Lift the taxable income cap, and cut the income tax rates to help pay for Medicare for All. Do not support expanding the program. And no Social Security is not broke contrary to whatever the GOP wants you to think.

      Healthcare: Support Medicare for All, similar to Bernie's bill, but phased in over a longer period of time. Second choice would be a public option. Also support drug imports from Canada, whose markets are already tightly regulated, and allow the federal government to negotiate drug prices with drug companies.

      Globalization/Trade: Support free trade in theory, but that doesn't make every free trade deal good. Oppose TPP, support re-negotiation of NAFTA.

      Deficit/Debt: Debt doesn't matter. Deficits don't if there's a recession, but do if the economy is good and all Americans are prospering.

      Campaign Finance Reform: Limits on donations to all campaigns, congressional campaign committees, and state/national parties, with guaranteed public funding. Gut SuperPacs and corporate Pac money. Also limit how much you could self-fund your campaign.

      Unions: Get rid of the Taft-Hartley Act that created right to work, which was created y the Republicans in attempt to undercut unions.

      Energy: Pro-solar. Pro-wind. Pro-nuclear. Anti-coal.

      Job Creation: A second new deal. Infrastructure redevelopment across the Rust Belt for not just better roads, but better sewer and drainage systems, as well nationwide broadband. Also need tighter building codes and larger seawalls to withstand natural disasters like hurricanes.

      Education: Support common core, make in-state college free, universal childcare, support full day kindergarten, and universal pre-K.

      Taxes: Raise marginal tax rates on wealthy when appropriate. Would like to see the top 1% pay as much as they did in an effective tax rates to prior to Reagan. Also support a carbon tax and a tax on Wall Street speculation. Repeal the Bill Clinton capital gains tax cut, Trump's income tax cuts, Bush's tax cuts, expand earned income tax credit, hijack the coporate tax rate back up to 30%.


      Other economic issues: Paid family medical leave by law (12 weeks for maternity leave 2 weeks for paternity leave). 10 days of vacation time by law.

      Foreign Policy
      Middle East: Get out. None of the countries unilaterally have attacked us. Fully support the Iran Deal. Oh, and quit funding Saudi Arabia as they continue to massacre civilians in Yemen and show respect to international law. I'm not a Pacifist, however. If there's a genocide or illegal occupation, aid, and if necessary, military should be used, but you have to go through the UN first.

      Syria Refuges: Support Obama era policies but we can only take so many and we have to ensure we maintain the proper vetting.

      Israel/Palestine: If I were alive in 1948, I wouldn't have favored the creation of Israel. But this is 2017, not 1948. Favor two internationally recognized states with 1967 border (and no the Palestine state should not be free of Jews Hamas). I'm no fan of Israel, but Palestine aren't exactly angels either. Oppose BDS, since pressure is needed on Palestine too.

      North Korea: Go back to Bill Clinton's foreign policy towards North Korea.

      Russia: Supported sanctions for electing melding, and annexing Crimea. But we should avoid war with them unless they attack us unilaterally.

      Climate Change
      Anthropogenic Climate change is real and is naturally occurring. Support increasing funding towards climate change, with an increased emphasis on aerosols. Oppose efforts to privatize NOAA. Support Paris Climate Agreement but it needs to be enforceable. Also increased money towards weather forecasting, most notably to improve the US based Global Forecast System.

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College Reform: Support to avoid the smaller states from being screwed over but expand the size of the house.

      Gerrymandering: Oppose. Support independent commission with guidelines on not splitting up COI for both congressional and legislative seats.

      Term limits: Oppose for legislative seats, support for executive seats.

      Voter ID: Oppose.

      Instant Run-off Voting: Support

      Primaries: Let the states decide, but all states should hold the presidential and statewide office primaries on the same day, eliminating the urge for caucuses.

      Statehood: Make D.C., Guam, and Puerto Rico as states, along with maybe the NMI and the Virgin Islands (or combine them with PR/Guam). Let American Samoa be its own nation or be annexed by Western Samoa.

      Voting age: Let states decide on whether it should be lowered to 16.

      Updated.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Star Spangled Leaf on March 04, 2018, 03:43:49 PM
      Social: Mixed
      Economic: Center-Right
      Foreign Policy: Non-interventionist
      Preferred Parties: Republican Party, Conservative Party of Canada

      SOCIAL POLICY
      Abortion: Fully legal up until the 20th week; only under life-threatening circumstances after that. Continue to fund Planned Parenthood, so long as no public funds go to abortion services.

      Same-Sex Marriage:
      Support, but religious leaders should have the right to refuse to marry same-sex couples.

      Conversion Therapy: Fine, so long as no federal funds to towards it.

      LGBTQ+ Issues: Keep transgenders in the military. Give the bathroom issue to the states.

      Drugs: Fully legalize and regulate cannabis. Prefer rehabilitation over incarceration for possession of harder drugs. Add a 20% tax onto all cannabis, alcohol and tobacco products.

      Death Penalty: Reserve for Terrorism and High Treason, and in the event of martial law.

      Gun Control: Ban bump stocks. Expand and improve the background check systems. Allow for law enforcement to cease weapons by court order. Although I don't personally see the need to own an AR-15, as a Canadian I have no right to question the constitution of a foreign country.

      Affirmative Action: Oppose, but institute a "blind" hiring procedure for federal positions.

      Prostitution: Legal to sell as an individual, but a $500 fine for soliciting. Jail time for pimping or keeping a brothel.

      Euthanasia: Legal, but only if the individual provides written consent, including through a written will or end-of-life care instructions.

      Immigration: Replace the diversity lottery with a merit-based system. Harden the Mexican border, with physical barriers wherever practical. Increase funding to Border Security, and work to eliminate ALL forms of illegal immigration. Fully support DACA.

      Police Issues/Black Lives Matter:
      Every instance of police brutality should be taken seriously, fully investigated, and the guilty parties prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. I support BLM for bringing this issue to the forefront, but they should also touch on other issues facing the black community, like poverty and black-on-black crime.

      Free Speech/Political Correctness: PC has gone too far. All speech, including hate speech, should be protected.

      School Prayer: Let individual districts decide this for themselves.

      Muslim Ban: Oppose, but visitors and immigrants from Muslim countries should be subject to advanced screening for possible terrorist connections.

      Surveillance: Should require a warrant.

      ECONOMIC ISSUES
      Minimum Wage: Increase to $9.00, and increase by $0.20 per year so long as the economy is not in recession. Pass a law requiring all states and territories to institute a minimum wage at or above the federal minimum wage.

      Welfare: Oppose handouts, but support legitimate assistance, such as Medicaid, Rent Assistance, and (stripped down) EBT.

      Social Security: Keep it the way it is.

      Healthcare: Oppose both free-market healthcare and single-payer. Keep the industry privatized, but make essential services (ambulance, ER, essential drugs, etc.) 100% refundable through income tax rebates.

      Trade: Renegotiate NAFTA, and consider going back to the bargaining table with TPP. Support reasonable tarriffs on certain imports.

      Deficit/Debt: A balanced budget is a noble end goal, but isn't worth cutting essential services for.

      Campaign Finance Reform: Maximum donation limits for individuals, NGOs, unions and corporations. Disqualify all candidates who violate campaign finance law.

      Unions: Support, but all workers should be able to choose whether or not they join a union.

      Energy: Support clean energy, especially nuclear and hydroelectric. Slowly and gradually phase out coal.

      Job Creation: Leave this to the market.

      Education: Eliminate common core and standardized testing. Subsidize post-secondary education for seniors, veterans, and indigenous persons.

      Taxes: Support a progressive income tax, with a 40% tax for earnings over $200,000, and no income tax for earnings under $20,000. Implement a flat 10% sales tax, 25% corporate tax, and abolish capital gains tax. Close off all loopholes, and fully replace incarceration with asset forfieture for tax evaders.

      FOREIGN POLICY

      Stay out of future conflicts in Africa and the Middle East. Support a two-state solution using 1967 ceasefire lines. Place sanctions in Saudi Arabia, while thawing relations with Russia, China and Cuba. Increase presence of troops and nuclear weapons in South Korea and Japan. Severely cut back on foreign aid, and only go to war if an ally is directly attacked.

      CANADIAN ISSUES

      Repeal the Carbon Tax. Reverse the revisions to the national anthem. Stop recognizing indigenous land claims, and instead work to abolish the federal Indian Reservation System, and lift indigenous communities out of poverty. limit Senators to ten-year terms, and allow them to be appointed only by the Governor General, on the advice of the Lieutenant Governor and Premier of the province or territory they would represent.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on March 10, 2018, 09:35:46 PM
      I'm very confused right now. you seem like an alt-right type and yet most of your stated views here are centrist or even slightly left-of-center.

      Prolly because I don’t give af about certain social issues, the only ones that really matter to me are trade, immigration and energy... I’ve never been alt-right and it just looks like it cuz I troll 90% of the time. My views might be centrish I guess but ISideWith still has Trump at 84% for me.
      You sound moderate on immigration and energy as well, definitely not an alt-right reactionary type.


      A lot of moderate alt-right/lite populists come from relatively progressive backgrounds and are  quite moderate outside of nationalism or even racism in some cases. That troll from Sweden that got banned here was a lot like that. I know a kid from KCMO who was like that. Though some of his posts make my head hurt when is justifying his racism or fetishizing guns, he is quite funny.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mondegreen on March 13, 2018, 11:28:55 PM
      Capitalism is evil, abortion is murder, and technology will kill us all.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Dr. MB on March 14, 2018, 11:38:15 PM
      Here's a slightly updated one. I doubt it's changed much from the last time, I just like doing stuff like this.

      Social Policy

      Abortion
      – I personally oppose abortion, and see it as morally wrong.
      – I don't care a whole lot about abortion politically. It's a non-issue for me.

      LGBT Rights
      – Support equal rights as heterosexuals. Simple as that.
      – Ban conversion therapy, unless it's consensual (for whatever reason).

      Guns:
      – Don't support banning any certain type of gun.
      – Support allowing gun possession for medical marijuana users.
      – Support enforcing the laws we have.
      – Support universal background checks.

      Drugs
      – Marijuana, mushrooms, LSD, other soft drugs should be legalized.
      – There should not be a limit on amount of marijuana you are allowed to possess, or number of plants you can grow.
      – Hard drug use should be decriminalized and the sentence should be rehab.
      – The DEA should only be focused on smuggling of hard drugs.

      Death Penalty
      – I oppose the death penalty, with the exception of war criminals.

      Prostitution
      – I support legalizing all forms of prostitution.

      Immigration
      – Support amnesty for all non-criminal illegals.
      – I oppose a wall as it wouldn't be effective.
      – I also oppose an open-border policy.

      Term Limits
      – I support limits on number of consecutive terms, but not lifetime limits.

      Affirmative Action
      – I oppose affirmative action.

      Confederate Flags/Monuments
      – It should be up to the town or county, not the federal government.
      – Statues that are removed should be put in museums, not destroyed.
      – Right to display the confederate flag falls under the 1st amendment.

      PATRIOT Act and NSA Surveillance
      – The PATRIOT Act should be repealed.
      – The NSA should be abolished and all its necessary functions transferred to the CIA.
      – Whistleblowers should be constitutionally protected.

      First Amendment
      – The First Amendment should be absolute and should apply everywhere.

      Economic Issues

      Minimum Wage
      – The minimum wage should depend on the cost of living, but should not be lower than $12 anywhere.

      Trade
      – Renegotiate NAFTA, withdraw from the WTO.
      – Don't enter the TPP.
      – I am skeptical of free trade agreements.
      – I oppose outsourcing of jobs. Corporations that outsource should be severely punished.

      Taxes
      – I support abolition of the income tax for anyone making under $30,000 a year.
      – Taxes should be much higher than they are now for anyone making over $1,000,000 a year.

      Social Security
      – I strongly support social security. No raising the retirement age and no privatization.

      Healthcare
      – I support universal healthcare.

      College tuition
      – College tuition should be affordable or free. Student loan debts should be forgiven.

      Foreign Policy

      Russia/China
      – U.S., China, and Russia should be very strong allies.

      Military Spending and Foreign Aid
      – Spending on both should be decreased.
      – No foreign aid to dictatorships or corrupt states.

      Syria
      – Withdraw from Syria and let the problem sort itself out.

      Afghanistan
      – Withdraw from Afghanistan and let the problem sort itself out.

      Environment

      Renewable Energy
      – Renewable energy should be preferred. Geothermal especially should be explored.

      Elections

      Reform
      – Support limits on campaign contributions.
      – Institute ranked-choice voting and multi-member districts.
      – Abolish the electoral college.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Not a Partisan Hack ( ͡~ ͜ʖ ͡°) on March 15, 2018, 07:39:54 PM
      My views revolving around social issues.

      Gay marriage: Support

      Affirmative action: oppose

      Term limits: Support

      Guns:
      -support raising the age to buy a gun from 18 to 21
      -supports universal background checks.
      -does not support a assault weapons ban.

      Immigration Issues:
      -Immigrants shouldn’t be rounded up by ICE agents
      -Children born here legally should be allowed to stay
      -People should be punished for not waiting to legally enter the country.
      -support amnesty for non-criminal illegal immigrants.

      Abortion:
      -personally oppose, but I still personally allow it.
      -dislikes funding abortion services using tax dollars.

      Drugs:
      -Try to intragate previous drug users in prison back into society.
      -legalize marijuana and other soft drugs
      -people should get licenses to personally have hard drugs.

      Prostitution: Legalize brothels and highly regulate the service of prostitution.

      Issues concerning surveillance:
      -Repeal the PATRIOT act
      -Whistleblowers should be protected.

      Death penalty: opposed, except for war criminals.







      Issues concerning economics: Coming Soon




      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: America's Sweetheart ❤/𝕿𝖍𝖊 𝕭𝖔𝖔𝖙𝖞 𝖂𝖆𝖗𝖗𝖎𝖔𝖗 on March 15, 2018, 08:00:09 PM
      Here I go again. I'll try to cover as many topics as possible.

      - I'm 100% pro-choice and do not support any restrictions on abortion other than banning partial birth abortions (except for in cases of rape, incest, or life of the mother)
      - I fully support equal rights for all LGBT people, they should be allowed to marry, serve in the military, and adopt children as well as everything else that straight people are allowed to do
      - I support legalizing all drugs and creating a treatment based approach to drug abuse rather than another pointless war on drugs that won't do a lick of good
      - I support a pathway to citizenship for illegals already here and believe legal immigration should be made as easy as possible to seriously cut down on illegal immigration. I oppose the wall but we do need to make sure we have a secure border and we keep out people who pose a serious threat to the country
      - I strongly oppose the travel ban and any kind of religious-based ban, these don't work and are based solely on fear-mongering and xenophobia
      - I don't believe in banning school prayer or anything like that, but non-religious students shouldn't be forced to participate in anything that violates their beliefs
      - I support school choice but also public schools, oppose vouchers for the most part
      - I support Affirmative Action in most cases, but think it shouldn't just apply to blacks
      - I'm neutral on removing Confederate statues, but they do not belong at any official Government sites or state capitals.  Rednecks can fly the flag if they wish, it's their right to do so
      - I am a free speech absolutist and believe that as long as you aren't directly inciting violence you should be allowed to say whatever you please
      - The right to peacefully protest is also essential and I support it for everyone regardless of how vile some of their views may be
      - I don't believe in putting US boots on the ground to fight any war, I believe we should use a foreign coalition of soldiers + US drone strikes
      - I strongly support free trade, NAFTA, TPP, and any other trade deals
      - I support cutting taxes for the poor and middle class, and keeping them where they are for the wealthy and big corporations
      - I prefer a Japanese style healthcare system to either Obamacare or a purely free market approach that the GOP advocates
      - I absolutely oppose the death penalty in all cases as it is not the government's job to decide which citizens live or die, and on top of this it's well known that it does not deter crime. in really extreme cases like war criminals or terrorists, it may however be the appropriate punishment.
      - I support the right of terminally ill people to commit assisted suicide with a reputable physician helping them
      - I am a big supporter of the 2nd Amendment, but we need tough background checks, a longer waiting period, and a ban on bump stocks as it makes zero sense for someone to be able to legally convert a legal weapon into an illegal weapon
      - I support Trump's decision to move the Israeli embassy to Jerusalem
      - I don't think political correctness is a serious issue in modern society
      - I'm obviously 100% against racists and the alt-right, but still respect their right to spew their vile views
      - I believe that it's undeniable that climate change is real and it should be treated as a national security threat
      - I believe we should have a generous welfare state, but ensure that any fraud is stamped out immediately and the perps are prosecuted
      - I don't support raising the retirement age for social security
      - I don't believe the Government has the right to punish sanctuary cities
      - I support the NSA, but they need to be monitored carefully by a watch dog to ensure that they don't violate anyone's fourth amendment rights
      - And lastly, I don't think it's really the Governments job to tell people what they can or can't do as long as whatever they're doing does not harm anyone physically.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: here2view on March 29, 2018, 06:16:40 PM
      Ideology
      Social: Moderately liberal
      Economic: Liberal
      Foreign Policy: Non-Intervionalist

      Social Policy
      Abortion: 100% pro-choice. Support Planned Parenthood and federal funding toward it. I might be open to allowing states to decide if they want to ban abortions after a certain number of weeks, likely 20 weeks being the minimum.

      Same-Sex Marriage: Unequically support.

      Transgender Issues: Use whatever bathroom you are most comfortable with. I don’t really care.

      Drugs: Legalize marijuana, while taxing and regulating it like alcohol. The War on Drugs is pointless.

      Death Penalty: Support. There are some criminals who commit crimes so heinous that they aren’t worthy of life.

      Gun Control: Expand background checks. Against an assault weapons ban or raising the age to purchase to 21. You shouldn’t be allowed to vote or register in the draft before being able to buy a gun. (Everything should be 18 - drinking age should be lowered.) There needs to be more done to address mental health and the stigma surrounding it.

      Affirmative Action: Support, in order to prevent discrimination.

      Prostitution: Status quo.

      Euthanasia: Support, as long as the patient has less than 6 months to live and is in substantial pain on a daily basis.

      Immigration: More funding for border security but no wall. Deport every illegal who commits a crime (not counting a traffic violation or things of that nature.) Protect DACA.

      Police Issues/Black Lives Matter: Support BLM.

      Free Speech/Political Correctness: Support free speech. If we don’t have this, we don’t have a country. Everyone has the right to say what they want as long as they aren’t inciting violence. PC culture has also gone too far.

      School Prayer: No for public schools, up for private schools to decide.

      Muslim Ban: No way.

      PATRIOT ACT/NSA Spying: Support both.


      Economic Issues
      Minimum Wage: Raise to $12.50 nationwide and allow states to increase further if they choose.

      Social Security: Gradually raise minimum age to 68 for all by 2030. If you collected before 2030 and you are/were younger than that you’re grandfathered in.

      Healthcare: Single-payer system.

      Globalization/Trade: Support TPP and NAFTA, but very weary of free trade. Too many jobs in the Rust Belt are being lost and something needs to be done to help these people.

      Deficit/Debt: Irrelevant. Republicans say they care about the national debt and then pass legislation which happens to raise it even further. Democrats do the later as well, but don’t lie about caring about it like Republicans do.

      Campaign Finance Reform: Limit on how much can be donated to a campaign.

      Unions: Very-pro. In favor of legislation to protect unions.

      Energy: Pro renewable energy. We need to move more so away from coal.

      Job Creation: A major infrastructure deal. A greater focus on training and re-training individuals in order to be acclimated to the 21st century. Coal mine and steel mill jobs aren’t coming back to the level they were 50 years ago, but Democrats shouldn’t turn their backs to these people.

      Education: Support Common Core. Establish a universal day care, find a way to make undergraduate college degrees more affordable. Better information needs to be given to college applicants and incoming college students about the loans they take.

      Taxes: Set corporation tax rates to 28% and given tax credits to companies who don’t ship jobs and companies overseas.

      INDIVIDUAL               JOINTLY
      10%: Up to $10,000            10%: Up to $20,000
      12%: $10,001 to $60,000         12%: $20,001 to $120,000
      24%: $60,001 to $150,000         24%: $120,001 to $300,000
      36%: $150,001 to $500,000      36%: $300,001 to $1,000,000
      40%: over $500,000            40%: over $1,000,000

      Cuts down the brackets from seven to five. Essentially does it by multiples of 12 (12%, 24%, and 36%) to simplify things, with a 10% bracket and a 40% bracket. Raises taxes on singles making over 60k filing single and those making over 120k filing jointly by 2%. Those making under these thresholds will see a reduction. These figures will be adjusted for inflation.

      Other economic issues: More needs to be done to address the growing income inequality in this country. Establish three weeks of paid vacation minimum for every job, which may be increased down the road. 3 months paid maternity leave and 3 weeks paid paternity leave.

      Foreign Policy
      Middle East: The UN needs to be stronger, so we should not be playing a huge role here. To be blunt we should be focused on trying to ensure that we can get the cheapest oil possible.

      Syrian Refugees: Support taking in refugees. However, they must be vetted extremely closely (unfortunately, more so for men over 18.)

      Israel/Palestine: Support Israel, but like I stated earlier we need to try and pull back from the Middle East.

      North Korea: North Korea is not as much of a threat as Russia. We must exhaust every diplomatic measure we have before thinking of taking another action. I think Kim Jong-un is more bark than bite.

      Russia: Enforce stronger economic sanctions and provide support to our allies who share our mindset.

      Climate Change: Is real and is mostly caused by humankind. Anyone who thinks otherwise in the face of science is a fool. Support increasing funding towards climate change, as well as the Paris Climate Agreement.


      Electoral Issues
      Gerrymandering: Oppose. Support independent commission to draw congressional maps.

      Term limits: Oppose.

      Voter ID: Support, but the type of ID shouldn’t be so strict. Government IDs should be cheap and easy to buy.

      Voting age: Keep at 18.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: YE on March 31, 2018, 02:32:37 AM
      Ideology
      Social: Center with a libertarian streak
      Economic: Social democrat
      Foreign Policy: Dovish internationalist
      Political Registration: D-NV

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Pro-choice. Support Planned Parenthood, support not allowing states to defund it and overturn the Hyde Amendment. Drifting towards a ban at X weeks however and opposed to partial birth abortion.

      Same-Sex Marriage: Duh.

      Transgender Issues: Use the restroom of their gender, not the one they were born with. I find it disgusting that people think they are just making sh**t up when they know they identify as the opposite gender.

      Drugs: War on Drugs is a disaster. Legalize, tax, and regulate drugs, starting with weed, but one legalization at a time.

      Death Penalty: Oppose and pro-lifers who support this are massive hypocrites.

      Gun Control: Close gun show loophole, ban bump stocks, and expand background checks. Anything else is too far, and I'd go as far as saying blue states go too far with this. Ideally I'd ban be open to a high capacity magazine ban but I think in the era of polarization, such ban at the federal level would lead to a black market forming.

      Affirmative Action: Agnostic.

      Prostitution: No; women shouldn't be bribed to have sex.

      Euthanasia: Oppose on moral grounds.

      Immigration: Keep the border secure, deport criminals who are here illegally, citizenship to all illegals if they aren't criminals and pay taxes in 10 years, but I'd be willing to compromise for no citizenship and just legalization.

      Police Issues/Black Lives Matter: Pro-BLM and oppose police brutality and hold officers accountable.

      Free Speech/Political Correctness: Pro-free speech, but the GOP are massive hypocrites on this. They are so quick to call college students at California who shut down right wing speakers SJW (correctly), but anytime a Democrat says something un-American, the have a thin skin and get defensive, basically becoming right wind SJW's. Political Correctness is necessary in order to protect politics from staying civil, and oftentimes "telling it how it is" is a code word for racism on the right

      School Prayer: Status quo.

      Muslim Ban: No.

      PATRIOT ACT/NSA Spying: Need a warrant


      Economic Issues
      Minimum Wage: Raise to $15 at a rate of 50 cents per year, then index to inflation.

      Social Security: Lift the taxable income cap, and cut the income tax rates to help pay for Medicare for All. Do not support expanding the program. And no Social Security is not broke contrary to whatever the GOP wants you to think.

      Healthcare: Support Medicare for All, similar to Bernie's bill, but phased in over a longer period of time, and it should be no more comprehensive than the current Medicare program, at least for now. Second choice would be Medicare Extra, but in order for that to work, employer essential health insurance would have to fall apart. Also support drug imports from Canada, whose markets are already tightly regulated, and allow the federal government to negotiate drug prices with drug companies.

      Globalization/Trade: Support free trade in theory, at least with higher wage countries, but that doesn't make every free trade deal good. Oppose TPP, support re-negotiation of NAFTA.

      Deficit/Debt: Debt doesn't matter. Deficits don't if there's a recession, but do if the economy is good and all Americans are prospering.

      Campaign Finance Reform: Limits on donations to all campaigns, congressional campaign committees, and state/national parties, with guaranteed public funding. Gut SuperPacs and corporate Pac money. Also limit how much you could self-fund your campaign.

      Unions: Get rid of the Taft-Hartley Act that created right to work, which was created by the Republicans in attempt to undercut unions.

      Energy: Pro-solar. Pro-wind. Pro-nuclear. Anti-coal.

      Job Creation: A second new deal. Infrastructure redevelopment across the Rust Belt for not just better roads, but better sewer and drainage systems, as well nationwide broadband. Also need tighter building codes and larger seawalls to withstand natural disasters like hurricanes.

      Education: Support common core, make in-state college free, universal childcare, support full day kindergarten, and universal pre-K.

      Taxes: Raise marginal tax rates on wealthy when appropriate. Would like to see the top 1% pay as much as they did in an effective tax rates to prior to Reagan. Also support a carbon tax and a tax on Wall Street speculation. Repeal the Bill Clinton capital gains tax cut, Trump's income tax cuts, Bush's tax cuts, expand earned income tax credit, hijack the corporate tax rate back up to 30%.


      Other economic issues: Paid family medical leave by law (12 weeks for maternity leave 8 weeks for paternity leave). 10 days of vacation time by law.

      Foreign Policy
      Middle East: Get out. None of the countries unilaterally have attacked us. Fully support the Iran Deal. Oh, and quit funding Saudi Arabia as they continue to massacre civilians in Yemen and show respect to international law. I'm not a pacifist, however. If there's a genocide or illegal occupation, aid, and if necessary, military should be used, but you have to go through the UN first and show respect for international law. There's a reason we're considered by others to be the number one threat to world piece. I also think this idea that regime change will lead to democracy is insane. 

      Syria Refuges: Support Obama era policies but we can only take so many and we have to ensure we maintain the proper vetting.

      Israel/Palestine: If I were alive in 1948, I may or may not have favored the creation of Israel. But this is 2017, not 1948. Favor two internationally recognized states with 1967 border (and no the Palestine state should not be free of Jews Hamas). I'm no fan of Israel, but Palestine is worse, but there's no good one side. Oppose BDS, since pressure is needed on Palestine too.

      North Korea: Go back to Bill Clinton's foreign policy towards North Korea.

      Russia: Supported sanctions for electing melding, and annexing Crimea. But we should avoid war with them unless they attack us unilaterally.

      Climate Change
      Anthropogenic Climate change is real and is naturally occurring. Support increasing funding towards climate change, with an increased emphasis on aerosols. Oppose efforts to privatize NOAA. Support Paris Climate Agreement but it needs to be enforceable. Also increased money towards weather forecasting, most notably to improve the US based Global Forecast System.

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College Reform: Support to avoid the smaller states from being screwed over but expand the size of the house.

      Gerrymandering: Oppose. Support independent commission with guidelines on not splitting up COI for both congressional and legislative seats.

      Term limits: Oppose for legislative seats, support for executive seats.

      Voter ID: Oppose.

      Instant Run-off Voting: Support

      Primaries: Let the states decide, but all states should hold the presidential and statewide office primaries on the same day, eliminating the urge for caucuses.

      Statehood: Make D.C., Guam, and Puerto Rico as states, along with maybe the NMI and the Virgin Islands (or combine them with PR/Guam). Let American Samoa be its own nation or be annexed by Western Samoa.

      Voting age: Let states decide on whether it should be lowered to 16.

      Updated.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: BenBurch on April 10, 2018, 06:54:40 PM
      As you can see from my profile, I am VERY far right socially and left-wing economically.  My political party would be the America First Party from Hearts of Iron IV: Kaiserreich mod.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Theodore on April 12, 2018, 08:53:57 PM
      Progressive who votes Republican will go in more detail later


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Ohioguy29 on April 14, 2018, 05:30:23 PM
      Ideology: Economic liberal with a populist bent, social moderate. I kinda consider my ideology the opposite of libertarianism. When asked for a simple term, I just say labor Democrat.

      Top issues: Jobs, drugs, healthcare

      Entitlements and healthcare: Preserve Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid. No gutting our entitlements. Create a public option. Have the government subsidize childcare so people can afford to have families. Free community college or trade school for everyone.

      Unions: Should be a top priority of the party. One of the best ways to fight against income inequality.

      Education: Fund it properly, Oklahoma. And make sure it's not done in a sh**tty way where richer areas get more funding for their schools like we have in Ohio. Less funding for charter schools and higher standards; they often suck. As mentioned above, make higher education more affordable.

      Drugs: Legalize marijuana. Don't legalize anything else, but realize that we can't arrest our way out of the addiction crisis. It didn't work in the '80s and it won't work now. I also want politicians to come hard after Big Pharma who helped create this disaster.

      Taxes: Higher income taxes on the rich (although there's an upper limit here; it's not the 1950s anymore), lower taxes on the rest of us if possible. Sales tax should be as low as possible; I commend states like Montana which don't have a sales tax.

      Trade: Skeptical of many free trade deals, supportive of tariffs on China.

      Campaign finance: We need deep reform here. I've seen the detrimental effects on the state level here in Ohio.

      Abortion: Safe, legal, rare. I don't have a moral opposition to abortion (the fact that it's not prohibited by the Bible is striking), but it's not like anyone wants to get one.

      Guns: Pro-gun, although supportive of a few things like increased background checks.

      Immigration: Immigration is a privilege, not a right. We need to secure our borders. We also need to crack down on employers who employ undocumented immigrants. I think we should make it a little easier to immigrate from Mexico; that would cut down on illegal immigration some. I think if you go to jail and you're undocumented, you should be deported. We should also deport people who've only been here for a short time. I think we should give all the DREAMERs green cards immediately and a path to citizenship, but I don't think people who immigrated as adults should be treated exactly the same since they chose to come here.

      Energy: We should strive for energy independence. As much of this as possible should be done through green energy, which is both good for the environment and a great source of jobs. Fracking and nuclear energy shouldn't be taken off the table, and they are actually an important part of preventing climate change. Coal is bad for the environment but we can't abandon people in coal towns; we should preserve coal as long as needed while we try to bring other industries into places like West Virginia.

      Criminal justice reform: Body cams on every officer to start with. We need a lot more on this front though.

      Some other stuff I'm gonna throw all together: Raise the minimum wage. Strongly opposed to UBI; we want jobs, not welfare. I think political correctness has really gone too far these days and it worries me. I support reparations for slavery. Liberals and Democrats needs to be more welcoming of religious people. Globalization and the economic and cultural changes that have been happening lately have not been good for everyone and that needs to be acknowledged.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: YE on May 03, 2018, 10:00:36 PM
      Ideology
      Social: Center with a libertarian streak
      Economic: Social democrat
      Foreign Policy: Dovish internationalist
      Overall: Socially moderate/fiscally populist
      Political Registration: D-NV

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Pro-choice to viability, but pro-life thereafter. Support Planned Parenthood, support not allowing states to defund it and overturn the Hyde Amendment as long as early term abortion is legal. Support ban on partial birth abortion.

      Same-Sex Marriage: Duh.

      Transgender Issues: Use the restroom of their gender, not the one they were born with. I find it disgusting that people think they are just making sh**t up when they know they identify as the opposite gender.

      Drugs: War on Drugs is a disaster. Legalize, tax, and regulate soft drugs, starting with weed, but one legalization at a time, and keep hard drugs illegal.

      Death Penalty: Oppose and pro-lifers who support this are massive hypocrites.

      Gun Control: Pro-gun. Close gun show loophole, ban bump stocks, and expand background checks. Ideally I'd ban be open to a high capacity magazine ban but I think in the era of polarization, such ban at the federal level would lead to a black market forming.

      Affirmative Action: Agnostic but lean oppose.

      Prostitution: No

      Euthanasia: Oppose on moral grounds (pro-life).

      Immigration: Keep the border secure (which believe it or not is working given the recent decline in net immigration), deport criminals who are here illegally, citizenship to all illegals if they aren't criminals and pay taxes in 10 years, but I'd be willing to compromise for no citizenship and just legalization. I'm kinda annoyed at the rhetoric of many Democrats on this as of late that makes me question if they believe in borders, even some Justice Democrats who I otherwise support, including Kamala Harris.

      Police Issues/Black Lives Matter: Pro-BLM and oppose police brutality and hold officers accountable. Oppose mandatory minimums and for profit prisons.

      Free Speech/Political Correctness: Pro-free speech, but the GOP are massive hypocrites on this. They are so quick to call college students at California who shut down right wing speakers SJW (correctly), but anytime a Democrat says something un-American, the have a thin skin and get defensive, basically becoming right wind SJW's. Political Correctness is necessary in order to protect politics from staying civil, and oftentimes "telling it how it is" is a code word for racism on the right

      School Prayer: Status quo.

      Muslim Ban: No.

      PATRIOT ACT/NSA Spying: Need a warrant


      Economic Issues
      Minimum Wage: Raise to $15 and index to inflation Raise 50 cents per year to whenever it converges with $11 indexed to inflation.

      Social Security: Lift the taxable income cap, and cut the income tax rates to help pay for Medicare for All. Do not support expanding the program. And no Social Security is not broke contrary to whatever the GOP wants you to think.

      Healthcare: Support Medicare for All, similar to Bernie's bill, but phased in over a longer period of time, and it should be no more comprehensive than the current Medicare program, at least for now. Second choice would be Medicare Extra, but in order for that to work, employer essential health insurance would have to fall apart. Also support drug imports from Canada, whose markets are already tightly regulated, and allow the federal government to negotiate drug prices with drug companies.

      Globalization/Trade: Support free trade in theory, at least with higher wage countries, but that doesn't make every free trade deal good. Generally oppose, unless we have a product we can't make elsewhere and visa versa. Oppose TPP, support re-negotiation of NAFTA.

      Deficit/Debt: Debt doesn't matter. Deficits don't if there's a recession, but do if the economy is good and all Americans are prospering.

      Campaign Finance Reform: Limits on donations to all campaigns, congressional campaign committees, and state/national parties, with guaranteed public funding. Gut SuperPacs and corporate Pac money. Also limit how much you could self-fund your campaign.

      Unions: Massively pro-labor. Get rid of the Taft-Hartley Act that created right to work, which was created by the Republicans in attempt to undercut unions. Support card check.

      Energy: Pro-solar. Pro-wind. Pro-nuclear. Anti-coal.

      Job Creation: A second new deal. Infrastructure redevelopment for not just better roads, bridges, and highways, but better sewer and drainage systems, as well nationwide broadband. Also need tighter building codes and larger seawalls to withstand natural disasters like hurricanes.

      Education: Support common core, make in-state college free (with some regulations), universal childcare, support full day kindergarten, and universal pre-K. Supported increases in teaching salary, except for elective subjects.

      Taxes: Raise marginal tax rates on wealthy when appropriate. Would like to see the top 1% pay as much as they did in an effective tax rates to prior to Reagan. Also support a carbon tax and a Robin Hood tax much like we had through the 1960s. Repeal the Bill Clinton capital gains tax cut, Trump's income tax cuts, Bush's tax cuts, expand earned income tax credit, hijack the corporate tax rate back up to 30%. Strongly support raising the estate tax. Oppose UBI and would rather see a shorter workweek to combat automation than incentives for half the population to not work.


      Financial regulation: Support re-instating glass stegall, and am very wary of attempts to de-regulate Wall Street. Strong proponent of anti-monopoly laws. Support government run banks but for small loans only and with strict regulation. This isn't an actual policy per se but it kinda fits here and is the root source of my populism. Reaganomics, largely in place since 1980, has resulted in tax breaks for the top, sometimes tax hikes for the middle class, and de-regulation of Wall Street, payday lenders, and credit card companies, and overall an increase of political power by the top 1% that has killed the middle class.


      Other economic issues: Paid family medical leave by law (12 weeks for maternity leave 8 weeks for paternity leave). 10 days of vacation time by law. Support a job guarantee as a replacement for unemployment benefits at or slightly below minimum wage (pending on whether work requires training) with some caveats, like one should be able to get fired for underpreforming the job, and age restrictions.

      Foreign Policy
      Middle East: Get out. None of the countries unilaterally have attacked us. Fully support the Iran Deal. Oh, and quit funding Saudi Arabia as they continue to massacre civilians in Yemen and show respect to international law. I'm not a pacifist, however. If there's a genocide or illegal occupation, aid, and if necessary, military should be used, but you have to go through the UN first and show respect for international law. There's a reason we're considered by others to be the number one threat to world piece. I also think this idea that regime change will lead to democracy all over the place is insane. A new regime in Syria would not blossom into a democracy over night.  

      Syria Refuges: Support Obama era policies but we can only take so many and we have to ensure we maintain the proper vetting.

      Israel/Palestine: If I were alive in 1948, I may or may not have favored the creation of Israel. But this is 2017, not 1948. Conflicted but favor two internationally recognized states with 1967 border (and no the Palestine state should not be free of Jews Hamas). I'm no fan of Israel, but Palestine is worse, but there's no good one side. Oppose BDS, since pressure is needed on Palestine too.

      North Korea: Go back to Bill Clinton's foreign policy towards North Korea. Actually what Trump is doing is working lol.

      Russia: Supported sanctions for electing melding, and annexing Crimea. But we should avoid war with them unless they attack us unilaterally.

      Climate Change
      Anthropogenic Climate change is real and is naturally occurring. Support increasing funding towards climate change, with an increased emphasis on study aerosols. Oppose efforts to privatize NOAA. Support Paris Climate Agreement but it needs to be enforceable. Also increased money towards weather forecasting, most notably to improve the US based Global Forecast System and upgrade phased array radar.

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College Reform: Support to avoid the smaller states from being screwed over by urban areas but expand the size of the house.

      Gerrymandering: Oppose. Support independent commission with guidelines on not splitting up COI for both congressional and legislative seats.

      Term limits: Oppose for legislative seats, support for executive seats, largely because I believe in there is a happy medium between both arguments.

      Voter ID: Oppose.

      Instant Run-off Voting: Support

      Primaries: Let the states decide, but all states should hold the presidential and statewide office primaries on the same day, eliminating the urge for caucuses.

      Statehood: Make D.C., Guam, and Puerto Rico as states, along with maybe the NMI and the Virgin Islands (or combine them with PR/Guam). Let American Samoa be its own nation or be annexed by Western Samoa.

      Voting age: Let states decide on whether it should be lowered to 16. Leave it at 18.

      Updated.

      Had a bit of change of heart on some issues lately, so updated.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Governor Sirius on May 12, 2018, 12:25:57 PM
      I'm an extreme social liberal who doesn't care what people do, nor do I care about political correctness. I'm no fan of the SJW group and I personally believe them to be conservative, just in some different ways. I believe that all harmless drugs, not just marijuana, should be legal.

      Economically a centrist with both some populist and libertarian streaks. I favor keeping the welfare safety net but also increase job programs to try to reduce welfare usage. I support ACA. I believe that minimum wage should at least be set based on COL in each state, if not each county; I don't believe that there is a national living wage. I favor free markets and am a massive support of free trade agreements. I believe in keeping regulations that offer necessary protection, but getting rid of regulations based on "morality" and other useless things. The one industry that I believe need additional government intervention is telecom, and that big telecom companies need to be broken up. I do support environmental protections and eventually getting rid of fossil fuel use entirely. I support the use of nuclear power.

      On foreign issues I'm quite globalist and usually a pacifist. I don't believe that we should go around starting wars for no good reason and that the 2003 Iraq war was a mistake. I do believe that we should continue to stand by our allies, including Israel, because we have made a commitment and that our allies need to be able to trust us in order for us to be able to trust them.

      Tl;dr: Social Liberalism


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Lechasseur on May 14, 2018, 05:47:00 PM
      Overview:
      Social: Conservative
      Economic: Moderate to Centre-left (by American Standards)
      National Security: Realist
      Party Affiliation: Republican

      Social Policy:
      Abortion: I'm pro-life and personally oppose it except in cases of rape, incest, and if the mother's life is in danger. In practice, I support a 20-week abortion ban but I wouldn't go any further than that
      Same-Sex Marriage: I would have prefered civil unions but I'm OK with Same-Sex Marriage now. That being said, churches and other religious institutions shouldn't be forced to conduct them
      Drug Laws: maybe not outright legalize marijuana (it might send a bad message) but I support decriminalization because it's not something you should go to jail for using
      Death Penalty: I support it in cases of murder, terrorism, and rape under certain circumstances
      Gun Control: I'd imagine stricter background checks are needed, but I'm not an expert on this subject so I won't say more than that
      Religious Freedom: needs to be protected
      Affirmative Action: Oppose
      Political Correctness: Has gone way too far
      Euthanasia: Support as long as the patient is terminally ill
      Prostitution: Oppose
      Pornography: it's a public health issue, I'd support a law like the one that just went into effect in the UK on the subject, where you would have to opt in with your internet provider in order to access it 
      Immigration: I would support giving people in the US illegally legal status on a case by case basis (but it would more be the exception rather than the rule) and I oppose a blanket amnesty.
      I think legal immigration should be reduced and we should mainly be letting in westernized and or highly educated immigrants (and students of course) who are thus capable of integrating and adhering to Western values. I'm against the Muslim ban though (I'm not sure if it's still in place but it's unconstitutional and I know some great people from Muslim countries so banning them would be dumb)

      Economic Policy:
      Minimum Wage: I support raising the Federal Minimum Wage, but $15/hour is ridiculous, $9-$10 would make a lot more sense. States and cities would be free to adopt a higher minimum wage. The minimum wage should also be indexed to inflation.
      Right to Work: Oppose
      Taxation: Abolish worldwide taxation. I'm opposed to Trump's tax cuts though, they're just blowing a hole in the deficit. Taxation should be based on the needs of the Treasury and not on ideology and should be fixed accordingly, as long as the rates are reasonable (no one should ever have to pay more than hall of their income in taxes, if the government was spending that much then spending cuts would be necessary). I support progressive taxation. I'd support increasing the sales tax in order to lower property taxes.    
      Healthcare: Support universal healthcare, but in practice I think the best thing that could be realistic in the short to medium term would be to expand Medicaid or to create a public option.
      Education: Support vouchers, find solutions to make college affordable (create programs like the Hope Scholarship in Georgia)
      Free Trade: I support it in principle but if it hurts the country's interests protections have to be put in place

      Foreign Policy and National Security:
      Iran: I supported the Iran deal and opposed Trump ripping it up
      Syria: fight ISIS but otherwise don't get involved
      Israel/Palestine: I support a two-state solution
      Russia: improve relations and ties with Russia

      Environment:
      Climate Change: it's real and it has to be fought (reduce emissions, invest in renewable energy). We shouldn't have left the Paris climate agreement.

      Electoral and Political Reform:
      Term limits: Oppose (except for the Presidency)
      Electoral College Reform: Oppose
      Voter ID: support


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: BenBurch on May 14, 2018, 07:51:29 PM
      Ideology: Economic liberal with a populist bent, social moderate. I kinda consider my ideology the opposite of libertarianism. When asked for a simple term, I just say labor Democrat.

      Top issues: Jobs, drugs, healthcare

      Entitlements and healthcare: Preserve Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid. No gutting our entitlements. Create a public option. Have the government subsidize childcare so people can afford to have families. Free community college or trade school for everyone.

      Unions: Should be a top priority of the party. One of the best ways to fight against income inequality.

      Education: Fund it properly, Oklahoma. And make sure it's not done in a sh**tty way where richer areas get more funding for their schools like we have in Ohio. Less funding for charter schools and higher standards; they often suck. As mentioned above, make higher education more affordable.

      Drugs: Legalize marijuana. Don't legalize anything else, but realize that we can't arrest our way out of the addiction crisis. It didn't work in the '80s and it won't work now. I also want politicians to come hard after Big Pharma who helped create this disaster.

      Taxes: Higher income taxes on the rich (although there's an upper limit here; it's not the 1950s anymore), lower taxes on the rest of us if possible. Sales tax should be as low as possible; I commend states like Montana which don't have a sales tax.

      Trade: Skeptical of many free trade deals, supportive of tariffs on China.

      Campaign finance: We need deep reform here. I've seen the detrimental effects on the state level here in Ohio.

      Abortion: Safe, legal, rare. I don't have a moral opposition to abortion (the fact that it's not prohibited by the Bible is striking), but it's not like anyone wants to get one.

      Guns: Pro-gun, although supportive of a few things like increased background checks.

      Immigration: Immigration is a privilege, not a right. We need to secure our borders. We also need to crack down on employers who employ undocumented immigrants. I think we should make it a little easier to immigrate from Mexico; that would cut down on illegal immigration some. I think if you go to jail and you're undocumented, you should be deported. We should also deport people who've only been here for a short time. I think we should give all the DREAMERs green cards immediately and a path to citizenship, but I don't think people who immigrated as adults should be treated exactly the same since they chose to come here.

      Energy: We should strive for energy independence. As much of this as possible should be done through green energy, which is both good for the environment and a great source of jobs. Fracking and nuclear energy shouldn't be taken off the table, and they are actually an important part of preventing climate change. Coal is bad for the environment but we can't abandon people in coal towns; we should preserve coal as long as needed while we try to bring other industries into places like West Virginia.

      Criminal justice reform: Body cams on every officer to start with. We need a lot more on this front though.

      Some other stuff I'm gonna throw all together: Raise the minimum wage. Strongly opposed to UBI; we want jobs, not welfare. I think political correctness has really gone too far these days and it worries me. I support reparations for slavery. Liberals and Democrats needs to be more welcoming of religious people. Globalization and the economic and cultural changes that have been happening lately have not been good for everyone and that needs to be acknowledged.

      Aside from abortion, minimum wage, and the somewhat harsher stance on immigration that I have, we pretty much agree.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: YE on May 16, 2018, 01:53:11 PM
      Ideology: Economic liberal with a populist bent, social moderate. I kinda consider my ideology the opposite of libertarianism. When asked for a simple term, I just say labor Democrat.

      Top issues: Jobs, drugs, healthcare

      Entitlements and healthcare: Preserve Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid. No gutting our entitlements. Create a public option. Have the government subsidize childcare so people can afford to have families. Free community college or trade school for everyone.

      Unions: Should be a top priority of the party. One of the best ways to fight against income inequality.

      Education: Fund it properly, Oklahoma. And make sure it's not done in a sh**tty way where richer areas get more funding for their schools like we have in Ohio. Less funding for charter schools and higher standards; they often suck. As mentioned above, make higher education more affordable.

      Drugs: Legalize marijuana. Don't legalize anything else, but realize that we can't arrest our way out of the addiction crisis. It didn't work in the '80s and it won't work now. I also want politicians to come hard after Big Pharma who helped create this disaster.

      Taxes: Higher income taxes on the rich (although there's an upper limit here; it's not the 1950s anymore), lower taxes on the rest of us if possible. Sales tax should be as low as possible; I commend states like Montana which don't have a sales tax.

      Trade: Skeptical of many free trade deals, supportive of tariffs on China.

      Campaign finance: We need deep reform here. I've seen the detrimental effects on the state level here in Ohio.

      Abortion: Safe, legal, rare. I don't have a moral opposition to abortion (the fact that it's not prohibited by the Bible is striking), but it's not like anyone wants to get one.

      Guns: Pro-gun, although supportive of a few things like increased background checks.

      Immigration: Immigration is a privilege, not a right. We need to secure our borders. We also need to crack down on employers who employ undocumented immigrants. I think we should make it a little easier to immigrate from Mexico; that would cut down on illegal immigration some. I think if you go to jail and you're undocumented, you should be deported. We should also deport people who've only been here for a short time. I think we should give all the DREAMERs green cards immediately and a path to citizenship, but I don't think people who immigrated as adults should be treated exactly the same since they chose to come here.

      Energy: We should strive for energy independence. As much of this as possible should be done through green energy, which is both good for the environment and a great source of jobs. Fracking and nuclear energy shouldn't be taken off the table, and they are actually an important part of preventing climate change. Coal is bad for the environment but we can't abandon people in coal towns; we should preserve coal as long as needed while we try to bring other industries into places like West Virginia.

      Criminal justice reform: Body cams on every officer to start with. We need a lot more on this front though.

      Some other stuff I'm gonna throw all together: Raise the minimum wage. Strongly opposed to UBI; we want jobs, not welfare. I think political correctness has really gone too far these days and it worries me. I support reparations for slavery. Liberals and Democrats needs to be more welcoming of religious people. Globalization and the economic and cultural changes that have been happening lately have not been good for everyone and that needs to be acknowledged.

      Aside from abortion, minimum wage, and the somewhat harsher stance on immigration that I have, we pretty much agree.

      This plus I'm a strong supporter of Medicare for All because a public option would leave the private insurance intact and thus national health care wouldn't work till healthy, middle and high income people are off private insurance rolls.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TJ in Oregon on May 20, 2018, 12:27:57 AM
      Redoing because it's been forever.

      Overview:
      Social: Conservative
      Economic: Traditionally conservative, but not necessarily free market
      Foreign policy: Lean non-interventionist but not overly so

      Social Policy:
      Abortion: Oppose. Overturn Roe and ban with an exception to save the life of the mother.
      Same-Sex Marriage: Oppose. I wouldn't attempt to re-ban it though.
      Drug Laws: Keep the hard stuff illegal. Recreational marijuana should be illegal with fines and/or community service as the punishment. Medical marijuana should be in principle permissible, but subject to the usual FDA drug regulations.
      Death Penalty: Oppose in practice in the US.
      Gun Control: Okay with background checks but none of the "ban random feature" trendy moves.
      Religious Freedom: RFRA more or less. Higher scrutiny on governmental religious interference for attempts to compel people to do things than for outlawing things.
      Affirmative Action: Oppose. Open to an economic-based alternative for education only.
      Political Correctness: Say what you mean and mean what you say. Be charitable and try to give your opponents the best possible interpretation.
      Euthanasia: Oppose. Keep it illegal.
      Prostitution: Oppose. Keep it illegal where banned and ban it where legal.
      Pornography: Oppose. I wouldn't attempt to actually ban it though.
      Immigration: Crack down on illegal border crossings combined with one-time amnesty opportunity for illegals who haven't done anything wrong except come here illegally. Mandatory jail time for hiring an illegal alien after the amnesty window is up.

      Economic Policy:
      Minimum Wage: Somewhere in the $10ish range is probably about right. Add a governmental subsidy to small businesses who employ unskilled workers to prevent them from being driven out.
      Right to Work: Oppose. Unions bargain for all workers, so all have to pay. I support banning unions from making political donations.
      Taxation: Almost certainly needs to increase to pay for our current programs without adding more.
      Healthcare: Require hospitals to charge the same price for the same procedure regardless of the patient's insurance. Allow medicare/medicaid to negotiate prices.
      Education: Allow for greater state and local control of curriculum and content. Ban multiple choice math questions in standardized testing.
      Free Trade: Deals should be bilateral and ensure that cheap labor costs don't allow goods only flow in one direction.

      Foreign Policy and National Security:
      Iran: Continue sanctions unless nuclear program is stopped.
      Syria: Try to negotiate a peace between Assad, the Kurds, and US-backed rebels that doesn't end up with any side getting arrested/executed by whatever government replaces the current mess. Push for an independent Kurdistan if the Kurds want one.
      Israel/Palestine: Two-state solution ideally, but good luck.
      Russia: Deal with on a case-by-case basis. Russia can be a strategic partner sometimes, but don't really trust them.

      Environment:
      Climate Change: Build nuclear power plants, the only plausible non-fossil-fuel option for our base load.

      Electoral and Political Reform:
      Term limits: Oppose.
      Electoral College Reform: Oppose. Changing the rules is a sure sign of losing.
      Voter ID: Support, as long a provided for free by the government.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The Undefeatable Debbie Stabenow on May 21, 2018, 07:57:55 PM
      Pretty liberal overall, but deeply pragmatic and almost always a loyal Democrat. I'm not at all the type to try to unseat a popular moderate if they're the most realistic candidate, enforce party litmus tests when I realize that certain liberal policy proposals are not popular throughout the country, or resist voting for a Democrat in a general election just because I have some mild disagreements with them.

      Abortion? Staunchly pro-choice
      Gay Marriage? Staunchly in favor
      Guns? Staunchly anti-gun but willing to settle for incremental reform
      Marijuana? Legalize it, and explore decriminalization for other drugs
      Death Penalty? Oppose, but less for moral reasons and more for finance/practicality reasons
      Electoral Reform? Abolish (or at least heavily reform) the electoral college and regulate campaign finance more strictly (not a fan of term limits though)
      Religion? Strongly stand against any sort of religious pervasiveness into government and am entirely opposed to any religious basis for public policy, but of course want to protect the freedom for anyone to worship as they see fit
      Parental Rights? This is a very broad category but I generally support the protection of a child's confidentiality in a school or medical professional over the requests of parents for disclosure of information
      Illegal Immigration? Pass legislation to cement the protected status of DREAMers, rein in the current aggressiveness of ICE, and be more forgiving of non-violent offenses committed by illegal immigrants

      Taxation? Slight increase of taxation on top income brackets from Obama-era numbers
      Healthcare? Fine-tune the ACA with the short-term goal of adding a public option and long-term goal of transitioning to a single payer-like system
      Environmental Issues? Strongly incentivize renewable energy and eventually punish non-renewable energy, strongly regulate the cleanliness of our air and water, and recognize the threat of climate change and our role in causing it (inc. reentering the Paris Climate Agreement)

      Dovish/Hawkish? Moderately dovish
      Israel vs. Palestine? Both are problematic, but the United States has typically been (and is very much so right now) very favorable towards Israel while ignoring the wants of Palestinians, so I would like to a more impartial foreign policy on this issue (which Obama seemed to be moving towards during his second term, ex. not vetoing the UN resolution condemning Israeli settlement building); the United States also has to condemn unnecessary violence on both sides, include Israeli "defense" during the Gaza protests last week
      Iran Deal? Not perfect but it definitely didn't make seem to make sense to exit at this point


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: MillennialModerate on May 28, 2018, 03:55:35 AM
      Overall: I’d consider myself a moderate on most areas. All things being equal I’m going to vote Democrat but in many instances I will vote Republican. As I did in the 2012 MA Senate race. I came damn close to voting for Romney that year as well. Moderate Democrat sums me up perfectly. My “perfect politician” if there is such a thing, has already existed: his name is John F Kennedy. Literally everything he believed in, I believe in.

      Military: Lean Hawkish on areas of national security interest but in areas of “moral combat” I believe we should teed lightly because despite having morals, I’m not sure being the worlds policemen are  worth the lives of young American men and women. Foreign aid to support the defense of our allies is totally reasonable as long as it’s not coming at our expense. Maintain the commitments we’ve made thus far but beyond that hold off on making any new ones.

      Economics/Entitlements: In a society that is as well off as we are, I believe it is the social responsibility of those who are really well off to pay more than others to take care of the less fortunate. That doesn’t mean I support a total nanny state that funds the lazy habits of layabouts. The amount of safety nets to prevent abuse in this area leaves a lot to be desired. But as long as safety nets to prevent fraud are enacted, I think the ultra rich (over $2M) need to pay a moderate tax on first portion of wealth but then a higher tax rate on anything over a certain amount (let’s say $5M). Yes this is a redistribution of wealth to a degree but overall it makes for a better country.

      Equal Pay: I support a law that firmly states equal pay for equal work.
      Not a step closer to it but at it. Period.

      Health care: I believe health care should be an absolute right for every single American. How much you pay for the health care depends on how much income you take in. But it should be afforded to every American. Medicare should be expanded far beyond its current scope.

      Child care: Government should subsidize 40 hours of child care per child up to age 5. For special needs children up to age 8.

      Regulations: There are many good justifiable reasons for the government to get involved with the way companies do business so as to prevent dangerous practices but there’s no question that government regulation puts a stranglehold on some companies that makes it more profitable for them to do business outside of America and that must change.

      Minimum wage: There should be a an $12 federal minimum wage and one that slowly escalated based on the cost of living. Aside from the federal minimum there should be higher ones in certain states based on cost of living

      Immigration: To enter into the United States, you are being given a privilege. It is not your birthright. It sucks that some people have to be turned away but we must secure our borders. We must protect ourselves. The people who are here need to be thought of before we think of potentially new people. This country was founded on the basis of legal immigration, its part of our heritage. But the border can not be a free for all of people flooding in and going anywhere they want for whatever reason they want - and then once they get here draining our resources. YES certain severe dangerous cases require special action but otherwise people need to wait their turn.

      Balanced budget: I don’t think it’s totally reasonable to demand a balanced budget considering you never know what is going to come up at any random time. But I do believe once the rate of expenses surpasses revenue - only certain things can be added to the budget and only certain things can be continue to be funded. I also think an automatic tax increase and budget cuts should be triggered when expenses outpace revenues. I know it doesn’t seem totally realistic but the concept can be pulled off at some point.

      Infrastructure: One thing that America is desperately behind on is infrastructure. For the richest and most powerful country in the world there is absolutely horrendous infrastructure in this country. In part due to the public not wanting to pay for it, politicians not wanting to fund it and in part due to graft from construction companies. I think it should become a federal law that certain aspects of infrastructure shall be maintained by the states (power, water, roadways) with some help from federal government. For the major metro areas I think an extreme number, possibly in the trillions needs to be spent to update, upgrade, modernize and expand the mass transit systems and airports - to do this the states need to be asked to pay their fair share but the federal government should pitch in a matching amount.

      Marriage: I believe the concept of a “marriage” is between a man and a woman but where as society has deemed a marriage to be a union of two ondodovuals who love each other, I no longer think it’s right of me to suggest equally weighted “civil unions ” as a substitute homosexuals for marriage. Thus I’m now okay with Gay marriage.

      Prostitution Should be totally legal for anyone 19 and over. Should be taxed, regulated and legal only in a brothel setting. Civil infraction & steep fine for individual street cases (for both John and prostitute) but a felony for running an illegal house of prostitution.

      Marijuana: Support cross the board legalization for anyone over 18. Selling in licenced establishments permitted across the board and heavily taxed. Driving under influence similar to DUI. Selling small amounts a misdemeanor, heavy amounts = a felony

      Alcohol: Drinking age 21. Civil infraction for those 18-21 caught drinking. Alcohol should be heavily taxed

      Cigarettes: Smoking age should be 18 as is. Cigarettes should be EXTREMELY taxed.

      Abortion: Pro-Choice. Abortion should be legal up to 20 weeks. 20-24 weeks only in case rape/incest. After 24 weeks only to save life of mother.

      Gun control: Don’t believe in banning guns outright but believe a strong and I do mean strong amount of control legislation should be enacted. From background checks to gun free zones to red flag laws and beyond. The Second amendment was intended to protect against rogue leaders nesting up citizens and controlling them the way the British red coats did during the colonial days, those days are long gone.


      Criminal justice: Our system broken. It should not be a liberal position that more African Americans are being needlessly shot dead by officers, it should be a common sense position because it’s a fact. The interaction between law enforcement and civilians is all out of whack. We have cops getting killed in cold blood and people getting killed by the cops for no apparent reason. For this we need far better training for law enforcement and without question body cams on every single policeman, as well as multiple cameras on police vechiles. And these cops that kill without justification need to be prosecuted, not allowed to skate. And in reverse the cop killers need to thrown away for good. >>>>>>> Once and for all the fact that those who are wealth off stand a better chance in our criminal justice system than those who are poor is absolutely abhorrent. How guilty or innocent some is. The circumstances of ones crime or indiscretion, how much someone has truly shown remorse or how much they have been rehabilitated - should be the standards by how well they do in the criminal justice system. I’m not sure what that takes to change it but it makes a mockery of our nation otherwise.

      Unions: I strongly support unions but in some areas they have become too powerful and ESPECIALLY in the cases of public unions they have run rough shot over local budgets that are spending 30%-40% on pensions, it’s a joke. I guess what I’m saying is public unions need to be more reasonable because they are destroying government budgets and it’s not fair to the tax payer. But overall I do support the concept of unions and rights of workers.

      Death Penalty: Torn on this. I generally oppose it but in VERY LIMITED cases I can understand it’s use. But as a rule I don’t support it and don’t mind it being banned in any state.

      Electoral Reform:

      - Voting ID: I support the idea that someone should show some form of proof that they are who they say they are when voting. This is common sense to me. The Left uses it to allow illegals to vote and the right uses this subject to intimidate and surpress voters. Both are wrong.

      - Electoral College: I know it’s not rational but for some reason I support it. But I wouldn’t be crushed if it was done away with but that’s never going to happen

      - Term limits: Oppose strongly. Lame duck politicians can’t be held accountable and to me the most dangerous person is someone who has nothing to lose.

      Climate change: It’s real and we need to get ahead of it now before it’s too late. However I do not support extreme initiatives that provide minimum environmental benefit but create major inconvienances for average citizens.





      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: 15 Down, 35 To Go on May 28, 2018, 09:08:59 PM
      Overall: I’d consider myself a moderate on most areas. All things being equal I’m going to vote Democrat but in many instances I will vote Republican. As I did in the 2012 MA Senate race. I came damn close to voting for Romney that year as well. Moderate Democrat sums me up perfectly. My “perfect politician” if there is such a thing, has already existed: his name is John F Kennedy. Literally everything he believed in, I believe in.

      Abortion: Pro-Choice. Abortion should be legal up to 20 weeks. 20-24 weeks only in case rape/incest. After 24 weeks only to save life of mother.

      Kennedy was staunchly pro-life


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: nawm2003 on June 25, 2018, 09:42:55 PM
      Socially: Centrist
      Fiscally: Capitalist
      Foreign Policy: Pro-Military
      Political Party: Democratic

      Social Issues: I'm pro-life (on Abortion) and anti-affirmative action which are typically conservative stances, but I have no issues with gay marriage and want some degree of gun control (which are liberal positions)

      Economic/Fiscal Issues: I'm pro-business and believe that lower taxes(but not a flat tax) for the rich, middle class, poor are what is most beneficial for the economy (i.e " A rising tide lifts all boats")

      Foreign Policy: I believe a strong military is what ensures American dominance and peace abroad, but good diplomacy never hurts!

      The most important issue for me is climate change (it IS killing us), an issue for which there is no more time.

      All in all, I'm pretty pragmatic but the Democratic Party is definitely my home!



      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Tutankhuman Bakari Sellers on June 26, 2018, 01:11:48 PM
      Secular, pragmatic Democrat, who doesn't like amnesty but support statehood status for Puerto Rico, due to my growing up in Illinois, around Latinos

      Don't like legalizing weed, I support the military, and look up to secular politicans like RFK.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: #gravelgang #lessiglad on June 26, 2018, 07:46:33 PM
      I suppose this is generally what I get for ignoring stickied threads...

      Overview:
      Social: liberaltarian
      Economic: Neoliberal with social capitalist leanings
      Foreign policy: hard left, very nearly reaching pacifist

      Social Policy:
      Abortion: completely and entirely uncaring. I have strong personal reservations about the morality of abortion despite being an atheist and yet I don't believe it's the government's place to regulate personal behavior.

      Same-Sex Marriage: Support.

      Drug Laws: Legalize/tax/regulate marijuana. Prioritize treatment for users caught the first time, emphasize prosecution of larger dealers / traffickers.

      Death Penalty: oppose in all cases. Its value in deterrence is scientifically dubious, the process is long, winding and expensive and on top of all that, is inhumane and cruel.

      Gun Control: I'm fine with a pre-McDonald case law on gun control, where states and municipalities are free to set their own laws. Chicago's crime has spiked since the court struck down its handgun ban and localities should be free to tackle crime how they see fit.

      Religious Freedom: do what you want, when you want to. As long as I'm not coerced via taxing power into supporting it. Yes, this should be read as an opposition to religious charter schools and to tax free status of churches.

      Affirmative Action: difficult to say for sure, honestly. It's a solution that nibbles at the edges of America's original sin. Personally, I would favor reparations and subsequent abolishment of affirmative action.

      Political Correctness: don't really be a dick for no reason. Don't shout down speakers with whom you disagree.

      Euthanasia: acceptable, with doctor's permission, secondary and tertiary opinion. The tertiary opinion is a state-sanctioned social worker.

      Prostitution: no change to current laws.

      Pornography: no change to current laws.

      Immigration: not really a social issue, but ok. Generally in favor of increasing legal immigration, while increasing deportions of undocumented immigrants with felonies, providing pathway to citizenship for those facing refugee crises in their home country.

      Economic Policy:

      Minimum Wage: probably best left up to municipalities. An ideal solution would be based on cost of living of the workplace of the employee, but that opens up a huge host of administrative issues for people who work from home, for people that travel often, etc. So notch me as a support in theory, oppose in practice. Probably a nationwide 10-12/hr with automatic increases based on C-CPI every other year.

      Right to Work: support.

      Taxation: Corp tax rate between 24 and 28 percent; retain current individual rates; end preferential rates for capital gains, dividends and interest; end standard deduction and child tax credit and phase back in exemptions; dramatically pare back deductions and credits, excepting double taxation; nationally instituted value added tax of 15% which supercedes and replaces state and local sales tax; VAT split between state and federal government equally (i.e., 7.5% on each purchase and on purchases crossing state lines, is determined by the location of the buyer not the seller); estate tax of 50% in excess of 2.5M single / 5M joint, adjusted every other year to C-CPI.

      Healthcare: Public option into Medicare, paid for by the aforementioned VAT.

      Education: charter schools aren't a great answer, but to really get into fixing the Ed system, that'd have to first be solved by fixing the wealth gap between races (schools funded by property taxes, collections of which are lower in neighborhoods of color) and I find that problem to be beyond my very, very modest intelligence.

      Free Trade: general support. General support multilateral deals as well. General oppose tariffs and protectionism.

      Entitlements: support privatization option of social security. Bush was unfairly pilloried for a decent idea. Support reduction on costs for Medicare and Medicaid.

      space exploration: support manned and unmanned exploration and colonization, encourage private investment

      Regulatory
      : supported banking modernization bill, oppose efforts to regulate tech companies, support regulatory efforts on ISPs, stricter environmental regulations on energy companies

      Foreign Policy and National Security:

      Iran: strong support

      Syria: a pretty terrible situation without an obviously better course. dubious why we care so much about this particular bloody situation, as opposed to those in Africa...

      Israel/Palestine: the only thing I really feel comfortable saying is that it shouldn't be a crime to support BDS.

      Russia: somebody should've paid more for the world cup. that said, it's uncomfortable the extent to which many democrats are listening to the opinions of decidedly miserable human beings like Bill Kristol on Russia.

      War budget - halve it.

      Environment:

      Climate Change: carbon tax.

      Electoral and Political Reform:

      Term limits: maybe support consecutive term limits? or set them really high as to discourage lobbyist powers? or just term limits for Michael Madigan and Michael Madigan alone.

      Electoral College Reform: no change. there should probably be more states, though, as it's difficult for California and Texas's wide ranging population needs to be met.

      Voter ID: support only with a national voter ID card, that's free to obtain at any post office. Otherwise oppose.

      Odds and ends
      Abolish the following: ICE, DHS
      Repeal the PATRIOT Act, repeal the AUMF in place.
      Reparations: support
      BLM: support
      Public financing of elections: full, constitutional amendment


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Fukaren kown yteh on June 28, 2018, 04:29:37 PM
      Ideology: Social Democracy

      Top Issues: Foreign Policy, Civil Liberties, Economy

      Healthcare: Establish a National Health Service here, allow for private insurance

      Education: Reaffirm secularism in everything not related to religion

      Taxes: Progressive taxation on the scale of European countries. Have a flat tax on investments as 30%, Remove deductions such as tax breaks for charities. Lower our taxes on corporations,

      Trade: Fair trade as in taking considerations for environmental and labor concerns. Bar trade from areas with high human rights abuses

      Campaign Finance: Get rid of Citizens United. Only the people of this country can give money for elections, nobody else.

      Abortion: Wherever I am I want it legal, could honestly be reduced to my state.

      Civil liberty: legalize drugs scheduled as section one by the DEA except Heroin. Background checks and ability to sue sellers if there is any evidence of ignoring laws. Any gun is then fine to buy. Strong anti surveillance laws and allow for decriminalization of prostitution while committing to targeting pimps.

      Immigration: Increase legal immigration by getting rid of quotas and making it easier and faster to apply. Allow undocumented immigrants to stay and give them proper identification, but fine those hiring.

      Energy: Make the country energy independent with heavy focus on renewable. Strengthen regulations on the environment. Do tough keep some amount of Offshore drilling and Fracking in areas not threatening populations or wildlife extremely.

      Criminal Justice : Charges dropped on drug users, send them to rehab. More community oversight on law enforcement and strike down minimums. End law endorsed murder or Capital Punishment in our system.

      Foreign Policy: End support on dictatorial regimes and settler states now. Start working toward expanding human rights and economic cooperation. Lessen our military funding by less than 1990's era funding.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Tutankhuman Bakari Sellers on July 06, 2018, 02:09:40 PM
      I do believe in secular views, but I am a realist on immigration reform, that the country is nervous about the influx of Latinos taking American jobs away, that's why the conservatives have been empowered since 2010.

      The Obamacare bill did in some way hand alot of clout towards the Unions, due to the fact that Unions will have say-so over health care in the Workforce

      Obama and Nancy Pelosi and Reid made the mistake of going after Health care, instead of first dealing with repeal of the Bush tax cuts and reforming the tax code.

      This would of enabled the GOP not to make a tea party revolt against Obamacare package and won control of Congress.  We can't fault the Democrats that much, the very same thing happened in England.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Goldwater on July 07, 2018, 03:17:47 PM
      I will also steal Lechasseur's model because why not.

      Overview:
      Social: Libertarianish
      Economic: Center-Right by my own definition, but possibly Center or even Center-Left by American Conservative/Libertarian standards
      Foreign policy: Dirty Globalist

      Social Policy:
      Abortion: Pro-choice until the point of viability, should only be legal if medically necessary after that point.
      Same-Sex Marriage: Fully support, not that it's even controversial anymore.
      Drug Laws: Legalize marijuana, LSD, and other psychedelics, decriminalize the rest, also nationwide medical marijuana
      Death Penalty: Support for serial killers and other similarly high level crimes.
      Gun Control: Support universal background checks and banning bump stocks, oppose banning "Assault Weapons" and most other forms of gun control.
      Religious Freedom: Too broad of a subject to give a definitive answer on
      Affirmative Action: Oppose
      Political Correctness: Most people are too easily offended, especially on the right.
      Euthanasia: Should be legal in cases of terminal illnesses, not sure about otherwise.
      Prostitution: Legalize it.
      Pornography: Support unrestricted so long as it depicts consenting adults
      Immigration: While completely open borders and unregulated immigration is probably unfeasible, we should always err on the side of being accepting and open to immigration. Oppose separating families, support a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants, a border wall is an unnecessary waste of money.

      Economic Policy:
      Minimum Wage: Ideally, the federal minimum wage should be abolished, due to widely differing costs of living for different areas. Realistically, it should be kept fairly low, though I would support tying it to inflation.
      Right to Work: Pretty apathetic tbh.
      Taxation: Should be as low and simplified as realistically possible, income and carbon taxes are preferable to sales taxes.
      Healthcare: At least a basic level of healthcare should be considered a right guaranteed by the government, though I am not opposed to the existence of private specialty plans.
      Education: Support compition and school choice via measures like vouchers and charter schools.
      Free Trade: I support expanding free trade to as many nations as possible, and free trade agreements like NAFTA are a net positive for all nations involved.

      Foreign Policy and National Security:
      Iran: Keep the Iran deal.
      Syria: Ideally Assad should be removed from power, but I do not trust the current administration's judgement enough to fully back an intervention there.
      Israel/Palestine: Two-state solution is ideal, but we need to go about in a way that doesn't jeopardize our alliance with Israel.
      Russia: Putin is not and should not be thought of as our ally.

      Environment:
      Climate Change: End all government subsidies and support for traditional energy and instead invest in alternative energy, including nuclear energy.

      Electoral and Political Reform:
      Term limits: Not really necessary IMO.
      Electoral College Reform: Ideally it should be eliminated, though I also like the idea of allocating them proportionally (e.g. if a candidate wins 40% of the vote in a state they get 40% of that state's EVs).
      Voter ID: Oppose and support a vote-by-mail system.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Ferguson97 on July 09, 2018, 03:44:33 PM
      Overview:
      Social: Liberal to Libertarian
      Economic: Centrist to Center-left.
      Foreign policy: Globalist

      Social Policy:
      Abortion: Pro-choice. Federally fund Planned Parenthood.
      Same-Sex Marriage: Fully support.
      Drug Laws: Legalize, regulate, and tax marijuana. Decriminalize all other drugs.
      Death Penalty: Strongly oppose.
      Gun Control: Universal background checks, national registry, psychological evaluation, required training, ban gun show loophole, limit amount of ammunition that can be sold, ban assault weapons and the like.
      Affirmative Action: Support.
      Euthanasia: Support
      Prostitution: Legalize, regulate, and tax.
      Immigration: We need to make it way easier for people to come here legally. Provide amnesty and a path to citizenship for anybody here illegally, unless they've committed a violent crime. Increase the amount of immigrants we allow every year drastically.

      Economic Policy:
      Minimum Wage: Having a minimum wage that's the same everywhere is dumb. Require that states set it at 50% of the median wage.
      Taxation: Consumption/Sin taxes > Income taxes. Ideally, we'd fund most of the government with a land-value, value-added, and carbon tax with a bunch of sin taxes sprinkled in there. Some level of income taxes for the wealthy.
      Healthcare: I fluctuate between federally funded healthcare vouchers and a public option.
      Education: Outlaw homeschooling, increase federal funding for education. Make it much harder for states to customize their education plans.
      Free Trade: Strongly pro.

      Foreign Policy and National Security:
      Iran: Keep the Iran deal.
      Syria: Assad is a war criminal and we should seek to remove him from power at some point.
      Israel/Palestine: Pro-Israel.
      Russia: Biggest threat to our national security.

      Environment:
      Climate Change: Carbon tax. Regulate what corporations can do. Tax cuts for green/alternative energy sources. Invest in nuclear energy.

      Electoral and Political Reform:
      Term limits: Only for the presidency.
      Electoral College Reform: Abolish. Just make it a popular vote.
      Voter ID: Oppose. Automatically register everyone at 18 and make "Election Day" several days instead of just one.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Nyssus on July 13, 2018, 02:43:12 AM
      Overview:

      Social: Libertarian Socialist
      Economic: Far left
      Foreign Policy: Globalist

      Social Policy:

      Abortion: Pro-choice until the third trimester, when it should only be allowed if medically necessary.
      Marriage: Fully support same-sex marriage.
      Drugs: Legalize marijuana at the federal level, but alert the public of its potential negative impacts. Implement warning labels on all marijuana products.
      Death Penalty: While I am not principally opposed to ending the lives of scumbags who commit crimes like murder and rape, I do not think that this should be decided by the state. Being locked up in a cell 23 hours a day is a worse punishment, anyways.
      Gun Control: I support universal, extensive background checks that go far beyond those that are mandated today. I also support a ban on handguns, assault rifles, and bump stocks, and think that there should be limits on the amount of ammunition that can be purchased. All firearms need to be registered and stored in a secure location.
      Religious Freedom: Allow everyone to worship however and whoever they wish, as long as they do not physically harm others. I support full separation of church and state on every level.
      Affirmative Action: Oppose, in the majority of cases.
      Political Correctness: I support full freedom of speech. I oppose complete political correctness, but people should not be threatened.
      Euthanasia: I support euthanasia for people who are in their right minds and are suffering from a terminal illness.
      Prostitution: I am principally opposed to prostitution. However, it is not the business of the state. Prostitution should be legalized and heavily regulated.
      Pornography: Legalize all pornography, as long as it depicts consenting adults.
      Immigration: I support a much less stringent immigration policy. I oppose separating families, and support a path to citizenship for legal immigrants and illegal immigrants who have not been convicted of a crime. I vehemently oppose a border wall.

      Economic Policy:

      Minimum Wage: I support a federal minimum wage of $15 an hour. This should be adjusted every year according to inflation.
      Right-to-work: Right-to-work is a blatant insult to the honest working-class people of this nation. It should have been abolished decades ago.
      Taxation: Taxation should be decreased for the poor and middle class, while the rich need to pay their fair share. I support a new, more efficient tax code that isn't Trump's.
      Healthcare: I fully support universal healthcare. The United States is one of the only developed countries in the world that has not implemented this system. Even the German Empire had universal healthcare in the 1880s.
      Education: I am fully opposed to vouchers. We need to create a comprehensive education plan that reinvests in and completely overhauls public schools. You know that we have a problem when a huge percentage of teenagers are depressed and even committing suicide.
      Free Trade: I support free trade agreements that benefit American workers. The Trans-Pacific Partnership and NAFTA don't fall into this category.
      NASA: Our current policy regarding space exploration is an utter joke. We need a renewed interest in space exploration. This may very well be the key to saving humanity in the future. New discoveries will vastly improve science, and boost our economy.

      Foreign Policy:

      Iran: The United States needs to reenter the deal reached under the Obama Administration. With no deal, the Iranians are free to develop as many nuclear weapons as they wish.
      Syria: The United States needs to intervene in this conflict. There is a human rights emergency ongoing in Syria. Obama failed to deliver on his promise of intervention if Assad "crossed the line in the sand" by using chemical weapons on his people, an atrocity that he committed multiple times.
      Israel/Palestine: I support a two-state solution.
      Russia: Russia is one of our greatest adversaries. We turned a blind eye to the invasion and annexation of Crimea, and are now doing the same to Russian interference in the 2016 election. We need to change our approach to Russia.

      Environment:

      Climate Change: Coal is a dying industry, despite what Donald Trump may believe. Investing in and widely implementing renewable energy resources needs to be a top priority for the United States. The Paris Climate Agreement, which Trump withdrew from, is not stringent enough. Another, more adequate agreement needs to be reached worldwide.
      Deforestation: The United States needs to commit to preserving the environments. Impose strict regulations on logging. Drastically expand existing protected areas, and create new ones. Make a commitment to protecting our environment.

      Electoral and Political Reforms:

      Term Limits: Abolish term limits for all offices. Presidential term limits were imposed by a Republican-controlled Congress after FDR served four terms in office.
      Electoral College: Abolish the electoral college. The electoral college is a relic from the 19th century that has no place in today's world. Decide elections by popular vote.
      Voter ID: I oppose voter ID. This puts minorities at a huge advantage, and if you look at the statistics, may have been the reason that Hillary Clinton lost Wisconsin and other states that were very close.

      I'm a former Democrat. However, in recent years, I have become disillusioned with the fake, neoliberal party leadership, who I feel are not in touch with the majority of their voters. After experimenting with third parties, I became an independent about two years ago.



      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Goldwater on July 14, 2018, 03:57:18 PM
      I will also steal Lechasseur's model because why not.

      Overview:
      Social: Libertarianish
      Economic: Center-Right by my own definition, but possibly Center or even Center-Left by American Conservative/Libertarian standards
      Foreign policy: Dirty Globalist

      Social Policy:
      Abortion: Pro-choice until the point of viability, should only be legal if medically necessary after that point.
      Same-Sex Marriage: Fully support, not that it's even controversial anymore.
      Drug Laws: Legalize marijuana, LSD, and other psychedelics, decriminalize the rest, also nationwide medical marijuana
      Death Penalty: Support for serial killers and other similarly high level crimes.
      Gun Control: Support universal background checks and banning bump stocks, oppose banning "Assault Weapons" and most other forms of gun control.
      Religious Freedom: Too broad of a subject to give a definitive answer on
      Affirmative Action: Oppose
      Political Correctness: Most people are too easily offended, especially on the right.
      Euthanasia: Should be legal in cases of terminal illnesses, not sure about otherwise.
      Prostitution: Legalize it.
      Pornography: Support unrestricted so long as it depicts consenting adults
      Immigration: While completely open borders and unregulated immigration is probably unfeasible, we should always err on the side of being accepting and open to immigration. Oppose separating families, support a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants, a border wall is an unnecessary waste of money.

      Economic Policy:
      Minimum Wage: Ideally, the federal minimum wage should be abolished, due to widely differing costs of living for different areas. Realistically, it should be kept fairly low, though I would support tying it to inflation.
      Right to Work: Pretty apathetic tbh.
      Taxation: Should be as low and simplified as realistically possible, income and carbon taxes are preferable to sales taxes.
      Healthcare: At least a basic level of healthcare should be considered a right guaranteed by the government, though I am not opposed to the existence of private specialty plans.
      Education: Support compition and school choice via measures like vouchers and charter schools.
      Free Trade: I support expanding free trade to as many nations as possible, and free trade agreements like NAFTA are a net positive for all nations involved.

      Foreign Policy and National Security:
      Iran: Keep the Iran deal.
      Syria: Ideally Assad should be removed from power, but I do not trust the current administration's judgement enough to fully back an intervention there.
      Israel/Palestine: Two-state solution is ideal, but we need to go about in a way that doesn't jeopardize our alliance with Israel.
      Russia: Putin is not and should not be thought of as our ally.

      Environment:
      Climate Change: End all government subsidies and support for traditional energy and instead invest in alternative energy, including nuclear energy.

      Electoral and Political Reform:
      Term limits: Not really necessary IMO.
      Electoral College Reform: Ideally it should be eliminated, though I also like the idea of allocating them proportionally (e.g. if a candidate wins 40% of the vote in a state they get 40% of that state's EVs).
      Voter ID: Oppose and support a vote-by-mail system.

      Wow, I agree with you on like 90% of this.

      Interesting, I assumed my weird combination of views would be quite undesirable to most people. I guess I'm not the only crazy one.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: America Needs R'hllor on July 14, 2018, 04:47:51 PM
      I'll use this model too because I definitely don't have anything better to do like studying for my finals.

      Overview:
      Social: Staunchly liberal, some libertarianish and some authoritarianish stances.
      Economic: Center-left, more to the right on some issues and staunch left on others (such as healthcare).
      Foreign policy: Globalist, pro-Israel, generally hawkish but not extremely so, opposing many interventions. I generally try to think in logical terms when it comes to intervention.

      Social Policy:
      Abortion: Staunchly pro-choice. I support completely free abortion to the point of viability or pain to the fetus, and after that I support committees that would make decision based on logic, science and morals. So there would be quite many reasons to allow an abortion, but when the months get really high (7-9) medical necessity and rape should be the only reasons.
      Same-Sex Marriage: Full, staunch support. I view anyone who opposes it as a political rival of the highest grade.
      Drug Laws: Legalize marijuanna for any purpose, decriminalize most other drugs but don't legalize them (except if there are any who aren't very harmful).
      Death Penalty: Oppose except for extreme cases like genocide.
      Gun Control: Support extensive gun control. Ideally, I'd prefer a situation where you need a lisence to own a gun, but recognize it's impossible in America so just support as many measures as can be passed. Against confiscations and the use of any power on law-abiding gun owners.
      Religious Freedom: If it means the freedom to discriminate against minorities, no. Businesses that serve the general population should serve the general population or face penalties.
      Affirmative Action: Generally oppose, but in some cases in which there was a clear historical wrong and a way to fix it without directly harming others, support.
      Political Correctness: Generally annoying. People on both sides are too easily offended, but I'd also add that it's not an excuse to break polite discourse and to make vicious attacks. So no, acting like Trump is not OK.
      Euthanasia: Yes, in cases of terminal illness and when the patient clearly wishes it.
      Prostitution: Really on the fence. On the one hand, brothel owners are abusive scum for the most part, on the other hand, if it's illegal it might harm women. Right now, I'd say make it illegal and make an extensive government program to save these poor women.
      Pornography: Absolutely no restrictions if no one is permanently harmed in the process (that includes consent and legal age)
      Immigration: In Europe- restrict it from the huge numbers right now and take action to combat illegal immigration. In the U.S.- more humane border security, easier legal immigration. No open bordrs, obviously, but the U.S. is way too hawkish on immigration. In Israel- current situation, let every Jew get a citizenship and for the other cases, only grant citizenships in rare cases. Take only a small number of refugees and find a country willing to receive the many illegal immigrants who are already here and have done visible damage to southern Tel Aviv. If anyone wants me to explain the diffence in my views on the three categories, I will- I assure you there are reasons.

      Economic Policy:
      Minimum Wage: Enough to live, but not terribly high to not discourage businesses. But it's absurd if your salary is not enough for you to live normally if you're economically responsible.
      Right to Work: Staunchly against. I support unions, but I also oppose letting their leaders become too powerful and corrupt.
      Taxation: Depends. Generally, I support fairly high taxes to cover the government expenses and reduce debt and deficit, but taxing income is great while high taxes on products and imports (aka tarriffs) is not something I support.
      Healthcare: Free or nearly-free universal quality healthcare for everyone, with the option to expand the coverage privately if you can afford it.
      Education: Strongly for a national core, support public schools but also school choice, and support subsidized higher education but not free.
      Free Trade: Big supporter! I'd like to have as many trade agreements and trade regions as possible, with the end result being a world where the exchange of tradeable goods is easy and the costs are therefore low.

      Foreign Policy and National Security:
      Iran: Increase sanctions and push for a complete dismantling of the nuclear program save for limited peaceful nuclear energy facilities.
      Syria: Now it's probably too late and intervening would be dangerous and bog the U.S. down. But generally, I think Obama should've jumped in and helped bring a resolution before Russia could gain a footing. As an Israeli, I strongly support bombing any weapon delivery to Hezbollah.
      Israel/Palestine: Strong support for Israel, but also strong push for a two-state solution. Put pressure on all sides (Israel, Palestinians, Arab countries) but especially the latter two since most of the pressure to concede was on Israel for a long while. But if the Bibi government refuses to play along, make the necessary threats in cutting support.
      Russia: Putin is evil and one of the most dangerous world leaders today. Tread carefully, but with strength- move NATO troops into countries like the Blatics, Poland and Finland, work to add Georgia to the alliance and put troops there too. Strong pressue and support for Ukraine in order to bring this conflict to a resolution, and afterwards, add Ukraine to NATO too and put troops there. Containing the Russian agression into its borders is important. Also, heavy sanctions on Chechnya, as heavy as the ones on North Korea.

      Environment:
      Climate Change: Stop subsidizing coal and oil. Let the former die, and try to reduce the latter but keep using it to remain competitive until alternate energy becomes completely feasible. Invest strongly in alt energy, international cooperation to greatly reduce omissions and water pollution, high carbon taxes.

      Electoral and Political Reform:
      Term limits: Yes for Presidents\Prime Ministers- Americans should be thankful that they won't be stuck with anyone for more than 8 years, unlike us in Israel. No term limits for congress, though.
      Electoral College Reform: I'm kinda fond of this system tbh, it makes the states unique. But yeah, allocate them proportionally and increase their numbers to fully account for population.
      Voter ID: Oppose, and people shouldn't need to register to vote. Just let them vote, you already have an extremely low turnout.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Googol on July 14, 2018, 06:19:55 PM
      Overview:

      Social: Liberal
      Economic: Center-left, “inclusive capitalism”
      Foreign policy: Centrist/maybe center-left

      Social Policy:

      Abortion: I’m pro-choice.
      Same-Sex Marriage: I’m strongly in favor of SSM. The government should actively encourage homosexuality.
      Drug Laws: Legalize but heavily tax and regulate marijuana. End the “War on Drugs.” Discourage tobacco consumption via cig. taxes, mandatory labeling, and informercials that warn of the dangers of tobacco. Stop big tobacco from selling their cancer sticks to children in developing countries. The minimum age to smoke should be 21 and the minimum age to consume tobacco and alcohol should be 19. Decriminalize but don’t legalize all other drugs like LSD, heroin, meth, etc.
      Death Penalty: Oppose with exceptions for those who commit the most heinous crimes (like mass murder or genocide). There are waaaaaay to many people sentenced to the death penalty in the US. It’s absolutely disgusting that hundreds (maybe thousands?) of people are sentenced to it every year. It should be used around once or twice a year at the absolute most.
      Gun Control: I support enacting universal background checks, banning bump stocks and assault weapons, and other gun control measures. I obviously oppose banning all guns, but there is not a single politician in America who actually wants to do that despite what the NRA would have you believe.
      Religious Freedom: It depends on the definition of “religious freedom.” Everyone should have the right to practice any religion. Businesses shouldn’t be allowed to discriminate based on race or sexual orientation.
      Affirmative Action: Affimative action should be based on socioeconomic class, not race.  
      Political Correctness: It depends, but I oppose it in most cases.
      Euthanasia: Support, I guess.
      Prostitution: The act of exchanging money for sex should be legalized, but it should remain illegal to start a prostitution-based business. Businessmen shouldn’t be allowed to exploit women for profit.
      Pornography: It should quite obviously remain legal. I don’t even understand how it would be possible to ban all pornography. Is there anyone who actually supports a ban on pornography!?
      Immigration: Open borders is a great but unrealistic idea. However, we should loosen immigration laws, grant amnesty to all non-violent illegals (aka nearly every illegal immigrant since data has shown that almost every single one of them is non-violent despite what conservatives would have you believe).

      Economic Policy:

      Minimum Wage: Raise it to $10.10 an hour and tie it to inflation. A nationwide $15 minimum wage is an absolutely awful idea that would kill jobs. A better alternative would be a universal basic income of $1500 a month (which I enthusiastically support).
      Right to Work: Oppose
      Taxation: Tax capital gains and carried interest as regular income, implement a steep carbon tax, cut regressive sales taxes (except for sin taxes), close all offshore loopsholes, keep the corporate tax at 20%, raise the top income tax bracket to 50%. Tax negative externalities like carbon, soda, cigarettes, alcohol, plastic bags, etc.
      Rich people: I love all people, rich and poor. The only thing I hate is hate itself. I love the rich people. Most rich people are great with a few exceptions. I don’t approve of the hateful, bigoted, divisive rhetoric from the far-left that demonizes/dehumanizes the rich and blames the “the millionaires and billionaires” for all of our problems (no one group of people is responsible for all of our problems). However, the rich should pay more in taxes and that tax money should be redistributed to the masses.
      Universal Basic Income: Support. It should be set at $1500 a month and tied to inflation.
      Healthcare: Universal, single-payer healthcare. Nationalize the health insurance industry. I wholeheartedly support Medicare-for-All.
      Education: I have nothing against charter schools, but the government shouldn’t subsidize them and should instead focus on improving public schools. Too much funding is being diverted away from public schools that desperately need it because of government funding for charter schools. There also needs to be much, much tighter regulations on charter schools. There are way too many cases of fraudulent charter schools.
      Free Trade: Completely unrestricted free trade should be the ulitimate goal that all governments should strive towards. I wholeheartedly support trade deals like NAFTA, TPP, CAFTA, etc. Protectionism is bad for everyone, especially the global poor.

      Foreign Policy and National Security:

      Iran: Support the Iran deal.
      Syria: We should’ve intervened years ago, but now is way too late. Don’t intervene and let the situation take care of itself. Assad is a horrid man and we should intervene if the situation gets too dire.
      Israel/Palestine: I’m pro-Israel and moderately Zionist, but I also strongly support a two-state solution and don’t approve of Israel’s treatment of Palestinians.
      Russia: Putin is certainly not our ally.

      Environment:

      Climate Change: Subsidize clean energy sources such as thorium, solar, wind, and maybe nuclear energy, rejoin the Paris Climate Agreement, end subsidies for coal and oil, and slowly eliminate the use of coal as an energy source and shut down every single coal mine in America within the next the decade (alongside heavy investment in retraining miners and helping them find new jobs).

      Electoral and Political Reform:

      Term limits: Support for the POTUS. Oppose for Congress.
      Electoral College Reform: Abolish the Electoral College and replace it with a first-past-the-post system.
      Voter ID: Oppose. We should have universal voter registration and Election Day should be a national holiday.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Kingpoleon on July 17, 2018, 03:23:11 PM
      Same-Sex Marriage: I’m strongly in favor of SSM. The government should actively encourage homosexuality.
      Uh, what?
      Nothing. Drink the Kool-Aid.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: sruchira on July 27, 2018, 03:02:19 PM
      LABELS
      Social: Liberal
      Economic: Left
      Foreign Policy: Dove
      Party: Democratic

      SOCIAL ISSUES
      Abortion: Pro-choice. Every school needs comprehensive sex ed. Fund Planned Parenthood.
      Same-sex Marriage: Of course.
      Drugs: End the War on Drugs; decriminalize all drugs. Legalize and tax soft drugs like marijuana and psilocybin.
      Death Penalty: Oppose.
      Gun Control: Support stricter regulations, background checks, Canadian-style.
      Prostitution: Decriminalize.
      Euthanasia: Support.
      Immigration: Create a broad, expedient means of attaining citizenship for all immigrants. Keep families together. Pushing away migrants fleeing epidemic organized violence is profoundly un-American. No official language. Abolish ICE as well, probably.
      Police and Prisons: Support anti-bias training, officer accountability. Oppose for-profit prisons.

      ECONOMIC ISSUES
      Minimum Wage: Raise and adjust with inflation.
      Healthcare: Support a single-payer universal system.
      Trade and Globalization: Support free trade.
      Campaign Finance: Limit campaign donations. Oppose Citizens United decision.
      Energy: Pro-nuclear. Pro-solar. Pro-wind. Anti-coal. Support 100% renewable energy.
      Taxes: Progressive income tax.

      FOREIGN POLICY ISSUES
      Foreign Funding: Do not fund or arm countries with serious human rights violations.
      Israel and Palestine: Two states, perhaps with UN zone.
      Russia: Impose strict sanctions. Putin is a dangerous tyrant and his regime holds no regard for international law.

      CLIMATE CHANGE: Perhaps the most serious issue out there. Aggressively conserve the environment and regulate industry and energy to reduce carbon emissions. Do not allow National Monuments to be shrunk except in extraordinary circumstances and do not allow "unintentional" taking of birds under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. Pursue solutions in every way imaginable as quickly as possible.



      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: SATW on August 08, 2018, 09:25:20 PM
      ^ And you have been reported.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Vikingwolf88 on August 08, 2018, 09:35:24 PM

      You guys sure do love free speech and respect opposing viewpoints.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: #TheShadowyAbyss on August 08, 2018, 09:36:59 PM

      Not when you're an anti-Semitic piece of trash.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Kyle Rittenhouse is a Political Prisoner on August 08, 2018, 09:42:12 PM
      I'll base mine on the guy right before me.

      Labels:
      Social: Totalitarian
      Economic: Full Communism
      Foreign Policy: Racial Nationalist/Proletarian Internationalist/Maoist Third-Worldist
      Party: NACAZAI

      Social Issues:
      Abortion: Total ban in all cases except eugenics, race-mixing and rape. Death penalty for Jew abortionists.
      Same-Sex Marriage: f****ts and bull dykes forced back in the closet with "gay pride" activists shoved into Gulags. However, bisexual women are fine if they are hot and make me masturbate. Nazbols realize lesbian erotica is a great propaganda tool.
      Drugs: Legalize marijuana, decriminalize users and low level dealers of hard drugs, death penalty for Jewish/capitalist importers and traffickers of hard drugs
      Death Penalty: used on pedophiles, the class enemy and various race and class traitors.
      Euthanasia: Mandatory for Downies, the hydrocephalic and other dysgenic freaks.
      Immigration: all non-White immigration banned and non-Whites repatriated unless they are only here as students, studying tactics for the Marxist overthrow of the neocolonial ZOG puppets in their own countries
      Police and Prisons: ACAB.  the police. Destroy the current prison system which is a capitalist torture chamber for the poor and oppressed. Under the dictatorship of the proletariat, Gulags and secret police would be employed liberally for class enemies and class traitors.

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: Equal living wages for all workers.
      Healthcare: total collectivization of health care, execute all capitalists who try to profit
      Trade and Globalization: Unite with revolutionary communists and anti-imperialists all over the world for the destruction of WTO, IMF, World Bank, etc. Overturn the disaster of (((globalization))). Free trade of revolutionary Marxist-Leninist philosophical ideas between Socialist nations.
      Campaign Finance: Finance revolutionary Marxist guerilla campaigns all over the world.
      Energy: Use the flesh and blood of dead Zionists as fuel to heat the homes of the poor and working class.
      Taxes: 100% tax on all capitalists to fund unlimited welfare for poor whites.

      Foreign Policy Issues:
      Foreign Funding: Fund revolutionary communist subversion and terror as well as bourgeois nationalist Third Positionist anti-imperialist strongmen all over the world.
      Israel and Palestine: Off the planet with the fascist Zionist terror state of Israel! Total support for PFLP, DFLP, PFLP-GC Palestinian Popular Brigades and the Abu Nidal Organization. Long live Palestine, free and Arab, from the river to the sea, forever!
      Russia: Rebuild the USSR.
      Venezuela: Unconditional internationalist solidarity with the Bolivarian Revolution against the Jewish-led fascist counterrrevolution.
      Syria: Victory to Assad, death to the ZOG.



      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Technocracy Timmy on August 08, 2018, 10:18:13 PM
      I'll base mine on the guy right before me.

      Labels:
      Social: Totalitarian
      Economic: Full Communism
      Foreign Policy: Racial Nationalist/Proletarian Internationalist/Maoist Third-Worldist
      Party: NACAZAI

      Social Issues:
      Abortion: Total ban in all cases except eugenics, race-mixing and rape. Death penalty for Jew abortionists.
      Same-Sex Marriage: f****ts and bull dykes forced back in the closet with "gay pride" activists shoved into Gulags. However, bisexual women are fine if they are hot and make me masturbate. Nazbols realize lesbian erotica is a great propaganda tool.
      Drugs: Legalize marijuana, decriminalize users and low level dealers of hard drugs, death penalty for Jewish/capitalist importers and traffickers of hard drugs
      Death Penalty: used on pedophiles, the class enemy and various race and class traitors.
      Euthanasia: Mandatory for Downies, the hydrocephalic and other dysgenic freaks.
      Immigration: all non-White immigration banned and non-Whites repatriated unless they are only here as students, studying tactics for the Marxist overthrow of the neocolonial ZOG puppets in their own countries
      Police and Prisons: ACAB.  the police. Destroy the current prison system which is a capitalist torture chamber for the poor and oppressed. Under the dictatorship of the proletariat, Gulags and secret police would be employed liberally for class enemies and class traitors.

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: Equal living wages for all workers.
      Healthcare: total collectivization of health care, execute all capitalists who try to profit
      Trade and Globalization: Unite with revolutionary communists and anti-imperialists all over the world for the destruction of WTO, IMF, World Bank, etc. Overturn the disaster of (((globalization))). Free trade of revolutionary Marxist-Leninist philosophical ideas between Socialist nations.
      Campaign Finance: Finance revolutionary Marxist guerilla campaigns all over the world.
      Energy: Use the flesh and blood of dead Zionists as fuel to heat the homes of the poor and working class.
      Taxes: 100% tax on all capitalists to fund unlimited welfare for poor whites.

      Foreign Policy Issues:
      Foreign Funding: Fund revolutionary communist subversion and terror as well as bourgeois nationalist Third Positionist anti-imperialist strongmen all over the world.
      Israel and Palestine: Off the planet with the fascist Zionist terror state of Israel! Total support for PFLP, DFLP, PFLP-GC Palestinian Popular Brigades and the Abu Nidal Organization. Long live Palestine, free and Arab, from the river to the sea, forever!
      Russia: Rebuild the USSR.
      Venezuela: Unconditional internationalist solidarity with the Bolivarian Revolution against the Jewish-led fascist counterrrevolution.
      Syria: Victory to Assad, death to the ZOG.



      My views as well


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: UlmerFudd on August 08, 2018, 10:21:56 PM
      You're literally calling for genocide. Why should we respect your viewpoints?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Santander on August 08, 2018, 10:24:09 PM
      I'll base mine on the guy right before me.

      Labels:
      Social: Totalitarian
      Economic: Full Communism
      Foreign Policy: Racial Nationalist/Proletarian Internationalist/Maoist Third-Worldist
      Party: NACAZAI

      Social Issues:
      Abortion: Total ban in all cases except eugenics, race-mixing and rape. Death penalty for Jew abortionists.
      Same-Sex Marriage: f****ts and bull dykes forced back in the closet with "gay pride" activists shoved into Gulags. However, bisexual women are fine if they are hot and make me masturbate. Nazbols realize lesbian erotica is a great propaganda tool.
      Drugs: Legalize marijuana, decriminalize users and low level dealers of hard drugs, death penalty for Jewish/capitalist importers and traffickers of hard drugs
      Death Penalty: used on pedophiles, the class enemy and various race and class traitors.
      Euthanasia: Mandatory for Downies, the hydrocephalic and other dysgenic freaks.
      Immigration: all non-White immigration banned and non-Whites repatriated unless they are only here as students, studying tactics for the Marxist overthrow of the neocolonial ZOG puppets in their own countries
      Police and Prisons: ACAB.  the police. Destroy the current prison system which is a capitalist torture chamber for the poor and oppressed. Under the dictatorship of the proletariat, Gulags and secret police would be employed liberally for class enemies and class traitors.

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: Equal living wages for all workers.
      Healthcare: total collectivization of health care, execute all capitalists who try to profit
      Trade and Globalization: Unite with revolutionary communists and anti-imperialists all over the world for the destruction of WTO, IMF, World Bank, etc. Overturn the disaster of (((globalization))). Free trade of revolutionary Marxist-Leninist philosophical ideas between Socialist nations.
      Campaign Finance: Finance revolutionary Marxist guerilla campaigns all over the world.
      Energy: Use the flesh and blood of dead Zionists as fuel to heat the homes of the poor and working class.
      Taxes: 100% tax on all capitalists to fund unlimited welfare for poor whites.

      Foreign Policy Issues:
      Foreign Funding: Fund revolutionary communist subversion and terror as well as bourgeois nationalist Third Positionist anti-imperialist strongmen all over the world.
      Israel and Palestine: Off the planet with the fascist Zionist terror state of Israel! Total support for PFLP, DFLP, PFLP-GC Palestinian Popular Brigades and the Abu Nidal Organization. Long live Palestine, free and Arab, from the river to the sea, forever!
      Russia: Rebuild the USSR.
      Venezuela: Unconditional internationalist solidarity with the Bolivarian Revolution against the Jewish-led fascist counterrrevolution.
      Syria: Victory to Assad, death to the ZOG.



      My views as well


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: ○∙◄☻¥tπ[╪AV┼cVê└ on August 08, 2018, 10:59:07 PM
      I'll base mine on the guy right before me.

      Labels:
      Social: Totalitarian
      Economic: Full Communism
      Foreign Policy: Racial Nationalist/Proletarian Internationalist/Maoist Third-Worldist
      Party: NACAZAI

      Social Issues:
      Abortion: Total ban in all cases except eugenics, race-mixing and rape. Death penalty for Jew abortionists.
      Same-Sex Marriage: f****ts and bull dykes forced back in the closet with "gay pride" activists shoved into Gulags. However, bisexual women are fine if they are hot and make me masturbate. Nazbols realize lesbian erotica is a great propaganda tool.
      Drugs: Legalize marijuana, decriminalize users and low level dealers of hard drugs, death penalty for Jewish/capitalist importers and traffickers of hard drugs
      Death Penalty: used on pedophiles, the class enemy and various race and class traitors.
      Euthanasia: Mandatory for Downies, the hydrocephalic and other dysgenic freaks.
      Immigration: all non-White immigration banned and non-Whites repatriated unless they are only here as students, studying tactics for the Marxist overthrow of the neocolonial ZOG puppets in their own countries
      Police and Prisons: ACAB.  the police. Destroy the current prison system which is a capitalist torture chamber for the poor and oppressed. Under the dictatorship of the proletariat, Gulags and secret police would be employed liberally for class enemies and class traitors.

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: Equal living wages for all workers.
      Healthcare: total collectivization of health care, execute all capitalists who try to profit
      Trade and Globalization: Unite with revolutionary communists and anti-imperialists all over the world for the destruction of WTO, IMF, World Bank, etc. Overturn the disaster of (((globalization))). Free trade of revolutionary Marxist-Leninist philosophical ideas between Socialist nations.
      Campaign Finance: Finance revolutionary Marxist guerilla campaigns all over the world.
      Energy: Use the flesh and blood of dead Zionists as fuel to heat the homes of the poor and working class.
      Taxes: 100% tax on all capitalists to fund unlimited welfare for poor whites.

      Foreign Policy Issues:
      Foreign Funding: Fund revolutionary communist subversion and terror as well as bourgeois nationalist Third Positionist anti-imperialist strongmen all over the world.
      Israel and Palestine: Off the planet with the fascist Zionist terror state of Israel! Total support for PFLP, DFLP, PFLP-GC Palestinian Popular Brigades and the Abu Nidal Organization. Long live Palestine, free and Arab, from the river to the sea, forever!
      Russia: Rebuild the USSR.
      Venezuela: Unconditional internationalist solidarity with the Bolivarian Revolution against the Jewish-led fascist counterrrevolution.
      Syria: Victory to Assad, death to the ZOG.

      This one seems to be full Hitler.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: American_Aristocracy on August 09, 2018, 08:30:36 AM
      I'll base mine on the guy right before me.

      Labels:
      Social: Totalitarian
      Economic: Full Communism
      Foreign Policy: Racial Nationalist/Proletarian Internationalist/Maoist Third-Worldist
      Party: NACAZAI

      Social Issues:
      Abortion: Total ban in all cases except eugenics, race-mixing and rape. Death penalty for Jew abortionists.
      Same-Sex Marriage: f****ts and bull dykes forced back in the closet with "gay pride" activists shoved into Gulags. However, bisexual women are fine if they are hot and make me masturbate. Nazbols realize lesbian erotica is a great propaganda tool.
      Drugs: Legalize marijuana, decriminalize users and low level dealers of hard drugs, death penalty for Jewish/capitalist importers and traffickers of hard drugs
      Death Penalty: used on pedophiles, the class enemy and various race and class traitors.
      Euthanasia: Mandatory for Downies, the hydrocephalic and other dysgenic freaks.
      Immigration: all non-White immigration banned and non-Whites repatriated unless they are only here as students, studying tactics for the Marxist overthrow of the neocolonial ZOG puppets in their own countries
      Police and Prisons: ACAB.  the police. Destroy the current prison system which is a capitalist torture chamber for the poor and oppressed. Under the dictatorship of the proletariat, Gulags and secret police would be employed liberally for class enemies and class traitors.

      Economic Issues:
      Minimum Wage: Equal living wages for all workers.
      Healthcare: total collectivization of health care, execute all capitalists who try to profit
      Trade and Globalization: Unite with revolutionary communists and anti-imperialists all over the world for the destruction of WTO, IMF, World Bank, etc. Overturn the disaster of (((globalization))). Free trade of revolutionary Marxist-Leninist philosophical ideas between Socialist nations.
      Campaign Finance: Finance revolutionary Marxist guerilla campaigns all over the world.
      Energy: Use the flesh and blood of dead Zionists as fuel to heat the homes of the poor and working class.
      Taxes: 100% tax on all capitalists to fund unlimited welfare for poor whites.

      Foreign Policy Issues:
      Foreign Funding: Fund revolutionary communist subversion and terror as well as bourgeois nationalist Third Positionist anti-imperialist strongmen all over the world.
      Israel and Palestine: Off the planet with the fascist Zionist terror state of Israel! Total support for PFLP, DFLP, PFLP-GC Palestinian Popular Brigades and the Abu Nidal Organization. Long live Palestine, free and Arab, from the river to the sea, forever!
      Russia: Rebuild the USSR.
      Venezuela: Unconditional internationalist solidarity with the Bolivarian Revolution against the Jewish-led fascist counterrrevolution.
      Syria: Victory to Assad, death to the ZOG.

      This one seems to be full Hitler.

      He seems like a anti-Semitic national Bolshevik.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Tinand on August 11, 2018, 08:36:50 PM
      LABELS
      Conservative, nationalist, environmentalist
      Party: Prawo i Sprawiedliwość (Law and Justice)

      SOCIAL ISSUES
      Abortion: Pro-life - abortion should only be allowed if the mother's life is in danger or if the fetus has heavy defects
      Same-sex Marriage: Sure
      Drugs: Legalize only medical marijuana
      Death Penalty: Yes, for murder and the rape of a minor
      Gun Control: Psychological checks every 3 years, require valid reason to own a gun
      Prostitution: Should be banned
      Euthanasia: Against
      Immigration: Against Middle Eastern immigration, support immigration mostly from Asia and former USSR

      ECONOMIC ISSUES
      Minimum Wage: Raise
      Healthcare: Support universal healthcare
      Trade and Globalization: Anti-globalization
      Energy: Support renewable energy

      FOREIGN POLICY ISSUES (adjusted for the Polish situation)
      Anti-European Union
      Anti-Putinist
      Pro-American
      We should focus on the Visegrad Group and the Three Seas Initiative

      CLIMATE CHANGE
      Serious issue. Regulate carbon emissions and switch from coal to renewable energy


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: DaWN on August 13, 2018, 04:56:49 PM
      LABELS/POSITIONS
      Social Liberal / Left
      Economic Moderate / Centre-left
      Foreign Policy Moderate Dove
      Voting Preference Liberal Democrat (unenthusiastically)

      Social
      Abortion Personally not a fan but not my place to tell someone what they can or can't do with their bodies
      Same-Sex Marriage Support wholeheartedly
      Drugs Legalise marijuana, decriminalise all but the most dangerous of the rest. Treat addiction as a medical problem not a criminal one.
      Death Penalty Not an issue here anymore but generally opposed
      Prostitution Legalise but with very heavy rules and regulations to prevent abuse
      Euthanasia See abortion
      Internet Regulation Heavily opposed
      Religious Freedom Heavily support but oppose the forcing of any beliefs on others and oppose any attempt to integrate religion into the state
      Political Correctness Frequently gets a bit ridiculous but mostly harmless
      Pornography Some regulation needed to prevent children seeing it but current UK government policy is OTT to put it mildly
      Immigration In favour, while recognising the problems it can cause and that current levels are probably unsustainable. Ideal situation would be to introduce an EU-wide policy on both intra-EU immigration and that from outside that creates a fair balance while compromising free movement as little as practical, but obviously with Brexit this is not gonna happen. I do support making learning English compulsory for all immigrants. If possible, put a heavier emphasis on allowing in qualified migrants who can help in areas where more staff is needed (i.e NHS)
      Crime Only social issue I'd consider myself right-wing on. Tougher sentences, more police presence but also recognition much of the crime problem in our cities comes from lack of investment in services.

      Economic
      Minimum Wage Raise to living wage for each area of the country and tie to inflation
      Taxation Avoid rises for lower and middle classes - raise to 50p in the pound for higher earners, close all legal tax loopholes, including those used by corporations such as Amazon. Lower business rates (although not by too much - fine line) in order to reinvigorate the high street and produce jobs and growth. Raise inheritance tax and make it clear that mooching off rich mum and dad is not an acceptable life path.
      Healthcare Support the NHS wholeheartedly, but recognise there are problems - cut down administrative costs, take unecessary treatments, or those with dubious records (ahem homeopathy) off the NHS, and potentially involve the private sector to a limited extent. Absolutely MUST be kept free at the point of use.
      Education Cut all state funding for private schools except where absolutely necessary and redirect investment in comprehensive schools. Reduce university tuition fees (say to around £4.5k a year) but it's probably too late to abolish them completely now.
      Trade Support free trade in principle, but more factors need to be taken into consideration when making deals, although for most of the UK it's probably too late to save the manufacturing sector for instance.
      Energy Very pro-green energy. Introduce incentives and tax cuts for green energy and work to replace our dependence on Middle Eastern oil by cutting down on the number of petrol cars and diesel trains as soon as pratical.

      Foreign Policy
      EU Against Brexit although by no means a europhile - rather I recognise its strengths and weaknesses and think we are, on balance, better off in. Pro-people's vote, mainly because it seems very likely the first vote was at least partially manipulated, and we need to be able to reject whatever dreadful deal the Tories put before us (if at all). If we do end up remaining, major EU reform needs to be spearheaded.
      Middle East We need to get out and stay out, not because of any love for pacifism, but because it's clear we're not helping. Reduce support and trade with Saudi Arabia as much as possible (see energy).
      Israel/Palestine Two state solution, although we're not going to be able to do much anyway, and nothing is changing until both change their dreadful governments.
      Russia Be firm but not antagonising. Work to counter any attempts to sabotage democracy or to undermine our sovereignty, but having a permanently antagonistic relationship between Russia and the west is not good for long-term world peace.

      Political Reform
      - Turn the UK into a federal state à la Canada, although with much smaller sub-national entities (perhaps based on English counties) so that local issues can stay as local as possible.
      - Replace the House of Lords with a Senate, with each federal entity proportionally represented. Elected by Single Transferrable Vote.
      - Switch the House of Commons voting system to either Mixed Member Proportional or Regional Lists - in the case of the latter, federal legislatures can deal with more local issues MPs currently deal with.
      - Write a fixed constitution linked to either the ECHR or a separate bill of rights
      - Retain the primacy of the House of Commons,  but give the Senate the power of veto (which can be overturned with a big enough Commons majority) delay, and committee. Put in the constitution that the Prime Minister must sit in the Commons but any other cabinet members can sit in either house.
      - Retain the monarchy. Not ideal politically but it pays for itself in tourist business, and most if not all of the royal family seem pretty harmless.

      And finally, just for fun, my representatives rated
      Prime Minister Theresa May: E
      Terrible, but mostly just a pathetic figure at this point. Saving the F for when Brexit is inevitably botched.
      Leader of the Opposition Jeremy Corbyn: F
      Just absolutely awful in every way. One of the worst politicians in the UK currently which is pretty remarkable given the competition. Only thing keeping him from an F- is the possibility that he could always, ALWAYS get worse.
      Mayor of London Sadiq Khan: C+
      Not bad - has had to deal with mass budget cuts, but has made significant improvements in a number of areas. Also a giant improvement on his predecessor but frankly anyone would be.
      MP Helen Hayes (Dulwich & West Norwood): D
      Pretty invisible MP who pays lip service to her constituency that voted 70% remain but I've seen little from her that convinces me she's not just a Corbyn mouthpiece. Could be much, much, worse though.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: wesmoorenerd on August 13, 2018, 09:23:43 PM
      Realized I've never done one of these, so I'll do one now! Basing it off Lechasseur's model

      Overview:
      Social: Progressive
      Economic: Center-left
      Foreign: Lean dove, strongly globalist
      Party Affiliation: Democratic

      Social Policy:
      Abortion: Formerly pro-life, now pro-choice although it's not an issue I particularly care about.
      Same-Sex Marriage: Strongly in favor, always have been (being LGBT myself), also strongly support  stronger anti-discrimination laws and strongly oppose conversion therapy.
      Drug Laws: Legalize marijuana, decriminalize all other drug use and encourage more easily accessible treatment for addiction.
      Death Penalty: Strongly opposed in all circumstances for ethical reasons. Governments should not have the ability to kill their own citizens.
      Gun Control: Relatively neutral on the issue, I support expanding background checks but I oppose weapon and ammunition bans for pragmatic reasons
      Religious Freedom: Should never come at the expense of basic civil rights
      Affirmative Action: Weakly support, although I think class should be a more important factor than race
      Political Correctness: Depends heavily on the specific situation
      Euthanasia: Strongly support, people should have the right to die with dignity
      Prostitution: Also strongly support, it's going to be a thing either way and legalization is the best way of making sure the industry doesn't harm its workers
      Pornography: Don't have a problem with it, absurd censorship laws like those in the UK are just that, absurd
      Immigration: I strongly support taking actions to make the legal immigration process significantly more efficient and accessible, if that were the case then illegal immigration wouldn't be as much of a problem. Regulating immigration based on the immigrant's culture or religion is bigotry, pure and simple. The wall are incredibly stupid. I wouldn't necessarily be opposed to more border security but it really depends and a wall is stupid and ineffective. I support passing the DREAM Act and I'm generally in favor of expanding amnesty.

      Economic Policy:
      Minimum Wage: The federal minimum wage should be raised, although I think going as high as $15 should be done on a state and local basis due to differences in the cost of living. $10 is reasonable on a federal level, and it should be raised more often.
      Right to Work: Strongly oppose
      Taxation: The wealthy should be more heavily taxed. Taxes should fit the needs of the budget, not the other way around, unpopular as that may be. Flat taxes are incredibly stupid. 
      Healthcare: We needed a public option ten years ago at the very minimum. Single payer I'm like 90% sold on and generally support (at the federal level, not the state level) but a public option at the very least.
      Education: K-12 education has a whole lot of buck and very little bang. Primary and secondary education in the US needs a massive, top to bottom overhaul that implements actual, modern methods instead of chasing the same old NCLB statistics. I support free community college, but I'm not really sold on the idea of free university, although steps should be taken to make it more affordable.
      Free Trade: Support in virtually all cases. Free trade is good for everybody and protectionism hurts everybody.

      Foreign Policy and National Security:
      Iran: Going back on the Iran deal was a massive blunder. Even beyond the lack of trust that accompanied it, it was a decent deal in the first place. It remains to be seen what the right next step there is.
      Syria: I strongly support Rojava and believe Western governments should do the same. I also believe that steps should be taken to encourage Turkey to stop intervening in the region.
      Israel/Palestine: Two state solution.
      Russia: We need to take a hardline stance on Russia's meddling in our elections and Russian attempts to violate the sovereignty of their neighbors.

      Environment:
      Climate Change: One of the gravest issues facing our nation and our world today. We needed to be reducing emissions and investing in green technology twenty years ago. Damage control should be one of the top priorities of any government.

      Electoral and Political Reform:
      Term limits: Oppose for Congress, although I think more fresh blood is usually better.
      Electoral College Reform: Support, although I think the underlying problem here is the awful and disproportionate House of Representatives. I'd rather have, say, the Wyoming Rule than abolish the electoral college.
      Voter ID: Strongly oppose, voter ID is more often than not blatant voter suppression


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: YE on August 16, 2018, 11:04:13 AM
      Ideology
      Social: Center with a libertarian streak
      Economic: Social democrat
      Foreign Policy: Dovish internationalist
      Political Registration: D-NV

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Pro-choice to viability, but pro-life thereafter. Support Planned Parenthood, support not allowing states to defund it and overturn the Hyde Amendment as long as early term abortion is legal. Support ban on partial birth abortion. Slightly pro-life, favor banning it outright unless life of the mother at viability. Do favor counseling and waiting periods before then tough I don't think it should be criminalized in the same regard to murder prior to viability. Conflicted on Planned Parenthood funding and the Hyde Amendment.

      Same-Sex Marriage: Duh.

      Transgender Issues: Use the restroom of their gender, not the one they were born with. I find it disgusting that people think they are just making sh**t up when they know they identify as the opposite gender.

      Drugs: War on Drugs is a disaster. Legalize, tax, and regulate soft drugs, starting with weed, but one legalization at a time, and keep hard drugs illegal.

      Death Penalty: Oppose and pro-lifers who support this are massive hypocrites.

      Gun Control: Pro-gun. Close gun show loophole, ban bump stocks, and expand background checks. Ideally I'd ban be open to a high capacity magazine ban but I think in the era of polarization, such ban at the federal level would lead to a black market forming, and not worth it.

      Affirmative Action: Generally against.

      Prostitution: No

      Euthanasia: Oppose on moral grounds (pro-life).

      Immigration: Keep the border secure (which believe it or not is working given the recent decline in net immigration), deport criminals who are here illegally, citizenship to all illegals if they aren't criminals and pay taxes in 10 years, but I'd be willing to compromise for no citizenship and just legalization. Reform and regulate ICE but do not abolish it.

      Police Issues/Black Lives Matter: Pro-BLM and oppose police brutality and hold officers accountable. Oppose mandatory minimums and for profit prisons. Abolish cash bail.

      Free Speech/Political Correctness: Pro-free speech, but the GOP are massive hypocrites on this. They are so quick to call college students at California who shut down right wing speakers SJW (correctly), but anytime a Democrat says something un-American, the have a thin skin and get defensive, basically becoming right wind SJW's. Political Correctness is necessary in order to protect politics from staying civil, and oftentimes "telling it how it is" is a code word for racism on the right

      School Prayer: Status quo.

      Muslim Ban: No.

      PATRIOT ACT/NSA Spying: Need a warrant


      Economic Issues
      Minimum Wage: Raise 50 cents per year to whenever it converges with $11 indexed to inflation.

      Social Security: Lift the taxable income cap, and cut the income tax rates to help pay for Medicare for All. Do not support expanding the program. And no Social Security is not broke contrary to whatever the GOP wants you to think.

      Healthcare: Support Medicare for All, similar to Bernie's bill, but phased in over a longer period of time, and it should be no more comprehensive than the current Medicare program, at least for now. Second choice would be Medicare Extra, but in order for that to work, employer essential health insurance would have to fall apart. Also support drug imports from Canada, whose markets are already tightly regulated, and allow the federal government to negotiate drug prices with drug companies. Open to a multi-payer approach but a public option is not the answer.

      Globalization/Trade: Generally Strongly oppose, unless we have a product we can't make elsewhere and visa versa. Oppose TPP, support re-negotiation of NAFTA. Support tarrifs in certain circumstances but we have to ensure that we don't end up in a lose-lose trade war.

      Deficit/Debt: Debt doesn't matter. Deficits don't if there's a recession, but do if the economy is good and all Americans are prospering.

      Campaign Finance Reform: Limits on donations to all campaigns, congressional campaign committees, and state/national parties, with guaranteed public funding. Gut SuperPacs and corporate Pac money. Also limit how much you could self-fund your campaign.

      Unions: Massively pro-labor. Get rid of the Taft-Hartley Act that created right to work, which was created by the Republicans in attempt to undercut unions. Support card check and oppose efforts to crack down on union formation by employers.

      Energy: Pro-solar. Pro-wind. Pro-nuclear. Anti-coal.

      Job Creation: A second new deal. Infrastructure redevelopment for not just better roads, bridges, and highways, but better sewer and drainage systems, as well nationwide broadband. Also need tighter building codes and larger seawalls to withstand natural disasters like hurricanes.

      Education: Support common core, make in-state college free (with some regulations), universal childcare, support full day kindergarten, and universal pre-K. Supported increases in teaching salary, except for elective subjects. Fairly opposed to charter schools

      Taxes: Raise marginal tax rates on wealthy when appropriate. Would like to see the top 1% pay as much as they did in an effective tax rates to prior to Reagan. Also support a carbon tax and a Robin Hood tax much like we had through the 1960s. Repeal the Bill Clinton capital gains tax cut, Trump's income tax cuts, Bush's tax cuts, expand earned income tax credit, hijack the corporate tax rate back up to 30%. Strongly support raising the estate tax. Oppose UBI and would rather see a shorter workweek to combat automation than incentives for half the population to not work.


      Financial regulation: Support re-instating glass stegall, and am very wary of attempts to de-regulate Wall Street, paday lenders, banks, and credit card companies. Strong proponent of anti-monopoly laws. Support government run banks but for small loans only and with strict regulation.


      Other economic issues: Paid family medical leave by law (12 weeks for maternity leave 8 weeks for paternity leave). 10 days of vacation time by law. Support a job guarantee as a replacement for unemployment benefits at or slightly below minimum wage (pending on whether work requires training) with some caveats, like one should be able to get fired for underpreforming the job, and age restrictions.

      Foreign Policy
      Middle East: Get out. None of the countries unilaterally have attacked us. Fully support the Iran Deal. Oh, and quit funding Saudi Arabia as they continue to massacre civilians in Yemen and show respect to international law. I'm not a pacifist, however. If there's a genocide or illegal occupation, aid, and if necessary, military should be used, but you have to go through the UN first and show respect for international law. There's a reason we're considered by others to be the number one threat to world piece. I also think this idea that regime change will lead to democracy all over the place is insane. A new regime in Syria would not blossom into a democracy over night.  

      Syria Refuges: Support Obama era policies but we can only take so many and we have to ensure we maintain the proper vetting.

      Israel/Palestine: Extremely conflicted but favor two internationally recognized states with 1967 border (and no the Palestine state should not be free of Jews Hamas). I'm no fan of Israel, but Palestine is worse, but there's no good one side. Oppose BDS, since pressure is needed on Palestine too.

      North Korea: Favor detente basically

      Russia: Supported sanctions for electing melding, and annexing Crimea. But we should avoid war with them unless they attack us unilaterally.

      Climate Change
      Anthropogenic Climate change is real and is naturally occurring. Support increasing funding towards climate change, with an increased emphasis on study aerosols. Oppose efforts to privatize NOAA. Support Paris Climate Agreement but it needs to be enforceable. Also increased money towards weather forecasting, most notably to improve the US based Global Forecast System and upgrade phased array radar.

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College Reform: Support to avoid the smaller states from being screwed over by urban areas but expand the size of the house.

      Gerrymandering: Oppose. Support independent commissions with guidelines on not splitting up COI for both congressional and legislative seats.

      Term limits: Oppose for legislative seats, support for executive seats, largely because I believe in there is a happy medium between both arguments.

      Voter ID: Oppose.

      Instant Run-off Voting: Support

      Primaries: Let the states decide, but all states should hold the presidential and statewide office primaries on the same day, eliminating the urge for caucuses.

      Statehood: Make D.C., Guam, and Puerto Rico as states, along with maybe the NMI and the Virgin Islands (or combine them with PR/Guam). Let American Samoa be its own nation or be annexed by Western Samoa.

      Voting age: Let states decide on whether it should be lowered to 16. Leave it at 18.

      Updated.

      Had a bit of change of heart on some issues lately, so updated.

      Updated.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: pops on August 16, 2018, 11:40:56 PM
      Literally just copy/pasting what everyone else is doing, credit without credit right here to whoever made this

      Overview:
      Social: Conservative with many caveats
      Economic: Conservative with many caveats
      Foreign: Dovish, fair trader
      Party Affiliation: Republican

      Social Policy:
      Abortion: Illegal after week 9, week 20 in cases of rape, and once labor starts in the case of threat to a mother's life. We need to defund planned parenthood and pour a lot of money into fixing adoption and foster care.
      Same-Sex Marriage: Always have been an ally, we need to allow LGBT adoption in the USA. No one should be forced by the government to marry anyone they don't want to, but they should regardless. The Bible says to love your neighbors and strongly advocates for the golden rule, so I think personally that churches should marry anyone who wants to be married.
      Drug Laws: We need legal Marijuana and drug safe havens.
      Death Penalty: We need a Constitutional amendment making it illegal for the US Government to kill people as legal punishment.
      Gun Control: We need to continue to allow gun manufacturing at home and should encourage gun safety, advertising classes for safe gun use.
      Religious Freedom: Should never be infringed by the government unless it harms someone else
      Affirmative Action: It is well documented that this actually has decreased the rate of minority graduation, thus keeping many in a bad situation. Also needs to be ended on moral grounds.
      Political Correctness: This should not be a political issue. Socially, we can discuss the pros and cons of political correctness. I think it's had a strong negative effect on social intercourse and has kept from many political issues from being raised.
      Euthanasia: Supportive of Death with Dignity in most cases
      Prostitution: We need to make it legal to be a prostitute and illegal to pay for prostitution, which will penalize the real wrongdoers and deal a significant blow to human trafficking.
      Pornography: The UK sucks
      Immigration: We need a northern and southern border wall and boats on both coasts. We also should adopt an Ellis Island immigration policy with improved family reunification.

      Economic Policy:
      Minimum Wage: Reduce to $7 and keep consistent with inflation.
      Right to Work: Opposed, unless unions aren't doing their jobs
      Taxation: We need a 15% flat tax for everyone who makes $25,000 or more a year and we need a 25% tax on stock gains
      Healthcare: Some public option is okay for the poor and elderly, but otherwise a free market is the best choice.
      Education: We need to educate on useful life skills and offer good education on the trades so everyone can leave high school and get a job.
      Free Trade: We need to always match exactly the tariffs that other countries have with us and negotiate an elimination of tariffs.

      Foreign Policy and National Security:
      Iran: Get the hell away, it's got nothing to do with the US
      Syria: Get the hell away, it's got nothing to do with the US
      Israel/Palestine: Two state solution but Jerusalem is a part of both nations
      Russia: Get the hell away, it's got nothing to do with the US unless they hack our elections, then let's kick their asses

      Environment:
      Climate Change: Exists, is caused by man, but it's not worthwhile economically to try and fix this quickly. We need geothermal, hydroelectric, and to stop using oil and coal.

      Electoral and Political Reform:
      Term limits: Oppose except for President and state offices.
      Electoral College Reform: We should adopt a proportional state vote system (AKA Minnesota votes 47% Clinton and 46% Trump, Clinton gets 2 electoral votes for winning and the other 8 are split proportionately, so in this case Clinton would get 6 to Trump's 4)
      Voter ID: Everyone should get a free state ID when they turn 18 that they can use to vote. Drivers license, military ID, and passport should be usable as well.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Use Your Illusion on August 22, 2018, 11:58:51 PM
      1. Gun legislation will do NOTHING to fix the root cause. The issue is that people wish to hurt others. How often do we see killers give signs of intent to harm before they do it. They say it in passing, post it to social media, etc. Sit down. Talk to them. They are disenfranchised and want to HURT others. Taking guns and passing legislation over millions of people in direct antithesis of our 2nd Amendment rights does not help this young man/woman. Let's take the guns. Hell revoke the 2nd Amendment. And they're gonna go straight for locker bombs and arson because they want to HURT people. This is a human problem at a social level. Stop worrying about passing laws and start worrying about how to help those disenfranchised enough to want to cause harm.

      2. Roe vs. Wade cannot be overturned. Again like the gun issue this is social issue at the individual human level. The single greatest reason for illegal activity is not caring it is illegal. Desperate women and young girls who neither understand the life cycle or appreciate the gravity both can and will take it upon themselves to terminate their unwanted pregnancies. The question is not "How do we save the babies?" it is "How do we reduce the rate of unwanted pregnancy?"

      Reform our education system to demonstrate that benefits of safe sex, contraception and abstinence. Teach our children that regardless of where you stand on the termination of pregnancy, you in take measures that otherwise would result in another human being. I do not support abortion at a moral level but I am a man and I am not entitled to tell any person what to do. Reform at the local levels to encourage adoption practices and better fund the state to care for these children who otherwise would have been terminated. And lastly and most importantly we must focus to empower women against the sexual advances of men. Hell teach them how to defend themselves because we have to start somewhere and we have to start NOW. Identify those at risk, identify those who have been unwillingly raped and want nothing more than to rid themselves of a baby that is not there. Find ways to bring these men to justice, to keep these women safe from further harm and to provide refuge. Encourage them not to conduct an abortion and instead give life a chance and a decision that was not hers to make does not have to stay with her.

      If we make changes as a culture we can and will strike the root at the core and the issue will resolve itself. The only way we are going to stop abortion is if we teach that life is beautiful and (if I may borrow from Colin Moulton) to fill the condom and not the van.

      3. I fully support military budget reform. I am not one to speak of how each dollar is spent but I can surely and confidently say that the near $2 billion a day budget (from last year) can be streamlined. We outspend everyone in the world and until I know why I will continue to push for it. I do not advocate cutting our forces, I simply advocate that we be more intelligent about how we are doing things right now.

      4. I support the right of same sex couples to be married so long as churches are given equal right to refusal. Same sex couples are are protected under the ideals of "Life, liberty and pursuit of happiness" and they are endowed the right to marriage because this is America and we made it so people can be free individuals to exercise these rights whether other people like it or not. But marriage to me (and the church) is an uncompromising institution of God. Freedom cuts both ways. A priest is not damned to wed two men/women because of law. The onus is on the couple who wishes ceremony to find one to wed them. While a hindrance, this is an exercise of true freedom. They will be allowed to marry and enjoy the same rights as anyone else and the individual integrity of the churches will be allowed to be exercised. With the blessing of law and a willing member of the church may any two men and women live in happiness til death do they part while any member of the church may say they did what they felt was right.

      5. The current economic model is not sustaining and drastic changes need to be made. I call for a very slow and very moderate return to former economic policies as to allow businesses to adjust. Raising taxes is not a sexy position to take but we once upon a time kept up with wages with strong unions, taxed higher according to income and created the most prosperous nation in the world and we did it without any of it being called entitlement, socialism or wealth redistribution. A state of dynastic wealth amongst the few who hoard it in offshore accounts or live in other places as to avoid proper taxation is not the mark of a strong capitalist society. It works best when power is given to the consumer and their business drives other businesses to become better than one another for better quality and prices. The solutions are few and even less easy but the first step is to define what wealthy actually is anymore. And we must clearly define the goals of this strategy. The only solid contingent is that we bring these changes slowly. Over decades even. If you're gonna kick it old school then at least be smart about it.

      Long story short we have 38 million people living in poverty, that many on food stamps and so many billions of dollars tied up into the few and the proud that regular taxation may as well be deemed theft. All this to me says that what we are doing today is neither working nor going to help reduce any of these numbers. It is time to start investing once again in the American worker, the American farmer and the American consumer and not the businesses who have continued to chronically under-employ them and find new ways every year to cut corners.

      I fully and truly understand why President Reagan started his trend. He was the ultimate advocate of keeping the hand of government out of everything. He wanted to keep taxes low and let capitalism make us great again. I mean seriously.... what a great idea. Needless to say it worked. But it has now gotten out of hand and we have seen he evaporation of the middle class and the birth of the working poor. Again this is a broad issue without clearly defined goals. It is a process that must be fixed together. But I can tell you certainly that more of the same will not get us out.

      All things in moderation people. Let's figure out a way to swing the pendulum back a little more. Perhaps there is indeed a better way than what I have discussed.

      That's all for now


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RINO Tom on August 23, 2018, 10:17:21 AM
      Haven't done this for a while, and I feel like my views have shifted a tad.

      SUMMARY
      Social: Center left
      Economic: Center right
      Foreign: Rather interventionist
      Party Affiliation: Republican

      SOCIAL POLICY
      Abortion: I support Roe v. Wade and generally fall under the umbrella of "pro-choice."  However, I have serious moral qualms with abortion, and I am incredibly turned off by a lot of "liberal" rhetoric on the issue (this issue brings out some of the worst of tribalism).  I absolutely support some type of third trimester ban (except for the big three exceptions), though I would defer to someone with some more medical knowledge than I have to determine the cutoff (which will, of course, inevitably be somewhat arbitrary).
      Same-Sex Marriage: I support it, no exceptions.
      Drug Laws: I think states should be able to decide RE: marijuana, but I think drug use in general should be decriminalized, with the punishment falling on the large scale dealers.  No kid should face jail time or have their job prospects shattered for being one of the many college kids who comes across drugs and trying it/being that unlucky that they get caught.
      Death Penalty: In general, I support its existence ... I have a hard time articulating this view, as there is no perfect "rule" of when to use it that I can land on.  However, I do strongly believe that it is an appropriate punishment for certain cases.
      Gun Control: I am generally quite skeptical.  I am sympathetic to the Second Amendment and to the arguments that defend not altering it too much.  I would support common sense measures like background checks and waiting periods, but anything else is Constitutionally dubious and won't help the problem much.
      Religious Freedom: Follow the precedent of past civil rights legislation and the Interstate Commerce Clause.
      Affirmative Action: I support it for SES, but I am quite skeptical of affirmative action on the basis of race, specifically for minority groups with higher-than-average SES (like Asian-Americans).
      Political Correctness: Try not to offend people ... there isn't a "law" that can make a meaningful impact here, IMO.  Rational people can see where the line of common sense is.
      Euthanasia: Though I have some real reservations about this morally, I have not arrived at a reason to oppose people's right to die with dignity.  My uncomfortably with the state systematically condoning the killing of innocents (even if the innocents have asked for it) is slightly outweighed by sympathy for the patients who desire that type of ending.
      Prostitution: This is a "live and let live" position that I strongly disagree with.  While a prostitute should never be in legal trouble for having to resort to that, prostitution must absolutely remain illegal.  Forgetting for a second the moral decay (unironic use) that would ensue, it enables the sex trade.
      Environment: I am in favor of measures to preserve and protect our environment.  While regulations to do both can and should be balanced with policies that encourage the business community and private sector to thrive, punishment for breaking environmental regulations needs to be severe, and incentives for green policies should be generous.
      Immigration: It is impractical (especially financially) to deport illegal immigrants that are already here, with the exception of ones that are identified as having committed minor crimes (ones who commit major crimes should be detained here).  However, a mark of a civilized country is to have border security that at least enables you to know who and what are entering your borders.  You owe that to your citizens, period.  I would support a pathway to citizenship for those already here (and amnesty for the crime of immigrating here illegally) and an intentional effort to secure our borders.  Most of my issue with more "conservative" thinking on this issue is with unwelcoming rhetoric that phrases the desire for border security in an unfair and unsavory light ... it's common sense to monitor immigration into your country and to make sure there is security.  How that somehow got associated with any type of "backward" thinking is absurd.

      ECONOMIC POLICY
      Minimum Wage: Have a federal minimum wage around $10.00 and let cities or states adopt higher ones if they desire to.  Index it to inflation, of course.
      Right to Work: I'm rather conflicted, but I lean toward support.
      Taxation: Current rates are fine, especially the new corporate ones.
      Regulation: Regulation in general targets the wrong sort of companies and fails to truly alter the practices of the companies who acted irresponsibly in the first place.  We obviously need regulations on businesses, but in general what we have now has too much red tape that only ends up passing costs to consumers and lowering wages.
      Healthcare: I would support a slightly more conservative version of Obamacare.  Most of my issue with liberal healthcare proposals is that they are too "one size fits all."  It seems to be an obsession of liberals to make everything uniform and under government regulation, but subsidies and whatnot for lower income individuals are a much better idea.  My other major issue with Obamacare is that it was intentionally designed to create a demand for government-run healthcare by making the fine for not offering healthcare less than the cost of providing it to your employees ... it's literally the worst of both worlds.
      Free Trade: While human rights conditions and whatnot need to be considered, free trade is the best trade.

      FOREIGN POLICY
      I have a meeting coming up anyway (:P), but I also wanted to keep this one vague since it is a vague issue.  I generally believe that, post-World War II, we have assumed a responsibility (for better or for worse) as the leader and prime example for the free world and democratic West; a critic might call this the "world's police."  We obviously can't get involved in every conflict everywhere, but it is both in our interest and in the world's interest for the Untied States to be a leader in promoting democracy and human rights across the world.  Sometimes, this is inevitably going to mean military involvement.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: IceSpear on August 23, 2018, 01:23:23 PM

      That's probably why he voted for her. ;)

      In all seriousness, I wouldn't go that far, but it's a massive stretch to argue that those views fit in better in the modern day GOP than they do in the modern day Dems. Though he'd obviously be catching flack either way.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: OSR stands with Israel on August 23, 2018, 02:27:29 PM

      That's probably why he voted for her. ;)

      In all seriousness, I wouldn't go that far, but it's a massive stretch to argue that those views fit in better in the modern day GOP than they do in the modern day Dems. Though he'd obviously be catching flack either way.


      LMAO


      Hillary wanted to increase taxes, supported a more leftist version of Obamacare, increase regulations  and opposed Right to Work




      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: IceSpear on August 23, 2018, 02:41:49 PM

      That's probably why he voted for her. ;)

      In all seriousness, I wouldn't go that far, but it's a massive stretch to argue that those views fit in better in the modern day GOP than they do in the modern day Dems. Though he'd obviously be catching flack either way.


      LMAO


      Hillary wanted to increase taxes, supported a more leftist version of Obamacare, increase regulations  and opposed Right to Work

      Arguing whether you want a more conservative or more liberal version of Obamacare isn't really that huge of a difference. He obviously doesn't care much about right to work either way since the description was only a single line and he was "conflicted" and only "leaned" in support of it, so I don't see why that would matter.

      Taxes and regulations is about all there is that he has substantive disagreements with her on. Compare to the current Republican Party leader who the vast majority of Republican voters worship and the vast majority of Republican politicians enthusiastically support, where he disagrees with them on:

      Abortion, same sex marriage, drug laws, gun control, religious freedom, political correctness, euthanasia, environment, immigration, minimum wage, healthcare, free trade, and foreign policy.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: OSR stands with Israel on August 23, 2018, 02:57:47 PM

      That's probably why he voted for her. ;)

      In all seriousness, I wouldn't go that far, but it's a massive stretch to argue that those views fit in better in the modern day GOP than they do in the modern day Dems. Though he'd obviously be catching flack either way.


      LMAO


      Hillary wanted to increase taxes, supported a more leftist version of Obamacare, increase regulations  and opposed Right to Work

      Arguing whether you want a more conservative or more liberal version of Obamacare isn't really that huge of a difference. He obviously doesn't care much about right to work either way since the description was only a single line and he was "conflicted" and only "leaned" in support of it, so I don't see why that would matter.

      Taxes and regulations is about all there is that he has substantive disagreements with her on. Compare to the current Republican Party leader who the vast majority of Republican voters worship and the vast majority of Republican politicians enthusiastically support, where he disagrees with them on:

      Abortion, Same sex marriage, drug laws, gun control, religious freedom, political correctness, euthanasia, environment, immigration, minimum wage, healthcare, free trade, and foreign policy.


      LMAO GOP politicians are more in favor of free trade than Dem politicians. It just that the Tarrif power was handed to the President a long time ago so there isnt much congress can do. Look at the TPP vote from 2015

      Foreign policy: Again most GOP politicians are more interventionist than Dems are


      Political Correctness: Um Dems favor using government action on this issue, he clearly said he wouldnt support that.

      Gun Control: Rick Scott passed similar measures

      Drug Laws: Trump himself favors letting the states decide



      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RINO Tom on August 23, 2018, 03:07:21 PM
      Sorry I ruined the thread, LOL.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: IceSpear on August 23, 2018, 03:07:48 PM

      That's probably why he voted for her. ;)

      In all seriousness, I wouldn't go that far, but it's a massive stretch to argue that those views fit in better in the modern day GOP than they do in the modern day Dems. Though he'd obviously be catching flack either way.


      LMAO


      Hillary wanted to increase taxes, supported a more leftist version of Obamacare, increase regulations  and opposed Right to Work

      Arguing whether you want a more conservative or more liberal version of Obamacare isn't really that huge of a difference. He obviously doesn't care much about right to work either way since the description was only a single line and he was "conflicted" and only "leaned" in support of it, so I don't see why that would matter.

      Taxes and regulations is about all there is that he has substantive disagreements with her on. Compare to the current Republican Party leader who the vast majority of Republican voters worship and the vast majority of Republican politicians enthusiastically support, where he disagrees with them on:

      Abortion, Same sex marriage, drug laws, gun control, religious freedom, political correctness, euthanasia, environment, immigration, minimum wage, healthcare, free trade, and foreign policy.


      LMAO GOP politicians are more in favor of free trade than Dem politicians. It just that the Tarrif power was handed to the President a long time ago so there isnt much congress can do. Look at the TPP vote from 2015

      Foreign policy: Again most GOP politicians are more interventionist than Dems are


      Political Correctness: Um Dems favor using government action on this issue, he clearly said he wouldnt support that.

      Gun Control: Rick Scott passed similar measures

      Drug Laws: Trump himself favors letting the states decide

      The vast majority of Republican voters now support tariffs because Trump does. And it's not really worth a damn if Republican politicians say they oppose tariffs but don't do anything about it because they love their strongman god emperor and don't want to risk his wrath. A vote from 2015 isn't relevant to the present day. In case you haven't noticed, Trump has made the GOP sell whatever was left of their soul and principles in exchange for power.

      There's really no evidence of that foreign policy claim. It's not 2004 anymore. The god emperor, who again I must stress has the support of >90% of Republican voters, enjoys letting the hellholes destroy themselves and loves cuddling up to Russia and Putin now while bashing NATO and any other American allies.

      I guess you missed the "don't be a dick" portion of his political correctness section, which the god emperor and an increasing number of GOP politicians violate on a daily basis.

      Rick Scott is a single person. The vast majority of Republicans, including the god emperor, oppose background checks and waiting periods. If they didn't, they would've passed by now.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RINO Tom on August 23, 2018, 03:12:00 PM
      ^ LOL, IceSpear I think you know you're wasting your time. :P  Anyway, this is the last spam I'll drop on this thread:


      That's probably why he voted for her. ;)

      In all seriousness, I wouldn't go that far, but it's a massive stretch to argue that those views fit in better in the modern day GOP than they do in the modern day Dems. Though he'd obviously be catching flack either way.

      The bolded is undeniable.  So, it comes down to what I would personally prefer, and even now in the age of Trump, the best Republicans >>>>>>>>>>>>> the least bad Democrats, regardless of how the entire parties shake out.  At least to this RINO.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: IceSpear on August 23, 2018, 03:24:06 PM
      ^ LOL, IceSpear I think you know you're wasting your time. :P  Anyway, this is the last spam I'll drop on this thread:


      That's probably why he voted for her. ;)

      In all seriousness, I wouldn't go that far, but it's a massive stretch to argue that those views fit in better in the modern day GOP than they do in the modern day Dems. Though he'd obviously be catching flack either way.

      The bolded is undeniable.  So, it comes down to what I would personally prefer, and even now in the age of Trump, the best Republicans >>>>>>>>>>>>> the least bad Democrats, regardless of how the entire parties shake out.  At least to this RINO.

      Yeah, I know I am, lol. But this entire forum is a waste of time, so whatever. :P

      What's your take on post #1351? Unless I'm missing something here, I can only assume you weight taxes/regulation extremely heavily and everything else very lightly for you to be a persistent Republican in this day and age. I would think that voting for Hillary would've caused you to rethink your party affiliation (not necessarily to become a Democrat, but at least not be a Republican.) Of course, I realize you have historical/non policy based attachments to the party as well, exactly how much do those factor into your decision?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: OSR stands with Israel on August 23, 2018, 03:27:32 PM

      That's probably why he voted for her. ;)

      In all seriousness, I wouldn't go that far, but it's a massive stretch to argue that those views fit in better in the modern day GOP than they do in the modern day Dems. Though he'd obviously be catching flack either way.


      LMAO


      Hillary wanted to increase taxes, supported a more leftist version of Obamacare, increase regulations  and opposed Right to Work

      Arguing whether you want a more conservative or more liberal version of Obamacare isn't really that huge of a difference. He obviously doesn't care much about right to work either way since the description was only a single line and he was "conflicted" and only "leaned" in support of it, so I don't see why that would matter.

      Taxes and regulations is about all there is that he has substantive disagreements with her on. Compare to the current Republican Party leader who the vast majority of Republican voters worship and the vast majority of Republican politicians enthusiastically support, where he disagrees with them on:

      Abortion, Same sex marriage, drug laws, gun control, religious freedom, political correctness, euthanasia, environment, immigration, minimum wage, healthcare, free trade, and foreign policy.


      LMAO GOP politicians are more in favor of free trade than Dem politicians. It just that the Tarrif power was handed to the President a long time ago so there isnt much congress can do. Look at the TPP vote from 2015

      Foreign policy: Again most GOP politicians are more interventionist than Dems are


      Political Correctness: Um Dems favor using government action on this issue, he clearly said he wouldnt support that.

      Gun Control: Rick Scott passed similar measures

      Drug Laws: Trump himself favors letting the states decide

      The vast majority of Republican voters now support tariffs because Trump does. And it's not really worth a damn if Republican politicians say they oppose tariffs but don't do anything about it because they love their strongman god emperor and don't want to risk his wrath. A vote from 2015 isn't relevant to the present day. In case you haven't noticed, Trump has made the GOP sell whatever was left of their soul and principles in exchange for power.

      There's really no evidence of that foreign policy claim. It's not 2004 anymore. The god emperor, who again I must stress has the support of >90% of Republican voters, enjoys letting the hellholes destroy themselves and loves cuddling up to Russia and Putin now while bashing NATO and any other American allies.

      I guess you missed the "don't be a dick" portion of his political correctness section, which the god emperor and an increasing number of GOP politicians violate on a daily basis.

      Rick Scott is a single person. The vast majority of Republicans, including the god emperor, oppose background checks and waiting periods. If they didn't, they would've passed by now.


      You need 2/3 of congress to override trump tarrifs. There is enough populist dems and a minority of republicans who can stop that . By the way way more Republicans voted for TPP than dems did .

      Again you talk about Voters , I talk about politicians and  They overwhelmingly voted to sanction Russia , and More of them were hawkish in Syria than Democrats.

      Lmao most Republican politicians  aren’t dicks either only Trump really is . If they are dicks so are the Dems and really only Trump stands out as very bad on that .




      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RINO Tom on August 23, 2018, 04:39:12 PM
      ^ LOL, IceSpear I think you know you're wasting your time. :P  Anyway, this is the last spam I'll drop on this thread:


      That's probably why he voted for her. ;)

      In all seriousness, I wouldn't go that far, but it's a massive stretch to argue that those views fit in better in the modern day GOP than they do in the modern day Dems. Though he'd obviously be catching flack either way.

      The bolded is undeniable.  So, it comes down to what I would personally prefer, and even now in the age of Trump, the best Republicans >>>>>>>>>>>>> the least bad Democrats, regardless of how the entire parties shake out.  At least to this RINO.

      Yeah, I know I am, lol. But this entire forum is a waste of time, so whatever. :P

      What's your take on post #1351? Unless I'm missing something here, I can only assume you weight taxes/regulation extremely heavily and everything else very lightly for you to be a persistent Republican in this day and age. I would think that voting for Hillary would've caused you to rethink your party affiliation (not necessarily to become a Democrat, but at least not be a Republican.) Of course, I realize you have historical/non policy based attachments to the party as well, exactly how much do those factor into your decision?

      Yes, a good enough description.  I also don't believe the Democratic Party will ever represent a truly appropriate vehicle for policies that I want in the future.  Even if it is a "better fit" now than the GOP (something I disagree with but can understand the thinking behind), I am highly skeptical that as I grow older (and especially as Boomers die off and Millennials get more power) the Democratic Party will ever resemble my politics in majority, especially for a sustained period of time. 

      Hypothetical Future GOP >>>>>>>>>>>>> Modern Democratic Party > Modern GOP, if you will.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Lord Admirale on September 10, 2018, 08:21:11 AM
      Social issues:
      - Pro-Choice
      - Pro-SSM
      - Pro-Gun (however I do support certain regulations, raise the age to buy a rifle to 21 and mandate 90 day waiting period for gun purchase)
      - Pro-Criminal Justice Reform
      - Pro-Marijuana
      - Pro-Immigration Reform

      Economic:
      - Fiscal responsibility
      - Multipayer Healthcare is a good idea
      - Capitalist
      - Cut aid to tyrannical/oppressive countries
      - Free trade

      Foreign Policy:
      - Pro-Israel
      - Hawk
      - Anti-Russia
      - Anti-China
      - Anti-Saudi


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Since I'm the mad scientist proclaimed by myself on September 11, 2018, 04:14:06 PM
      Abortion: uncertain, lean against (after 10 weeks or so), but I find most vocally pro life men are empathy free scum.
      Drugs: legalize less dangerous drugs, decriminalize all drugs. Greatly expand access to treatment programs
      Guns: don't really think about it
      Immigration: Pretty much anyone should be allowed to immigrate. We should make sure to understand who's coming in and going out
      National ID system: support, but don't make it easy to spy on people, etc with it.
      Criminal justice reform: support, justice should be rehabilitative
      LGBTQ+ rights: support. Not accepting a Trans child is abuse. Enbies should be accepted. You're a s##t person if you pretend ace/aro people don't exist.
      Content warnings: support, and the abuse of the word "triggered" is disgusting
      Women's rights:have far to go
      Racial issues:ditto
      Child abuse:cps is a disgraceful failure, taking away poor kids for little reason and failing to stop abuse in higher class families (as well as pretending emotional abuse doesn't exist)
      Autistic people:should not be pathologized and demonized.
      Ablism: is depressingly common in modern society. Disabled people deserve respect and consideration
      Vaccines and medical care: should be mandatory. Denying your child medical care because of religious reasons especially is abuse and should result in calls to cps
      Prostitution: buying should be criminal, sellers should be respected(it's immoral to buy but not to sell)

      Everyone deserves Healthcare, there is no right to own things that aren't for personal use (eg land), asceticism is good, we should seek communism, meritocracy means good people get less because of lower natural ability. Protectionism in a developed economy is bad.

      I lost steam.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: HillGoose on September 14, 2018, 12:42:56 PM
      I'm gonna do one now.

      Foreign Policy: I believe in expanding NATO, increasing military spending, having US troops in Ukraine, and liberating Syria, Iran, North Korea, Venezuela, Cuba, Zimbabwe, Belarus, Sudan. And continuing drone strikes to kill terrorists.
      Drugs: I believe all drugs should be legal. Including meth, heroin, DMT, whatever. People are still responsible for crimes they commit while under the influence, however.
      Abortion: No government ban, but also no federal funding.
      LGBT: Legal SSM. Let people do whatever they want with their sexuality, government doesn't belong in it. That means it's also okay to not sell to LGBT, but you're an idiot if you're running a business and actively refusing customers.
      Welfare/Social Security: I believe in ending Social Security. I think welfare should still exist for poor children and adults who prove they are responsible enough to deserve it. I do not believe anti-vaxxers should get welfare benefits.
      Free Trade: Free trade is the best, I support NAFTA, TPP, and want the US more integrated in free trade and the global economy.
      Education: I think the government should replace teachers with computers. It will save a lot of money.
      Taxes: I believe in lower corporate rates, lower rates on high-income earners, abolishing capital gains taxes, as well abolishing estate taxes. I believe in getting tax rates as low as possible.
      Minimum Wage: I don't believe in a minimum wage, certainly not increasing it either. Minimum wage jobs are to build experience, not to have a family on.
      Prostitution: I believe it should be legal nationwide for any consenting person over the age of 21, to either buy or sell.
      Immigration: Make it as easy as possible for people to immigrate here, without going open-borders. Background check for no criminal connections, but otherwise no restrictions on legal immigration.
      Separation of Church and State: I don't believe there should be any references to religion in government. No Ten Commandments in courthouses, no religious-based policies, none of it. We are a secular nation.
      Environment: I believe the free market will solve all environmental issues.
      Euthanasia: Oppose on a personal basis. Lawyers should have to produce documentation that you want to die and confirm it in court before anyone has euthanasia done.
      Healthcare: Repeal PPACA with no replacement, government doesn't belong in healthcare, except to provide healthcare for poor children.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: libertpaulian on September 15, 2018, 09:14:07 PM
      Social issues:
      - Pro-life, but can accept a 20-week ban as a compromise position.
      - Pro-SSM
      - LGBT should be added to civil rights laws
      - Pro-Gun
      - Pro-Criminal Justice Reform
      - Pro-Marijuana
      - Pro-Immigration Reform
      - Abolish qualified immunity for police officers

      Economic:
      - Fiscal restraint
      - Multi-payer or all-payer healthcare but with the market as the first resort.
      - Capitalist
      - Free trade
      - Market solutions to resolve climate change
      - Give states more leverage to solve major policy issues
      - Repeal the 16th Amendment and replace our tax system with a Land-value tax and Pigouvian tax

      Foreign Policy:
      - Pro-Israel
      - Realist
      - Cut aid to dictatorships
      - Anti-Russia
      - Anti-Saudi Arabia
      - Treat China as a frenemy


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: LAKISYLVANIA on September 18, 2018, 02:34:24 PM
      Foreign Policy: I believe that NATO should be disbanded, and that we should decrease military spending, focus on diplomacy and international dialogue, and follow an independent course in terms of foreign politics.
      Drugs: Legalization of marijuana, decriminalisation of other drugs, but focus on prevention and rehabitilation. Driving while drunk or driving under influence should not be tolerated though.
      Abortion: Pro-choice. If woman are against abortion, they can chose to not have an abortion when they're pregnant, but it's not my business or business of the state. Illegal abortions are also not safe and not preferrable by any means, because the government or private instutions doesn't provide a safer way.
      LGBT: I support LGBTQ-rights, but we shouldn't start to pro-discriminate them which is currently happening. People are starting to feel like they're being forgotten when they're "too normal".
      Welfare/Social Security: Expand. Social security might be the most important task a government has to offer their citizens. It's the only way to combat poverty, and it's the most humanitarian approach. Economic equality is very important to me.
      Free Trade: Lean towards oppose. Or... at least less than now. Let's put it that way. Globalism has gone too far, and multinationals have too much of a hegemony over the market. We should focus on supporting local economy, and more protectionist measures against international corporations, but... still more than reasonable.
      Education: I support free tuition fees, and would invest a lot in quality college. Education is what shapes a person and what helps them in their further life. Anything starts with going to college. That's why we should spend a lot here. I'm a proponent of the Finnish system.
      Taxes: Lowering rates on middle and lower classes, higher or keeping high on high-income earners, and progressive tax system on corporations (high multinationals, less high on local corporations). Taxes should be used to provide more economic equality.
      Minimum Wage: I believe in a minimum wage yes. People who work need to have a decent income. Should be up to 15 dollar / hour at least. Anything below is basically slavery.
      Prostitution: Legal, starting at the age of 21, for both people who offer / make use of it.
      Immigration: I believe we should be tough on immigration, but be anti-racist. But we need to stop importing poverty here, and focus on stabilizing other regions on the world. The world isn't culturally homogenous enough or tolerant enough to other cultures to have mass-immigration of this rate. Immigration should thus be tough, but correct and humane. We also need to make sure that immigrant groups already staying in our country, can truly integrate in our country.
      Separation of Church and State: We should be a secular nation, and there should be no reference of religion in the state, even at school.
      Environment: Climate change might be the most important issue of 21st century, so we need to take harsh measures here. We currently are not doing enough to combat climate change. We need to prioritize green energy and focus on a sustainable green economy, focus on public transport, and have a tax of 21% on meat.
      Euthanasia: I support euthanasia. People have the right to die if they want too. It's also more humane that suicide efforts and it can offer a way for people to say goodbye to that person and accept it.
      Healthcare: I support universal single-payer healthcare system. Healthcare is very important, and everyone should afford it. No-one should die or get sick because they simply can not afford to go to the doctor or pay a visit to the hospital.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: bigic on September 27, 2018, 07:24:18 AM
      Foreign Policy: I'm for an internationalist and globalist foreign policy based on democratic and liberal values. Support most forms of political co-operation between the states, such as the EU. If for example Ukraine wants to join NATO, it should be able to join. Not a fan of offensive wars, but they have their place.
      Drugs: Legalize marijuana and other "soft" drugs, decriminalize other drugs as a start. I'd like all drugs being legal, but I'm sceptical about that.
      Abortion: Pro-choice. Against banning abortion, including late-term abortion.
      LGBT: Full legal equality with heterosexuals and other sexual orientations. For marriage, adoption and other rights.
      Gun control: Against. Gun control is paternalism.
      Welfare/Retirement: The welfare system should be more cash based - replace food stamps, social housing etc. with cash transfers. Curious about NIT/UBI. I also think that welfare spending should be somewhat reduced. Reduce the retirement system so that it provides just a minimal amount to keep old people from being poor and promote private retirement insurance.
      Free Trade: For abolition of all tariffs and for multi-lateral trade agreements to eliminate (or at least reduce) non-tariff barriers. Trade should be as free as possible.
      Education: For school vouchers and more private schools.
      Taxes: Curious about LVT, I think it's a good replacement to property taxes as it doesn't disincentive development as much. Shift tax burden from income taxes to consumption taxes and reduce overall taxation and spending.
      Minimum Wage: Against minimum wage, as it reduces employment.
      Privatization: Privatize everything except maybe natural monopolies.
      Regulation: Almost always for deregulation. Particularly opposed to zoning, occupational licensing, taxi and anti-Uber regulations...
      Prostitution: Should be completely legal.
      Immigration: Against any immigration restrictions.
      Separation of Church and State: The state should be neutral to all beliefs and non-beliefs. Against restriction of religious freedom and against promotion of religion by the state and religious symbols in state institutions.
      Environment: For market-based solutions such as carbon tax or cap-and-trade.
      Euthanasia: For legalizing euthanasia, as long as it's done with appropriate consent
      Healthcare: For a market-based multipayer system of universal healthcare.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: GreatTailedGrackle on October 01, 2018, 09:58:16 PM
      If I start going issue-by issue it will take forever, so I will break it down into three parts, summarized briefly: social issues, economic issues, and foreign policy.

      On nearly all the social issues I can think of I am a libertarian and usually hold positions near the extreme end of the spectrum.  However immigration and gun control are exceptions: in both cases I hold positions very near the political center.

      On economics I am more moderate.  I am not opposed in principle to either government spending or regulation, but I believe that the justification for either one has to be pretty strong.  Regulation in particular, I think is excessive: I believe the only acceptable regulations are those address an externality, an imbalance of information, or a natural monopoly, and then only if the burden is commensurate with the harm the regulation addresses.  When it comes to spending, there are more reasons I would support it, but usually only if there is also strong fiscal multiplier.  I oppose deficit spending except in times of war or a major recession, but I also don't think we'll get the debt down in my lifetime.  When it comes to taxes, I don't like them (who does?) but am more concerned with loopholes than the rate.

      On foreign policy, I'm much more internationalist than movement libertarians, and I loved John McCain's "League of Democracies" idea.  I support drone assassinations and some cases of targeted air strikes, but strongly oppose offensive wars involving ground forces.  I believe free trade and cultural ties are the best way to effect regime change in dictatorships.  I am skeptical of foreign aid because of the evidence that the most popular forms are counterproductive. I think withdrawing the US from the Orwellian "United Nations Human Rights Council" is one of the only things Trump got right, and I would like to kick the UN out of New York City as well, so that foreign dictators with outstanding travel bans can't speak at Columbia University or go shopping on Fifth Avenue.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: BlueSwan on October 13, 2018, 12:50:43 PM
      I don't know if I ever answered this thread before, but here we go. I'm going to include some issues that are hotly debated in the US even if they are not in Denmark.

      Abortion: I support abortion rights, but with a time limit. In Denmark we have free access to abortions during the first trimester, with some exceptions being made up to 20 weeks. It seems to work well. Crucially, sex education is super important.

      Affirmative action: Bill O'Reilly's beloved "White christian straight male power structure" is very real and it needs to be challenged to give minorities and women equal chances. Therefore I tend to support various versions of preferential treatment for minorities and women (or even men in some female dominated areas), with the caveat that these are meant to be icebreakers to change said power structure, not as permanent fixtures.

      Immigration: I have nothing whatsoever against immigrants. I'm not afraid of brown people or muslims. Quite the contrary, actually. I have a lot of empathy for those people, because they don't have it easy in Denmark these days. However, I am sick of losing elections over this issue - this issue alone has caused the progressive side to lose 4 of the last 5 parliamentary elections in Denmark (every election since 2001, except the one in 2011). The fact is that many people are deeply concerned about the cultural impact of third-world immigration and we have to take that concern seriously. That's why I am ok with a somewhat strict immigration policy, even if I don't actual like that policy myself. However, I am TOTALLY against all the initiatives that are basically designed to harrass muslims. I think we need to do MUCH more to make immigrants actually feel at home here and as it currently is, I certainly can't blame immigrants for not feeling at home, because the overall sentiment in danish politics and danish media is heavily anti-immigrant and even more heavily anti-muslim. As for the US, I believe that Donald Trump won because of this issue and I think Democrats should take it seriously. If democrats are perceived (however wrongly) as being the party of unlimited immigration, they will lose again.

      Crime: I support being massively more lenient in the criminal system. Alternative methods of punishment should be used far more and funds are better spent on prevention and resocialization programs than on keeping people locked up. I am obviously against the death penalty.

      Gun control:If you had a well-functioning country basically without guns, would you support allowing for people to buy guns at will?? I think any reasonable person would answer "NO!" to that question, which is why it for Europeans seems nonsensical that Americans cling to their guns the way they do. I realize that getting rid of guns in the US is not going to be easy, but they did it in Australia, so it is not impossible.

      LGBTQ-issues: I support equal rights for everyone. Always have, always will.

      The environment/climate change: MASSIVE initiatives needs to be taken to battle global warming and it needs to happen now. The Paris treaty was just a baby step. All wealthy nations need to pour massive resources into scientific research and we need strict CO2-quotas for all to follow. Countries that do not follow suit should be heavily sanctioned.

      Taxes: I support fairly high levels of taxes and in particular higher taxes on property, resource use and inheritance.

      Trade:I support REGULATED free trade, not the libertarian version of free trade. But regulated free trade make us all richer.

      Health-care: Access to health care is a human right. I fully support a single-payer universal health care model.

      Automation:Automation is GREAT. It makes humanity richer and allows for us to have more interesting, less physically demanding and probably better paying jobs. If you don't agree with this think about whether you'd really like to go back to the early 1800s.

      Education: Education should be governmentally funded. In Denmark we get paid to take an education. I realize that this might not be an immediately feasible solution for many countries, but ideally I think it is a great system.

      Benefits: I support a strong social security net. Western countries are so rich that nobody should be poor, period. The government needs to provide funds for a decent life for anybody who can't find work or simply cannot work.

      Minimum wage: In Denmark we don't have a legal minimum wage, as we have strong enough unions to take care of the issue. The de facto minimum wage is around $17-18. I certainly support a higher minimum wage in the States but don't have any strong feelings as to what exactly the level should be at.

      Foreign Policy:
      The western world needs the US to return to the Obama years of being a general force for good in the world. We cannot take peace for granted. The peaceful times we have had in the west since WW2 has happened for a reason. Without a strong US it is far from certain that it would have been as peaceful. But for the US to remain strong, they need to stop fighting unwinnable wars. The wars in the middle east were a mistake and should not be repeated.

      Voter reform/election reform: Automated national registration at 18 years of age. Voting rights are RIGHTS, you should not be able to lose those under any circumstances, which means that felons should also be able to vote. Gerrymandering should be outlawed - all congressional districts should be drawn by nonpartisan boards. Ideally a proportional voting system should be adopted, but that is probably unrealistic. I support the national popular vote initiative, since I don't believe the electoral college will be abolished. Another unrealistic idea is that ideally I'd like to see the senate abolished as it gives way to much power to microstates, which do not even form a sociocultural unit in any meaningful fashion other than geographical proximity (much more important if you are urban or rural, black or white, rich or poor, well educated or not, or male or female than if you live in Iowa or Minnesota).

      Drugs/prostitution: I generally don't believe in criminalizing behaviour that only hurts the actual people involved in the acts. Furthermore, I don't think criminazation accomplishes anything. So I support the legalization of prostitution and drugs. Both should be combated but in different ways than through the legal system.

      The budget: It is generally nonsense to regard it is important to "balance the budget". A public budget does not need to balance, but it IS wise to avoid debt levels getting out of control. The US running trillion dollar deficits during a boom is most definitely NOT responsible fiscal policy. If the US should ever run a surplus it should be right now while the economy is booming and unemployment is very low. During a boom is the BEST time to raise taxes, so the US should get on with that immediately (as if that's going to happen....).


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Florian Geyer on October 18, 2018, 12:07:23 PM
      Social Policy
      Abortion: Personally I'm pro-life, but allow for first trimester only, as well as no sex selective abortion. Women getting safe abortions is better than in an alley ig.
      Drugs: Decriminalize some drugs like marijuana
      Censorship: No
      Gay Marriage: Gay people should be allowed to get married
      Death penalty: Legal for war criminals/terrorists, as well as for people who commit industrial crimes (DuPont dumping chemicals in the water)
      Prostitution: Keep it illegal
      Stem cell research: Conflicted feelings
      Gun control: The 2nd amendment asserts the right of every American to bear arms, and we should keep it that way
      Assisted suicide: Legal for terminal illnesses and the like
      Gambling: Casinos should stay illegal

      Electoral Reform
      Term Limits: No term limits
      Voting Age: Stay the same
      Campaign Finance Reform: Publicly financing is an ok idea, definitely ban corporate donations
      Gerrymandering: Bad

      Economic Issues
      Unions: Unions protect the working class, extremely good
      Privatization: No, nationalize some industries instead
      Minimum Wage: $15 + adjust for inflation
      Taxation: Lower taxes on the middle/lower classes and higher on the highest earners
      Healthcare: Universal healthcare system
      Trade: Support fair trade, prioritize America but don't go full protectionist. Only sign free trade agreements with labor protections.
      Military: Scale back the military, withdraw troops slowly from Middle East

      Foreign Policy
      War: No wars of aggression
      Israel-Palestine: Very messy, just don't bother
      UN: Remain in UN, but less involvement


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: OBD on October 29, 2018, 12:43:33 PM
      Social Policy
      Abortion: Pro-life. If you have a baby it's your own fault not the baby's so it's wrong to kill it just because you were being stupid. Exceptions include rape, incest, and the like.
      Drugs: Legalize medicinal, not recreational.
      Censorship: Only in the most extreme cases, eg. porn
      Gay Marriage: Support.
      Death penalty: Only in the most extreme cases, eg. mass shootings.
      Prostitution: Should be illegal.
      Church and State: Keep separate.
      Stem cell research: Support, as long as no babies are killed.
      PATRIOT Act: Mildly against. Personal rights and national security must be balanced.
      Gun control: For. It's been my view that an American citizen who hasn't committed crimes should be able to get guns (not AR-15s and the like though) even under strong regulations.
      Assisted suicide: For. It's their choice.
      Gambling: I wouldn't do it but people should get to choose whether to meme themselves or not.

      Electoral Reform
      Term Limits: Against. No need, except for presidential term limits.
      Statehood: Give PR statehood, idk about the other territories since they are too small.
      Voting Age: Lower to 16. Probably will change once I get older lol.
      Campaign Finance Reform: Companies should be able to donate money if they want to. Still, limits should be imposed.
      Gerrymandering: Against. Nonpartisan committees should draw boundaries for all states. I would support a constitutional amendment on this issue.
      Voter ID: Against. Voter suppression tactic.

      Economic Issues
      Unions: I support the right to organize, provided they aren't used as excuses for poor performance.
      Privatization: Let's keep things as they are. Obviously prison privatization is a human rights disaster, but in other areas it's not so bad...
      Minimum Wage: Let's keep it as it is.
      Taxation: Lessen the slope of incremental tax, the rich work hard for their money and shouldn't be forced to give it up, but it's important to fund government programs at the same time. There shouldn't be new taxes, government needs to be more efficient with revenue.
      Healthcare: Universal healthcare would be nice but would cost a ton. Personally, I'm good with the ACA.
      Trade: Free trade best trade!
      Military: Strike a balance between protecting liberty around the world/protecting against domestic terrorism and not wasting funds that could go to worthier domestic causes. I would support some cuts.

      Foreign Policy
      War: Only if human rights violations are clearly being committed, or to defend an ally (eg. South Korea)
      Israel-Palestine: Neutral.
      Draft: Don't really know. Hopefully there won't be a war to trigger one.
      UN: Stay in, the US must remain involved in world affairs as a voice for human rights.
      Nukes: Nuclear war bad, so try and get other countries to disarm instead of pissing them off by withdrawing from treaties.
      Foreign Aid: Only give to nations with democratic ideology.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Xeuma on November 08, 2018, 12:43:35 PM
      Social Policy
      Abortion: Personally not a fan, but pro-choice. Open to a ban after the first trimester.

      Drugs: Decriminalize all, legalize most.

      Gay Marriage: Support.

      Death penalty: Permitting the government to kill its citizens is the slippiest slope.

      Prostitution: Decriminalize.

      Church and State: Politicians can base their votes on whatever they want. Don't establish a national religion or discriminate, obviously.

      Stem cell research: Support

      PATRIOT Act: Strongly support repeal. Also reform the intelligence apparatus and bring it under Congressional review. Auditing the NSA > auditing the Federal Reserve.

      Gun control: I really don't care.

      Assisted suicide: Again I personally have a problem with it, but this I can't decide one way or another.

      Gambling: Its my problem if you're an idiot.

      Electoral Reform
      Term Limits: We already have elections

      Statehood: Statehood for all territories and DC.

      Voting Age: Lower to 16

      Campaign Finance Reform: Publicly finance all campaigns, overturn Citizens United and ban corporate donations.

      Gerrymandering: Disgusting, but Democrats need to level the playing field.

      Voter ID: Bad solution to a non-existent problem.

      Institutional Reform: Strongly support increasing the House to 995 members and reforming the Senate into a proportional representation system.

      Economic Issues
      Unions: Strongly support.

      Privatization: Hell no.

      Minimum Wage: $11, indexed to age of the employee, area economy, and inflation

      Taxation: Repeal the 2017 tax bill, expand credits and deductions for low-income (especially families with children). End welfare cliffs.

      Healthcare: Multiplayer market solution

      Trade: Strongly support free trade, but agreements should contain provisos for labor protections

      Military: Maintain current levels or scale back slightly

      Foreign Policy
      War: Only to protect human rights (Bosnia) or if attacked first

      Israel-Palestine: Lean pro-Israel, but criticism of Israel is not anti-semitism.

      Draft: We don't need it anymore. Abolish.

      UN: Strongly support it

      Foreign aid: Expand, but cut off support with totalitarian regimes (e.g. Iran, Saudi, Russia).


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: IceSpear on November 25, 2018, 05:02:51 AM
      Since I don't think I've done one of these before...

      Overview:
      Social: Left
      Economic: Left
      Foreign: Centrist, I guess?
      Party Affiliation: Democratic

      Social Policy:
      Abortion: Strongly pro-choice until fetal viability.
      Same-Sex Marriage: Strongly support, obviously.
      Drug Laws: Legalize marijuana, or at minimum decriminalize it. Treat drug addiction as a medical condition that needs treatment, not a crime.
      Death Penalty: Support for particularly heinous crimes where there is no doubt whatsoever that the person is guilty.
      Gun Control: Standardize the background check system, close the loopholes, and ban military style assault weapons. I don't support blanket gun bans.
      Religious Freedom: Who doesn't support religious freedom? Seems like this is code for something else.
      Affirmative Action: Generally support, but it tends to depend on how it is implemented.
      Political Correctness: People who are overly politically correct are annoying, but I've tended to notice that most people who complain non stop about "political correctness" are just mad they can't use the N word in public anymore without getting called out for it.
      Euthanasia: Strongly support. People should have the right to have a painless and dignified death if they so choose. Nobody should have the right to take their agency away from them.
      Prostitution: Legalize it, or at the very least decriminalize it.
      Immigration: I support comprehensive immigration reform. Give the Dreamers immediate citizenship, give those already here who aren't criminals a reasonable and non draconian path to citizenship, secure the border. I'd even give Trump his stupid, pointless, money wasting wall if it was included in a comprehensive and reasonable bill. I don't support open borders.

      Economic Policy:
      Minimum Wage: The nationwide floor should be around $12, indexed for inflation. States/cities with a higher cost of living should be encouraged to raise theirs higher.
      Right to Work: Oppose. The decline of unions has had a horrendous impact on the American middle class.
      Taxation: Raise taxes for corporations and the super wealthy.
      Healthcare: Ideally a Canadian or European style universal healthcare system, but I recognize it will take America a long time to get there, if we ever do. I support whatever steps will expand healthcare in the meantime. Obamacare (particularly Medicaid expansion) was a good start, but we need to go further.
      Education: The American education system is abysmal. Our schools are underfunded, our teachers are underpaid, and we're not preparing the future generations with the knowledge and skills they need to be successful. Not only that, we burden our future generations with massive amounts of student debt. Tuition at public colleges should be low cost or free.
      Free Trade: No opinion. This has always been the one "major issue" I have little interest/investment in. I've read about it at times and hear convincing arguments from both sides, and haven't fully bought into one or the other.

      Foreign Policy and National Security:
      I would say I'm a foreign policy realist. I oppose both neoconservatism and isolationism. I think potential and current conflicts should be evaluated on a case by case basis. Diplomacy, sanctions, etc. should always be exhausted before entering into a conflict, but sometimes conflict is inevitable. I support a two state solution for Israel/Palestine. Russia is a hostile adversary that needs to continue to face serious consequences for interfering in our election, and our current president cozying up to Putin and refusing to acknowledge his attacks on our democracy is disgusting.

      Environment:
      Climate Change: Exists obviously, but I'm a bit of nihilist here. I honestly don't think the status quo is ever going to change until it's too late. Luckily I won't have kids so the potential destruction of the world won't affect me. But the same won't apply to all the rich people destroying the environment for the sake of profits.

      Electoral and Political Reform:
      Term limits: It's an intriguing idea, but I'm not sure it would do much to fix the problems it professes to solve. I'd be open to hearing opposing arguments on this though.
      Electoral College Reform: Abolish the archaic anachronism already.
      Voter ID: Support, but only if IDs are free and easily accessible. Otherwise it's an unconstitutional poll tax and/or attempt at voter suppression, so I oppose most voter ID laws in their current form.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: YE on November 25, 2018, 08:43:52 PM
      IceSpear is so Generic D.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Dr. MB on November 26, 2018, 02:33:18 AM
      Overview:
      Social: Left
      Economic: Left
      Foreign: non-interventionist
      Party Affiliation: Democratic

      Social Policy:
      Abortion: I can't really justify it, but at the same time I can't really justify banning it, so pretty neutral I guess. Not an issue I care about that much.
      Same-Sex Marriage: Strongly support, obviously.
      Drug Laws: FREE THE WEED (and everything else!). Pardon everyone convicted of drug offenses.
      Death Penalty: Usually oppose as I can't justify giving our justice system that power, but there are a few people who I wouldn't be sad to see go.
      Gun Control: Nope.
      Religious Freedom: Too broad and vague, if you're talking about the dogwhistle then no but if you take it literally then of course
      Affirmative Action: Not a fan, instead we should implement reduced/free tuition, especially for low income people
      Political Correctness: Who cares? People who obsess over it are dumb@sses.
      Euthanasia: See abortion.
      Prostitution: Arresting prostitutes is a bad move. Legalize it I guess.
      Immigration: Just leave people be. They came, they're here, so what?
      Criminal justice: Ohh boy. Yeah, basically take the most left wing view on everything related to this and I have it.

      Economic Policy:
      Minimum Wage: It's good to have a minimum wage. Preferably one that's high enough for people to actually be able to afford basic needs.
      Right to Work: F**k you, Scott Walker
      Taxation: Higher taxes on the rich, lower on everyone else
      Healthcare: Universal healthcare is the only way to go (and with that, single payer).
      Education: As someone who's part of the American education system, it's...bad. But going in and teaching people to be good little obedient workers ain't good either. Obviously increase funding to the underfunded schools (which really need some funding). For college, make it reduced cost or tuition free. Also, waive all student debt.
      Free Trade: Unrestricted free trade is bad, mostly cause I really, really can't trust a lot of the multinational corporations. But, protectionism and tariffs don't work either. I'm good with it as long as the people on both sides of it are benefiting and performing fair labor (no sweatshops for example).

      Foreign Policy and National Security:
      Most of the time we try to go to war, it, well, just doesn't work. Also, antagonizing countries is a bad strategy, as is supporting sh!tty dictators (supporting and supplying the Saudis now is just like supporting Pinochet or the Contras during the Cold War). Just, respect everyone that's respectable.

      If we could ever get true bilateral nuclear disarmament that would be great, but sadly it ain't happening anytime soon.

      I'm pro-privacy and oppose surveillance state measures disguised as "national security". Also, the 1st amendment is great.

      Environment:
      Climate Change: It's here and it's bad. Ideally we'd switch as soon as possible to purely renewable energy but again that ain't happening.

      Electoral and Political Reform:
      Term limits: Nah.
      Electoral College Reform: Get rid of it
      Voter ID: Nationwide vote by mail


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Holy Unifying Centrist on November 28, 2018, 11:10:37 PM
      Haven't done this for a while, and I feel like my views have shifted a tad.

      SUMMARY
      Social: Center left
      Economic: Center right
      Foreign: Rather interventionist
      Party Affiliation: Republican

      SOCIAL POLICY
      Abortion: I support Roe v. Wade and generally fall under the umbrella of "pro-choice."  However, I have serious moral qualms with abortion, and I am incredibly turned off by a lot of "liberal" rhetoric on the issue (this issue brings out some of the worst of tribalism).  I absolutely support some type of third trimester ban (except for the big three exceptions), though I would defer to someone with some more medical knowledge than I have to determine the cutoff (which will, of course, inevitably be somewhat arbitrary).
      Same-Sex Marriage: I support it, no exceptions.
      Drug Laws: I think states should be able to decide RE: marijuana, but I think drug use in general should be decriminalized, with the punishment falling on the large scale dealers.  No kid should face jail time or have their job prospects shattered for being one of the many college kids who comes across drugs and trying it/being that unlucky that they get caught.
      Death Penalty: In general, I support its existence ... I have a hard time articulating this view, as there is no perfect "rule" of when to use it that I can land on.  However, I do strongly believe that it is an appropriate punishment for certain cases.
      Gun Control: I am generally quite skeptical.  I am sympathetic to the Second Amendment and to the arguments that defend not altering it too much.  I would support common sense measures like background checks and waiting periods, but anything else is Constitutionally dubious and won't help the problem much.
      Religious Freedom: Follow the precedent of past civil rights legislation and the Interstate Commerce Clause.
      Affirmative Action: I support it for SES, but I am quite skeptical of affirmative action on the basis of race, specifically for minority groups with higher-than-average SES (like Asian-Americans).
      Political Correctness: Try not to offend people ... there isn't a "law" that can make a meaningful impact here, IMO.  Rational people can see where the line of common sense is.
      Euthanasia: Though I have some real reservations about this morally, I have not arrived at a reason to oppose people's right to die with dignity.  My uncomfortably with the state systematically condoning the killing of innocents (even if the innocents have asked for it) is slightly outweighed by sympathy for the patients who desire that type of ending.
      Prostitution: This is a "live and let live" position that I strongly disagree with.  While a prostitute should never be in legal trouble for having to resort to that, prostitution must absolutely remain illegal.  Forgetting for a second the moral decay (unironic use) that would ensue, it enables the sex trade.
      Environment: I am in favor of measures to preserve and protect our environment.  While regulations to do both can and should be balanced with policies that encourage the business community and private sector to thrive, punishment for breaking environmental regulations needs to be severe, and incentives for green policies should be generous.
      Immigration: It is impractical (especially financially) to deport illegal immigrants that are already here, with the exception of ones that are identified as having committed minor crimes (ones who commit major crimes should be detained here).  However, a mark of a civilized country is to have border security that at least enables you to know who and what are entering your borders.  You owe that to your citizens, period.  I would support a pathway to citizenship for those already here (and amnesty for the crime of immigrating here illegally) and an intentional effort to secure our borders.  Most of my issue with more "conservative" thinking on this issue is with unwelcoming rhetoric that phrases the desire for border security in an unfair and unsavory light ... it's common sense to monitor immigration into your country and to make sure there is security.  How that somehow got associated with any type of "backward" thinking is absurd.

      ECONOMIC POLICY
      Minimum Wage: Have a federal minimum wage around $10.00 and let cities or states adopt higher ones if they desire to.  Index it to inflation, of course.
      Right to Work: I'm rather conflicted, but I lean toward support.
      Taxation: Current rates are fine, especially the new corporate ones.
      Regulation: Regulation in general targets the wrong sort of companies and fails to truly alter the practices of the companies who acted irresponsibly in the first place.  We obviously need regulations on businesses, but in general what we have now has too much red tape that only ends up passing costs to consumers and lowering wages.
      Healthcare: I would support a slightly more conservative version of Obamacare.  Most of my issue with liberal healthcare proposals is that they are too "one size fits all."  It seems to be an obsession of liberals to make everything uniform and under government regulation, but subsidies and whatnot for lower income individuals are a much better idea.  My other major issue with Obamacare is that it was intentionally designed to create a demand for government-run healthcare by making the fine for not offering healthcare less than the cost of providing it to your employees ... it's literally the worst of both worlds.
      Free Trade: While human rights conditions and whatnot need to be considered, free trade is the best trade.

      FOREIGN POLICY
      I have a meeting coming up anyway (:P), but I also wanted to keep this one vague since it is a vague issue.  I generally believe that, post-World War II, we have assumed a responsibility (for better or for worse) as the leader and prime example for the free world and democratic West; a critic might call this the "world's police."  We obviously can't get involved in every conflict everywhere, but it is both in our interest and in the world's interest for the Untied States to be a leader in promoting democracy and human rights across the world.  Sometimes, this is inevitably going to mean military involvement.



      Not going to bother writing my own post when someone has basically done it for me. :)

      I'm an Independent though, not a Republican.



      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: MR DARK BRANDON on November 30, 2018, 05:09:27 PM
      Economic and Fiscal Issues : Extreme Conservative
      Foreign Policy : Conservative
      Domestic Issues: Very Conservative
      Social Issues : Centerist


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: West_Midlander on December 10, 2018, 11:41:10 PM
      Last time I took the political matrix test (a long while ago) I shifted slightly left economically and a lot to the right socially. I just took the test again and shifted to the right on both.

      Economic: Was: -7.81, Now: -5.61 (Change +2.20)

      Social: Was: -4.96, Now: -3.57 (Change +1.39)

      ()

      "Your score pegs you as economically leftist and socially moderately libertarian.

      Economic leftists mostly support strict economic controls and programs to assure that the poor are elevated to a higher position in society.

      Moderate social libertarians generally favor a hands-off approach to social legislation. They may believe that the government has no right to enforce morals, but may support certain controls on individual rights to avoid crime, drug use, or similar social ills."

      Mostly accurate, note "mostly," "generally" "may support certain controls" as some exceptions occur parting my views from the representation in the blurb. Especially agree with the elevating the poor portion.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Flyersfan232 on December 15, 2018, 05:08:51 PM
      mixture rand paul and trump.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Calthrina950 on December 22, 2018, 12:59:15 AM
      Overview:
      Social: Centrist to Center Right
      Economic: Centrist
      Foreign: Center to Center Right
      Party Affiliation: Registered Independent (Republican for avatar purposes)

      Social Policy:
      Abortion: Personally, I consider myself to be strongly pro-life. I have a very difficult time accepting the arguments of those who say that women should have absolute control over their bodies. Moreover, I think that individuals possess a great share of personal responsibility when they engage in sexual activities, and I firmly believe that life begins at conception. However, in reality, I know that, barring some dramatic change in the political landscape, abortion will always remain a legal practice in this country. Thus, I would support allowing abortion for the first trimester only. After that, unless if it necessary due to incest, rape, or a threat to the life of the mother and/or baby, it should not be permitted. I also think that all federal funding should be cut off to Planned Parenthood and to any other agencies that are engaged in providing abortion-related services. I would support expanding access to contraception, however.
      Same-Sex Marriage: At first, I was strongly opposed to same-sex marriage, but in the three years since Obergefell v. Hodges was decided, I've come to accept it as the law of the land. Thus, I would support maintaining the legal status quo, balanced at the same time with a recognition that not all individuals are morally in agreement with it. Hence, some of the religious freedom considerations (i.e. with the Masterpiece Cakeshop), that have been raised, would be valid to keep in mind.
      Drug Laws: I support the legalization of recreational and medical marijuana, with the appropriate safeguards to keep it out of the hands of those under 21 and those with a criminal felony. I also believe that we need to limit or do away with mandatory minimum sentences, and that we need to take a rehabilitative approach towards those who are caught up in the opioid crisis. In my view, the best approach would be to expand funding for rehabilitation and work-release programs, to increase access to community health centers, and to crack down on those who illegally distribute drugs. I also support "Death with Dignity" laws, and believe that the federal drug laws should be relaxed, to allow not only for marijuana in states where it has been legalized, but also to allow for access, under the proscribed conditions, to those drugs used by individuals to end their lives under "Death with Dignity".
      Death Penalty: I support maintaining the death penalty for those who have been convicted of the most heinous crimes (i.e. murder, terrorism, etc.), but I think that more rigorous safeguards need to be put in place to prevent those falsely accused of a crime from being executed, and that a greater effort must be made to extend clemency and fair treatment to those who deserve it.
      Gun Control: I am strongly in favor of the Second Amendment. I do not think gun control laws, such as universal background checks and assault weapons bans, are the best means in dealing with this issue. However, I do support arming teachers, expanding funding for mental health programs, and engendering greater cooperation between law enforcement agencies on the one hand, and school districts, businesses, and private individuals, on the other, in response to these sorts of situations.
      Religious Freedom: I strongly support freedom of religion, and I believe that every individual should have the right to practice their beliefs, as their conscience dictates. I also think we need to keep a firm line between church and state: thus, I'm against any public funding for things such as Tenth Commandment memorials, and I also support current court precedents regarding school prayer.
      Euthanasia: Support, as I've noted above.
      Prostitution: Maintain the status quo, but focus on rehabilitative efforts for prostitutes, and not on punishing them.
      Immigration: I support a strong border defense. That includes a barrier of some kind (not necessarily a wall), as well as the provision of extensive funding and resources to ICE. I also think that we need to end chain migration and to tighten the procedures regarding asylum and visa applications. Visa programs, in particular, need to be cut in size, given the negative effects that foreign labor, gained through such venues, has had upon American jobs and American workers. At the same time, however, I recognize the humanity of those who are truly seeking asylum in this country, as well as that of those brought here illegally as children. Thus, I believe that a clean amnesty should be granted to all current DACA recipients. However, we must implement E-Verify for all businesses and take steps to deport all criminal illegal aliens as soon as possible.

      Economic Policy:
      Minimum Wage: I strongly support a minimum wage, adjusted in accordance with inflation and with economic conditions. $15 a hour is too high, but I would support a small federal increase, as well as increases through state and local legislation. We must also make sure to balance any such increases with the capabilities of and demands placed upon businesses.
      Right to Work: I support this, as I don't think workers should be forced to pay dues to organizations that they do not belong to. However, we must maintain all regulations and laws that guarantee fair working hours, pay, and working conditions for all workers.
      Taxation: I would support the implementation of a progressive tax system, one in which wealthier individuals pay a higher proportion of their income in taxes, and poorer individuals a lower proportion of their income. However, I oppose excessive tax measures such as "soda taxes" and the like, and I think that at the local and state level, individuals should have a say in how much their taxation can be raised (through initiatives and referendums, as is the case in Colorado). I also think that we need to keep property and sales taxes low, and limit how much is collected through state income taxes.
      Healthcare: I don't support single-payer healthcare, and I will not support it until we can find a way to make it economically feasible and administratively practicable. However, I do support maintaining most elements of Obamacare, with the exception of the individual mandate. I also strongly support Medicaid expansion, and I believe we can be taking steps to widen the categories of individuals who qualify for coverage under that program. We must also do everything in our power to keep healthcare premiums as low as possible.
      Education: I support any measures that can be taken to alleviate the terms for student loans, cut back on student loan debt, and to expand opportunities for scholarships, to be awarded to deserving students. I also support the expansion of voucher programs, to allow for parents to send their kids to schools (i.e. charter, out of neighborhood), which they believe will provide the best education for their child. At the same time, however, I believe that we cannot neglect our public education system, and we must expand funding for school lunch programs, school textbooks, teacher pay, and classroom sanitary conditions, among other things. We also have to continue restructuring our educational system away from a "teaching to the test" model and place emphasis back on critical thinking and comprehension skills.
      Free Trade: While I do think that the free market has generally been a good thing for our country's economy, I also believe that our trade with other countries cannot be completely free. We have to balance our need to maintain strong trading relationships internationally with the needs of our workers and of our industries. Thus, I am an advocate of "fair trade", by which we obtain more equitable and more beneficial agreements with other countries, as well as provide incentives to businesses to keep jobs and plants here, and punish those companies that engage in extensive outsourcing. We must also keep firm watch over our intellectual property rights, especially against countries like China and Russia.

      Foreign Policy and National Security:
      While I firmly believe in a strong defense, and believe that we must keep ourselves ready for any potential military conflict, I am also not too fond of overseas military interventions. We should only intervene in other countries when it is absolutely necessary, and Congress must always take care to keep watch over the foreign and military policy activities of the executive branch. I also think that we need to rein in the CIA, NSA, and other intelligence agencies, and we must provide greater safeguards for protecting the privacy rights of our citizens. However, we must also keep full faith in those agencies, and take all necessary steps to allow them to perform their duties, in the manner that will best keep us safe. Thus, I support maintaining current funding and resources for federal law enforcement. I also believe that we must expand our funding and resources for cybersecurity, which is becoming such a critical security issue of this century, and we must fight against cyber-terrorism in all of its forms. We must maintain our membership in all currently existing alliances, while demanding that our partners bear their fair share of the costs. Finally, I am in firm support of Israel, am in firm opposition to Iran, and believe that we must continue pursuing all peaceful means to come to an agreement with North Korea. We must also maintain a firm line towards China and Russia, and keep open our newly reestablished diplomatic ties with Cuba.

      Environment:
      Climate Change: Climate change is one of the most serious and pressing issues of our times. While I think that that some of the alarmism surrounding it has been overblown, I also think that we must be doing much more to confront the crisis. Thus, I would support expanding incentives for green and renewable energy programs, along with the corresponding transition away from fossil-fuel sources. Such a transition, however, must be made at a gradual rate, with due consideration for the economic and political consequences. The best approach, then, would be to combine use of fossil-fuel sources with sources of renewable energy, and as renewable energy becomes more sophisticated over time, to gradually shift more and more of our economic focus into that sector. I also think that we must take steps to more vigorously limit carbon emissions, to protect our public lands, and to honor our treaty obligations, regarding climate change, with other countries. We must also be more proactive in protecting endangered animal species and the waters.

      Electoral and Political Reform:

      1. I would support imposing term limits on members of both Houses of Congress. Representatives should be limited to six two-year terms; Senators to two four-year terms. I also think term limits should be imposed on Supreme Court justices: no more than fifteen years of consecutive service, and a mandatory retirement age of 70.

      2. I believe that Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia should both be granted statehood, with full congressional representation.

      3. I think the Constitution should be amended to provide for a more clear definition of "legislative", "executive", and "judicial" power, to clarify the differences between each, and to spell out the exact powers possessed by Congress, by the President and other members of the executive branch, and by the Supreme Court, along with the lower federal courts. We must also take steps to rein in the administrative state and to expand the role of judicial review of all agency decisions, executive orders, and legislative acts.

      4. I think the Electoral College should be abolished. Presidents should be elected solely on the basis of the popular vote, preferably in a runoff system.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Cokeland Saxton on December 22, 2018, 04:39:14 AM
      Social: Centrist to Center Right
      Economic: Center Right
      Foreign: Center Right
      Party Affiliation: Registered Republican

      Abortion: Abortion should be illegal except when the mother's life is threatened or the fetus is incompatible with life. If the mother doesn't want the child, they should give it up for adoption. There are plenty of people who want to adopt, but never get the chance to.

      Same-Sex Marriage: I support civil unions, but no marriage. Marriage should be between a man and a woman. Civil union partners should have the same rights as other couples, with the exception of marriage.

      Drug Laws: I support the legalization of medical marijuana ONLY (no recreational), but to keep it away from people under 21. I also believe that we need to limit  mandatory minimum sentences, and that we need to take a rehabilitate those who abuse drug rather than punish them. Expand funding for rehabilitation and work-release programs in order to increase access to community health centers and crack down on those who illegally distribute drugs. I will not support "Death with Dignity" laws because it is not our choice when we die. I also support lowering the drinking age to 18, putting us in line with much of Europe in this regard.

      Death Penalty: I support keeping the death penalty only for those who have been convicted of the most heinous crimes (intentional murder, terrorism, etc.), but I think that more rigorous safeguards need to be put in place to prevent those falsely accused of a crime from being executed, and that a greater effort must be made to extend clemency and fair treatment to those who deserve it, such as those who are truly repentant.

      Gun Control: I am very much in favor of the 2nd Amendment. Gun control laws, such as universal background checks and assault weapons bans, are not the best ways to deal with this issue. However, I do support arming teachers, expanding funding for mental health programs, and greater cooperation between law enforcement agencies and school districts, businesses, and private individuals in response to these sorts of situations. There should also be mandatory training for police and first responders on how to deal with a person who is disabled or has special needs, such as autism and other developmental disorders (btw, I am autistic myself).

      Religious Freedom: I support freedom of religion and I believe that every individual should have the right to practice their beliefs, as long as it doesn't violate the rights of other groups or is meant to circumvent the law. Separation of church and state has gotten too extreme. I support most public funding for things such as Tenth Commandment memorials as long as it is optional, and I also support current court precedents regarding school prayer, but exception could be made for optional prayer.

      Euthanasia: Uh, yeah no. Only allow it if the person is truly near death and in a lot of pain. We don't need to be like Belgium or the Netherlands in this regard.
       
      Prostitution: Focus on rehabilitation for prostitutes, rather than stigmatizing and punishing them. Much of the time, these people were forced into it or did not have a good home life growing up.

      Immigration: I support a strong border defense, including a barrier (not necessarily a wall but maybe), as well as extensive funding and resources to ICE. I also think that we should end chain migration and tighten procedures regarding asylum and visa applications. Visa programs, need to be curbed due to the effects of foreign labor on American jobs and American workers. At the same time, however, I recognize the humanity of those who are truly seeking asylum in this country, as well as that of those brought here illegally as children. Thus, I believe that clean amnesty should be granted to all current DACA recipients. However, we should use E-Verify for all businesses and take steps to deport all criminal illegal aliens as soon as possible.

      Minimum Wage: I support having a minimum wage. It should be a living wage, but $15/hour is too much. It should be above $7.25/hour, but it should only be raised too keep up with inflation.
      Right to Work: I support this. Workers shouldn't be forced to pay dues to organization if they don't belong to it. However, we should keep all laws and regulations that guarantee fair working hours, sufficient pay, and working conditions for all workers.

      Taxation: I would support a progressive tax system, in which richer people pay a higher percentage of their income in taxes, and poorer individuals a lower proportion of their income, but it should be kept low and the very poor shouldn't have to pay at all. I oppose excessive tax measures such as "soda taxes" and that stuff, and at the local and state level, people should have a say in how much their taxation can be raised (like through initiatives and referendums). We need to keep property and sales taxes low, and put limits on state income taxes.

      Healthcare: I strongly oppose Obamacare and it was never a good idea to begin with. It does not help enough with keeping healthcare affordable. Many middle class families I know, including mine, have lost our insurance and had it replaced with an inferior policy that doesn't cover certain conditions. And I have hard of poorer people who still cannot afford insurance. We should keep healthcare premiums as low as possible.

      Education: I support any measures that can be taken to help with student loans, reduce student loan debt, and to expand opportunities for scholarships to be awarded to students who deserve them. I also support the expansion of voucher programs that allow parents to send their kids to schools that they believe will provide the best education for their child rather than zoning them to a neighborhood school. This can be damaging to a poor child, who is forced to attend a bad school because they are poor. This is why poverty continues to ravage communities. We also need more funding for our public school system. Textbooks, classroom resources, sanitation, school lunches that don't taste like cardboard, you name it. We  should also scrap our outdated model where performance is based on testing than individual aptitude and place emphasis on critical thinking and comprehension skills. we should also bring back our arts programs and encourage creativity.
      Free Trade: I am not familiar enough with this issue to have an opinion.

      Foreign Policy and National Security:
      While I do believe in strong defense and that we should be prepared for any potential military conflict, I think that overseas military interventions should not happen unless it is absolutely necessary, and Congress should keep watch over the foreign and military policy activities of the Executive. I also think that we should curb some of the power of he CIA, NSA, and other intelligence agencies in order to and we must provide greater safeguards for protect the privacy of the people. However, we should also keep full faith in those agencies, and take all necessary steps to allow them to perform their duties, in the manner that will best keep us safe. I support maintaining current funding and resources for federal law enforcement. I also believe that we must should our funding and resources for cyber-security, and we should aid in the fight against cyber-terrorism. We should maintain our members in all current alliances, while ensuring that our allies pay their fair share. I support Israel, remain neutral toward Iran, and we should continue to attempt to make an agreement with North Korea. We should keep tabs on China and Russia, and maintain our newfound diplomatic ties with Cuba.

      Environment:
      Climate change is an issue, but the reactions to it have been a bit hyperbolic. I do support mixing of fossil fuels and renewable energy to avert a crisis when fossil fuels run low. Other that that, I'm quite divided on this issue.

      1. I support term limits on members of both Houses of Congress. Representatives should be limited to six two-year terms and Senators to three four-year terms.

      2. I believe that Puerto Rico should be granted statehood (but not DC) with full congressional representation.

      3. I think the Constitution should be amended to provide for a more clear definition of "legislative", "executive", and "judicial" power to clarify the differences between each and to spell out the exact powers held by Congress, the President and other members of the executive branch, and the Supreme Court along with the lower federal courts. We should take steps to curb the administrative state and to expand the role of judicial review of all agency decisions, executive orders, and legislative acts.
       
      4. We should use the system in which votes are counted by congressional district, with the popular vote winner getting the state's two bonus districts. We should also impose the Wyoming rule for better proportional representation.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Kingpoleon on February 06, 2019, 01:36:20 AM
      - Allow states to ban abortion at/after 24 or 30 weeks, with exceptions for rape, incest, and life of the mother.
      - Fully support same sex marriage; should issue federal legislation upholding the ruling of SCOTUS.
      - Deport illegal immigrants convicted of felonies.
      - Path to citizenship for non-felon immigrants.
      - Secure border, raise immigration limits by 50% eventually, rigorous background checks and maximum of a four year wait time.
      - Reduce maximum citizenship time to six years, and two years for the children, siblings, and spouses of citizens.
      - Reduce voting age to 16.
      - Fully support background checks and mental health tests to buy guns, as well as a 72 hour initial waiting period and registry.
      - Immigration limits will be altered and raised by 50% over the course of a couple years.


      - Reforming and streamlining regulatory processes, requiring any and all regulations not legislatively created to be subject to approval and comments by a regulation body composed of economists, former business and labor union officers, and retired workers.
      - Reduce age to serve in the Senate and House to 20, and reduce the age to serve as President to 25.
      - Allow anyone who has been a citizen for over six years to run for Congress, and allow anyone who has been a citizen for over twelve years to run for President.
      - Impose a five term limit on the Senate and a six term limit on the House of Representatives.
      - Switch the House to a nationwide, PR list system, with a four year term and 320 members, with another 13 members elected by D. C. and the territories using a list, PR system.
      - Switch the Senate to a four year term, elected by IRV alternating which seat in each state every 2 years.




      - Healthy Americans Act.
      - Wyden-Ryan Medicare Reform.
      - Replace Social Security and all welfare besides SNAP/HUD funding with $12,000 relative basic income for those making below said amount and those past the age of 65 - say, $9,000 a year for unmarried people not past retirement, $21,000 a year for a couple not past retirement; $12,000 for unmarried people past retirement, $27,000 a year for a married couple past retirement.

      - Transaction Tax
      Wall Steet: 0.1%(+$25 B.)
      Bonds: 0.1%(+$75 B.)
      Derivatives: 0.05%(+$25 B.)
      Futures/Swaps: 0.02%(+$25 B.)

      - Capital Gains Tax
      0%/12.0%/18.0%

      - Payroll Tax
      16.0% payroll tax (6.5% from employer, 6.5% from employee, 1.5% each for Medicare)

      - Value-Added Tax(+$1.1 trillion)
      5.0%
      Rebate of up to $5,400 (with receipts) [$900 Credit each for up to six kids for married couple, or up to three kids for a single parent]

      - Income Tax:
      10%: <$10,000; <$20,000
      15%: $10,000-$30,000; $20,000-$60,000
      20%: $30,000-$75,000; $60,000-$150,000
      30%: $75,000-$175,000; $150,000-$225,000
      35%: $175,000-$325,000; $225,000-$400,000
      40%: $325,000-$400,000; $400,000-$500,000
      42.5%: $400,000-$450,000; $500,000-$600,000
      45%: $450,000-$700,000; $600,000-$1,000,000
      47.5%: $700,000-$1,000,000; $1,000,000-$1,500,000
      49.5%: $1,000,000+; $1,500,000+
      Child Tax Credit: $2,900 per child(up to 3 for single parent, up to 5 for married couple)

      - Raise gas tax by 10-15 cents, and spend the money on infrastructure. Cut back by 15-20 cents in three years.

      - Corporate Taxes:
      12.5%: <$300,000
      19.5%: $300,000-$750,000
      29.5%: $750,000-$20.75 million
      22.5%: >$20.75 million
      Streamline several deductions and tax credits

      Estate/Inheritance tax hike to 55%, lowered to $3 million

      - $11.00 minimum wage by 2022
      - $95 billion NASA spending, with the goal of two bases on the Moon by 2030 and at least one very major base/colony on Mars by 2035
      - National railway system, going through the 100 biggest metros in the country. The goal of this will be to reduce reliance on cars and standard energy sources.
      - Transition away from coal and most fossil fuels, towards renewable power and natural gas.
      - $400,000,000 in auditing the federal government
      - 9.5% cut in all spending barring NASA and salaries
      - Presidential salary and Congress’s salary decreased by 15%


      - $40 billion funding for Rojava, SNC, and the SDC - negotiate an alliance between these three groups.
      - Stronger alliance with India.(slowly cut our relations with Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Turkey.)
      - Free trade deal with Thailand, India, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Australia, Mexico, Canada, New Zealand, and Argentina.
      - Raise all military members’s salary by $2,000.
      - International coalition of Japan, South Korea, India, Russia, the European Union, Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, Canada, the U. K., and America should economically pressure China into forcing Kim Jong Un down and instating Kim Han Sol into a democratic transition. If they refuse, all countries involved will reduce trade with China by, say, 60%, and place certain sanctions on them. If we’re lucky, Wang Yang might be Xi Jinping’s successor, and if that happens we have a good shot at improving relations with China.
      - We should consider signing a trade deal with India, South Africa, Mozambique, Indonesia, Myanmar, Kenya, Australia and Uganda. This would allow us a strong trade boost in the Indian Ocean.
      - League of Free and Democratic Nations, inviting all nations committed to freedom and democracy to join; Switzerland, Iceland, Norway, Mauritius, Malta, Uruguay, and Botswana should be the governing members of this League
      -


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: WoodlandAscetic on February 12, 2019, 03:22:52 PM
      Philosophy: Communitarianism/Distributism
      Political Affiliation: No Party/Independent (I vote for candidates who are closest to my principles rather than for a specific party. My state has semi-closed primaries so I can register with either party when I go to vote. Closest political party to my beliefs is the American Solidarity Party.)

      My political principles are guided ultimately on the virtues of love and charity.

      I believe that all human beings should be treated with love and respect. I oppose abortion and believe we need to address the socio-economic problems that often cause someone to choose to have an abortion. I believe we can do that by fighting against poverty, fighting for free public college and university education, economic support for parents, guaranteed parental leave, and universal health care which all help address other issues I see as a lack of charity for people.

      I also oppose euthanasia, but believe people should be allowed to choose to refuse treatment.

      I oppose the death penalty and support a system of prisons not as a form of punishment, but as a form of rehabilitation so people can rejoin as fully active members of society again.

      I oppose war and believe we should not give military aid, but rather give real humanitarian aid. I believe we should trade with any country that meets a certain standard of labor and environmental protection.

      I believe racism in America has caused long lasting societal effects and we need to seriously transform all of our institutions to end racial injustice. I support reparations for the descendants of slaves and Native Americans.

      I support strong environmental regulations, a transition to 100% renewable energy, and banning the production and importation of products that are less than 50% biodegradable.

      I support religious freedom as the ability to practice or not practice a religion as best meets the person's conscience both in private and public as long as they don't harm another person.

      I support strong decentralization both of political power and economic power as I see the two ultimately aligned with one another. I believe most decision making power should be handled at the local level democratically, then at the city level, then at the county level, then the state/regional level, and then the federal level. I support publicly funded elections with donations being paid through vouchers given to each citizen who can legally vote in the election. I also support ranked choice voting, initiatives, referendums, and recall elections for all levels of government. Economically I support breaking up corporations and monopolies and banks, a transition to workplace democracy as the primarily model of worker relations for medium-large businesses while support family and locally owned businesses, supporting worker cooperatives, replacing social welfare with consumer cooperatives and prohibiting for-profit health insurance and other types of enterprise that would weaken the strength of consumer ownership of social services.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: DabbingSanta on February 16, 2019, 03:53:42 PM
      Social Policy:

      Abortion: Pro choice with limitations, ban third trimester
      Same Sex Marriage: Support
      Drugs: Legalize marijuana, decriminalize drug use
      Stem Cell Research: Support with private funding
      Death Penalty: Abolish
      Gun control: Pro 2nd amendment, open to debate on licensing/restrictions
      Affirmative Action: Abolish
      Prostitution: Decriminalize
      Euthanasia: Allow states to decide, personally against it

      Economic Issues:

      Minimum Wage: Raise federally to $10/hour with exceptions for small business/restaurants
      Welfare: Cut funding
      Right-to-Work: Support
      Taxation: Cut taxes for households making under $50K/year
      Healthcare: Privatize
      Social Security: Privatize
      Trade: Pro free trade          
      Education: Very basic national standards with state leeway on curriculum
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Yes


      Foreign Policy and National Security:

      Afghanistan: Leave
      Iraq: Leave
      Iran: Leave
      Syria: Leave
      Cuba: Keep sanctions
      Military Spending: Support some cutbacks
      PATRIOT Act: Abolish
      NSA Spying: Abolish
      Palestine: Do not recognize
      Israel: Support, do not fund
      Immigration: Easier process
      Guantanamo Bay: Shut it down

      Environment:

      Climate Change: Skeptical
      Green Energy: Provide tax incentives
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Build it

      Electoral Reform:

      Electoral College: Prefer popular vote, but existing system works
      Gerrymandering: End the practice
      Term limits: Yes
      Voter ID: Yes
      Compulsory Voting: No
      Voter Registration: Yes
      Statehood: Allow referendum for Puerto Rico


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Dillon on February 17, 2019, 11:02:23 PM
      Social Democrat here, with hardline libertarian stances on foreign policy and social issues.

      Social Policy:

      Abortion: Pro choice up until viability with exceptions
      Same Sex Marriage: Support
      Drugs: Legalize all drugs
      Stem Cell Research: Support
      Death Penalty: Abolish
      Gun control: Pro stand your ground, anti assault weapons ban, pro background check
      Affirmative Action: Reform
      Prostitution: Legalize
      Euthanasia: Legalize
      I am also for greatly reforming the FCC, to account for modern sensibilities by removing most restrictions on television and film. I am for regulating major social media platforms and streaming services as public utilities, giving users 1st amendment rights. I am against hate speech laws and also hate crime laws. End mandatory minimum sentencing and release all victimless criminals.

      Economic Issues:

      Minimum Wage: Raise federally to $15 dollars an hour  
      Welfare: Abolish most of the beurocracy, end snap and similar services in favour of yangs freedom dividend
      Right-to-Work: Ban federally
      Taxation: Cut taxes for families making less than 40k a year, raise highest bracket to 60% for earners of 5million a year
      Healthcare: Med4all
      Social Security: Expand
      Trade: American workers First policy, end all outsourcing from American companies        
      Education: Free community college, ween off of standardized testing but keep federal standards in place, albeit with many tweaks
      Balanced Budget Amendment: No


      Foreign Policy and National Security:

      Afghanistan: Leave
      Iraq: Leave
      Iran: Leave
      Syria: Leave
      Cuba: Normalize relations, end ridiculous sanctions
      Military Spending: Cut by 33%
      PATRIOT Act: Abolish
      NSA Spying: Abolish
      Palestine: Recognize
      Israel: Stand up to, no sanctions. Two state solution, period.
      Saudi Arabia: Sanction
      Immigration: Amnesty to all illegals, make the process easier, but no open borders.
      Guantanamo Bay: Shut it down

      Environment:

      Climate Change: Number one priority, Green New Deal hardliner
      Green Energy: Mandatory
      Keystone XL Pipeline: No

      Electoral Reform:

      Electoral College: Popular vote with rank choice voting
      Gerrymandering: End the practice
      Term limits: No, not even for the president
      Voter ID: No
      Compulsory Voting: Yes
      Voter Registration: No
      Statehood: Make Puerto Rico 51st state, DC area 52nd state.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: courts on February 18, 2019, 08:06:34 AM

      Social Security - I swear that Social Security and Medicare are Ponzi schemes straight out of a smoke filled room, sold by the snake oil salesmen known as socialists. I want Social Security and Medicare abolished.

      yeah i don't like the way social security is structured right now either


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: QAnonKelly on February 18, 2019, 07:49:20 PM
      Constitutional Reform:

      I believe the US should adopt a parliamentary system.  I think the senate and electoral college should be eliminated and the house should be bumped up to at least double its current number. The president’s power should be curtailed. I think we need a new VRA and should implement national vote by mail. I also think all redistricting should be done by independent commissions who have to meet certain requirements. I think PR and DC should be states (if both choose). I also support Rick Perry’s idea to reform the SC where you have the justices term limited and have someone’s term end every other year.

      Social:

      *Pro choice but we should be investing heavily in things like paid family leave and sex education to limit the number of abortions.

      *Religious Freedom: Do what you want , I don’t care but “religious freedom” laws are dumb

      *SSM: support but it’s not an issue anymore

      *Drugs: Legalize marijuana and decriminalize everything else. Wipe everyone’s conviction charged with simple possession.

      *Stem Cell: For

      *Death Penalty: Should only be used very rarely in cases like serial killers and terrorists

      *Guns: For Universal background checks , AW ban, more education, and stricter licensing

      *Euthanasia: against

      *Prostitution: Think it should be decriminalized but not outright legal

      *Immigration: Support the 2013 comprehensive immigration reform.

      Economics:
      *Minimum wage: think federal MW should be raised but shouldn’t be a blanket number. Needs to be tied to cost of living and automatically raise with inflation

      *Taxation: support a progressive tax system

      *Healthcare: support universal healthcare but believe it should be done by expanding Medicaid to everyone who makes a certain percentage of the poverty line. I think people and companies who make over the line should be able to buy it directly from the government

      *Education: I support the Finnish model. We need to be investing heavily in K-12 education in particular. I also believe that anyone whose family makes under a relatively high amount should get two free years of either Community College or Trade school. “Free college” is inherently regressive .

      *Free Trade: strongly support. Tariffs are dumb.

      Foreign: Think we should stick with our NATO allies. China is the biggest threat we face. I strongly believe that we should be focusing on human rights and democracy in the world but not in a neoncon way. Putin is not our friend.

      Environment: I think we should be heavily investing in nuclear supplemented by renewables. The GND is dumb as is but I would support the idea with a serious proposal




      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: harrydrewer1997 on February 20, 2019, 06:04:12 AM
      Overview:
      Social: Centre-left
      Economic: Moderate
      Foreign: Non-Interventionist
      Party Affiliation: None

      Social Policy:
      Abortion: I generally support abortion. I take the view of minding my own business when it comes to what women do with their body. I would also expand contraception among the youth and better sex education, so we don't have to get to the stage of abortion in the first place.

      Same-Sex Marriage: As a gay man, I support same sex marriage. I don't believe legalising it desecrates the tradition. It is an affirmation of a couple's life commitment and that is beautiful.

      Drug Laws: I support legalising recreational and medicinal marijuana, but it needs to be well regulated to prevent misuse. I would also want to put funding into rehabilitation for ice users and those addicted to opioids.

      Death Penalty: I do not support the death penalty. I don't believe the government has the moral right to kill its citizens. That being said, I still support life sentences, particularly life, never to be released, for the most hardened criminals.

      Gun Control: I support increased regulation of firearms and licensing. I think a ban on some assault weapons could be a good idea. I think there needs to be a culture shift with guns in the US. In Australia the gun culture is about recreation and hunting, rather than defense. I don't support banning all guns because that would allow vermin to flourish and it would be an unnecessary incursion into people's civil liberties.

      Religious Freedom: I support people having the right to practice their beliefs, so long as it doesn't encroach on the civil liberties of other. A definite separation of church and state is required.

      Euthanasia: Support

      Prostitution: I support the legalisation and regulation of this industry.

      Immigration: I support help for those seeking asylum, those who are fleeing nations in hardship and war.

      Economic Policy:
      Minimum Wage: I strongly support a minimum wage, increasing each year with inflation. It should be able to be lived on modestly.

      Right to Work: I support this, as I don't think workers should be forced to pay dues to organizations that they do not belong to. However, we must maintain all regulations and laws that guarantee fair working hours, pay, and working conditions for all workers. I would also indirectly encourage unionism, as that can help with improving conditions.

      Taxation: I support progressive taxation, and a national sales tax. This is another thing Australia does. It distributes the revenue to the states according to need.

      Healthcare: I support mulitpayer healthcare, like Australia's which includes a strong and robust public health system. I think people have a right to healthcare, to walk into the ED and get treatment, dental and eye care. These are basic necessities.
       
      Education: I support lowering the cost of education on the student. And I also support more training and development for teachers. Including decreasing teacher-student ratios.

      Free Trade: Free trade definitely has its positives, particularly if you are in an advantageous position. So I think we should trade freely with countries that would only help our country.

      Foreign Policy and National Security:
      I think far too much is spent on defense and national security. A policy of non-interventionism should be followed, except for cases where there is substantial evidence of human rights abuses, such as Rwanda.

      Environment:
      There needs to be better environmental regulation. We should pursue renewable generation and storage, as they will become economically advantageous.

      Electoral and Political Reform:

      1. Presidential and House of Representatives races should use Instant Runoff Voting and the Electoral College should be abolished.

      2. House of Reps should be increased in size substantially, to about 300,000 per district, and a national independent electoral comission should draw the boundaries, to ensure fairness.

      3. The senate should should be tripled in size, and proportional representation should be implemented, so there is better representation.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Wazza [INACTIVE] on March 03, 2019, 12:23:31 PM
      Social Policy
      Abortion: Pro-Choice excluding the 3rd trimester, except in cases such as severe deformities/fetal inviability with the recommendation of multiple physicians.
      Same Sex Marriage: Support Same Sex marriage. Though I believe private institutions (A church, a bakery, a catering organisation, etc.) should have the right to refuse service.
      Drug Law: Support decriminalising drug use, and legalising cannabis and various psychedelics such as Psilocybin for commercial use.
      Death Penalty: Opposed to the death penalty.
      Gun Control: Pro Gun. Against the draconian policies of my own nation. Support Pre-Phil Scot Vermont style gun policy. I'd support an amendment to the Australian constitution upholding the right to keep and bear arms.
      Euthanasia: Support legalising euthanasia in cases of terminal illness.
      Prostitution:
      "Anti Discrimination" legislation: I believe private entities should have the right to refuse service for whatever reason they wish. I am opposed to all hate speech legislation. I'd support an amendment to the Australian constitution similar to that of the USA's first amendment. I believe private institutions should be able set their own policies in regards to affirmative action, gender quotas, etc. I oppose it for government institutions or institutions heavily reliant on government funding. I of course oppose mandatory gender quotas or affirmative action. On a personal level I oppose all forms of affirmative action or gender quotas.
      Immigration: You cannot have free immigration and a welfare state. Free or very laxed immigration could potentially cause considerable stress on government institutions and drastic political upheaval, especially at the local level. I Support the policies currently in place in Australia in regards to illegal immigration. I think the US should follow suit (As best as it can, we have obvious geographical advantages). Immigration quotas should comply with market demands both in regards to quantity and skill specifics.

      Electoral Issues
      Compulsory Voting: Against compulsory voting.
      Voter ID: Support implementing Photo ID laws.
      Primaries: Support primaries for the house of representatives, where voters registered in the party can choose their nominee for their electorate, as opposed to them simply being appointments by the party leadership.

      Economic Issues
      Minimum wage: Oppose minimum wage standards.
      Universal Healthcare: Oppose. I support a private/free market healthcare system
      Welfare: Remove all welfare programs/pensions and replace them with a negative income tax as described by Milton Friedman where people below a deductible amount are "reversed taxed" on the difference between their income and the deductive amount.
      Taxation: Support cutting taxes, reforming to a flat income tax. Support cutting the corporate tax rate and closing *most* loopholes. I think property taxes should be done away with.
      Trade: Free Trade all the way.
      Budget: Should be balanced, would support a balanced budget amendment.
      Education: should be at least mostly privatised. If parents wish to homeschool their kids it should be legal for them to do so.
      Government owned media: privatise it all.

      Foreign Policy and National Security
      General: I support the principles of the Monroe doctrine, those being that nations should generally limit military operations to their regional theatres. I am against the current paradigm in which the US acts as a global policeman.
      Syria: I oppose US and Australian military involvement in Syria
      Iraq: I oppose US and Australian military involvement in Iraq
      Afghanistan: I oppose US and Australian military involvement in Afghanistan
      Israel: I am against any government funding to the state of Israel.
      Foreign aid: I am against foreign aid due to a distrust of the benevolence and efficiency of (especially 3rd world) governments.
      Palestine: I support recognition of the state of Palestine.
      Saudi Arabia: I do not support the US's arms deals with Saudi Arabia.
      Military Spending: Both the US and (though to a much lesser degree) Australia should reduce military spending.
      Government Surveillance/Spying: Against

      Environmental Policy
      Climate Change: I think its real and human activity is at least partially contributing to it. Technological advancements and shifts to renewable energy will help reduce the impacts of carbon emissions.
      Renewable Energy: Should be incentivised with tax deductions
      Green New Deal: Oppose
      Carbon Tax: Support if implemented the right way. Congressman Carlos Curbelo's plan of swapping it with fuel taxes and cutting back on some nullified regulatory burden sounds decent.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Horus on March 08, 2019, 06:14:15 PM
      Fiscally responsible socialist with a heavy libertarian streak on whatever the current "social issues" are.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: LAKISYLVANIA on March 10, 2019, 07:12:13 PM
      Overview:
      Social: Center-left to left-wing (American norms: left-wing to far-left)
      Economic: Far-left (even compared to European norms)
      Foreign: Left-wing to far-left (American norms: far-left)
      Party Affiliation: Registered PVDA-PTB (marxist) member

      Most important issues:
      Radical & social implementation of social green new deal
      Free public transport (trains & busses)
      Tuition-free colleges
      Legalization of marijuana, decriminalization of all drugs
      30 hour work week*

      (*) People will have to work longer (65 to 70 years), and that's why we need to reduce the work week to reduce stress (and burn-outs). A shorter work week would reduce unemployment, as more people will be needed because people work less, but it would anticipate on a new technological wave (more automatization because of robots). I also support spreading the main shifts (8 to 5 work week) to 7 to 4 and 9 to 6 work week to reduce traffic overload.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Lechasseur on March 23, 2019, 09:58:26 AM
      Overview:
      Social: Centre-Right to Right-Wing
      Economic: Moderate
      Foreign: Realist
      Party Affiliation: None officially, but I generally vote GOP

      Social Policy:
      Abortion: It's a complicated question. I don't support banning abortion, as there are circumstances where it's understandable (or even necessary, in the case of if the mother's life is endangered), but I think there should only be legal in the first 15-20 weeks.

      Same-Sex Marriage: I opposed it at the time, but now it's the law of the land and I don't think it should be overturned.

      Drug Laws: I'd say I support decriminalization. I don't think marijuana should be legalized as it sends a bad message and I don't believe it to be good for society, but I don't think people should go to jail just possessing small amounts either.

      Death Penalty: I support it.

      Gun Control: Frankly I'm not an expert on this question. All I know is I believe gun ownership should be legal, but some restrictions probably make sense.

      Religious Freedom: I support it.

      Euthanasia: Support for terminally ill people who willingly chose it. Not in any other cases.

      Prostitution: Oppose

      Immigration: I support immigration of middle class, skilled immigrants who are capable of integrating properly into society. I oppose illegal immigration (regularization should be possible for people who overstayed a visa or something on a case by case basis but there should be a zero tolerance policy for people who entered the country illegally).

      Economic Policy:
      Minimum Wage: I strongly support a minimum wage, increasing each year with inflation. It should be able to be lived on modestly.

      Right to Work: I support this, as I don't think workers should be forced to pay dues to organizations that they do not belong to. However, we must maintain all regulations and laws that guarantee fair working hours, pay, and working conditions for all workers. I would also indirectly encourage unionism, as that can help with improving conditions.

      Taxation: I don't believe tax policy should be determined on ideological grounds. Tax policy should be determined in such a way that the government gets the revenue it needs, no more, no less.

      Healthcare: I support mulitpayer healthcare, like Australia's which includes a strong and robust public health system. I think people have a right to healthcare, to walk into the ED and get treatment, dental and eye care. These are basic necessities.
       
      Education: I support lowering the cost of education on the student, along with reforming education policy in order to make teaching attractive again. Free Community College I think is a good idea. I also think Common Core should be abolished. I support charter schools. I also think more people need to be pushed to got to grade school instead of college.

      Free Trade: It's good with countries with similar wages and regulations as ours, but it puts us at a disadvantage to have Free Trade with countries where workers are paid less, have less protections and where there is little regulation.

      Foreign Policy and National Security:
      I'm a realist. Intervention is sometimes necessary but it shouldn't be done on ideological grounds.

      Environment:
      There needs to be better environmental regulation. We should pursue renewable generation and storage, as they will become economically advantageous.

      Electoral and Political Reform:

      I'd support proportional representation, but that isn't realistic in the US.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Big Abraham on March 23, 2019, 09:50:39 PM
      Never done one of these before, but what the hell, I've been hanging around here long enough.

      Overview: revolutionary socialist of the Marxist persuasion. By no means a reformist or social democrat.
      Social: moderately libertarian
      Economic: socialist
      Foreign: strict non-interventionism
      Party affiliation: independent

      Abortion: I consider this one of the least important political questions, and constantly find myself annoyed with how much it continues to dominate our political discourse and generates such fanatical reactions on both sides. In general I would consider myself pro-choice, although not without qualms about the morality of abortion. At any rate, there is overwhelming evidence that providing sex education and birth control free of charge that abortion rates go down drastically, and those are policies that I support wholeheartedly.
      Same-sex marriage: Opposed, actually. The institution of marriage in and of itself should be done away with, and until that can be achieved, I actually prefer to go the libertarian route and just privatise the whole thing.
      Drug laws: No drug bans whatsoever. End the complete folly of the drug war, release all incarcerated inmates who were indicted solely for non-violent drug offenses, and have drugs be sold on the market free of taxation.
      Death penalty: Opposed, but not for any moral reasons really. Hell, I'd support the Reign of Terror if I lived during the revolution. In general, however, the instrument of punishment in the hands of the state is a monopoly I'd prefer to avoid, and would prefer criminals be rehabilitated, or at the very least put to work and paid for their labour.
      Gun control: Very opposed. I cannot think of any gun control measure that I'd honestly support on a state- or nationwide basis.
      Euthanasia: Eh. Let the states decide I guess.
      Prostitution: I oppose legalisation. Women working in the sex industry are not there by choice, but out of economic circumstances, and legalisation would only further normalise the subjection of women in prostitution.
      "Anti Discrimination" legislation: Depends on the measure, really.
      Immigration: I oppose large-scale immigration of low-skill and unskilled labour.

      Electoral Issues

      Compulsory voting: Against. The right to vote is just as much a right not to vote.
      Voter ID: An issue that's widely exaggerated on both sides.
      Primaries: Strongly support. Should be more competitive and with less influence and rules by party leaders.

      Economic Issues

      Minimum wage: Raise, make it a living wage, and tie it to inflation.
      Universal health care: Strongly support. Medicare for All or Bust.
      Welfare: Support for many measures, although I refuse to support universal basic income or any similar sort of measure.
      Taxation: Strongly support a highly progressive income tax (with complete exemptions for the poor), with a top marginal tax rate of around 90 or 95 percent. I oppose all indirect taxes, including excises, sales taxes, and value-added tax. Sumptuary laws like tobacco and alcohol taxes should be abolished.
      Trade: Free trade is superior to protectionism, which hurts consumers and benefits only the big industrialists and manufacturers.
      Budget: Couldn't be managed worse under most Republican administrations.
      Education: Increase funding across the board, especially for inner city and poor neighbourhoods and municipalities which have not received adequate funding.

      Foreign Policy and National Security

      General: Strict non-interventionism. The only legitimate wars are to repel an invasion or self defense generally. Any intervention, military or otherwise, which violates the sovereignty of another nation should be resisted.
      Syria: In the context of the civil war, the government of Syria is the only belligerent I'd support. The Islamic State, thankfully now completely vanquished, and the U.S.-backed rebels have been responsible for untold crimes in the region and have greatly contributed to instability, causing a massive refugee crisis and thousands of deaths largely orchestrated at the behest of the United States government.
      Iraq: Withdraw any and all troops immediately.
      Afghanistan: Withdraw any and all troops immediately.
      Israel: No aid or support should be given to Israel whatsoever.
      Palestine: The United States should recognise a Palestinian nation-state with the 1967 borders.
      Saudi Arabia: No aid or support should be given to Saudi Arabia whatsoever.
      Military spending: Cut by at least one half. Eliminate the standing army in peacetime.
      Government Surveillance/Spying: Abolish the NSA and prosecute its leading members for treason.

      Environmental Policy

      Climate Change: The issue of the century. Unfortunately, nothing will be done to seriously mitigate the issue until global capitalism is abolished and the for-profit system on which it thrives dismantled.
      Renewable Energy: Should be incentivised with tax deductions.
      Green New Deal: Strongly support.
      Carbon tax: Support if implemented the right way.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: YE on March 24, 2019, 03:20:44 AM
      Ideology
      Social: Center with a libertarian streak
      Economic: Social democrat
      Foreign Policy: Dovish internationalist
      Political Registration: D-NV

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Moderately pro-life. Favor banning it outright unless life of the mother is in danger at 12 weeks. Do favor counseling and waiting periods before then tough I don't think it should be criminalized in the same regard to murder prior to viability. Support Planned Parenthood funding and the Hyde Amendment.

      Same-Sex Marriage: Duh.

      Transgender Issues: Use the restroom of their gender, not the one they were born with. I find it disgusting that people think they are just making sh**t up when they know they identify as the opposite gender.

      Drugs: Legalize, tax, and regulate soft drugs, starting with weed, but one legalization at a time, and keep hard drugs illegal.

      Death Penalty: Oppose for the same reason I oppose abortion really.

      Gun Control: Pro-gun. Close gun show loophole, ban bump stocks, and expand background checks. That’s it. Anything more in the era of polarization would lead to a black market forming, and not worth it.

      Affirmative Action: Generally against.

      Prostitution: No

      Euthanasia: Oppose on moral grounds (pro-life).

      Immigration: Keep the border secure, deport criminals who are here illegally, legal status to all illegals if they aren't criminals. Supporting reducing the number of low skilled work visas. Hold employers accountable for hiring illegals. Conflicted on path to citizenship.

      Police Issues/Black Lives Matter: Pro-BLM and oppose police brutality and hold police officers accountable. Oppose mandatory minimums and for profit prisons. Abolish cash bail.

      Free Speech/Political Correctness: Pro-free speech.

      School Prayer: Status quo.

      Muslim Ban: No.

      PATRIOT ACT/NSA Spying: Need a warrant


      Economic Issues
      Minimum Wage: Raise 50 cents per year to whenever it converges with $11 indexed to inflation.

      Social Security: Lift the taxable income cap, and cut the income tax rates to help pay for Medicare for All. Conflicted on expanding the program.

      Healthcare: Conflicted on single payer versus multi-payer. The ACA did not go far enough and proved to be kinda useless Medicaid expansion aside

      Globalization/Trade: Oppose, unless we have a product we can't make elsewhere and visa versa and/or said country has a similar high standard of living compared to the US. Oppose TPP, support re-negotiation of NAFTA. Support tarrifs in certain circumstances but we have to ensure that we don't end up in a lose-lose trade war.

      Deficit/Debt: Screaming about the debt is kind of misleading. Deficits don't if there's a recession, but do if the economy is good and all Americans are prospering.

      Campaign Finance Reform: Limits on donations to all campaigns, congressional campaign committees, and state/national parties, with guaranteed public funding. Gut SuperPacs and corporate Pac money. Also limit how much you could self-fund your campaign.

      Unions: Massively pro-labor. Get rid of the Taft-Hartley Act that created right to work, which was created by the Republicans in attempt to undercut unions. Support card check and oppose efforts to crack down on union formation by employers.

      Energy: Pro-solar. Pro-wind. Pro-nuclear. Anti-coal.

      Job Creation: A second new deal. Infrastructure redevelopment for not just better roads, bridges, and highways, but better sewer and drainage systems, as well nationwide broadband. Also need tighter building codes and larger seawalls to withstand natural disasters like hurricanes.

      Education: Conflicted on common core, make in-state college free (with some regulations), universal childcare, support full day kindergarten, and universal pre-K. Supported increases in teaching salary, except for elective subjects. Fairly opposed to charter schools

      Taxes: Raise marginal tax rates on wealthy when appropriate. Would like to see the top 1% pay as much as they did in an effective tax rates to prior to Reagan. Also support a carbon tax and a Robin Hood tax much like we had through the 1960s. Repeal the Bill Clinton capital gains tax cut, Trump's income tax cuts, Bush's tax cuts, hijack the corporate tax rate back up to 30%. Strongly support raising the estate tax. Oppose UBI and would rather see a shorter workweek to combat automation than incentives for half the population to not work. Open to some middle class tax hike if needed.

      Financial regulation: Support re-instating glass stegall, and am very wary of attempts to de-regulate Wall Street, paday lenders, banks, and credit card companies. Strong proponent of anti-monopoly laws. Support government run banks but for small loans only and with strict regulation.

      Other economic issues: Paid family medical leave by law (12 weeks for maternity leave 8 weeks for paternity leave). 10 days of vacation time by law.

      Foreign Policy
      Middle East: Get out (yes that includes Syria and Afghanistan) and abide by international law. Fully support the Iran Deal. Idea that regime change will lead to democracy all over the place is an oversimplification at best and a neocon fantasy at worst.
       
      Syria Refuges: Support Obama era policies but we can only take so many and we have to ensure we maintain the proper vetting.

      Israel/Palestine: Extremely conflicted but favor two internationally recognized states with 1967 border.

      North Korea: Favor detente basically. Trump has actually been fine on that front.

      Russia: Supported sanctions. Fine with NATO troops on their border.
       
      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College Reform: Support to avoid the smaller states from being screwed over by urban areas but expand the size of the house.

      Gerrymandering: Oppose. Support independent commissions with guidelines on not splitting up COI for both congressional and legislative seats.

      Term limits: Oppose for legislative seats, support for executive seats, largely because I believe in there is a happy medium between both arguments.

      Voter ID: Oppose.

      Instant Run-off Voting: Support

      Primaries: Let the states decide, but all states should hold the presidential and statewide office primaries on the same day, eliminating the urge for caucuses.

      Statehood: Make D.C., Guam, and Puerto Rico as states, along with maybe the NMI and the Virgin Islands (or combine them with PR/Guam). Let American Samoa be its own nation or be annexed by Western Samoa.

      Voting age: Lower to 16.

      Updated.

      Had a bit of change of heart on some issues lately, so updated.

      Updated.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: tahirch115 on April 06, 2019, 06:24:26 AM
      it is, after all, both of our holy lands, and I would suggest a separation of church and state to ease tensions in Israel.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Absentee Voting Ghost of Ruin on May 07, 2019, 10:53:26 AM
      Mostly pretty-far left socially and economically.

      Social Policy:

      Abortion: Pro choice, some limitations on late-term abortion
      Same Sex Marriage: aka marriage
      Drugs: End the war on drugs, legalize marijuana, decrimalize drug use, increase taxes and restricut use on tobacco and alcohol until they're on the same ground as marijuana
      Stem Cell Research: Support, including w federal funds
      Death Penalty: Abolish
      Gun control: Either repeal the 2nd or stop talking about "banning" guns. Move most firearms to Title II, add firearms education to schools, make owning a firearm without basic certification illegal.
      "Religious Freedom": America has religious freedom. When people say they want "religious freedom" what they really mean is "freedom to force the views of my pseudo-Christianity on everyone".
      Affirmative Action: Keep, until the makeup of our institutions more closely mirrors our society
      Prostitution: Decriminalize
      Euthanasia: Legalize, with some limitations.

      Economic Issues:

      Minimum Wage: Raise federally to ~$15/hour, no exceptions, although I'm open to debate. The nature of wealth, money and the economy is shifting, which is going to change our society. We can either guide that change and move in positive directions, or we can just "trust the market" and end up in a worse dystopia than the one we live in now.
      Welfare, Healthcare, Social Security : Entrepreneurial capitalism needs a reliable social safety net, particularly if you want to encourage social mobility. What we have now is arbitrary, over-complicated, and grossly inadequate. National health care.
      Right-to-erode-collective-bargaining: Oppose.
      Taxation: Increase taxes on: the 0.01%, big business, the 1%, and the top 10%, in that order. Hyper-wealthy individuals who think they can live or do business in the US and evade taxes need to be in jail. Corporations who hide US profits offshore need to face financial consequences, and the board and executives can either pay up, go to jail, or become international fugitives.
      Trade: I support global trade, and think that the present WTO model is better than many alternatives but far from perfect. At the same time, I oppose using "free trade deals" as leverage for big-business and their preferred legislation. I support protectionism in service of national defense or emerging industries.
      Education: We need to do far better at teaching history, critical thinking, finance and economics, and long-term thinking. I do not know the best way to improve our existing education system.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Oppose.
      Immigration: We need immigration economically, and have both practical and moral responsibility to allow it. Stop letting the wealthy abuse immigrant labor (illegal or not) as a tool against domestic labor.  Support legal migrant labor, but not at lower wages. Creating an underclass is destructive to our nation and what it stands for. Americans are going to have to accept some changes to our way of life in order to avoid much worse changes down the line.


      Foreign Policy and National Security:

      Afghanistan: Leave.
      Iraq: Leave.
      Iran: Normalize relations.
      Syria: Leave.
      Cuba: Normalize relations.
      Yemen: Leave, help broker a peace deal.
      Military Spending: Go back to Eisenhower. End the reliance on contractors. Break the military-security-intelligence complex. Downsize the Army. If the Admirals and Generals can't defend the United States for a sane pricetag, fire them and find ones who can. Our military is a joke and a disaster waiting to happen.
      Homeland Security: Abolish. Get rid of the TSA.
      Global policing: There's a reason the Constitution includes provision for a Navy, but not a standing Army. The United States depends on trade. I don't think we should be 'nation-building' with our military, but I do think we have a reasonable role as a global policeman.
      War on Terror End it. End the AUMF. Terrorism is best addressed as a law-enforcement issue. Only at the extreme should military force come into play. (And then it should have UN support, or the explicit support of the country in question.)
      PATRIOT Act: Revoke.
      NSA Spying: Abolish the NSA. Reform FISA. Hand off domestic surveillance (when necessary) to the FBI, give foreign surveillance to the DIA and CIA. Check if the statue of limitations for those involved has expired yet.
      Palestine: two-state solution
      Israel: Support, do not fund
      Guantanamo Bay: Shut the prison down, keep the base.
      NATO: I used to support a gradual downsizing of our presence in NATO over 10-20 years. Now, I think we need to keep NATO at full strength until Russia has been a functioning democracy for a generation or more. Simultaneously, I think we should support the creation of  a unified European military as an adjunct to NATO.


      Environment:

      Climate Change: #1 threat facing America and humanity. The IPCC should be considered to be putting out optimistic scenarios. Paris Accords should be considered an absolute minimum to meet. Climate change (and other environmental impacts from the fast-growing human race) are consistently underplayed. We can try to fix things now on our own terms, or our surviving descendants will rightly curse us all.
      Green Energy: Phase out coal and oil. Support nuclear in principle, but it's difficult to do safely and not at a loss. Make improved transmission, and especially energy storage a major priority. Broadly support a "green new deal".
      Carbon Tax Generally in favor of ending externalizing costs, but wary of rent-extraction by middlemen for no net good.
      Keystone XL Pipeline: End it.

      Electoral Reform:

      Electoral College:  Keep the Electoral Vote, abolish the College as an institution. States should certify their votes and send them to Congress, who publicly count the EV total. 
      Gerrymandering: End it. Give states model legislation with multiple options on how to fairly arrange districts. States that don't comply lose federal funding.
      Term limits: No. We don't need to give lobbyists more help.
      Voter ID: No. Voter fraud is rare with the current system.
      Compulsory Voting: Yes. Election Day should be a national holiday.
      Voting: End first-past-the-post. Implement ranked voting or a similar system.
      Statehood: Require referendums for Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, Pacific Territories
      Supreme Court stacking Tentatively oppose.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RINO Tom on May 07, 2019, 10:58:44 AM
      Ghost, I obviously disagree with a lot that you typed, but I'm glad you typed this all up.  You often make pretty good effort posts, but they are usually just about Trump, and it was really interesting to see some of your unrelated views.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Rules for me, but not for thee on May 07, 2019, 01:21:41 PM
      "Progressive Conservative" - Want people to come together to solve real issues and relegate garbage like "intersectionalism" to the wastebin of history. No special treatments for anyone, equity for all.

      Social Policy:

      Abortion: Pro-life personally, politically would push more things like morning-after pills and contraceptives. Make abortion a "last resort" option to save lives and in cases of rape. Remove all public funding for pro-or-anti-abortion groups, clinics, etc.
      Same Sex Marriage: Decentralize, this is not a matter of the state.
      Drugs: End the war on drugs, legalize marijuana, decrimalize drug use, increase taxes and restrict use on tobacco and alcohol until they're on the same ground as marijuana
      Stem Cell Research: Support, NO federal funding
      Death Penalty: Abolish
      Gun control: Modified 3-tier Yang plan: Tier 1: Basic shotguns, low-caliber rifles, low-caliber handguns for all; Tier 2: All semi-auto small arms (up to .50BMG), semi-auto shotguns. Basic training every 3-4 years like CCW; Tier 3: similar to class 3 FFL licensing with access to all full-auto small arms. No one would have access to large explosives without special license/cases.
      Religious Freedom: America has religious freedom. Either to or from religion.
      Affirmative Action: Repeal, replace with systems to better educate minorities and work on the deconstruction of "urban culture".
      Prostitution: Decriminalize
      Euthanasia: Legalize, with some limitations.

      Economic Issues:

      Minimum Wage: Repeal minimum wage, all current welfare and failing social security and replace with the Yang plan of $1000/mo UBI.
      Welfare, Healthcare, Social Security: See above, free the healthcare system from insurance companies and big pharma. Government will negotiate better prices and open interstate lanes for cheaper insurance.
      Collective Bargaining: Make it so any worker can unionize without penalty/retaliation and also unions cannot force memberships or dues paid.
      Taxation: Repeal the income tax, replace with VAT and the UBI. Outlaw property taxes to bring back true landownership and promote more Americans to buy homes.
      Trade: Full tariff-free trade is the goal. That benefits the consumer the most.
      Education: We need to do far better at teaching history, critical thinking, finance and economics, and long-term thinking. A full-on overhaul to meet the "cyberpunk" future where most menial jobs are automated and to clear out the ranks of entrenched cultural Marxists.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Support.
      Immigration: Set up a path-to-citizenship like most other first-world countries. Process illegals for VISAs or deportation if they have committed crimes. Set up surveillance "wall" at the borders.


      Foreign Policy and National Security:

      Afghanistan: Leave.
      Iraq: Leave.
      Iran: Normalize relations. Monitor nuclear progress.
      Syria: Leave.
      Yemen: Leave, help broker a peace deal.
      Military Spending: Go back to Eisenhower. End the reliance on contractors. Break the military-security-intelligence complex. Downsize the Army. If the Admirals and Generals can't defend the United States for a sane price-tag, fire them and find ones who can. Our military is a joke and a disaster waiting to happen.
      Homeland Security: Abolish. Repeal the PATRIOT Act in full.
      Global policing: End Team America World Police unless that country asks for help. Maintain some military presence for quick response to crises.
      NSA Spying: Abolish the NSA. Reform FISA. Hand off domestic surveillance (when necessary) to the FBI, give foreign surveillance to the DIA and CIA. Check if the statue of limitations for those involved has expired yet.
      Palestine: two-state solution
      Israel: Support, do not fund
      Kurds: Support creating their own country or becoming apart of a new, stable Syria.
      Saudi Arabia: Let China be their white knights now, cancel all agreements.
      Guantanamo Bay: Use as a trade piece with Cuba to help open up trade/relations/tourism again.
      NATO: Support as long as they pay up. Try to normalize relations with Russia as best we can.


      Environment:

      Climate Change: Big concern but I don't think we're screwed in only 12 years. But either we promote real solutions like IBM's new chemical plastic breakdown/recycling system or the phasing out of fossil fuels, switching farms to improve our diet from animals to plants or face the consequences of our actions and look for a new planet to call home.
      Green Energy: Phase out coal and oil as fast as possible. Full support to nuclear for power grid, retiring older reactors and replacing with Thorium designs (liquid fuel, no meltdown). Fix infrastructure to prevent attacks and hacking taking down large portions of the grid. Finish and open Yucca Mountain, middle finger to the NIMBYs. Continue solar and nuclear fusion research for the future.
      Carbon Tax: No ponzi schemes. Where would this money be spent? There are better options.
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Finish it, and make sure it's the last we need.

      Electoral Reform:

      Electoral College:  Make the votes in the EC better tied to the state population so the vote is fairly equalized across the country and candidates won't just tour a few states as in a NPV.  
      Gerrymandering: End it. Give states model legislation with multiple options on how to fairly arrange districts. States that don't comply lose federal funding.
      Term limits: Yes, for most, but longer terms for POTUS and House. President for 6 years x2, Senators for 6 x2, House Members for 4 x2.
      Voter ID: Yes, with free IDs for all.
      Compulsory Voting: No. Make election day on a weekend to improve turnout.
      Voting: End first-past-the-post. Implement ranked voting or a similar system (Condorcet?). Go to a multi-party system.
      Statehood: Require referendums for Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, Pacific Territories with option to leave/become independent.
      Supreme Court: Restore old standard for approval and no "nuclear" option. 20 year term-limits.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Rules for me, but not for thee on May 07, 2019, 01:23:39 PM
      Thanks to Ghost as "borrowed" his list and co-opted positions I agreed with (and added/combined a few).


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: John Dule on May 23, 2019, 02:05:54 AM
      Overall Ideology: Libertarian/Nationalist

      GENERAL DEFINITIONS:
      - Freedom is the ability to make choices and pursue courses of action for oneself without the hindrance of the arbitrary whims and wishes of other people.
      - Security is the ability to make choices and pursue courses of action for oneself without fear of harm, want, or consequences.
      - "Freedom from want" is an alternative way of phrasing the word "security," used by pseudo-intellectuals with the intent to deceive.
      - The Self is the element of a person that chooses between multiple courses of action.
      - There is no such thing as "human nature" because humans often have many conflicting instincts at once, and no instinct is necessarily superior to any other. Therefore it is up to the individual to decide which instinct he wishes to obey. The Self exists only as a mechanism for choosing.
      - Individualism is the desire to control one's own destiny, and the confidence in one's own investments and decisions.
      - Collectivism is the desire to negate one's Self by relinquishing control over the decision-making process and ceding it to a larger group. This occurs because the individual is not confident in his own investments and decisions.
      - Investment is the ability to plan ahead for long periods of time, and to try to improve the state of one's life. It only instinct/ability which sets humans apart from animals.

      THE STATE:
      - The State in its proper form is created when those who manage to profit from their investments (farmers in early agricultural societies) determine that they need a way to protect their savings and further investments. Therefore the State exists solely to protect the investments of productive individuals.
      - Taxes are the means of funding the State's protection of property. They must provide for defense, a legal system, and a police force. The State must also enforce contracts made between individuals, and severely punish businesses that mislead their customers.
      - Though the State exists solely to protect the private property of those it is entrusted to serve, those who value collectivism rather than individualism prefer to use it as a method to seek unity through language, race, cultural background, religious belief, geography, political ideology, or some combination of these. Those who wish to associate with one another this way should not be prevented from doing so, but at the same time, they must not be able to force others to participate.
      - Therefore, the ideal state will provide the basic framework of property protection, and allow for privately owned communities to make their own laws, provided that those living in them have the right of exit.
      - These private communities could make religious laws, and extract taxes to pay for welfare and social programs, based on the principles set out by the owners of the community's property. Thus, the State will substantially delegate power to local authorities, provided that those local authorities confine their power to their own property and do not infringe upon the rights of individuals.

      SOCIAL POLICY:
      - Due to the principles outlined above, the State's social policy should be non-discriminatory in the most extreme sense possible. The State must not discriminate based on race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, or political ideology.
      - Private institutions may discriminate however they see fit, provided that those participating have the right of exit.
      - In order to prevent those who obey their collectivist instincts from infringing upon the freedoms of those with individualist instincts, the rights to freedom of speech, to self-defense, to a free press, and to freedom of worship must not be infringed.
      - Children, being individuals, have rights. Parents have no right to indoctrinate their children into any religion, political ideology, or other belief system. Those who do this are abusive. For this same reason, circumcision must be banned.
      - Fetuses are not human and are therefore not a factor in this moral system. However, fully legal abortion must come with an end to government-mandated child support (if the decision is the mother's alone, the father must not be forced to participate in child-rearing).
      - Drugs and alcohol must be fully legal, though private health care providers must be allowed to refuse service to those who participate in these activities.

      ECONOMIC POLICY:
      - Taxes should be paid only by citizens with property/investments.
      - Welfare is a system of corrupt bargaining between elected officials and a greedy populace. It exists solely for politicians to deliver giveaways to the various constituent groups that leech off of them. All subsidies and redistributive tax policies are morally wrong.
      - Price controls like rent control increase demand while decreasing supply, creating shortages that are extremely harmful to the economy. They are also an infringement on the right to free contract, which makes them immoral in addition to being ineffectual.
      - Tariffs should only be enacted if the foreign nation in question has already enacted them; otherwise they are an act of aggression.
      - Central Banks are methods of monopolizing money supply and controlling interest rates. They must be abolished.
      - Any currency issued by the State must have intrinsic value to prevent incentivizing government debt.
      - Unions are an excellent method for bargaining, but must not be enforced by the State.

      POLITICAL POLICY:
      - Democracy is a utilitarian form of collectivism that leaves the rights of individuals up to the rule of the majority. By ceding the process of decision-making to the group, the individual loses all agency and allows himself to be tyrannized. Democracy also removes the immediacy of the effects of votes from the minds of individuals, and through collective action, nobody feels responsible for the system's horrible outcomes. For these reasons, it is immoral.
      - A democratic system requires a ban on all welfare, as well as a Constitutional provision requiring all politicians who propose redistribution to resign. If this is not possible, then only property owners (those whom the State exists to serve first and foremost) must be allowed to vote.
      - Interventionism is contradictory, as the State exists to serve the interests of its own people, not the interests of those in other countries. Military bases and operations abroad must be ended unless the nation has been attacked.
      - Authoritarian, collectivistic political systems such as monarchy, communism, and fascism are equally immoral. Those wishing to practice these systems may purchase land to to so, and discriminate as they see fit, so long as the right of exit is respected.
      - A Constitution which protects the rights affirmed above, and which establishes the sort of political system I have outlined here, is the strictest and best way to maintain political stability and the security of property. There must be a ban on elected officials proposing any rollback of certain constitutional rights, under the penalty of being banned from ever holding public office again.

      ------------------------------------

      Realistic Policies Which I Would Like To See Enacted:
      - Abolishing the income tax for the bottom ~95% of earners and scaling back government spending proportionately.
      - Privatizing Social Security.
      - Establishing right-to-work laws nationwide.
      - Cutting off funding to states that refuse to acknowledge the rights enumerated in the Second Amendment.
      - A ban on religious education in public schools.
      - Marijuana legalization.
      - A rollback of subsidies in all sectors of the economy and cuts to regulations in the financial sector (regulations which, of course, were written by industry insiders with the intention to keep competition against the large multinationals from arising).
      - Raising the retirement age.
      - Establishing negative income tax brackets for earners making less than $25,000 a year.
      - Increased funding for public schools and community colleges, as well as a nationwide initiative to de-stigmatize community college as an educational path.
      - Fully legal abortion nationwide, with a simultaneous removal of all child support laws.
      - Cutbacks to welfare benefits for single mothers.
      - An end to all US aid to Saudi Arabia.
      - Abolishing the minimum wage.
      - A Balanced Budget Amendment.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: World politics is up Schmitt creek on May 23, 2019, 05:51:04 PM
      The State must not discriminate based on....political ideology.

      Quote
      as well as a Constitutional provision requiring all politicians who propose redistribution to resign.

      ayy lmao


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: John Dule on May 24, 2019, 01:48:33 AM
      The State must not discriminate based on....political ideology.

      Quote
      as well as a Constitutional provision requiring all politicians who propose redistribution to resign.

      ayy lmao

      Government employees don't deserve human rights.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: HillGoose on May 28, 2019, 06:05:09 AM
      my political views is that we need to kick the man's ass.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Tartarus Sauce on June 06, 2019, 05:06:05 PM
      The State must not discriminate based on....political ideology.

      Quote
      as well as a Constitutional provision requiring all politicians who propose redistribution to resign.

      ayy lmao

      Government employees don't deserve human rights.

      WTF?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: ChelseaT on June 08, 2019, 10:54:21 AM
      Overall I'd say I'm somewhat of a libertarian. Conservative on most fiscal issues, liberal on immigration and foreign policy, and don't really care about most social issues.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: John Dule on June 10, 2019, 08:58:47 PM
      The State must not discriminate based on....political ideology.

      Quote
      as well as a Constitutional provision requiring all politicians who propose redistribution to resign.

      ayy lmao

      Government employees don't deserve human rights.

      WTF?


      If you decide to live a life funded by leeching off of the taxpayers, you should be expected to give up certain freedoms. For starters, elected officials should not be allowed to propose restricting freedom of speech, the right to bear arms, etc.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: World politics is up Schmitt creek on June 10, 2019, 08:59:51 PM
      The State must not discriminate based on....political ideology.

      Quote
      as well as a Constitutional provision requiring all politicians who propose redistribution to resign.

      ayy lmao

      Government employees don't deserve human rights.

      WTF?


      If you decide to live a life funded by leeching off of the taxpayers, you should be expected to give up certain freedoms.

      Funnily, this is how I feel about lives funded by leeching off of one's employees vis-à-vis the right to private property.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: John Dule on June 10, 2019, 10:40:24 PM
      The State must not discriminate based on....political ideology.

      Quote
      as well as a Constitutional provision requiring all politicians who propose redistribution to resign.

      ayy lmao

      Government employees don't deserve human rights.

      WTF?


      If you decide to live a life funded by leeching off of the taxpayers, you should be expected to give up certain freedoms.

      Funnily, this is how I feel about lives funded by leeching off of one's employees vis-à-vis the right to private property.

      The difference, of course, is that everyone has the right to own private property, while government officials are given special privileges that are unmeritocratic and unearned.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Tartarus Sauce on June 20, 2019, 04:04:56 PM
      The State must not discriminate based on....political ideology.

      Quote
      as well as a Constitutional provision requiring all politicians who propose redistribution to resign.

      ayy lmao

      Government employees don't deserve human rights.

      WTF?


      If you decide to live a life funded by leeching off of the taxpayers, you should be expected to give up certain freedoms. For starters, elected officials should not be allowed to propose restricting freedom of speech, the right to bear arms, etc.

      That's very different from saying they don't deserve "human rights." That's the type of language I expect from somebody advocating for genocide or some other form of atrocity against a group of people.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on June 24, 2019, 10:52:33 AM
      The State must not discriminate based on....political ideology.

      Quote
      as well as a Constitutional provision requiring all politicians who propose redistribution to resign.

      ayy lmao

      Government employees don't deserve human rights.

      WTF?


      If you decide to live a life funded by leeching off of the taxpayers, you should be expected to give up certain freedoms.

      Funnily, this is how I feel about lives funded by leeching off of one's employees vis-à-vis the right to private property.

      The difference, of course, is that everyone has the right to own private property, while government officials are given special privileges that are unmeritocratic and unearned.
      Cops?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: John Dule on June 24, 2019, 02:56:17 PM
      The State must not discriminate based on....political ideology.

      Quote
      as well as a Constitutional provision requiring all politicians who propose redistribution to resign.

      ayy lmao

      Government employees don't deserve human rights.

      WTF?


      If you decide to live a life funded by leeching off of the taxpayers, you should be expected to give up certain freedoms.

      Funnily, this is how I feel about lives funded by leeching off of one's employees vis-à-vis the right to private property.

      The difference, of course, is that everyone has the right to own private property, while government officials are given special privileges that are unmeritocratic and unearned.
      Cops?

      That's just one example, but yes. I can't think of many other groups of people who get to kill unarmed black kids and get away with it.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Cokeland Saxton on July 10, 2019, 02:34:21 PM
      Social Policy:

      Abortion: Pro-life, no exceptions
      Same Sex Marriage: Civil unions only
      Marijuana for medical use, do not decriminalize drug use, but incentivize rehabilitation over punishment
      Stem Cell Research: Support with private funding
      Death Penalty: Keep
      Gun control: Pro 2nd amendment, background checks on immigrants and people with records
      Affirmative Action: Abolish
      Prostitution: Don't decriminalize, but incentivize rehabilitation instead of punishment
      Euthanasia: Keep it illegal

      Economic Issues:

      Minimum Wage: Raise federally to $10.50/hour with exceptions for small business/restaurants, $7.25 is not livable anymore
      Welfare: Cut funding
      Right-to-Work: Support
      Taxation: Cut taxes for all Americans, regardless of income, no taxes for under $30k/year
      Healthcare: Privatize
      Social Security: Privatize
      Trade: Indifferent on free trade          
      Education: No national standards, let states decide, end common core, more funding, background checks for teachers
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Indifferent, don't know what it entails


      Foreign Policy and National Security:

      Afghanistan: Leave
      Iraq: Leave
      Iran: Stay
      Syria: Leave
      Cuba: Keep sanctions for now, but encourage diplomacy
      Military Spending: A few cutbacks, but not much
      PATRIOT Act: Abolish
      NSA Spying: Abolish
      Palestine: Do not recognize
      Israel: Support and please fund
      Immigration: Harsher background checks, more difficult process
      Guantanamo Bay: Keep it open

      Environment:

      Climate Change: Stop overrating about it, blame China if anything
      Green Energy: Indifferent
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Build it

      Electoral Reform:

      Electoral College: Keep current system
      Gerrymandering: End the practice
      Term limits: Yes
      Voter ID: Yes
      Compulsory Voting: No
      Voter Registration: Yes
      Statehood: Allow referendum for Puerto Rico


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Demon King Piccolo on July 16, 2019, 05:22:46 PM
      Political views

      Political party: Independent (I was on

      I'm a man of the people. Not left not right but for common sense. I support the populace and all people. So you could say I'm an independent populist nationalist.

      Social issues

      Abortion:Pro-choice
      Gay Marriage:Support
      Death Penalty:Support
      Drug Legalization:Support Marijuana legalization not hard drugs
      Affirmative Action:Oppose
      Slavery Reparations:STRONGLY Oppose
      Gun Control:Oppose
      Euthanasia:STRONGLY Support

      Economic issues


      Carbon Taxes: Oppose
      More environmental regulation: Depends
      right-to-work:OPPOSE
      Minimum wage: Status Quo
      Immigration:Decrease legal immigration, NO amnesty
      Education:FREE CC + reduce loans
      Healthcare:Free medical coverage for all, but allow for PRIVATE insurance. Some kind of PUBLIC Option
      Welfare:I support welfare but for a limited period.

      Foreign Policy: complete non-interventionist/neo-isolationist. I oppose/opposed all foreign conflicts Iraq, Libya, Syria, etc and oppose all current conflicts. Russiagate is a scam and a lie. we should make peace with Iran. get the hell out of the middle east, no more intervention in favor of Israel, etc. peace with North Korea. Really as non-interventionist / dovish as you can get.

      However, I still believe we should have the biggest military in the world. But we should only use it if we are attacked or for self-defense. Military budget should however be reduced, and foreign aid should be SLASHED hard.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Governor Sirius on August 05, 2019, 12:32:27 AM
      Labels:
      Economic: Center
      Social: Liberal/Libertarian
      Foreign: Globalist
      Overall: Social Liberalism
      Social Policy:
      Abortion: Pro-choice
      Same-sex Marriage: Fully support
      Drugs: Soft drugs which don't really cause harm (like marijuana, lsd, khat, etc.) should be legal to sell and use, hard drugs should remain illegal but those guilty sentenced to probation with medical therapy instead of prison time.
      Stem Cell Research: Support
      Criminal Justice: Our current criminal justice system is ineffective, overly harsh, and causes people who could be one time offenders to stay in prison most of their lives. Our system needs to be transitioned to a more rehabilitative rather than punitive model, such as the exceptional system in Norway. Sentences should be lowered with a 20 year cap. Life sentences are a cruel punishment. Unsure on death penalty. Abolish private prisons.
      Slavery Reparations: Oppose
      Prostitution: Legalise
      Free Speech: The right to free speech should never be restricted except for valid threats of harm.
      Education: Our education system needs to be improved. Our schools are overly stressful for students and would have greater success in a less stressful environment. End standardized testing; the education system should focus on real skills and critical thinking rather than memorization. Give older students more opportunities to focus on areas of interest. Finland as a model. Abolish charter schools.
      Censorship: The government should not be involved in censorship. Repeal FCC censorship of television.
      Gun Control: Support greater restrictions and universal background checks. Most of us don't need heavy weapons.
      Immigration: Encourage legal immigration, make it easier to legally immigrate, stop detaining legal immigrants, do not separate families, do not deport illegals who arrived as children.
      Economic Policy:
      Minimum Wage: Should be raised according to the local cost of living. $7.25 is too low but many areas do not need $15 and such a large blanket increase could have adverse effects on the economy. Tie to inflation.
      Taxes: Raise income taxes some on wealthier groups, but not above 50%. Keep the estate tax. Maintain Obama era corporate tax.
      Infrastructure: Greatly increase funding for infrastructure and do more projects. Support high speed rail for short and medium distance routes and greater public transportation investment. Modernise our aging utilities. Government and markets should cooperate to research better technologies.
      College: Support greater financial support for low income students but not sold on full on free college.
      Healthcare: Reinstate the weakened provisions of Obamacare and support a public option.
      Welfare: Support maintaining the safety net while also encouraging those on welfare to find jobs and making it easier to.
      Unions: Do not restrict the right for workers to join a union, do not require it.
      Environment: Take greater action on the environment and climate change. Restrictions on pollutants and greenhouse gas, possibly support carbon tax. Tax credits to energy companies which use renewable energy along with government investment, plan to phase out fossil fuels entirely. Support Paris Agreement.
      Free Markets: Support the market economy. There should be regulation to protect the populace but alternatives to the market economy have proven ineffective.
      Foreign Policy:
      Trade: Support free trade and enter more trade agreements. While we shouldn't let ourselves be screwed over, most trade deals are beneficial to us and create jobs. The economy of today is a global one, and turning our backs on it will only cause harm.
      NATO/Allies: Stand by our allies in NATO and others such as Australia, Japan, South Korea and whatnot. The idea of leaving NATO is ridiculous. Having strong allies is mutually beneficial.
      War and Diplomacy: War should be a last resort, but may sometimes be necessary. Our foreign policy should be focused on diplomatic solutions and building positive relationships with the world.
      Global Cooperation: The US should be an active and positive member of the global community. We should take part in world humanitarian, scientific, and economic cooperation. Doing so will improve international relations and humanity in general. Strongly support the UN.
      Military Spending: We don't need to spend as much as we do. We could reduce spending a decent amount and still have the most powerful military in the world. Doing so would benefit other areas.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Idaho Conservative on August 07, 2019, 01:30:36 AM
      Social Policy:

      Abortion: Pro-life, life of mother exception.
      Same Sex Marriage: oppose
      Drugs: Legalize medical marijuana.  Oppose recreational drugs. 
      Stem Cell Research: Support
      Death Penalty: Support only when irrefutable evidence is present.
      Gun control: Support background checks, oppose further gun control
      Affirmative Action: oppose
      Prostitution: oppose
      Euthanasia: oppose

      Economic Issues:

      Minimum Wage: Raise to $10, tie to inflation.  Adjusted anually.
      Welfare: Support for short term and disability.  Remove incentives for having more kids.  Free birth control for those who can't afford it.
      Right-to-Work: Support
      Taxation: Cut middle class taxes.  Raise top marginal tax rate to 40%.  Tax capital gains as income.
       Simplify code to remove loopholes.
      Healthcare: Support Medicare and Medicaid.  Subsidies for people too wealthy to qualify for Medicaid.  I oppose single payer strongly though.
      Social Security: Preserve it by abolishing contribution cap and adjust payroll tax rate accordingly until it's solvent
      Trade: Allow international trade with regulation.  Punish companies who outsource.  Make the US government buy American.       
      Education: State issue.  Open up more opportunities for non college bound students. 
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Unsure


      Foreign Policy and National Security:

      Afghanistan: Leave
      Iraq: Leave
      Iran: Leave
      Syria: Leave
      Cuba: Keep sanctions
      Military Spending: Maintain
      PATRIOT Act: oppose
      NSA Spying: oppose
      Palestine: don't recognize
      Israel: support, should not receive free money
      Immigration: Deport illegal immigrants.  Abolish birthright citizenship, one parent must be a US citizen for the child to be granted automatic citizenship.  Remove citizenship from anchor babies (meaning both parents are not legal residents) on case-by-case basis.  Cap permanent immigration at 100,000 per year and make it merit based.  Cap immigration from any individual country at 10% of total immigrants to preserve diversity.
      Guantanamo Bay: Keep it open

      Environment:

      Climate Change: Real and manmade.  Support investment into green energy, especially solar and thorium reactors. 
      Green Energy: See above
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Support

      Electoral Reform:

      Electoral College: Support
      Gerrymandering: Permit
      Term limits: support for president
      Voter ID: support
      Compulsory Voting: oppose
      Voter Registration: this is an issue?
      Statehood: support DC retrocession into Maryland.  Would support DC statehood, provided that Montgomery, Prince George, Charles and Howard counties of MD and Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun, Prince William, and Stafford counties of Virginia are included in the state of DC.  Makes sense for DC metro to be a state.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on August 08, 2019, 08:19:38 AM
      Social Policy:

      Abortion: Pro-life, life of mother exception.
      Same Sex Marriage: oppose
      Drugs: Legalize medical marijuana.  Oppose recreational drugs. 
      Stem Cell Research: Support
      Death Penalty: Support only when irrefutable evidence is present.
      Gun control: Support background checks, oppose further gun control
      Affirmative Action: oppose
      Prostitution: oppose
      Euthanasia: oppose

      Economic Issues:

      Minimum Wage: Raise to $10, tie to inflation.  Adjusted anually.
      Welfare: Support for short term and disability.  Remove incentives for having more kids.  Free birth control for those who can't afford it.
      Right-to-Work: Support
      Taxation: Cut middle class taxes.  Raise top marginal tax rate to 40%.  Tax capital gains as income.
       Simplify code to remove loopholes.
      Healthcare: Support Medicare and Medicaid.  Subsidies for people too wealthy to qualify for Medicaid.  I oppose single payer strongly though.
      Social Security: Preserve it by abolishing contribution cap and adjust payroll tax rate accordingly until it's solvent
      Trade: Allow international trade with regulation.  Punish companies who outsource.  Make the US government buy American.       
      Education: State issue.  Open up more opportunities for non college bound students. 
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Unsure


      Foreign Policy and National Security:

      Afghanistan: Leave
      Iraq: Leave
      Iran: Leave
      Syria: Leave
      Cuba: Keep sanctions
      Military Spending: Maintain
      PATRIOT Act: oppose
      NSA Spying: oppose
      Palestine: don't recognize
      Israel: support, should not receive free money
      Immigration: Deport illegal immigrants.  Abolish birthright citizenship, one parent must be a US citizen for the child to be granted automatic citizenship.  Remove citizenship from anchor babies (meaning both parents are not legal residents) on case-by-case basis.  Cap permanent immigration at 100,000 per year and make it merit based.  Cap immigration from any individual country at 10% of total immigrants to preserve diversity.
      Guantanamo Bay: Keep it open

      Environment:

      Climate Change: Real and manmade.  Support investment into green energy, especially solar and thorium reactors. 
      Green Energy: See above
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Support

      Electoral Reform:

      Electoral College: Support
      Gerrymandering: Permit
      Term limits: support for president
      Voter ID: support
      Compulsory Voting: oppose
      Voter Registration: this is an issue?
      Statehood: support DC retrocession into Maryland.  Would support DC statehood, provided that Montgomery, Prince George, Charles and Howard counties of MD and Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun, Prince William, and Stafford counties of Virginia are included in the state of DC.  Makes sense for DC metro to be a state.

      This platform is probably more in line with what the Republican Party should run on post-Trump and almost how it could have run post-Bush if there were no intervening recession that caused the Democrats to go hard left on bread and butter issues. That is, economically centrist, isolationists and very conservative on identity issues except for when they get in the way of our global competitiveness with medicine or engineering (thus being more open to stem cell research and global warming). 


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Insomnian on August 13, 2019, 03:16:00 AM
      I'm really not sure what most people would call me (presumably, beltway WaPo-style "centrists" would call me alt-right or something, but I doubt that's what most people would say).

      Social Policy

      Abortion: Mostly pro-choice, but I'm okay with restrictions on 2nd/3rd term abortion (with the typical rape/health exceptions)
      Same Sex Marriage: Support
      Marijuana: Legalize & tax. Other forms of drug abuse should be treated as a public health issue.
      Slavery reparations: 100% opposed
      Stem Cell Research: For
      Death Penalty: Support
      Criminal justice reform: Mixed. Pro-Prison Reform, but against Black Lives Matter
      Gun control: Pro-background checks, waiting lists. Against gun bans.
      Affirmative Action: Against
      Prostitution: Decriminalize
      Euthanasia: Decriminalize

      Economic Issues

      Minimum Wage: Should be $15 or even $20 in high CoL areas. Maybe $10 or $12 in lower CoL areas.
      Welfare: Increase spending, especially for working families. End marriage penalty.
      Right-to-Work: Neutral
      Taxation: Increase taxes significantly to Nordic levels.
      Healthcare: Support Obamacare as-is with a public option. Against Medicare for All.
      Social Security: Hike payroll taxes to balance.
      Trade: Protectionist, support tariffs and other trade barriers until trade becomes more fair or better trade deals can be negotiated.        
      Education: Crack down on scammy colleges (most of them). Desegregate schools.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Against
      Transportation: Massively expand both private and public transit funding.
      Infrastructure: Massively increase spending

      Foreign Policy and National Security

      U.N: Increase involvement. Only intervene with multilateral support.
      NATO: Withdraw
      Afghanistan: Withdraw
      Iraq: Withdraw
      Iran: Withdraw
      Russia: Detente
      China: Scale down military confrontation (no TPP), but stand ground on economic disputes.
      North Korea: Keep relations and personal diplomacy
      South Korea: Remove THAAD missile defense system, gradually withdraw troops if and when North Korea agrees to denuclearize.
      Syria: Leave
      Cuba: Lift sanctions, foster diplomacy
      Military Spending: Cut by 50%.
      PATRIOT Act: End
      NSA Spying: Abolish NSA and CIA.
      Palestine: Withdraw
      Israel: Withdraw, but support diplomatically (and maybe sell them surplus arms?)
      Immigration: Implement both Trump's plan to increase skilled labor and Obama's path to citizenship.
      Guantanamo Bay: Shut it down

      Environment

      Climate Change: Meh. Certainly a problem, but not one that can really drive objective/quantitative policy-making.
      Green Energy: Support (Obama's "all-of-the-above" policy)
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Support
      Fracking: Support

      Electoral Reform

      Electoral College: Keep current system
      Gerrymandering: Keep current system
      Term limits: Oppose
      Voter ID: Support only if voter IDs are easy to get.
      Compulsory Voting: Support
      Voter Registration: Support
      Statehood: Puerto Rico, but only if they actually want it. DC probably shouldn't be a state and hell, NoVa shouldn't get to vote either


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on August 13, 2019, 07:56:44 AM
      I'm really not sure what most people would call me (presumably, beltway WaPo-style "centrists" would call me alt-right or something, but I doubt that's what most people would say).

      Social Policy

      Abortion: Mostly pro-choice, but I'm okay with restrictions on 2nd/3rd term abortion (with the typical rape/health exceptions)
      Same Sex Marriage: Support
      Marijuana: Legalize & tax. Other forms of drug abuse should be treated as a public health issue.
      Slavery reparations: 100% opposed
      Stem Cell Research: For
      Death Penalty: Support
      Criminal justice reform: Mixed. Pro-Prison Reform, but against Black Lives Matter
      Gun control: Pro-background checks, waiting lists. Against gun bans.
      Affirmative Action: Against
      Prostitution: Decriminalize
      Euthanasia: Decriminalize

      Economic Issues

      Minimum Wage: Should be $15 or even $20 in high CoL areas. Maybe $10 or $12 in lower CoL areas.
      Welfare: Increase spending, especially for working families. End marriage penalty.
      Right-to-Work: Neutral
      Taxation: Increase taxes significantly to Nordic levels.
      Healthcare: Support Obamacare as-is with a public option. Against Medicare for All.
      Social Security: Hike payroll taxes to balance.
      Trade: Protectionist, support tariffs and other trade barriers until trade becomes more fair or better trade deals can be negotiated.        
      Education: Crack down on scammy colleges (most of them). Desegregate schools.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Against
      Transportation: Massively expand both private and public transit funding.
      Infrastructure: Massively increase spending

      Foreign Policy and National Security

      U.N: Increase involvement. Only intervene with multilateral support.
      NATO: Withdraw
      Afghanistan: Withdraw
      Iraq: Withdraw
      Iran: Withdraw
      Russia: Detente
      China: Scale down military confrontation (no TPP), but stand ground on economic disputes.
      North Korea: Keep relations and personal diplomacy
      South Korea: Remove THAAD missile defense system, gradually withdraw troops if and when North Korea agrees to denuclearize.
      Syria: Leave
      Cuba: Lift sanctions, foster diplomacy
      Military Spending: Cut by 50%.
      PATRIOT Act: End
      NSA Spying: Abolish NSA and CIA.
      Palestine: Withdraw
      Israel: Withdraw, but support diplomatically (and maybe sell them surplus arms?)
      Immigration: Implement both Trump's plan to increase skilled labor and Obama's path to citizenship.
      Guantanamo Bay: Shut it down

      Environment

      Climate Change: Meh. Certainly a problem, but not one that can really drive objective/quantitative policy-making.
      Green Energy: Support (Obama's "all-of-the-above" policy)
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Support
      Fracking: Support

      Electoral Reform

      Electoral College: Keep current system
      Gerrymandering: Keep current system
      Term limits: Oppose
      Voter ID: Support only if voter IDs are easy to get.
      Compulsory Voting: Support
      Voter Registration: Support
      Statehood: Puerto Rico, but only if they actually want it. DC probably shouldn't be a state and hell, NoVa shouldn't get to vote either

      Just sound like a pragmatic liberal who doesn't care about identity politics. Maybe what would now be considered a "blue dog populist" today.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Insomnian on August 17, 2019, 03:28:41 AM
      Just sound like a pragmatic liberal who doesn't care about identity politics. Maybe what would now be considered a "blue dog populist" today.

      In today's political culture, the more common way this gets described is "Nazi", "white supremacist", "white nationalist", "strasserist", "Nazbol gang", or some equally rancid epithet.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: 538Electoral on August 17, 2019, 11:41:45 AM
      Abortion: Pro-life. Exceptions to rape and danger to the mother.
      Same Sex Marriage: Don't really care. Why is this issue so political?
      Marijuana: Legalize medicinal marijuana, Let the states decide whether to legalize marijuana for recreational use.
      Slavery reparations: No
      Stem Cell Research: For
      Death Penalty: Support for murderers and other high-profile criminals.
      Criminal justice reform: Oppose. Criminals are criminals.
      Gun control: Don't ban guns. Make sure buyers aren't mentally ill.
      Affirmative Action: Against
      Prostitution: Eww. Don't legalize.
      Euthanasia: Don't really care.

      Economic Issues

      Minimum Wage: Keep minimum wage as is.
      Welfare: Keep as is.
      Right-to-Work: Sure.
      Taxation: SLIGHTLY increase taxes for the rich.
      Healthcare: Oppose Obamacare.
      Social Security: Leave as is.
      Trade: Protectionist
      Education: Make sure there are better education programs.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Against
      Transportation: Massively expand both private and public transit funding.
      Infrastructure: Slightly decrease spending.

      Foreign Policy and National Security

      U.N: Withdraw
      NATO: Stay in, Only go to war if the US or other allies are attacked.
      Afghanistan: Withdraw
      Iraq: Withdraw
      Iran: Withdraw
      Russia: Support better relations
      China: Support better relations in general, keep tariffs in place.
      North Korea: Keep relations and personal diplomacy
      South Korea: Leave, Let NK and SK work on a peace-deal without our involvement.
      Syria: Leave
      Cuba: Lift sanctions
      Military Spending: Cut down significantly
      PATRIOT Act: End
      NSA Spying: Abolish NSA and CIA.
      Palestine/Israel: Cut down on our support for Israel.
      Immigration: Support a border wall.
      Guantanamo Bay: Keep it open, Though make sure that no innocent people wind up there.

      Environment

      Climate Change: Eh
      Green Energy: Eh
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Support
      Fracking: Support

      Electoral Reform

      Electoral College: Keep current system
      Gerrymandering: Oppose
      Term limits: Support
      Voter ID: Support
      Compulsory Voting: Oppose
      Voter Registration: Support
      Statehood: The US is fine as it is. Let Puerto Rico become it's own country. Don't give DC statehood.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: LAKISYLVANIA on August 18, 2019, 03:08:54 PM
      Abortion: Pro-Choice
      Same Sex Marriage: Support
      Marijuana: Legalize recreational marijuana and pardon all convicted people
      Slavery reparations: No
      Stem Cell Research: For
      Death Penalty: Lean towards support
      Criminal justice reform: Support
      Gun control: Pro-background checks, undecided about gun bans.
      Affirmative Action: Against
      Prostitution: Decriminalize
      Euthanasia: Legalize

      Economic Issues

      Minimum Wage: Increase to a 15 dollar minimum wage, tied to inflation, adjust yearly
      Welfare: Increase spending, especially for working families
      Right-to-Work: People should always have the right to work.
      Taxation: Increase taxes for the rich & multinationals, decreases for middle & lower class & local businesses
      Healthcare: I support a single-payer healthcare system.
      Social Security: Expand
      Trade: I'm a hard protectionist
      Education: I'm in favour of the Finland system. State decides where people go to school. Free education, including higher education. Fully subsidized by government. Abolish private & charter schools.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: I don't know
      Transportation: Expand public transporting funding & make free for all, abolish private transportation (trains, busses)
      Infrastructure: Increase spending

      Foreign Policy and National Security

      U.N: Withdraw
      NATO: Withdraw
      Afghanistan: Withdraw
      Iraq: Withdraw
      Iran: Withdraw
      Russia: Lift sanctions and Support better relations
      Europe: increase tariffs, just like we should do.
      China: Support better relations in general, keep tariffs in place.
      North Korea: Keep relations and personal diplomacy
      South Korea: Leave, Let NK and SK work on a peace-deal without our involvement.
      Syria: Leave
      Cuba: Lift sanctions and support better relations
      Venezuela: Lift sanctions and support better relations
      Military Spending: Cut down by 50% or more.
      PATRIOT Act: End
      NSA Spying: Abolish NSA and CIA.
      Palestine/Israel: Support an independent Palestine
      Immigration: Support tightly controlled immigration.
      Guantanamo Bay: Shut down

      Environment

      Climate Change: Support a new green deal. Implement a CO² tax.
      Green Energy: Support
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Against
      Fracking: Against

      Electoral Reform

      Electoral College: Keep current system
      Gerrymandering: Oppose
      Term limits: Support
      Voter ID: Support
      Compulsory Voting: Oppose
      Voter Registration: Support
      Statehood: Puerto Rico should become a state.

      Overview:
      Social: Center-left to left-wing (American norms: left-wing to far-left)
      Economic: Far-left (even compared to European norms)
      Foreign: Left-wing to far-left (American norms: far-left)
      Party Affiliation: Registered PVDA-PTB (marxist) member, but i refuse to call myself a marxist. I see myself more as independent affiliated with this party.
      Ideology: Left-wing populist, democratic socialist, libertarian socialist.

      Most important issues:
      Green New Deal
      Single-payer healthcare
      Tuition-free colleges
      Legalization of marijuana, decriminalization of all drugs
      30 hour work week*

      (*) People will have to work longer (65 to 70 years), and that's why we need to reduce the work week to reduce stress (and burn-outs). A shorter work week would reduce unemployment, as more people will be needed because people work less, but it would anticipate on a new technological wave (more automatization because of robots). I also support spreading the main shifts (8 to 5 work week) to 7 to 4 and 9 to 6 work week to reduce traffic overload.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Vittorio on August 23, 2019, 08:27:09 AM
      Left-communist of the Italian/American (Paul Mattick) persuasion. I refuse to make a shopping list of political positions, which is idealistic in the extreme.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: World politics is up Schmitt creek on August 26, 2019, 06:19:47 PM
      I recently read something, I forget what, that inspired me to post in this thread again, setting out not my views On The Issues but my fundamental beliefs about politics and what its aims should be.

      At heart, I consider myself very conservative philosophically speaking--not in the sense of agreeing with Burkean or Maistrean ideas about the proper content of politics, but in the sense of genuinely believing in many of the established truisms of the twentieth century that seem naive and dated now, and even some of the truisms of the nineteenth century that were already seen as discredited by the interwar period. I believe that democracy is the worst form of government except for all the others, that pursuing a politics of racial or religious prejudice is always morally wrong, and that the proper aim of the political process is the attempt to identify and pursue the good society for everybody's sake; I even believe (as, according to Orwell, did the "pre-fascist" Kipling) that the gods punish hubris and that pride goeth before a fall. I'm committed to these beliefs come what may, even if the day comes when they're popularly thought to be as hopelessly outmoded as the divine right of kings.

      On a slightly less fundamental level, I believe in the pursuit of legal and ideally also rough material equality for all citizens of a given society, and that people who are downtrodden in different societies have more in common with one another than with their own societies' ruling elites. I'm a Christian and a left-winger and I have a "leveling" view of the fundamental moral purpose of both of those currents of thought and belief. In principle I am staunchly anti-capitalist, even though within the current leftist scene I'm a bit more moderate than your typical DSAer; to my own surprise, I've actually further moderated in the Trump era, including on a few issues (abortion and Israel are the two big ones) on which my emotional and moral sympathies are closer to the right than to the left. I wear the maroon avatar proudly as an indicator of the intellectual and moral tradition of English-speaking democratic socialism, rather than because I'm an ultra-leftist on such and such a set of live political issues.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: John Dule on September 23, 2019, 04:46:25 PM
      Left-communist of the Italian/American (Paul Mattick) persuasion. I refuse to make a shopping list of political positions, which is idealistic in the extreme.

      "I'm writing this on the toilet and I don't want to type all my opinions on my touchscreen."


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Beefalow and the Consumer on October 14, 2019, 03:33:49 PM
      Economics: I'm a believer in free-market capitalism, but I also support government regulation and intervention, especially in the financial sector. I support taxpayer-funded education and taxpayer-funded healthcare, because the benefits of these programs far outweigh the costs, and sometimes are more cost-effective than private solutions. I believe in open competition, open markets, and the free movement of people, goods, and services. I believe in progressive taxation, as well as lowering barriers to economic mobility.

      Abortion: Safe, legal, and rare. I would never counsel anyone to have an abortion if their life or health weren't threatened, and if so, I would implore them to terminate their pregnancy as soon as possible. I consider abortion the destruction of a human life, but not a human person, and therefore the well-being of the mother is paramount. I believe forcing a woman to carry a pregnancy to term violates basic human dignity, bodily autonomy, and privacy, and therefore I generally oppose legislative restrictions on abortion in general.

      The war on drugs: Prohibition never works. Legalize and tax low-harm substances like marijuana, and for high-harm substances like heroin or meth, criminalize the supply, but not the demand, and focus on treatment and recovery. Pardon everyone currently behind bars for minor drug offenses who haven't committed a violent crime.

      LGBTQ issues: I'm bisexual and my spouse is trans. This fight is personal. Gender identity is real. Your sexuality is valid.

      Border/Immigration: One of the functions of the modern state is to protect its citizens from external threats. To this end I believe in controlled national borders. However, I also support the free movement of people, and anyone without a criminal background who wishes to enter this country to work, should be allowed to do so. After a time of continuous employment and a clean record, that person should have a path to citizenship. We should enthusiastically welcome refugees for humanitarian reasons and because we are strengthened by diversity.

      Nationalism: I really don't give a rip about magic songs and magic banners. America isn't particularly exceptional, but it's my home and an extension of my family, and in that regard I am loyal to my country.

      Race: We live in a racist society. You can ignore the systemic injustice and implicit, societal bias, or you can work to solve it. Money won't fix this. Government can only do so much. People must change.

      Church and state: Build a wall.

      Death penalty: Never, under any circumstances.

      Gun control: We need to classify firearms according to their danger to the public, and require appropriate licensing and testing for each class. We can respect the 2nd Amendment rights of citizens for self defense, while also protecting the public from the dangers of a completely unregulated market for tools of mass murder.

      Prostitution: Criminalize the Johns, decriminalize the sex workers.

      Environment: Listen to our scientists. Expand nuclear power. Continue to develop renewable energy. Enact disincentives to fossil fuel extraction, as this is the root cause of climate change.

      Foreign policy: Internationalism and cooperation, pro-UN, pro-NATO. We must extract ourselves from our role as world police, but this must be done slowly and carefully, so as not to upset the world order. Our alliances are precious, and we cannot ignore our role as a global superpower.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on October 15, 2019, 10:26:56 AM
      Economics: I'm a believer in free-markets capitalism, but I also support government regulation and intervention, especially in the financial sector. I support taxpayer-funded education and taxpayer-funded healthcare, because the benefits of these programs far outweigh the costs, and sometimes are more cost-effective than private solutions when it comes to providing goods and services that cannot not be correctly quantitated in a liberal and quantitative context. I believe in open competition, open markets, and the free movement of people, goods, and services. I believe in progressive taxation, as well as lowering barriers to economic mobility.

      Abortion: Safe, legal, and rare. I would never counsel anyone to have an abortion if their life or health weren't threatened, and if so, I would implore them to terminate their pregnancy as soon as possible. I consider abortion the destruction of a human life, but not a human person, and therefore the well-being of the mother is paramount. I believe forcing a woman to carry a pregnancy to term violates basic human dignity, bodily autonomy, and privacy, and therefore I generally oppose legislative restrictions on abortion in general.

      The war on drugs: Prohibition never works. Legalize and tax low-harm substances like marijuana, and for high-harm substances like heroin or meth, criminalize the supply, but not the demand, and focus on treatment and recovery. Pardon everyone currently behind bars for minor drug offenses who haven't committed a violent crime.

      LGBTQ issues: I'm bisexual and my spouse is trans. This fight is personal. Gender identity is real. Your sexuality is valid. I do not have this experience but can understand that no one chooses who they are.


      Border/Immigration: One of the functions of the modern state is to protect its citizens from external threats. To this end I believe in controlled national borders. However, I also support the free movement of people, and anyone without a criminal background who wishes to enter this country to work, should be allowed to do so. After a time of continuous employment and a clean record, that person should have a path to citizenship. We should enthusiastically welcome refugees for humanitarian reasons and because we are strengthened by diversity.

      Nationalism: I really don't give a rip about magic songs and magic banners. America isn't particularly exceptional, but is my home and an extension of my family, and in that regard I am loyal to my country.

      Race: We live in a racist society. You can ignore the systemic injustice and implicit, societal bias, or you can work to solve it. Money won't fix this. Government can only do so much. People must change.

      Church and state: Build a wall.

      Death penalty: Never, under any circumstances.

      Gun control: We need to classify firearms according to their danger to the public, and require appropriate licensing and testing for each class. We can respect the 2nd Amendment rights of citizens for self defense, while also protecting the public from the dangers of a completely unregulated market for tools of mass murder. The ultimate goal is to qualify what a "arm" is. People shouldn't be able to drive around in a tank with live ammo or have a .50 BAR nested out of the window of their condo or nested in their front yard. Personally, I am OK with licensed semi-automatic weapons and licensed conceal carry. I'm NOT OK with open carry but am open with there being a federal process for allowing or recognizing state-level rehabilitation of gun rights. Red flag laws are of the most immediate concern at the moment

      Prostitution: Criminalize the Johns, decriminalize the sex workers.

      Environment: Listen to our scientists. Expand nuclear power. Continue to develop renewable energy. Enact disincentives to fossil fuel extraction, as this is the root cause of climate change.

      Foreign policy: Internationalism and cooperation, pro-UN, pro-NATO. We must extract ourselves from our role as world police, but this must be done slowly and carefully, so as not to upset the world order. Our alliances are precious, and we cannot ignore our role as a global superpower.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: lfromnj on October 15, 2019, 10:37:53 AM
      Economics: I'm a believer in free-market capitalism, but I also support government regulation and intervention, especially in the financial sector. I support taxpayer-funded education and taxpayer-funded healthcare, because the benefits of these programs far outweigh the costs, and sometimes are more cost-effective than private solutions. I believe in open competition, open markets, and the free movement of people, goods, and services. I believe in progressive taxation, as well as lowering barriers to economic mobility.

      Abortion: Safe, legal, and rare. I would never counsel anyone to have an abortion if their life or health weren't threatened, and if so, I would implore them to terminate their pregnancy as soon as possible. I consider abortion the destruction of a human life, but not a human person, and therefore the well-being of the mother is paramount. I believe forcing a woman to carry a pregnancy to term violates basic human dignity, bodily autonomy, and privacy, and therefore I generally oppose legislative restrictions on abortion in general.

      The war on drugs: Prohibition never works. Legalize and tax low-harm substances like marijuana, and for high-harm substances like heroin or meth, criminalize the supply, but not the demand, and focus on treatment and recovery. Pardon everyone currently behind bars for minor drug offenses who haven't committed a violent crime.

      LGBTQ issues: I'm bisexual and my spouse is trans. This fight is personal. Gender identity is real. Your sexuality is valid.

      Border/Immigration: One of the functions of the modern state is to protect its citizens from external threats. To this end I believe in controlled national borders. However, I also support the free movement of people, and anyone without a criminal background who wishes to enter this country to work, should be allowed to do so. After a time of continuous employment and a clean record, that person should have a path to citizenship. We should enthusiastically welcome refugees for humanitarian reasons and because we are strengthened by diversity.

      Nationalism: I really don't give a rip about magic songs and magic banners. America isn't particularly exceptional, but it's my home and an extension of my family, and in that regard I am loyal to my country.

      Race: We live in a racist society. You can ignore the systemic injustice and implicit, societal bias, or you can work to solve it. Money won't fix this. Government can only do so much. People must change.

      Church and state: Build a wall.

      Death penalty: Never, under any circumstances.

      Gun control: We need to classify firearms according to their danger to the public, and require appropriate licensing and testing for each class. We can respect the 2nd Amendment rights of citizens for self defense, while also protecting the public from the dangers of a completely unregulated market for tools of mass murder.

      Prostitution: Criminalize the Johns, decriminalize the sex workers.

      Environment: Listen to our scientists. Expand nuclear power. Continue to develop renewable energy. Enact disincentives to fossil fuel extraction, as this is the root cause of climate change.

      Foreign policy: Internationalism and cooperation, pro-UN, pro-NATO. We must extract ourselves from our role as world police, but this must be done slowly and carefully, so as not to upset the world order. Our alliances are precious, and we cannot ignore our role as a global superpower.
      One of the policy position combos I hate the most.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: DeSantis4Prez on October 19, 2019, 09:00:46 PM
      Abortion: Pro-life, except for cases of rape, incest or danger to the mother/child
      Same Sex Marriage: Support, but government should stay out of marriage.
      Marijuana: Federal legalization of medical marijuana, put it in the states' hands regarding recreational use
      Slavery reparations: No
      Stem Cell Research: For
      Death Penalty: Support for violent offenders.
      Criminal justice reform: Oppose. Our current system is fine.
      Gun control: Pro-2A, basic background checks, make sure the buyer isn't mentally ill. Focus on prevention
      Affirmative Action: Against
      Prostitution: Morally against, but I don't think government should be too involved in the issue.
      Euthanasia: Legalize, but make sure the person who wants to be euthanized knows what they're doing

      Economic Issues

      Minimum Wage: Keep minimum wage at $10/hr. Above that forces companies to fire employees.
      Welfare: Keep as is, drug tests for recipients in high drug areas
      Right-to-Work: I don't really care too much about this issue, but everyone should have the right to work
      Taxation: Slight tax increase for the rich. Tax decrease for the middle class
      Healthcare: Privatization is best.
      Social Security: Leave as is.
      Trade: Protectionist
      Education: Make sure there are better education programs, eliminate Common Core federally.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Against
      Transportation: Funding needs to be increased for public transportation.
      Infrastructure: Increase spending. At least where i'm at, the roads suck.
      UBI: Support. $1,000/month
      4th Industrial Revolution/Automation: Real problem that needs fixing. Jobs need to return.

      Foreign Policy and National Security

      U.N: Withdraw
      NATO: Stay in, Only go to war if the US or other allies are attacked.
      Afghanistan: Withdraw
      Iraq: Withdraw
      Iran: Withdraw
      Russia: Support better relations
      China: Support better relations in general, keep tariffs in place.
      North Korea: Keep relations and personal diplomacy
      South Korea: Leave, Let NK and SK work on a peace-deal with minimal involvement.
      Syria: Leave, unless ISIS returns.
      Cuba: Lift sanctions, allow free travel.
      Military Spending: Minor cuts
      PATRIOT Act: End
      NSA Spying: Abolish the NSA and reform the TSA
      Palestine/Israel: Israel, 100%.
      Immigration: Support a border wall, ICE.
      Guantanamo Bay: Keep it open, only for violent offenders.

      Environment

      Climate Change: Is an issue that needs to be addressed, but is being over-played by the media
      Green Energy: Support, I guess
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Support, but try as hard as possible to avoid Indian reservations
      Fracking: Support

      Electoral Reform

      Electoral College: The electoral college is perfectly fine.
      Gerrymandering: Oppose
      Term limits: Support, 12-18 years for the Senate, 14-18 years for the House
      Voter ID: Support, voter fraud is too common
      Voter Registration: Support
      Statehood: Puerto Rico referendum on statehood/freedom once they pay off their debt to the US. D.C. shouldn't become a state.

      2020

      Democratic candidate: Andrew Yang
      Republican candidate: Donald Trump

      also i gave up on formatting lol


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: LAKISYLVANIA on October 30, 2019, 10:23:54 AM
      Abortion: Pro-Choice but let states decide
      Same Sex Marriage: Support
      Marijuana: Legalize recreational marijuana and pardon all convicted people
      Slavery reparations: No
      Stem Cell Research: For
      Death Penalty: Lean towards support but let states decide
      Criminal justice reform: Support
      Gun control: Pro-background checks, undecided about gun bans.
      Affirmative Action: Against
      Prostitution: Decriminalize but this should be a state issue
      Euthanasia: Legalize but leave it up to the states

      Economic Issues

      Minimum Wage: Increase to a 15 dollar minimum wage, tied to inflation, adjust yearly Increase on state and city level. No longer 15 dollars a month because i believes it hurts the economy, and America is too diverse for a general minimum wage. I want instead to decrease income taxes.
      Welfare: Increase spending, especially for working families
      Right-to-Work: People should always have the right to work.
      Taxation: Increase taxes for the rich & multinationals, decreases for middle & lower class & local businesses increase inheritance and real estate tax, decrease VAT tax
      Healthcare: I support a single-payer healthcare system.
      Social Security: Expand Depends, but reform. Increase retirement age, decrease work week for elderly
      Trade: I'm a hard protectionist Now i'm in favour of free trade and soft protectionism
      Education: I'm in favour of the Finland system. State decides where people go to school. Free education, including higher education. Fully subsidized by government. Abolish private & charter schools.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: I don't know Against
      Transportation: Expand public transporting funding & make free for all, abolish private transportation (trains, busses)
      Infrastructure: Increase spending

      Foreign Policy and National Security

      U.N: Withdraw Stay in but scale back current involvement
      NATO: Withdraw Stay in, but states need to pay 1,5% of GDP and NATO needs to modernize, eventually invite Russia and Asian countries in, as they're more reasonable than China.
      Afghanistan: Withdraw
      Iraq: Withdraw Fight ISIS, than withdraw
      Iran: Withdraw Economic sanctions
      Russia: Lift sanctions and Support better relations
      Europe: increase tariffs, just like we should do.
      China: Support better relations in general, keep tariffs in place.
      North Korea: Keep relations and personal diplomacy
      South Korea: Leave, Let NK and SK work on a peace-deal without our involvement. Leave but support South Korea and deliver high weapon technology
      Syria: Leave Leave but support a Kurdistan and Assad. Fight ISIS and VERY HARSH economical sanctions for Turkey. If they threaten with releasing immigrants into Europe, invade in northern Syria, and create an international buffer and no-fly zone, and support Kurds to enter Northern Syria (from Iran, Iraq and Turkey)
      Cuba: Lift sanctions and support better relations
      Venezuela: Lift sanctions and support better relations Economic sanctions, but don't intervent
      Military Spending: Cut down by 50% or more. Decrease budget gradually
      PATRIOT Act: End Unsure
      NSA Spying: Abolish NSA and CIA. Keep them
      Palestine/Israel: Support an independent Palestine Support a two-state solution according to 1947 census, support an independent Jerusalem
      Immigration: Support tightly controlled immigration. Support tough and correct immigration policy. Be humane, but be tough on it
      Guantanamo Bay: Shut down Keep

      Environment

      Climate Change: Support a new green deal. Implement a CO² tax. Against CO² tax for working class, focus on appointing national parks and invest in technology or research
      Green Energy: Support
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Against
      Fracking: Against

      Electoral Reform

      Electoral College: Keep current system
      Gerrymandering: Oppose
      Term limits: Support
      Voter ID: Support
      Compulsory Voting: Oppose
      Voter Registration: Support
      Statehood: Puerto Rico should become a state.

      Overview:
      Social: Center-left to left-wing (American norms: left-wing to far-left)
      Economic: Far-left (even compared to European norms)
      Foreign: Left-wing to far-left (American norms: far-left)
      Party Affiliation: Registered PVDA-PTB (marxist) member, but i refuse to call myself a marxist. I see myself more as independent affiliated with this party.
      Ideology: Left-wing populist, democratic socialist, libertarian socialist.

      Some changes.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: GovBillWeld on October 30, 2019, 07:53:27 PM
      I am socially Liberal, and fiscally Libertarian.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: McNukes™ #NYCMMWasAHero on November 06, 2019, 11:21:01 PM
      Ideology

      Social: Far-right
      Economic: Far-right
      Foreign: America First generally

      Social

      Abortion/Reproductive Rights: Resolutely opposed to the barbaric and murderous act of abortion.
      Marriage Equality/LGBTQ Issues: 100% opposed to every SCOTUS ruling related to LGBT issues, and opposed to SSM, open bathrooms, etc.
      Death Penalty: Execute pedophiles and drug dealers, too.
      Religious Freedom: Strong supporter of religious freedoms for all faiths and those with no faith belief at all. Favor religious liberty laws for bakers and other businesses. Also strongly support separation of religion and state.
      Drug Legalization: Against, but I believe that drug legalization would be a good compromise with the Left.
      Guns: Oppose most new regulations, support reforms to make our current system more fair towards those who wrongly lost rights and possess state gun permits, etc.
      Euthanasia: Euthanasia is one of the most wretched plagues on the world. People who really want to die are rare; doctors who wish to kill are many.
      Black Lives Matter/Police/Criminal Justice Reform: Both police unions and #BlackLivesMatter are generally horrible movements. Abusive police officers are treated too leniently in this country, but focusing on the plight of only one race means that they're more likely to abuse other races to take out their frustration and anger. Actions such as the MASC's ruling that blacks can evade arrest due to historical racism are detrimental to good race relations and to the safety of everyone, whether they may be black or some other race.
      Sex Education: Sex education should teach chastity and stigmatize promiscuity.
      Prostitution: Impose a federal tax to justify legalization.
      Education: School choice
      Affirmative Action: 100% against AA.
      Judges: Favor constructionist judges sitting on the Supreme Court and in the lower judiciary, that interpret the Constitution based on original intent, not a "living Constitution" text.

      Economic/Spending

      Taxes: I support higher excise taxes and lower taxes virtually everywhere else. FairTax isn't a bad idea.
      Trade: Tariffs should be raised, especially against China and especially against products subjected to excise taxes.
      Social Security/Medicare: Raise the retirement age and concentrate benefits on only the most elderly; restrict spousal benefits to widowed live-at-home spouses only, privatize the system, and for an interim period,
      Budgets: Cut spending by a trillion dollars and then pass a BBA imposing automatic spending cuts to prevent deficits and allowing a line-item veto.
      Defense Spending: Keep it at current levels, really.
      Minimum Wage: Opposed to increasing it but supportive of decreasing it when deflation is economically necessary.
      Labor Unions: Supportive of the right to work.
      Financial Regulation: Dodd-Frank is ridiculous and some other laws have issues, but I'm overall quite supportive of most US financial regulations.
      Welfare: Benefits must be cut.

      Foreign Policy

      Russia/NATO: Anti-NATO and a supporter of Team More Nukes. Russia and the US should be allied powers.
      Islamic terrorism: Crush it worldwide and expel Turkey from NATO or leave its pathetic alliance.
      Israel: Pro-Israel versus Palestine, but not to the extent of wanting the US to back its proxy wars; supportive of a peace which places Christians in control of the PA.
      Immigration: All illegal immigrants in the country should be deported, including DACA beneficiaries. No immigrants should depend on welfare. Move to a merit system and prioritize English speakers.
      Iran: The old Iran deal is already gone, so we need a new deal--and a better one.
      Foreign Aid: End foreign aid.
      Cuba: I support Trump policy for the most part.
      China: The US should withdraw recognition and maintain military preparedness to restore the ROC to the mainland.
      Venezuela: I support Trump policy for the most part.

      Environment

      Climate Change: Chinese hoax.
      EPA: Horrible.

      Healthcare
      ObamaCare: HP law. Eliminate it and replace it with something very terrific. End its welfare expansions, get rid of the provisions which enable insurance fraud and the unfree mandates, and repeal the taxes. No contraception mandate. Replace taxes on genuinely useful procedures and replace highly partisan changes introduced in the HCERA half of the Obamacare package with superior provisions which would be more bipartisan.
      Drug patents: Consider broad patents of 10 years (if that many; patents should be limited in length to the minimum proper to spur innovation) and then allow them to become considered generic, if necessary to spur innovation. Allow drug importation from Canada.

      Political

      Gerrymandering: The courts are currently unfairly undoing Republican "gerrymandering," while tolerating and even forcing Democrat gerrymandering in the name of fairness. If gerrymandering is to stopped, it must be stopped even-handedly; indeed, it
      Campaign Finance Reform: Must be even-handed, and not intended to favor either party.
      Term Limits: Repeal the 22nd and pass the 28th.
      Automatic Registration and Mandatory Voting: No. This is anti-freedom.
      Early Voting: This is not actually a good thing although it isn't something I oppose strongly. Minimization of abuse is the top priority, as my main concern is the increased potential for voter fraud with increased time to monitor elections.
      Primaries: Doesn't matter. Let the state parties decide.
      Puerto Rican and DC Statehood: No. PR does not want statehood despite its corrupt pro-statehood party embezzling all of their emergency monies and using territorial status as an excuse, and the Founders did not intend statehood for DC whatsoever, and if it were to become part of a state, it should be retroceded to Maryland.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Sam Smith on November 10, 2019, 07:15:30 AM
      Labels: Paleolibertarian,Paleoconservative,
      Issues:
      Pro Life
      Anti-Gay Marriage
      Pro Death Penalty
      Pro 2nd amendment
      End affirmative action & repeal the civil rights act of 64
      Climate Change: It's a hoax & eliminate the EPA
      Deport all illegal immigrants & cut legal immigration by 90% & Ban all Muslim Immigration
      Repeal the current Tax scam with a 10% Flat Tax & 20% Import Tax
      Medicare,Medicaid,Social Security cut 50% & send it back to the states
      Eliminate the Dep. of Education & Energy
      Balance the Budget every year
      Foreign Policy: Non Interventionist. Bring our troops home & shutdown all bases.
      End Foreign Aid. Get us out of NATO & the UN. 
      End the FED,End the Drug war & repeal the Patriot act!


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Tutankhuman Bakari Sellers on November 23, 2019, 07:48:19 PM
      Secular, supportive of climate change, secular religious thought and supportive of DC statehood.

      Abortion,  LGBT and amnesty not captive of Dem Establishment. Follow my own mind, and Griswald on abortion stands on former grounds, since there is a conservative majority on Crts, now


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: LAKISYLVANIA on November 26, 2019, 03:52:03 PM
      Democratic socialist; ecosocialist; anti-immigration; environmentalism; left-wing populism; marxism; communism; protectionist; libertarian socialist


      Pro-Choice
      Pro-LGBTQ rights
      Anti Death Penalty but lifelong sentences for rape & murder
      Background checks for guns
      End affirmative action
      Climate change is true and we need to intervene, regulate the economy, use nuclear energy and alternative energy resources
      We need to trade with countries that have the same social and economic standards, otherwise tarrifs, that includes the USA. Why? Because companies can move away and put their HQ and companies in other countries, take our jobs simply because a country doesn't have the same labour standards. That's why i'm staunchly against free trade agreements like TTIP and CETA, which are a disaster economically for EU.
      Free healthcare
      Free education
      Free public transport
      Progressive tax system, fight income inequality, implement a 30 hour work week.
      Fight against monopolies and multinationals, because they form a threat
      No PAC money, cap on donating money, cap on party finances
      End the war on drugs and legalize marijuana
      End foreign aid and military interventions. Bring our troops home.
      Deport illegal imigrants, put caps on immigrants and refugees that enter our country, and bring others back to rebuild their country again
      I believe in punishing crimes instead of rehabitiliating for major offenses.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: LAKISYLVANIA on November 27, 2019, 11:21:28 AM
      Some Belgian issues:

      Flemish independence: Undecided, leaning towards no mostly because socialism is stronger in the south. If we do split, make Flanders, Wallonia regions of Wallonia, and create from Brussels an independent capital / city of the EU, and abolish monarchy. I'm also in favour of reunification with the Netherlands if we keep our autonomy.
      Monarchy: Abolish, replace with a ceremonial presidency with max 1 term of 4, 5 or 6 years, alternating terms between french-speaking candidates and dutch-speaking candidates. Candidates need to fluidly speak both languages. Candidate needs to be supported by 50 of both French-speaking parties and Dutch-speaking parties. Add a first round, if no candidate ends up with 50%, run-off. Correctly filed presidential candidates need to prove they speak both languages and have enough signatures (10.000)
      Electoral reform: Leaning towards banning ISLAM and extremist parties, lowering electoral threshold to 3%, direct democracy, direct referenda, and voting on internet / e-mail. No decrease of voting to age of 16. Abolish obligatory voting. Present a Flemish list for regional and federal elections, not only for European elections in Flanders, likewise for Wallonia.
      Provinces: Abolish
      Trade: European Free Trade zone, Tarrifs for Canada, UK and USA. Economical sanctions for China, Iran and other countries that are not in our interest. Against free trade agreements with countries that do not share our values in terms of social & economic policy because that harms us.
      European Union: Stay in, but reform from the inside. I'm in favour of splitting the EU in several blocs, in which we would naturally be in the EU-West Side (stretching from Portugal to Finland, from Italy to Austria to Germany and Denmark).
      Borders: Leaning towards leaving Schengen
      Euro: Keep, but no strong feelings.
      Russia, Iran & China: keep relations we have and build up new diplomatic relations
      End Saudi Arabian weapons export
      Crime: Tougher for both small & huge offenses
      Justice: Reform, make it work faster
      Education: Reform high schools & universities, make public schools free, and costs for university and high schools as low as possible. Education should be an opportunity, not a privilege.
      Healthcare: Make waiting lists less longer, and expand psychological & psychiatric healthcare, as this is a huge problem, not only for us, but for our neighbouring countries. The Finland & Slovenia education systems are examples for us.
      30 hour work week: implement
      Marijuana: end the war on drugs, pardon all cannabis users, legalize both recreational and medical marijuana, and focus on prevention and care of drug users. Marijuana is a health issue, not a crime. Reduce costs for medicines, implement a "kiwimodel"
      Immigration: cut legal immigration back and add tougher conditions to it (high-skilled workers, workers in areas we need more workers, showing proof of ability to pay taxes), send all illegal immigrants back, let refugees in but send them back when the war is over. Only allow refugees out of regions in conflict. Focus on integration first, second and third-gen Belgians. Let immigrants vote on mayoral elections, and after 10 years they can demand their nationalization after doing some exams of knowing basic knowledge of the country, language, culture & traditions, than they can vote for federal, regional, presidential and european elections
      Privatisation of public transport: Fully against, make public transport free.
      Minimum wage: increase to 15 euros, increase wages for teachers and nurses.
      Media: abolish public media, media should be reliant on their own incomes.
      Culture: against cutting subsidies, as i've protested against, with a yellow banner on Facebook recently, although culture institutions should become more independent and less reliant on government resources.
      Foreign development: Cut expenses
      Military: Cut expenses, become more efficient, and focus on domestic security & cyber-security instead.
      Pensioners: increase wages, increase age of retirement, but propose a less busy work week schedule, and allow retirement at younger age for heavy labour & risk jobs. Direct towards administration jobs.
      Political party funds Caps, caps, caps. Don't allow donations, be completely self-reliant on member's money.
      Government institutions: Abolish the provinces, abolish two of the six governments (the bilingual governments), and cut incomes for government workers and MP's, as well as the king/president and ministers.
      Farmers: Subsidize, create a climate change funds for natural disasters related to weather & climate catastrophes (like drought, storms and go on...)
      Climate change: Do not implement a CO² taxation, but implement a progressive airflight taxation, which increases by every flight you take). Create a miles tax (every mile you drive on the roads of Belgium should be taxed for construction & maintaining roads & infrastructure + climate tax), invest heavily in public transport and implement parts of the GND proposed in the USA. Every climate tax should at least be a progressive tax.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Tutankhuman Bakari Sellers on December 15, 2019, 09:42:27 PM
      Marbury v Madison Judicial Review set the framework of ending the Fugitive Slave Act and Abe Lincoln declaring Emancipation Proclamation.  John Marshall declared an act, writ of mandamus, appellate jurisdiction instead of SCOTUS original jurisdiction; consequently, Crts can strike down Acts of Congress as unconstitutional. Emancipation Proclamation declared the Figitive Slave Act unconstitutional.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: FEMA Camp Administrator on December 15, 2019, 10:06:13 PM
      N/A


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: SingingAnalyst on December 25, 2019, 11:44:41 AM
      Moderate, with a slight libertarian and contrarian streak.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: xxorange_gamerxx on December 31, 2019, 12:55:16 AM
      How I'd label myself: more-or-less a social democrat, broadly left-wing on most issues

      Civil Rights
      - Strongly supportive of civil rights (including the rights of indigenous people, LGBTQ+ rights, women's rights, etc.)
      - think Canada has a responsibility for respecting & not infringing upon the rights of First Nations people
      - Against prejudice & discrimination, including against Jews, East Asians & other groups where discrimination against them isn't always accounted for

      Economics
      - strongly support labour unions and think they are both important & necessary for a functioning society and the welfare of employees
      - against income inequality; support regulation of business, anti-trust laws and breaking up monopolies/oligopolies so smaller businesses have a chance to succeed and customers are protected from exploitation
      - support (when or if possible) taking away offshore tax havens to have more money recirculate into the economy
      - broadly support free trade, and think it's significantly better compared to protectionism, but want the well-beings of non-rich people to be taken into account and not brushed aside in favour of billionaires or multinational corporations

      Environment
      - climate change is necessary to grapple with and is far too important for anyone to ignore
      - rich countries must do everything in their power in order to reduce their carbon footprints & stop it from getting worse than it already is, and to not shift the blame onto poorer countries that do not contribute anywhere close to the amount of CO2; no exceptions

      Healthcare
      - support universal healthcare & government funding of it; business interests should not take precedence over the health & well-beings of other people

      Criminal Justice
      - support abolishing the death penalty & put more effort into rehabilitating criminals

      Drugs
      - support ending the war on drugs across the world
      - support either legalizing or decriminalizing drug possession
      - at the same time, support the regulation of drug companies that seek to make a profit off of getting people fatally addicted to drugs
      - strongly in favour of rehabilitating people with drug addictions instead of placing them in jail

      On Immigration, Refugees & Displaced People
      - in full support of bringing in refugees & people who have been displaced from their homes into the country
      - supportive of immigration regardless of which parts of the world they come from
      - against rhetoric that seeks to demonize & stoke xenophobic fears over immigrants

      Elections
      - think they are important & should exist
      - against first-past-the-post (FPTP) voting and more in favour of voting systems that can more properly represent the interests of more than two voting blocs

      Governance
      - against authoritarian governance (regardless of the self-declared ideology of the authoritarians in question)
      - hard stance against fascism & governments with fascist tendencies
      - complicated feelings on populism; on one hand, I think it's important and even necessary to rally support, but am against less inclusive versions of populism that discriminate against (real or perceived) foreigners or disadvantaged groups
      - think political alliances are an important part of running an effective government & think working on your own is rarely effective without the support of others; this should not, however, lead to the civil rights of others being compromised

      International Relations
      - anti-war 99 times out of 100 (only support war if it is used in genuine self-defense against a more powerful country with imminent plans to invade & to never attack first or preemptively invade, especially not against countries that do not pose any real threat to us)
      - think the United Nations is, despite it's notable flaws, a necessary and important institution (though still frustrated with how often countries with veto powers often stifle the decision-making process)
      - against corporate & political exploitation of poor countries


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: MidwesternMop on January 06, 2020, 04:07:31 PM
      I'm a very conservative person, but I am open to voting Democrat if the Republican candidate turns me off for some reason. I have most of the generic Republican beliefs when it comes to the economy, but I'm especially conservative on some social issues. I strongly oppose things like legalizing recreational marijuana and support for the trans community. I think we've gotten way too permissive and libertarian as a society and we let far too many things go un-checked in the name of unlimited individual autonomy. And more often than not I will judge my votes and endorsements on those kinds of issues. I know that my views are most likely not all that popular here, but that's fine. I don't have to agree with you to be a civil human being. And I hope the same goes for all of you. Thanks!


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Dr. MB on January 06, 2020, 04:47:06 PM
      . I think we've gotten way too permissive and libertarian as a society and we let far too many things go un-checked in the name of unlimited individual autonomy.
      bro that’s what freedom is all about


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Hammy on January 08, 2020, 03:46:09 AM
      Not sure what label I'd apply, but probably somewhere on the left.

      Social Policy

      Abortion: family and healthcare decision, not something for the government to have an opinion on.
      LGBT: consenting adults have the right to marry, responsible adults have the right to adopt, and you have the right to your identity as long as it's not harming anyone.
      Drugs: Decriminalise everything, treat addiction rather than slapping a criminal record on more people. Legalize marijuana and any other more minor drugs for recreational use. Remove prescription requirements for certain items (such as glasses) and non-addictive treatment drugs (statins as an example.)
      Slavery reparations: would depend on how we go about it, though I don't have any specific ideas in mind.
      Stem Cell Research: support
      Death Penalty: increasingly opposed given the room for error, though should still be applicable to mass shootings and large scale acts of terrorism (I don't support using it simply for all terrorism charges as we'll then have the charges being used just to get the death penalty)
      Criminal justice reform: eliminate mandatory minimum sentencing and harsh sentences for non-violent offenses. Eliminate civil asset forfeiture
      Police reform: replace live rounds with rubber bullets for standard officers (this excludes SWAT and such) so people don't pay for an officer's mistake or misjudgement with their lives, require body cams to be on at all times and make it a crime to turn them off
      Gun control: I support banning assault weapons but don't see how it would be enforced from a practical standpoint; create national instant background system tied to your photo ID--similar to drivers license, your ID will carry a code or some sort of labeling of whether you're allowed to purchase, or if you might be moderate risk which would be left up to the seller's discretion. Ban person to person sales
      Affirmative Action: no stance as it's too vague an issue anymore to determine one.
      Prostitution: Decriminalize
      Euthanasia: legal, provided you're declared of sound mind, especially in instances of terminal illness or complete debilitation.
      Prostitution: legal but heavily monitored to prevent human trafficking
      Immigration: set up pathway to citizenship, deport violent offenders, make DACA law.


      Economic Issues

      Minimum Wage: gradual increase to $15 as too sudden a change may have unknown, unintended consequences. Extend to restaurants and service industry and ban tipping practices as we know them.
      Welfare: increase spending, provide based on an individual's situation rather than a specified poverty line which people can fall just outside of and still need assistance.
      Right-to-Work: I'd support a constitutional amendment granting the right of workers to organize.
      Taxation: progressive income tax. Eliminate tax loopholes that result in multibillion dollar corporations receiving more than they pay out.
      Healthcare: treat as a utility--insurers, care providers, and pharmaceuticals can remain private but must face strict caps on what they can charge, from a regulatory board who takes everything into account when setting costs. Institute public option as well as this still won't guarantee the lowest earners would otherwise afford insurance. Opposed to M4A because it's healthcare ransom waiting to happen.
      Social Security: increase spending to continue viability
      Trade: Oppose tariffs and allow healthy competition from foreign companies to keep prices low. No trade with companies using less than humane labor practices. Ban domestic  companies from producing US-sold goods overseas. Require at least half of international companies' goods to be produced here (something already done for example in the auto industry)
      Education: increase funding, institute national standard for education, abolish standardized tests as a means to determine funding, institute free lunch
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Against
      Transportation: increase in spending, create a national passenger rail network with non-repealable minimums of funding but there would be a fare to assist with this, for example receive an electronic card that measures how many stops you pass, and pay the corresponding fare once you exit. Abolish AMTRAK since it's nothing more than a tax-funded for profit corporation.
      Infrastructure: upgrade roads and bridges where needed

      Foreign Policy and National Security

      Increased UN involvement. End all foreign military aide and arms sales.
      Abolish warrantless domestic surveillance
      Withdraw from Iraq and Afghanistan but maintain presence of advisors if those countries so desire.
      Move Okinawa Marine base elsewhere.
      Constitutional amendment guaranteeing right to privacy (and likewise banning the collecting, use, and sale of personal information without your explicit consent prior)
      Cut the military budget in half (this could help fund infrastructure and transit)
      Constitutional amendment requiring all military endeavors that are not prompted by a formal declaration of war, or military attack within US borders, to be approved not by congress but by national referendum and including only voters under 30 (as they'll be the ones sent to die). This must also be renewed annually by the same set of voters.
      End the practise of being the global police force.

      Climate and Environment

      Invest in green energy of all varieties
      Tax breaks for homes with solar panels
      Institute corporate emissions cap (since carbon tax prevents nothing) and strengthen EPA's ability to go after large scale polluters
      Increased spending to NOAA and forestry service, invest in upgrading technology used in weather forecasting and fire monitoring and prevention
      Rejoin Paris Accord

      Electoral reform

      Abolish electoral college, and set up a national registration system where you are automatically removed from the voter rolls once you move and change your address, or when you die and your death certificate is issued. No removal of voters under any other circumstances.
      Eliminate constituency voting and institute a proportional system, increase the House to 1000 seats, with the number of seats per state based on percentage of the population every census (similar to how house seats are divied up)
      Abolish the current primary system and put each candidate running on a single national ballot as individual yes/no referendums, where the top two vote-getters move onto the general election. An alternative is to require the parties to run their respective primaries this way.
      Voter ID required to vote, but also institute a free national ID system (this would be separate from your drivers license system which would function as it currently does)
      Mandate voting in the primary system as you're not choosing between a slate of bad candidates--if you hate everybody just vote no for everybody.
      Automatic voter registration once you turn 18
      Eliminate money from politics--provide free air time for all candidates at a determined time each week
      Puerto Rico and DC statehood, pending binding referendums.

      I'm forgetting some things I had thought of earlier so this will probably be updated.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: 538Electoral on January 13, 2020, 06:23:52 AM
      Social Issues: Moderate
      Economic Issues: Far-right
      Foreign Policy: Dovish
      Electoral Reform: Right

      Time for an update.

      Abortion: Pro-life. Exceptions to rape and danger to the mother.
      Same Sex Marriage: None of the government's business. Neither is transgender bathrooms.
      Marijuana: Legalize medicinal marijuana, Let the states decide whether to legalize marijuana for recreational use.
      Slavery reparations: No
      Stem Cell Research: For
      Death Penalty: Support for murderers and other high-profile criminals.
      Criminal justice reform: Oppose. Criminals are criminals.
      Gun control: Don't ban guns. Make sure buyers aren't mentally ill.
      Affirmative Action: Against
      Prostitution: Don't legalize.
      Euthanasia: Okay.

      Economic Issues

      Minimum Wage: Keep minimum wage as is.
      Welfare: Keep as is.
      Right-to-Work: Support
      Taxation: SLIGHTLY increase taxes for the rich.
      Healthcare: Oppose Obamacare.
      Social Security: Leave as is.
      Trade: Protectionist
      Education: Make sure there are better education programs.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Not sure.
      Transportation: Massively expand both private and public transit funding.
      Infrastructure: Slightly increase spending.

      Foreign Policy and National Security

      U.N: Withdraw
      NATO: Stay in, Only go to war if the US or other allies are attacked.
      Afghanistan: Withdraw
      Iraq: Withdraw
      Iran: Withdraw
      Russia: Support better relations
      China: Support better relations in general, keep tariffs in place.
      North Korea: Keep relations and personal diplomacy
      South Korea: Leave, Let NK and SK work on a peace-deal without our involvement.
      Syria: Leave
      Cuba: Lift sanctions
      Military Spending: Cut down significantly
      PATRIOT Act: End
      NSA Spying: Abolish NSA and CIA.
      Palestine/Israel: Cut down on our support for Israel.
      Immigration: Support a border wall.
      Guantanamo Bay: Keep it open, Though make sure that no innocent people wind up there.

      Environment

      Climate Change: Eh
      Green Energy: Eh
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Support
      Fracking: Support

      Electoral Reform

      Electoral College: Keep current system
      Gerrymandering: Oppose
      Term limits: Support
      Voter ID: Support
      Compulsory Voting: Oppose
      Voter Registration: Support
      Statehood: The US is fine as it is. Let Puerto Rico become it's own country. Don't give DC statehood.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on January 19, 2020, 10:39:12 PM
      Social Issues: Moderate
      Economic Issues: Far-right
      Foreign Policy: Dovish
      Electoral Reform: Right

      Time for an update.

      Abortion: Pro-life. Exceptions to rape and danger to the mother.
      Same Sex Marriage: None of the government's business. Neither is transgender bathrooms.
      Marijuana: Legalize medicinal marijuana, Let the states decide whether to legalize marijuana for recreational use.
      Slavery reparations: No
      Stem Cell Research: For
      Death Penalty: Support for murderers and other high-profile criminals.
      Criminal justice reform: Oppose. Criminals are criminals.
      Gun control: Don't ban guns. Make sure buyers aren't mentally ill.
      Affirmative Action: Against
      Prostitution: Don't legalize.
      Euthanasia: Okay.

      Economic Issues

      Minimum Wage: Keep minimum wage as is.
      Welfare: Keep as is.
      Right-to-Work: Support
      Taxation: SLIGHTLY increase taxes for the rich.
      Healthcare: Oppose Obamacare.
      Social Security: Leave as is.
      Trade: Protectionist
      Education: Make sure there are better education programs.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Not sure.
      Transportation: Massively expand both private and public transit funding.
      Infrastructure: Slightly increase spending.

      Foreign Policy and National Security

      U.N: Withdraw
      NATO: Stay in, Only go to war if the US or other allies are attacked.
      Afghanistan: Withdraw
      Iraq: Withdraw
      Iran: Withdraw
      Russia: Support better relations
      China: Support better relations in general, keep tariffs in place.
      North Korea: Keep relations and personal diplomacy
      South Korea: Leave, Let NK and SK work on a peace-deal without our involvement.
      Syria: Leave
      Cuba: Lift sanctions
      Military Spending: Cut down significantly
      PATRIOT Act: End
      NSA Spying: Abolish NSA and CIA.
      Palestine/Israel: Cut down on our support for Israel.
      Immigration: Support a border wall.
      Guantanamo Bay: Keep it open, Though make sure that no innocent people wind up there.

      Environment

      Climate Change: Eh
      Green Energy: Eh
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Support
      Fracking: Support

      Electoral Reform

      Electoral College: Keep current system
      Gerrymandering: Oppose
      Term limits: Support
      Voter ID: Support
      Compulsory Voting: Oppose
      Voter Registration: Support
      Statehood: The US is fine as it is. Let Puerto Rico become it's own country. Don't give DC statehood.

      Not quite a "moderate", but definitely a mainstream conservative. Just wanted to comment on this to show people can still be conservative without being aggressively conservative.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TheLaRocca on February 04, 2020, 03:33:17 AM
      Overall:Center-left

      Abortion:Pro-choice
      Same-Sex Marriage:Support
      Death Penalty:Support
      Gun Control:Oppose
      Affirmative Action:Support, but economically based

      Tax Rates:Increase for wealthy
      Healthcare:Move towards some kind of single payer system
      Social Security:Oppose privatization
      Environment:Increase regulations for the environment
      Transit:Support increases
      Immigration:Restrict legal immigration and HB-1Visas and fine companies that higher illegals. But no border wall and allow for children of illegals to stay.

      Iraq:Oppose
      Afghan:Oppose withdraw
      Syria:Withdraw
      UN:Scale back
      Russia:Stay out
      NATO:LEAVE
      Iran:Support Iran deal
      Israel:Withdraw


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: LAKISYLVANIA on February 04, 2020, 10:04:56 PM
      Overall:Center-left

      Abortion:Pro-choice but limited
      Same-Sex Marriage: Support fully
      Death Penalty: Oppose
      Gun Control: Oppose
      Affirmative Action: Against

      Tax Rates:Increase for wealthy & corporations, progressive tax systems
      Healthcare:Move towards some kind of single payer system
      Social Security:Oppose privatization
      Environment:Increase regulations for the environment, in favour of green new deal
      Transit:Support increases
      Immigration:Restrict legal immigration and HB-1Visas and fine companies that higher illegals. But no border wall and allow for children of illegals to stay.

      Iraq:Oppose
      Afghan:Withdraw
      Syria:Withdraw
      UN: Stay
      Russia:Stay out
      NATO:LEAVE
      Iran:Support Iran deal
      Israel:Support two state agreement, oppose current Israeli settlements on Palestinian territory


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: iratemoderate on March 01, 2020, 05:29:48 PM
      Social Policy:

      Abortion: 12 week ban. Exception for the health of the mother.
      Same Sex Marriage: Fine with this, as well as adoption.
      Marijuana: Legalize medicinal use only, but decriminalize.
      Stem Cell Research: Support, private and heavily regulated.
      Death Penalty: Support for murderers, pedophiles, terrorists, foreign spies.
      Gun control: Support with no limitations.
      Affirmative Action: Replace race-based affirmative action with a socioeconomic alternative.
      Prostitution: Keep it illegal.
      Euthanasia: Keep it illegal.

      Economic Issues:

      Minimum Wage: Raise to $15 an hour nationally with a hybrid wage subsidies system.
      Welfare: Do not offer welfare to immigrants or non-citizens. Support workfare and drug testing.
      Right-to-Work: Support. I think unions are particularly corrupt, but am sympathetic to members (particularly in trades, though oppose service unions). Would rather a pro worker department of labor.
      Taxation: Support working and middle class tax cuts. Tax capital gains as ordinary income. Progressive bracketing increasing taxes on upper middle class and wealthy. Low corporate taxes, ban buybacks, create repatriation holiday. Implement BAT and tax remittances.
      Healthcare: Lower medicare age to 55. Subsidize high risk pools. Regulate drug pricing.
      Social Security: Do not privatize.
      Trade: Oppose free trade. Support permanent tariffs. Do not enter/withdraw from multilateral trade agreements. Subsidize agriculture/energy/manufacturing sectors.       
      Education: Eliminate pre-high school "social studies" classes and foreign language education. Start computer science education earlier, more STEM class time, and create more math/science competitions. Free trade school and free college for all kids in households <150k.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Support in theory, but not a priority of mine.


      Foreign Policy and National Security:

      Afghanistan: Leave fully and immediately.
      Iraq: Leave fully and immediately.
      Iran: Open talks without preconditions.
      Syria: Leave fully and immediately.
      Somalia: Leave fully and immediately.
      Cuba: Open talks without preconditions.
      North Korea: Open talks without preconditions.
      Russia: Open talks without preconditions.
      China: Full trade war and permanent tariffs. Oppose TPP.
      NATO: Come up with a 10-year exit plan.
      Military Spending: Increase funding, rebuild navy, turn military into more of a research and exploration organization (prioritize mapping the ocean floors). Completely eliminate foreign aid.
      PATRIOT Act: Only allow gathering spying non-citizens.
      NSA Spying: Eliminate the NSA.
      Palestine: Do not recognize.
      Israel: No policy positions. I don't support US military action for Israeli or Saudi interests.
      Immigration: Zero net migration, eliminate birthright citizenship, mandatory e-verify, end DACA, end H-1B deport aliens. Do not accept any refugees.
      Guantanamo Bay: Keep it open, send felon illegals there.

      Environment:

      Climate Change: Real, but overstated. Oppose environmental legislation.
      Green Energy: Solutions should not cut any jobs or displace any workers.
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Build this and more. Energy independence improves national security.

      Electoral Reform:

      Electoral College: Support. More states with 4-5 EVs should go the ME/NE route.
      Gerrymandering: Leave up to states.
      Term limits: Support, particularly for the House.
      Voter ID: Make it free and mandatory.
      Compulsory Voting: No, but all states should have "none of the above" on the ballot so it can be tracked.
      Voter Registration: Yes. Semi-closed primaries for all states (independents can vote in either primary).
      Statehood: Puerto Rico should not be a state. Neither should Alaska or Hawaii. Puts us in a tough position if US properties outside of the contiguous mainland is attacked.


      Please run for president.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: ReallySuper on March 25, 2020, 01:04:40 PM
      Overall: Left (ideally anarcho-communist, but practically Bernie Sanders-style democratic socialism)

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Pro-choice
      Same-Sex Marriage: Support fully, along with adoption rights & federal discrimination protections for sexual orientation and gender identity
      Marijuana: Legalize recreational
      Death Penalty: Oppose
      Gun Control: Japan-like regulations (realistically, at least universal background checks & red flag laws)
      Affirmative Action: For

      Economic Policy
      Minimum Wage: $15 an hour, adjusted for inflation
      Right-to-Work: Oppose; support unions
      Tax Rates: Increase corporate tax rate and institute a 90% marginal income tax over $10 million and a progressive wealth tax for net millionaires & billionaires
      Healthcare: Medicare for All
      Social Security: Support
      Trade: Oppose free trade; focus on worker-oriented, environmentally sustainable and human rights-focused trade deals
      Environment: Green New Deal
      Education: Universal free preschool, daycare, college/university and trade/vocational school
      Transit: Increase public transportation funding & support smart growth, walkable communities
      Immigration: Favor asylum & employer visas over family visas; path to citizenship & amnesty

      Foreign Policy
      Iraq: Oppose
      Afghan: Withdraw
      Syria: Withdraw
      Iran: Support Iran Nuclear Deal
      Russia: Sanctions
      Israel: Ideally a one-state agreement where both Israeli and Palestinian interests are equally and fairly represented (perhaps a Bosnian-like system), but would support a two-state solution with Israeli withdrawal from Palestinian territories
      NATO: Leave
      UN: Stay
      Defense budget: Drastically reduce; oppose military-industrial complex

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College: Oppose; replace with ranked-choice voting
      Gerrymandering: Independent commissions with judicial review
      Term limits: Support for all Congress members
      Voter ID: Oppose
      Voter registration: Automatic registration
      Mandatory voting: No
      Statehood: Self-determination for Puerto Rico, D.C. and all U.S. territories


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Dr. MB on March 28, 2020, 02:36:53 AM
      Looks like I haven't done one since 2018. Time for a bit of an update I guess.

      Overall: left, not a giant fan of restrictive ideological labels

      Social Policy
      Abortion: conflicted
      Same-Sex Marriage: I support same sex marriage as someone who may one day get same sex married.
      Drugs: Legalize marijuana, LSD, mushrooms, etc. And cocaine. No limits on possession amount either. Decriminalize other drugs (nobody should be in prison for drug possession) but crack down on cartels.
      Alcohol: lower the drinking age to 18
      Death Penalty: Now I'm not opposed for certain people but those circumstances are pretty rare. I also don't really trust the gov with the power to kill its own people.
      Gun Control: Against most restrictions besides base-level (background checks). Opposed to weapons bans or limits on number you can own.
      Affirmative Action: not completely against but should be phased out eventually
      Euthanasia: can't say I'm a huge fan, violates doctor's responsibility
      Prostitution: legal prostitution is safer than illegal prostitution, still it's exploitative
      Pornography: should be legal
      Immigration: Give amnesty and citizenship to everyone here illegally. Also make immigration an easier process in general. Wages should be fair for all immigrants as well.
      Criminal justice: instead of mandatory minimums we should have pretty low maximum sentences, also take a lot of crimes off felony and make them misdemeanor as well as let felons vote. Prison conditions should also be improved and prisoners should be paid a fair wage if they work. Also end private prisons.
      Surveillance: get rid of most outdoor security cameras, ban red light cameras, end government surveillance of private citizens and repeal the Patriot Act
      Police: generally have too much power, they shouldn't be militarized. When you walk by a police officer you should be able to feel safe and not afraid even if you've done nothing wrong and sadly afraid is what too many people experience. Low level crimes shouldn't be strongly enforced as this usually just serves to mess up people's lives in the future.

      Economic Policy
      Minimum Wage: Raise to $15 and raise it periodically afterwards
      Right-to-Work: against
      Tax Rates: should be very high for the richest and very low for the poorest
      Healthcare: make all health services free and cover everybody
      Social Security: keep as is
      Trade: oppose outsourcing, only sign trade deals that have worker protections and fair wages and don't cost American jobs
      Environment: transition to nuclear/renewable energy
      Education: reform the school system so it's actually useful, put more focus on college as not the only option but make it free for those who choose to go
      Transit: light rail for all urban areas, high speed rail linking cities too
      Nationalization: nationalize transit and energy companies as well as Amazon and some others

      Foreign Policy
      Foreign intervention: I'm not against US intervention. In fact I support it when it's done smartly and against people I don't like. But sadly in our past one or both of the two have almost universally been true. I wouldn't exactly be against a coup against Bolsonaro or similar idiots if it had a good chance of succeeding but it would also be a pretty dumb move and war should always be avoided.
      Russia: not a Russia fan but people acting like they're the bigger problem vs. China are idiots
      China: you can add Xi Jinping to the "similar idiots" from a couple questions up
      Israel: it's a sh*tshow and always will be, don't really care
      NATO: don't care
      UN: don't care
      Defense budget: cut it and focus it on health/education

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College: get rid of it, put in RCV. Get rid of the delegate system for primaries too.
      Gerrymandering: expand the size of the House, abolish the Senate, and draw unbiased districts
      Term limits: against for everything
      Voter ID: just have vote by mail
      Voter registration: Automatic registration
      Voting age: probably lower to 16 but also decrease the age to run for president/any other office
      Mandatory voting: not a bad idea but I'd rather do some type of incentive to vote and increase turnout
      Statehood: admit DC and every territory as a state
      Supreme Court: all federal judges should be appointed for 10 years instead of for life, also the power of the courts should be dramatically decreased. It's ridiculous that some random judge has the power to block an entire law from being implemented.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: PragmaticPopulist on March 28, 2020, 08:09:55 AM
      Overall: Progressive left.

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Support, but increase things like sex education to reduce the amount of abortions.
      Same-Sex Marriage: Strongly support.
      Drugs: Legalize marijuana and decriminalize most others.
      Alcohol: Don't care
      Death Penalty: Opposed
      Gun Control: Strongly support red flag laws and fixing loopholes that make it easier to get illegal guns. While I think an assault weapons ban would also be helpful, since there's no real need for them in hunting, I'm more focused on handguns, which are the cause of more deaths
      Affirmative Action: Support as long as its needed
      Euthanasia: Support, but only if there absolutely no other option
      Prostitution: Undecided. Legal prostitution is safer, but there should be restrictions that discourage it as a long-term job
      Pornography: keep legal, except for child porn
      Immigration: Give undocumented immigrants a path to citizenship and make legal immigration easier. At the same time, update technology for processing migrants and enforcing borders. Drones etc.
      Criminal justice: End private prisons. There should be no cash incentive to incarcerate people. Also end mandatory minimums
      Surveillance: Opposed to unauthorized surveillance. Law enforcement must get a fisa warrant to legally intrude on someone's life.
      Police: Demilitarize and encourage community outreach.
      Economic Policy
      Minimum Wage: Raise to $15 and adjust for inflation over time
      Right-to-Work: Opposed
      Tax Rates: Increase tax rates on the very rich back to pre-Reagan levels. Decrease rates for the lower and middle classes
      Healthcare: Universal healthcare for as many people as possible. Medicare-for-all is optimal, but let people keep their private insurance if they really want it
      Social Security: protect and expand
      Trade: Pro-fair trade. Punish companies that outsource with higher taxes.
      Environment: Expand renewable energy. Nuclear energy is fine as a transition energy, but it must have sound restrictions on where nuclear waste can be disposed of. Ban fracking and offshore drilling
      Education: Fix the system so students are more prepared for college and careers. Make Community College free.
      Transit: expand light rail in urban metros. Create high-speed rail to link cities.
      Nationalization: Nationalize the energy sector

      Foreign Policy
      Foreign intervention: Generally opposed to regime change, as it usually causes more problems than it fixes. However, keep autocrats who slaughter their own people like Assad and Gaddafi on notice. The first step towards any conflict should be diplomacy.
      Russia: Continue sanctions and sending aid to eastern European countries that are in conflict with Russia such as Ukraine. Update our cyber infrastructure so it isn't so vulnerable to cyber attacks
      China: China has a long-term plan (maybe even a 100-year plan) to become the dominant world superpower and possibly even become an aggressor. Keep their sphere of influence in check with diplomacy and some trade restrictions
      Israel: Israel is an ally, but Netanyahu is a demagogue and should not be appeased. Support a 2-state solution
      NATO: Support, but make sure other members pay their dues.
      UN: Keep as is
      Defense budget: Reduce spending

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College: move to a popular vote system with RCV.
      Gerrymandering: Increase size of the house and implement bipartisan commissions to drawn districts.
      Term limits: Opposed to, except for executive offices.
      Voter ID: Opposed. ID can have unintended (or intended) effects on voter turnout. Expand vote by mail.
      Voter registration: Automatic registration
      Voting age: Keep as is
      Mandatory voting: Not a bad idea on paper, but I'd rather have more incentives for voting.
      Statehood: admit DC and every territory as a state
      Supreme Court: Keep the number of justices as is, but implement something like an 18-20 year term limit. Reduce the judiciary's power so it can't be so easy to use as a partisan actor. Judges are supposed to be referees, not players.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: S019 on April 01, 2020, 08:39:55 PM

      Overall: Neoliberalism/Social liberalism

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Pro-choice
      Same-Sex Marriage: Support 
      Drugs: Opposed to decriminalization, however criminal penalties should only be pursued for hard drugs, soft drugs should result in rehabilitation treatment
      Alcohol: A blanket temperance law is ill-advised, but create a government program to advocate for temperance and perhaps enforce curfews on bars, such as prohibiting entry into a bar during rush hour
      Death Penalty: Support, but only in heinous cases like terrorists and serial killers, with undeniable proof
      Gun Control: Overturn D.C. v Heller and pass a nationwide handgun ban, also pass an assault weapons ban, and create a national firearms registry, people with a criminal charge are forbidden from firearm ownership as are those on terrorist watch lists, expand background checks
      Affirmative Action: Strongly support
      Euthanasia: Opposed
      Prostitution: Make it illegal and criminally charge men who exploit women
      Pornography: Outlaw it and break up porn companies
      Immigration: Liberalize our immigration laws, make it easier to obtain asylum, but don't create open borders, also don't separate parents from children
      Criminal justice: Favor some reform, for instance require police and prison guards to undergo racial awareness training and fire those who can't display adequate racial impartiality
      Surveillance: Favor it and favor the PATRIOT Act
      Police: Require them to under racial awareness training and fire those who show racial bias
      Economic Policy
      Minimum Wage: Raise it to $12
      Right-to-Work: Opposed and opposed to similar union-breaking methods
      Tax Rates: Raise taxes on the wealthy, but restore the state and local tax deductions for high tax area, also raise the capital gains tax and payroll tax
      Healthcare: Create a public option based on Medicare and allow those who want to opt-in to it, to opt-in and those who don't keep their plan
      Social Security: Raise the payroll tax to keep the program solvent and expand benefits
      Trade: Pro-free trade
      Environment: Support a carbon tax, but also phase out fossil fuels within 10 years, as well as create subsidies and alternatives for wind, hydroelectric, hydrothermal, and solar companies
      Education: Support the status quo mostly, except expand Common Core across the country, also increase pay for teachers and funding for schools
      Transit: Support more express toll lanes as well as greater investment in infrastructure in general


      Foreign Policy
      Foreign intervention: Lean interventionist, however favor spreading liberal values more than anything. Generally support intervention, unless the country in question has nuclear weapons
      Russia: Impose heavy sanctions on Russia
      Israel: Support two state solution, but the U.S. should still maintain its support for Israel
      NATO: Strongly support
      UN: Increase involvement
      Defense budget: Keep as is

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College: Move to reform gradually, and eventually abolish it
      Gerrymandering: Create commissions to draw districts, limit splitting counties and require COIs to be kept together, if possible
      Term limits: Opposed, except for executive offices.
      Voter ID: Opposed, can lead to voter suppression
      Voter registration: Automatic registration
      Voting age: Status quo
      Mandatory voting: Opposed
      Statehood: DC and Puerto Rico should be admitted as states
      Supreme Court: In addition to requiring the Senate to confirm, create a nonpartisan panel of 7-8 people, of whom 2/3 must vote in favor, for a justice to be confirmed (leads to the nomination of more moderate justices and a less polarized court)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: MarkD on April 02, 2020, 10:27:58 PM
      Moderate, leaning a little bit to the right, more so on economic issues.

      Most political issues are not especially important to me, but I am very, VERY concerned about how the Supreme Court has been interpreting the 14th Amendment. What I want from the legislative branch of the federal and state governments is a constitutional amendment that rewrites the second sentence of the 14th Amendment in order to make its meaning narrower and clearer. What I want from the President is to appoint only the most objective interpreters of law that can be found anywhere in the country -- judges like Oliver Wendell Holmes, Learned Hand, and Hugo Black.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Former President tack50 on April 16, 2020, 06:42:56 AM
      I don't think I have ever done this, so this should be fun

      Social Policy:

      Abortion: Pro-choice up to the 3rd-4th month (inclusive). Beyond that allow it only in cases of rape, danger to the mother's health or congenital diseases
      Same Sex Marriage: Allow, with equal rights to heterosexual marriage
      Marijuana: Legalize for recreational use
      Stem Cell Research: Support
      Death Penalty: Abolish. Not only that, but abolish life imprisonment without parole as well.
      Gun control: By American standards I am extremely pro-Gun control, though for Spanish standards I just support keeping our current laws :P
      Affirmative Action: Abolish
      Prostitution: Keep it illegal
      Euthanasia: Legalize in cases where the ill person has a 0% chance of recovery and is suffering and is also able of giving consent or has previously given consent as part of their final will

      Economic Issues:

      Minimum Wage: Raise gradually to 1000 €/month
      Welfare: I would streamline and simplify welfare, but keep it at its current levels if that makes any sense
      Right-to-Work: Not really applicable in Europe, but I am a strong supporter of unions. They are often incompetent, but that only means they need to get better at doing their actual job and strengthened, not weakened
      Taxation: Increase income tax but reduce VAT
      Healthcare: Public and socialized medicine (ie the government owns most hospitals, not unlike the British NHS)
      Social Security: Keep it public, but make deep-reaching reforms so it is sustainable in the future.
      Trade: In favour of free trade and opposed to tariffs, but not all countries are worthy of free trade in the first place. It should be used either as a geopolitical tool or with countries that have actually decent working standards
      Education: Keep it as part of the autonomous communities.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Support the balanced budget amendment from 2011, though it does not seem to have done much anyways.


      Foreign Policy and National Security:

      Afghanistan: Stay
      Iraq: Leave
      Iran: Do not get in in the first place
      Syria: Leave
      Cuba: Lift sanctions and normalize relations. Regime change in Cuba is a lost cause, so best to have them as something like China or really most other dictatorships
      Military Spending: I want military spending increased in Spain (literally the NATO country with the least expenses other than Luxembourg)
      Palestine: Do not recognize, but actively lobby for a 2 state solution
      Israel: Support on the 1967? borders; oppose annexation of the West Bank; lobby for a 2 state solution
      Immigration: Be very harsh against illegal immigrants, with them deported ASAP, but mantain current levels of legal immigration. Immigration is also preferrable from EU countries and Latin America than from Africa or the Middle East.

      Environment:

      Climate Change: It is very obviously real and man-made and we should do a lot more to fight it.
      Green Energy: Strongly support; it is a travesty that Germany of all countries has more solar than us
      Nuclear Energy: Expand and maintain the old nuclear power plants from like the 60s open as long as they are safe to operate.

      Electoral Reform:

      I personally support a 2 round, single memeber districts system like France uses, but that is 100% never passing here.

      As a compromise, I would switch Congress from being elected by province to being elected by autonomous community; and switch the Senate to also be elected by autonomous community in such a way where 1 community = X senators.

      Also expand the powers of the Senate if that reform is done, but don't do it if it keeps the current electoral system.

      Term limits: No; but I do support them in presidential systems for the president. They just don't make sense for parliamentary democracies, though I would not mind if Spain became a presidential republic
      Voter ID: Yes
      Compulsory Voting: Yes
      Voter Registration: Should be automatic

      Also, firmly opposed to Catalan independence, though I do support the government negotiating with the Catalans, I just don't know what concessions could be made at this point since they seem to be "independence or bust"


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mini Mike on April 21, 2020, 02:52:20 AM
      My views are a huge mixed bag. Hence, why I’m an independent or as I like to call it “politically homeless”

      Social Policy:

      Abortion: Pro-life. To quote Hubert Humphrey, “I’m not for it.” The Born Alive Act needs to pass ASAP
      Same-sex marriage: LGBT rights are human rights. Marriage inequality is unconstitutional. It’s been the law of the land for 5 years. Don’t think it should be considered an issue anymore.
      Marijuana: Fully legalize (medicinal and recreational), tax and regulate it
      Stem Cell Research: Support, except for embryonic
      Death Penalty: Oppose (consider myself whole-life)
      Gun control: Generally pro second amendment but I support background checks such as the no-fly rule. Strongly oppose the idea of an assault weapons buyback (a la Beto O’Rourke) or a gun registry. I would probably get a low B rating from the NRA if I was in office.
      Affirmative Action: It depends. I definitely support equal opportunity legislation, but in some cases it can go to far.
      Prostitution: Personally oppose and will never partake in it, but it should be legal
      Euthanasia: Oppose (again consider myself whole-life)

      Economic Issues:

      Minimum Wage: I think $15 is a reasonable nationwide minimum wage
      Welfare: Support. It helps lift people out of poverty. It shouldn’t be abused though. Strongly oppose drug testing recipients.
      Right-to-Work: Definitely consider myself pro-union. Organized labor has done a lot for our country (i.e. 8 hour workday, etc.) and certain professions must be unionized in my opinion (police, fire, service employees). With this being said, I draw the line when some (a minority) of unions bully/coerce employees or buy elections like corporations.
      Taxation: Our current system is ok for the most part. I mainly oppose raising taxes (unless it’s needed) but I oppose the unnecessarily cutting taxes for the rich which every GOP president seems to do. I love that my state (Florida) has no state income tax. I have always strongly opposed the estate/death tax.
      Healthcare: I consider myself a moderate on this issue. I oppose federal single-payer, it won’t work in the US. If a state wants to pass it (like what Newsom was trying to do in CA), it’s a different story. I support a public/private option to a degree but the public option should be reserved especially for people who can’t afford private insurance, disabled and elderly. I oppose providers discriminating against people for pre-existing conditions. When people ask me if it’s a human right I say yes - but that doesn’t mean single payer is the only option.
      Social Security: I strongly support it in its present form. I’m against privatizing it or raising the retirement age.
      Trade: I’m somewhere between the free trade and fair trade position. I support some but not all tariffs. Human rights should be a priority in US trade policy. I oppose NAFTA and the TPP.
      Education: I am strongly pro charter schools and school choice/vouchers. I think the Department of Ed should be abolished or consolidated into HHS.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Strongly support. It is absolutely necessary and I’ve always been puzzled why the US Constitution doesn’t have one but almost all state constitutions do. I am deficit hawk.

      Foreign Policy and National Security:

      Afghanistan: Leave
      Iraq: Leave
      Iran: Please, lets not go to war with them
      Syria: Leave
      Cuba: Lift the embargo.
      Military Spending: Decrease
      Israel/Palestine: Pro-Israel
      Immigration: I support immigration reform, the DREAM Act and DACA. I think there should be an easier pathway to legal status and ultimately citizenship. To quote Logic, “f*** the wall.” We need bridges not a wall. Trump’s immigration policy is terrible, dehumanizing and disgusting (I.e. children in cages). With this being said I do not by any means support open borders. Border security is necessary and ICE, while it should be reformed, should absolutely not be abolished. I oppose the idea of “sanctuary cities” and I would’ve voted for Kate’s Law. I completely opposed Trump’s travel/Muslim ban.

      Environment:

      Climate Change: Obviously it’s a huge problem, and I have great respect for young people like Greta Thunberg who bring awareness to it. I think it’s sad that a good portion of politicians don’t think it’s real, let alone manmade. While I strongly oppose Carbon Taxes the Green New Deal (too extreme and it costs way more than it will help), the government does have an obligation in my opinion to help fight climate change.
      Green Energy: Support. Solar is the future.
      Nuclear Energy: Support. Safety is key though.

      Electoral Reform: We need a lot of it. Gerrymandering needs to be outlawed/declared unconstitutional by the SCOTUS for starters. States should be in charge of their congressional electoral system but I would like to see more ranked choice voting (like in Maine). I would be for multi-member districts and proportional representation, but this would never happen in the duopoly we live in.
      Term limits: Strongly support. Politics should be a service not a career. President should stay at 2 4-year terms. Congress should be a max of 24 years, 12 in each house - House 6 2-year terms and Senate 2 6-year terms. There should also be a law that former members of Congress can’t be lobbyists after leaving office.
      Electoral College: Should be kept.
      Voter ID: Oppose. Evidence suggests that disenfranchisement is much more of an issue than “voter fraud”
      Compulsory Voting: Absolutely not
      Voter Registration: It’s something people should be encouraged to do at 18, and it should be easy, painless and online. However, I oppose automatic registration. I don’t think voter fraud is much of a problem now, but it would be if we had auto registration.

      So what does this all make me? A centrist? A pragmatist? A “third party nut job?”


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: 538Electoral on May 22, 2020, 11:28:09 AM
      Social Issues: Moderate
      Economic Issues: Far-right
      Foreign Policy: Dovish
      Electoral Reform: Right

      Time for an update.

      Abortion: Pro-life. Exceptions to rape and danger to the mother.
      Same Sex Marriage: None of the government's business. Neither is transgender bathrooms.
      Marijuana: Legalize medicinal marijuana, Let the states decide whether to legalize marijuana for recreational use.
      Slavery reparations: No
      Stem Cell Research: For
      Death Penalty: Support for murderers and other high-profile criminals.
      Criminal justice reform: Oppose. Criminals are criminals.
      Gun control: Don't ban guns. Make sure buyers aren't mentally ill.
      Affirmative Action: Against
      Prostitution: Don't legalize.
      Euthanasia: Okay.

      Economic Issues

      Minimum Wage: Keep minimum wage as is.
      Welfare: Keep as is.
      Right-to-Work: Support
      Taxation: SLIGHTLY increase taxes for the rich.
      Healthcare: Oppose Obamacare.
      Social Security: Leave as is.
      Trade: Protectionist
      Education: Make sure there are better education programs.
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Not sure.
      Transportation: Massively expand both private and public transit funding.
      Infrastructure: Slightly increase spending.

      Foreign Policy and National Security

      U.N: Withdraw
      NATO: Stay in, Only go to war if the US or other allies are attacked.
      Afghanistan: Withdraw
      Iraq: Withdraw
      Iran: Withdraw
      Russia: Support better relations
      China: Support better relations in general, keep tariffs in place.
      North Korea: Keep relations and personal diplomacy
      South Korea: Leave, Let NK and SK work on a peace-deal without our involvement.
      Syria: Leave
      Cuba: Lift sanctions
      Military Spending: Cut down significantly
      PATRIOT Act: End
      NSA Spying: Abolish NSA and CIA.
      Palestine/Israel: Cut down on our support for Israel.
      Immigration: Support a border wall.
      Guantanamo Bay: Keep it open, Though make sure that no innocent people wind up there.

      Environment

      Climate Change: Eh
      Green Energy: Eh
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Support
      Fracking: Support

      Electoral Reform

      Electoral College: Keep current system
      Gerrymandering: Oppose
      Term limits: Support
      Voter ID: Support
      Compulsory Voting: Oppose
      Voter Registration: Support
      Statehood: The US is fine as it is. Let Puerto Rico become it's own country. Don't give DC statehood.

      COVID-19

      Lockdown: Support, Open up before the end of summer.
      Holding China at least partly accountable: Support
      Limiting all immigration during the crisis: Support

      Anything else I should add?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Brother Jonathan on May 22, 2020, 10:16:02 PM
      Figured I post this to help further introduce myself on here:

      Social Policy

      Abortion: Pro-life. At the very least I would like to see a return to "safe, legal, and rare", which I think at least ends the sort of celebration of abortion that we occasionally see (though of course it is more often than not acknowledge by all concerned as a decision of tremendous gravity, which takes a mental toll).  

      Same-Sex Marriage: No strong feelings, as it seems to be fairly settled law. I'm reflexively socially conservative, but I don't have any real problem with it.

      Drugs: I support the legalization of marijuana. Oppose needle exchanges and injection sites.  

      Alcohol: Keep the drinking age at 21.

      Death Penalty: Opposed, but I constantly question myself on it. I use to support it, as it seemed to me to show that for ultimate evil there is the potential for the ultimate punishment, but I simply can't reconcile the death penalty with my strong belief that government should not sanction the taking of life when it can be avoided. The death penalty is the epitome of state sanctioned death. Of course I instinctively would like to put murderers to death, but that cedes the moral high ground too much. Government is designed to temper such impulses. In any event, I recognize that it is Constitutional, but oppose it none the less.

      Gun Control: Better enforcement of current laws, close loopholes. Allow for no permit concealed carry.

      Affirmative Action: Opposed, but I would rather phase it out instead of just ending it in one go.

      Euthanasia: Strongly Opposed. I understand why some support it, but I think there are no guidelines that you can create that will keep us from slipping down a slippery slope.

      Stem Cell Research: Opposed, but with hesitation.

      Prostitution: Keep it illegal.

      Pornography: Laws are mostly fine as they are.

      Immigration: Conflicted. Generally, I support a policy of immigration and assimilation, requiring English skills and such. I support family based migration, and think that as with most policies immigration policy improves when we consider its impacts in terms of communities (including families, but also areas where immigrants settle) rather than simply looking at the bottom line. I do think we should simplify the process, but keep strict restrictions on the number of immigrants admitted. We should, however, create a separate track to encourage skilled immigrants. In any event, assimilation is key (though of course we don't need to stamp out identity).

      Criminal justice: I oppose mandatory minimum sentencing, and think Judges should have more discretion in sentencing.  

      Surveillance: Repeal the Patriot Act, remove cameras from stoplights and other public areas.

      Police: I generally think there needs to be more community policing, and would also like to see some demilitarization of American police forces, but we also have to recognize that the nature of crime changes over time, and so police will have to be adaptable to new situations.
       

      Economic Policy

      Minimum Wage: I can see indexing it to inflation, but no rapid increases.

      Right-to-Work: Support, but I generally have a positive view of unions.

      Tax Rates: Close income tax loopholes and end the mortgage tax deduction, but the rates are about right. As to corporate taxes, I would say current rates are fairly appropriate, but maybe could be lowered. Generally, I think the structure of the tax system is key, as opposed to simply the rates of taxation.

      Healthcare: I've grudgingly accepted that the ACA is probably fine, for the moment at least. Some deregulation of insurance markets to increase competition would be good, though.

      Social Security: Means test it, increase the taxable maximum. Gradually end benefits to upper income retirees ($1 Million plus per year). Modest increases in the retirement age.

      Trade: Generally I'm for free trade, but I'm pragmatic on trade as both an economic and foreign policy tool. I support joining TPP to counter China's growing economic influence in Asia, for example, but I can also see times where tariffs or other trade restrictions are justified (especially in the agricultural sector).

      Environment: I am concerned about climate change, but I take a pragmatic approach to addressing it. Mitigation seems imperative at this juncture. I also think supporting sustainable agriculture and small farmers is vital.

      Education: I support public education. I think there should be less by way of federal intervention, while there should be greater federal aid to states for education.

      Transit: Not a strong support of public transportation, if only for fiscal reasons.

      Foreign Policy
      (These responses are by no means comprehensive)

      Russia: A major threat, to both the United States directly and to the world order (or whatever you want to call it) that we have helped to establish. Support strong sanctions and programs designed to isolate Russia. We also have to be careful to ensure that Russia remains willing to negotiate, and ensure that it remains largely stable internally (internal instability and a large arsenal of weapons of mass destruction is not a good combination). Putin is not ideal, but the alternatives are often worse (take Zhirinovsky for example). We should also seek to prevent Russia from expanding its influence via arms deals, which as we learned from the Cold War can create allies fairly quickly. Use a modern containment strategy and reinforce our European allies to buttress against Russia. Though this may give them some license for aggression, it will create new and serious geopolitical considerations which may prevent further aggression. This has been done to some extent, but it has been slipshod rather than concerted.

      China: Perhaps the foremost geopolitical issue of the 21st century will prove to be China, in one way or another. Generally, I think a good first step in addressing the issues China presents is to seek to counter the Belt and Road Initiative. Increased US involvement in Africa, through trade deals that sponsor investment in infrastructure as well as through increased military and strategic support can help to counter China in Africa, while joining the Trans Pacific Partnership can start to counter China's economic influence in Asia. It's concerning that nations like Australia and the UK are becoming so economically intertwined with China, and while it may have been inevitable that trade between China and the outside world would increase, it is vital that we ensure our trade policies ensure that we continue to have greater influence than China in the markets of closely aligned countries. We should provide greater support to Taiwan, and also seek closer ties to Vietnam and Indonesia as potential bulwarks against Chinese influence in South East Asia, and place pressure on China in the South China Sea. Work with South Korea and Japan as well, and seek to win over developing countries in the region. Generally, the key to addressing China will be beating it in the influence game, and a combination of reserved hard power and expanded soft power will provide the best means of achieving this.

      Israel: I am a proud Zionist. I am pessimistic about the prospect for peace between Israel and Palestine. Generally, as I see it, what Israelis will demand to ensure security and what Palestinians will demand to placate national honor are currently irreconcilable. At this juncture, at least some limited annexation is necessary as settlements in the West Bank are far to firmly rooted to be removed, but such annexation is unlikely to meet with Palestinian approval. And so here we are. Despite its flaws, the Trump exposes some very real truths about this present dynamic.

      NATO: Strongly support. I would like to see greater contributions from other member states, but first and foremost we should ensure that NATO is strong and united. Turkey's drift is concerning to me, and we should work to ensure that such wayward action is avoided. Generally, I think we should reinforce NATO and seek to expand its influence in Eastern Europe as a means of buttressing against Russia. I also think a revival of some sort of SEATO would be a good way to counter China's growing influence by enlisting its neighbors in a concreted effort to check it.  
       
      UN: I oppose some things it does, but in general the United States cannot afford to withdraw from the United Nations. We should ensure that the veto power remains, and should work closely with member nations to support global stability. It's far from perfect, but the UN's structure and our membership of it is reflective of geopolitical realties.  

      Iraq: Use diplomatic pressure to promote domestic political reforms, while continuing security assistance. We need to ensure that Iraq does not fall into Iran's orbit.  

      Iran: A major threat to regional stability in the Middle East. We should seek to support Saudi Arabia and Israel in their respective proxy wars against Iranian backed groups, and should continue to prevent Iran's development of a nuclear weapon. We should bolster domestic opposition however we can.1

      Afghanistan: As in Iraq, create pressure for domestic political reforms. Increase support for counter-terrorism operations, and drastically step up training of the Afghan Armed Forces. Of the all the revelations in the SIGAR Report, the fact that no serious training operations were undertaken in a meaningful way is truly the most concerning. High causality counts among the Afghan security forces (generally agreed to be outpacing replacement level) is perhaps the most concerning outcome of this neglect. A generalized "troop surge" would not work, at least not at this juncture, and our focus should be on building domestic security capacity.  

      Electoral Reform

      Electoral College: Keep as is.

      Gerrymandering: It's not great, but at the same time I think there is some over estimation of its effects. To that end, allow states to do what they want, and larger states should probably adopt commissions that presents plans for legislative and executive approval.

      Term limits: Opposed for all office except for President, the powers of that office being so great that term limits seem logical.
       
      Voter ID: I support voter ID laws, but would like to see the process for getting an ID of any kind simplified.

      Voter registration: I oppose automatic registration, and in general I think the current process is fine (though I recognize many states have different procedures, so I can't really say how I would feel about it if I lived in Alabama or California)

      Voting age: I strongly oppose lowering the voting age, at any level for any reason. Frankly, while I think there are many young people who would make capable and informed voters, they lack the sense of responsibility that comes with voting. Honestly, at 16, the impacts of what you are voting for are often too indirect. 18 is fine, even though I think it may be a little low, but I don't think raising the voting age is a good idea either.

      Mandatory voting: Opposed.

      Supreme Court: I strongly support life terms for Supreme Court appointees, and in general feel that life terms are the most appropriate for al judicial offices.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Balsanator03 on May 29, 2020, 09:21:35 PM
      I am a Republican. I consider myself a conservative but am not the staunch conservative you'd think.

      I believe that we need to act on climate change. I would incentivize renewable energy if I were in Congress.

      I believe that universal background checks must be enacted to help protect the people.

      I believe that taxes should be higher on the rich than the poor.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Chips on June 24, 2020, 12:42:32 AM
      I am a right-leaning independent. I believe in some left wing social issues. (Gay marriages shouldn't be tampered with by the government, Marijuana should be legalized etc)

      I am definitely tilted to the right on economic issues.

      Maybe I'll do a full list sometime.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: AGA on June 25, 2020, 04:33:32 PM
      I believe in capitalism with regulations to address market failures and a moderate welfare state. I am fairly libertarian on social issues.

      Economics

      Taxes: I am open to a modest increase in income taxes on those making $500k+ a year, although marginal rates should never go much higher than 40%. Corporate should be low, and some of the tax burden should be shifted onto a VAT. No wealth tax. I am open to replacing property taxes with a land value at the local level. I support repealing the SALT deduction cap, although some states, including New York, should lower their taxes.

      Welfare: Social security needs reform so that the trust fund gets better ROI.

      Trade: I support free trade. Restrictions on free trade should only be considered for national security reasons or for diplomatic pressure.

      Minimum wage: The federal minimum wage should be increased to $12/hr and adjusted for inflation afterwards. I am satisfied with the current minimum wage policy in New York where different regions have different minimum wages.

      Healthcare: I support a public option for healthcare like Biden's plan

      Education: I do not support free public college or student debt forgiveness. I do support free community college, however. I support vouchers for school choice. Universal pre-k is a waste of money.

      Infrastructure: Increase spending to fix some of the roads and the bridges of this country. I do not think it would be economically feasible, however, to make a nationwide high-speed passenger rail network. The Northeast Corridor should be upgraded to allow for higher speeds.

      Transportation: Increase spending on local public transportation. American cities are being held back by their reliance on cars.

      Housing: Deregulate zoning laws to encourage density and lower housing costs. I oppose rent control.

      Unions: I oppose public unions and right to work laws.

      Social Issues

      Abortion: Should be legal in the first 20 weeks. Afterwards, should only be legal if medically necessary. Keep Hyde Amendment.

      LGBT rights: I support the right for gay couples to get married and adopt. Let people use the bathroom according to how they present and identify as either male, female, or nonbinary.

      Gun control: There should be universal background checks. I support Trump's bump stock ban. I don't support assault rifle bans or any kind of confiscation/buy back. I support open carry with a permit. I don't know much about guns, so I'll leave it at that.

      Death penalty: Oppose

      Prostitution: Legalize

      Euthanasia: Legal as long as the person is mentally sound.

      Reparations for slavery: Oppose

      Affirmative action: Oppose

      Free speech: Support

      Environment

      Carbon tax: Support

      Paris Climate Accord: Support

      Renewable energy: Development of renewable energy should be subsidized. Nuclear isn't bad, either.

      Fracking ban: Oppose

      Criminal Justice

      Drugs: Decriminalize all drugs and treat it like a medical issue. Legalize marijuana, but limit usage in public.

      Voting rights: Felons should have the right to vote after being released.

      Policing: Police should receive more training and oversight. I am opposed to defunding or abolishing the police. Some areas of the country need more policing, in fact.

      Immigration

      Border wall: No strong opinion. There are better uses for the money, but it's not the worst policy in the world.

      Deportation: All illegal immigrants who commit a felony should be deported. The rest can stay once they are authorized and pay income taxes.

      DACA: Support

      Path to citizenship: After staying in the US for many years and paying a fine, perhaps citizenship can be granted for illegal immigrants if they have shown to be productive residents. It should be easier for a legal immigrant to get citizenship than an illegal immigrant.

      Voting rights: No voting rights for noncitizens or minors.

      Legal immigration: Should be easier and faster to immigrate to the US and become a permanent resident, especially to those who can provide high-skilled labor.

      Work visas: Should be easier to obtain

      Electoral Reform

      Voter ID: Don't care, especially if the IDs are free

      Compulsory voting: Oppose

      Term limits: Oppose

      Electoral college: In an ideal world, the president would be elected directly through the popular vote in a federally run election. That would require a constitutional amendment, so the NPVIC is the next-best alternative. I don't think this has a good chance of going through, so it's not an issue I think about too much.

      Voting system: IRV is a good, but far from perfect, alternative to FPTP.

      Supreme Court: Expansion sets a bad precedent and should be avoided.

      Foreign Policy

      I am not very informed on foreign policy, but I do have some general principles. I am mostly in favor of international institutions such as the UN and NATO as they can facilitate the solving of international problems. I am not reflexively opposed to military intervention, but diplomatic solutions should also be considered first. I am mostly pro-Israel.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Ferguson97 on July 01, 2020, 02:05:23 AM
      I'd call myself very socially progressive, fiscally liberal, and a liberal internationalist with foreign policy.

      Social Issues

      Abortion: Pro-choice. Federally fund Planned Parenthood. Virtually no restrictions. Increase funding for public sex education and contraceptives to reduce the need for abortion.

      Same Sex Adoption: Strongly support. Give same-sex couples the same rights as heterosexual couples.

      Transgender Rights: Allow individuals to use bathroom of their choice; allow the transition of all individuals above the age of 16. Prohibit discrimination against transgender individuals; ban the "gay panic" defense.

      Marijuana: Legalize, regulate, tax. Expunge the records of non-violent offenders.

      Death Penalty: Abolish.

      Prostitution: Protect sex workers by decriminalizing sex work for sex workers, but not Johns. (Research shows this is the most effective way to guarantee their safety.)

      Euthanasia: Strongly support. Require a psychological evaluation to determine they are of sound mind.

      Reparations: Support. Don't know how it should be implemented.

      Affirmative action: Support.

      Gun control: National registry. Mandatory training, background check, and psychological evaluation, and three non-family character references. Limit three guns per individual. Ban assault-style weapons. Limit ammo/magazines. Routine inspections.

      Drugs: Decriminalize and don't incarcerate people for simple possession. Give them rehabilitation. Open safe injection sites and needle exchange programs nationwide.

      Confederate Statues: Tear them down.

      Criminal justice: Drastically overhaul; transition to rehabilitative system of justice. Ban solitary confinement, maximum sentence of 20 years; mandatory job training and temporary housing upon release; ban three strikes law; ban mandatory minimums; ban cash bail; allow all felons to vote during and after their sentencing; most crimes should not result in prison.

      Police reform: Demilitarize the police; require police live in their communities; body cameras on at all times; ban the hiring of cops fired or suspended for misconduct; automatic investigation of all fatal shootings; ban police from having sex with people in their custody; ban police quotas for things like tickets; drastically reduce funding; desegregate duties so that social workers handle necessary cases rather than police; BAN QUALIFIED IMMUNITY; ban no-knock raids.

      Immigration: Automatic citizenship for every single non-violent undocumented immigrant. Make it drastically easier to immigrate to the United States. Basically, I want a step below open borders. Abolish ICE. Shut down the border camps. Reparations for individuals in the camps. Immediately set up a system for family reunification. Bar ICE employees from federal employment.

      Economic Issues

      Minimum Wage: $15 hour nation wide, indexed to inflation.

      Welfare: Drastically expand Earned Income Tax Credit; drastically expand the child tax credit; implement Cory Booker's baby bond plan. Allow immigrants to be eligible. Basically, expand the social safety net to the extent that no on ever need to worry about putting food on the table.

      Taxes: Reduce taxes for low-income earners. Drastically increase for the wealthy. Eliminate the mortgage interest deduction. Increase taxes on corporations.  Increase the estate tax. Tax capital gains as income. Create way more tax brackets.

      Social security: Eliminate the cap on payroll tax. Raise the retirement age to social security. Use income taxes to fund social security. Increase social security payroll tax.

      Sin taxes: Tax soda, cigarettes, and alcohol. 

      Wealth tax: Support.

      Value-Added tax: Support, with dividend for low-income earners.

      Healthcare: Public option.

      Foreign Policy

      Russia: Sanction. Condemn their election interference and the bounty they placed on American soldiers. Defend Ukraine from Russian aggression.

      China: Biggest 21st century threat. Sanction. Condemn their treatment of the Uyghurs as genocide. Recognize Taiwan as a sovereign country. Allow Hong Kong residents to seek refugee status. Go after their IP theft. Counter their influence in Africa.

      Israel: Condition their aid on stopping annexation and make them stop treating Palestinians like sub-humans. Make them give back stolen land and homes.

      Palestine: Provide humanitarian aid on the condition that they give women and LGBT+ rights. Designate Hamas as a terrorist.

      Iran: Renegotiate Iran nuclear deal.

      Latin America: Expand humanitarian aid and strengthen our relationship with allies like Mexico and Brazil. 

      India: Support India against Chinese aggression.

      NATO/UN: Drastically increase our presence.

      Military spending: Redirect most funding to R&D. Increase intelligence spending, and naval spending. Drastically reduce ground troops, but leave intelligence operatives.

      General: China Hawk. Russia Hawk. Multilateral coalitions focused on diplomacy and humanitarian aid. Promote liberal democracy. Climate change should be an international effort.

      Environmental Policy

      Carbon Tax: Support.

      Environmental Regulations: Support.

      Subsidies: Eliminate fossil fuel subsidies. Expand wind and solar subsidies.

      Nuclear: Strongly support.

      Paris Accords: Rejoin.

      Electoral Policy

      Electoral College: Eliminate, replace with national popular vote.

      Senate: Make proportional to population.

      House: Eliminate 435 cap.

      DC statehood: Support.

      PR statehood: Support.

      Gerrymandering: Independent commission.

      Term limits: Oppose.

      Voter ID: Oppose.

      Compulsory voting: Oppose.

      Automatic registration: Support.

      Expand early voting: Support.

      Expand absentee voting: Support.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Chunk Yogurt for President! on July 10, 2020, 01:34:11 AM
      Social:

      Abortion: Illegal with exception for mother's life
      Assisted Suicide: Opposed
      Death Penalty: Opposed
      War on Drugs: Opposed
      Gun Control: Opposed
      PATRIOT Act: Opposed
      Illegal Immigration: End benefits to illegals

      Economic:

      Monetary: Gold Standard, End the Fed
      Taxes: Repeal 16th Amendment, replace with low tariffs
      Spending: Drastically cut
      Regulations: Deregulate
      Healthcare: Privatize
      Corporations: End subsidies

      Foreign Policy:

      Afghanistan: Pull out immediately
      Iraq: Never go back
      Israel/Palestine: End US support of Israel
      Iran: End sanctions
      Saudi Arabia: End Alliance
      Russia: Develop peaceful relations
      Foreign Aid: End it
      UN: Leave
      NATO: Leave
      Military Spending: Cut by at least 50%

      My views are definitely not the same as they were back in 2014.

      Social:

      Life: Abortion and assisted suicide should be illegal at the national level.  There should be an exception in the case that an abortion is truly necessary to save a mother's life.  There should be some form of legal punishment for abortion.

      Death Penalty: I'm against it, though I don't put it in the same category as abortion and assisted suicide.

      War on Drugs: Legalize weed, but keep the really dangerous drugs illegal.

      Marriage: Oppose any attempts to legalize polygamous or polyandrous marriages if that becomes a political issue in the future.  Continue to allow churches, synagogues, mosques, and other religious institutions to decide if they want to perform same-sex marriages or not.

      Prostitution: Should be illegal.

      Gun control: I'm opposed to gun control.

      PATRIOT Act: Still opposed, horrible law.

      Immigration: Immigration laws should be enforced.  Building a massive border wall is not worth the money, however.  The US should continue to take in legal immigrants.  If I was in Europe, I would be much more restrictionist in my views on immigration.  I also reject the "demographics is destiny" crowd.

      Affirmative Action: Race-based affirmative action is wrong, but socioeconomic affirmative action is fine.

      Reparations: My ancestors were abolitionists, but even if they were slave-owners, it wouldn't matter.  People who never owned slaves shouldn't have to pay reparations to people who never were slaves.

      Policing: Some sort of police reform is necessary, but I honestly have no idea exactly what is needed.

      Economic:

      Monetary: I'm not 100% sure that ending the Fed is a good idea at this moment, but we should definitely look into it.  The Gold Standard or Free Silver should also be on the table.

      Taxes: The rich don't need any more tax cuts.

      Spending: Cut government spending within reason.

      Healthcare: Some sort of reform is necessary.  I don't want the government to control healthcare, however.

      Regulation: Deregulation is probably necessary in some sectors of the economy.  Other sectors probably need more regulation and oversight, such as fracking.

      Corporations: They have way too much power.  Repeal Citizen's United.  Raise corporate taxes.

      Foreign Policy:

      Middle East: The US needs to drastically scale back its involvement.  I oppose any intervention in Syria as of now.  If an ISIS-like group began taking over large parts of the country again, then intervention should be a consideration.  The US needs to stop trying to spread democracy in the region.  Let people like Hussein, Assad, and Qaddafi stay in power, even if they aren't great leaders.  Continue to support Israel, but phase out aid to the country.  Israel should stop building new settlements on the West Bank.  Iran should not be trusted, though I oppose military intervention against the country.  The alliance with Saudi Arabia should be ended.

      Russia: America is not at war with Russia, and that's a good thing.  The Cold War is over, and speaking of that...

      NATO: Has outlived its usefulness.

      Defense Spending: Should be cut.

      Foreign military bases: We should close some of them.  There's no reason to have a military presence in Germany in 2020.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: WD on July 13, 2020, 09:13:12 PM
      Economic Issues

      Health Care: I support a Public option, and ideally it would be funded via payroll taxes and an income tax hike and would not involve any premiums. On top of this it should have the same reimbursement rates as medicare, and it should allow Medicare to negotiate prescription drug prices. One key element that I believe any serious Public Option should contain, is that it should automatically enroll anyone who is uninsured, and any newly born children. This will inevitably result in universal coverage. I’d also like to see the benefits it covers include what is currently covered by Medicare, along with dental, vision, and hearing. As a starting measure in absence of a Public Option, as is the case now, I support lowering the Medicare age to 50.

      Minimum Wage: Raise to $15 per hour, index for inflation and make changes to accommodate rural areas.

      Education: Make colleges tuition free for incomes under 150k.

      Unions: I’m strongly supportive of proposals such as the PRO Act.  Along with that, I support repealing Taft-Hartley and the ending of all right to work laws. A strong labor movement is necessary for the growth of the middle and working class.

      Social Security: Increase monthly benefits. Lift cap on SS payroll tax.

      Trade: I am not particularly opposed to free trade as a concept, but I am strongly skeptical of free trade deals (NAFTA, TPP, etc..). Targeted Tariffs should be implemented to prevent outsourcing, and I believe we should deny government contracts to companies who outsource.

      Taxes: I support a top rate of 50%, believe that capital gains should be taxed as ordinary income.

      Social Issues-

      Gun Rights: I oppose gun control in almost all forms, and am unabashedly Pro-2A. Firearm ownership is a matter of personal liberty and protect, and such rights should not be encroached upon.

      Abortion: I am Pro-Life. Abortion should be limited and curtailed as much as possible, and I view it as a societal evil. There should be a ban on it after 6 weeks. I am willing to make exceptions case of rape, incest, and life of the mother. Under no circumstances should federal funds/taxpayer dollars should be used for the funding/subsidization of Abortions (I support the Hyde Amendment, the Helms Amendment, and the Mexico City policy etc.., and I also believe that groups like Planned Parenthood should no longer receive federal funding)

      Death Penalty: Support

      Drugs: Legalize Marijuana

      Police reform: I do support demilitarization of Police, however I oppose more drastic measures such as cuts to police budgets. I do believe that we should end private prisons, however.

      Foreign Policy

      Keep military spending at current levels or increase where necessary. Increase spending on weaponry and technology procurement. Only cut where there is waste. I generally describe myself as an interventionist.

      We need to take a tough stance on Russia and China. They are, without a doubt, our two biggest adversaries. A muscular and heavy military presence in Southeast Asia and Europe is essential. In regards to Europe, maintain a strong military presence in the Eastern part of the continent (Poland, Latvia, Romania, Ukraine) to deter and push back apon Russian influence and encroachment. The same goes for China, we must maintain our bases and increase arsenal in areas closer to China (specifically the Philippines and Guam) to contain, deter and counter the Chinese. Overall China and Russia are the biggest foreign threats to the US and must be opposed everywhere in the strongest possible way. I do not want war;no one does, but a strong international stance is, in my view, the best way to secure peace.

      Other/Related stances:

      -Increase number of military bases in Eastern Europe.

      -Rejoin Iran Deal

      -Pro-Israel. I have always supported a two state solution.

      -Implement tough economic sanctions against Russia, North Korea, Iran, and China.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Damocles on July 14, 2020, 01:47:54 AM
      Political Reforms:

      Political Parties: Strong Political Parties. A party system with a few smaller, more ideologically disciplined parties is more able to hold their opposition to account and avoid walking back on their promises to their supporters.

      Upper House: Mixed Method. Maintain the existing equality among states as political entities, but include some members elected through limited franchises based on their participation in trade unions, as well as some appointed members, and sorted members.

      Conscription: Nominal Draft. Make women register alongside men at their 18th birthdays. If women are good enough to serve in combat roles, surely then they can get drafted, too.

      Trade Unions: Strong Trade Unions. The Taft-Hartley Act, among other legislation limiting trade unions’ ability to organize and advocate for their membership, should be repealed.

      Vote Franchise: Universal. Every state should use hand-counted paper ballots, and have a common standard for counting, tabulating, recording, and certifying tallies.

      Voting System: Proportional Representation. Moving to a system under this umbrella would likely help break up the two-party system that has been a toxic plague on our politics.

      Debt Law: Consolidate Debt. In particular, the issuance of sovereign debt to support overextended infrastructure projects designed for cars is atrocious. We need a more financially viable model to function that doesn’t depend on so much debt.

      Slavery: Prohibited. Pass an amendment to the Constitution which prohibits any unpaid labor.

      Public Meetings: All Allowed. Protests are supposed to make those in power feel uncomfortable. Placing arbitrary restrictions on their time, place, and manner is an unconstitutional restriction on their right to assemble.

      Social Reforms:

      Minimum Wage: Collective Bargaining. Trade unions should have the authority to negotiate these with the employer in the contract.

      Work Hour Limit: Collective Bargaining. Trade unions should have the authority to negotiate these with the employer in the contract.

      Safety Regulations: Strong Safety Regulations. Consumers should be confident that the products they are using are not going to poison or harm them.

      Unemployment: Sliding Scale. Not everyone has the same need with unemployment. Let’s stop having welfare cliffs be a thing and have more tailored solutions.

      Pensions: Good Pensions. Pensions might be financed through a public investment account which acts as a form of superannuation, as exists in Australia, as a base model.

      Health Care: Public Health Care. A nationalized system of healthcare should be matched by dramatic and sweeping changes to Americans’ habits that enable all of these health problems in the first place.

      School System: Good Public Schools. Private and charter schools should be nationalized and made part of the existing public school system, especially K-12 education. Adopt a common core set of subjects, for example.

      Penal System: Rehabilitation. The existing punitive attitude towards corrections has been used to persecute millions of Black and Latino and Indigenous Americans. We need to break the prison pipeline and outlaw private prisons.

      Matters of State:

      Child Labor: Prohibited. The children should be in school.

      Bureaucracy: Professional Civil Servants. Bureaucrats should be selected for their competency and excellence, rather than racial pedigree or connections to those already in the civil services.

      Political Rights: Transcendental. If you’re an American, you should never have your right to cast a ballot abridged for any reason once you have achieved the age of majority.

      Press Rights: Public Journalism. Local community journalism should be a powerful check on the business of local governments and cover community happenings in a way that national media is often impotent at, beholden as they are to property owners.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: here2view on July 15, 2020, 01:15:17 PM
      I last did mine in Spring 2018 so I'll update:

      Ideology
      Social: Moderately liberal
      Economic: Liberal
      Foreign Policy: Non-Intervionalist

      Social Policy
      Abortion: 100% pro-choice. Support Planned Parenthood and federal funding toward it. I might be open to allowing states to decide if they want to ban abortions after a certain number of weeks, likely 20 weeks being the minimum.

      Same-Sex Marriage: Unequivocally support.

      Transgender Issues: Use whatever bathroom you are most comfortable with. I don’t really care.

      Drugs: Legalize marijuana, while taxing and regulating it like alcohol. The War on Drugs is pointless.

      Death Penalty: Support. There are some criminals who commit crimes so heinous that they aren’t worthy of life.

      Gun Control: Expand background checks. Against an assault weapons ban or raising the age to purchase to 21. You shouldn’t be allowed to vote or register in the draft before being able to buy a gun. (Everything should be 18 - drinking age should be lowered as well, which is a different discussion.) There needs to be more done to address mental health and the stigma surrounding it.

      Affirmative Action: I've gone back on forth on this one. It's a good concept (obviosuly) but I don't think I can support it in full.

      Prostitution: Status quo.

      Euthanasia: Support, as long as the patient has less than 6 months to live and is medically judged to be in substantial pain on a daily basis.

      Immigration: More funding for border security but no wall. Deport every illegal who commits an actual crime (not counting a traffic violation or things of that nature.) Protect DACA.

      Police Issues/Black Lives Matter: Support BLM (duh.)

      Free Speech/Political Correctness: Support free speech. PC culture has gone too far.

      School Prayer: No for public schools, up for private schools to decide.

      Muslim Ban: No way.

      PATRIOT ACT/NSA Spying: Support both.


      Economic Issues
      Minimum Wage: Raise to $12.50 nationwide and allow states to increase further if they choose.

      Social Security: Gradually raise minimum age to 69 (nice) to receive full benefits for all by 2030. If you collected before 2030 and you are/were younger than that you’re grandfathered in.

      Healthcare: Public option.

      Globalization/Trade: Oppose TPP and NAFTA.

      Deficit/Debt: Irrelevant. Republicans say they care about the national debt and then pass legislation which happens to raise it even further. Democrats do the later as well, but don’t lie about caring about it like Republicans do.

      Campaign Finance Reform: Limit on how much can be donated to a campaign.

      Unions: I'm in one so obviously I'm very-pro. In favor of legislation to protect unions.

      Energy: Pro renewable energy. We need to move more so away from coal.

      Job Creation: A major infrastructure deal. A greater focus on training and re-training individuals in order to be acclimated to the 21st century. Coal mine and steel mill jobs aren’t coming back to the level they were 50 years ago, but Democrats shouldn’t turn their backs to these people.

      Education: Support Common Core. Establish a universal day care, find a way to make undergraduate college degrees more affordable. Better information needs to be given to college applicants and incoming college students about the loans they take. I agree with most of Biden's plan.

      Taxes: Set corporation tax rates to 30% and given tax credits to companies who don’t ship jobs and companies overseas. It's 21% since 2018 but was 35% in the 1990s and into the 2000s.

      INDIVIDUAL               JOINTLY
      10%: Up to $12,000            10%: Up to $24,000
      12%: $12,001 to $50,000         12%: $24,001 to $100,000
      24%: $50,001 to $125,000         24%: $100,001 to $250,000
      36%: $125,001 to $300,000      36%: $250,001 to $600,000
      40%: over $300,001            40%: over $600,000

      Cuts down the brackets from seven to five. Essentially does it by multiples of 12 (12%, 24%, and 36%) to simplify things, with a 10% bracket and a 40% bracket. All of individual's income under 50k is taxed less than current, while everything from 50k to 125k is the same. Everything after first 125k goes up. This creates 80.4 billion in new revenues, compared to the current code that only creates around 40 billion.

      Other economic issues: More needs to be done to address the growing income inequality in this country. Establish three weeks of paid vacation minimum for every job, which may be increased down the road. 3 months paid maternity leave and 3 weeks paid paternity leave.

      Foreign Policy
      Middle East: The Middle East is a massive mess and the less that we are involved, the better. UN needs to be stronger, so we should not be playing a huge role. To be blunt we should be focused on trying to ensure that we can get the cheapest oil possible.

      Syrian Refugees: Support taking in refugees. However, they must be vetted extremely closely.

      Israel/Palestine: Support Israel, but like I stated earlier we need to try and pull back from the Middle East.

      North Korea: North Korea is secondary compared to Russia and China.

      Russia: Enforce stronger economic sanctions and provide support to our allies who share our mindset.

      Climate Change: Support increasing funding towards climate change, as well as the Paris Climate Agreement.


      Electoral Issues
      Gerrymandering: Status quo.

      Term limits: Oppose.

      Voter ID: Support, but the type of ID shouldn’t be so strict. Government IDs should be cheap and easy to buy.

      Voting age: Keep at 18.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Chips on July 19, 2020, 08:45:30 AM
      Economics

      Taxes: Increase taxes on those who make more than $1,000,000 a year.


      Trade: Oppose NAFTA. Protectionist on the whole.

      Minimum wage: The federal minimum wage should be increased.

      Healthcare: We need universal healthcare.

      Education: We need way better education as well.

      Infrastructure: Again, way better infrastructure is a must.

      Transportation: Increase spending on local public transportation.

      Unions: Support.

      Social Issues

      Abortion: States should choose.

      LGBT rights: Fine with.

      Gun control: Oppose mostly.

      Death penalty: Support, but only for murderers and other high profile criminals.

      Prostitution: Meh.....

      Euthanasia: Meh.....

      Reparations for slavery: Some.

      Affirmative action: Oppose.

      Free speech: Strongly support.

      Environment

      Carbon tax: Leaning toward oppose.

      Paris Climate Accord: Rejoin.

      Renewable energy: All forms of renewable energy (included nuclear) should be subsidized to help them compete with nonrenewable forms of energy in the market.

      Fracking ban: Oppose.

      Offshore drilling ban: Oppose.

      Reinstate the EPA regulations that Trump rolled back.

      Criminal Justice

      Drugs: Support crackdowns. Let states choose on marijuana.

      Voting rights: Felons should have background checks before being allowed to vote.

      Defunding/abolishing the police: Oppose.

      CHAZ: Support the police.

      Immigration

      Border wall: Oppose. The only way we're going to stop illegal immigration is to not interfere with South American countries.

      Deportation: All illegal immigrants who commit a felony should be deported. The rest can stay once they are authorized and pay income taxes.

      DACA: Support.

      Path to citizenship: As long as they're proven okay after vetting, All immigrants should be allowed to stay.

      Voting rights: Voting rights for foreign citizens once they've been proven okay after vetting.

      Legal immigration: Should be easier and faster to immigrate to the US and become a permanent resident, especially to those who can provide high-skilled labor.

      Work visas: Should be easier to obtain.

      Family separation: Severely oppose.

      Electoral Reform

      Voter ID: Should be necessary.

      Compulsory voting: Oppose.

      Term limits: Executives should be limited to two terms. Other than that, no term limits.

      Electoral college: Support keeping as is.

      Congress: Make sure the Military Industrial Complex has less control over government.

      Foreign policies:

      Russia: Oppose sanctions, Support a strong relationship.
      China: Same with Russia. Stop interfering with the South China Sea.
      North Korea: Continue talks and diplomacy.
      Middle East: Pull out. We've killed tens of thousands of innocent lives in the middle east since we went there.
      Israel/Palestine: Pull back support for Israel. UN should rightfully condemn them for their inhumane treatments of the folks who have established full rights to the land.
      Guantanamo Bay: Shut down.
      NATO: Obsolete.
      EU: European countries should be allowed to pull out if they want to.
      UN: Stay in, Have a system kinda like here where if one or more of the permanent members veto something, Have all the countries vote over whether to override the veto or not.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: LAKISYLVANIA on July 19, 2020, 10:05:52 AM
      Economics

      Taxes: Increase taxes on those who make more than $1,000,000 a year.


      Trade: Oppose NAFTA. Protectionist on the whole.

      Minimum wage: The federal minimum wage should be increased.

      Healthcare: We need universal healthcare.

      Education: We need way better education as well.

      Infrastructure: Again, way better infrastructure is a must.

      Transportation: Increase spending on local public transportation.

      Unions: Support.

      Social Issues

      Abortion: States should choose.

      LGBT rights: Fine with.

      Gun control: Oppose mostly.

      Death penalty: Support, but only for murderers and other high profile criminals.

      Prostitution: Meh.....

      Euthanasia: Meh.....

      Reparations for slavery: Some.

      Affirmative action: Oppose.

      Free speech: Strongly support.

      Environment

      Carbon tax: Leaning toward oppose.

      Paris Climate Accord: Rejoin.

      Renewable energy: All forms of renewable energy (included nuclear) should be subsidized to help them compete with nonrenewable forms of energy in the market.

      Fracking ban: Oppose.

      Offshore drilling ban: Oppose.

      Reinstate the EPA regulations that Trump rolled back.

      Criminal Justice

      Drugs: Support crackdowns. Let states choose on marijuana.

      Voting rights: Felons should have background checks before being allowed to vote.

      Defunding/abolishing the police: Oppose.

      CHAZ: Support the police.

      Immigration

      Border wall: Oppose. The only way we're going to stop illegal immigration is to not interfere with South American countries.

      Deportation: All illegal immigrants who commit a felony should be deported. The rest can stay once they are authorized and pay income taxes.

      DACA: Support.

      Path to citizenship: As long as they're proven okay after vetting, All immigrants should be allowed to stay.

      Voting rights: Voting rights for foreign citizens once they've been proven okay after vetting.

      Legal immigration: Should be easier and faster to immigrate to the US and become a permanent resident, especially to those who can provide high-skilled labor.

      Work visas: Should be easier to obtain.

      Family separation: Severely oppose.

      Electoral Reform

      Voter ID: Should be necessary.

      Compulsory voting: Oppose.

      Term limits: Executives should be limited to two terms. Other than that, no term limits.

      Electoral college: Support keeping as is.

      Congress: Make sure the Military Industrial Complex has less control over government.

      Foreign policies:

      Russia: Oppose sanctions, Support a strong relationship.
      China: Same with Russia. Stop interfering with the South China Sea.
      North Korea: Continue talks and diplomacy.
      Middle East: Pull out. We've killed tens of thousands of innocent lives in the middle east since we went there.
      Israel/Palestine: Pull back support for Israel. UN should rightfully condemn them for their inhumane treatments of the folks who have established full rights to the land.
      Guantanamo Bay: Shut down.
      NATO: Obsolete.
      EU: European countries should be allowed to pull out if they want to.
      UN: Stay in, Have a system kinda like here where if one or more of the permanent members veto something, Have all the countries vote over whether to override the veto or not.
      Your views are similar to mine


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: 😥 on July 21, 2020, 03:38:22 PM
      Ideology
      Social: Conservative
      Economic: Liberal
      Foreign Policy: Internationalist

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Pro-life, but abortions can be allowed in cases of rape, incest and when mother's life in danger

      Same-Sex Marriage: Support, but opposed to adoption right for same-sex pairs

      Drugs: Strongly oppose to legalization of marijuana, even medical

      Death Penalty: Support. For some criminals who have committed very serious crimes and whose guilt is unquestionable, this is a just punishment.

      Gun Control: Strongly opposed to the free circulation of weapons. I'm for full assault weapons ban and strict control over it.

      Affirmative Action: Lean oppose

      Prostitution: It must be illegal, as it is!

      Euthanasia: Support, as long as the patient has less than 6 months to live. Oppose in other cases

      Immigration: I believe that more border protection needs to be funded, but I am strongly against building a wall at the border. Deport all independent immigrants who have committed an actual crime. Protect DACA.

      Police Issues/Black Lives Matter: Support BLM

      Free Speech/Political Correctness: Support free speech

      School Prayer: Available in all schools

      Muslim Ban: Strongly against

      PATRIOT ACT: Support


      Economic Issues
      Minimum Wage: Raise to $15 nationwide and gradually increase further

      Healthcare: I'm for Biden's plan

      Globalization/Trade: Oppose TPP and NAFTA

      Deficit/Debt: Pro-deficit

      Campaign Finance Reform: Support McCain-Feingold

      Unions: Pro-union

      Energy: Pro renewable energy

      Education: Support Biden's plan

      Taxes: Significantly raise taxes for the rich, reduce / keep the same for the poor

      Foreign Policy
      Afganistan: Stay, reduce the contingent
      Iraq: leave a small contingent to prevent the return of ISIL
      Afganistan: Better relations, return of nuclear deal
      Syria: Stay, reduce the contingent
      Cuba: Better relations, but with sanctions
      Palestine: Don't recognize
      Russia: The biggest threat to the world, significantly strengthen sanctions, lobby for Ukraine and Georgia's accession to NATO and place NATO troops on the border with Russia

      Environment
      Climate Change: Support increasing taxes for all factories, which pollute the environment, support Paris Climate Agreement

      Electoral Issues
      Gerrymandering: Strongly oppose
      Term limits: Oppose
      Voter ID: Support
      DC and PR statehoods:: Support


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: hyouzel the predictor on September 15, 2020, 10:35:20 AM
      Ideology
      Social: Liberal
      Economic: Liberal
      Foreign Policy: Isolationism (except in dictatorship situations)

      Social Policy

      Abortion: Pro-choice, but personally I think it’s a bit wrong to have an abortion during the third trimester. Always pro choice in cases of rape, incest, or underage
      Same-Sex Marriage: Fully support
      Drugs: Legalize marijuana and expunge prison records for weed charges, decriminalize all others and have all non-violent drug abusers be sent to rehab instead of prison
      Death Penalty: Against unless there is no doubt that they committed a crime against humanity (terrorist attack, kill civilians, break international law)
      Gun Control: National registry, barr selling of assault rifle conversion kits. Mental background check on every gun owner.
      Affirmative Action: I’m for economic based Affirmative Action, as class is ultimately a greater division than race in terms of climbing the social ladder in 2020.
      Prostitution: Legalize to ensure safe wages and regulation.
      Euthanasia: Pro, but the patient has to be mentally sound
      Immigration: Pro immigration in almost every aspect. Make citizenship much easier to attain, defund ICE and get rid of all border camps. Illegal immigrants should be granted amnesty in the US for at least 5 years to attain citizenship legally, and if you spend longer than 5 years in the US, you cannot be deported if you haven’t committed a crime.
      Police Issues/Black Lives Matter: Demilitarize police, allocate resources to a community brigade to provide mental health support and domestic violence assistance. Police should only be called in a dangerous situation. Pro BLM, but anti looting and unjustified violence against police.
      Free Speech/Political Correctness: I’m pro free speech, but calling people slurs makes you a dick. If someone has something they prefer to be called, just call them that.
      School Prayer: Optional time in the beginning of the day
      Muslim Ban: Strongly against
      PATRIOT ACT: Strongly Against

      Economic Issues

      Minimum Wage: Raise to $15 nationwide and gradually increase further. Should also be a formula related to CEO net worth and lowest workers’ wage, but I’m not an economist.
      Healthcare: Public option is extremely necessary, but I still support independent health care companies for now. Over time, the government should make it better to join the government’s system.
      Globalization/Trade: Pro globalization and worldwide cooperation and trade, other than China.
      Campaign Reform: I believe the entire election system should be changed. More parties, more debates between candidates, less funding overall.
      Unions: Pro-union
      Energy: Pro renewable energy, needs to slowly phase out oil and coal. Provide alternate work for workers in those fields first.
      Education: Free college for anyone making under 125k a year, slash all student debt older than 10 years.
      Taxes: Rewrite the tax code, tax the rich a great deal and tax the poor a small amount. Focus on growing the middle class

      Foreign Policy

      Afghanistan: Exit immediately, work out a diplomatic solution.
      Iraq: Exit completely, give funds to Iraqi government
      Iran: Try to rewrite nuclear deal, and the end goal should be Irani-US cooperation and trust.
      Syria: Establish a Kurdish UN buffer state in northern Syria and Iraq, jointly controlled by the UN, Syria, Iraq, and Turkey. UN has control, supported militarily by US. Create another buffer state in Golan Heights. Give Syrian Turkish controlled areas to Turkey.
      North Korea: Try to work out a similar nuclear deal to Iran.
      Israel-Palestine: Work out two state solution, encourage peace talks to begin under US supervision. UN supervised Jerusalem. Israeli military leaders take responsibility for bombing civilians.
      China: Focus on diplomacy, but condemn Uyghur genocide.
      Russia: Focus on diplomacy.

      Environment

      Climate Change: Support increasing taxes for all factories, which pollute the environment, support Paris Climate Agreement. Encourage more renewable energy

      Electoral Issues

      Gerrymandering: Strongly oppose
      Term limits: Support, career politicians shouldn’t exist in the country.
      Voter ID: Support
      DC and PR statehoods:: Support DC, let PR choose whether to become a state or leave the US


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Kamala’s side hoe on October 03, 2020, 06:59:12 PM
      Ideology: Pragmatic green, in between the progressive and moderate wings of the Democratic party
      Social: Broadly center-left
      Economic: Broadly center-left
      Foreign Policy: Pacifistic


      I thought it would be more interesting to explain my political views in terms of Dr. RI's Presidential election voter preferences survey from Oct 2019 (https://talkelections.org/FORUM/index.php?topic=338304.0). I was one of the 500ish respondents, and answered around when I decided on Warren for the 2020 Dem primaries.


      I am a registered Democrat in real life and would vote for Generic D against Generic R.

      Spoiler alert! Click Show to show the content.



      Pro UBI R: D
      Pro UBI D: Andrew Yang for President


      Pro loan forgiveness R: D
      Pro loan forgiveness D: Maybe a future AOC?


      Antitrust R: D, but may later support that R candidate depending on how this goes
      Antitrust D: Elizabeth Warren takes on Bezos and the Zucc


      Pro-slavery reparations D: Kamala Harris for the People
      Pro-slavery reparations R: D, and I can see a more nationalist GOP attempting this


      Anti-gender reassign surgery D: Alternate universe Tulsi Gabbard
      Anti-gender reassign surgery R: D
       


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: LAKISYLVANIA on October 07, 2020, 08:49:58 AM
      Update


      Overall: Independent

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Against, abortion is murder. Exceptions allowed, but it shouldn't be a common practice. In general, people should think twice before they start making babies, and I believe people should use contraception more often.
      Same-Sex Marriage: Support
      Drugs: Legalize marijuana and decriminalize most others. Legalize from the age of 21.
      Alcohol: Legalize alcohol from the age of 21.
      Death Penalty: Opposed, it's murder by the state. I believe in harsh prison sentences for severe or repeated crimes however.
      Gun Control: Strongly oppose. People should be able to carry a gun, and it's a tradition. Gun-related crimes would still be the case in America, even if guns are totally banned, and if anything people can't defend themselves anymore without a gun. But I believe reforms are necessary, and certain people shouldn't been able to carry a gun (mental issues).
      Affirmative Action: Strongly oppose, someone has to earn their function, and not be offered a function because of quota's. The best person that fits a description should get the job.
      Euthanasia: Strongly oppose, it's murder.
      Prostitution: Strongly oppose. It's immoral.
      Pornography: Strongly oppose. Pornography is unhealthy.
      Immigration: Tough but humane. Immigrants are welcome as long as they adhere to the law, and adapt to the culture, traditions and nation.
      Criminal justice: I don't know the current system, but I think leave as it is.
      Surveillance: Only allowed in case of searching for terrorist threats.
      Police: I support law & order, but i'm against racist violence, and that should be no different for people in authority. I'm however strongly against BLM and riotters.

      Economic Policy
      Minimum Wage: Raise and adjust to inflation. People that work should be rewarded. But it should be adjusted from region to region, because companies need to hire as much people as they can to keep unemployment low. And in rural areas that's harder to do. I believe there should be no federal minimum wage, and that the regions / cities should decide the minimum wage. In certain cities, a minimum wage of 20 dollar is more fitting, while in some rural areas, a minimum wage of 12 euros would benefit people more, in order to keep companies competitive.
      Right-to-Work: Support
      Tax Rates: Decrease for all. I support a smaller government.
      Healthcare: I support universal healthcare, as it's a basic human right, for both Americans and immigrants, even if they reside here illegally. No-one should be denied healthcare service.
      Social Security: Decrease. It's a burden on the budget, and I rather focus on getting back to low unemployment levels.
      Trade: Protectionist. I believe in making sure that jobs stay in America by implementing import tarrifs for trade goods, to encourage businesses to have a American department.
      Environment: Expand nuclear energy. Expand green energy. Expand green infrastructure, and rely on science to deal with the environment. We should not focus on fighting climate change. We should focus on fighting pollution in general. I acknowledge that climate change is real and a threat, but I think the Paris agreement is a scam.
      Education: Leave it up to the states, but cancel all study debt, and make college entirely free. No-one should be denied education because their parents cannot afford it. Everyone should get a chance to study. It should even be free for rich people. Having higher educated levels of people benefit us all, and I believe that all people should get the chance to accomplish the American Dream.
      Transit: Massively expand and invest in rebuilding our infrastructure. Make it green and modern as well.
      Nationalization: Privatize most things, to keep the government small.

      Foreign Policy
      Foreign intervention: It depends. Focus on diplomacy, but intervention should never be ruled out. Democracy should be spread as much as possible.
      Russia: Continue sanctions and sending aid to eastern European countries that are in conflict with Russia such as Ukraine. Update our cyber infrastructure so it isn't so vulnerable to cyber attacks
      China: China is a threat. Recognize Taiwan. And treat China as it is, a dictatorship and a false competitor. We should increase sanctions and start a new cold war against China.
      Israel: Israel is an ally and has the right to have a homestate.
      NATO: Support, but make sure all members pay their contributions. If not leave. America doesn't have an obligation to protect Europe, if Europe fails to see the benefit of appeasing America.
      UN: Influence to keep it a democratic and pro-western institution. Having the Saudi's on board of women's rights, is incredibly ridicilous.
      Defense budget: Reduce spending

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College: Keep
      Gerrymandering: Ideally, an independent commission should redraw the districts, but since independency is almost impossible, i think it's part of the benefit of winning a state to draw the districts in your favour, as there is no guarantee an independent commission will truly act independent.
      Term limits: Opposed to, except for executive offices.
      Voter ID: Support.
      Voter registration: Automatic registration
      Voting age: Keep as is
      Mandatory voting: Against
      Statehood: start negotiations to admit DC as a state, but expand D.C. with certain NoVa counties, because NoVa is not representative of Virginia as a whole, and is just D.C. suburbs, and part of D.C. . Puerto Rico should also be a state if they wish too. Greenland should be offered statehood as well. Certain cities should become their own states as well (The big four, Chicago + suburbs, NY + suburbs, LA + suburbs and MI + suburbs). That way, both the cities and the more rural areas in those states will be better represented by their politicians.
      Supreme Court: Keep as it is.
      [/quote]


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Battista Minola 1616 on October 07, 2020, 09:16:34 AM

      Lmao
      Weren't you pro-choice and pro-right-to-die until like one month ago?
      Also your economic policy, you now support cutting Social Security, "smaller government" and right-to-work laws?
      Is this all because of TPUSA? I didn't think your "political identity crisis" was so... thorough.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: LAKISYLVANIA on October 07, 2020, 09:17:11 AM

      Lmao
      Weren't you pro-choice and pro-right-to-die until like one month ago?
      Also your economic policy lol you now support right-to-work laws, "smaller government" and cutting Social Security?
      My views changed a bit. But I wasn't pro-choice. I was in favour of assisted suicide, because I've considered it myself, but I realize that any form of suicide is immoral and just bad, although i can understand it for some diseases (Alzheimer's disease). The problem is you have to give a doctor the authority to basically kill someone. I considered it, but I realized it, it is a very immoral thing to do, and nothing to be proud of, and assisted suicide is just an easy way out. It shouldn't been done for mental illness.

      I don't understand right-to-work laws well, but I believe unions are harmful to the interest of workers. I believe in a smaller government, because a big government is very demanding, demands many resources and harms individual rights & freedom. I used to be pro-big government, but I either don't want a police state or a government-run state. I always thought cutting social security is good, because a lot of people are lazy, it demands a lot of resources, and people should save some money to pay their own pension. It's a huge burden on the budget. People need to take their responsability. The government can't babysit all people, and let all people become dependant of the government. So while I do support increasing minimum wage, and expanding labor laws, i'm not supportive of social security anymore. People should be encouraged to work or to start businesses.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Battista Minola 1616 on October 07, 2020, 09:37:13 AM

      Lmao
      Weren't you pro-choice and pro-right-to-die until like one month ago?
      Also your economic policy lol you now support right-to-work laws, "smaller government" and cutting Social Security?
      My views changed a bit. But I wasn't pro-choice. I was in favour of assisted suicide, because I've considered it myself, but I realize that any form of suicide is immoral and just bad, although i can understand it for some diseases (Alzheimer's disease). The problem is you have to give a doctor the authority to basically kill someone. I considered it, but I realized it, it is a very immoral thing to do, and nothing to be proud of, and assisted suicide is just an easy way out. It shouldn't been done for mental illness.

      I don't understand right-to-work laws well, but I believe unions are harmful to the interest of workers. I believe in a smaller government, because a big government is very demanding, demands many resources and harms individual rights & freedom. I used to be pro-big government, but I either don't want a police state or a government-run state. I always thought cutting social security is good, because a lot of people are lazy, it demands a lot of resources, and people should save some money to pay their own pension. It's a huge burden on the budget. People need to take their responsability. The government can't babysit all people, and let all people become dependant of the government. So while I do support increasing minimum wage, and expanding labor laws, i'm not supportive of social security anymore. People should be encouraged to work or to start businesses.

      Your views changed more than a bit.
      Anyway fair enough, what can I say. However the bolded part is simply false, see below.

      I'm pro-choice, and abortion clinics should be subsidized by the government. I support assisted suicide as the right to die is a fundamental right. I support free speech, including racist speeches. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion and that's a fundamental right, otherwise we live in a dictatorship. As long, violence is not promoted, i don't care about fascists speaking at college campuses, providing there is room for debate and for fact-checking. I disagree with the censorship of all groups.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Chips on October 07, 2020, 03:36:11 PM
      Update


      Overall: Independent

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Against, abortion is murder. Exceptions allowed, but it shouldn't be a common practice. In general, people should think twice before they start making babies, and I believe people should use contraception more often.
      Same-Sex Marriage: Support
      Drugs: Legalize marijuana and decriminalize most others. Legalize from the age of 21.
      Alcohol: Legalize alcohol from the age of 21.
      Death Penalty: Opposed, it's murder by the state. I believe in harsh prison sentences for severe or repeated crimes however.
      Gun Control: Strongly oppose. People should be able to carry a gun, and it's a tradition. Gun-related crimes would still be the case in America, even if guns are totally banned, and if anything people can't defend themselves anymore without a gun. But I believe reforms are necessary, and certain people shouldn't been able to carry a gun (mental issues).
      Affirmative Action: Strongly oppose, someone has to earn their function, and not be offered a function because of quota's. The best person that fits a description should get the job.
      Euthanasia: Strongly oppose, it's murder.
      Prostitution: Strongly oppose. It's immoral.
      Pornography: Strongly oppose. Pornography is unhealthy.
      Immigration: Tough but humane. Immigrants are welcome as long as they adhere to the law, and adapt to the culture, traditions and nation.
      Criminal justice: I don't know the current system, but I think leave as it is.
      Surveillance: Only allowed in case of searching for terrorist threats.
      Police: I support law & order, but i'm against racist violence, and that should be no different for people in authority. I'm however strongly against BLM and riotters.

      Economic Policy
      Minimum Wage: Raise and adjust to inflation. People that work should be rewarded. But it should be adjusted from region to region, because companies need to hire as much people as they can to keep unemployment low. And in rural areas that's harder to do. I believe there should be no federal minimum wage, and that the regions / cities should decide the minimum wage. In certain cities, a minimum wage of 20 dollar is more fitting, while in some rural areas, a minimum wage of 12 euros would benefit people more, in order to keep companies competitive.
      Right-to-Work: Support
      Tax Rates: Decrease for all. I support a smaller government.
      Healthcare: I support universal healthcare, as it's a basic human right, for both Americans and immigrants, even if they reside here illegally. No-one should be denied healthcare service.
      Social Security: Decrease. It's a burden on the budget, and I rather focus on getting back to low unemployment levels.
      Trade: Protectionist. I believe in making sure that jobs stay in America by implementing import tarrifs for trade goods, to encourage businesses to have a American department.
      Environment: Expand nuclear energy. Expand green energy. Expand green infrastructure, and rely on science to deal with the environment. We should not focus on fighting climate change. We should focus on fighting pollution in general. I acknowledge that climate change is real and a threat, but I think the Paris agreement is a scam.
      Education: Leave it up to the states, but cancel all study debt, and make college entirely free. No-one should be denied education because their parents cannot afford it. Everyone should get a chance to study. It should even be free for rich people. Having higher educated levels of people benefit us all, and I believe that all people should get the chance to accomplish the American Dream.
      Transit: Massively expand and invest in rebuilding our infrastructure. Make it green and modern as well.
      Nationalization: Privatize most things, to keep the government small.

      Foreign Policy
      Foreign intervention: It depends. Focus on diplomacy, but intervention should never be ruled out. Democracy should be spread as much as possible.
      Russia: Continue sanctions and sending aid to eastern European countries that are in conflict with Russia such as Ukraine. Update our cyber infrastructure so it isn't so vulnerable to cyber attacks
      China: China is a threat. Recognize Taiwan. And treat China as it is, a dictatorship and a false competitor. We should increase sanctions and start a new cold war against China.
      Israel: Israel is an ally and has the right to have a homestate.
      NATO: Support, but make sure all members pay their contributions. If not leave. America doesn't have an obligation to protect Europe, if Europe fails to see the benefit of appeasing America.
      UN: Influence to keep it a democratic and pro-western institution. Having the Saudi's on board of women's rights, is incredibly ridicilous.
      Defense budget: Reduce spending

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College: Keep
      Gerrymandering: Ideally, an independent commission should redraw the districts, but since independency is almost impossible, i think it's part of the benefit of winning a state to draw the districts in your favour, as there is no guarantee an independent commission will truly act independent.
      Term limits: Opposed to, except for executive offices.
      Voter ID: Support.
      Voter registration: Automatic registration
      Voting age: Keep as is
      Mandatory voting: Against
      Statehood: start negotiations to admit DC as a state, but expand D.C. with certain NoVa counties, because NoVa is not representative of Virginia as a whole, and is just D.C. suburbs, and part of D.C. . Puerto Rico should also be a state if they wish too. Greenland should be offered statehood as well. Certain cities should become their own states as well (The big four, Chicago + suburbs, NY + suburbs, LA + suburbs and MI + suburbs). That way, both the cities and the more rural areas in those states will be better represented by their politicians.
      Supreme Court: Keep as it is.
      [/quote]

      Dang, What a shift. We still agree on a lot though.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Radical Leftist on November 07, 2020, 04:54:16 PM
      Overall: Progressive Democrat
      If I could vote I would vote a straight D ticket except for when Greens are available down-ballot.

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Support. No law can stop someone from having one, and people will go to extreme lengths if they are desperate.
      Same-Sex Marriage: Support
      Drugs: Decriminalize all drugs and legalize some, not all.
      Criminal Justice: Major reforms are needed to move towards actual equality in the US.
      Gun Control: Yes, but I do not support elimination of the Second Amendment.
      Immigration: There should be some customs and border patrol to keep actual terrorists out of the country, but apart from that, anyone who wants to come to the US should be allowed to.
      Police: I support the defunding of the police, but only to the extent of removing excess funds and apportioning those funds to underfunded areas in government.

      Economic Policy
      Minimum Wage: I strongly support a $15 minimum wage.
      Tax Rates: I support increasing taxes on the rich, but not to an extent that they are brought down a tax bracket. Just enough to increase income equality.
      Environment: We should cut carbon emissions by over 50% in the first 2 years of a Biden/Harris administration, and we should really start doing things like banning fracking and eliminating the production of gas-powered cars.

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College: I strongly support elimination of the Electoral College.
      Gerrymandering: Eliminate it.
      Voting Age: I support lowering the voting age to 16.
      Voter Registration: Automatic
      Statehood: The states themself should have the power to decide whether or not they should be admitted into the Union. Before we pass an amendment dictating that, I strongly support statehood for DC, Puerto Rico and Guam.
      Supreme Court: I'm neutral at the moment, I would like to see how ACB rules on the court before I make a decision on whether or not the number of SCOTUS seats should be expanded.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: alancia on November 10, 2020, 05:02:06 AM
      Using an edited version of Andriy's. Last time I did this was... 2019? Or even 2018. So def some stuff changed.

      Ideology
      Social: Moderate-ish?
      Economic: Pragmatic.
      Foreign Policy: Non-interventionist.

      Social Policy
      Abortion: I think I'll leave what Andriy put, since this is what I believe pretty much: Pro-life, but abortions can be allowed in cases of rape, incest and when mother's life in danger. This is the issue I have changed the least overall.

      Same-Sex Marriage: Support.

      Drugs: Opposed to most drugs, but cannabis for personal and medicinal use are okay.

      Death Penalty: Opposed.

      Gun Control: Current legislation in Argentina I think is okay, but its impossible to enforce; that's more of a failure of the state in guaranteeing safety though.

      Affirmative Action: Neutral, really. I need to look at it more deeply.

      Prostitution: Legal, but no organized activity.

      Euthanasia: Support only if its clear that not euthanizing would lead to more suffering than not.

      Immigration: Open to legal, regularized immigration.

      Police Issues/Black Lives Matter: I think its clear that black people have been historically disadvantaged in the US, so the protests to recognize this reality are well. However, I also think its clear that actions such as riots and extreme rhetoric and other such stuff are counter-productive.

      Free Speech/Political Correctness: Support free speech for everyone. If I support the action of banning someone for what they say or think, someday that will be turned against me instead.

      Surveillance: Strongly oppose. One of my biggest fears is increased control and surveillance by the government on people's activities.


      Economic Issues
      Minimum Wage: Minimum wage adjusted to inflation.

      Healthcare: Universal healthcare.

      Trade: I think Argentina should take a more liberal stance in regards to trade - I think pragmatically that the protectionist model of the last decades is not fit for today. However, in regards to strategic industries protectionism needs to be maintained. Encourage agricultural export.

      Unions: Pro-union

      Energy: More is better: both renewable and non-renewable energies should be supported. However, with climate change renewables should be prioritized.

      Education: Support mixed public/private schooling system, favouring public education; homeschooling should be available if parents want so regardless.

      Taxes: Progressive tax system, streamlined and more efficient: more for the rich, less for the poor. I think we should set a system of tax-free zones through Argentina in order to encourage industry and business.

      Foreign Policy. Here I will respond mostly as if I lived in the US; which honestly we all do, given the intense globalization of the last decades.
      Afghanistan: Leave.
      Iraq: Leave, but should work with the Iraqi government to prevent a return of extremist terrorists.
      Syria: Stay out of it.
      Cuba: Better relations, lift sanctions.
      Malvinas: We should reaffirm our claim to the South Atlantic Islands through diplomatic and peaceful means.
      Defense Spending: We should increase the funds of the Argentine military, its outdated and we're falling behind on defense matters. We have Chinese fishing boats preying on our waters for example - a nuclear submarine would be cool to deal with that.

      Environment
      Climate Change: Prioritize renewable energies, tax polluting companies.

      Electoral Issues
      Voter ID: Support.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TheKentuckian on November 12, 2020, 08:30:14 PM
      I identify as leftist. I am a registered Democrat and generally unhappily so.

      I do not have a secular economic religion any more than I would disregard my toolbox and use a hammer or a screwdriver for ever task.

      I like my first responders, roads, and healthcare socialist.
      I like my blue Jean's, televisions, and automobiles capitalist.
      I believe in strong regulatory structures.
      I do not give a crap about national debt other than if it creates high levels of inflation.
      I believe the stimulative value of tax cuts is one of the most overstated things probably ever especially when they are granted to people and companies that aren't spending them.
      I would refocus government funded research and development much more heavily to the university level and stop socializing that downside for corporations.

      Strong Civil Libertarian.

      Believe street level law enforcement should be transformed to a focus on peace keeping.
      End the stupid and failed drug war. End "Terry" stops.
      End the concept of vice with a mix of legalization and decriminalization schemes depending on the need for regulation.
      I'm probably more pro-2nd amendment than the NRA. I would rescind the machine gun ban.
      Strong but not radical on separation of church and state. People don't have to leave their faith at home but they do have to leave it out of their governing and execution of the law.
      I would leave the tax exempt status for churches as long as they stay out of politics but if they want to enter that arena then it goes poof.

      Generally dovish on use of force but believe in strong force projection capacity. I don't really believe in a standing army but a professional air force and navy along with a limited number of special forces and Marines can remain.
      I would replace the army with reverting back to organized militia.
      I am an internationalist and believe we should have strong increasingly interwoven cooperative relationships with democracies around the world.

      Climate stabilization is the number one issue in the world.



      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Bomster on December 02, 2020, 02:10:51 PM
      What are my beliefs why can't I think for myself what's wrong with me god please help


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Horus on December 06, 2020, 10:27:59 PM
      Figured I'd update this after who knows how many years. In short an alt center leftist, equally globalist and isolationist.

      Taxes: Increase taxes on those who make more than $400,000 a year. Slowly transition into a Georgist system.

      Trade: Free trade unless you're Russia or China.

      Minimum wage: 15 is okay I guess

      Healthcare: Universal healthcare now.

      Education: Tighten homeschooling restrictions big time, stop funding public schools off of property taxes. Standardized testing must exist but deemphasize it.

      Infrastructure: Direct defense spending into this.

      Transportation: Same

      Unions: Support in theory but are somewhat anachronistic. Police unions in particular are noxious.

      Abortion: Nominally pro choice but some of the activism on that end gets pretty bad.

      LGBT rights: Obviously fully support

      Gun control: Very pro-2A but open carry is cringe (should still be legal) and we need better background checks

      Death penalty: Only for high treason.

      Prostitution: Honestly don't care much, it's not going anywhere either way. Stop punishing people for it unless there's trafficking/non consensual stuff obviously

      Euthanasia: Don't care

      Reparations for slavery: They are needed, but the word "reparations" is so toxic they'll have to be called something else

      Affirmative action: Usually oppose but there are exceptions.

      Free speech: Is vital and should not be touched. Hate speech laws backfire on the protected groups.

      Carbon tax: Support.

      Paris Climate Accord: Rejoin.

      Renewable energy: The future, let's do it.

      Fracking ban: Support I guess?

      Offshore drilling ban: Support.

      Drugs: Legalize weed and psychedelics, decriminalize everything else and focus on treatment.

      Voting rights: Universal and 18+, prisoners receive half a vote until release.

      Defunding/abolishing the police: We must radically reform police departments and police culture.

      CHAZ: Is very silly

      Border wall: Huge waste of money.

      Deportation: If they pay taxes and have no felonies, leave them be.

      DACA: Support, overall a good thing.

      Path to citizenship: Support, but it shouldn't be a cakewalk.

      Voting rights: After you're a citizen.

      Legal immigration: Should be reduced.

      Family separation: Strongly oppose, keep families together.

      Voter ID: Should be required for everyone born after 1970.

      Compulsory voting: Oppose, in a place like America this would end up reducing turnout.

      Term limits: Only for the president.

      Electoral college: Eliminate and go to the national popular vote.

      Russia: Isolate them.

      China: Isolate them. Get closer with Japan.

      North Korea: Whatever.

      Middle East: Leave and never return.

      Israel/Palestine: Not our business, stop treating Israel like the 51st state.

      Guantanamo Bay: Should not exist.

      NATO: We should continue to work closely with our NATO allies.

      UN: Not opposed but it's a pretty useless org


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: VirginiaAaron on December 08, 2020, 09:44:41 PM
      Taxes: Increase taxes on those who make more than $400,000 a year.

      Trade: Pro-USMCA, anti-NAFTA, mostly pro-free trade

      Minimum wage: $11 minimum wage, against $15 minimum wage

      Healthcare: Public option added to Obamacare, reluctantly

      Education: Anti-voucher for private schools, anti-standardized testing, pro-increased teacher wages, anti-free college for all, anti-common core, anti-universal pre-k

      Infrastructure/Transportation: Increased spending, begin research and investment of a high-speed rail

      Unions: Support so long as they're not filled with corrupt union bosses and that they're not getting someone re-hired when they're not doing their job

      Abortion: Pro-life with exceptions for rape, incest, and when the mother's life is at danger

      LGBT rights: Fully support

      Gun control: Pro-2nd Amendment, pro-universal background check, anti-gun buyback, anti-armed teachers, pro-banning people on the no-fly list from purchasing a gun, reluctantly in favor of a TEMPORARY assault weapon ban

      Death penalty: Only for high treason.

      Prostitution: Against, could be swayed though

      Euthanasia: Nope.

      Reparations for slavery: Nope.

      Affirmative action: Nope.

      Free speech: MUST be upheld, no questions

      Carbon tax: Nope.

      Paris Climate Accord: Rejoin ASAP.

      Renewable energy: Slowly transition off of fossil fuels and offer incentives for former coal miners

      Fracking ban: Nope.

      Offshore drilling ban: Yup.

      Drugs: Pro-recreational marijuana, reluctantly against recreational use, against decriminalization of most drugs

      Voting rights: against 16-year-olds getting the right to vote, against prisoner's getting the right

      Defunding/abolishing the police: the "defund the police" movement is the most laughable thing I've seen in quite a while and it's unfortunately tainting the Black Lives Matter movement as anarchists that wish to incite violence.

      CHAZ: Nope.

      Border wall: Build where it's useful, don't build where not useful

      Deportation: If they're non-violent, they follow the law, and they pay taxes, they should be presented options to become legal citizens. However, as long as they follow those 3 requirements, they shouldn't be deported.

      DACA: Support.

      Path to citizenship: Support, but it shouldn't be a cakewalk.

      Voting rights: Once you're a citizen and you don't have a criminal record.

      Family separation: Strongly oppose, keep families together.

      Voter ID: Should be required for everyone.

      Compulsory voting: Not enforceable, participating in democracy should be encouraged and voluntary.

      Term limits: 2 consecutive 4-year terms for the President, 6 consecutive 2-year terms for Congress excluding incumbent members of Congress. 2 consecutive 6-year terms for the Senate, excluding incumbent Senators

      Electoral college: Reform to a proportional distribution of electoral votes. If you get 55% of the vote, you get 55% of the electoral votes, etc.

      Russia: Isolate them.

      China: Isolate them. Get closer with Japan.

      North Korea: Try to de-nuke them, if possible.

      Middle East: We ought to get out, none of our business.

      Israel/Palestine: Protect Israel, period.

      Guantanamo Bay: Start slowly closing.

      NATO: We should continue to work closely with our NATO allies.

      UN: Support the organization, some reforms needed badly


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: SingingAnalyst on December 26, 2020, 09:45:12 AM
      Support the ACA (which passed in 2010 without a single GOP vote) and encourage state governors, regardless of party, to support exchanges or whatever it takes to make the ACA "work" for its residents.

      Support a slight increase on taxes on high incomes, wealth, and corporations, while reducing taxes on the working poor. Tax unemployment, pension, and welfare benefits, albeit at a low rate.

      Support without question the right of anyone to marry whom they want to marry.

      Support legal abortion through 20 weeks, without exceptions; after that, leave it to each state.

      Limit legal and illegal immigration; taking care of our own should take precedence over (a) taking care of those who come here illegally and (b) the right of business to hire undocumented immigrants and lower wages for working Americans. The fact that so many want to live in the US is undoubtedly a compliment to our way of life (and this fact probably needs to be stressed more in public schools); becoming a US citizen is a privilege, not a right.

      At the state level, I would support a progressive voucher system for education, supporting the rights of lower-income parents to make informed educational choices, while granting only limited relief to parents who can easily afford private-school tuition. I recall reading that Michigan Democratic gubernatorial candidate (and later US Congressman) Sander Levin supported this in 1974, as a result, the Michigan Educational Association endorsed his Republican opponent, Gov. William Milliken, who was narrowly re-elected in a Democratic wave year.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: True Whig on January 28, 2021, 10:21:57 PM
      Overall Ideology: John Sherman, John Bricker, and Bob Taft Conservative. Adams-Hamiltonian Federalist.
      Social: Very conservative
      Economic: Syncretic
      Foreign Policy: Anti-interventionist

      Social Policy:
      Abortion: Oppose, except in cases of rape, incest, and the life of the mother. First-trimester chemical abortion is more permissible but should be a rare practice.

      Same-Sex Marriage: Oppose.

      Drugs: Keep alcohol and tobacco legal. Decriminalize/legalize pot, mild natural substances like khat, kava kava, and kratom. Rehabilitate addicts. Punish traffickers severely.

      Death Penalty: Support. For some criminals who have committed very serious crimes and whose guilt is unquestionable, this is a just punishment.

      Gun Control: Opposed to any gun control whatsoever.

      Affirmative Action: Opposed in all circumstances.

      Prostitution:
      Opposed in all circumstances.

      Euthanasia: Opposed in all circumstances.

      Immigration: Zero tolerance for illegal immigration. Illegal immigration hurts workers, communities, and the economy at large.

      Police Issues/Black Lives Matter: Policing and systemic racism are not the root causes of American blacks' problems. Economic and cultural decay, exacerbated by faulty public policies, are.

      Free Speech/Political Correctness: Free speech in all political/social discussions; strong restrictions on obscenity, libel, and incitement.

      School Prayer: It should absolutely be permitted and encouraged.

      Muslim Ban: It should depend on the place of origin and type of visa. High-skilled Muslim immigrants from developed, or formerly developed (i.e. Libya, Syria, Iraq), should be permitted. Family or diversity visas should be heavily restricted or eliminate.

      PATRIOT ACT: Oppose. End the perpetual warfare state.

      Economic Issues

      Subsidies: Support industrial subsidies funded by tariffs.

      Deregulation: De-regulation only in order to break up monopolies, introduce competition, and drive interest rates down for consumers. Retail banks should be de-regulated to encourage higher savings rates and lower costs for average people.

      Monetary Policy: Sound money.

      Minimum Wage: Minimum wages should be set by the states, based on their different economies and costs-of-living, not at the federal level.

      Healthcare: Fund community health centers, Medicaid, and Medicare for the poor, elderly, and indigent.

      Globalization/Trade: The United States should adopt a policy of protectionism on all goods to reindustrialize the country and protect our native workforce.

      Deficit/Debt: I'm naturally a deficit hawk but desperate times call for desperate measures.

      Campaign Finance Reform: Promote as much transparency as possible, increase reporting requirements, and limit corporate donations.

      Unions: Fully support industrial organizing insofar as it serves social goods, like the maintenance of industrial communities,

      Energy: Invest in nuclear first, clean fossil fuels (esp. LNG) second.

      Education: Vastly reduce educational spending, turn it over to local districts and communities, enable school choice at every level.

      Taxes: Lower taxes across the board. Implement a tax on hedge funds, speculators, and

      Foreign Policy
      UN/Int'l Orgs: Withdraw from everything. Exercises in liberal futility.
      NATO: Withdraw. Follow Washington's advice, avoid European entanglements.
      Afghanistan: Withdraw immediately. It's the graveyard of empires and the only thing there is death.
      Iraq: Withdraw immediately.
      Iran: Keep sanctions up indefinitely, let them twist in the wind.
      Syria: Withdraw immediately.
      Cuba: No recognition, keep sanctions.
      Israel: Israel is an ally in the region, but it is a secondary partner and American security concerns must come first.
      Palestine: Ignore.
      Russia: (See NATO.)

      Environment
      Climate Change: The only answer is nuclear power, with supplementary clean fossil fuels. International climate accords are a joke.

      Electoral Issues

      Gerrymandering: Practically unavoidable, as long as the parties never surrender their control over the process.
      Term limits: Support for Congress, oppose for the President. ;-)
      Voter ID: Support.
      DC and PR statehoods: Under no circumstances.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Rosethecommie on February 04, 2021, 09:57:39 PM
      Marxist leninist


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: NYDem on February 17, 2021, 12:15:28 AM
      Ideology
      Social: Liberal
      Economic: Liberal
      Foreign Policy: Internationalist

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Pro-life generally, oppose beyond 20 weeks except in cases of threat to the mother.

      Same-Sex Marriage: Support

      Drugs: Support legalizing marijuana, decriminalizing most other drugs

      Death Penalty: Oppose Strongly

      Gun Control: Somewhat support. Support universal background checks, but think the AWB isn't really worth the political fight as it will have little impact on the number of gun deaths in the country.

      Affirmative Action: Somewhat oppose. I understand the rationale for and against it.

      Prostitution: Somewhat oppose. From what I've seen the data is actually mixed on whether legalizing prostitution decreases or increases sex crimes. Could be convinced either way, not a strongly held position.

      Euthanasia: Somewhat oppose. Again, this is not a position I've given a lot of thought to.

      Immigration: I am a strong supporter of legal immigration, and favor expanding the immigration system and greatly increasing the refugee cap. Generally support border security, though I believe the wall is a stupid waste of money. I support increased border security funding and don't oppose all deportations.

      Police Issues/Black Lives Matter: Strongly favor police reform. Police need more oversight, and qualified immunity needs to be eliminated. Support mandatory body cams. Oppose electing sheriffs.

      Free Speech/Political Correctness: Strongly oppose government restrictions on free speech. Don't care much about people getting banned from social media if that is what was meant. I feel like "political correctness" can sometimes go too far, but do not feel that it is too big an issue.

      School Prayer: Oppose.

      Muslim Ban: Oppose.

      PATRIOT ACT: Oppose. Additionally would strongly oppose any proposed "PATRIOT ACT II" if Congress tries to pass one after the Capitol Storming.


      Economic Issues
      Minimum Wage: Raise it. $15 seems fine in general, but I'm not sure about if it would be good in rural areas with lower costs of living. Ideally it would be tied to regional costs and inflation somehow.

      Healthcare: Support Biden's plan, but am generally a bit left of his plan. Oppose banning private insurance, but support

      Globalization/Trade: Support TPP and NAFTA

      Deficit/Debt: Somewhat anti-deficit. It would be good to reduce it but is not a major concern (especially given the current economic and COVID-related problems).

      Campaign Finance Reform: Support

      Unions: Support

      Energy: Support renewables and nuclear power.

      Education: Support Biden's plan

      Taxes: Support raising income and capitol gains taxes on the upper brackets.

      Foreign Policy

      Iraq: leave a small contingent to prevent the return of ISIL

      Afganistan:

      Iran: Support a return to the nuclear deal.

      Syria: Continue support for the Kurds.

      Cuba: Aim to end the embargo and open up trade with Cuba. Has the dual effect of raising quality of life and weakening the Communist system.

      Israel/Palestine: Reduce military support to Israel. Support a two state solution.

      Russia: Strengthen sanctions, support expansion of NATO, particularly in Ukraine. Oppose outright aggression.

      China: Support attempts to isolate China, including economically, though I generally support free trade. Would support a larger American foreign aid and investment program to counter China's investments in infrastructure in Asia and Africa. Support using American power to maintain the status quo with ROC and PRC.

      Environment
      Climate Change: Support Paris Agreement, carbon taxation, and renewable energy.

      Electoral Issues
      Gerrymandering: Strongly oppose, support nationwide fair redistricting.

      Term limits: Oppose for President and Congress.

      Voter ID: Support, conditioned on IDs being free and provided to all Americans. Oppose otherwise.

      DC and PR statehoods: Support


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Cokeland Saxton on February 23, 2021, 08:32:44 PM

      Social Policy

      Abortion: Only if the fetus is non-viable or the mother's life or health is in danger, encourage giving up for adoption in other situations
      Same Sex Marriage: Accept as law of the land, support adoptions for couples that get background checks, expand anti-discrimination laws for LGBTQ+
      Marijuana: Legalize & tax, but do not decriminalize other drug use, incentivize rehabilitation over punishment
      Slavery reparations: Oppose strongly
      Stem Cell Research: Support
      Death Penalty: Reserve only for very heinous crimes involving murder
      Criminal justice reform: Support, release those with non-violent drug offenses on mandatory parole, limit influence of private prison industry
      Gun control: Pro 2nd amendment, stricter background checks, mental health issues, ban for people convicted of violent weapons-related crimes, assault weapons ban
      Affirmative Action: Oppose
      Prostitution: Keep it illegal
      Euthanasia: Keep it illegal

      Economic Issues

      Minimum Wage: Raise minimum to $11 federally
      Welfare: Reduce funding slightly
      Right-to-Work: Support, anti-union
      Taxation: Increased taxes on the rich, tax credit and lower taxes for the middle class, let states decide sales tax, cut property taxes
      Healthcare: Support a public option and insurance company funding
      Social Security: Keep the retirement age as is
      Trade: Support tariffs and other temporary trade barriers until trade becomes more fair or trade deals can be negotiated        
      Education: More funding, let states decide, get rid of Common Core, higher pay for teachers, eliminate standardized testing, support vouchers
      Balanced Budget Amendment: No idea
      Transportation: Cut back spending slightly, privatize Amtrak
      Infrastructure: Increase spending

      Foreign Policy and National Security

      Non-interventionist, but keep diplomacy and alliances

      U.N.: Scale back involvement
      NATO: Refuse to defend NATO countries who do not pay enough, but when they do, meet our obligation
      Afghanistan: Gradually withdraw
      Iraq: Withdraw entirely
      Iran: Remain for now, keep diplomacy open; renegotiate Iran Deal
      Russia: Remove military personnel
      China: Keep tariffs until a trade deal can be negotiated, scale back rhetoric of them being a currency manipulator
      North Korea: Keep relations and personal diplomacy
      South Korea: Unsure
      Syria: Leave
      Cuba: Lift sanctions
      Military Spending: Cut by a good 20%, use it for healthcare and education instead
      PATRIOT Act: Get rid of it
      NSA Spying: Keep, ask permission of allies to surveil for terrorism
      Palestine: Do not recognize
      Israel: Support
      Immigration: Support DACA, better background checks on immigrants
      Guantanamo Bay: Keep it open, only use torture in extraordinary circumstances

      Environment

      Climate Change: No position
      Green Energy: Promote, but no nuclear
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Build it
      Fracking: Support

      Electoral Reform

      Electoral College: Keep current system
      Gerrymandering: End the practice
      Term limits: Support
      Voter ID: Support
      Compulsory Voting: Oppose
      Voter Registration: Support
      Statehood: Wait for the results of a proper referendum before going forward with PR; DC should never be a state


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: GlobeSoc on March 09, 2021, 10:46:41 PM
      Ideology:
      Social: Left
      Economic: Socialist
      Foreign Policy: Socialist Internationalism

      Abortion: Pro-choice
      SSM: Support
      Drugs: Legalize Marijuana, decriminalize the rest
      Death Penalty: For treason and premeditated murder
      Guns: "Under no pretext"
      Affirmative Action: It's fine i guess?
      Prostitution: I dislike it very strongly, but I support legalizing it entirely to avoid conflict with leftist consensus
      Euthanasia: Terminal illnesses
      Immigration: Certain countries with a close enough relationship to us should have freedom of movement Schengen-style, and we should target certain countries with unrestricted visa programs focused at encouraging certain demographics to come over here, to disrupt the economies societies of opposed states.
      Police issues: Support BLM, right-wing infiltration should be rooted out
      Free speech: Open identification with fascists should be banned, beyond that anything goes
      School Prayer: Against
      Muslim Ban: Against
      Patriot Act: Total Repeal

      ---

      Minimum wage:
      Healthcare: Single payer or even a robust public option are acceptable as incremental progress, but the final goal should be single provider
      Globalization: Supplant the capitalist international order with a socialist one, support free trade in principle
      Deficit/Debt: Should be closely monitored, but not reflexively avoided
      Campaign Finance: Only public finance
      Unions: Need to be strengthened greatly and given a greater institutional role in the economy
      Energy: Nuclear and renewables should be used in combination to rapidly end fossil fuel use
      Education: Free college and more funding
      Taxes: Focus on the wealthy, but theoretical ideal is the state would rely on taxation of worker's cooperatives and revenue from nationalized businesses to stay afloat

      ---

      Afghanistan: Stay
      Iraq: Assist in the event of ISIL returning, but leave for now
      Iran: Foment leftist revolution
      Syria: Give Rojava a blank check
      Cuba: Try to negotiate multiparty political reforms and various planned economy pilot schemes, but be prepared for military actions
      Venezuela: Isolate them, do not attack
      Israel-Palestine: Nuclear solution ;)
      Russia: Encirclement, try to manipulate the Russian communists away from Dengism, long term ensure that Siberia stays out of Chinese hands
      China: "Those who want peace prepare for war"
      EU: Tacitly support the left
      Africa: Support workers movements in order to raise commodity prices as much as possible, to mess with capitalists, compete with China on infrastructure investment
      Southeast Asia: Oppose China at every opportunity
      South America: Compete with China, support leftists willing to oppose them as well


      ---

      Climate change: Will be the demise of capitalism most likely. However, if I was forced to choose between solving climate change and ending capitalism, I would choose solving climate change.

      ---

      Gerrymandering: Independent commissions
      Term limits: Only for executives, possibly extremely long term limits purely to stop lifers
      Voter ID: Only with national ID system, and only if IDs are very easy to come by
      DC and PR: Should be states, PR with USVI


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Battista Minola 1616 on March 12, 2021, 11:59:44 AM
      I have never written down anything about me here. Today may be as good a day as any for that.

      A summary of my political beliefs could be that I have always been interested in and inspired by socialist and social democratic thought more than anything else, because of a series of convictions that may be best condensed with a nice play on words, that is a belief that material inequalities are also inequities and are also iniquities; and that since my religious conversion six months ago the salience of Catholic thought has increased in me and I have been trying to elaborate and morally ground my politics in light of my faith, especially in this very last period.
      In addition, on a more fundamental but less political level, I have realized I am mostly a conservative person, as far as emphasis on community, attachment to tradition, belief in moral obligations, and aesthetic preferences are concerned.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Proud Houstonian on March 15, 2021, 04:18:33 PM
      I believe socialism can only be achieved through automation, robotics, and emerging technology to allow everyone to live off the wealth produced by publicly owned machines. This young man is convinced that any attempt to build socialism without automation will simply lead to state capitalism so his solution is to remove human labor from the equation with robotics. A strong believer in progress for its own sake techno-socialism supports rapid, unrestrained scientific progress to make the status quo obsolete.
      I Am obsessed with freeing people from any need to work by giving their job to robots and often can't shut up about the latest scientific breakthrough.




      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Ferguson97 on March 16, 2021, 06:19:10 PM
      Same-Sex Marriage: Support, but thinks straight couples should get some priority in adoption situations.

      Why?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Comrade_Yacob on March 19, 2021, 08:57:06 PM
      Labels
      Economic: Market Socialist
      Social: Liberal
      Foreign: Soft Interventionist
      Overall: Constitutional/Democratic Socialism

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Pro-choice
      Same-sex Marriage: Fully support
      Drugs: Legalize cannabis and psilocybin nationwide, but tax and regulate them in the same manner as alcohol and nicotine. Possession or consumption of other drugs should be punished with a small fine, probation and/or court-mandated rehabilitation. Continue to fight trafficking and domestic production.
      Stem Cell Research: Support
      Criminal Justice: Abolish private prisons and the death penalty. Pardon everyone convicted of drug possession or consumption. End the use of solitary confinement as a disciplinary measure. Automatically expunge the records of juvenile delinquents once they turn 18 and have finished their sentence. End cash bail. Set a federal minimum wage for prison labor at 50% of the federal minimum wage.
      Slavery Reparations: Oppose direct cash payments to individuals, but support government programs and financial subsidies for Black-owned businesses and NGOs.
      Prostitution: Legalize, but with strict and thorough regulation.
      Free Speech: We must tolerate all opinions and beliefs, unless they’re used to express intolerance.
      Education: Abolish standardized testing and school funding models based on property tax. Abolish charter schools, and ban tuition fees and entrance exams for private schools. Require teachers to have a Master’s degree at least. Abolish tuition fees for colleges, universities and trade schools, and forgive all outstanding student loan debt.
      Censorship: Generally oppose, except for extreme cases such as child pornography or graphic real-life depictions of violence. The government should not be in the business of legislating morality.
      Gun Control: Strongly oppose. Gun control is population control, not crime control. Obvious exceptions for machine guns, explosives and the like.
      Immigration: Switch to a merit-based immigration system with provisions for keeping families together. Close down all immigrant detention facilities. Demilitarize the Mexican border. Offer amnesty to all undocumented immigrants who arrived as children.

      Economic Policy
      Minimum Wage: Immediately raise the federal minimum wage to $10, increasing it to $15 over a 5-year period. Index it to inflation after that.
      Taxes: Abolish the lowest income tax bracket, and increase taxes on everyone making six figures or more, with the top bracket being set at 50%. Introduce a wealth tax of 1% for net worth over $10 million, and 2% over $1 billion. Increase corporate income tax, but lower income tax for small businesses and cooperatives. Keep the estate tax as it is.
      Infrastructure: Dramatically increase funding for infrastructure projects. Build electrified high-speed rail routes in California, Texas, Florida and the Midwest. Upgrade America’s ancient power grid.
      College: Abolish tuition fees for colleges, universities and trade schools, and forgive all outstanding student loan debt.
      Healthcare: Expand Medicare into an opt-out public option. Also expand Medicare to include addiction and mental health counselling.
      Welfare: Replace the existing patchwork system with a guaranteed minimum income (think Yang’s “Freedom Dividend”, but based on need). Enact stricter work requirements for young adults and households without children or dependents.
      Unions: Enshrine the right to organize in the Constitution.
      Environment: Implement a carbon tax once electric vehicles are affordable to the average consumer. Require all new construction to be LEED certified. Offer tax rebates for home insulation or off-grid utility projects. Ban the sale of new combustion engines as soon as it is practical. Move to 100% renewable energy, with particular focus on geothermal and nuclear energy.
      Free Markets: Nationalize banking, insurance, utilities, natural resources and rail infrastructure. Establish marketing boards for cash crops, dairy products and commercial fisheries. Require corporations and franchised businesses to either implement democratic workplaces or cede a controlling share of the company to its employees. Small family-owned businesses would be exempt from this requirement.  

      Foreign Policy
      Trade: Support free trade agreements, provided that the interests of the working class in all participating nations are respected.
      NATO/Allies: With the growing threats posed by states such as Russia, China, Iran and North Korea, it’s more important than ever for NATO and other Western allied nations to stick together.
      War and Diplomacy: Diplomatic solutions should always be the preferred avenue for resolving conflicts on the world stage. However, if there is credible evidence of human rights being violated on a systemic scale, military intervention is always justified.
      Global Cooperation: Build and maintain strong ties with all nations that demonstrate the values of freedom, democracy and peace.
      Military Spending: Reduce spending to about a quarter of what it is now.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Mechavada on March 25, 2021, 07:47:59 PM
      Summary of my Political Belies, yeah boy:

      Yangbucks.  Give me them.  Now.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: juulze68 on March 27, 2021, 05:34:11 PM
      Largely Libertarian


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Chips on May 14, 2021, 06:35:55 AM
      Updated views

      Economics

      Taxes: Increase taxes on those who make more than 500,000 a year.


      Trade: Protectionist on the whole but don't support China tariffs.

      Minimum wage: The federal minimum wage should be increased.

      Healthcare: We need universal healthcare.

      Education: We need way better education as well.

      Infrastructure: Again, way better infrastructure is a must.

      Transportation: Increase spending on local public transportation.

      Unions: Support.

      Social Issues

      Abortion: States should choose. Moderately Pro-life myself.

      LGBT rights: Support

      Gun control: Support, but don't ban certain types.

      Death penalty: Support, but only for murderers and other high profile criminals.

      Prostitution: Meh.....

      Euthanasia: Meh.....

      Reparations for slavery: Some.

      Affirmative action: Oppose.

      Free speech: Strongly support.

      Environment

      Carbon tax: Leaning toward support now.

      Paris Climate Accord: Rejoin.

      Renewable energy: All forms of renewable energy (included nuclear) should be subsidized to help them compete with nonrenewable forms of energy in the market.

      Fracking ban: Oppose for the most part.

      Offshore drilling ban: Oppose.

      Reinstate the EPA regulations that Trump rolled back.

      Criminal Justice

      Drugs: Support crackdowns. Let states choose on marijuana.

      Voting rights: Felons should have background checks before being allowed to vote.

      Defunding/abolishing the police: Oppose.

      Immigration

      Border wall: Oppose. The only way we're going to stop illegal immigration is to not interfere with South American countries.

      Deportation: All illegal immigrants who commit a felony should be deported. The rest can stay once they are authorized and pay income taxes.

      DACA: Support.

      Path to citizenship: As long as they're proven okay after vetting, All immigrants should be allowed to stay.

      Voting rights: Voting rights for foreign citizens once they've been proven okay after vetting.

      Legal immigration: Should be easier and faster to immigrate to the US and become a permanent resident, especially to those who can provide high-skilled labor.

      Work visas: Should be easier to obtain.

      Family separation: Severely oppose.

      Electoral Reform

      Voter ID: Should be necessary.

      Compulsory voting: Oppose.

      Term limits: Executives should be limited to two terms. Other than that, no term limits.

      Electoral college: Support keeping as is.

      Congress: Make sure the Military Industrial Complex has less control over government.

      Court packing: Oppose on the whole.

      Filibuster reform: Support reducing the filibuster, oppose abolishing altogether.

      Foreign policies:

      Russia: Oppose sanctions, Support a strong relationship.

      China: Same with Russia. Stop interfering with the South China Sea.

      North Korea: Continue talks and diplomacy.

      Middle East: Pull out. We've killed tens of thousands of innocent lives in the middle east since we went there.

      Israel/Palestine: Pull back support for Israel. Either 1967 borders or give Palestinians full rights to the entire state.

      Guantanamo Bay: Shut down.

      NATO: Obsolete.

      EU: European countries should be allowed to pull out if they want to.

      UN: Stay in, Have a system kinda like here where if one or more of the permanent members veto something, Have all the countries vote over whether to override the veto or not.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Ferguson97 on May 14, 2021, 02:20:41 PM
      Overall: Progressive/liberal blend

      Social Policy
      Abortion: Strongly support.
      Same-Sex Marriage: Strongly support.
      Drugs: Legalize marijuana, decriminalize all other drugs. Rehabilitation instead of incarceration.
      Death Penalty: Strongly opposed.
      Gun Control: Assault weapons ban. No open-carry or concealed carry, you can only have the gun on your private property. Mandatory background checks and psychological testing. Routine training every six months. National gun owner database. Close the boyfriend loophole.
      Affirmative Action: Support.
      Euthanasia: Support.
      Prostitution: Legalize for sex workers, decriminalize for Johns. (As I understand it, this is the most effective way to protect sex workers, but I'm open to whatever experts say is best.)
      Immigration: Open the borders. Stop having them be closed.
      Criminal justice: Abolish private prisons. Abolish mandatory minimum sentencing. Abolish the three strikes law. Focus on rehabilitation over punitive sentencing. Follow the Nordic model of updating the infrastructure.
      Surveillance: Depends on the circumstances. I think it's a necessary evil for the FBI to track extremist groups, but local police forces should have their power limited.
      Police: Abolish qualified immunity, ban police unions, don't allow beat cops to carry firearms. Require a bachelor's in criminal justice and four years of training. Reduce their budgets.

      Economic Policy
      Minimum Wage: Raise to $15 and tie it to inflation.
      Right-to-Work: Strongly opposed.
      Tax Rates: Increase taxes on the very rich. Keep current levels for middle class. Reduce for working class.
      Healthcare: Public option.
      Social Security: Remove the payroll tax cap.
      Trade: Free trade is good and should be expanded.
      Environment: Abolish fossil fuel subsidies. Expand research/investments into nuclear, wind, and solar. Carbon tax.
      Education: Universal preschool. Invest heavily in preK-12, after school programs, free school lunches. Forgive all student debt. Make public universities tuition-free.
      Transit: Expand public transit within cities. Invest in a high-speed rail across the country. Invest in electric vehicles.

      Foreign Policy
      Foreign intervention: Generally support intervention, with an obvious preference for diplomacy.
      Russia: Invest in cybersecurity. Give arms/money to Ukraine so they can defend themselves.
      China: Invest in cybersecurity. Give arms/money to Taiwan so they can defend themselves. Invest heavily in trade in the region to reduce their influence.
      Israel-Palestine: End US financial support for the IDF. Demand that Netanyahu stop any and all further annexation. Reparations for the Palestinians, and restore their stolen land and property.
      NATO: Strongly support.
      UN: Strongly support.
      Defense budget: Reduce amount of ground troops and invest heavily in cybersecurity, R&D, and the Navy.

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College: Abolish it. Nationwide popular vote.
      Gerrymandering: I want Democrats to play dirty while it exists, but ideally there would be a bipartisan commission to redraw the districts.
      Term limits: Opposed to, except for executive offices.
      Voter ID: Strongly opposed.
      Voter registration: Automatic registration.
      Voting age: Keep at 18, but allow states to lower to 16 for state and local elections.
      Mandatory voting: Strongly opposed.
      Statehood: Statehood for DC and PR. Allow other territories to vote on statehood referendum.
      Supreme Court: Pack the court!


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Schiff for Senate on June 03, 2021, 07:56:52 PM
      SOCIAL ISSUES

      Environment
      Very progressive on this issue; probably more left-wing on this than any other issue. I think that sums my position on this issue up pretty well.

      Abortion
      'Safe, legal and rare' type. I support the Hyde Amendment - excluding cases involving rape, incest, or where the mother's life is in danger, no federal funding for abortion whatsoever. Abortion is necessary, but not at all desirable, and it should absolutely have some limits, especially in cases not involving rape, incest, or mother's life is in danger. I oppose the far-right legislation Republicans are pushing (and I oppose Roe's overturn), but also know that ideally, abortion should be done only whenever absolutely necessary, and it itself is nothing to celebrate or do unnecessarily. Also support 'religious liberty' exceptions to performing abortions.

      'Wokeness' and Cancel Culture
      To put it simply: I'm opposed to wokeness, 'cancel culture', and too much political correctness. You all know exactly what I'm talking about. Though, contrary to what the right would have you believe, there are plenty of snowflakes on the right as well.

      The Second Amendment
      Same as the environment: very liberal on this issue, and support any and all amounts of gun control. I wouldn't object even if we hypothetically decided to repeal the Second Amendment (which we never will).

      LGBTA+ Rights
      Support homosexual rights to marry, adopt, and serve in the military openly. Generally would be considered centre-right on transgenders and non-binaries (like I think trans women with excess male hormones should not participate in women's sports, period, and the like, acknowledge the difference between a trans woman pre-op and a biological woman, and oppose complete nonsense like neopronouns), except for transgenders serving in the military (no one should be denied the right to serve in their nation's military). If someone has religious objections to performing sex reassignment surgery or catering to LGBTA customers, that is within their constitutional rights.

      Death Penalty
      The death penalty should not be abolished. But it should be reduced. Once guilt is established beyond any argument (like multiple witnesses or a camera recording), and the crime is absolutely heinous (like committing a mass shooting, say), only then should the death penalty be implemented.

      Update (late December 2022): I am reconsidering my belief on the death penalty. During my time here I've been exposed to multiple very compelling arguments for the abolition of the practice, and I've found myself sympathetic to such arguments. I've also found it more and more difficult to justify the use of the death penalty, even in cases where at first glance it appears wholly justified.

      Life Support / Assisted Suicide
      Once someone has all the appropriate information, and have an incurable disease, they should be allowed to decide if they want to die or not. It is a personal decision. It is not the government's place to intervene. It is ironic that the GOP favours small government otherwise but big government to regulate personal decisions someone may make. Similarly, for removal of life support, if someone has a living will stating that they do not want to be on life support, respect their decision, and again, the government should never intervene (as they did in the case of Terri Shiavo). Removal of life support, and assisted suicide, should not be politicized or dealt with by the government.

      Landlord Rights
      The eviction moratarium should certainly be allowed to end. It's Democrats pandering to the base. There's absolutely no reason now that landlords should have to give free room and board to people who will likely take advantage of the moratarium. Earlier in the pandemic, perhaps it made sense. Now, there are more job availabilities and in most cases, anyone who tries hard enough can find a job. Landlords are people too, and in some cases, a large percentage of their own income may be derived from collecting rent on their properties. They shouldn't be deprived of that because of this moratarium.

      Affirmative Action
      Strongly opposed; counterintuitive and reverse-racism.

      Drugs
      Decriminalize some drugs (mainly marijuana), but impose a high sales tax on them. Addicts will be forced to pay extra money to the government or (if not addicted yet) break the habit of having drugs - so the deficit, number of drug users, and number of people in jail, all fall simultaneously. To ensure that no one is having drugs from illegal sources and evading the drug tax, crack down on cartels.

      Immigration
      Those who are already in the US should not be deported. A border wall, as well as the family separation policy = inhumane and ineffective. Racial profiling is bad. The 2017 executive order banning immigration from 7 Muslim-majority countries was counterintuitive, racist and ineffective. Make the immigration and citizenship process easier as well, so illegal immigration is necessary for less families.

      Policing
      Do not defund (and definitely do not abolish) the police. All cops are NOT bas**rds - most of them are good people who try to do their job and protect us, and people who don't see that are morons who don't deserve the protection and safety the police guarantees with. However, the police should have to wear body cameras, and the likes of Derek Chauvin should be fired and imprisoned.

      Surveillance
      Tracking terrorists is necessary. The PATRIOT Act may be too expanisve, but it is a good idea, once surveillance is reduced. Of course, it is uncomfortable to know your phone calls may be being monitered by the government (making it surprising that this bill was supported mainly by the GOP), but it is a good way to crack down on terrorism, faulty as the method may be. After all, the government may be listening to your calls, but is not doing so for the sake of doing so. They may listen, but as long as you are not a terrorist, they will not do anything (for example if they discover you are having an affair, they aren't going to tell on you). It is faulty, of course.

      Healthcare
      I support Obamacare, and while socialized medicine is a good idea in theory, it cannot be implemented - it is too costly. Medicare and Medicaid are good.

      COVID19 is a serious, deadly pandemic. Vaccinations are necessary, and I wouldn't favour putting a federal mask mandate out of the question. Even doubly-vaccinated people are contracting the virus, which is why masking and social distancing (preferably, stay home as much as possible) is essential. That said, I'm not the mask hawk I previously was.


      ECONOMIC ISSUES

      Tarrifs
      I am for free trade and for low-to-medium tarrifs (unless the country against which a particular tarrif is being levied has high tarrifs on the US, in which case keep tarrifs high).

      National Debt
      A 'deficit hawk' who knows the deficit matters (though admittedly, this issue is of lowish to low priority). Take some action to reduce the national debt - increase taxes overall, and cut federal programs where appropriate and where spending is wasteful and/or extravagent (and that includes the military industrial-complex).

      Taxes
      A 'fair tax' is unrealistic. But the rich should not be punished for their success; increasing taxes on the rich to ridiculous amounts just because of their wealth is unfair. Billionaires shouldn't be illegal. The idea that people making over a billion dollars should pay 100% of their income more than a billion dollars (effectively abolishing billionaires) is terrible. Not only is it unfair it will kill the economy by sending every billionaire in America overseas. However, we need to close tax loopholes completely. And I don't oppose raising taxes on the rich per se (like I'm not sure how wise the 2017 tax cuts, which basically only helped the ultra-rich, were) - just not to crazy amounts.

      Minimum wage
      The minimum wage doesn't kill that many jobs. Don't support a crazily high minimum wage, but a slight increase is fine.

      Unions & Right to Work Laws
      Unions should have every right to fight the employers. The employers should have every right to fight back. Right-to-work laws are absolutely fine.

      Welfare reform
      Some people on the government payroll abuse this by spending the money on alcohol/drugs and do not bother finding a job. So the rich and middle-class pay for a poor person to have whatever drugs and alcohol they want. There is a need for welfare reform. Reduce the welfare paycheque (except for the disabled) to so little that they have to choose between food and alcohol/drugs, or even better, overhaul the system. This can be done by firstly reducing the paycheque, and also forcing all recepients to state their address so that random (and mandatory) checks can be conducted to ensure the government's money isn't being wasted on alcohol, drugs or anything of the sort. With that said, the 1996 welfare reform package was bad and some people - kids, the disabled, the sick, the mentally ill - absolutely need support and shouldn’t be denied it.


      FOREIGN POLICY

      Middle East
      Reduce American military presence in the Middle East. Stop supporting Israel over Palestine. The Iraq War was unncessary: yes, killing Saddam was a good thing, but after that there wasn't really any need to continue military presence in Iraq. When assassinating terrorists, ensure that no one innocent is killed as much as possible.

      Ukraine
      I like what we're doing here right now. Don't attack Russian civilians (keep it to a minimum - they are suffering and are victims - of dictatorship and abuse and of misinformation and propaganda - too), but absolutely and overwhelmingly go after Putin and the oligarchs who control Russia.

      ELECTIONS

      Electoral College
      Abolish the electoral college and replace it with either ranked-choice voting or just regular popular vote.

      Gerrymandering
      Give complete control of congressional redistricting to a nonpartisan, federal committee to end gerrymandering.

      Presidential Requirements
      Abolish the presidential term limit, reduce the minimum age to 18, and end the US-born requirement. Require presidential candidates to release criminal records and 5 years of tax records. Voters should be allowed to make informed decisions and should not have unnecessary or excessive limits on whom they can vote for.

      Voting Requirements
      Voting should be optional. Voters should have two days to vote. 13 to 18 year olds should be allowed to vote so long as they can pass a moderately difficult civic knowledge examination. Formerly incarcerated people should be allowed to vote after the completion of their full sentence, unless their crime included murder or terrorism and they were arrested only once (not multiple times).

      2020 & the Big Lie
      The election was absolutely not 'stolen' from Trump and there's no evidence whatsoever of large-scale voter fraud. January 6 was deplorable and terrible - it was caused by Trump and his bootlickers. Trump most certainly deserved impeachment for January 6.

      Campaign Finance Reform
      I support campaign finance reform. Get the money out of politics so special interests like the NRA, the coal lobby, the ultra-rich, etcetera, can't bribe legislators. Do that, and then politicians will be less beholden to them and will listen to people more. Corporations aren't people; people are people.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: President of the civil service full of trans activists on June 04, 2021, 07:49:49 AM
      If someone has religious objections to performing sex reassignment surgery
      I'm sorry, but who learns how to perform sex reassignment surgery (because it's not as simple I imagine you imagine it. You have to actually know your way around the nerves down there to, for instance, turn a penis into a vagina while still being functional) and then has religious objections to actually doing it?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Schiff for Senate on June 04, 2021, 12:48:07 PM
      If someone has religious objections to performing sex reassignment surgery
      I'm sorry, but who learns how to perform sex reassignment surgery (because it's not as simple I imagine you imagine it. You have to actually know your way around the nerves down there to, for instance, turn a penis into a vagina while still being functional) and then has religious objections to actually doing it?


      Good point, I didn't think of it that way, but I mean that generally, if someone wants to do sex reassignment surgery, and a hospital itself has religious objections to doing so (like they don't bother requiring doctors to know how to do sex reassignment surgery), then that is protected by the Constitution. Although I agree with what you said, I can't imagine why someone would learn how to perform sex reassignment surgery if they're going to have religious objections to doing it.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Kahane's Grave Is A Gender-Neutral Bathroom on June 22, 2021, 07:22:09 PM
      SOCIAL ISSUES

      Environment
      I strongly support environmental measures. Impose a carbon tax, keep America in the Paris Climate Agreement, put a tax on cars emmitting high carbon emmissions, force companies that cut trees to grow twice the number of trees they cut, create a special tax on plastic, pay people money to remove trash/plastic from the ocean, ban any drilling in ANWR, and stop the Keystone Pipeline now. Ban offshore drilling and hydraulic fracking. Invest/subsidize in solar/wind energy.

      Abortion
      I support the Hyde Amendment - excluding cases involving rape, incest, or where the mother's life is in danger, no federal funding for abortion whatsoever. Furthermore (again, excluding cases involving rape, incest, or when the mother's life is in danger), abortion should be restricted after the first trimester. If a teenager has an abortion her parents should be notified. If someone has religious qualms with performing an abortion, that is within their constitutional rights.

      The First Amendment
      Unless threatening violence, there should be no penalty for hate speech or racist language. This speech is protected by the First Amendment.

      The Second Amendment
      The Second Amendment was never meant to apply to individuals. It was written at a time in which there was no established military. Now, we have a huge military. The Second Amendment is outdated and has been for centuries. Therefore, all gun control measures are constitutional. They are also good, and necessary for public safety. I support any bill that will reduce the number of shootings in this country - whether that means an assault weapon ban; background checks; whatever. The number of shootings in the US is higher than most (and possibly all) other countries.

      LGBTA+ Rights
      Support homosexual rights to marry, adopt, and serve in the military openly. Generally oppose transgender rights, except to serve in the military. No one should be denied the right to serve in their nation's military. If someone has religious objections to performing sex reassignment surgery or catering to LGBTA customers, that is within their constitutional rights.

      Death Penalty
      The death penalty should not be abolished. It costs taxpayers money to give room and board to criminals. But it should be reduced. Once guilt is established beyond any argument (like multiple witnesses or a camera recording), and the crime involves murder, terrorism or rape, only then should the death penalty be enforced.

      Life Support / Assisted Suicide
      Once someone has all the appropriate information, and have an incurable disease, they should be allowed to decide if they want to die or not. It is a personal decision. It is not the government's place to intervene. It is ironic that the GOP favours small government otherwise but big government to regulate personal decisions someone may make. Similarly, for removal of life support, if someone has a living will stating that they do not want to be on life support, respect their decision, and again, the government should never intervene (as they did in the case of Terri Shiavo). Removal of life support, and assisted suicide, should not be politicized or dealt with by the government.

      Affirmative Action
      Affirmative action is counterintuitive. The solution to righting past wrongs and ending racism is not to continue it. Affirmative action is unfair to high-achieving Asians/whites who are being discriminated against for simply being Asian/white. That A wronged B does not justify B's descendants being favoured at the expense of C. C is being treated unfairly in this case. Colorblindness (not including race as a factor in considering college/job applications) is fair.

      Drugs
      Decriminalize all drugs, but impose a high sales tax (35%) on all drugs. Addicts will be forced to pay extra money to the government or (if not addicted yet) break the habit of having drugs - so the deficit, number of drug users, and number of people in jail, all fall simultaneously. To ensure that no one is having drugs from illegal sources and evading the drug tax, crack down on all cartels.

      Immigration
      Those who are already in the US should not be deported. A border wall, as well as the family separation policy, is inhumane and ineffective. Increase the border patrol (unsubstantially), and tax employers who employ illegal immigrants. Racial profiling is bad. The 2017 executive order banning immigration from 7 Muslim-majority countries was counterintuitive, racist and ineffective. Make the immigration and citizenship process easier as well, so illegal immigration is necessary for less families.

      Policing
      Do not defund (and definitely do not abolish) the police. If a school is failing, the solution isn't to shut it down. First, try to fix it. However, the police should have to wear body cameras, and the likes of Derek Chauvin should be fired and imprisoned. Increase racial sensitivity programs in the police.

      Education
      The No Child Left Behind Act was good in theory, but overly ambitious. Instead of AYP, it should be that the school does not get worse scores. Expecting yearly improvement is unrealistic. School vouchers are a good idea after efforts to fix a particular school have been made. College education costs are too high. Establish a very basic free community college program at the state/local level - the government gives some money to each state (the states themselves can supplement the cost) to do so.

      Surveillance
      Tracking terrorists is necessary. The PATRIOT Act may be too expanisve, but it is a good idea, once surveillance is reduced. Of course, it is uncomfortable to know your phone calls may be being monitered by the government (making it surprising that this bill was supported mainly by the GOP), but it is a good way to crack down on terrorism, faulty as the method may be. After all, the government may be listening to your calls, but is not doing so for the sake of doing so. They may listen, but as long as you are not a terrorist, they will not do anything (for example if they discover you are having an extramarital affair, they aren't going to contact your spouse to tell them). It is faulty, of course.

      ECONOMIC ISSUES

      Tarrifs
      I am for free trade and for low-to-medium tarrifs (unless the country against which a particular tarrif is being levied has high tarrifs on the US, in which case keep tarrifs high).

      National Debt
      Take all necessary action to reduce the national debt - increase taxes overall, and cut federal programs where appropriate and where spending is wasteful and/or extravagent.

      Taxes
      Increase taxes marginally on both the rich and the middle-class; increase taxes greatly on the poor (increase by about 2% for the middle-class and rich; double the taxes paid by the poor). A 'fair-tax' is unrealistic. But the rich should not be punished for their success; increasing taxes on the rich to ridiculous amounts just because of their wealth is unfair. Billionaires shouldn't be illegal. The idea that people making over a billion dollars should pay 100% of their income more than a billion dollars (effectively abolishing billionaires) is terrible. Not only is it unfair it will kill the economy by sending every billionaire in America overseas.

      Minimum wage
      The minimum wage doesn't kill that many jobs, and while the minimum wage should not be abolished, a higher minimum wage is unfair to business. The minimum wage should currently be reduced slightly. Perhaps this will save some jobs.

      Welfare reform
      Some people on the government payroll abuse this by spending the money on alcohol/drugs and do not bother finding a job. So the rich and middle-class pay for a poor person to have whatever drugs and alcohol they want. There is a need for welfare reform. Reduce the welfare paycheque (except for the disabled) to so little that they have to choose between food and alcohol/drugs, or even better, overhaul the system. This can be done by firstly reducing the paycheque, and also forcing all recepients to state their address so that random (mandatory) checks can be conducted to ensure the government's money isn't being wasted on alcohol, drugs or anything of the sort.

      Healthcare
      I support Obamacare, and while socialized medicine is a good idea in theory, it cannot be implemented - it is too costly. Medicare and Medicaid are good.

      FOREIGN POLICY

      Middle East
      Reduce American military presence in the Middle East. Stop supporting Israel over Palestine. The Iraq War was unncessary. When assassinating terrorists, ensure that no one innocent is killed as much as possible.

      Veterans Affairs Department
      Merge the Veterans Affairs Department with the Defense Department BUT keep funding for the Department of Defense the same - its budget is too high.

      ELECTIONS

      Electoral College
      Abolish the electoral college and replace it with ranked-choice voting.

      Gerrymandering
      Give complete control of redistricting to a nonpartisan, federal committee (the Federal Congressional Redistricting Committee) to end gerrymandering. The members can be appointed as follows - 3 from the president, 3 from the Senate, 3 from the House, and 8 from the Supreme Court. Members on the committee can serve for life.

      Presidential Requirements
      Abolish the presidential term limit, reduce the minimum age to 18, and end the US-born requirement. Require presidential candidates to release criminal records and 5 years of tax records. Voters should be allowed to make informed decisions and should not have limits on whom they can vote for. If in 1988 America wanted to reelect Ron Reagan, it should have been allowed to (not that it should have).

      Voting Requirements
      Voting should be optional. Voters should have two days to vote. 13 to 18 year olds should be allowed to vote so long as they can pass a moderately difficult civic knowledge examination. Formerly incarcerated people should be allowed to vote after the completion of their full sentence, unless their crime included murder or terrorism and they were arrested only once (not multiple times).

      This is absolute PERFECTION.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: LAKISYLVANIA on July 17, 2021, 03:36:43 PM
      If elected POTUS, these would be what I would do in terms of foreign policy:

      Latin America:

      - Stop the Cuban blockade, however, on some conditions, including a transition to a democratic socialist system with promises if Cuba meets those conditions to help develop and modernize it, as well as considering building better relations between those nations. Those conditions would be the transition to a democracy, and the immediate stop to all human right abuses. However I don't see Cuba as a threat, and I would also let them know that. If they want to be socialist, i would let them be socialist. My condition is that it is a democracy that respects human rights.

      - Change attitude in terms of Venezuela and Nicaragua. Same approach basically as Cuba, but my condition again would be "fair elections". I would however agree with Maduro to stop supporting Guaido.

      - Building better relations with all Latin American nations in general, and ease movement between those nations. Also work on a combined drug tackling approach where all drugs would be legalized by all nations, as well as produced by the nations (safely) in order to counter drug cartels. Develop Middle American nations to stop immigration that way, but make a legal pathway to USA easier for citizens in America. However, I would probably tighten immigration and customs with non-American continents.

      - The only nations I would be harsh against is Brazil, where I would suggest that to preserve further positive relations, i would be in need of further restrictions, which means the guarantee that the Amazon rainforest in it's entirety will protected. If not followed or if plain rejected, i would start sanctioning Brazil with the harshest sanctions possible.

      Europe:

      - I would make clear and sound that a beneficial relationship requires a balance, not that one country supports the other without getting something in return. I also would make clear that respect should be earned. I can respect European nations & leaders, but I need to get that back in return. If not... relations would indeed get tenser with me as POTUS.

      - I feel NATO is very obsolete, in that it should be reformed. I would however require a fair contribution of European nations to NATO, and make clear if they don't, that it would be very clear that when help is needed in terms of military invasions, i would not suddenly help them out. I'd probably also threaten to leave NATO as I would give multiple times admit it's obsolete, and also start researching into illegal practices and war crimes done by NATO (bombings in 1980's, Bende van Nijvel: Operation Gladio), incl. prosecuting who-ever is to blame.

      - I would offer my full commitment to the Paris climate agreement, and do everything I can to make a more ambitious new Paris possible, incl. binding conditions, not suggest things, but require things, incl. harsh sanctions in countries that aren't able to fullfill what is expected and secondly sanctions against people who don't follow Paris, but more importantly i would work on a new series of Geneva accords, but specifically regarding environment & climate and put all my weight as possible on it to make it possible.

      - I would handle Russia on a case vs case approach. Not be naive, but also negotiate a lot with Putin as I think stuff can be done with Russia. I just assume i would not be able to improve relations, and that by the end of my terms relations with Russia would be at a low. I however think I will handle Russia a bit more soft wherever possible, but also be very unpredictable & strict whenever that is required. I would as well support the Belarussian opposition, and make efforts to isolate it from the rest of the world.

      - I would refuse giving support to Navalny and continue cautious support for Putin, as I don't think Navalny is an improvement over Putin, and secondly i see Putin as a vital strategic ally for possible conflicts that would get started by other nations (Middle East mainly but also perhaps China), as well against the fight against terrorism

      I think I would use Belarus as a possible diplomatic agreement against Russia, giving Russia a free pass to invade Belarus in exchange for other stuff, and I would also give a free pass for a few former USSR territories incl. Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, probably even going as far as openly supporting it, seeing it as a net improve for the people there.

      Asia:

      - I would probably go all in against Turkey and Iran, which means that i would try to create a Kurdistan, recognize it, and please Al-Assad with support, as long he recognizes Kurdistan, restrains from further war crimes.

      - I would openly support the Kurds with all support possible, and in addition to that, i would also support Fetullah Gulen, and do some operations to free prisoners in Turkey.

      - I would start a "defence pact" against Turkey, and invite Greece, Bulgaria, Syria, Armenia, Cyprus and Russia to it. If Erdogan makes statements i don't like, i'd proceed it, and unexpectedly take back European Turkey, Istanbul, Turkish Cyprus and Turkish Kurdistan, while also pursuing regime change in Turkey. On top of that, i would pledge support for Ataturk's legacy, calling him one of the greatest Turks to have ever lived, and that to honour him the Turks should go on the streets to overthrow Erdogan (trying to have influence that way), painting it as Ataturk's legacy vs Erdogan's destruction.

      - I would also not resign the Iran nuclear deal, and seek a harsher approach towards Iran, but... i would not pursue military action.

      - I would start the peace deals that were started by Trump in North Korea, and talk about a "united Korea", how it could be the biggest achievements the Koreans could have realize and how Koreans have the right to reunite their families and be a vital voice in the peace effort.

      - I would condemn the annexation efforts by Israel, and start peace deals with Palestina. I would insist that a peace deal should be made, and when not, stop recognizing both Israel and Palestine, as long peace is not made.

      - I would condemn the Uyghur genocide, recognize Taiwan and prepare for a new cold war with China, but I would not give up hope on diplomatic channels, but I would state that I have to do what I have to do, and if this leads to strained relations, so it will be. I would protect Taiwan, and demand from the UN that it should be accepted in the UN or that the US is out.

      - Start good relations with Vietnam and making it essential it is a trustworthy and vital American ally. I would probably work on all relationships with SE-Asia (Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodja, Laos, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Vietnam, Papua-New Guinea, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Phillipines and Taiwan).

      Africa:

      - I'd invest in development, start building relationships with a lot of nations, and certainly work on starting vital friendly relationships with Morocco, Tunisia, and Algeria.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Horus on July 20, 2021, 02:06:53 PM
      Alt center left market socialist dove


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Ferguson97 on July 26, 2021, 09:49:05 PM
      Foreign Policy
      (Not a complete list, this is just what comes to mind)

      Redirect defense spending to cyber security and research & development.

      Invest economically (a ‘Marshall Plan’ of sorts) in Africa to reduce Chinese influence.

      Emphasize multilateral cooperation in the Arctic region to reduce Russian influence.

      Expand naval forces in the Arctic.

      Expand naval forces in the South China Sea, and be willing to defend Hong Kong or Taiwan against an invasion.

      Develop a Lend-Lease program to aid Ukraine’s defense against Russian aggression.

      Expand naval forces in the Black Sea.

      Reinstate the Iran Deal.

      Withdraw the majority of ground troops from the Middle East, but keep a skeleton crew of intelligence groups.

      Increase the amount of refugees we accept from Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq, and Iran.

      Work in conjunction with NGOs to provide food, medicine, and infrastructure development for Iraq,
      Iran, Afghanistan, and Syria.

      Work in conjunction NGOs to provide food and medicine for people in Venezuela.

      Increase the amount of refugees we accept from Venezuela and Cuba.

      Expand our role in international organizations like the United Nations and NATO.

      End foreign aid for Israel until they stop expanding settlements, and allow a UN investigation into the IDF.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Girlytree on August 27, 2021, 06:22:16 AM
      Prone to extremism of almost any kind


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on August 27, 2021, 09:14:21 AM
      Prone to extremism of almost any kind

      For any particular reason?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Biden his time on October 12, 2021, 09:34:56 PM
      Alright there's been much speculation over my "political views", and sometimes whether I even have them...

      I've been called by different people here "moderate", "liberal", "progressive", "far-right", and very strangely "communist". I'd like to make some things clear with this post.

      However I'm far too lazy to try to clear up this stuff in-depth, so I'm just gonna take a political test online and have that do the talking for me.

      So I'll be taking the Sapplyvalues political test (https://sapplyvalues.github.io/quiz.html?shuffle=false), copy and paste the questions and my answers with no elaboration because as I said earlier I'm too lazy for that (except a few that I think are susceptible to needing elaboration). You could ask though and I could try to explain. The way this works is that they give you a statement and you tell them how you feel. It's 46 questions only so I'm OK with doing it quickly. I'm also taking the test in order so I've divided it into some rudimentary divisions.

      Alright so let's begin eh:

      ECONOMIC STUFF

      • Freedom of business is the best practical way a society can prosper. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • Charity is a better way of helping those in need than social welfare. DISAGREE
      • Wages are always fair, as employers know best what a worker's labour is worth. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      • It is "human nature" to be greedy. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • Exploitation" is an outdated term, as the struggles of 1800s capitalism doesn't exist anymore. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      • Communism is an ideal that can never work in practice. STRONGLY AGREE
      • Taxation of the wealthy is a bad idea, society would be better off without it. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      • The harder you work, the more you progress up the social ladder. AGREE
      • Organisations and corporations cannot be trusted and need regulating by the government. AGREE
      • A government that provides for everyone is an inherently good idea. AGREE
      • The current welfare system should be expanded to further combat inequality. AGREE
      • Land should not be a commodity to be bought and sold. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      • All industry and the bank should be nationalized. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      • Class is the primary division of society. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • Economic inequality is too high in the world. STRONGLY AGREE

      IS THIS CIVIL RIGHTS?*

      • Sometimes it is right that the government may spy on its citizens to combat extremists and terrorists. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • Authority figures, if morally correct, are a good thing for society. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • Strength is necessary for any government to succeed NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • Only the government can fairly and effectively regulate organisations.  NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • Society requires structure and bureaucracy in order to function. AGREE
      • Mandatory IDs should be used to ensure public safety. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • In times of crisis, safety becomes more important than civil liberties. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • If you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      • The government should be less involved in the day to day life of its citizens.  STRONGLY AGREE
      • Without democracy, a society is nothing NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • Jury nullification should be legal. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • The smaller the government, the freer the people DISAGREE
      • The government should, at most, provide emergency services and law enforcement. DISAGREE
      • The police were not made to protect the people, but to uphold the status quo by force. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • State schools are a bad idea because our state shouldn't be influencing our children. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • Two consenting individuals should be able to do whatever they want with each other, even if it makes me uncomfortable. AGREE**
      • An individual's body is their own property, and they should be able to do anything they desire to it. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • A person should be able to worship whomever or whatever they want. STRONGLY AGREE

      "SOCIAL" AND "CULTURAL" ISSUES

      • Nudism is perfectly natural. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      • Animals deserve certain universal rights. AGREE
      • Gender is a social construct, not a natural state of affairs. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      • Laws based on cultural values, rather than ethical ones, aren't justice. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • Autonomy of body extends even to minors, the mentally ill, and serious criminals  DISAGREE
      • Homosexuality is against my values. NEUTRAL/UNSURE***
      • Transgender individuals should not be able to adopt children. STRONGLY AGREE
      • Drugs are harmful and should be banned. STRONGLY AGREE
      • The death penalty should exist for certain crimes. STRONGLY AGREE
      • Victimless crimes should still be punished. STRONGLY AGREE
      • One cannot be moral without religion. STRONGLY AGREE
      • Parents should hold absolute power over their children, as they are older and more experienced. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • Multiculturalism is bad. STRONGLY DISAGREE

      * Basically everything in this field can be summed up by me being against the phrase "If you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear!" This has been proven wrong time and time again! It makes me iffy on taking a hard stance in favor of many of these things, which while they might be in the best interests of the people, could be a slippery slope (and not the fallacy but the actual thing).
      ** Because "It makes me uncomfortable personally" and "I consider it morally wrong" are different.
      *** I'll be willing to grant them this much that the homosexual nature is neutral as long as it doesn't escalate but I do not at all condone sodomy or them being able to marry (personally I don't condone this but this doesn't mean I'm aiming for the government to step in)



      So this is my end result:

      ()

      Image Link (https://i.ibb.co/WfzMhMT/download.png)



      Finally, certain answers I've chosen would change somewhat based on the location. This is all done assuming it's the United States government.

      I might be a little bit more authoritarian in certain other countries, both real and hypothetical...


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Biden his time on October 13, 2021, 03:18:15 PM
      Motorcity in particular made this post which is pretty dead-on for me as well (put in my own edits to show differences):

      Hey everyone

      So a little about me. I am a second generation Muslim-American. Born and raised in Tennessee Florida.

      I am economically liberal. I support free college and Medicare for All. I support UBI and think programs like foodstamps and disability should be expanded. I also think the government should do much more for climate (!!! Especially Climate!), science, infrastructure, small businesses, small farms, pay teachers more, and tax the rich. Also support unions and cut unfair trade deals. I would even go farther and say we should ban some automation like self driving trucks.

      But I am a social conservative. Both because of my Islamic faith and southern heritage. I am Pro-Life. I think transgender people should use the bathroom of their biological sex and the same for sports. I am also against gay marriage but accept its a done deal. I don't care for gun reform support background checks and the most basic gun restrictions but nothing more radical than that. I don't like weed and don't think people should smoke it, but I'm okay with it being legal and don't think people should be in jail for it. I also think wearing a mask should be a choice but I do think they protect people.

      Globally, I think the US should stand for human rights and intervene militarily to stop genocide. I support a two state solution for Palestine and oppose the genocdies in China, Burma, and China. I think the US should be the world's policeman and stand up to Russia and China, but military spending should go to social programs.

      Is there a place for me in the Democratic Party? I consider myself a loyal supporter of the Democrats. I voted for Bernie Sanders in both 2016 and 2020, but still voted for Hillary and Biden in the general.

      Thoughts?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Continential on October 25, 2021, 10:00:26 AM
      If I could describe my ideology, I'd call myself a social liberal. Personally, I am very socially libertarian, with the exception of abortion. I am a "dove", as oppose war in most cases unless we have been attacked by the country/group that we are declaring war on. Ecconomically, I am ecconomically centrist or ecconomically liberal, in the sense that I believe in a modest welfare state, but however, I support the free market in government programs as long as they  abide by government standards.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on October 26, 2021, 11:04:49 AM
      Ideology
      Social: Very Liberal
      Economic: Somewhat Liberal
      Foreign Policy: Internationalist

      Social Policy
      Abortion: A matter of personal choice in first trimester, only when a compelling and unforeseen need can be established thereafter. No parental notification for 17 year olds, the DCF should be immediately involved if a child any younger gets pregnant, and the police should be immediately involved if the child is under 14. If Roe goes, so should Hyde.

      Same-Sex Marriage: Either recognize all "marriages" or recognize none.

      Drugs: Support legalizing marijuana, decriminalizing most other drugs

      Death Penalty: Oppose except for war crimes, including treason. Basically only direct and  violent crimes against the whole society should receive the death penalty.

      Gun Control: I'm fine with the 2A but open carry is too close too common law criminal menacing and background checks and red flag laws are important. Would let states decides what should be disqualifying in background checks though.


      Affirmative Action: Somewhat oppose. I understand the rationale for and against it. I will say if I were hiring a graduate student or an employee, I would consider where they started as well as where they are in making my decisions.

      Prostitution: At this point, enforcing laws again it should stop being a priority unless there is actual violence involved or is causing public health issues. I would definitely emphasize treatment. Open to it eventually being legal, taxed, and heavily regulated. Trafficking and Pimping should get mandatory prison sentences and perhaps Life in the worst circumstances.

      Euthanasia: I'm against involuntary euthanasia but think there is no dignity in trying to force laws against assisted suicide.

      Immigration: I'm open minded on this issue but think fortifying the southern border just causes more harm than good.

      Police Issues/Black Lives Matter: Strongly favor police reform. Police need more oversight, and qualified immunity needs to be reduced. Support mandatory body cams. Oppose electing sheriffs. The ultimate goal is to restore public faith in the police from 60% to 90%, providing 100% is not possible. Don’t mess with their funding but get them out of things that they are not intended or designed to do. It’s not that they have too much money, it’s that other agencies have too little.

      Ethics in Criminal Justice: End Private Prisons and replace community compensation programs and prosecutors' fees  with higher fines. There should be no financial incentives for particular state agencies or charities that people are punished above and beyond fines.

      Free Speech/Political Correctness: Strongly oppose government restrictions on free speech. Don't care much about people getting banned from social media if that is what was meant. I feel like "political correctness" can sometimes go too far, but do not feel that it is too big an issue.

      Big Tech: I'm still skeptical of regulation in this area in general, but there needs to be more transparency about how these companies work. I keep hearing stories of people getting kicked off of AirBnb and other services members of the public rely on because of "routine reviews", Twitter algorithms that push white nationalists narratives, and Facebook being used as a slave market in the Middle East.


      School Prayer: School Prayer: Allow individual students to pray, but do not allow any adult to lead prayer

      Muslim Ban: Oppose.

      PATRIOT ACT: Oppose. Additionally would strongly oppose any proposed "PATRIOT ACT II" if Congress tries to pass one after the Capitol Storming.


      Economic Issues
      Minimum Wage: Raise it. It should be $10.10 in 2008 dollars.. so about $12-13 an hour today. Should be updated yearly to CPI.

      Healthcare: Support Biden's plan. I really want a public option but would settle for equitable subsidies where means testing is further graduated and the limit is established that no applicant must pay more than 8% of their gross income for health insurance. A middle class family of making 100000 a year should pay no more than $667 a month for the most expensive insurance available.

      Globalization/Trade: Support TPP and NAFTA

      Deficit/Debt: Worried more about prices than debt

      Campaign Finance Reform: Support. Overturn Citizens United.

      Unions: Support fairer workplace elections, letting more people join unions, and ending right-to-work. Open to but not entirely supportive to card-check only union elections.

      Defense Budget: Emphasize performance. Not married to either increasing or decreasing the defense budget. Blindly giving defense contractors more and more money is contributing to higher consumer prices, less money for other government programs, and reduced accountability and delivery by defense contractors. No more 6 year 2 billion dollar programs lasting for 20 years and costing 15 billion dollars.

      Education: Support Biden's plan but OK with school choice but there should be no variance to the accreditation process for any institution. All publicly funded schools must teach a minimum curriculum.

      Taxes: Support raising income and capital gains taxes on the upper brackets. I’m fine with the BBB surcharge model.

      Social Security: Full Retirement Age to 69.5, end cap on payroll taxes, map minimum payout to 100% of FPL

      Disability: Find a way to simultaneously raise benefits and tighten eligibility criteria

      SNAP: Integrate Nutritional Standards into applicability of benefits

      Government Defense and Research Contractors: Should be subject to increase scrutiny and more aggressive performance clauses. If no contractor can guarantee performance at a national level, programs should be federalized.

      Science and Scholarship:

      * Allow Private Student Loans to be discharged in bankruptcy if 2% of the amortization amount of the loans is greater than 10% of the borrower's average monthly income over the last 36 months.
      * Require all publicly subsidized mortgage lenders to use the actual amount paid on the credit report of a student loan balance, so long as it is more than zero, in calculating creditworthiness for mortgages.

       *Support renewables and nuclear power equally. End fossil fuel subsidies but not licensing. Invest in energy moonshots. .5% of national budget towards nuclear fission, fusion, and renewables research and development.
      * Privatize Low Earth Orbit space exploration and development with the goal of having 50 people in space by 2035
      * Commit to Subsidies and Deregulation for Space Development Industry
      * Either commit to or cancel the Manned Lunar Program. Should have made 1 flight or be canceled by December 31, 2029.
      * Have a concrete design architecture for a manned mission to either the vicinity of Venus, the surface or vicinity of Mars, or any other Non-NEO by December 31, 2029.

      * Total funding for space research and exploration should be at 1% of Federal Budget

      *Rework FDA approval processes for biological, regenerative, neuroprosthetic, gerontological and oncological drugs and medical devices. Commit 1% of national budget to R&D to these areas.

      *Artificial Intelligence and Autonomous Systems- .5% of national budget to R&D to these areas to combat Chinese progress.

      * Science classes are to be completely secular but electives on religious tradition and theology should be encourage.

      * Title IX will be maintained, but not abused. Whether or not someone can stay on campus and stay a student or faculty member is not a criminal justice issue and therefore not completely protected by due process. However, like public school students, I am concerned about schools becoming jails for kids.


      Foreign Policy

      Iraq: leave a small contingent to prevent the return of ISIL

      Afghanistan: I think we should have stayed but now I'm glad we left because I don't think we were committed to staying there forever.

      Iran: Support a return to the nuclear deal.

      Syria: Continue support for the Kurds.

      Cuba: Aim to end the embargo and open up trade with Cuba. Has the dual effect of raising quality of life and weakening the Communist system.

      Israel/Palestine: Reduce military support to Israel though I don't think a two state solution is practical anymore.

      Russia: Strengthen sanctions, support expansion of NATO, particularly in Ukraine. Oppose outright aggression.

      China: Support attempts to isolate China, including economically, though I generally support free trade. Would support a larger American foreign aid and investment program to counter China's investments in infrastructure in Asia and Africa. Support using American power to maintain the status quo with ROC and PRC.

      Environment
      Climate Change: Support Paris Agreement, carbon taxation, and renewable energy.

      Electoral Issues
      Gerrymandering: Strongly oppose, support nationwide fair redistricting.

      Term limits: Oppose for President and Congress.

      Voter ID: Support, conditioned on IDs being free and provided to all Americans. Oppose otherwise.

      DC and PR statehoods: Support

      SCOTUS: 18 year term limit, staggered for every year. Every nominee gets an up or down vote. If no nominee is  passed in 180 days, President gets to pick and the senate should have to oppose it with 55 votes.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: GregTheGreat657 on October 26, 2021, 05:36:39 PM
      Social Issues
      Abortion: Pro-life, except for cases of rape and incest
      Birth Control: Should be legal
      Same-Sex Marriage: Support
      Legalization of Drugs: Oppose
      Gun Control: Oppose
      Prostitution: Oppose, but go after pimps too
      Affirmative Action: Oppose
      Reparations: Oppose
      Police Reform/BLM: Black lives do matter, and I support most kinds of police reform. However, we should increase, not decrease police funding.
      Private Prisons: Oppose
      Big Tech: Regulate & Break Up.
      Free Speech: As long as it doesn't incite violence or spread lies that lead to others getting hurt, you should be allowed to say whatever you want
      PATRIOT Act: Repeal
      Eminent Domain: Oppose, unless that person's home will more than likely cause damage to others. In the rare case that eminent domain would happen, fair compensation must be provided.
      Immigration: Build a wall on the Southern border, increase funding for ICE, repeal DACA, and put net-zero immigration in effect
      Mask Mandates: Strongly Oppose
      Vaccine Mandates: Oppose
      COVID-19 Vaccines: They work, and I personally did get vaccinated

      Economic Issues
      Free Trade: Oppose most free trade agreements
      Taxes: Significantly cut for lower and middle classes, slightly raise on the wealthy
      Healthcare: Support a voluntary public option for the lower class, but no government-run healthcare for the middle and upper classes
      Social Security: Partially privatize
      National Debt: Support paying down the national debt, even if that means cuts to social spending, foreign aid, and tax hikes on the wealthy
      Campaign Finance Reform: Support
      Unions: Support right-to-work legislation
      Disability: Tighten eligibility, cut spending
      Tarriffs: Raise
      Outsourcing: Oppose
      Monopolies: Break them Up!

      Foreign Policy
      Foreign Aid: Dramatically cut. We should not be giving large amounts of our money to other countries when we have poor people here and a national debt
      UN Funding: Dramatically cut
      NATO: Withdraw
      WHO: Withdraw
      Paris Deal: Withdraw
      Afghanistan: We should have withdrawn a lot sooner but in a more orderly fashion. We should have gotten American citizen civilizations out first, and then our military personnel & equipment
      Iraq: Should have never been there, to begin with
      Iran: Withdraw from the nuclear deal, support sanctions
      Cuba: Keep the trade embargo until they become a free country
      China: Crack down on this regime. I support sanctions
      Russia: Support sanctions
      Section 230: Repeal

      Education
      CRT: Oppose
      Evolution: We should teach evolution, and not creationism
      School Prayer: Allow individual students to pray, but do not allow any adult to lead prayer
      Sallie Mae: Disband
      Free College: Oppose
      Free School Breakfasts/Lunches: Support


      Environment
      Climate Change: Is real, and is caused by humans
      Green New Deal: Oppose, we musn't totally sacrifice our economy for the environment
      Carbon Tax: Oppose
      Keystone Pipeline: Continue Building

      Elections
      Big Lie: Oppose. Biden won fair and square.
      Voter ID: Should be mandatory and free to all adults who want to vote
      Audits: Mandatory if the results are within 5%.
      Term Limits: Support for all elected offices
      DC: Add DC to Maryland, except for an area of government buildings where no one is allowed to reside in
      PR: Support independence
      SCOTUS: Should be elected to 8-year terms with no justice being allowed to serve more than 2 terms.

      If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on October 29, 2021, 10:08:58 AM
      Social Issues
      Abortion: Pro-life, except for cases of rape and incest
      Same-Sex Marriage: Support
      Legalization of Drugs: Oppose
      Gun Control: Oppose
      Prostitution: Oppose, but go after pimps too
      Affirmative Action: Oppose
      Reparations: Oppose
      Police Reform/BLM: Black lives do matter, and I support most kinds of police reform. However, we should increase, not decrease police funding.
      Private Prisons: Oppose
      Big Tech: Regulate & Break Up.
      Free Speech: As long as it doesn't incite violence or spread lies that lead to others getting hurt, you should be allowed to say whatever you want
      PATRIOT Act: Repeal
      Eminent Domain: Oppose, unless that person's home will more than likely cause damage to others. In the rare case that eminent domain would happen, fair compensation must be provided.
      Immigration: Build a wall on the Southern border, increase funding for ICE, repeal DACA, an immigration moratorium for the next 20 years
      Mask Mandates: Oppose
      Vaccine Mandates: Oppose
      COVID-19 Vaccines: They work, and I personally did get vaccinated

      Economic Issues
      Free Trade: Oppose most free trade agreements
      Taxes: Significantly cut for lower and middle classes, slightly raise on the wealthy
      Healthcare: Support a voluntary public option for the lower class, but no government-run healthcare for the middle and upper classes
      Social Security: Partially privatize
      National Debt: Support paying down the national debt, even if that means cuts to social spending, foreign aid, and tax hikes on the wealthy
      Campaign Finance Reform: Support
      Unions: Support right-to-work legislation
      Disability: Tighten eligibility, cut spending
      Tarriffs: Raise
      Outsourcing: Oppose
      Monopolies: Break them Up!

      Foreign Policy
      Foreign Aid: Dramatically cut. We should not be giving large amounts of our money to other countries when we have poor people here and a national debt
      UN Funding: Dramatically cut
      NATO: Withdraw
      WHO: Withdraw
      Paris Deal: Withdraw
      Afghanistan: We should have withdrawn a lot sooner but in a more orderly fashion. We should have gotten American citizen civilizations out first, and then our military personnel & equipment
      Iraq: Should have never been there, to begin with
      Iran: Withdraw from the nuclear deal, support sanctions
      Cuba: Keep the trade embargo until they become a free country
      China: Crack down on this regime. I support sanctions
      Russia: Support sanctions

      Education
      CRT: Oppose
      Evolution: We should teach evolution, and not creationism
      School Prayer: Allow individual students to pray, but do not allow any adult to lead prayer
      Sallie Mae: Disband
      Free College: Oppose


      Environment
      Climate Change: Is real, and is caused by humans
      Green New Deal: Oppose, we musn't totally sacrifice our economy for the environment
      Carbon Tax: Oppose
      Keystone Pipeline: Continue Building

      Elections
      Big Lie: Oppose. Biden won fair and square.
      Voter ID: Should be mandatory and free to all adults who want to vote
      Audits: Mandatory if the results are within 5%.
      Term Limits: Support for all elected offices
      DC: Add DC to Maryland, except for an area of government buildings where no one is allowed to reside in
      PR: Support independence
      SCOTUS: Should be elected to 8-year terms with no justice being allowed to serve more than 2 terms.

      If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me

      So more or less a mainstream paleocon. Socially not-quite-very conservative, economically somewhat conservative, and isolationist. I’d flip your E-S scores.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: GregTheGreat657 on October 29, 2021, 05:18:51 PM
      Social Issues
      Abortion: Pro-life, except for cases of rape and incest
      Same-Sex Marriage: Support
      Legalization of Drugs: Oppose
      Gun Control: Oppose
      Prostitution: Oppose, but go after pimps too
      Affirmative Action: Oppose
      Reparations: Oppose
      Police Reform/BLM: Black lives do matter, and I support most kinds of police reform. However, we should increase, not decrease police funding.
      Private Prisons: Oppose
      Big Tech: Regulate & Break Up.
      Free Speech: As long as it doesn't incite violence or spread lies that lead to others getting hurt, you should be allowed to say whatever you want
      PATRIOT Act: Repeal
      Eminent Domain: Oppose, unless that person's home will more than likely cause damage to others. In the rare case that eminent domain would happen, fair compensation must be provided.
      Immigration: Build a wall on the Southern border, increase funding for ICE, repeal DACA, an immigration moratorium for the next 20 years
      Mask Mandates: Oppose
      Vaccine Mandates: Oppose
      COVID-19 Vaccines: They work, and I personally did get vaccinated

      Economic Issues
      Free Trade: Oppose most free trade agreements
      Taxes: Significantly cut for lower and middle classes, slightly raise on the wealthy
      Healthcare: Support a voluntary public option for the lower class, but no government-run healthcare for the middle and upper classes
      Social Security: Partially privatize
      National Debt: Support paying down the national debt, even if that means cuts to social spending, foreign aid, and tax hikes on the wealthy
      Campaign Finance Reform: Support
      Unions: Support right-to-work legislation
      Disability: Tighten eligibility, cut spending
      Tarriffs: Raise
      Outsourcing: Oppose
      Monopolies: Break them Up!

      Foreign Policy
      Foreign Aid: Dramatically cut. We should not be giving large amounts of our money to other countries when we have poor people here and a national debt
      UN Funding: Dramatically cut
      NATO: Withdraw
      WHO: Withdraw
      Paris Deal: Withdraw
      Afghanistan: We should have withdrawn a lot sooner but in a more orderly fashion. We should have gotten American citizen civilizations out first, and then our military personnel & equipment
      Iraq: Should have never been there, to begin with
      Iran: Withdraw from the nuclear deal, support sanctions
      Cuba: Keep the trade embargo until they become a free country
      China: Crack down on this regime. I support sanctions
      Russia: Support sanctions

      Education
      CRT: Oppose
      Evolution: We should teach evolution, and not creationism
      School Prayer: Allow individual students to pray, but do not allow any adult to lead prayer
      Sallie Mae: Disband
      Free College: Oppose


      Environment
      Climate Change: Is real, and is caused by humans
      Green New Deal: Oppose, we musn't totally sacrifice our economy for the environment
      Carbon Tax: Oppose
      Keystone Pipeline: Continue Building

      Elections
      Big Lie: Oppose. Biden won fair and square.
      Voter ID: Should be mandatory and free to all adults who want to vote
      Audits: Mandatory if the results are within 5%.
      Term Limits: Support for all elected offices
      DC: Add DC to Maryland, except for an area of government buildings where no one is allowed to reside in
      PR: Support independence
      SCOTUS: Should be elected to 8-year terms with no justice being allowed to serve more than 2 terms.

      If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me

      So more or less a mainstream paleocon. Socially not-quite-very conservative, economically somewhat conservative, and isolationist. I’d flip your E-S scores.
      I took the Political Matrix again, and my Econ score moved 2 points to the left, while my social score moved insignificantly north. Also the social score is going off the standards of the 2000s not 2021


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: West_Midlander on October 30, 2021, 02:34:47 PM
      Just pasting my most recent (from 10/3/21) ISideWith result for simplicity's sake

      For some ?s I chose the answer closest to my stance instead of writing in my own answer

      https://www.isidewith.com/profile/4702487970/ballot/2024-presidential


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on November 04, 2021, 07:57:55 PM
      Social Issues
      Abortion: Pro-life, except for cases of rape and incest
      Same-Sex Marriage: Support
      Legalization of Drugs: Oppose
      Gun Control: Oppose
      Prostitution: Oppose, but go after pimps too
      Affirmative Action: Oppose
      Reparations: Oppose
      Police Reform/BLM: Black lives do matter, and I support most kinds of police reform. However, we should increase, not decrease police funding.
      Private Prisons: Oppose
      Big Tech: Regulate & Break Up.
      Free Speech: As long as it doesn't incite violence or spread lies that lead to others getting hurt, you should be allowed to say whatever you want
      PATRIOT Act: Repeal
      Eminent Domain: Oppose, unless that person's home will more than likely cause damage to others. In the rare case that eminent domain would happen, fair compensation must be provided.
      Immigration: Build a wall on the Southern border, increase funding for ICE, repeal DACA, an immigration moratorium for the next 20 years
      Mask Mandates: Oppose
      Vaccine Mandates: Oppose
      COVID-19 Vaccines: They work, and I personally did get vaccinated

      Economic Issues
      Free Trade: Oppose most free trade agreements
      Taxes: Significantly cut for lower and middle classes, slightly raise on the wealthy
      Healthcare: Support a voluntary public option for the lower class, but no government-run healthcare for the middle and upper classes
      Social Security: Partially privatize
      National Debt: Support paying down the national debt, even if that means cuts to social spending, foreign aid, and tax hikes on the wealthy
      Campaign Finance Reform: Support
      Unions: Support right-to-work legislation
      Disability: Tighten eligibility, cut spending
      Tarriffs: Raise
      Outsourcing: Oppose
      Monopolies: Break them Up!

      Foreign Policy
      Foreign Aid: Dramatically cut. We should not be giving large amounts of our money to other countries when we have poor people here and a national debt
      UN Funding: Dramatically cut
      NATO: Withdraw
      WHO: Withdraw
      Paris Deal: Withdraw
      Afghanistan: We should have withdrawn a lot sooner but in a more orderly fashion. We should have gotten American citizen civilizations out first, and then our military personnel & equipment
      Iraq: Should have never been there, to begin with
      Iran: Withdraw from the nuclear deal, support sanctions
      Cuba: Keep the trade embargo until they become a free country
      China: Crack down on this regime. I support sanctions
      Russia: Support sanctions

      Education
      CRT: Oppose
      Evolution: We should teach evolution, and not creationism
      School Prayer: Allow individual students to pray, but do not allow any adult to lead prayer
      Sallie Mae: Disband
      Free College: Oppose


      Environment
      Climate Change: Is real, and is caused by humans
      Green New Deal: Oppose, we musn't totally sacrifice our economy for the environment
      Carbon Tax: Oppose
      Keystone Pipeline: Continue Building

      Elections
      Big Lie: Oppose. Biden won fair and square.
      Voter ID: Should be mandatory and free to all adults who want to vote
      Audits: Mandatory if the results are within 5%.
      Term Limits: Support for all elected offices
      DC: Add DC to Maryland, except for an area of government buildings where no one is allowed to reside in
      PR: Support independence
      SCOTUS: Should be elected to 8-year terms with no justice being allowed to serve more than 2 terms.

      If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me

      So more or less a mainstream paleocon. Socially not-quite-very conservative, economically somewhat conservative, and isolationist. I’d flip your E-S scores.
      I took the Political Matrix again, and my Econ score moved 2 points to the left, while my social score moved insignificantly north. Also the social score is going off the standards of the 2000s not 2021


      Fair enough.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: David Hume on November 21, 2021, 07:36:25 AM
      Alright there's been much speculation over my "political views", and sometimes whether I even have them...

      I've been called by different people here "moderate", "liberal", "progressive", "far-right", and very strangely "communist". I'd like to make some things clear with this post.

      However I'm far too lazy to try to clear up this stuff in-depth, so I'm just gonna take a political test online and have that do the talking for me.

      So I'll be taking the Sapplyvalues political test (https://sapplyvalues.github.io/quiz.html?shuffle=false), copy and paste the questions and my answers with no elaboration because as I said earlier I'm too lazy for that (except a few that I think are susceptible to needing elaboration). You could ask though and I could try to explain. The way this works is that they give you a statement and you tell them how you feel. It's 46 questions only so I'm OK with doing it quickly. I'm also taking the test in order so I've divided it into some rudimentary divisions.

      Alright so let's begin eh:

      ECONOMIC STUFF

      • Freedom of business is the best practical way a society can prosper. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • Charity is a better way of helping those in need than social welfare. DISAGREE
      • Wages are always fair, as employers know best what a worker's labour is worth. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      • It is "human nature" to be greedy. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • Exploitation" is an outdated term, as the struggles of 1800s capitalism doesn't exist anymore. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      • Communism is an ideal that can never work in practice. STRONGLY AGREE
      • Taxation of the wealthy is a bad idea, society would be better off without it. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      • The harder you work, the more you progress up the social ladder. AGREE
      • Organisations and corporations cannot be trusted and need regulating by the government. AGREE
      • A government that provides for everyone is an inherently good idea. AGREE
      • The current welfare system should be expanded to further combat inequality. AGREE
      • Land should not be a commodity to be bought and sold. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      • All industry and the bank should be nationalized. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      • Class is the primary division of society. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • Economic inequality is too high in the world. STRONGLY AGREE

      IS THIS CIVIL RIGHTS?*

      • Sometimes it is right that the government may spy on its citizens to combat extremists and terrorists. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • Authority figures, if morally correct, are a good thing for society. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • Strength is necessary for any government to succeed NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • Only the government can fairly and effectively regulate organisations.  NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • Society requires structure and bureaucracy in order to function. AGREE
      • Mandatory IDs should be used to ensure public safety. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • In times of crisis, safety becomes more important than civil liberties. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • If you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      • The government should be less involved in the day to day life of its citizens.  STRONGLY AGREE
      • Without democracy, a society is nothing NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • Jury nullification should be legal. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • The smaller the government, the freer the people DISAGREE
      • The government should, at most, provide emergency services and law enforcement. DISAGREE
      • The police were not made to protect the people, but to uphold the status quo by force. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • State schools are a bad idea because our state shouldn't be influencing our children. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • Two consenting individuals should be able to do whatever they want with each other, even if it makes me uncomfortable. AGREE**
      • An individual's body is their own property, and they should be able to do anything they desire to it. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • A person should be able to worship whomever or whatever they want. STRONGLY AGREE

      "SOCIAL" AND "CULTURAL" ISSUES

      • Nudism is perfectly natural. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      • Animals deserve certain universal rights. AGREE
      • Gender is a social construct, not a natural state of affairs. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      • Laws based on cultural values, rather than ethical ones, aren't justice. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • Autonomy of body extends even to minors, the mentally ill, and serious criminals  DISAGREE
      • Homosexuality is against my values. NEUTRAL/UNSURE***
      • Transgender individuals should not be able to adopt children. STRONGLY AGREE
      • Drugs are harmful and should be banned. STRONGLY AGREE
      • The death penalty should exist for certain crimes. STRONGLY AGREE
      • Victimless crimes should still be punished. STRONGLY AGREE
      • One cannot be moral without religion. STRONGLY AGREE
      • Parents should hold absolute power over their children, as they are older and more experienced. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • Multiculturalism is bad. STRONGLY DISAGREE

      * Basically everything in this field can be summed up by me being against the phrase "If you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear!" This has been proven wrong time and time again! It makes me iffy on taking a hard stance in favor of many of these things, which while they might be in the best interests of the people, could be a slippery slope (and not the fallacy but the actual thing).
      ** Because "It makes me uncomfortable personally" and "I consider it morally wrong" are different.
      *** I'll be willing to grant them this much that the homosexual nature is neutral as long as it doesn't escalate but I do not at all condone sodomy or them being able to marry (personally I don't condone this but this doesn't mean I'm aiming for the government to step in)



      So this is my end result:

      ()

      Image Link (https://i.ibb.co/WfzMhMT/download.png)



      Finally, certain answers I've chosen would change somewhat based on the location. This is all done assuming it's the United States government.

      I might be a little bit more authoritarian in certain other countries, both real and hypothetical...

      We have a lot in common. Here is mine:

      ECONOMIC STUFF

      Freedom of business is the best practical way a society can prosper. disagree
      Charity is a better way of helping those in need than social welfare. DISAGREE
      Wages are always fair, as employers know best what a worker's labour is worth. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      It is "human nature" to be greedy. agree
      Exploitation" is an outdated term, as the struggles of 1800s capitalism doesn't exist anymore. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      Communism is an ideal that can never work in practice. STRONGLY AGREE
      Taxation of the wealthy is a bad idea, society would be better off without it. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      The harder you work, the more you progress up the social ladder. AGREE
      Organisations and corporations cannot be trusted and need regulating by the government. AGREE
      A government that provides for everyone is an inherently good idea. disagree
      The current welfare system should be expanded to further combat inequality. AGREE
      Land should not be a commodity to be bought and sold. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      All industry and the bank should be nationalized. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      Class is the primary division of society. disagree
      Economic inequality is too high in the world. STRONGLY AGREE

      IS THIS CIVIL RIGHTS?*

      Sometimes it is right that the government may spy on its citizens to combat extremists and terrorists. strongly agree
      Authority figures, if morally correct, are a good thing for society. agree
      Strength is necessary for any government to succeed. agree
      Only the government can fairly and effectively regulate organisations.  disagree
      Society requires structure and bureaucracy in order to function. AGREE
      Mandatory IDs should be used to ensure public safety. agree
      In times of crisis, safety becomes more important than civil liberties. strongly agree
      If you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear.  DISAGREE
      The government should be less involved in the day to day life of its citizens.  STRONGLY AGREE
      Without democracy, a society is nothing. strongly disagree
      Jury nullification should be legal. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      The smaller the government, the freer the people. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      The government should, at most, provide emergency services and law enforcement. Strongly AGREE
      The police were not made to protect the people, but to uphold the status quo by force. Agree
      State schools are a bad idea because our state shouldn't be influencing our children. disagree
      Two consenting individuals should be able to do whatever they want with each other, even if it makes me uncomfortable. AGREE
      An individual's body is their own property, and they should be able to do anything they desire to it. agree
      A person should be able to worship whomever or whatever they want. AGREE

      "SOCIAL" AND "CULTURAL" ISSUES

      Nudism is perfectly natural. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      Animals deserve certain universal rights. AGREE
      Gender is a social construct, not a natural state of affairs. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      Laws based on cultural values, rather than ethical ones, aren't justice. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      Autonomy of body extends even to minors, the mentally ill, and serious criminals  STRONGLY DISAGREE
      Homosexuality is against my values. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      Transgender individuals should not be able to adopt children. DISAGREE
      Drugs are harmful and should be banned. STRONGLY AGREE
      The death penalty should exist for certain crimes. STRONGLY AGREE
      Victimless crimes should still be punished. STRONGLY AGREE
      One cannot be moral without religion. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      Parents should hold absolute power over their children, as they are older and more experienced. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      Multiculturalism is bad. STRONGLY DISAGREE


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Dr. MB on November 21, 2021, 04:56:28 PM
      Quote

      ECONOMIC STUFF

      • Freedom of business is the best practical way a society can prosper. DISAGREE
      • Charity is a better way of helping those in need than social welfare. DISAGREE
      • Wages are always fair, as employers know best what a worker's labour is worth. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      • It is "human nature" to be greedy. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • Exploitation" is an outdated term, as the struggles of 1800s capitalism doesn't exist anymore. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      • Communism is an ideal that can never work in practice. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • Taxation of the wealthy is a bad idea, society would be better off without it. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      • The harder you work, the more you progress up the social ladder. DISAGREE
      • Organisations and corporations cannot be trusted and need regulating by the government. STRONGLY AGREE
      • A government that provides for everyone is an inherently good idea. AGREE
      • The current welfare system should be expanded to further combat inequality. AGREE
      • Land should not be a commodity to be bought and sold. DISAGREE
      • All industry and the bank should be nationalized. AGREE
      • Class is the primary division of society. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • Economic inequality is too high in the world. STRONGLY AGREE

      IS THIS CIVIL RIGHTS?

      • Sometimes it is right that the government may spy on its citizens to combat extremists and terrorists. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      • Authority figures, if morally correct, are a good thing for society. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • Strength is necessary for any government to succeed NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • Only the government can fairly and effectively regulate organisations.  DISAGREE
      • Society requires structure and bureaucracy in order to function. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • Mandatory IDs should be used to ensure public safety. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      • In times of crisis, safety becomes more important than civil liberties. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      • If you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      • The government should be less involved in the day to day life of its citizens.  STRONGLY AGREE
      • Without democracy, a society is nothing DISAGREE
      • Jury nullification should be legal. STRONGLY AGREE
      • The smaller the government, the freer the people NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • The government should, at most, provide emergency services and law enforcement. DISAGREE
      • The police were not made to protect the people, but to uphold the status quo by force. STRONGLY AGREE
      • State schools are a bad idea because our state shouldn't be influencing our children. DISAGREE
      • Two consenting individuals should be able to do whatever they want with each other, even if it makes me uncomfortable. AGREE
      • An individual's body is their own property, and they should be able to do anything they desire to it. AGREE
      • A person should be able to worship whomever or whatever they want. STRONGLY AGREE

      "SOCIAL" AND "CULTURAL" ISSUES

      • Nudism is perfectly natural. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • Animals deserve certain universal rights. STRONGLY AGREE
      • Gender is a social construct, not a natural state of affairs. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • Laws based on cultural values, rather than ethical ones, aren't justice. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      • Autonomy of body extends even to minors, the mentally ill, and serious criminals STRONGLY AGREE
      • Homosexuality is against my values. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      • Transgender individuals should not be able to adopt children. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      • Drugs are harmful and should be banned. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      • The death penalty should exist for certain crimes. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      • Victimless crimes should still be punished. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      • One cannot be moral without religion. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      • Parents should hold absolute power over their children, as they are older and more experienced. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      • Multiculturalism is bad. STRONGLY DISAGREE


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RFayette on November 25, 2021, 12:02:56 AM
      Been a while since I did this, but:

      Economic issues:
      Taxes:  Shift to being more consumption based, keep progressivity through rebate
      Climate:  fund more research in geoengineering, alternative energy, and adaptation
      Regulation:  greatly pare back administrative state
      Healthcare:  expand ACA subsidies, incentivize creation of more med schools

      Social issues
      Abortion:  ban except for life of mother.  I used to see this issue as even more important than religious freedom for non-christian faiths, but now I think that was probably a bridge too far
      Gay marriage:  against, especially in light of rise of transgender revolution in part due to lack of perceived significant distinctions between sexes that this exacerbated.  Also discourage gay adoption, as kids really need a mother and father

      Foreign policy:  draw back from overseas conflicts, divert more military spending to R&D that can help domestically


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Vice President Christian Man on December 11, 2021, 07:55:25 PM
      Social Issues: Right-wing with a Libertarian streak

      Abortion: Strongly oppose. Provide government incentives for adoption and counseling for pregnant women who have been raped or sexually coerced. No taxpayer funding for abortions and no abortions for those under the age of 18.
      Same-Sex Marriage: Abolish federal marriages and make it a religious decision. Opposes drag queen story time and puberty blockers and transition surgery for those under the age of 18. Opposed to the idea of trans athletes playing on the team represented of their gender, but it is a local decision.
      Drugs: Decriminalize, focus on rehabilitation vs. punishment. Let states decide on legalizing marijuana.
      Death Penalty: Strongly Oppose
      Gun Control: Generally oppose, except for red-flag laws with due process and a voluntary buyback assault weapon program with financial incentives, but no mandatory buyback or confiscation programs.
      Affirmative Action: Oppose, but support multicultural programs to improve race relations, excluding radical programs such as CRT.
      Euthanasia: Strongly Oppose, although artificial life support/DNR's can be used
      Prostitution: Decriminalize with rehabilitation
      Criminal Justice: No for-profit prisons. Supports a European-style prison-reform where rehabilitation is emphasized over punishment. Nobody that commits a victimless crime should be imprisoned, except for financial crimes including tax evasion and insider trading. The UK Anti-social behavior order law of the '90s could be beneficial, but it could use some tweaking.
      Surveillance: No warrantless spying. Repeal the Patriot Act. Feds can have access to personal information (internet searches, phone calls, emails) if a warrant is issued.
      Police: Abolish qualified immunity, require body cameras. Supports Tim Scott's proposal for police reform during the last senate session. Increase police budget. Hire more officers in schools. More police in high-crime areas. Support police-initiated community programs in majority-minority neighborhoods.
      Immigration: Opposes mass immigration. Crackdown on illegal immigration and deport immigrants with a criminal record and impose stiff fines on those who do not. Immigration should prioritize political and religious refugees. No more than 350,000 new immigrants a year. Supports a border wall and programs to stop drug/human trafficking and smuggling.
      Religious Freedom: Allow those of different religions to practice freely. Supports public displays of the 10 Commandments, as well as the Statue of Baphomet. Supports voluntary school prayer and the discussion of religion in public schools, as long as the religion is not being used to force children to think/believe in a different way. The Bible can be used for historical/literature purposes etc. Religious holidays should not be observed unless a majority of families in the school district approve.
      Freedom of Speech: Strongly supports, as long as it is non-threatening.
      Property rights: People should own what is there's. The state should not take people's property for any use, unless there is a majority vote for those living in the area in which would be impacted.
      Poverty: Supports programs to eliminate poverty including subsidized/affordable housing for the homeless.

      Economic Issues: Center-left
      Minimum Wage: Living wage for large/multinational corporations. Bartering for small businesses that cannot afford a living wage (allow businesses to pay employees under the minimum wage if they provide housing, food etc.). Support a NIT with a receiving cap of $30,000.
      Tax rates: Support a balanced budget. Focus should be on military spending cuts and cracking down on tax loopholes/evasion, but raise taxes if the budget cannot be balanced.
      Monopolies: Strongly support on large & multinational corporations. Support robust antitrust legislation.
      Healthcare: Single-payer with private insurance option.
      Social security: Remove the payroll tax cap.
      Trade: Nation should be self-sustaining with a system of autarky. Minimize imports/exports whenever possible. Supported Trump's trade war with China. 20% base tariff on imported goods with higher or lower tariffs depending on the supply/demand.
      Environment: Increase subsidies and research for renewable energy. Free college and temporary income for oil/coal/gas workers until they transition into green jobs. Abolish fossil fuel subsidies.
      Education: Vouchers for low-income households for children to attend charter and/or religious schools. Supports the law Gov. DeSantis signed requiring schools to teach the ideology of extreme ideologies including Communism. Opposes free college. Teachers should  have body cameras for parents to access or be required to be available on a social media site such as Zoom.
      Transit:  Free public transportation if they use renewable energy. Improve on existing railroads. Weary about creating new highways and railroads due to eminent domain and redlining concerns.
      Stimulus/Jobs: Opposes corporate bailouts. Supports stimuli money to help those in sectors who have been laid off during times of recessions. Supports mass public work/infrastructure projects to combat unemployment. Supports a jobs guarantee program similar to the Humphrey-Hawkins Full Employment Act. Strongly supports unions , as well as economic democracy.

      Foreign Policy: Dovish/Isolationist
      Foreign Intervention: Oppose except for in cases where The United States was attacked/clear evidence it is going to be attacked. Mainly focus on sanctions/travel embargoes during times of peace. Travel and trade to countries with human rights abuses should be prohibited, unless the traveler has family living in said country. Opposes regime change wars.
      China: Attempt to push back in a realistic manner to avoid a global depression.
      Israel: Pro-Israel
      Iran: Anti-Iran nuclear deal.
      India: Improve relations against the influence of Iran.
      Allies: Focus on improving relations with South Korea & Japan against the influence of China & North Korea.
      NATO: Oppose
      UN: Oppose, but it seems unrealistic to pull out. Instead decrease funding and focus on state & local programs and guidelines.
      Defense budget: Reduce by 20%, remove all inactive troops and close overseas bases. Accelerate to attempt to create a full-technology, minimal solider military.
      Territories: Strongly oppose. Territories should hold referendums to become states or become independent.
      Foreign Aid: Oppose except for during times of war.

      Electoral Reform: Anti-Corruption/Pro-People
      Electoral College: Abolish it. Ranked choice voting.
      Gerrymandering: Should be decided by a nonpartisan commission.
      Term Limits: Opposed except for executive offices.
      Voter ID: Strongly support
      Voter Registration: Automatic registration for legal citizens.
      Voting age: Keep at 18
      Mandatory voting: Strongly opposed
      Statehood: Support due to referendum results
      Filibuster: Strongly support
      Direct Democracy: Strongly support.
      Supreme Court: Keep the 9 current justices, but future elections should be nonpartisan and elected by the people, similar to how they elect them in Wisconsin.



      I think some of my stances have changed enough for an update:

      What's changed:

      Social issues: Right-libertarian

      Affirmative Action: Ensure there's clear lines against discrimination. Businesses have the right to deny service to any group of their choice as long as there is a sign on their door.

      Criminal Justice: Rather than decriminalize victimless crimes like my similar proposal (gambling, pornography, recreational drug use, prostitution etc.) , I think reforming the criminal justice system into a tier-3 rehabilitation system for these crimes would be better. All of these would be followed by additional outpatient counseling/therapy and/or job placement support if needed.
      Tier 1 (low-level): No physical addiction. 30 days of inpatient treatment
      Tier 2 (medium level): Risk of physical addition. 60 days of inpatient treatment
      Tier 3 (high-risk): Physical addiction. 90 days of inpatient treatment.

      Prisons:

      Those who commit nonviolent crimes including financial crimes should after initial arrest/booking, serve their sentence on house arrest with a GPS bracelet device and confiscation of personal electronics traded in for a phone/computer owned by the state until their sentence is over. No more prison sentences, instead it is based off of evidence of risk, remorse, rehabilitation, and psychological well being.

      Maximum security: For violent and/or sexual offenders. Same as our current prison sentence, but sentencing would be replaced with yearly hearings to determine risk level/psychological health for crimes that would merit over a year of jail time.  

      Minimum security: For those that are homeless or evicted during their house arrest sentence. Homeless individuals who are not serving sentences can come and go as they please as well for food and shelter on a vacancy basis.

      Police: Similar to before only I now support a system of hiring mental health officers during non-violent calls (a new mental health hotline), as well as more funding for community/social programs to reduce crime.

      Immigration: Keep ICE but only have them focus on deportation of violent offenders/ensuring catch & release doesn't occur. Divert some ICE funding to the states and have them determine their protocol of what they would do if a criminal crosses the border. Suspend immigration during public health/terrorism crises temporarily but reopen as soon as possible. Primary focus on ICE should be crime reduction. No welfare for illegal immigrants, until they receive citizenship. State/Local governments should decide whether or not to allow voting in those elections but not nationally. States should decide whether or not to build a border wall. Total of 300,000 new citizens a year with a merit based system, but deport anyone who has a history of violence, sexual, or financial offenses. Exempt those fleeing from countries with human rights abuses, as well as those who are facing religious persecution in which they would be allowed citizenship.

      Freedom of Speech: Support. Warrants stemming from free speech should only be issued if there is undeniable evidence that someone is about to commit a crime.

      Property rights: Right to private property, government should not take land, strong enforcement of eminent domain.

      Economics: Center

      Minimum Wage: Allow states to set their own minimum wage. NIT with a receiving line at the poverty line with net payment including taxes, adjusted every year during inflation.

      Trade: Similar only with more of an emphasis of supporting localism.

      Welfare: Require weekly meetings with a social worker or case manager for all welfare recipients to track their status (job searching, any mental health problems if applicable, get help for any addictions if applicable etc). Terminate benefits once they have received a job, unless they are under the poverty line or a recipient of social security.

      Environment: End subsidies and allow the free market to determine the cheapest form of energy. Jobs should be determined by the free market.

      Education: Increase vouchers to all those who cannot afford the tuition to send their child to a religious or charter school (not just low-income). Still opposes the idea of free college but supports the idea of free vocational/trade schools. Send education to the state/local levels. Parents have a right to determine their childs education.

      Transportation:  Should be managed by the cities/states they serve.


      Stimulus/Jobs:
      Unions should be curbed of their corrupt excesses but union members should still be at the forefront of creating a more democratic economy. Bring back guilds.

      Foreign Policy: Still dovish/isolationist

      Military: Keep military-related pensions but still focus on foreign/domestic peace keeping.

      Lift travel embargoes but restrict trade with countries with clear human rights abuses (with the exception of China).

      Form a temporary axis of Asian countries to influence The Middle East/Far-East (India, South Korea, Japan, etc.).

      Foreign Aid: Oppose in almost all cases

      Term limits: Should be up to the constituents but pass legislation prohibiting them from getting bought & paid for.

      Voting Age: 18 (lower if one can pass a test to prove knowledge of American history, politics, history etc.).




      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: LAKISYLVANIA on December 14, 2021, 10:46:36 AM
      Social Issues
      Abortion: Pro-choice
      Same-Sex Marriage: Support, and stop LGBTQ discrimination
      Legalization of Drugs: Strongly support, except in cases of driving. Focus on drug education for risks, as well as realizing that drug addiction is a health issue, not a criminal offense.
      Gun Control: Strongly support
      Prostitution: Lean against
      Affirmative Action: Slight support. I do support it in some ways, but i don't believe that every job or every sector or whatever needs to be a 100% accurate representation. But there should be efforts to give chances to everyone, and i'm against LGBTQ, race & gender discrimination.
      Reparations: Strongly against
      Police Reform/BLM: Reform support. Abolishment, strongly against
      Private Prisons: Strongly against
      Immigration: Support to some extent, but no support for uncontrolled mass immigration.
      Mask Mandates: Support wherever needed, but against where it's not needed.
      Vaccine Mandates: Against, but i support all efforts to cause people to be vaccinated except the manadate
      COVID-19 Vaccines: Support

      Economic Issues
      Free Trade: Oppose
      Taxes: Significantly cut for lower and middle classes, raise on the wealthy
      Healthcare: Entirely free and subsidized, incl. mental healthcare
      Social Security: Public
      National Debt: Not the biggest concern, but should be balanced, slight decrease in good times, increase during bad times
      Campaign Finance Reform: Strongly support
      Unions: Support
      Disability: Support
      Tarriffs: Raise
      Outsourcing: Strongly oppose
      Monopolies: Break up

      Foreign Policy
      Foreign Aid: Cut to some extent
      UN Funding: Cut dramatically
      NATO: Withdraw
      WHO: Withdraw
      Paris Deal: As other nations don't take it seriously, withdraw
      Afghanistan: No political involvement there
      Iraq: No political involvement there
      Iran: No political involvement
      Cuba: Support
      China: Cooperate
      Russia: Cooperate

      Education
      Evolution: We should teach evolution, and not creationism
      School Prayer: Strongly oppose
      Free College: Strongly support
      Free School Breakfasts/Lunches: Strongly Support

      Environment
      Climate Change: Strongly support taking action
      Green New Deal: Unsure because i don't know details
      Carbon Tax: Oppose
      Keystone Pipeline: Strongly oppose


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: LAKISYLVANIA on December 14, 2021, 10:54:51 AM
      ECONOMIC STUFF

      Freedom of business is the best practical way a society can prosper. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      Charity is a better way of helping those in need than social welfare. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      Wages are always fair, as employers know best what a worker's labour is worth. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      It is "human nature" to be greedy. STRONGLY AGREE
      Exploitation" is an outdated term, as the struggles of 1800s capitalism doesn't exist anymore. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      Communism is an ideal that can never work in practice. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      Taxation of the wealthy is a bad idea, society would be better off without it. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      The harder you work, the more you progress up the social ladder. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      Organisations and corporations cannot be trusted and need regulating by the government. STRONGLY AGREE
      A government that provides for everyone is an inherently good idea. STRONGLY AGREE
      The current welfare system should be expanded to further combat inequality. STRONGLY AGREE
      Land should not be a commodity to be bought and sold. STRONGLY AGREE
      All industry and the bank should be nationalized. AGREE
      Class is the primary division of society. AGREE
      Economic inequality is too high in the world. STRONGLY AGREE

      IS THIS CIVIL RIGHTS?*

      Sometimes it is right that the government may spy on its citizens to combat extremists and terrorists. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      Authority figures, if morally correct, are a good thing for society. DISAGREE
      Strength is necessary for any government to succeed NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      Only the government can fairly and effectively regulate organisations.  STRONGLY AGREE
      Society requires structure and bureaucracy in order to function. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      Mandatory IDs should be used to ensure public safety. DISAGREE
      In times of crisis, safety becomes more important than civil liberties. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      If you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      The government should be less involved in the day to day life of its citizens.  STRONGLY AGREE
      Without democracy, a society is nothing STRONGLY DISAGREE (*)
      Jury nullification should be legal. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      The smaller the government, the freer the people STRONGLY DISAGREE
      The government should, at most, provide emergency services and law enforcement. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      The police were not made to protect the people, but to uphold the status quo by force. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      State schools are a bad idea because our state shouldn't be influencing our children. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      Two consenting individuals should be able to do whatever they want with each other, even if it makes me uncomfortable. STRONGLY AGREE
      An individual's body is their own property, and they should be able to do anything they desire to it. STRONGLY AGREE
      A person should be able to worship whomever or whatever they want. STRONGLY DISAGREE (**)

      "SOCIAL" AND "CULTURAL" ISSUES

      Nudism is perfectly natural. STRONGLY AGREE
      Animals deserve certain universal rights. STRONGLY AGREE
      Gender is a social construct, not a natural state of affairs. STRONGLY AGREE
      Laws based on cultural values, rather than ethical ones, aren't justice. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      Autonomy of body extends even to minors, the mentally ill, and serious criminals  STRONGLY AGREE
      Homosexuality is against my values. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      Transgender individuals should not be able to adopt children. DISAGREE
      Drugs are harmful and should be banned. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      The death penalty should exist for certain crimes. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      Victimless crimes should still be punished. DISAGREE
      One cannot be moral without religion. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      Parents should hold absolute power over their children, as they are older and more experienced. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      Multiculturalism is bad. NEUTRAL/UNSURE

      (*) Obviously i do support democracy, although i'm very critical of the current implementation of it. I just disagree with the notion. We've had society for years & years & years in not democratic systems for example. And life goes on in countries like China.

      (**) I'd like a divide between religious stuff and irreligious stuff here. I do think the aspect of religion severely limits productivity of our society, while also hindering freedom, science & other stuff. So yes i'd like restrictions on those and i'd prefer a phasing out of every religious aspect, starting with eliminating group-experienced religion and phasing out gatherings of religious people (churches/mosques/everything). Whatever a person believes in at home is none of my business as long they do it inside their circle. Secondly if a person wears a burqa, that's none of the business of a gvment. I would not prosecute religious people, but i would yes make things harder, and start a project of phasing out religious activities, and especially be tight with those on schools. What the elderly believe in, i care less about, they'll soon die, but it's the future generations that will have to be raised as agnost/atheist. But i also believe that you cannot do this in one day or one generation, that will take a long time and you have to realize that or next thing you do is prosecuting people for their beliefs, but I think it should be strongly encouraged to move to a society where religion is less of a divide, and doesn't limit their understanding of science and knowledge.

      For ideology, i also believe there should be restrictions, like should a person be freely a nazist. I don't believe so. There should be some control. Freedom of opinion can be dangerous as well, like it is harmful when you attack someone on race. It is harmful when you fatshame someone. Certain opinions are harmful, even if they're just opinions.

      ()

      The police were not made to protect the people, but to uphold the status quo by force. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      -> what does this mean actually (perhaps i misunderstood)

      Jury nullification should be legal. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      -> and what is this?


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Southern Reactionary Dem on December 14, 2021, 02:38:53 PM
      I don't feel like typing an entire novel, but I'm basically an old-school Dixiecrat minus the abhorrent views on segregation and racism. I have even voted for George Wallace for governor (in the '80s.... he had reversed course and even won the black vote at that time)

      I'm fiscally progressive (with a particular emphasis on worker rights and healthcare) and socially conservative (generally anti-abortion, pro-gun, very religious)

      I vote primarily based on the economic concerns for the working people in this country so I predominantly vote Democratic and consider myself a Democrat though I have voted R on a few occasions. Basically, whoever is the most pro-worker while being the least socially liberal gets my vote.   


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: OSR stands with Israel on December 14, 2021, 04:32:07 PM
      I don't feel like typing an entire novel, but I'm basically an old-school Dixiecrat minus the abhorrent views on segregation and racism. I have even voted for George Wallace for governor (in the '80s.... he had reversed course and even won the black vote at that time)

      I'm fiscally progressive (with a particular emphasis on worker rights and healthcare) and socially conservative (generally anti-abortion, pro-gun, very religious)

      I vote primarily based on the economic concerns for the working people in this country so I predominantly vote Democratic and consider myself a Democrat though I have voted R on a few occasions. Basically, whoever is the most pro-worker while being the least socially liberal gets my vote.   


      Who are your 3 favorite Dem nominees since you started voting


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Asenath Waite on December 15, 2021, 04:37:04 AM
      Social Issues:

      Abortion: Oppose late term abortions, support legal abortion within the first trimester. I do believe however that states have a right to set restrictions and think that if the issue had been decided on a state by state basis rather then via judicial fiat you wouldn’t be seeing the sorts of draconian Texas style laws implemented.

      Gay Marriage/LGBT Rights: Strongly support

      Immigration: I support streamlining the process of legal immigration and making it significantly easier. I’d also abolish ICE and return to the sort of arrangement that existed in the INS era while prioritizing the deportation of violent criminals and allow all other undocumented immigrants to have an easy path to citizenship. I particularly think that people who oppose DACA are cruel and heartless.

      Gun Control: Mandatory universal background checks which emphasize violent crime rather then mental health which I think is discriminatory, gun buyback programs and restrict the manufacture of the most dangerous sorts of handguns. Long term I think this would have the effect of decreasing the number of guns in circulation more effectively then existing gun control laws.

      Drugs: Legalize marijuana for all adults 18 and older. Decriminalize some hard drugs with an emphasis on harm reduction.

      Alcohol: Lower the drinking age to 18.

      Prostitution: Hesitant but open to supporting full legalization. For now I’m inclined to say the emphasis should be on harm reduction.

      Death Penalty: Oppose

      Black Lives Matter: Support

      Affirmative Action: Keep for race, eliminate for gender, expand to include income level.
      Economic Issues:

      Unions: Repeal Taft-Hartley, enact card check, outlaw right to work laws at the federal level. Everyone should be in a union.

      Healthcare: Enact a British NHS style system, rather then Medicare For All make it a VA for all.

      Taxation: Return the top federal tax rate to Kennedy/Johnson levels for top earners, enact a wealth tax and cut taxes for the bottom 90%

      Tariffs: Good if protecting unionized jobs, bad if being used to block drug importation and protect agribusiness.

      Student Debt: Forgive it, make college free.

      I’d also support a Green New Deal style program (with a greater emphasis on nuclear though) and think that any worker in oil or coal who would be out of a job should either be fully compensated or guaranteed employment in a more environmentally friendly job at a higher wage.

      Government should also fund NASA at 1960s level and invest massively in scientific research and the NIH more generally. We should also have universal paid family leave.

      Other stuff:

      Generally civil libertarian, I think the NSA needs to be reformed and I’d repeal the patriot act. However this has its limits. I would have supported making the initial COVID lockdowns more stringent and I strongly favor vaccine mandates with no exceptions other then health. COVID actually made me realize I was less libertarian then I’d previously thought.

      On foreign policy I’m generally dovish but open to supporting humanitarian intervention to prevent genocide. Biden made the right call in getting out of Afghanistan and it took courage to do something that was politically unpopular. I support Israel’s right to exist but also believe the US needs to exert more leverage to achieve a peace deal. We need to repair our relationship with China while becoming less dependent on them economically.





      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Asenath Waite on December 15, 2021, 05:25:05 AM
      Essentially I’m somewhere between a Great Society/New Frontier liberal and Willy Brandt/Harold Wilson sort of social Democrat.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: James Monroe on December 24, 2021, 12:12:17 AM
      Social beliefs:
      Abortion: Legally in all cases. It should be left to the damn women to choose whatever she wants it or not.
      LGBTQ: Strongly supportive. Appoint SC Justices who will upheld the rights of the LGBTQ community.
      Immigration: Open the borders for all immigrants who want the chance to journey into our wonderful nation.
      Gun Control: Put a stop on all gun manufacturing, issue a gun ban which will get rid of all weapons from being produced or distributed into the nation.
      Death Penalty: Abolish at the federal level. Appoint Supreme Court justices who will stand on this view.
      Separation of Church and State: Remove the Pledge of Allegiance, remove "In God we Trust" from the dollar bill. No mandatory prayer at public funded schools.
      Prostitution: Keep it to the state level
      Affirmative Action: Strongly recommend for all different disadvantage groups who have not been given the chance to secede in the business field.
      Police reform: Abolish the police force in no time.
      Reparations: Issue a reparation plan which goes to all families of former slave owners.
      Mask Mandates: Support at all level of public involvement.
      Vaccine Mandates: Mandated for ALL people living in the country. Business can fine against an employee if they don't get their vaccine shot.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: HillGoose on December 29, 2021, 10:29:04 PM
      - black lives matter
      - feminist
      - pro-LGBT
      - pro-choice
      - anti-gun control
      - pro-immigrant
      - wealthy nations have a moral obligation to help the global south survive climate change
      - very globalist
      - always support liberating the third world from authoritarian tyranny


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Vice President Christian Man on January 22, 2022, 07:15:48 PM
      Social Issues: Right-wing with a Libertarian streak

      Abortion: Strongly oppose. Provide government incentives for adoption and counseling for pregnant women who have been raped or sexually coerced. No taxpayer funding for abortions and no abortions for those under the age of 18.
      Same-Sex Marriage: Abolish federal marriages and make it a religious decision. Opposes drag queen story time and puberty blockers and transition surgery for those under the age of 18. Opposed to the idea of trans athletes playing on the team represented of their gender, but it is a local decision.
      Drugs: Decriminalize, focus on rehabilitation vs. punishment. Let states decide on legalizing marijuana.
      Death Penalty: Strongly Oppose
      Gun Control: Generally oppose, except for red-flag laws with due process and a voluntary buyback assault weapon program with financial incentives, but no mandatory buyback or confiscation programs.
      Affirmative Action: Oppose, but support multicultural programs to improve race relations, excluding radical programs such as CRT.
      Euthanasia: Strongly Oppose, although artificial life support/DNR's can be used
      Prostitution: Decriminalize with rehabilitation
      Criminal Justice: No for-profit prisons. Supports a European-style prison-reform where rehabilitation is emphasized over punishment. Nobody that commits a victimless crime should be imprisoned, except for financial crimes including tax evasion and insider trading. The UK Anti-social behavior order law of the '90s could be beneficial, but it could use some tweaking.
      Surveillance: No warrantless spying. Repeal the Patriot Act. Feds can have access to personal information (internet searches, phone calls, emails) if a warrant is issued.
      Police: Abolish qualified immunity, require body cameras. Supports Tim Scott's proposal for police reform during the last senate session. Increase police budget. Hire more officers in schools. More police in high-crime areas. Support police-initiated community programs in majority-minority neighborhoods.
      Immigration: Opposes mass immigration. Crackdown on illegal immigration and deport immigrants with a criminal record and impose stiff fines on those who do not. Immigration should prioritize political and religious refugees. No more than 350,000 new immigrants a year. Supports a border wall and programs to stop drug/human trafficking and smuggling.
      Religious Freedom: Allow those of different religions to practice freely. Supports public displays of the 10 Commandments, as well as the Statue of Baphomet. Supports voluntary school prayer and the discussion of religion in public schools, as long as the religion is not being used to force children to think/believe in a different way. The Bible can be used for historical/literature purposes etc. Religious holidays should not be observed unless a majority of families in the school district approve.
      Freedom of Speech: Strongly supports, as long as it is non-threatening.
      Property rights: People should own what is there's. The state should not take people's property for any use, unless there is a majority vote for those living in the area in which would be impacted.
      Poverty: Supports programs to eliminate poverty including subsidized/affordable housing for the homeless.

      Economic Issues: Center-left
      Minimum Wage: Living wage for large/multinational corporations. Bartering for small businesses that cannot afford a living wage (allow businesses to pay employees under the minimum wage if they provide housing, food etc.). Support a NIT with a receiving cap of $30,000.
      Tax rates: Support a balanced budget. Focus should be on military spending cuts and cracking down on tax loopholes/evasion, but raise taxes if the budget cannot be balanced.
      Monopolies: Strongly support on large & multinational corporations. Support robust antitrust legislation.
      Healthcare: Single-payer with private insurance option.
      Social security: Remove the payroll tax cap.
      Trade: Nation should be self-sustaining with a system of autarky. Minimize imports/exports whenever possible. Supported Trump's trade war with China. 20% base tariff on imported goods with higher or lower tariffs depending on the supply/demand.
      Environment: Increase subsidies and research for renewable energy. Free college and temporary income for oil/coal/gas workers until they transition into green jobs. Abolish fossil fuel subsidies.
      Education: Vouchers for low-income households for children to attend charter and/or religious schools. Supports the law Gov. DeSantis signed requiring schools to teach the ideology of extreme ideologies including Communism. Opposes free college. Teachers should  have body cameras for parents to access or be required to be available on a social media site such as Zoom.
      Transit:  Free public transportation if they use renewable energy. Improve on existing railroads. Weary about creating new highways and railroads due to eminent domain and redlining concerns.
      Stimulus/Jobs: Opposes corporate bailouts. Supports stimuli money to help those in sectors who have been laid off during times of recessions. Supports mass public work/infrastructure projects to combat unemployment. Supports a jobs guarantee program similar to the Humphrey-Hawkins Full Employment Act. Strongly supports unions , as well as economic democracy.

      Foreign Policy: Dovish/Isolationist
      Foreign Intervention: Oppose except for in cases where The United States was attacked/clear evidence it is going to be attacked. Mainly focus on sanctions/travel embargoes during times of peace. Travel and trade to countries with human rights abuses should be prohibited, unless the traveler has family living in said country. Opposes regime change wars.
      China: Attempt to push back in a realistic manner to avoid a global depression.
      Israel: Pro-Israel
      Iran: Anti-Iran nuclear deal.
      India: Improve relations against the influence of Iran.
      Allies: Focus on improving relations with South Korea & Japan against the influence of China & North Korea.
      NATO: Oppose
      UN: Oppose, but it seems unrealistic to pull out. Instead decrease funding and focus on state & local programs and guidelines.
      Defense budget: Reduce by 20%, remove all inactive troops and close overseas bases. Accelerate to attempt to create a full-technology, minimal solider military.
      Territories: Strongly oppose. Territories should hold referendums to become states or become independent.
      Foreign Aid: Oppose except for during times of war.

      Electoral Reform: Anti-Corruption/Pro-People
      Electoral College: Abolish it. Ranked choice voting.
      Gerrymandering: Should be decided by a nonpartisan commission.
      Term Limits: Opposed except for executive offices.
      Voter ID: Strongly support
      Voter Registration: Automatic registration for legal citizens.
      Voting age: Keep at 18
      Mandatory voting: Strongly opposed
      Statehood: Support due to referendum results
      Filibuster: Strongly support
      Direct Democracy: Strongly support.
      Supreme Court: Keep the 9 current justices, but future elections should be nonpartisan and elected by the people, similar to how they elect them in Wisconsin.



      I think some of my stances have changed enough for an update:

      What's changed:

      Social issues: Right-libertarian

      Affirmative Action: Ensure there's clear lines against discrimination. Businesses have the right to deny service to any group of their choice as long as there is a sign on their door.

      Criminal Justice: Rather than decriminalize victimless crimes like my similar proposal (gambling, pornography, recreational drug use, prostitution etc.) , I think reforming the criminal justice system into a tier-3 rehabilitation system for these crimes would be better. All of these would be followed by additional outpatient counseling/therapy and/or job placement support if needed.
      Tier 1 (low-level): No physical addiction. 30 days of inpatient treatment
      Tier 2 (medium level): Risk of physical addition. 60 days of inpatient treatment
      Tier 3 (high-risk): Physical addiction. 90 days of inpatient treatment.

      Prisons:

      Those who commit nonviolent crimes including financial crimes should after initial arrest/booking, serve their sentence on house arrest with a GPS bracelet device and confiscation of personal electronics traded in for a phone/computer owned by the state until their sentence is over. No more prison sentences, instead it is based off of evidence of risk, remorse, rehabilitation, and psychological well being.

      Maximum security: For violent and/or sexual offenders. Same as our current prison sentence, but sentencing would be replaced with yearly hearings to determine risk level/psychological health for crimes that would merit over a year of jail time.  

      Minimum security: For those that are homeless or evicted during their house arrest sentence. Homeless individuals who are not serving sentences can come and go as they please as well for food and shelter on a vacancy basis.

      Police: Similar to before only I now support a system of hiring mental health officers during non-violent calls (a new mental health hotline), as well as more funding for community/social programs to reduce crime.

      Immigration: Keep ICE but only have them focus on deportation of violent offenders/ensuring catch & release doesn't occur. Divert some ICE funding to the states and have them determine their protocol of what they would do if a criminal crosses the border. Suspend immigration during public health/terrorism crises temporarily but reopen as soon as possible. Primary focus on ICE should be crime reduction. No welfare for illegal immigrants, until they receive citizenship. State/Local governments should decide whether or not to allow voting in those elections but not nationally. States should decide whether or not to build a border wall. Total of 300,000 new citizens a year with a merit based system, but deport anyone who has a history of violence, sexual, or financial offenses. Exempt those fleeing from countries with human rights abuses, as well as those who are facing religious persecution in which they would be allowed citizenship.

      Freedom of Speech: Support. Warrants stemming from free speech should only be issued if there is undeniable evidence that someone is about to commit a crime.

      Property rights: Right to private property, government should not take land, strong enforcement of eminent domain.

      Economics: Center

      Minimum Wage: Allow states to set their own minimum wage. NIT with a receiving line at the poverty line with net payment including taxes, adjusted every year during inflation.

      Trade: Similar only with more of an emphasis of supporting localism.

      Welfare: Require weekly meetings with a social worker or case manager for all welfare recipients to track their status (job searching, any mental health problems if applicable, get help for any addictions if applicable etc). Terminate benefits once they have received a job, unless they are under the poverty line or a recipient of social security.

      Environment: End subsidies and allow the free market to determine the cheapest form of energy. Jobs should be determined by the free market.

      Education: Increase vouchers to all those who cannot afford the tuition to send their child to a religious or charter school (not just low-income). Still opposes the idea of free college but supports the idea of free vocational/trade schools. Send education to the state/local levels. Parents have a right to determine their childs education.

      Transportation:  Should be managed by the cities/states they serve.


      Stimulus/Jobs:
      Unions should be curbed of their corrupt excesses but union members should still be at the forefront of creating a more democratic economy. Bring back guilds.

      Foreign Policy: Still dovish/isolationist

      Military: Keep military-related pensions but still focus on foreign/domestic peace keeping.

      Lift travel embargoes but restrict trade with countries with clear human rights abuses (with the exception of China).

      Form a temporary axis of Asian countries to influence The Middle East/Far-East (India, South Korea, Japan, etc.).

      Foreign Aid: Oppose in almost all cases

      Term limits: Should be up to the constituents but pass legislation prohibiting them from getting bought & paid for.

      Voting Age: 18 (lower if one can pass a test to prove knowledge of American history, politics, history etc.).




      What's changed:

      Social issues: Right-wing

      Immigration: Same as original, only refugees should be excluded from the original 350,000 quota and should be allowed to become citizens, but deported if they commit a crime after their sentence.

      Economic: Center-left

      Jobs: Supports a guild/co-op system for employment. Government jobs should be reorganized based off of skills and interests. Workplaces should be democratized. I generally support the free market, although some aspects of a planned economy including the nationalization of certain businesses could be necessary to achieve autarky.

      Environment: I no longer support free public transport if they use renewables.  

      Highways: I'm open to the ideas of moving highways underground, especially through cities in order to create more opportunities for free enterprise, parks, and reconnecting old neighborhoods, including reversing the harm redlining has done. It is necessary for Jefferson's original vision, while planting more farms, fields, and trees can make the areas more environmentally friendly. The Big Dig in Boston is an example on how these highways could operate in certain areas.

      Foreign policy: Dovish/Peaceful

      I still oppose most wars as they are unnecessary and only benefit the MIC, but there are some cases where our military should intervene, not to fight, but to free. Eisenhower liberating Nazi Germany is an example. We should not send people to fight, but rather to free, although I remain opposed to regime change wars, as I cannot think of a successful regime change operation.

      What's changed as of 2/22:

      Foreign policy: Moderate
      Subscriber to Thomas Aquinas's "Just War" principle.

      No only opposed to multilateral agreements. They should be reviewed and then withdrawn if it's obsolete.

      No longer a supporter of reducing military spending. Supporter of a strong but humble military. "Speak softly and carry a big stick". Supports increased military action either in the case of foreign aid or sending troops when allies are facing war.

      Foreign aid should be reviewed on a case by case basis. While other countries should increase their militaries, some cannot afford to do so. In that case we can either give them aid or build military equipment.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: laddicus finch on February 11, 2022, 12:55:41 AM
      Thought it'd be fun to do this, because I don't really know where I stand politically these days. Here goes nothing:

      Social Issues:

      Abortion: Strongly pro-choice. I don't think all abortion restrictions are necessarily unreasonable, but I think it's more fair to leave the choice to the individual women in question. Keep in mind I'm from Canada which has probably the most liberal abortion laws anywhere, so the specific context of Canada will affect my answer on this and other things.

      Gay Marriage/LGBT Rights: Strongly support

      Immigration: The flow of human capital is, on balance, a good thing. But there should be controls in place. Immigration should be sustainable and take into consideration the hosting country's needs and capacity. Illegal/undocumented immigrants already in the country should be given a path to legal residency and citizenship, and should not be denied access to basic services - however, the flow of immigration should be controlled.

      Gun Control: Again, contextual. In Canada I think gun control measures should target the black market and not legal ownership, and I particularly oppose the Liberal government's moves on this front. In general though I'd say gun ownership should be allowed for people without criminal records, but high-capacity magazines and many modifications should be banned. Semi-auto rifles and handguns should have stricter restrictions than, say, shotguns or bolt-action guns.

      Drugs: Keep marijuana legal for everyone over 18, and look into limited legalization of mushrooms. Decriminalize drug use, but enforce harsh penalties against trafficking and dealing.

      Alcohol: Lower the drinking age to 18.

      Prostitution: People should not be punished for selling their bodies for money, period. But I hesitate to support complete legalization, because as can be seen in places like the Netherlands, this can create an issue with trafficking.

      Death Penalty: Oppose

      Black Lives Matter: The movement against the killing and mistreatment of black people by the police, support whole-heartedly. The organization, I support their core mission but oppose certain far-left and anarchist elements. I don't think "defund the police" is a good idea in general. The police should absolutely be demilitarized and their training should shift more towards de-escalation and harm reduction - but the idea of broadly diverting police funds to social services strikes me as a little naive, and I don't think the early experiments with this have helped.

      Affirmative Action: Very uncomfortable with the idea, but I think completely ending it would do more harm than good. I generally don't think it should be present in the workplace, but in education and training I'm more supportive.

      Economic Issues:

      Unions: Workers have the right to unionize, and this right should be protected. I don't support right-to-work laws as it only creates a free rider problem. That said, I think public sector unions in particular have too much power. Governments should respect and protect the right on workers to organize, but governments also have the authority to reject unions' demands and enact back-to-work legislation.

      Healthcare: Universal access should be guaranteed. I'm not opposed to private delivery of care, but people have a right to medical care.

      Taxation: Keep taxes at the minimum level required to meet the government's mandates. I oppose the idea of using taxation as a means of achieving greater equality. Corporate taxes in particular should not be raised unless absolutely necessary, as they just tend to get passed on to the consumer.

      Income tax cuts, when appropriate, should be done by cutting the lowest brackets, as this results in tax cuts for everyone and has the greatest net benefit to low income earners - in the case of jurisdictions with a 0% bracket like Canada and most of its provinces, the threshold of that bracket should be raised instead of reducing the rate for individual brackets.

      Tariffs: Bad, except in the context of national security. The idea of enacting tariffs to "protect jobs" ultimately cause more harm than good by raising prices for everyone and worsening inflation.

      Student Debt: Don't support student loan forgiveness, it would cost far too much, and on average, someone who has hefty student debts to get higher education is still better off than someone who has no higher education. However, the current system of student financing in the US creates perverse incentives and raises tuition. I'm no expert on how to fix this, but forgiving student debt is not something I support.

      I think moving towards debt-free college is a good idea, but it depends on how you finance and administer it. Grants, government-backed loans, and bursaries should be more widely available.

      Energy/Oil: Nuclear development, where financially sustainable, should be supported, as should green energy. End subsidies to fossil fuel companies. I do not support the Green New Deal, because it has provisions like the job guarantee which I think are misguided. Fossil fuels will not go away tomorrow, but we should prioritize a transition towards more sustainable forms of energy.

      Climate Change: Support the scientific consensus, and fostering more global action on climate change. Innovation on clean energy and carbon mitigation should be supported, because I don't think getting the whole world to dramatically reduce energy consumption is a realistic goal. Support the idea of carbon pricing in theory, but again, without global cooperation, it could just end up being a nuisance with no real results.

      Other stuff:

      COVID restrictions: Oh boy. If you've been following what's going on in Canada as of February 2022, you'll understand why I felt the need to say "oh boy."

      Initially, I was very supportive of all COVID measures. I think Omicron (and Canada's very high vaccination rate) have changed my view a little bit. In general, restrictions should be used in a targeted way to manage outbreaks, and I have no problem with mask mandates. Vaccine mandates can be used to limit spread in specific, high-risk settings. What I emphatically oppose is the idea of using mandates to increase compliance, especially in a country with one of the highest vaxxed rates in the world. The scientific consensus in Canada has started to shift a little, arguing that we have to learn to live with COVID. At one point, it will have to be up to individuals to take responsibility for avoiding dangerous situations when they feel the need, and self-isolate when they have symptoms. People should get the support they need to do this. However, lockdowns have had negative impacts on education, business, mental health, and even social cohesion. When most Canadians are vaccinated, and we have very strict restrictions, but COVID is still not being contained, we need to shift our scope from containment towards management.

      Generally civil libertarian, I think a healthy skepticism of government (and all forms of authority) are necessary for a free society. However, nobody exists in a vacuum, and we all have a responsibility to respect others and the law. Tyranny and anarchy are both evil - governments should be limited in their ability to restrict civil liberties, but not in the ability to enforce existing laws. I think this is an importance balance.

      On foreign policy, not exactly hawkish, but probably more so than dovish in today's context. For something topical, I absolutely support defending Ukraine, although leaving military intervention as a last resort. In general, I think military action should be used only as a last resort. All NATO countries should aim to contribute 2% of GDP to their military, and I think Canada should gradually increase spending once we kill the structural deficit. Strongly oppose nation-building and think Bush's handling of the Iraq War was one of the worst decisions made by a recent President. However, I do not support isolationism, and think that the west should defend its allies and intervene to stop genocides. The American military-industrial complex should be defunded, the military does not exist to create jobs, but to defend the country and its allies.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: LAKISYLVANIA on February 22, 2022, 05:43:25 PM
      Social Issues
      Abortion: Pro-choice
      Same-Sex Marriage: Support, and stop LGBTQ discrimination
      Legalization of Drugs: Strongly support, except in cases of driving. Focus on drug education for risks, as well as realizing that drug addiction is a health issue, not a criminal offense.
      Gun Control: Strongly support
      Prostitution: Lean against
      Affirmative Action: Slight support. I do support it in some ways, but i don't believe that every job or every sector or whatever needs to be a 100% accurate representation. But there should be efforts to give chances to everyone, and i'm against LGBTQ, race & gender discrimination.
      Reparations: Strongly against
      Police Reform/BLM: Reform support. Abolishment, strongly against
      Private Prisons: Strongly against
      Immigration: Support to some extent, but no support for uncontrolled mass immigration.
      Mask Mandates: Support wherever needed, but against where it's not needed.
      Vaccine Mandates: Against, but i support all efforts to cause people to be vaccinated except the manadate
      COVID-19 Vaccines: Support

      Economic Issues
      Free Trade: Oppose
      Taxes: Significantly cut for lower and middle classes, raise on the wealthy
      Healthcare: Entirely free and subsidized, incl. mental healthcare
      Social Security: Public
      National Debt: Not the biggest concern, but should be balanced, slight decrease in good times, increase during bad times
      Campaign Finance Reform: Strongly support
      Unions: Support
      Disability: Support
      Tarriffs: Raise
      Outsourcing: Strongly oppose
      Monopolies: Break up

      Foreign Policy
      Foreign Aid: Cut to some extent
      UN Funding: Cut dramatically
      NATO: Withdraw
      WHO: Withdraw
      Paris Deal: As other nations don't take it seriously, withdraw
      Afghanistan: No political involvement there
      Iraq: No political involvement there
      Iran: No political involvement
      Cuba: Support
      China: Cooperate
      Russia: Cooperate

      Education
      Evolution: We should teach evolution, and not creationism
      School Prayer: Strongly oppose
      Free College: Strongly support
      Free School Breakfasts/Lunches: Strongly Support

      Environment
      Climate Change: Strongly support taking action
      Green New Deal: Unsure because i don't know details
      Carbon Tax: Oppose
      Keystone Pipeline: Strongly oppose

      Some change as I underestimated some clear things, since some people apparently think they live in a 10th century romanticized world.

      NATO: Stay and Expand
      Russia: Completely isolate, sever diplomatic ties
      Romania-Moldova: Unite so that Moldova's territory is part of NATO


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: GregTheGreat657 on February 24, 2022, 11:39:41 PM
      Social Issues
      Abortion: Pro-life, except for cases of rape and incest
      Birth Control: Should be legal
      Same-Sex Marriage: Support
      Legalization of Drugs: Oppose
      Gun Control: Oppose
      Prostitution: Oppose, but go after pimps too
      Affirmative Action: Oppose
      Reparations: Oppose
      Police Reform/BLM: Black lives do matter, and I support most kinds of police reform. However, we should increase, not decrease police funding.
      Private Prisons: Oppose
      Big Tech: Regulate & Break Up.
      Free Speech: As long as it doesn't incite violence or spread lies that lead to others getting hurt, you should be allowed to say whatever you want
      PATRIOT Act: Repeal
      Eminent Domain: Oppose, unless that person's home will more than likely cause damage to others. In the rare case that eminent domain would happen, fair compensation must be provided.
      Immigration: Build a wall on the Southern border, increase funding for ICE, repeal DACA, and put net-zero immigration in effect
      Mask Mandates: Strongly Oppose
      Vaccine Mandates: Oppose
      COVID-19 Vaccines: They work, and I personally did get vaccinated

      Economic Issues
      Free Trade: Oppose most free trade agreements
      Taxes: Significantly cut for lower and middle classes, slightly raise on the wealthy
      Healthcare: Support a voluntary public option for the lower class, but no government-run healthcare for the middle and upper classes
      Social Security: Partially privatize
      National Debt: Support paying down the national debt, even if that means cuts to social spending, foreign aid, and tax hikes on the wealthy
      Campaign Finance Reform: Support
      Unions: Support right-to-work legislation
      Disability: Tighten eligibility, cut spending
      Tarriffs: Raise
      Outsourcing: Oppose
      Monopolies: Break them Up!

      Foreign Policy
      Foreign Aid: Dramatically cut. We should not be giving large amounts of our money to other countries when we have poor people here and a national debt
      UN Funding: Dramatically cut
      NATO: Withdraw
      WHO: Withdraw
      Paris Deal: Withdraw
      Afghanistan: We should have withdrawn a lot sooner but in a more orderly fashion. We should have gotten American citizen civilizations out first, and then our military personnel & equipment
      Iraq: Should have never been there, to begin with
      Iran: Withdraw from the nuclear deal, support sanctions
      Cuba: Keep the trade embargo until they become a free country
      China: Crack down on this regime. I support sanctions
      Russia: Support sanctions
      Section 230: Repeal

      Education
      CRT: Oppose
      Evolution: We should teach evolution, and not creationism
      School Prayer: Allow individual students to pray, but do not allow any adult to lead prayer
      Sallie Mae: Disband
      Free College: Oppose
      Free School Breakfasts/Lunches: Support


      Environment
      Climate Change: Is real, and is caused by humans
      Green New Deal: Oppose, we musn't totally sacrifice our economy for the environment
      Carbon Tax: Oppose
      Keystone Pipeline: Continue Building

      Elections
      Big Lie: Oppose. Biden won fair and square.
      Voter ID: Should be mandatory and free to all adults who want to vote
      Audits: Mandatory if the results are within 5%.
      Term Limits: Support for all elected offices
      DC: Add DC to Maryland, except for an area of government buildings where no one is allowed to reside in
      PR: Support independence
      SCOTUS: Should be elected to 8-year terms with no justice being allowed to serve more than 2 terms.

      If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me
      In light of recent events, I now support staying in NATO for the duration of the Russo-Ukrainian war, but our allies still need to be able to defend themselves without our $$$


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Schiff for Senate on March 24, 2022, 06:10:35 PM
      Social Issues
      Abortion: Pro-life, except for cases of rape and incest
      Birth Control: Should be legal
      Same-Sex Marriage: Support
      Legalization of Drugs: Oppose
      Gun Control: Oppose
      Prostitution: Oppose, but go after pimps too
      Affirmative Action: Oppose
      Reparations: Oppose
      Police Reform/BLM: Black lives do matter, and I support most kinds of police reform. However, we should increase, not decrease police funding.
      Private Prisons: Oppose
      Big Tech: Regulate & Break Up.
      Free Speech: As long as it doesn't incite violence or spread lies that lead to others getting hurt, you should be allowed to say whatever you want
      PATRIOT Act: Repeal
      Eminent Domain: Oppose, unless that person's home will more than likely cause damage to others. In the rare case that eminent domain would happen, fair compensation must be provided.
      Immigration: Build a wall on the Southern border, increase funding for ICE, repeal DACA, and put net-zero immigration in effect
      Mask Mandates: Strongly Oppose
      Vaccine Mandates: Oppose
      COVID-19 Vaccines: They work, and I personally did get vaccinated

      Economic Issues
      Free Trade: Oppose most free trade agreements
      Taxes: Significantly cut for lower and middle classes, slightly raise on the wealthy
      Healthcare: Support a voluntary public option for the lower class, but no government-run healthcare for the middle and upper classes
      Social Security: Partially privatize
      National Debt: Support paying down the national debt, even if that means cuts to social spending, foreign aid, and tax hikes on the wealthy
      Campaign Finance Reform: Support
      Unions: Support right-to-work legislation
      Disability: Tighten eligibility, cut spending
      Tarriffs: Raise
      Outsourcing: Oppose
      Monopolies: Break them Up!

      Foreign Policy
      Foreign Aid: Dramatically cut. We should not be giving large amounts of our money to other countries when we have poor people here and a national debt
      UN Funding: Dramatically cut
      NATO: Withdraw
      WHO: Withdraw
      Paris Deal: Withdraw
      Afghanistan: We should have withdrawn a lot sooner but in a more orderly fashion. We should have gotten American citizen civilizations out first, and then our military personnel & equipment
      Iraq: Should have never been there, to begin with
      Iran: Withdraw from the nuclear deal, support sanctions
      Cuba: Keep the trade embargo until they become a free country
      China: Crack down on this regime. I support sanctions
      Russia: Support sanctions
      Section 230: Repeal

      Education
      CRT: Oppose
      Evolution: We should teach evolution, and not creationism
      School Prayer: Allow individual students to pray, but do not allow any adult to lead prayer
      Sallie Mae: Disband
      Free College: Oppose
      Free School Breakfasts/Lunches: Support


      Environment
      Climate Change: Is real, and is caused by humans
      Green New Deal: Oppose, we musn't totally sacrifice our economy for the environment
      Carbon Tax: Oppose
      Keystone Pipeline: Continue Building

      Elections
      Big Lie: Oppose. Biden won fair and square.
      Voter ID: Should be mandatory and free to all adults who want to vote
      Audits: Mandatory if the results are within 5%.
      Term Limits: Support for all elected offices
      DC: Add DC to Maryland, except for an area of government buildings where no one is allowed to reside in
      PR: Support independence
      SCOTUS: Should be elected to 8-year terms with no justice being allowed to serve more than 2 terms.

      If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me
      In light of recent events, I now support staying in NATO for the duration of the Russo-Ukrainian war, but our allies still need to be able to defend themselves without our $$$


      I didn't know you were that much of an isolationist, but this post called my attention to your foreign policy views for the first time...


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Schiff for Senate on March 24, 2022, 06:12:46 PM
      Reparations: Issue a reparation plan which goes to all families of former slave owners.

      Are you saying descendants of slave owners should fit the bill for reparations? If so, that is terrible policy. It is not your fault what your ancestors did and you should not be punished for their crimes. Making them pay for something they have never partaken in is abhorrent, and this kind of thinking is one of the many, many flaws with the reasons/implementation plans liberals given for supporting reparations.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Sea-Spit on April 01, 2022, 03:31:44 AM
      Generally I'd say I'm to the left of Biden but to the right of Bernie.

      Social Issues: I'd say I'm pretty Libertarian on most social issues. I support things like Roe, LGBTQ+ rights, and gun ownership (with common sense restrictions to ensure that we can use guns responsibly for the good of the public.) I'm indifferent to a lot of culture war issues since it's usually distracting from actual issues that affect the majority of us (who tf cares if a trans kid joins a sports team when most Americans can't afford to own a home?) All in all to sum up my positions on social issues "If they aren't actively hurting anybody or disrupting the peace then leave them alone.

      Economic Issues: I'm very much Center Left on economic issues. I think the biggest mistake this country made was deregulating the economy and slashing the social safety net. It is because of this bad public policy making that we lag behind other industrialized nations in terms of health and quality of life. I think trade unions do more good than harm and that we should be doing anything possible to grow the middle class. I'm all for raising taxes when they ought to be raised, and cutting them when they ought to be cut. I do agree that we need to raise the minimum wage but it should be proportional to the cost of living of the states individually rather than nationally, twelve dollars goes a long way in rural Kentucky than it does in urban California.

      Other issues: I support reforming the electoral college to be fairer for both parties.
      Most states should have independent commissions for redistricting.
      The number of seats in the house should be increased in accordance with our population now.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: 15 Down, 35 To Go on April 04, 2022, 11:27:57 PM
      Religion: Full ban on proselytizing. Period. I don't care about your religion, and I don't want to hear your stupid ing protests at military funerals for no reason. And for all you southern baptists- your church was founded for the sole purpose of justifying slavery. Also increase hate crime enforcement to protect Jews and Muslims (lol ER be like 'Growing hostility towards Christians in this country).

      Wow, edgy!  How exactly would you go about banning evangelism without stopping free speech and free exercise of religion (since following Jesus's command before ascending into Heaven requires evangelism)?

      Also, no serious Christian protests military funerals.  The Westboro Baptist "Church" isn't authentic Biblical Christianity.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Kahane's Grave Is A Gender-Neutral Bathroom on April 04, 2022, 11:48:31 PM
      Religion: Full ban on proselytizing. Period. I don't care about your religion, and I don't want to hear your stupid ing protests at military funerals for no reason. And for all you southern baptists- your church was founded for the sole purpose of justifying slavery. Also increase hate crime enforcement to protect Jews and Muslims (lol ER be like 'Growing hostility towards Christians in this country).

      Wow, edgy!  How exactly would you go about banning evangelism without stopping free speech and free exercise of religion (since following Jesus's command before ascending into Heaven requires evangelism)?

      Also, no serious Christian protests military funerals.  The Westboro Baptist "Church" isn't authentic Biblical Christianity.

      I suppose I should change that, and I've moderated my position on hot-button social issues since Confederategate. I suppose I'd instead say anyone who works in as a governmental employee or a company that gets most of its business from the government should be prohibited from spending money on religious causes. I'm actually fine with private citizens doing whatever they please with regards to religion- but if your salary is paid by the government, it's paid for by the tax dollars of non-religious/other religion folks, who make up 40% of the country. And because of disproportionate income and earnings among groups like Jews and Hindus, we could well be looking at 50% of revenue. It's a simple thing of 'taxpayers should not have to pay for something they disagree with). I'd be fine with an Italian system, where taxpayers are required to donate to a religious charity, but they can choose which one (so Jews could pay into a Jewish organization, but Protestants could pay into some organization that reflects their faith).

      Then again I also favor shrinking the government so this wouldn't be much of a problem, ideally.

      And, in hindsight, I should not have called you out specifically.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Person Man on April 05, 2022, 02:37:53 PM
      ECONOMIC STUFF

      Freedom of business is the best practical way a society can prosper. AGREE
      Charity is a better way of helping those in need than social welfare. DISAGREE
      Wages are always fair, as employers know best what a worker's labour is worth. DISAGREE
      It is "human nature" to be greedy. STRONGLY AGREE
      Exploitation" is an outdated term, as the struggles of 1800s capitalism doesn't exist anymore. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      Communism is an ideal that can never work in practice. AGREE
      Taxation of the wealthy is a bad idea, society would be better off without it. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      The harder you work, the more you progress up the social ladder. NEUTRAL
      Organisations and corporations cannot be trusted and need regulating by the government. AGREE
      A government that provides for everyone is an inherently good idea. DISAGREE
      The current welfare system should be expanded to further combat inequality.  AGREE
      Land should not be a commodity to be bought and sold. DISAGREE
      All industry and the bank should be nationalized. DISAGREE
      Class is the primary division of society. AGREE
      Economic inequality is too high in the world. STRONGLY AGREE

      IS THIS CIVIL RIGHTS?*

      Sometimes it is right that the government may spy on its citizens to combat extremists and terrorists. DISAGREE
      Authority figures, if morally correct, are a good thing for society. NEUTRAL
      Strength is necessary for any government to succeed  AGREE
      Only the government can fairly and effectively regulate organisations.  STRONGLY AGREE
      Society requires structure and bureaucracy in order to function. STRONGLY AGREE
      Mandatory IDs should be used to ensure public safety.NEUTRAL
      In times of crisis, safety becomes more important than civil liberties. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      If you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      The government should be less involved in the day to day life of its citizens.  STRONGLY AGREE
      Without democracy, a society is nothing AGREE
      Jury nullification should be legal. STRONGLY AGREE
      The smaller the government, the freer the people DISAGREE
      The government should, at most, provide emergency services and law enforcement. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      The police were not made to protect the people, but to uphold the status quo by force. NEUTRAL
      State schools are a bad idea because our state shouldn't be influencing our children. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      Two consenting individuals should be able to do whatever they want with each other, even if it makes me uncomfortable. STRONGLY AGREE
      An individual's body is their own property, and they should be able to do anything they desire to it. STRONGLY AGREE
      A person should be able to worship whomever or whatever they want. AGREE (**)

      "SOCIAL" AND "CULTURAL" ISSUES

      Nudism is perfectly natural. STRONGLY AGREE
      Animals deserve certain universal rights.  AGREE
      Gender is a social construct, not a natural state of affairs. AGREE
      Laws based on cultural values, rather than ethical ones, aren't justice. STRONGLY DISAGREE
      Autonomy of body extends even to minors, the mentally ill, and serious criminals   AGREE
      Homosexuality is against my values.  DISAGREE
      Transgender individuals should not be able to adopt children. DISAGREE
      Drugs are harmful and should be banned.  DISAGREE
      The death penalty should exist for certain crimes. DISAGREE
      Victimless crimes should still be punished. DISAGREE
      One cannot be moral without religion.  DISAGREE
      Parents should hold absolute power over their children, as they are older and more experienced. DISAGREE
      Multiculturalism is bad. NEUTRAL/UNSURE

      The police were not made to protect the people, but to uphold the status quo by force. NEUTRAL
      -This is the theory that the police weren't formed to uphold ethics or security in society, but to ensure the continuation of the activity of those whom society is ultimately built around.

      Jury nullification should be legal. NEUTRAL/UNSURE
      -> and what is this? A jury refusing to convict a defendant when the defendant is obviously liable because the law they are accused of violating is unjust, unethical, and/or was wrongly decided to be constitutional


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: MR DARK BRANDON on April 22, 2022, 10:57:01 AM
      Social Issues
      Abortion: Pro Choice
      Birth Control: Should be legal
      Same-Sex Marriage: Support
      Legalization of Drugs: Decriminalize some but increase penalties for drug dealers and impose sales tax
      Gun Control: universal background checks
      Prostitution: should be legal
      Affirmative Action: Oppose
      Reparations: Neutral
      Police Reform/BLM: reform and fund police for training, do not decrease police funding
      Private Prisons: Oppose
      Big Tech: Regulate.
      Free Speech: As long as it doesn't incite violence or spread lies that lead to others getting hurt, you should be allowed to say whatever you want
      PATRIOT Act: Repeal, it’s out lives it’s usefulness
      Eminent Domain: Oppose
      Immigration: immigrants build America; The wall is pointless; fortify DACA but increase boarder patrol and keep remain in Mexico
      Mask Mandates: Strongly Oppose
      Vaccine Mandates: support, but protests against them should be allowed
      COVID-19 Vaccines: They work, and I personally did get vaccinated

      Economic Issues
      Free Trade: support most free trade agreements
      Taxes: eliminate for lower class and cut for middle classes, raise on the wealthy
      Healthcare: expand Obamacare to include a public option
      Social Security: keep the same for the most part; maybe some marginal expansions
      National Debt: Support paying down the national debt, by raising taxes on the very wealthy and increasing corporate tax to 28% as well as cutting some wasteful spending, not through middle class tax raises or cutting social programs
      Campaign Finance Reform: Support
      Unions: Support right-to-work legislation
      Disability: expand eligibility
      Tarriffs: Raise
      Outsourcing: Oppose
      Monopolies: Break them Up!
      UBI: $1000 a month

      Foreign Policy
      Foreign Aid: keep the same
      UN Funding: increase
      NATO: stay
      WHO: stay
      Paris Deal: stay
      Afghanistan: We should have withdrawn a lot sooner but in a more orderly fashion. We should have gotten American citizen civilizations out first, and then our military personnel & equipment
      Iraq: Should have never been there, to begin with
      Iran: get back in nuclear deal, support sanctions
      Cuba: Keep the trade embargo
      China: support sanctions
      Russia: Support sanctions
      Section 230: Repeal
      Russia V. Ukraine: keep the current path; send military aid to Ukraine and increase sanctions on Russia but do NOT let it escalate into an all out war

      Education
      CRT: doesn't exist
      Evolution: We should teach evolution, and not creationism
      School Prayer: Allow individual students to pray, but do not allow any adult to lead prayer, allow students to pray to whatever god they believe in.
      Free College: Oppose but make it much more affordable
      Free School Breakfasts/Lunches: Support
      Grading: make a pass 50 rather than 60; grading system should look something like this

      A+; 95-100
      A: 87-94
      A-: 80-86
      B+: 77-79
      B: 73-76
      B-: 70-72
      C+: 67-69
      C: 63-66
      C-: 60-62
      D+: 57-59
      D: 53-56
      D-: 50-52
      F: under 50

      Environment
      Climate Change: Is real, and is caused by humans
      Green New Deal: Oppose, elements of it are good, but the full plan is extremely costly, unrealistic and will never pass. Go with the Biden plan
      Carbon Tax: Oppose
      Keystone Pipeline: Oppose
      Energy independence: energy independence by 2050, transition away from fracking

      Elections
      Big Lie: Oppose. Biden won fair and square.
      Voter ID: Should be mandatory and free to all adults who want to vote
      Audits: not necessary.
      Term Limits: Support for all elected offices
      DC: support statehood
      PR: Support independence
      SCOTUS: term limits of 20 years


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: jkmillion on April 24, 2022, 11:50:04 PM
      Social Issues:

      Abortion-Women have the right to abortion in the first trimester. In the 2nd and third trimester, states can regulate(protect for rape and incest in these cases though b/c that is punishing the victim) Ban partial-birth abortion though.
      Gay Rights-More libertarian on this issue. Don’t really have anything to say(though, don’t get all of the discourse on both sides though)
      Immigration:Legal immigration is good. Illegal immgration is really bad(No amnesty/no letting them vote) Don’t put them in cages though.Support building the wall/increasing border spending and increasing the amount of legal immigrants.
      Gun Control-Background checks, basically don’t know much about guns other than that.
      Drugs:Legalize Marijuana, heavily crack down on illegal drugs though(preferably send the victims to drug recovery centers and the dealers to prison)
      Crime:Tough on Crime, increase police spending, train them better so you can supply the police with better weapons, reform them so they aren’t nearly as prone to commit police brutality; support the death penalty

      Economic Issues:

      Unions-Private Unions should be allowed and NLRB be enforced; either way on public unions
      Healthcare:Keep Obamacare/just put caps on drug prices
      Trade-Very free trade
      Minimum Wage-Raise it
      Student Debt-Personally think the situation is fine(maybe a 1-5k relief for poor students extra?) Probably the most overblown issue
      Oil/Gas/Climate Change:Basically, drilling oil and gas should be prioritized to reduce poverty and gas prices, just spend more money on researching more effective climate policies
      COVID:Can we just go back to normal with the restrictions. I wear a mask personally, but seriously; looking forward to normalcy
      Monopolies:Meh.
      Capitalism or Socialism:Capitalism all the way

      Foreign Policy:

      Military:Very Strong Military
      Foreign Policy-Isolate China/Russia, make political agreements with SE Asia and strengthen NATO
      Views on War-Tbch, the economic big stick/heavy sanctions might be a bigger deterrent of war than threatening war

      Views on certain things:
      Electoral College:The propo
      nents and opponents are political hacks
      Filibuster:Support

      Personally, I don't have many strong views on much except for crime and economic issues. If you can convince me about why something is good, I will listen and consider it.

      Ideology:

      Pew Research Center-Ambivalent Right
      Another Pew Research Center-Mainstream Liberal
      Tweet Ideology:Tilt Liberal
      News Diet:75% Centrist
      Left/Right Axis:2.33
      Auth/Lib 2.67
      Prog/Con Axis 0.94 CON

      2020 Vote-Biden, I got really sick and annoyed of Trump and wanted someone who would cause me to forget caring about politics
      2022 Vote:Republican, Democrats pretty much failed at inflation, they deserve to be voted out unless they turn it around


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: West_Midlander on May 09, 2022, 09:30:45 AM
      Copying Greg's template

      Social Issues
      Abortion: Pro-life, except for cases of rape and to save the life of the mother (up to a certain point)
      Birth Control: Should be legal and feminine products shouldn't be taxed as a luxury item; I also support comprehensive sex ed at the state/local level
      Same-Sex Marriage: Support
      Legalization of Drugs: I think it would be best to prosecute drug dealers and those whose drugs led to people's deaths strongly while decriminalizing regular use and discouraging it, especially for harder drugs apart from cannabis. I think a medical cannabis law federally would be good and allowing states to legalize it recreationally and tax and regulate it.
      Gun Control: Oppose
      Prostitution: Decriminalize for prostitutes but strongly discourage at health departments, for example; urge prostitutes to regularly get tested and strongly prosecute solicitors/customers and pimps/madams.
      Affirmative Action: Oppose
      Reparations: Oppose
      Police Reform/BLM: Don't defund the police but some limited reforms are needed especially in cities (e.g., I support body cams at the state or local level). Training should also be improved. Criminal justice reform is needed.
      Private Prisons: Oppose; I also think prisoners should work off the cost of their imprisonment but they shouldn't be treated badly for no reason. Violent criminals who are undocumented should be imprisoned and then deported so they can't just come back into the country as is the case when people (criminal or not) are deported en masse.
      Big Tech: Regulate
      Free Speech: As long as it doesn't incite violence, you should be allowed to say whatever you want
      PATRIOT Act: Leave it alone, I suppose
      Eminent Domain: Oppose, unless that person's home will more than likely cause damage to others. In the rare case that eminent domain would happen, fair compensation must be provided.
      Immigration: Comprehensive Immigration Reform and allow more refugees especially Christian Arabs, Ukrainians, Tibetans, Hong Kongers, and Haitians; protect DACA and TPS, I don't support open borders but if the process to come in legally is easier than coming in illegally which is expensive and extremely dangerous then we wouldn't have a border "crisis." Don't continue building the wall but keep what's there.
      Mask Mandates: Oppose
      Vaccine Mandates: Oppose
      COVID-19 Vaccines: They work, and I personally did get boosted; side effects and deaths do happen but it's less likely than bad effects from COVID itself

      Economic Issues
      Free Trade: Opposed NAFTA, USMCA is fine
      Taxes: Extend the Trump era middle class tax cuts and restore taxes on the wealthy to 1950s rates to reduce the national debt -- our tax system is pretty unfair to the wealthy but it's not as if they can't afford to pay and high rates shouldn't reduce economic growth as we saw in the 50s.

      I think inheritance tax/estate tax is pretty unfair but they should remain due to our big debt problem at least for a while. I don't support a wealth tax or a tax on unrealized gains though because that is fundamentally anti-capitalist, impractical, etc.
      Healthcare: Support a voluntary public option, allow Medicare to negotiate the cost of life saving drugs (inc. insulin), allow drug importation from Canada and allow insurance companies to compete across state lines
      Social Security: I would consider partial privatization (by personal choice) but only if benefits won't be decreased for the average person and/or the cap on social security tax could be removed to shore up funds for the program.
      National Debt: Support paying down the national debt, even if that means cuts across the board and tax hikes on the wealthy
      Campaign Finance Reform: Support
      Unions: Neutral
      Disability: No changes needed
      Tarriffs: Meh, maybe some limited tariffs to support key US industries -- free trade with our allies is fine but I don't support outsourcing
      Outsourcing: Oppose
      Monopolies: Break them up, end subsidies for big ag and the fossil fuel industry

      Foreign Policy
      Foreign Aid: We barely give any to begin with and it's barely any of our budget. That being said, we should probably increase funding significantly, maybe to 1-1.5% of GDP to counter Chinese spending (for influence) in Africa.
      UN Funding: Meh
      NATO: Absolutely do not withdraw...doing so would allow Russia (and China) to run roughshod over much of the world
      WHO: Remain but I don't like the WHO covering for China
      Paris Deal: Remain but China and India need to pull their own weight too
      Afghanistan: We should have withdrawn in 2004 but in a more orderly fashion. We should have gotten American citizens out first, and then our military personnel & equipment.
      Iraq: I probably would have supported the war at the time, believing the WMD claim but we should have left in 2007 probably, if not earlier.
      Iran: I supported the Iran Nuclear Deal at the time but it's a bad deal to rely on their word that they aren't developing nuclear weapons just as Trump's deal that had the Taliban agree to prevent terrorists organizing in their country is a bad deal because we only have the word of very unreliable people. So, sanctions, I guess.
      Cuba: Keep the trade embargo until they become a free country.
      China: Sanctions, I suppose. Continue to support HK and Taiwan.
      Russia: Support sanctions
      Section 230: Leave it alone, I suppose.

      Education
      CRT: Oppose
      Evolution: We should teach evolution, and not creationism; tell students they need to know evolution for the test but they can believe what they like
      School Prayer: Allow individual students to pray, but do not allow any adult to lead prayer in an official capacity as a faculty member
      Sallie Mae: Their lending tactics are predatory but leave it alone aside from some minor changes to their practices, I suppose
      Free College: Oppose
      Free School Breakfasts/Lunches: Support but it should be a state/local decision


      Environment
      Climate Change: Is real, and is caused by humans to a large degree
      Green New Deal: Tilt Yes? We need climate action and infrastructure. The cost is a major con to the plan though. If the $93 trillion dollar price tag is for real that's too much.
      Carbon Tax: Yes, but use the proceeds to pay toward social spending (existing not new spending)
      Keystone Pipeline: No

      Elections
      Big Lie: I was unsure about if Biden won legitimately. I think he probably did but there were likely some shenanigans in his favor during the electoral process.
      Voter ID: Should be mandatory and free to all adults who want to vote (on a state-by-state basis, no federal mandate) -- If photo ID is required, it should be included on free voter ID given to voters.
      Audits: Meh.
      Term Limits: No
      DC: Give the district 1 Senator and 1 Rep. through a constitutional amendment
      PR: Statehood or Independence under a COFA w/ the USA
      SCOTUS: No changes needed.

      Many issues were left out but this is a pretty good overview.

      If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: scutosaurus on June 03, 2022, 12:48:47 PM
      taking the list of issues from the post above me

      abortion: on demand and make health insurance pay for it
      birth control: on demand and make health insurance pay for it
      same-sex marriage: this is a settled issue, support lmao
      legalization of drugs: people should not be in jail for substance abuse
      gun control: good
      prostitution: nordic model
      affirmative action: don't care
      reparations: good as long as it's through investment in underprivileged communities rather than cash payments
      police reform: abolish qualified immunity, bust their unions, i don't care just make them accountable for their actions on even the most basic level
      private prisons: bad
      big tech: bad
      free speech: it's my constitutional right to call you out when you say dumb sh*t
      patriot act: bad
      eminent domain: don't care
      immigration: open the border, abolish ice, reorient cbp towards fighting cartel violence instead of turning away refugee children
      mask mandates: bad
      vaccine mandates: bad 
      covid vaccines: good, i got three of them

      free trade: good except with totalitarian hellholes
      taxes: i'm very interested in georgism/LVT but i don't know enough about econ to come down with a strong position
      healthcare: public option
      social security: haven't seen an argument that's convinced me major changes need to be made
      national debt: i guess try to pay it off if you're not cutting social programs for it
      campaign finance reform: we really need it
      unions: good in the private sector, mixed feelings about the public sector. despite these mixed feelings i think it's really bad that some dems have basically given up on them
      disability: don't know much but we probably need to expand it given how we treat disabled people
      tariffs: bad unless they're on totalitarian hellholes
      outsourcing: inevitable
      monopolies: bad lmao it isn't 1870

      foreign aid: we should do a lot more of it
      UN funding: i honestly really dislike the UN and i support selectively defunding the egregiously bad committees but i think it would do more harm than good to leave
      NATO: good, expand it
      WHO: stay but be more forceful in calling out their CCP apologia
      paris deal: didn't go far enough
      afghanistan: all i know is we really messed up
      iraq: don't care it isn't 2003
      iran: the nuclear deal is probably dead and idk if we can bring it back to life
      cuba: we don't have trade embargoes with much worse countries, no reason to single them out
      china: sanctions, diplomatic pressure, recognize taiwan independence
      russia: completely isolate them economically and diplomatically, don't recognize the legitimacy of the government
      section 230: i have literally never heard of this

      CRT: don't care, shut up about it
      evolution: objectively real
      school prayer: students can do what they want as long as the establishment clause is being followed
      sallie mae: don't know enough to say
      free college: there should be free community college and more relief for low-income students but like they gotta get the money from somewhere
      free school meals: uh support i guess

      climate change: very very bad
      green new deal: catchy slogan, probably support some of the associated policies and oppose others
      carbon tax: good
      keystone pipeline: didn't it get cancelled

      big lie: it's called that for a reason
      voter id: ok with it as long as people can get one for free
      audits: don't care
      term limits: status quo
      DC: let their reps vote, give them more local authority, if you want me to support full statehood you have to come up with a better name than "state of washington, douglass commonwealth"
      puerto rico: they voted for statehood, give them statehood
      scotus: term limits, pack it at least until sam alito dies (soon inshallah)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: America Needs R'hllor on June 03, 2022, 02:42:21 PM
      Gonna use scuto's post as a template since we agree on most things:

      abortion: on demand and make health insurance pay for it
      birth control: on demand and make health insurance pay for it
      same-sex marriage: gonna get same-sex married and anyone who tries to stop me can go to hell
      legalization of drugs: full legalization of marijuana, no jail sentences for using other substances (but yes for dealing)
      gun control: require license (training + background checks), ban military grade rifles (sane)
      prostitution: nordic model
      affirmative action: don't care
      reparations: invest in places that need it, but there's no need to call it reparations and the whole debate is ridiculous and besides the point
      police reform: make them much more accountable (Israel too)
      private prisons: evil
      big tech: bad, need to bust some monopolies
      free speech: great stuff- the far-right with support from the mainstream media is brainwashing people anyway that free speech means bigots should be exempt from public criticism
      patriot act: bad
      eminent domain: don't care
      immigration: the US is an immigrant nation and its economy needs immigration, make the process much easier, also abolish ICE. In Israel- reform the refugee system to be much less intentionally-sluggish, keep immigration laws as is
      mask mandates: bad
      vaccine mandates: good, though at this point no need
      covid vaccines: great, the antivax are insane

      free trade: good, with some limits
      taxes: progressive income taxes, higher corporate and capital taxes, much less regressive sales taxes
      healthcare: Israel's model is great- basically a bunch of public not-for-profit companies that you can choose from, and an ability to add some private healthcare as extra
      social security: good stuff
      national debt: keep it in check, reverse Republican tax cuts; Israel needs way more deficit spending
      unions: very good and should be encouraged, but strikes by unions that can completely halt the economy (train company, teachers, port workers) need to have some limits
      disability: living wage benefits
      tariffs: bad, unless as a foreign policy tool used wisely
      outsourcing: inevitable
      monopolies: terrible

      foreign aid: great
      UN funding: fund it generally but defund joke committies like the human rights committee
      WHO: stay but be more forceful in calling out their CCP apologia
      paris deal: good, didn't go far enough
      afghanistan: should've ended after a couple years
      iraq: unjustified, dumb war
      iran: should've never ended the nuclear deal, either strengthen sanctions or try to return to a sane nuclear deal without absurd concessions
      cuba: normalize relations
      china: act to counter them with positive steps (more global investment etc), defend Taiwan, engage respectfully but forcefully to make sure they remain in the global order
      russia: keep up the economic and diplomatic isolation, pressure as many countries as possible to join, help Ukraine, until Putin is dead or resigns
      section 230: ?

      CRT: shut the f**k up
      evolution: objectively real
      school prayer: let students who want to pray do it in their own time, no organized prayers, it's creepy and bad
      sallie mae: ???
      free college: not free, but subsidized
      free school meals: duh

      climate change: not good!
      green new deal: catchy slogan, probably support some of the associated policies and oppose others
      carbon tax: very good
      keystone pipeline: keep it cancelled

      big lie: a disproven lie meant to topple American democracy, anyone who legitimizes it is a fascist enemy of humanity
      voter id: good but only coupled with free and easily accessible ids AND automatic voter registration
      audits: don't care
      term limits: status quo, but limit judge terms
      DC: full statehood immediately
      puerto rico: full statehood immediately
      scotus: term limits, add more judges


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Pedocon Theory is not a theory on June 03, 2022, 10:31:51 PM
      national debt: support
      abortion: support
      big tech: support
      evolution: support
      Monopoly: somewhat support
      Secret Hitler: strongly support
      finland: support
      salmiakki: support
      gigabit internet: support
      CBT: support
      Kowloon Walled City: support
      Alien(Scott, 1979): support
      taxes: support
      ukraine: support
      ketchup on hotdogs: support
      Taco Bell Spicy Potato Taco: support
      The Core(Amiel, 2003): support
      discrete mathematics education: support
      AARP memberships for <50s: support
      mandatory homosex: support
      4x4s from In-N-Out: support
      In-N-Out fries: strongly oppose
      pickled herring: support
      nuclear power: support
      singapore: oppose
      california: support
      having two dakotas: oppose
      london: support
      george rr martin's writing habits: oppose
      walkable urbanism: support
      american whoppers: oppose
      british malteasers: support
      western obsession with white meat on chicken: strongly oppose


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: KaiserDave on June 03, 2022, 11:11:59 PM
      Copying Parrotguy and Scuto's format since they are cool

      Abortion: Easy to access, almost always legal, with exceptions in the third trimester. Work to reduce the amount of abortions with access to contraception and social services. Oppose intact D&E unless mother's life is at risk or the fetus is already dead.
      Birth Control: Legal on demand and all the time
      Same-Sex Marriage: Total Marriage and Civil Equality.
      Legalization of Drugs: Legalize, tax, and regulate marijuana. No jail sentences for any drug possession crimes, yes jail sentences for violent drug related crimes and dealing.
      Gun control: Regulate like a car, licensing, proficiency test, background checks, ban on certain munitions and weapons.
      Prostitution: Nordic Model
      Affirmative Action: Honestly don't know for sure, but needed in some circumstances
      Reparations: Big investments in places that need it, baby bonds, social services. Don't use the word "reparations" because that would be dumb.
      Police Reform: Make them much more accountable, honestly I'm not sure about the details but there has to be substantial reform, there's something rotten and there has been for decades, especially with corruption and a culture of covering things up. No defund unless you have some seriously bloated budgets, also focuses on demilitarization.
      Private Prisons: Awful
      Big Tech: Very bad, regulate and break up monopolies.
      Free Speech: Great, of course
      Patriot Act: Bad, of course
      Eminent Domain: Over-used
      Immigration: More legal immigration and more refugees! I'm okay with controlling the border philosophically but not interested in sending money down an endless "secure the border" rabbit hole.
      Mask Mandates: Opposed in almost all circumstances outside of hospitals and nursing homes.
      Vaccine Mandates: Good at a time, no longer necessary
      Covid Vaccines: Great achievement of science, I have no problem with receiving a yearly shot.

      Free Trade: Largely sound with some exceptions. Or better said, flawed but much better than a system of unilateral trade agreements with tariffs.
      Taxes: Progressive income taxes, higher capital gains taxes, much less regressive sales taxes. Redistributive progressive tax system. State property taxes should be gathered into a general fund and then distributed to schools as necessary.
      Healthcare: I'm undecided on the exact system, but it should be universal, public, and free or nearly free at the point of purchase.
      Social Security: Great raise the cap on social security taxes.
      National Debt: No needless tax cuts.
      Unions: Great! More private sector unions everywhere, public sector unions should exist but should be treated somewhat differently.
      Disability: Public accommodations and living wage benefits.
      Tariffs: Very dumb, unless as a foreign policy tool used wisely.
      Outsourcing: Inevitable but still should be controlled and addressed where it happens.
      Monopolies: Break them up

      Foreign Aid: Great
      UN Funding: Generally for, with exceptions
      WHO: Stay but call out their BS
      Paris Deal: Good but not sufficient
      Afghanistan: We should have left after ObL was killed and we should have been a lot more clear to the world and too ourselves about what we wanted and aimed for at the start.
      Iraq: Evil, never should have happened
      Iran: Should have stayed in the nuclear deal, try and make a new one I guess, situation is pretty bad.
      Cuba: Normalize Relations
      China: Counter their global influence, support Taiwan, the tariffs aren't very smart though.
      Russia: Strong pressure, keep up the sanctions, give Ukraine every weapon they ask for.
      Section 230: I don't know what this is

      CRT: I have no idea what this refers to anymore. Teach kids about racism in an appropriate way.
      Evolution: Real
      School prayer: Students can pray all they want, staff just can't organize or lead it.
      Sallie Mae: I don't know enough, but don't under-regulate.
      Free college: Not free, but more affordable
      Free School Meals: Yep

      Climate Change: The crisis of our times, man-made and already effecting us. Life on Earth is already going to change for the worse massively but we can reduce the damage.
      Green New Deal: A patchwork of policies that I support most of
      Carbon Tax: Good
      Keystone Pipeline: No

      2020 Election Lies: They are completely made up out of thin air, they are based on nothing except the ravings of an egotist madman.
      Voter ID: Good but only coupled with free and easily accessible IDs and automatic voter registration
      Audits: Of elections? Sure, I don't really care.
      Term limits: Status quo, but limit judge terms.
      DC: Some kind of representation arrangement or statehood.
      Puerto Rico: Full statehood
      SCOTUS: Term limits, possibly some kind of massive structural reform (SCOTUS picks their own members but has to be unanimous, Senate confirms) but I'm not sure.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Kleine Scheiße on June 04, 2022, 01:19:50 AM
      Abortion: should be fully legal with means-tested subsidy
      Birth Control: should be fully legal with universal availability
      Same-Sex Marriage: should be fully legal
      Legalization of Drugs: legalize marijuana; decriminalize everything else; research psychedelics, ibogaine, and ketamine for medical usages
      Gun Control: current laws plus assault weapons ban, general age raise to 21, close of gun show loophole, and introduction of a voluntary buyback program
      Prostitution: federally decriminalize independent prostitution; prosecute pimping more aggressively; allow local jurisdictions to legalize and regulate, nevada style
      Affirmative Action: i support holistic assessments over checkbox ones and i think that generally affirmative action policies encourage decisionmakers to be more holistic than they would be otherwise and that affirmative action serves a crude but necessary function in addressing certain social ills
      Reparations: yes in one form or another
      Police Reform: we should make policing a professional career requiring a basic legal education and implement a strong moral code of conduct resembling the military's; we should also pay police significantly more in salary and benefits as a result of these higher qualification requirements, end qualified immunity, ban police unionization, transfer militarized police equipment to appropriate national and state guards, legally embolden civilian review boards and mandate their creation where they do not currently exist, and create new unarmed non-emergency response teams to serve in addition to police where a police response would not be appropriate. we should also peg military and police pay and benefits to teacher pay and benefits.
      Private Prisons: ban
      Big Tech: i think we should enforce the antitrust laws that our forefathers wisely gave us and break them up
      Free Speech: almost everyone who isn't trying to be edgy says they support free speech in the abstract, so i think this is kind of a meaningless question
      Patriot Act: i don't categorically oppose it but it went too far
      Eminent Domain: i support eminent domain but it is currently overused and we do not compensate property owners who don't have poitical sway highly enough
      Immigration: if the democratic party were openly importing millions of refugees from africa, central america, and the middle east as some conspiracy theorists claim, that would increase my opinion of the democratic party
      Mask Mandates: generally opposed
      Vaccine Mandates: generally in favor; religious exemptions should not be allowed, medical exemptions are perfectly fine
      Covid Vaccines: if your opinion of the covid vaccine is negative i don't want to know you

      Free Trade: depends on how you define it; critical support just because the main alternative (the prior system of unilateral trade agreements with higher tariffs) is worse
      Taxes: pro land value tax, delink property taxation from public school funding, close income tax/capital gains tax gap, slightly raise corporate tax rate while eliminating deductions. dramatically expand the child tax credit as proposed in the american family act
      Healthcare: drastically expand medicaid coverage, and introduce a universal medicare buy-in through an employer-matched W2 income tax. include dental, hearing, vision, reproductive, and mental healthcare in medicaid and medicare
      Social Security: lockbox. enough said.
      National Debt: should be an important consideration in times of prosperity so that it can be an afterthought in times of distress
      Unions: we should pass a constitutional amendment banning so-called "right to work" legislation and dramatically expand the powers of the national labor relations board
      Disability: should be better funded as curreny administered through social security
      Tariffs: generally unwise, sometimes beneficial in the short term
      Outsourcing: inevitable, should be taxed
      Monopolies: there should be criminal prosecution options on the table for the worst monopolies

      Foreign Aid: should dramatically expand for nations without human rights violations if we want to remain the leader of the free world, and i think that we should
      UN Funding: we should expand the powers of the UN and be more involved in its activities
      WHO: we should stay in the WHO even if they sometimes make silly decisions
      Paris Deal: good but not sufficient
      Afghanistan: joe biden had the courage to do the right thing when no one else was willing to and there was a lot of collateral damage because it had been so long and until the current administration our government had proved itself so shamefully cowardly in dealing with the public about the war. it will forever be a blemish on our legacy as a republic
      Iraq: we should never have gone into iraq and i believed this at the time
      Iran: we should have continued negotiating the iran nuclear deal and should avoid war with iran at almost all costs
      Cuba: normalize relations entirely
      China: an ancient and very complex society few understand and many claim to understand, we should see china as a competitor and not an adversary; we should support taiwan and counter china's military and economic influence where we can, including fighting chinese economic imperialism in africa
      Russia: a primary adversary, they are a net negative political, economic, and military influence on the world currently; historically an unfairly humiliated nation of hardy, determined people
      Section 230: strong support

      CRT: i support critical race theory being taught at the level it is currently being largely taught at (university and law school) and think it offers a number of important insights we could benefit from absorbing as a society
      Evolution: a fact
      School prayer: student prayer is perfectly fine, and if staff want to lead extracurricular religious clubs that is fine, but school or teacher led prayer in class should not be allowed
      Sallie Mae: regulate
      Free college: make four years of tuition but not room and board free at community colleges and non-flagship campus state universities, stop charging interests on student loans, and forgive $10k of student debt for all current federal borrowers
      Free School Meals: yes, this should not be a debate

      Climate Change: more than any other political "issue," a literacy test, plain and simple; if you believe climate change is not real and/or that we should not take federal action to combat its effects, you should not be listened to about any other topic
      Green New Deal: critical support
      Carbon Tax: support
      Keystone Pipeline: oppose

      2020 Election Lies: they give me strong enough permission to totally ignore people who propogate them for the sake of my own mental health, but this may not be a good thing in the long run
      Voter ID: pass universal automatic voter registration and give people special voter ID cards for this purpose, then require those cards to vote
      Audits: if requested, sure
      Term limits: status quo plus a single judicial term limit of 14 years, strongly oppose legislative term limits
      DC: full statehood
      Puerto Rico: full statehood
      SCOTUS: expand to 13 and allow the current justices to unanimously select the four new justices to be appointed, and if they can not come to a conclusion, allow biden to appoint them unilaterally; the earlier mentioned 14 year term limit should not be imposed on current justices or the four selected unanimously by them (or appointed by biden in the event of an impasse), instead starting with their succesors


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Perlen vor den Schweinen on June 04, 2022, 03:51:27 AM
      abortion: should be means-tested
      birth control: should be means-tested
      same-sex marriage: should be means-tested
      legalization of drugs: should be means-tested
      gun control: should be means-tested
      prostitution: should be means-tested
      affirmative action: should be means-tested
      reparations: should be means-tested
      police reform: should be means-tested
      private prisons: should be means-tested
      big tech: should be means-tested
      free speech:should be means-tested
      patriot act: should be means-tested
      eminent domain: should be means-tested
      immigration: should be means-tested
      mask mandates: should be means-tested
      vaccine mandates: should be means-tested
      covid vaccines: should be means-tested

      free trade: should be means-tested
      taxes: should be means-tested
      healthcare: should be means-tested
      social security: should be means-tested
      national debt: should be means-tested
      unions: should be means-tested
      disability: should be means-tested
      tariffs: should be means-tested
      outsourcing: should be means-tested
      monopolies: should be means-tested

      foreign aid: should be means-tested
      UN funding: nuke
      NATO: nuke
      WHO: nuke
      paris deal: nuke
      afghanistan: nuke
      iraq: nuke
      iran: nuke
      cuba: nuke
      china: nuke
      russia: nuke
      section 230: should be means-tested

      CRT: should be means-tested
      evolution: should be means-tested
      school prayer: should be means-tested
      free college: should be means-tested
      free school meals: should be means-tested

      climate change: should be means-tested
      green new deal: should be means-tested
      carbon tax: should be means-tested
      keystone pipeline: should be means-tested

      big lie: should be means-tested
      voter id: should be means-tested
      audits: should be means-tested
      term limits: should be means-tested
      DC: should be means-tested
      puerto rico: should be means-tested
      scotus: should be means-tested


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: OSR STANDS WITH PALESTINE on June 04, 2022, 11:54:06 PM
      same-sex marriage: oppose
      legalization of drugs: oppose
      gun control: oppose
      prostitution: oppose
      affirmative action: oppose
      reparations: oppose
      police reform: oppose
      private prisons: oppose
      patriot act: oppose
      eminent domain: oppose
      mask mandates: oppose
      vaccine mandates: oppose 
      national debt: oppose
      outsourcing: oppose
      china: oppose
      russia: oppose
      monopolies: oppose
      CRT: oppose
      school prayer: oppose
      sallie mae: oppose(?)
      free college: oppose
      climate change: oppose
      keystone pipeline: oppose
      big lie: oppose
      voter id: oppose
      audits: oppose
      term limits: oppose
      DC: strongly oppose
      scotus: strongly oppose
      covid vaccines: what's covid?
      Butlerian Jihad: strongly support


      He who controls the spice controls the universe


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: OSR STANDS WITH PALESTINE on June 05, 2022, 12:24:21 AM
      Social Issues
      Abortion: Pro-life mostly, but not my place
      Birth Control: Should be legal AND free.
      Same-Sex Marriage: Strongly support, also Trans rights
      Legalization of Drugs: Marijuana should be legal, others no. Ban tobacco tho, it’s more harmful than Marijuana
      Gun Control: Support
      Prostitution: Not really my business, promote safety and health tho, also get rid of “pimps”
      Affirmative Action: No view really. Have to give some thought
      Reparations: Support them
      Police Reform/BLM: Black Lives Matter. I’m autistic and the cops treat us bad too, defund the police, ACAB, all that
      Private Prisons: Oppose
      Big Tech: Regulate
      Free Speech: Ban hate speech.
      PATRIOT Act: Repeal, the government has no business in everyone’s business
      Eminent Domain: Oppose
      Immigration: Cannot be illegal on stolen land
      Mask Mandates: Support
      Vaccine Mandates: Oppose
      COVID-19 Vaccines: They work, and I personally did get vaccinated

      Economic Issues
      Free Trade: Support
      Taxes: Significantly cut for lower and middle classes, significantly raise on the wealthy
      Healthcare: Medicare for all who want it
      Social Security: No opinion as of now
      National Debt: Tax the billionaires and corporations
      Campaign Finance Reform: Support
      Unions: Mixed opinion.
      Disability: As an autistic and legally blind person, I say make it easier and make the benefits more.
      Tarriffs: Raise on corporations
      Outsourcing: N/A
      Monopolies: Break them Up! (Still an issue?)

      Foreign Policy
      Foreign Aid: Dramatically cut. We should not be giving large amounts of our money to other countries when we have poor people here and a national debt
      UN Funding: cut slightly
      NATO: Withdraw
      WHO: Stay
      Paris Deal: Rejoin
      Afghanistan: I am a pacifist sooooo-
      Iraq: See last answer
      Iran: Pacifism and diplomacy
      Cuba: generally encourage democracy
      China: Our relationship with china depends on china, try to be civil, encourage democracy
      Russia: Okay, this is different, Putin needs stopped
      Section 230: No opinion

      Education
      CRT: …what? We should learn about HISTORY, keep parents out of the classrooms (unless they’re staff at the school)
      Evolution: We should teach evolution, and not creationism (I’m a Christian and I think this)
      School Prayer: Allow individual students to pray, but do not allow any adult to lead prayer
      Sallie Mae: Not sure
      Free College: Free for poor folks, significantly cheaper for middle class, charge big rates for children of billionaires
      Free School Breakfasts/Lunches: Support for all


      Environment
      Climate Change: Is real, and is caused by humans. Need to fight it
      Green New Deal: noble cause, could be reworked
      Carbon Tax: Sort of oppose? Idk
      Keystone Pipeline: Keep it gone

      Elections
      Big Lie: Oppose. Biden won fair and square. 
      Voter ID: Should be mandatory and free to all adults who want to vote
      Audits: Might be stupid but at 23 I still don’t know exactly what an audit is
      Term Limits: Support.
      DC: Should be up to DC, generally don’t think it needs to be a whole state, since it’s a relatively small area
      PR: Support independence if they want it
      SCOTUS: Biden should add more justices.

      My voting history:
      2018 VA senate race: Libertarian Matt Waters

      2020 democratic primary: debated between Sanders and Bloomberg, voted Bloomberg
      2020 general election: Biden. Considered voting Hawkins.
      2020 US senate election for Virginia: voted Warner

      2021 va democratic primary for governor: Jennifer Carroll Foy
      2021 VA democratic primary for LT Governor: Elizabeth Guzman was my first choice, voted Andrea McLellan after Elizabeth dropped out
      2021 VA democratic attorney general primary: Jay Jones

      2021 VA Governor election: voted for Princess Blanding, third party candidate
      2021 LT gov election: Delegate Hala Ayala got my vote
      2021 AG election: held my nose and voted for Mark Herring.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Starbucks Union Thug HokeyPuck on June 05, 2022, 01:38:14 PM
      All issues and concerns:

      Correct.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Dr. MB on June 07, 2022, 12:57:46 AM

      I don't like to identify with a specific political/ideological label, but most would consider me an esoteric, moderate-on-some-issues social democrat. I excluded all of my political beliefs that relate to topics that aren't viewed as 'normal' political issues, which are a big part of the 'esoteric' part of that descriptor, because I don't know if this thread is only for your beliefs on mainstream issues or not.
      Nah those are the most interesting ones. Go on...


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: NYDem on June 30, 2022, 04:05:53 PM
      Not sure if I've done this before. I'm using the previous list.

      Abortion: Fully legal until ~16 weeks (brain activity), legal afterward to protect the mother.
      Birth Control: Fully legal
      Same-Sex Marriage: Legal
      Legalization of Drugs: Legalize marijuana. Legalize possession and consumption, but not the sale or production of other drugs.
      Gun Control: Assault weapons ban, expand background checks, enact red flag laws.
      Prostitution: No change.
      Affirmative Action: Generally oppose. Public universities should not engage in affirmative action.
      Reparations: Stupid.
      Police Reform: Increase training requirements for police, eliminate qualified immunity, prevent officers who have been fired or convicted of job-related abuses from working in other police forces. Create a more uniform police oversight board system.
      Private Prisons: Ban
      Big Tech: I don't like it, but I don't see what legal changes are needed.
      Free Speech: I fully support the First Amendment. Not sure who doesn't. Oppose hate speech laws.
      Patriot Act: Repeal.
      Eminent Domain: Oppose the usage of eminent domain for private development purposes. Eminent domain exists so that forts and roads can be constructed, not for vague notions of economic development.
      Immigration: Yearly refugee cap should be raised significantly. Support citizenship for illegal immigrants who were brought as children. That being said, I have no problems with securing the border or more generally preventing illegal immigration.
      Mask Mandates: No longer relevant.
      Vaccine Mandates: Generally favor in the forms that they currently exist. Oppose religious exemptions.
      Covid Vaccines: I don't see what difference there would be between this and the previous question.

      Free Trade: Support.
      Taxes: Favor raising taxes on higher tax brackets, as well as the creation of an additional bracket for the highest end of the scale. Local property taxes for local school funding should be eliminated, school funding should be handled on at least a statewide level.
      Healthcare: Expand medicaid, medicare buy-in for ages 55+. Create a public option. Pass one of the many existing prescription drug bills.
      Social Security: If Social Security risks insolvency, eliminate the earnings cap on the social security tax.
      National Debt: Should be lowered, although that's a bit of a lost cause at this point.
      Unions: Support the right of all workers to form a union. Increase penalties for employers who use illegitimate means to prevent unionization.
      Disability: The current state of disability rights seems decent, at least at the federal level, so I'm unsure what needs to be done here.
      Tariffs: Generally oppose. Tariffs for economic protection rarely work, and tariffs for national security reasons probably ought to be embargoes.
      Outsourcing: An unavoidable consequence of having a free economy.
      Monopolies: More rigorous enforcement of anti-trust legislation, though there are not many true monopolies today.

      Foreign Aid: Strongly support. Foreign aid is an infinitesimal fraction of the country's budget, which has the beneficial effects of increasing American influence and building alliances abroad. Support expanding funding to initiate an American backed belt and road initiative-type proposal.
      UN Funding: Current levels are adequate.
      WHO: Disapprove of some of China's meddling, but such things are not worth blowing up the organization.
      Paris Deal: Rejoin.
      Afghanistan: Oppose the withdrawal. We took on the responsibility for propping up Afghanistan when we chose to invade in 2001, and we should not have withdrawn unless the state we left behind had some hope of surviving.
      Iraq: The Iraq War was a mistake. The continued presence of small amounts of troops in Iraq isn't a problem to me, so long as they are stationed with the consent of Iraq's government.
      Iran: Supported the Iran deal and continued negotiations. Oppose military action against Iran unless directly attacked.
      Cuba: Support normalizing trade with Cuba.
      China: Support military aid and protection for Taiwan. Support efforts to create American alliances in East Asia to counter China's influence. Support refocusing our military towards defending against a potential conflict over Taiwan (though such a thing should obviously not be instigated).
      Russia: Support all current sanctions against Russia for its war with Ukraine, support additional sanctions/embargo against Russia. Support increased aid to Ukraine, including training on and delivery of Western weapons and equipment.
      Section 230: Fine in its current form.

      CRT: I oppose teaching university-level legal theories in public schools. Oppose teaching (commonly labelled "CRT") which implies inherited guilt or which shames students for things outside their control, while recognizing that such things are not actually commonly taught in schools.
      Evolution: What year is it?
      School prayer: Prayer should not be involved in public school instruction. If a student chooses to pray on their own that's fine.
      Sallie Mae: regulate
      Free college: Oppose. Support state schools and community colleges.
      Free School Meals: Support.

      Climate Change: Is a long-term threat to the planet, requiring government action and international co-operation now to combat it. Support moving the US power grid to cleaner sources such as wind, water, solar, or nuclear power.
      Green New Deal: Incredibly stupid.
      Carbon Tax: Support
      Keystone Pipeline: Oppose

      2020 Election Lies: Totally false.
      Voter ID: Support as long as all Americans are issued IDs.
      Audits: ?
      Term limits: Oppose term limits, would support repeal of the 22nd Amendment.
      DC: Support statehood, repeal of the 23rd Amendment.
      Puerto Rico: Support statehood, repeal of the Jones Act, overturning of the Insular Cases.
      SCOTUS: Favor codifying the Supreme Court's actual role and powers into the constitution.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: BG-NY on July 15, 2022, 08:25:24 PM
      Social Issues
      Abortion: Support
      Birth Control: Support
      Same-Sex Marriage: Support
      Legalization of Drugs: Neutral
      Gun Control: Oppose
      Prostitution: Neutral
      Affirmative Action: Oppose
      Reparations: Oppose
      Police Reform/BLM: Support
      Private Prisons: Oppose
      Big Tech: Oppose
      Free Speech: Support
      PATRIOT Act: Oppose
      Eminent Domain: Oppose
      Immigration: Oppose
      Mask Mandates: Oppose
      Vaccine Mandates: Oppose
      COVID-19 Vaccines: Support

      Economic Issues
      Free Trade: Oppose
      Taxes: Cut across the board for individuals (least so for wealthy), lower to 10% for corporations, tax capital gains as ordinary income
      Healthcare: Lower Medicare age to 55
      Social Security: No change
      National Debt: Neutral
      Campaign Finance Reform: Oppose
      Unions: Oppose since the 70s. They are broken institutions
      Disability: Provide more access to job training/placement
      Tariffs: Levy a 20% tariff internationally across the board, with 40% on China and the EU
      Outsourcing: Penalize companies for outsourcing through severe taxation
      Monopolies: Break them up, with a high standard

      Foreign Policy
      Foreign Aid: Cut to zero
      UN Funding: Cut to zero
      NATO: Withdraw
      WHO: Withdraw
      Paris Deal: We were smart to leave
      Afghanistan: Withdraw all aid
      Iraq: Leave, withdraw all aid
      Iran: No ground war. Sanction for cross-dumping from Russia/China
      Cuba: Sanction for cross-dumping from Russia/China
      China: Economic adversary. Need tariffs on every sector. No human rights/geopolitical sanctions
      Russia: The invasion was wrong, but leave Europe's problems to Europe
      Section 230: Eliminate

      Education
      CRT: Young white children shouldn't be indoctrinated with collective guilt
      Evolution: Evolution is real and should be taught in schools
      School Prayer: Don't care
      Sallie Mae: Broken, eliminate
      Free College: Support for certain fields.
      Free School Breakfasts/Lunches: Support


      Environment
      Climate Change: Is real, but overstated. Free market should come up with solutions.
      Green New Deal: Oppose
      Carbon Tax: Oppose
      Keystone Pipeline: Resume construction.

      Elections
      Big Lie: Trump potentially won in 2020, and was right to contest the results up until inauguration.
      Voter ID: Should be mandatory.
      Audits: Candidates should have more recourse in elections with final results <1%
      Term Limits: Support
      DC: Consolidate into MD and/or VA
      PR: No statehood, grant independence
      SCOTUS: Oppose stacking


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: KoopaDaQuick 🇵🇸 on July 17, 2022, 12:25:43 AM
      Can't find my old post on here, but too much has probably changed since then.

      Social Issues
      Abortion: Pro-choice (I personally don't like it, but it's not the government's business
      Birth Control: Support w/ education
      Same-Sex Marriage: Support
      Legalization of Drugs: Decriminalize all consumption and possession, open up passageways to help get people to quit
      Gun Control: Support firmly
      Prostitution: Like abortion, I don't support it, but it should be decriminalized and regulated
      Affirmative Action: Support, as long as it's for a valid reason and doesn't go too far
      Reparations: Support firmly
      Police Reform/BLM: Oppose police, support BLM
      Private Prisons: Oppose
      Big Tech: Break up monopolies
      Free Speech: Support in public spaces
      PATRIOT Act: Repeal
      Eminent Domain: Oppose
      Immigration: Should be opened up more
      Mask Mandates: Don't care
      Vaccine Mandates: Oppose
      COVID-19 Vaccines: Support

      Economic Issues
      Free Trade: Support firmly
      Taxes: Abolish sales tax, and all income tax should be progressive
      Healthcare: Universal healthcare should be instituted, either nationwide or state-controlled
      Social Security: No change
      National Debt: We should lower it, but it's not as important as some make it out to be
      Campaign Finance Reform: Keep the status quo
      Unions: Every employed or contracted worker should be unionized, no exceptions
      Disability: Provide more access to job training/placement
      Tariffs: Oppose unless absolutely necessary
      Outsourcing: Oppose, but I don't care enough to have a firm opinion on it
      Monopolies: Break them up, with a high standard

      Foreign Policy
      Foreign Aid: Support
      UN Funding: Don't oppose
      NATO: Support
      WHO: Support
      Paris Deal: Glad we're back on
      Afghanistan: Keep the aid, but I'm glad we're out
      Iraq: Leave, but still keep aid
      Iran: Leave, but still keep aid
      Cuba: Open up relationship 100%
      China: Need to become less reliant on them
      Russia-Ukraine: Send aid to Ukraine
      Section 230: Support

      Education
      CRT: It's a buzzword for teaching the youth stuff that conservatives don't want people to know about
      Evolution: Real, won't protest it being taught in schools
      School Prayer: Oppose teacher-led prayer, praying privately in a public school should be kosher
      Sallie Mae: De-privatize it
      Free College: Support for certain fields
      Free School Breakfasts/Lunches: Support, although it should be expanded to help students in poverty eat during the summer/weekends/holidays


      Environment
      Climate Change: Is real, and we need to take immediate and harsh public action. We can't leave it to corporations.
      Green New Deal: Support firmly
      Carbon Tax: Support
      Keystone Pipeline: Shouldn't be built without support from the Indians whose land it will be built on

      Elections
      Big Lie: Biden won fair and square
      Voter ID: Jim Crow in disguise
      Audits: Candidates should have more recourse in elections with final results <1%
      Term Limits: Support
      DC: Given the full rights of a state, nobody in MD or DC actually wants to merge the two
      PR: Either statehood or independence, depending on what a referendum would say
      SCOTUS: Wouldn't protest packing it


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The Smiling Face On Your TV on July 19, 2022, 08:11:57 PM
      ()


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: FairBol on July 28, 2022, 02:57:45 AM
      Not going into every stance I have (bed is calling, LOL), but here are a few of them.  Call this Part 1, if you will. 

      Overall Ideology: Conservative, with some Libertarian leanings.

      Social: Not sure exactly what term fits me, but I tend to come down on the side of traditional values and "tough love".  Nevertheless, I believe that people should be allowed to make their own decisions, as long as the results of those decisions don't clearly hurt others. 

      Economic: Mostly laissez-faire: that is, leave the free market alone to oversee and regulate itself.

      Foreign Policy: Big stick diplomacy, and "peace through strength". 

      More Foreign Policy

      UN/Int'l Orgs: Maintain a presence in the UN, but cut back on general involvement, and charge rent for having the headquarters in NYC.
      NATO: Continue membership, and strengthen general ties with our allies throughout the world.
      Afghanistan: The botched withdrawal from Kabul was one of the most shameful events I've witnessed in recent years.  Hold top military brass, as well as the Commander-in-Chief, accountable for their actions/inaction.

      Iran: Strong sanctions are in order here.  We must never allow Iran to become a nuclear weapon possessing power. 
      Cuba: No lifting of sanctions until some additional democratic reforms are instituted. 
      Israel: Not just an ally in the Middle East, but America's chief ally in the region.  We should maintain our special relationship with them.
      Palestine: Continue to push for peace, but no negotiation as long as Hamas/Hezbollah continues to attack Israel.
      Russia: Diplomacy, but remind them in no uncertain terms that we will defend our allies (as well as ourselves) in the case of an attack.  Hey, it worked in the case of North Korea (for a time)!


      Top Electoral Issues

      Term limits: Support in most cases.
      Election integrity: It's WAY too easy to forge votes, tinker with official counts, and commit other "shenanigans".  There needs to be SOME kind of a change made; requiring a valid ID for voting purposes is a good start.

      DC and PR statehoods: Oppose under all circumstances for DC, support for Puerto Rico if the citizens there vote for it. 
      Electoral College: Maintain the current system, but remove legal penalties against "faithless electors".   


      2020:

      Joe Biden is an illegitimate president, and he knows it

      With the help of state-based cronies nationwide, and much assistance from the media, he committed the single biggest act of fraud that America has ever seen (watch "2000 Mules" if you don't believe me, and THEN tell me this was legit)

      Even looking at the math behind the claim of "81 million votes"...it just doesn't pan out!


      January 6th: A horrible display of what can happen regarding "mob rule".  Nevertheless, this was not a planned assault; it was simply a protest gone terribly wrong, perhaps because of possible infiltration by ANTIFA and other left-wing forces. 

      Regardless, many January 6th suspects are now political prisoners; they are (in many cases) being denied adequate health care, other civil rights such as visitation, etc.  This is unquestionably WRONG, IMHO.  We are no better than Russia if we continue to do these things. 


      January 6th Committee: Probably the biggest crock of BS I've ever seen in my life.  It's full of people who either are disgruntled former officials, or politicians with "skin in the game". 

      And there is no right of due process associated with the Committee.  So you have evidence to present in your own defense/favor? Nope; they won't allow that!

      If you invoke the 5th Amendment, and refuse to testify, well...it's off to the "big house" for you! And witnesses (not to mention defense witnesses)? We don't need no stinkin' witnesses!

      Two words....KANGAROO COURT.


      (Yeah, this should raise my "controversial" rating to about a 10, ROFL)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: buffalobillsfan4444life on August 18, 2022, 10:52:21 PM
      Social Policy:

      Abortion: Pro-life, unless womens life is at risk. Their are other ways to prevent unwanted pregnancies from happening. talked about below
      Same Sex Marriage: none of governments busniess
      Marijuana: Legalize it and don't tax or regulate
      Stem Cell Research: Support with private voluntary donations (government should stay completely out)
      Death Penalty: Keep for war terrorists only
      Gun control: Pro 2nd amendment, no regulations
      Affirmative Action: Abolish
      Prostitution: legalize
      Euthanasia: Keep it illegal unless there is absolutly no chance of recovery and the pateient completely and knowingly agrees

      Economic Issues:

      Minimum Wage: abolish completely as it should be decided by supply and demand and by the owner
      Welfare: abolish government welfare and allow volunteers to help
      Right-to-Work: Support
      Taxation: Cut taxes for all Americans by at least 75 percent and implement a flat tax
      Healthcare: Privatize (abolish medicare, medicaid, and any government funding and programs)
      Social Security: abolish and let people figure out and have complete control over their retirement
      Trade: free trade unless if it affects our national security         
      Education: abolish public schools (separation of school and state)
      Balanced Budget Amendment: Yes, and also add a no tax increase amendment too


      Foreign Policy and National Security:

      Afghanistan: Leave
      Iraq: Leave
      Iran: leave
      Syria: Leave
      Cuba: keep sanctions on oil, weapons, and money but allow the rest
      Military Spending: cut spending since we only need to defend our country
      PATRIOT Act: Abolish
      NSA Spying: Abolish
      Palestine: Do not recognize but government shouldn't be involved
      Israel: support but government shouldn't be involved
      Immigration: support a border wall (for the purpose of keeping terrorists out only). abolish quotas and no more unnecessary searches 100 miles away from the border. border patrol shouldn't be further than 15 miles away from the border
      Guantanamo Bay: keep it open for current criminals only and abolish it once they all pass away

      Environment:

      Climate Change: Stop overrating about it, blame China if anything
      Green Energy: Remove all economic regulations so that private companies can figure out an energy alternative that actually works.
      Keystone XL Pipeline: Build it (private companies only and no government employees or taxes. voluntary donations only.)

      Electoral Reform:

      Electoral College: Keep current system
      Gerrymandering: End the practice
      Term limits: Yes
      Voter ID: Yes
      Compulsory Voting: No
      Voter Registration: Yes


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: 15 Down, 35 To Go on August 20, 2022, 01:28:52 AM
      Honestly, I've drifted a lot towards only caring about a small subset of social issues in recent years, but I'll try this:

      Social Issues
      Abortion: 100% Pro-life, no exceptions.  Needs to be illegal federally.  There is no situation you can create where abortion is justified (no, treating an ectopic pregnancy is not an abortion)
      Birth Control: Overturn Griswold v. Connecticut and ban anything that thins the lining of the uterus (due to the potential of preventing implantation after fertilization).
      Same-Sex Marriage: Oppose
      Divorce: Abolish no-fault divorce
      Legalization of Drugs: Oppose, but we can have discussions about sentencing.  Also ban tobacco (with a two year lead-time).
      Gun Control: Mostly oppose, but background checks are OK
      Prostitution: Oppose
      Affirmative Action: Oppose
      Reparations: Oppose
      Police Reform/BLM: BLM did raise some legitimate points, but often overgeneralized them.  Probably would be helpful to have police forces draw as locally as possible.  Police officers who mistreat people on account of race should be let go immediately.
      Private Prisons: No opinion
      Big Tech: I lean towards saying that major social media platforms shouldn't restrict speech heavily and should abide by the principles of the First Amendment, but I'm ambivalent on whether to legally enforce that.
      Free Speech: Support
      PATRIOT Act: Lean support, as long as it's used appropriately
      Eminent Domain: No opinion
      Immigration: Pro-immigration but also pro-border security.  Against mass deportations.
      Mask Mandates: Oppose
      Vaccine Mandates: Oppose
      COVID-19 Vaccines: They were effective against the original variants but have limited effectiveness against Omicron.  Some people have overblown side effects of them though.  I'm vaccinated and boosted, but probably won't be getting a fourth shot, even if it becomes available to me.

      Economic Issues
      Free Trade: Support, though I'd like us to use some economic pressure on countries to get them to outlaw abortion
      Taxes: Simplify the tax code by lowering individual tax rates but closing loopholes.  Expand child tax credits to encourage larger families.
      Healthcare: Private run, ban coverage of abortion, contraception, IVF, sterilizations, and sex changes.
      Social Security: Don't have a strong opinion
      National Debt: I'm worried about the debt, but I don't have an exact proposal.
      Campaign Finance Reform: Lean oppose
      Unions: Support right-to-work legislation
      Tariffs: Oppose
      UBI: Oppose for now, but I'm actually more open to it than many other forms of welfare.  Ideally, stuff like that would be church-run, instead of government-run, though.

      Foreign Policy: I generally think we should be active in our foreign policy, but I haven't followed every situation well enough to comment and don't want to comment when I don't really know.

      Education
      All of the recent education debates have led me to believe that the system needs a complete overhaul.  I would do away with public schools altogether; instead, the government should transfer the money they would have spent to a voucher for the parents to use at a private school of their choosing (whether church-run, nominally religious, secular, or even a home school co-op).  That would solve a lot of the debates by allowing parents to raise their children with an education that will continue to instill the same values taught in the home and at church.  Like, I wouldn't send my kids to a school that teaches that the Earth is billions of years old, but I wouldn't say that the government should ban those schools from existing.

      Environment
      Climate Change: The climate is changing but the potential impact has been overblown
      Green New Deal: Oppose
      Carbon Tax: Oppose
      Keystone Pipeline: Support
      Energy independence: Don't know enough to say

      Elections
      Big Lie: I oppose mail-in-voting (distinct from absentee voting), which I think gave Biden some structural advantages, but Biden won fairly within the rules of the 2020 election.
      Voter ID: Support
      Audits: Not sure what this is talking about
      Term Limits: Probably Oppose
      DC: Maintain status quo
      PR: Support statehood
      SCOTUS: Honestly, it's probably too powerful, but I think the reform proposals tend to come from very partisan places.  The bigger issue was that it began to step into things that were beyond the scope of what it should have been involved in.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: crazy jimmie on August 21, 2022, 08:56:23 PM

      Social Issues
      Abortion: Pro-Choice. We will see in due time in states that make abortion illegal, why I hold this view.

      Birth Control: Can not see why anyone would oppose this.

      Same-Sex Marriage: Support obviously. Hopefully, I will have a nice marriage with a Latino in a few years.

      Divorce: Always a tragic situation.

      Legalization of Drugs: Support, especially for marijuana. More controls on alcohol.

      Gun Control: Mostly oppose, but background checks are OK

      Prostitution: I wouldn't do it, but.. have it legal.

      Affirmative Action: Mostly support, but more economic tiered than race.

      Reparations: Oppose

      Police Reform/BLM: I largely agree with BLM and witnessed blatantly discrimination against blacks growing up. I disagree with BLM tactics as it hurts Democrats electorally though. But I still largely believe that criminal justice system is biased against the poor.

      Private Prisons: Opposed. Creates demand for prisoners.

      Big Tech: Becoming too politically correct.

      Free Speech: Support, duh

      PATRIOT Act: I love to criticize it, but parts of the law are still important to national security, unfortunately.

      Eminent Domain: Do not oppose.

      Immigration: Pro-immigration and ambivalent on illegal immigration. Favor more open borders with Mexico and Canada with a mutual agreement.

      Mask Mandates: Oppose

      Vaccine Mandates: Oppose

      COVID-19 Vaccines: Would recommend getting the 4th booster when available to you.

      Economic Issues

      Free Trade: Largely support with some controls. We would benefit from more unrestricted trade with Latin America

      Taxes: I would close most loopholes and many deductions. Must be a progressive system.


      Healthcare: Keep market based system with a governmental public option on a sliding scale.

      Social Security: Good program, and the GOP better not try to dismantle it! It is constitutional and more sound based legal theory than Roe V. Wade ever did. Surprisingly to some, I have been ambivalent on whether to partially privatize it. Also, no cap on the income that can be taxed to fund social security benefits. That is important.

      National Debt: Let's just say there are reasons I truly hate Bush and Trump.

      Campaign Finance Reform: Support

      Unions: Private sector workers should absolutely unionize. I am in strong opposition to public sector unions though and 2020 vindicated me on that. Look how police officers and teachers acted during 2020.

      Tariffs: Oppose, especially for now.

      UBI: Opposed for immediate future as automation displacing jobs is overblown for now. But in the twilight of my life, it may start to become necessary.

      Foreign Policy: I am very dovish in almost all situations. We have to take care of ourselves. We are an ailing country for the developed world and it is time we took care of ourselves.

      Education
      I do not believe CRT in elementary or secondary schools actually exists. In person schooling is important for a child's development. I was partially homeschooled and it is had major impact on my development. Which is why I pushed back hard against school closures.

      I am more ambivalent on school vouchers than most liberals.



      Environment
      Climate Change: I am confident technology will help mitigate most impacts, but am extremely down stream of the Colorado River and the impact of the nations food supply. That requires immediate attention.

      Green New Deal: Mostly support.

      Carbon Tax: Support

      Keystone Pipeline: Support, grudgingly

      Energy independence: We are perfect capable of being independent of other countries for energy if we used more green energy.


      Elections

      Big Lie: It was a big lie. I also believe that mail in voting hurt Democrats at the margins in 2020 elections. Both directly in that mail in ballots may have been filled in incorrectly or been late and indirectly in that it made Democrats look more like they were cheating by perception and gave Democrats a look of going into hiding over covid. offensive  to their minority working class base and people in general.

      Voter ID: Support really. But government IDs should be at no cost.

      Audits: Our elections are secure

      Term Limits: Probably Oppose

      DC: Statehood

      PR: Support statehood

      SCOTUS: Has become too powerful and congress should consider legislating its jurisdiction. I oppose court packing because the court will eventually be larger than congress depending on who is in office.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: DabbingSanta on August 28, 2022, 08:28:22 PM
      2022 update

      Social Issues

      Abortion: Pro-life, leave laws up to individual states.
      Birth Control: Supportive.
      Same-Sex Marriage: Opposed, but should remain legal.
      Death penalty: Lean opposed, but leave to individual states.
      Legalization of Drugs: Opposed except for marijuana.
      Gun Control: Opposed, pro 2A.
      Prostitution: Opposed, should remain illegal.
      Affirmative Action: Opposed, AA is racist.
      Reparations: Strongly opposed.
      Police Reform/BLM: I support the police.
      Private Prisons: Against, but not a big issue right now.
      Big Tech: Against censorship, 1A should apply in online spaces.
      Free Speech: Strongly support.
      PATRIOT Act: Opposed.
      Eminent Domain: Opposed.
      Immigration: Opposed.  Deport illegal aliens back to countries of origin.
      Euthanasia: Strongly opposed.
      Mask Mandates: Strongly opposed.
      Vaccine Mandates: Strongly opposed.
      COVID-19 Vaccines: Support, but should be up to individual

      Economic Issues

      Free Trade: Opposed.  Focus on creating self-sufficient economy.
      Taxes: Lower.
      Healthcare: Privatize.  
      Social Security: Economically infeasible, allow increased privatization.
      National Debt: Shrink roles of federal government to reduce debt
      Campaign Finance Reform: Support.
      Unions: Strongly opposed.
      Tariffs: Support.  Increase domestic production.
      UBI: Opposed.
      Foreign Policy: Increase military budget but avoid foreign conflicts, focus instead on border crisis.
      Education: Privatize.  Support charter schools and voucher programs.

      International Relations

      Afghanistan: I supported leaving, but Biden administration totally botched this.
      China: Strongly opposed, defend Taiwan and Hong Kong from CCP invasion.
      Middle East: Continue with drone strikes and surveillance to stop terrorism.
      Cuba: Keep sanctions.
      Military Spending: Increase funding.
      PATRIOT Act: Abolish
      NSA Spying: Abolish
      Palestine: Do not recognize.
      Israel: Strongly support.
      Ukraine-Russia War: Neutral.
      Mexico: Build the wall, and deploy troops along southern border.

      Environment

      Climate Change: I believe it is real, but the threat is greatly exaggerated by the media.
      Green New Deal: Strongly opposed.
      Carbon Tax: Strongly opposed.
      Keystone Pipeline: Support, reroute from Native land.
      Energy independence: Strongly support, revert back to Trump admin policies.

      Elections
      Big Lie: Election fraud occurred, but not at a level which would change the final result.
      Voter ID: Support.
      Audits: Support.
      Term Limits: Strongly supportive.
      DC/PR statehood: Opposed.
      SCOTUS: Introduce term limits.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Dr. MB on September 04, 2022, 03:40:43 AM
      test


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Dr. MB on September 04, 2022, 04:19:27 AM
      using same template adding some new ones

      I realized a lot of these positions fall outside the realm of realistic options in American political discourse so this is tailored a lot more to my ideal society than the present political situation.

      Social Policy
      Abortion: abortion should be legal
      LGBT Rights: support
      Drugs: all drugs should be legal, doesn't mean it's a good idea to do all of them though, it's up to you. But weed and psychedelics are beneficial to a point.
      Alcohol: abolish the drinking age and no restrictions on sales/consumption
      Death Penalty: some people deserve it but the ones who do most will never see their day in court, opposed on principle
      Gun Control: however well-intentioned it is I'm very skeptical of especially as it entrenches the state's monopoly on violence
      Affirmative Action: irrelevant
      Euthanasia: creates a culture of death, prioritizes saving money over the rights of the patient, and a living (dying?) example of the slippery slope turning out to be true
      Prostitution: shouldn't exist ideally, a nasty aspect of consumerism, but should be legal as long as it's out there
      Pornography: see prostitution
      Immigration: borders are a social construct
      Criminal justice: punishment for the sake of punishment isn't justice, the majority of criminal disputes should be solved outside the hands of courts and the number of laws people potentially can break needs to be reduced bc as it stands nearly everyone commits several crimes every day
      Surveillance: a startling expansion of government and corporate power over peoples' lives, infringes individual rights and experiences, and should be combated by any means necessary
      Police: at the end of the day they serve an unjust master and enforce unjust laws
      Eminent domain: not a huge fan
      Covid-19: increasingly irrelevant but not on the side of restriction

      Economic Policy
      Minimum Wage: for now it's gotta be high, much higher than it is now, long-term abolish the wage system entirely in favor of worker-owned establishments
      Right-to-Work: takes power out of workers' hands, unions need to be supported as strongly as possible
      Tax Rates: most people shouldn't pay taxes, only those who profit off the labor of others
      Healthcare: should be run as a necessary service instead of a for-profit business
      Social Security: wouldn't be necessary in a society which already took care for the elderly into account instead of running what amounts to a pyramid scheme (however justified it might be)
      Trade: local production is definitely the best option here but beyond that see my immigration position
      Environment: we need not only to switch our energy consumption and rampant consumerism but take a step back and reconnect with nature
      Education: put more emphasis on creative potential and students determining their destiny rather than being boxed into a category and drilled with repetitive material
      Transit: I support all of the above when it comes to this category
      Nationalization: creates more unnecessary bureaucracy, worker co-ops are preferable

      Foreign Policy
      Foreign intervention: illegitimate
      Russia: oppressive state with an oppressive leader
      China: oppressive state with an oppressive leader
      Israel: not like the Palestinians are much better ethically but self-determination is always the right course of action when it comes to a conflict like this
      NATO: don't particularly care
      UN: powerless
      Defense budget: way too high of course

      Electoral Reform
      Electoral College: get rid of it
      Gerrymandering: end it
      Term limits: against
      Voter ID: no
      Voter registration: everyone should be registered to vote
      Voting age: lower than it currently is
      Mandatory voting: violation of individual rights
      Statehood: should be put up to a vote everywhere it's an issue
      Supreme Court: should have far less power and term-limited


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Dr. MB on September 18, 2022, 03:22:22 PM

      Why is state-sponsored racism "irrelevant"?
      I don’t think any society which actually addresses the root cause of injustices would have any sort of need for a policy like that. It’s not worth time and effort caring about.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Aurelius on September 27, 2022, 02:55:20 PM
      Birth Control: Overturn Griswold v. Connecticut and ban anything that thins the lining of the uterus (due to the potential of preventing implantation after fertilization).

      I'm pretty moderate on this stuff but I'm sorry, there's no way around it, this is some serious broodmare s**t.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: FT-02 Senator A.F.E. 🇵🇸🤝🇺🇸🤝🇺🇦 on October 08, 2022, 01:44:28 PM
      Being based all the time


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: The Smiling Face On Your TV on November 16, 2022, 07:56:06 PM
      ()


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Dani Rose on November 17, 2022, 12:11:01 AM
      Utilizing what seems like the most accepted template for this, with a couple aesthetic modifications.

      Social Issues
      Abortion: Meticulously regulated, but legal without exceptions. Bodily autonomy is the business of the individual.
      Birth Control: Always legal, with expanded coverage under government programs. Pair with nationally expanded sex ed.
      LGBT+ Rights: SSM legal, equality enforced by law. Massively expand transitional healthcare coverage for trans people under government programs.
      Drugs: Decriminalize use and possession and emphasize rehab, penalize minor dealers, heavily crack down on heavy traffickers.
      Death Penalty: Heavily oppose. Stick society's worst in a box for the rest of time, but whether or not someone deserves to die is not the jurisdiction of the state.
      Gun Control: Situational. Get rid of assault weapons and high-capacity handguns, but emphasize licensing, education, and training for others, especially in rural states.
      Policing: Basically necessary, in some form, for vigilante justice not to take hold, but fundamentally rotted to the core in America. Demilitarize the police and reform the entire system from the ground up, with a focus on community protection and communication.
      Prisons: Get money out of them and focus on rehabilitating those capable and willing to change. As above, stick society's worst behind bars forever.
      PATRIOT ACT: Away with it.
      Immigration: Simplify and make the process easier to encourage legal entry while promoting a pathway to citizenship. Only directly punish traffickers.
      Freedom of Speech: Mostly support without question, but severely crack down on fascism and Nazism as per Germany. Companies and individuals should be allowed to censor whatever they want.
      Euthanasia: Support in theory, but with extreme regulations in place. Canada's system has practically become Nazi eugenics.
      COVID-19: Promote personal responsibility and vaccine campaigns until the last trails of the pandemic are gone. Companies and individuals should continue to be allowed to impose mandates if they deem it fit.

      Economic Issues
      Minimum Wage: Should be set at living levels until worker cooperatives are commonplace and a UBI can be implemented.
      Taxes: Reduce or eliminate the tax burden on the poor, working, and middle classes. Refocus the tax burden back onto the wealthy.
      Unions: Support and strengthen them. Burn Right-to-Work.
      Healthcare: Fold Medicare and Medicaid into a nationalized, universal system, streamlining the process for everyone.
      Social Security: Increase and hold benefits to living levels until a UBI can be implemented.
      Trade: Promote local strength and production instead of shipping jobs to less regulated, more exploitative countries Because Capitalism.
      Monopolies: Mega-corporations and conglomerates are one of our greatest blights and should be busted righteously.
      Nationalization: Run all necessary utilities at the national level as a free service.

      Foreign Policy
      Interventionism: Only in the most extreme circumstances, as it was in WW2. Most times, it's imperialism at best and doomsday at worst.
      Russia: A crypto-fascist dictatorship. Continue supporting Ukraine with money and materiel until the war becomes unsustainable for Putin.
      China: A crypto-fascist dictatorship. We need to eventually eliminate our reliance upon their government, but I'm hazy on how.
      Saudi Arabia: A theocratic crypto-fascist dictatorship. Our oil dependence upon them must end.
      Israel/Palestine: Self-determination is the only correct course, so both nations must be allowed to exist. The Jewish people fundamentally have a right to a safe homeland, but Netanyahu must be recognized as a dictator in the making.
      NATO: A necessary deterrent until the regimes of Putin and Xi have met their inevitable natural ends.
      United Nations Functionally useless so long as two dictatorships have full power over policy.
      US Military Budget: A bloated, over-padded nightmare that needs to be massively, massively trimmed. Even with the military budget cut in half, no power on Earth would stand even a shell of a chance of matching us.

      Environment
      Renewables: The only way forward. Solar has the most immediate promise, and should have a rocket strapped to it and provided with all the funding it needs.
      Oil: Unfortunately necessary until the energy infrastructure and transportation systems can be fully untethered from fossil fuels. Domestic production is the least destructive way to go about this, as it removes our dependence upon hostile dictatorships.
      Transportation: Removing the car as the center of our transportation universe is one of the most crucial aspects of combatting climate change, and electric cars are a mirage that only perpetuate the problem. Shift the focus to electric rail and fund the daylights out of it.
      Green New Deal: Fundamentally needed, both morally and economically. Public works projects are a massive societal benefit, and doing them to the tune of future sustainability is only common sense.

      Elections and Democracy
      Electoral College: Stick it in the trash.
      Gerrymandering: Only use it to combat GOP hijinks so long as it exists. Other than that, burn it.
      Term Limits: Support for executives, oppose for Congress. Joe Biden alone proves the benefit of keeping leaders around with decades of experience.
      Voting: Not just universal registration, but universal voting, with E-Day as a national holiday. Do it the Australian way and give voters a complimentary hot dog afterward.
      Constitution: Basically needs to be redone for a modern context, or at least heavily, heavily amended to reflect the times.
      Supreme Court: Must be weakened, expanded in number, and term limited. Democracy becomes functionally useless if carefully-debated and widely-supported public policy can be undone by an unelected judicial oligarchy.
      Statehood: Add DC, Puerto Rico, and Guam.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: TheTide on December 09, 2022, 07:09:26 AM
      This is in a UK context, although obviously a lot of it can be applied globally.

      Social Policy

      Abortion: Pretty much entirely pro-choixe. Slightly dubious about 'partial birth abortion'.
      LGBT Rights: In favour.
      Drugs: Decriminalisation coupled with ad campaigns about the dangers etc.
      Alcohol: Minimum age of 18 seems okay. Support and promote good breweries.
      Death Penalty: Pointless and emotive.
      Gun Control: Guns should generally be banned.
      Affirmative Action: In places where discrimination is a proven issue.
      Euthanasia: Support with the necessary regulation.
      Prostitution: Not a fan of pimps. Individual choice is okay.
      Pornography: The consensual aspects should be legal.
      Immigration: Ideally for open borders, but not yet.
      Criminal justice: Emphasise on trials, innocent until proven guilty, lots of legal aid. Also a right to anonymity until charged.
      Surveillance: Roll back most of it. Warrants very much required.
      Police: Very dependent on the locality. Some forces are a credit, others are full of corruption.
      Eminent domain: Pretty much entirely against.
      Covid-19: Not a fan of lockdowns, mask and vax mandates etc. Would have accepted a mass propaganda campaign (which was more or less on place anyway and ensured a lot of social distancing). Individualism should have been more of a focus given vast differences in risks between groups.

      Economic Policy
      Minimum Wage: Raising it too fast isn't a smart idea.
      Unions: Generally supportive. Not sure health care workers should be going on strike though.
      Tax Rates: Emphasis on inheritance tax, with high rates. No one should leave more than a good starting point.
      Healthcare: Prevention needs to be discussed as much as treatment. Incentives for people who improve their health. For example, a cash reward for someone who reduces their BMI from 40 to 30. Also, less of this strange religious happy clappy nonsense.
      Pensions: A generous safety net for those who aren't rich or have a lot of assets.
      Trade: Prefer actual free trade to trade agreements.
      Environment: More practicalities rather than constant emotive nonsense.
      Education: Abolish private schools. Not necessarily opposed to selection. Less university. More scholarships.
      Transport: National rail and bus networks. Discourage cars.
      Nationalization: Water, gas, electricity should be in state ownership. Wouldn't be opposed to national broadband either.

      Foreign Policy
      Foreign intervention: Only if in defense of a nation of a group of people.
      Russia: Good music, cold climate, bad politics.
      China: Good food, bad politics.
      Israel: Supportive of a Jewish state. Would prefer if they had better governments.
      NATO: Kind of a necessary anachronism at the moment.
      UN: Mostly symbolic.
      EU: Pretty useless bureaucracy with some merits.
      Defense budget: Cut to the necessities.


      Electoral and Constitutional issues

      First Past the Post: Replace with AV.
      Home of Lords: Replace with a similar body that isn't called that. Elected via list PR, maybe half up every two years.
      House of Commons: Crack down on announcing things to the media first. Current size should gradually increase as the population grows.
      Term limits: None.
      Voter ID: Just show the polling card.
      Voter registration: Should be fairly easy.
      Voting age: 18 seems okay.
      Compulsory voting: Definitely not.
      Local government: Support regional assemblies with a lot of powers. Councils should also have more power than they currently do (which isn't saying much).
      Supreme Court: Pretty useless but usually harmless.
      Ireland: Supportive of democratic reunification.
      Scotland/Wales: Independence if either or both want it. Not sure how it would go but maybe not well.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: the artist formerly known as catmusic on December 11, 2022, 03:30:36 AM
      Since I now have real opinions. Obviously these are idealistic and end goals for me, but it's what I do truly believe and hope for, even if it's far from possible at the moment in the US.


      Social Issues
      Abortion: Legal without exception, medically consulted of course.
      Birth Control: Legal without exception.
      LGBT+ Rights: Protect Same-Sex Marriage under law, expanded rights and protections for trans people, easier access to trans healthcare. nationwide protection from discrimination in housing, jobs, schools, etc for all LGBT+ people, without ANY religious exemptions.
      Drugs: Decriminalize all of them, set up rehab/support and monitored safe places for users. Get drugs off the street and crack down on trafficking.
      Prostitution: Legalize, but protect sex workers as much as possible.
      Pornography: Keep it legal.
      Affirmative Action: Meh...pretty irrelevant. I definitely don't support quotas. But hey, diversity is good.
      Death Penalty: Oppose 100% of the time. Life sentence is a higher price to pay.
      Euthanasia: Legal for the terminally ill, but the system has to be handled with extreme delicacy and care. Should never be encouraged.
      COVID-19: Vaccine promotion and personal responsibility campaigns are appropriate. Businesses can require masks if they wish, but that should be individual choice at this point. I would personally prefer more masking on public transit, but...I get it.

      Domestic Issues
      Gun Control: We need better gun laws. Get rid of assault rifles. Support gun training and education, background checks, licensing, registering, and limits on how many guns someone can own. However guns are extremely important for rural Americans and many who live in dangerous cities. They should never have their guns taken away and I support any individual's right to be armed; armed minorities are harder to persecute than unarmed minorities after all. Gun culture in the US is weird AF though, including many on the left's fantasy of an armed twitter militia overtaking the US government.
      Eminent domain: yeaaaaaah no. You're gonna need a real good reason if you ever do that.
      Policing: Necessary to a degree, of course. De-militarize and SERIOUSLY re-train the current force though, and cut the budgets massively. Focus on de-escalation and have other types of workers handle most of what's given to cops nowadays. And seriously stop surveillance on the average person.
      Prisons: Abolish all for-profit prisons. Get the money out of it and clean up the system. Absolutely necessary for the good of society as a whole though.
      PATRIOT ACT: Get rid of it, for the love of god.
      Immigration: Simplify the process and provide an easy path to citizenship. Expand quotas for refugees and asylum seekers. Immigration should be encouraged and immigrants should be treated with respect and dignity, but immigrants should also be encouraged to integrate, not ghettoize. Provide free and mandatory English language courses to all who are on a citizenship path, and being able to pass a basic English proficiency test should be mandatory for all able-minded people wishing to become a citizen.
      Freedom of Speech: Generally support in full, but individual companies/organizations are allowed to have terms to abide by. A crackdown on extreme nazism/fascism is necessary. Re-instate the fairness doctrine and forbid the broadcasting of false information without correction.
      Education: Mandatory public school, eliminate all private schools, severely restrict homeschooling except for special cases. NO religious exemptions.

      Economic Issues
      Minimum Wage: Raised to a living wage and increased every year, at least until UBI could be implemented.
      Taxes: Eliminate taxes for anyone living below the poverty line, reduce taxes on the poor, working and middle class. Raise tax rates massively on the rich and ultra-rich, 90% top marginal tax rate.
      Unions: Support, encourage, and strengthen. Eliminate right-to-work.
      Healthcare: Nationalized, universal single-payer.
      Social Security: Living levels until UBI.
      Trade: Promote the things made at home and stop outsourcing jobs to cheaper, exploitive labor.
      Monopolies: Break them all up, and as quickly as possible.
      Nationalization: Nationalize it all, baby! Free utilities for everyone! We can afford it.

      Foreign Policy
      Interventionism: WW2 was the last necessary intervention. That's how often we should do it.
      Russia: Support Ukraine, **** the Russian government - but don't be ridiculous and xenophobic, and recognize Russians are real humans too. And don't act like we're so much better.
      China: **** the Chinese Government. Support independence for Taiwan, Tibet, Xinjiang, Hong Kong and Macau. But again, recognize that this has nothing to do with the population who are real humans, don't be a xenophobic POS, yeah we suck too blabla etc. End dependence on them for goods and get those jobs back home.
      Saudi Arabia: **** the Saudi Arabian government. Cut all ties with them and end the oil dependence. Again don't be xenophobic it's not you its your government etc.
      Israel/Palestine: Immediately stop support for Israel and their human rights abuses. Right of self-determination for the Palestinian people. Ideally a one-state solution (called Palestine!) where people have to learn to live together and figure it out. The Jewish people there are there now, and don't deserve to be kicked out, but the government and "settlers" have put Palestinians in an apartheid situation. It is completely unacceptable and should be condemned and ties severed until they recognize the rights of the Palestinian people to their homeland. Oh, and I'm a Jew, so....
      NATO: Bleh. But I guess it's temporarily necessary for protection against Russia/China/etc...
      United Nations Literally useless unless they change the power structure.
      US Military Budget: The biggest waste of money of all time. Cut it by more than 1/2 and get that money in education, healthcare, the arts, starting UBI....

      Environment
      Renewables: We have to get to using renewables as much as possible as quickly as possible. Nuclear is a great way to transition but ultimately we need to move from that too.
      Oil: Domestic production until we can move away from it altogether.
      Transportation: Nationalized high-speed rail, free public transit in cities, make places safe to walk and bike again, remove the car as the center of life.
      Green New Deal: Absolutely support. Give the working class good jobs in green energy and revitalize their communities.

      Elections and Democracy
      Electoral College: Abolish.
      Gerrymandering: Abolish. Independent non-partisan panels only.
      Term Limits: Not solid on this one. Support in theory but experienced politicians are beneficial as well. More importantly would be no running for re-election after 75.
      Voting: Automatic registration and make it mandatory; but it has to be easy and a national holiday.
      Voting System: Get rid of FPTP, replace with ranked choice and mixed-member proportional representation. Encourage a multi-party system.
      Constitution: Throw it out and start over. It's severely out of date and isn't working.
      Supreme Court: Essentially our equivalent of the Supreme Council of Ayatollahs. Expand, term limit, weaken.
      Statehood: PR and DC should become states ASAP as they are the primary concern right now, but all territories should be allowed to vote on it and have a path to statehood no matter how small. (Unless they're you know...unpopulated. lmao.)

      Oh and...the democratic party losing the white working class of places like WV & PA is one of the worst failures of political policy ever. Get your head out of your ass, stop making everything about trans people and taking away guns, and start supporting the left-wing economic policies these people would support and your base is already begging for. Rural America is the key to transforming our country and preventing fascist takeover - so democrats better start learning to tolerate some non-PC language, and be okay with getting their hands dirty and putting in the work to listen to, know, and represent the people of this country. LOCAL POLITICS MATTER!


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: World Mapping on December 30, 2022, 10:32:49 PM
      SOCIAL ISSUES
      ------------------
      ABORTION: Pro-life; abortion should be illegal in all cases save for the life of the mother being in danger, or if the mother will suffer a crippling impairment should she give birth. If any of those circumstances apply, the doctors should do everything they can to save both lives, leaving abortion as a last resort. Once artificial wombs come about, abortion should be fully illegal.

      SAME-SEX MARRIAGE: Against; marriage is between one man and one woman. Children are better off having a mother and a father than two moms or two dads. Most people who end up LGBT+ were abused as children; they need HELP, not perpetuation of mental illness.

      LEGALIZATION OF DRUGS: Against.

      GUN CONTROL: I can get behind waiting periods, background checks, psychological health checks, and perhaps mandatory gun safety classes, but I'm not willing to go further than that.

      PROSTITUTION: Should be banned in all jurisdictions of the United States.

      AFFIRMATIVE ACTION: Against; it's reverse-racism. America should be a colorblind, gender-blind meritocracy, with everyone on EQUAL playing ground. Affirmative Action should be banned in all jurisdictions of the United States.

      REPARATIONS: Strongly against. I believe that nobody should be punished for the sins of their ancestors; people who never owned slaves shouldn't have to pay people who were never slaves. I'm a black man myself; my father is from Uganda, and likely has ancestors who sold their rivals to Arab slave traders. Not my father, myself, or anyone else in my family owes anything, and we aren't owed anything. If DREAMers shouldn't be deported, then the argument for reparations is already destroyed.

      POLICE REFORM: Support, but strongly against abolishing the police. The police should also be FUNDED, not defunded.

      PRIVATE PRISONS: Should be abolished in all jurisdictions of the United States. Law enforcement shouldn't be a for-profit business.

      IMMIGRATION:
      I. Every illegal immigrant that comes, or has already come (as an adult) should be deported.
      II. Illegal immigrants shouldn't be entitled to college, etc. The fact that they are, here in America, is nonsensical.
      III. Charge companies that employ illegal immigrants.
      IV. Illegal immigrants that came as children should be given a pathway to citizenship.
      V. The U.S.-Mexico border wall should be constructed.
      VI. The extent of the U.S.-Mexico border should be mined, except for legal crossing points (with signs in English and Spanish warning of mines).
      VII. An immigration moratorium should be put in place for the next ~60 years, to assimilate all the recent newcomers. The U.S. should, in general, adopt assimilationist immigration policies.
      VIII. In general, it's better to keep native birthrates up than to be too dependent on immigrants.

      MASK MANDATES: Unsure.

      VACCINE MANDATES: Against; vaccine mandates are unconstitutional.



      ECONOMIC ISSUES
      ----------------------
      TRADE: Protectionist; free trade should be limited to the Anglosphere only.

      TAX: Reform to a flat tax.

      HEALTHCARE: Privatize.

      SOCIAL SECURITY: Support for those unable to get work, but everyone who is able to should be working; lazy freeloaders shouldn't get a dime from the government.

      NATIONAL DEBT: Too high; we need a constitutional amendment requiring Congress and the President to create a balanced budget at the start of every fiscal year.

      CAMPAIGN FINANCE REFORM: Support.

      UNIONS: Unsure.

      TARIFFS: Raise.

      OUTSOURCING: Strongly oppose; should be banned if possible.

      MONOPOLIES: Do some Teddy Roosevelt-ing(TM) and bust the crap out of them.



      FOREIGN POLICY
      -------------------
      FOREIGN RELATIONS: Isolationist; we shouldn't intervene outside the New World unless absolutely necessary.

      FOREIGN AID: Cut off most nations outside of Latin America; we should focus on aiding Latin America, to stabilize these nations and end the current illegal immigration crisis.

      UN FUNDING: Cut entirely, and withdraw from the UN.

      NATO: Withdraw, and replace with an Asia-Pacific alliance to combat Communist China.

      WHO: Withdraw.

      PARIS AGREEMENT: Withdraw.

      AFGHANISTAN: Withdrawal was a disaster; we should never repeat the same mistake again.

      IRAQ: No political involvement there.

      IRAN: No political involvement there.

      CUBA: Overthrow the current regime (same with Nicaragua, Venezuela, and Bolivia).

      CHINA: The biggest external threat to the United States this century; we should show them no mercy.

      RUSSIA: Use them as an ally against the CCP (which is a far greater threat than Russia ever will be in the foreseeable future).



      EDUCATION
      -------------
      EVOLUTION: Should be taught.

      SCHOOL PRAYER: Individual students should be allowed to pray. If teachers wish to lead prayer, then they should be allowed with willing participants, in settings like before a football game, etc.

      SCHOOL CHOICE: Strongly support.

      CRITICAL RACE THEORY/LGBT+: Should not be taught in school.

      FREE COLLEGE: Reform the student loans system.

      FREE SCHOOL MEALS: Unsure.



      ENVIRONMENT
      -----------------
      CLIMATE CHANGE: Strongly support taking action against it.

      GREEN NEW DEAL: Oppose; transitioning to cleaner energy should be more gradual, not rushed.

      CARBON TAX: Oppose.

      KEYSTONE PIPELINE: Support.



      ELECTIONS & DEMOCRACY
      ------------------------------
      ELECTORAL COLLEGE: Keep, but allocate electoral votes proportionally, based on the popular vote in each state (i.e. if Generic Republican wins 50% of a state's PV, he/she wins 50% of that state's EVs).

      PARTISAN GERRYMANDERING: Should be banned in all jurisdictions of the United States.

      TERM LIMITS:
      President: 6 years, non-renewable.
      Vice-President: 6 years, non-renewable.
      Senate: 6 years, renewable once.
      House of Representatives: 2 years, renewable thrice.
      Cabinet: 6 years, renewable indefinitely.

      OFFICE AGE LIMITS: Support; all people in government should have mandatory retirement upon turning 65.

      VOTING: Voters should be required to take a civics test in order to obtain a voter ID once they reach voting age.

      VOTER ID: Should be required in every election via constitutional amendment.

      VOTING AGE: 18 for federal elections; states should have the power to allow 16 y/os to vote in local elections if they wish.

      VOTING SYSTEM: Instate ranked choice voting, and have House seats determined by the national PV% of each party. The two-party system is too polarized, and a somewhat more multi-party system should be encouraged.

      CONSTITUTION: Is an overall wonderful document, but needs some changes (Pro-Life, Balanced Budget, and Voter ID amendments, etc). I support calling an Article V Convention.

      SUPREME COURT: Should be reformed, but I'm weary of politicizing it too much.

      STATEHOOD: Support for Guam, the CNMI, the USVI, and American Samoa. Unsure about Puerto Rico, though; perhaps after assimilation and fixing the island up.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Dr. MB on January 01, 2023, 12:08:07 AM

      SAME-SEX MARRIAGE: Against; marriage is between one man and one woman. Children are better off having a mother and a father than two moms or two dads. Most people who end up LGBT+ were abused as children; they need HELP, not perpetuation of mental illness.
      Where do you get your data bro


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Suburban Republican on January 02, 2023, 10:56:33 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: Oppose after 15 weeks, allow exceptions for rape/incest/health of the mother
      Birth Control: Support
      Same-Sex Marriage: Support
      Transgenderism: Oppose surgery and hormone therapy for minors, oppose men in women's sports
      Legalization of Drugs: Support legalization and regulation of marijuana, unsure about psychadelics
      Gambling: Oppose legalization of online gambling and sports betting
      Gun Control: Mostly oppose; Enforce the laws we already have
      Prostitution: Oppose
      Affirmative Action: Oppose
      Reparations: Oppose
      Police Reform/BLM: Oppose defunding the police but racism is a problem, support body cams for police
      Private Prisons: Oppose
      Big Tech: Oppose government restrictions on social media content; Support data privacy laws
      Free Speech: Strongly support
      PATRIOT Act: Oppose
      Eminent Domain: Circumstantial
      Immigration: Support legal immigration, reinstitute title 42 and increase border security
      Mask Mandates: Oppose
      Vaccine Mandates: Support for troops and encourage for healthcare professionals
      COVID-19 Vaccines: Support government funding for development and distribution

      Economic Issues

      Free Trade: Lean protectionist, reduce America's dependence on China as a trading partner and increase supply diversity
      Taxes: Simplify the tax code and close loopholes, lower the corporate tax rate, expand the child tax credit
      Healthcare: Support a universal healthcare system
      Social Security: Privatize
      National Debt: Cut government spending, achieve a balanced budget
      Unions: Support national right-to-work
      Disability: Reduce eligibility
      Tarriffs: Increase
      Outsourcing: Oppose
      Monopolies: Bust them
      UBI: Oppose

      Foreign Policy


      Foreign Aid: Reduce
      UN Funding: Maintain
      NATO: Strongly support but hold other NATO members to 2%
      WHO: Support
      Paris Deal: Support
      Afghanistan: Oppose withdrawl
      Iraq: The Iraq War was a mistake
      Iran: Re-establish the Iran nuclear deal
      Cuba: Keep the trade embargo
      China: Support sanctions
      Russia: Support sanctions
      Ukraine: Maintain support

      Education

      CRT: Oppose
      School choice: Support
      Evolution: Support
      School Prayer: Allow students to pray
      Free College: Reform student loan system to incentivize private loan accruement; Colleges need to cut costs and reform the admissions process to prioritize merit
      Free School Breakfasts/Lunches: Support


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: DieselDogg on February 02, 2023, 07:39:05 PM
      I am a non-religious, pro life libertarian. I don't care if gay ppl get married but I also don't think others should be forced to like it or participate in it in any way


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: un on February 08, 2023, 10:40:19 AM
      I usually align with three labels. The first one is a Democrat, as I believe being a member of the Democratic Party is an important part of influencing policy and persuing left wing goals in the United States, as its our best vehicle to do so right now. The second one is social democrat, as I believe in a capitalist system that uses significant amount of welfare and social safety net investment to make sure equality of opportunity is realized as much as possible. Finally, I would consider myself a progressive, as I believe a government that emphasizes liberal social reform is essential to any good government, whether that be anti-discrimination protections for LGBTQ+ people, reperations for black families that have been handicapped by lacking ability to generate long lasting generational wealth, etc.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Snow Belt Republican on February 10, 2023, 10:36:31 AM


      Economic Issues
      Minimum Wage : Peg the minimum wage to inflation, it's unfair to minimum wage workers and it stays up to date (not an increase).
      Taxes: Everyone pays taxes, no more loopholes, end the stupid tax write offs for oil and gas companies, companies pay their fair share. Lower taxes are possible if everyone contributes.
      Unions: Sort of support some, oppose violently others. Teacher's unions can go to Hell, they already have some of the best vacations of any working adults and when they strike they compromise the education of the kids they're supposed to care for. Industrial unions are ok I guess...
      Healthcare : I don't really know lmao.
      Trade: Free trade helps everyone. Maybe some minor protections for key, vital industries. Though find trade partners that aren't authoritarian.
      Monopolies: Sherman Anti-Trust Act should be used accordingly.
      National Debt : REDUCE IT!
      Tariffs : Oppose.
      Retirement Age : Gradually increase. 65 -> 67 -> 70.
      Social Security and Healthcare : Maintain the Status Quo.

      Foreign Policy
      Slight Hawkish lean.
      Lean Internationalist, the US is the premier power and should have a strong presence internationally (strong presence doesn't mean military here!).
      Ukraine : Back them up fully maybe just stop giving them so much money, they need weapons not bags of cash.
      Russia : Sanctions and subtle pressure.
      China : Geopolitical Enemy Number One.
      NATO : Strongly support.
      Cuba : Irrelevant backwater, keep sanctions up...
      Middle East : Pretend it doesn't exist, move on.
      UN : Oppose, it is useless.
      Israel-Palestine : 3 State Solution.

      Education
      Heavy focus on improving education.
      Focus only on the rational, factual stuff. Maths, science, physics, chemistry etc. Of course English and a second language.
      Keep all culture war stuff out of education, this goes for the left and the right. No forced religion stuff and no forced CRT or trans stuff.
      School choice (Charter schools) : It's a failed idea and a waste of money.
      Private schools : Keep.

      Social Issues
      Gun control : Strongly oppose, just make sure former convicts and the mentally ill aren't allowed to get them. Leave it to the states?
      Abortion : Oppose, focus on sex education. Another thing probably best left to the states?
      Drugs : Strongly oppose, if legalized TAX IT.
      Smoking : Strongly oppose.
      Alcohol : Responsible drinking.
      Reparations : Haha, no.
      Affirmative Action : Strongly Oppose.
      LGBT : Slightly Oppose.
      Police Reform : Support, just don't know how they can do it.
      Free Speech : Strongly Support for everyone, even those I disagree with.
      Birth Control : Support.
      Immigration : Selective immigration (priority to educated or highly skilled individuals).
      Private Prisons : Abolish right now.
      Civil Asset Forfeiture : Ban right now and return seized assets.
      Crime : Tough on crime but be fair.
      Prostitution : Don't care.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: BG-NY on February 19, 2023, 12:22:20 PM
      Honestly, I’m increasingly realizing I’m more libertarian than I thought. Four main differences:

      (1) I’m still anti-Free Trade
      (2) I’m for immigration reduction
      (3) Wouldn’t kill Social Security
      (4) Wouldn’t kill Medicare

      But otherwise, I’m on the side of freedom and privatization more often than not.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: YoshiyaDayan on February 23, 2023, 12:57:20 PM
      14-year-old Jewish Republican  here from California to give you my opinion.
      Economically, I am an America First Capitalist. I oppose domestic regulation but support protectionism, I oppose enviromentalism.
      Socially, I am a Religious Conservative; I am Pro-Life, Pro-Gun, Anti-Mask, Anti-Vax, Anti-LGBTQ+ Expansion, and VERY anti-furry.
      In Foreign Policy, I support U.S protection of Afghanistan, Taiwan, Israel, Saudi Arabia, and current NATO members, but I think U.S should mainly stay out of other small nations and just hold back China.
      I am Pro-Trump, small government, Right-Wing Populist, and patriotic. I am also VERY Pro-Israel.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: President of the civil service full of trans activists on February 23, 2023, 06:31:26 PM
      I know you mean the expansion of LGBTQ+ rights, but I misread it as the LGBTQ+ population expanding (which, to be fair, you most likely also oppose).


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: YoshiyaDayan on February 23, 2023, 07:01:33 PM
      Sorry about not being clear, and while I don't think its best for more people have no kids and make terrorists want to kill us for their sexual ideas, I judge everyone on an individual basis an on why they are what they are.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: YoshiyaDayan on February 23, 2023, 07:12:31 PM
      Against Affirmative Action in any way shape or form, it is nothing but reverse racism.
      Not to attack your opinion, but what about hiring more women? I have met many women who say they missed out on a job because they are a woman.
      Generally jobs care more about what a person can do than their gender. If a woman can lift  70-pound barrels and load them, they will get a job of that type better than a fat guy who can't do anything. This is generally not the case, and usually men are stronger, so they get jobs easier. Women are usually better at office jobs, and men are better at manual labor and fighting (usually, of course).


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Vice President Christian Man on February 26, 2023, 01:33:58 PM
      14-year-old Jewish Republican  here from California to give you my opinion.
      Economically, I am an America First Capitalist. I oppose domestic regulation but support protectionism, I oppose enviromentalism.
      Socially, I am a Religious Conservative; I am Pro-Life, Pro-Gun, Anti-Mask, Anti-Vax, Anti-LGBTQ+ Expansion, and VERY anti-furry.
      In Foreign Policy, I support U.S protection of Afghanistan, Taiwan, Israel, Saudi Arabia, and current NATO members, but I think U.S should mainly stay out of other small nations and just hold back China.
      I am Pro-Trump, small government, Right-Wing Populist, and patriotic. I am also VERY Pro-Israel.
      Out of curiosity why does your profile say you’re 18 if you’re claiming on multiple posts to only be 14? I think the minimum age to post here is 13.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: YoshiyaDayan on February 26, 2023, 01:47:04 PM
      14-year-old Jewish Republican  here from California to give you my opinion.
      Economically, I am an America First Capitalist. I oppose domestic regulation but support protectionism, I oppose enviromentalism.
      Socially, I am a Religious Conservative; I am Pro-Life, Pro-Gun, Anti-Mask, Anti-Vax, Anti-LGBTQ+ Expansion, and VERY anti-furry.
      In Foreign Policy, I support U.S protection of Afghanistan, Taiwan, Israel, Saudi Arabia, and current NATO members, but I think U.S should mainly stay out of other small nations and just hold back China.
      I am Pro-Trump, small government, Right-Wing Populist, and patriotic. I am also VERY Pro-Israel.
      Out of curiosity why does your profile say you’re 18 if you’re claiming on multiple posts to only be 14? I think the minimum age to post here is 13.
      Not sure why it was set to 2005 changed it to my actual birthday thanks


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RFK 2024 on March 05, 2023, 10:48:36 PM
      2023 update after my political hiatus and alt right detox.   8^]
      I've bolded all the changes

      Social Issues

      Abortion: Personally pro-life but keep legal
      Birth control: Support
      Same-Sex Marriage: Support
      Death penalty: Opposed
      Legalization of Drugs: Opposed except for marijuana.
      Gun Control: Support background checks
      Prostitution: Opposed, should remain illegal.
      Affirmative Action: Opposed
      Reparations: Opposed
      Police Reform/BLM: Support reform
      Private Prisons: Against
      Free Speech: Strongly support
      PATRIOT Act: Opposed
      Eminent Domain: Opposed.
      Immigration: Support but limit to necessary numbers
      Euthanasia: Strongly opposed.
      Mask Mandates: Leave to individuals to decide
      Vaccine Mandates: Opposed
      COVID-19 Vaccines: Support, but should be up to individual

      Economic Issues

      Free Trade: Opposed.  Focus on creating self-sufficient economy.
      Taxes: Raise for big corporations and billionaires, lower for small businesses and working class
      Healthcare: Nationalized single tier universal health care
      Social Security: Support
      National Debt: We need to lower it to defeat inflation
      Campaign Finance Reform: Support.
      Unions: Support.
      Tariffs: Support.  Increase domestic production.
      UBI: Not sure on this one.  
      Foreign Policy: Isolationist
      Education: Support funding public schools, allow private and charter alternatives

      International Relations

      Afghanistan: I supported leaving, but Biden administration totally botched this.
      China: Strongly opposed, defend Taiwan and Hong Kong from CCP invasion.
      Middle East: Pull out, not our business
      Cuba: Keep sanctions.
      Military Spending: Maintain
      PATRIOT Act: Abolish
      NSA Spying: Abolish
      Palestine: Neutral, not really our issue
      Israel: Neutral, not really our issue
      Ukraine-Russia War: Support Ukraine, but negotiate peace deal with Russia
      Mexico: Strengthen security at the border

      Environment

      Climate Change: Huge issue that needs to be addressed
      Green New Deal: Opposed
      Carbon Tax: Opposed
      Keystone Pipeline: Support, reroute from Native land.
      Energy independence: Strongly support, revert back to Trump admin policies.

      Elections
      Big Lie: Biden won, it's time to move on
      Voter ID: Support.
      Audits: Support.
      Term Limits: Strongly supportive.
      DC/PR statehood: Opposed.
      SCOTUS: Introduce term limits.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: LAKISYLVANIA on March 11, 2023, 09:22:00 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: Pro-choice
      Birth Control: Supportive.
      Same-Sex Marriage: Supportive
      Death penalty: Supportive
      Legalization of Drugs: Supportive of all drugs
      Gun Control: Supportive
      Prostitution: Opposed
      Affirmative Action: Opposed
      Reparations: Opposed
      Police Reform/BLM: Supportive
      Private Prisons: Opposed
      Big Tech: Opposed
      Free Speech: Depends
      PATRIOT Act: Opposed.
      Eminent Domain: Depends
      Immigration: Supportive
      Euthanasia: Supportive
      Mask Mandates: Strongly opposed, except in hospitals, but opposed in particular outside & classrooms.
      Vaccine Mandates: Supportive
      COVID-19 Vaccines: Supportive

      Economic Issues

      Free Trade: Opposed
      Taxes: Depends
      Healthcare: Entirely national and public, no private interests at all
      Social Security: Supportive
      National Debt: Not an issue
      Campaign Finance Reform: Support.
      Unions: Strongly support
      Tariffs: Supportive.
      UBI: Opposed.
      Foreign Policy: Use diplomacy, respect other countries, anti-imperialist, pro-peace
      Education: Ban private, religious  & special schools, make free for everyone.

      International Relations

      Afghanistan: Stay out
      China: Ignore
      Middle East: Stay out
      Cuba: Ally
      Military Spending: Decrease funding
      NSA Spying: Abolish
      Palestine: Recognise
      Israel: Withdraw recognition and impose sanctions, including BDS
      Ukraine-Russia War: End military agression but condemn and blockade Russia
      Mexico: Ally

      Environment

      Climate Change: Caused by humans and a threat.
      Green New Deal: Supportive
      Carbon Tax: Strongly opposed.
      Keystone Pipeline: Strongly opposed
      Energy independence: Supportive

      Elections

      Big Lie: Biden won the election. Period.
      Voter ID: Support.
      Audits: Support.
      Term Limits: Strongly supportive.
      DC/PR statehood: Opposed for DC, support for PR.
      SCOTUS: Introduce term limits.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: President Punxsutawney Phil on March 19, 2023, 02:02:16 AM
      Economic Issues
      Minimum Wage: Raise to $15, and index to inflation (used to be opposed to this a few years ago)
      Taxes: Maybe keep corporate taxes where they are. Perhaps look into making taxes harder to evade by switching out some kinds of taxes to others. Trump tax reform in 2018 was actually good overall, but we should increase the top tax rate higher and institute, say, a vacancy tax on real estate.
      Unions: Mostly favorable. I stand for the right to organize for workers, including police officers. I also favor card check. At the same time, more unionized does not necessarily mean better as in some places people are very clearly better off as individual actors. I favor what MI Dems have done by making union dues tax refundable.
      Healthcare: Obamacare was very good and I personally profited from it as a diabetic. A public option would be good but it's only worth pushing for if the critical mass exists.
      Trade: Generally free trade. Let the goods pass through national borders and consumers reap the rewards. I am generally opposed to protectionism and favor NAFTA and trade with nations, including China.
      Monopolies: Apply relevant current laws as needed.
      National Debt: Keep on eye it on it. It is worth trying to keep surpluses in good times.
      Tariffs: Oppose, generally.
      Retirement Age and Entitlements: Gradually increase if that is needed to maintain the integrity of Social Security. It might be worth it raising the threshold and making the benefits more generous. Protect Medicare and Medicaid and especially Food Stamps.

      Foreign Policy
      Hawkish vs Dove: Lean Doveish, if Hawkish is to be defined as using military action liberally.
      Internationalist vs Unilateralist: Strong lean towards Interationalism. Don't let China become the standard-bearer for a global order driven by "rules". We of course can deviate from our "rules-based order", but if we do, we also give license for China to do the same. Caution is important and context is necessary when considering action and options.
      Ukraine: It is in America's interest that Russia be weakened, so arms for Ukraine. But Russia should not be so weak it becomes a Chinese puppet. What we can do with Ukraine depends on what it achieves on the battlefield. What happens with Ukraine is not to be decided by what the people of Ukraine want, as much as the American national interest, which takes in the global state of affairs.
      Russia: Some kind of sanctions for as long as the war runs. Re-evaluate sanctions routinely if they are doing the nation's interests a service. If not, do not hesitate to scrap. We don't want a Russia completely resilient to sanctions and thus which is independent from us. Also, Western companies having a presence in Russia is very good and I hope that the Russian market has as much of a presence of Western firms as it can (with some exceptions...weapons being one of them). In general though, if there are sanctions being evaded, good...that's more American corporate power globally and more money for American corporations.
      China: Top rival, globally. Treat it cautiously, for they are a great power with a ton of strength. Full-blown war would be economic and political suicide and MUST be avoided. Above all avoid the existence of a cohesive Eurasian bloc joining the Middle East, Russia, and China.
      NATO: Strongly support, though expansion is something to be treated cautiously. We are not required to accept membership applications.
      Cuba: Lift sanctions. Obama era policy here was good, it is a shame Trump shut the door on that.
      Middle East: Maintain relationships with players in this region, including Israel and Palestine, Saudi Arabia, and UAE. Even Iran to some extent. This area is still important.
      UN: A good forum for global cooperation. Use as needed.
      Israel-Palestine: I've lost faith in a 2-state solution, but I don't know what is best in its place. Perhaps a 1-state solution with constitutional and religious guarantees. But the people probably won't want that.

      Education
      Use federal tax money to help fix leaking roofs in poor schools, in both black and white areas. Keep out 1619 Project, that is sensationalist bull****. In general, avoid the crazy ideas from both left and right.
      School choice (Charter schools): Good. However, public schools should still be appropriately resourced regardless of their existence.
      Private schools: Keep.

      Social Issues
      Gun control: Strongly oppose. States, of course, have some leeway to go closer to tight gun control.
      Abortion: Ban at least up to 15 weeks I guess. Ideally, nationwide ban besides the three exceptions, but I do not think the popular backing exists for something going that far. "Ideally" and "Abortion" in context to laws may as well be oil and water.
      Drugs: Marijuana should be legalized as evidence it is harmful for health overall is limited at best. Most drugs should be illegal, however. Cocaine is ruinous and so is crystal meth.
      Smoking: Strongly oppose. Maintain existing smoking taxes. Don't hike them further because at this point it would just empower the black market.
      Alcohol: I'm a teetoler, but I'm an avid reader of history. Societies everywhere have some kind of drugs to let themselves cope with life. There's a reason Prohibition didn't work.
      Reparations: Made sense in 1865. We aren't in 1865 anymore.
      Affirmative Action: I support it. But within limits. It ought to be not to be used to discriminate against men. Universities have the leeway to have a racially diverse student body.
      LGBT: No privileges. Treat them as normal. It is dumb we talk so much about this.
      Police Reform: Oppose many of the things activists suggest. Try to get incremental progress on this, with clear goals in mind. Seeking perfection here is futile.
      Free Speech: Strongly favor. I've always been at least fairly absolutist on this.
      Birth Control: Strongly support its availability. (The aborting of the unborn and the usage of birth control are two very distinct issues for me)
      Immigration: Broadly supportive. We should make it easier to come and stay here. However, border security is important and we should not have wholesale open borders. We should keep out "bad hombres".
      Private Prisons: I disapprove of them, but if we get rid of them we need to be ready to fully fill in the void and use tax dollars correspondingly. If we are unwilling to do so, then we need to keep them in some capacity, though it stinks. Perhaps make it a rule that we should no longer have any new private prison contracts.
      Civil Asset Forfeiture: Ban it.
      Crime: Tough on crime, tough on the causes of crime.
      Prostitution: Status quo. I don't care about this issue but don't favor legalization either.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: GregTheGreat657 on May 29, 2023, 12:30:42 AM
      Social Issues
      Abortion: Ban after a heartbeat can be detected, with exceptions to save the mother's life or if the baby wouldn't be able to survive normally outside of the womb
      Birth Control: Keep legal
      LGBT+ Rights: Keep gay marriage legal
      Drugs: Legalize medical marijuana, keep recreational drugs illegal
      Death Penalty: Support in the case of murderers and rapists with undeniable evidence against them
      Gun Control: Expand training, but do not add any form of gun control
      Policing: Increase funding
      Prisons: Get rid of private prisons
      PATRIOT ACT: Get rid of it.
      Immigration: Build a wall, and limit immigration
      Freedom of Speech: Allow anyone to say whatever they want, as long as it doesn't incite violence
      Euthanasia: Only if the person in question is still mentally "there" and consents to it
      COVID-19: Promote vaccination, but do not mandate masks or social distancing anywhere

      Economic Issues
      Minimum Wage: Increase slightly, with further increases being tied to inflation
      Taxes: Cut taxes on the poor and middle class dramatically, while slightly raising on the wealthy, with all loopholes being closed. It will be illegal to divert funds made in America overseas in the name of avoiding taxes.
      Unions: Support right-to-work
      Healthcare: Expand Medicaid elgibility, and set price limits on life-saving drugs
      Social Security: Make optional
      Trade: Support protectionist policies to keep/bring back jobs
      Monopolies: Bust those trusts!
      Nationalization: Do not nationalize anything

      Foreign Policy
      Interventionism: Stay out of all war unless we were attacked or a genocide is occurring
      Russia: Support Ukraine and expand sanctions
      China: Support protectionist trade policies and shift our manufacturing back to the US, so we are less reliant on them
      Saudi Arabia: Drill for oil in the US more, as well as expanding nuclear production to gain further energy independence
      Israel/Palestine: Two state solution
      NATO: Stay in NATO, and use it to keep Putin at bay
      United Nations Does nothing of substance, and allows dictatorships and authoritarian regimes too much power

      Elections and Democracy
      Electoral College: Keep.
      Gerrymandering: Ban
      Term Limits: Support for all officials
      Voting: Make E-Day a holiday, but require photo ID to vote
      Supreme Court: Add term limits


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: laddicus finch on May 30, 2023, 06:42:30 PM
      Minimum Wage: Distort the labour market, but necessary, because the alternatives are worse. Raise periodically to keep in line with CoL, and encourage employers to increase wages, benefits etc via incentives.

      Abortion: Pro-choice. I'm not personally comfortable with abortion and think more humane alternatives should be supported. But stopping people who want one from getting a legal abortion ain't right.

      Birth Control: Supportive.

      Same-Sex Marriage: Supportive.

      Death Penalty/Sentencing: Not against it on principle, but here in Canada it's been abolished for decades, and I wouldn't support bringing it back.

      Marijuana: Keep legal.

      Gun Control: Generally pro-gun rights, but I can go either way depending on the specific measure proposed.

      Prostitution: The act of prostitution shouldn't be a crime, but brothels and organized prostitutions should be. Again, it depends on the local context. In places where it's already normalized, I'd feel different. But here in Canada it's not a commonplace thing, and I'm good keeping it that way.

      Affirmative Action: Generally opposed, but I can see limited circumstances where it makes sense.

      Reparations: Opposed.

      Police Reform: Way too broad to give a snappy answer on. Very opposed to Defund the Police and other such nonsense, but I acknowledge the need for some reform. Generally though, I tend to think that peace and public order should not be things that we experiment with, so with police reform I support a more gradual approach.

      Prisons: They should exist and be used primarily to keep criminals away from society.

      Free Speech: Non-negotiable, with exceptions for direct incitement of violence, breaching national security, doxxing private information, "yelling fire in a theater", etc.

      PATRIOT Act: I'm not very knowledgable or have strong opinions on that act in particular, so I won't comment on it. In general, I'm against permitting government surveillance of civilians, but it's all about proportionality - sometimes, a crisis is bad enough that trade-offs must be made. From what I know, I don't think the PATRIOT Act was a proportionate or necessary response to 9/11, although a softer approach would have been.

      Eminent Domain: Support, but arbitrated negotiation required before invoking eminent domain. And if invoked, must compensate greater than market value.

      Immigration: Support legal immigration with a streamlined process, but I think current rates in Canada are too high. Main focus should be on skill-based immigration, support taking refugees from severe crisis areas, oppose illegal immigration and sanctuary cities.

      Euthanasia: Yes, but only for terminal illnesses.

      Mask Mandates: I mean at this point, opposed. But 2-3 years ago, it was clearly necessary.

      Vaccine Mandates: In general, I think individuals should never be made to ingest or inject anything against their will, even if it's for the common good - there are certain boundaries of personal autonomy that should not be crossed. But I think public schools should be able to mandate it for students, and employers should be able to mandate it provided that there is a reason (working with vulnerable people, etc).

      COVID-19 Vaccines: Ditto, although I wouldn't mandate it for public school students either, but definitely mandate it for healthcare workers for example.

      LGBT: Lol what a broad topic. I support the right of LGBT people to live and express themselves freely and not be discriminated, and I support same-sex marriage and adoption. I don't support physical transition for pre-pubescent minors. I'm also very uncomfortable with the public expression and normalization of sexually explicit aspects embraced by some people in the LGBT community. I know what people are going to say, no I'm not accusing LGBT people of being perverts or anything like that, or saying "just don't do it in public", because of course people should be able to express themselves. But if your self-expression involves publicizing your fetish in the middle of the street, as it seems to for some people in the community, don't get surprised when people try to shield their kids from that subculture.

      Free Trade: Based (but must be reciprocal).

      Income/Corporate Taxes: Keep low. Cut income taxes whenever possible, preferably by raising the personal amount (i.e. the amount of income that isn't taxed before income taxes kick in, raising the personal amount would disproportionately help low income people). For corporate taxes, it all depends on the business environment, but it should be kept competitive.

      Tax Credits: An imperfect but effective way of providing tax relief (and if we're being realistic, pandering to key voter blocs).

      Healthcare: Ensure universal access to public healthcare while allowing more for-profit facilities to operate at the user's expense, as long as public facilities are available, and a certain % of private healthcare profits directly go to the public system. This would alleviate the over-capacity of public healthcare and give customers more options without abolishing the public system.

      Social Security: Again, not American, not very familiar with the specifics.

      National Debt: Limit deficits and pay down debt as much as practicable.

      Campaign Finance Reform: Individuals should be allowed to donate up to a certain limit. Ban direct corporate and union donations, PACs should be permitted.

      Unions: Support in the private sector, oppose in the public sector (but can make peace with).

      Tariffs: Only reciprocal tariffs.

      UBI: Opposed.

      Welfare: Should be limited as much as possible, able-bodied people shouldn't rely on the state for their livelihood, although people with disabilities or other circumstances out of their control that make it hard for them to get work should get enough support to live on. Better to focus on skill development than provide welfare.

      Foreign Policy: Support our allies in NATO, Ukraine, Israel, Japan, Korea, etc, and stay the f- away from China. Generally maintain warm relations with countries wherever possible, but also understand that geopolitics can be very brutal and unforgiving, so don't be naive.

      Colleges: Shouldn't be free, but government should intervene to cut tuition costs, especially in state and community colleges. More importantly, I think governments should put a halt on the policy of getting as many students as possible into 4-year university degrees, and instead promote trades and associate degrees focused on professional development - nothing against academia, but the social expectation of needing a 4-year bachelor's degree (particularly arts and general business programs that aren't very useful anyway) is unhealthy and forces a lot of young people into financial and time commitments that really aren't necessary to be a useful member of society.

      Education: What I said above for post-secondary, and the idea of applying more practical education in the secondary level also applies. I know very little about primary education policy though, so I won't say anything. I do think school choice and charter schools are a good thing, but public education is also important.

      Afghanistan: What's done is done. Don't recognize the Taliban and give into their extremism, but we're well past the point of them being the de facto government.

      China: Again, avoid getting entangled with China any more than necessary. I think the west has slowly learned the hard way (I'm thinking about Canada in particular, but it applies everywhere) that economic liberalization does NOT mean that China is going to become a trustworthy power.

      Middle East: No particular opinion, but building ties with Middle Eastern countries without undermining NATO obligations is the best way to go for Canada.

      Cuba: As a Canadian, Cuba is more a cheap vacation destination (and the birthplace of our Prime Minister of course  ;] ) than a real geopolitical question.

      Military Spending: Work towards meeting the 2% NATO target by beefing up our presence in the Arctic.

      NSA Spying: What I said above about the PATRIOT Act.

      Palestine/Israel: Status quo for Canadian policy, support our allies in Israel but don't get any more involved than we need to. Against BDS and such things, but there's no reason for us to pick fights with the Palestinians either. Peace in the region would be nice, but not our job.

      Ukraine-Russia War: Support Ukraine.

      Mexico: Again, as a Canadian, I don't feel any kind of way about Mexico politically. I'd like to travel there though, I've done the typical Cancun thing but I'd like to see more of the country.

      Climate Change: Important to tackle, but we have to be realistic about what we can actually achieve on this file. I don't support hamstringing our energy sector only to let that demand be fulfilled by others. Strongly supportive of renewable and nuclear energy.

      Carbon Tax: A good idea in theory, but I question its effectiveness in the way it's been applied.

      Keystone Pipeline: Support.

      Energy independence: Supportive.

      Big Lie: Biden won the election.

      Voter ID: Support, as long as ID is easy enough to attain (or better yet, any official government ID like a license, passport, health card, etc).

      Audits: Audits? Yeah, audits need to be done regularly as a matter of good business practice. I'm not sure what this is referring to lol.

      Term Limits: Nah, doesn't really make sense in a parliamentary system.

      DC/PR statehood: Don't care.

      SCOTUS: No strong opinions.

      Alcohol: End the government monopoly on liquor sales (this is a very Ontario specific thing though). I'm not a big drinker, but I don't think government intervention on alcohol consumption is necessary or advisable.

      Porn: Banning it won't work, but it's a genuine public health issue. Focus on awareness, and clamp down on sketchy practices in the porn industry.

      Religion in Schools: I have no problem with school prayer, and parents should be able to send their kids to religious schools. That said, public schools shouldn't promote or oppose any religion.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Gracile on June 05, 2023, 05:00:22 PM
      Not going to make a whole long list as I'm pretty apathetic about political issues on the whole (becoming more so over the past few years) to the point that I don't really think about politics. However, my primary political concerns are being aggressively pro-labor union and wanting to expand the social safety net whenever possible; my ideal party would be a fiscally left-wing labor party.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Havana44 on June 16, 2023, 04:46:27 PM
      Peace, kindness, freedom, and equality for all  ^_^


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: 15 Down, 35 To Go on June 18, 2023, 10:40:51 PM
      Social Issues

      Abortion: Pro-life, support national ban from moment of conception
      Birth Control: Opposed to all hormonal contraception due to the potential to prevent implantation.  If it's still legal, make sure that no pharmacist has to fill that prescription.  Ideally, require proof of marriage to purchase condoms.
      Same-Sex Marriage: Opposed, but if it's still legal, we need to make sure that no small business owner has to provide a service to a gay wedding.
      Divorce: Abolish no-fault divorce
      Death penalty: Ambivalent
      Legalization of Drugs: Opposed
      Gun Control: Opposed, except for basic background checks
      Prostitution: Opposed
      Affirmative Action: Opposed
      Reparations: Opposed
      Police Reform/BLM: Take situations on a case-by-case basis.  Body cams are a good thing though.
      Private Prisons: Don't know enough to say
      Big Tech: Generally agree with how Elon Musk is handling Twitter
      Free Speech: Support
      PATRIOT Act: Lean supportive, but not really that big of an issue in 2023
      Eminent Domain: No strong opinion
      Immigration: Support legal immigration.
      Euthanasia: Opposed
      Mask Mandates: Does anyone actually support them in 2023?  (But, I was always opposed)
      Vaccine Mandates: Opposed
      COVID-19 Vaccines: Neutral.  I chose to get vaccinated but probably won't be getting updated boosters every year.  No issues with people deciding not to get it at all or with people getting annual boosters forever.

      Economic Issues

      Free Trade: Support
      Taxes: Lower, sympathetic to flat tax or national sales tax ideas
      Healthcare: Support free market insurance, ban coverage of abortion, contraception, and sex changes
      Social Security: Unfair to get rid of what people have been paying into, but look into ways to "fix" it going forward
      National Debt: Shrink roles of federal government to reduce debt
      Campaign Finance Reform: Probably opposed
      Unions: Support right-to-work
      Tariffs: Opposed
      UBI: Opposed in 2023.  Open to reconsidering it depending on what work looks like in the future (with increased automation).
      Foreign Policy: I generally believe that America should play an active role in the world
      Education: Support school vouchers (and even open to a subsidized all private school model).  Strongly oppose teaching secular values and evolution in public schools.

      International Relations

      Afghanistan: Keep a limited troop presence to ensure stability
      China: Our biggest geopolitical threat today
      Middle East: Make sure that the rights of Christian believers are protected- including the right to evangelize to Muslims
      Cuba: Keep significant sanctions, but allow limited tourism
      Military Spending: Don't know enough to make a budget
      Israel/Palestine: Support Israel as a key ally in the region (and one that does a better job of protecting sites holy to three major religious traditions).  Press Israel to treat Palestinians within its borders well.
      Ukraine-Russia War: Ukraine is obviously in the right.  We should help them in some way, but probably not with boots on the ground.
      Mexico: Oppose building a physical wall, but support more modern increased border security.

      Environment

      Climate Change: The Earth is warming due to a mix of natural and man-made causes.  It's nothing to be alarmed about though.  The dystopian predictions that some on the left make verge on science fiction.
      Green New Deal: Opposed
      Carbon Tax: Opposed
      Keystone Pipeline: Support
      Energy independence: Support if realistically feasible

      Elections
      Big Lie: The election was not physically stolen, but I do think mass mail-in voting was an unfair change to the rules late in the game
      Voter ID: Support
      Audits: Support, but don't go overboard
      Term Limits: Lean against
      DC/PR statehood: Opposed for DC, potentially open to PR statehood (especially if we pair it with a new red state, such as the State of Jefferson)
      SCOTUS: No structural reform needed.  Senate has a right to refuse a nominee for ideological reasons, not just for qualification.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: BigZuck08 on July 20, 2023, 04:13:50 PM
      Economy:

      Supports adjusting the minimum wage every year proportional to inflation (not important)
      Supports cutting wasteful government spending and decreasing taxes (very important)
      Supports a flat tax for civilians (somewhat important)
      Supports increasing taxes on business that are manufacturing in China and other hostile adversaries but decreasing taxes on business that manufacture solely in America (very important)

      Society:

      Is pro-choice on abortion with the exception of late-term abortions (not important)
      Supports banning gender-affirming care for those under 18 (very important)
      Supports banning TikTok (very important)
      Supports mandating social media apps institute protections to try to ensure under-18s don’t get access to said apps (very important)
      Supports universal background checks, a gun licensing system, and other gun regulations, but opposes bans on guns (very important)
      Supports demilitarizing the police, but not defunding (somewhat important)
      Supports the legalization of marijuana in public spaces (somewhat important)
      Supports the death penalty as an option for people found guilty of murder (very important)
      Supports strengthening sentences for those guilty of other crimes such as sexual assault (very important)

      Politics:

      Supports abolishing the electoral college, but only if the multi-party system is established. If the multi-party system is not yet established, then we keep the electoral college. (not important)
      Supports establishing a multi-party system (very important)
      Supports a national voter ID law (very important)

      Education:

      Supports school choice (very important)
      Opposes biased ideology being taught in schools, with the exception of the obvious stuff like slavery and the Holocaust (very important)
      Supports abolishing the Department of Education and letting local school boards decide most of their own curriculum, with the exception of the above being forbidden nationwide (very important)


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: GregTheGreat657 on August 05, 2023, 08:44:56 PM
      Social Issues
      Abortion: Ban at 10 weeks, with exceptions to save the mother's life or if the baby wouldn't be able to survive normally outside of the womb, as well as for rape and incest
      Birth Control: Keep legal and subsidize
      LGBT+ Rights: Keep gay marriage legal
      Drugs: Legalize medical marijuana, keep recreational drugs illegal
      Death Penalty: Support in the case of murderers and rapists with undeniable evidence against them
      Gun Control: Expand training, but do not add any form of gun control
      Policing: Increase funding
      Prisons: Get rid of private prisons
      PATRIOT ACT: Get rid of it.
      Immigration: Expand skilled immigration and increase the number of refugees we take in. However, increase border security.
      Freedom of Speech: Allow anyone to say whatever they want, as long as it doesn't incite violence
      Euthanasia: Only if the person in question is still mentally "there" and consents to it
      COVID-19: Promote vaccination, but do not mandate masks or social distancing anywhere

      Economic Issues
      Minimum Wage: Increase national minimum wage to $10, with further increases being tied to inflation
      Taxes: Cut taxes on the poor and middle class dramatically, while slightly raising on the wealthy, with all loopholes being closed. It will be illegal to divert funds made in America overseas in the name of avoiding taxes.
      Unions: Support right-to-work
      Healthcare: Expand Medicaid elgibility, and set price limits on life-saving drugs
      Social Security: Make optional
      Trade: Support protectionist policies to keep/bring back jobs
      Monopolies: Bust those trusts!
      Nationalization: Do not nationalize anything

      Foreign Policy
      Interventionism: Stay out of war unless we were attacked or a genocide is occurring
      Russia: Support Ukraine and expand sanctions
      China: Support protectionist trade policies and shift our manufacturing back to the US, so we are less reliant on them
      Saudi Arabia: Drill for oil in the US more, as well as expanding nuclear production to gain further energy independence
      Israel/Palestine: Two state solution
      NATO: Stay in NATO, and use it to keep Putin at bay
      United Nations: Does nothing of substance, and allows dictatorships and authoritarian regimes too much power, but it is better than nothing

      Elections and Democracy
      Electoral College: Keep.
      Gerrymandering: Ban
      Term Limits: Support for all officials
      Voting: Make E-Day a holiday, but require photo ID to vote
      Supreme Court: Add term limits


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: ProgressiveModerate on August 11, 2023, 06:29:53 PM
      The more I think about it, I think the worst thing someone can do is subscribe to a single ideology (i.e. "liberal", "conservative", "socialist"), and think because they are that ideology, all their positions have been laid out for them.

      The world is too complex for any one ideology to always be correct and have no hypocracy within it.

      Furthermore, when people try to subscribe to a single party, sometimes that party just picks up positions to be anti-the other party, even if that anti-position is just bad.

      I feel like the best thing we can do is think about individual issues, and think about solutions that will make the biggest positive impact on the most people possible, and/or will improve the position of our country as a whole.

      Ik that sounds vague and corny, but I think it's the truth.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Хahar 🤔 on August 11, 2023, 06:51:15 PM
      The more I think about it, I think the worst thing someone can do is subscribe to a single ideology (i.e. "liberal", "conservative", "socialist"), and think because they are that ideology, all their positions have been laid out for them.

      The world is too complex for any one ideology to always be correct and have no hypocracy within it.

      Furthermore, when people try to subscribe to a single party, sometimes that party just picks up positions to be anti-the other party, even if that anti-position is just bad.

      I feel like the best thing we can do is think about individual issues, and think about solutions that will make the biggest positive impact on the most people possible, and/or will improve the position of our country as a whole.

      Ik that sounds vague and corny, but I think it's the truth.

      Why would what you are describing be bad? Most people are not politicians and do not need to have a position on every issue. Coming up with one is a waste of time and mental energy that could be more profitably applied to any other activity. I try not to think about individual issues.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: ProgressiveModerate on August 11, 2023, 10:22:42 PM
      The more I think about it, I think the worst thing someone can do is subscribe to a single ideology (i.e. "liberal", "conservative", "socialist"), and think because they are that ideology, all their positions have been laid out for them.

      The world is too complex for any one ideology to always be correct and have no hypocracy within it.

      Furthermore, when people try to subscribe to a single party, sometimes that party just picks up positions to be anti-the other party, even if that anti-position is just bad.

      I feel like the best thing we can do is think about individual issues, and think about solutions that will make the biggest positive impact on the most people possible, and/or will improve the position of our country as a whole.

      Ik that sounds vague and corny, but I think it's the truth.

      Why would what you are describing be bad? Most people are not politicians and do not need to have a position on every issue. Coming up with one is a waste of time and mental energy that could be more profitably applied to any other activity. I try not to think about individual issues.

      I agree that regular people do not need to have nuanced policy positions on every issue; realistically you can't expect them too.

      The issue imo is that subscribing to a party or ideology gives on the belief they are an expert on every issue just because they go along with the partisan talking point. I think one thing we could use is greater humility and acknowledgement of the issues we honestly might not be very well informed on.

      I for instance don't have a great understanding of economics of international politics (like trade, wars, ect). I tend to stay out of discussions around those and am much more willing to listen to those who are actually experts to inform my views. On the flip side, on something like redistricting (and electoral politics more generally), I feel like I have become somewhat an expert in my own right and feel comfortable developing my own unique position.

      I think we should think of "ideology" more as a set of values we hold highest. Those values can vary from person to person, but their values should really be around how they *think* about issues, not giving positions for them.

      Ig if people want they can still assign themselves an ideological label. But that label should represent their general values and how they think, not their slate of policy positions.

      Someone can "think like a conservative" meaning they place values of freedom for as many as possible, independence, ect) but still end up supporting policy positions that are generally associated with liberals, or vice-versa.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Sheikh Scott Walker on August 21, 2023, 10:59:08 PM
      Libertarian, nationalist, conservative.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: All Along The Watchtower on August 25, 2023, 01:16:36 PM
      Social: Libertarian. I believe strongly in individual freedom, including the right for a woman to choose, the right to keep and bear arms, the right for a homosexual couple to marry, the right to practice one's religion, and the right to privacy. I also believe strongly in the separation of church and state.

      Economic: I believe that small businesses and innovative fields like the "green" industry are what stimulate the economy. I believe their autonomy should be protected, and I support free trade. However, I recognize that consumers and small businesses need protection from predatory corporations seeking to create monopolies, so I advocate strong, transparent government regulation of industry.

      Foreign: I am pragmatic when it comes to foreign policy. I believe in a world of shared self-interest. I also believe in spreading democracy, but through the power of votes and reformers, not through the power of bullets and bombs. I think institutions like the U.N. are good experiments but need a lot of reform in order to be effective.

      Honestly? Not a lot has changed for me on these issues!


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: WalterWhite on August 25, 2023, 03:12:54 PM
      SOCIAL:
      Overall attitude: Socially progressive
      Abortion: Increase funding, fully legal until birth
      Guns: Rigorous training and background checks to own a gun, close gun-show loophole
      Body armor: Unrestricted access
      Drugs: Fully legalize marijuana and LSD, decriminalize other drugs
      Criminal justice: Increase funding for public defenders, abolish private prisons, stricter sentencing guidelines (i.e. less judicial discretion, not harsher), disarm police in all cases except when responding to violent emergencies, abolish the death penalty, focus on rehabilitation and deterrence rather than punishment, more lenient sentencing for non-violent offenses, more comprehensive police training
      LGBT: Fully support same-sex marriage, HRT and sex change surgery with informed consent, and fully oppose discrimination based purely on sexuality or gender identity
      Gender: Add Equal Rights Amendment
      School choice: Increase funding for public schools, abolish for-profit charter schools
      Energy: Full transition to renewables and nuclear
      Voting: Institute an easily-accessible universal voter ID, make Election Day a federal holiday, ban partisan gerrymandering, set term limits for Senators and Representatives, and make all elections officially non-partisan
      Immigration: Make legal immigration and obtaining citizenship or asylum status easier, increased border patrolling, cut back on deportations, no border wall
      Affirmative action: Not explicitly race-based, but factor into account all forms of discrimination
      Legacy admissions: Abolish
      Birth control: Fully legal
      Euthanasia: Fully legalize

      ECONOMIC:
      Overall attitude: Economically interventionist
      Monopolies: Bust all monopolies and trusts
      Healthcare: Public option for Obamacare
      Social Security: Increase benefits, lower full retirement age to 60
      Taxes: Dramatically raise for the 1%, moderately raise for the upper middle class, slightly lower for the lower middle class and the very poor
      Unemployment: Universal employment
      Automation: Heavily regulate (<25% of the work done by a business can be automated)
      Environmental regulation: Strengthen regulations and regulation enforcement, support Green New Deal
      Consumer protection: Strengthen regulations
      Climate change: Dramatically increase carbon taxes, increase funding for renewable and nuclear energy
      Prescription drugs: Dramatically lower costs
      Free trade: Protectionist and bring manufacturing to the US
      Minimum wage: Increase to $21/hr
      Unions: Repeal right-to-work, employees should have the final say in all decisions
      College: Free undergraduate
      Infrastructure spending: Increase nationwide, dramatically increase in less prosperous communities
      Campaign finance: Abolish Super PACs and make all political donations transparent
      Student loan forgiveness: Forgive at least $50K/student

      FOREIGN:
      Overall attitude: Foreign policy dove & internationalist
      Military spending: Cut
      Military bases: Close military bases in Western Europe
      Military intervention: Only send troops in the event on an invasion or secessionist movement
      Humanitarian aid: Slightly increase
      Peace Corps: Increase funding slightly
      Nuclear weapons: Global nuclear disarmament
      United Nations: Should be better at enforcing international law
      International law: Must always be obeyed
      NATO: Remain
      Israel & Palestine: Two-state solution, force Israel to withdraw all settlements from the West Bank
      Ukraine: Priority #1 should be a peace deal that gives Ukraine its pre-2014 borders at the minimum, but continue funding the war effort until this is reached
      Saudi Arabia: Cut ties until Saudi Arabia solves its human rights violations

      MISCELLANIOUS:
      1) Add a chamber of Congress filled with elected representatives from every officially-recognized Native American tribe
      2) Add Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia as states


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: President of the civil service full of trans activists on October 04, 2023, 01:16:56 PM
      LGBT: Fully support same-sex marriage, HRT and sex change surgery with informed consent, and fully oppose discrimination based purely on sexuality or gender identity
      "If you can cut your dick off, then you can do meth" - The original Walter White, probably


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RidinWithBiden24 on October 05, 2023, 03:57:40 PM
      Political History:

      2000-2016: Apolitical, first-ever political experience was channel surfing and catching the 2016 Libertarian Convention Presidential Debate on CSPAN

      Late 2016: Cringe AnCap terminally online right-winger, Republican

      2017-2019: Trump-supporting AnCap, Republican

      2019-2020: Yang Gang-ster turned Kanye West voter, Republican until 1/6

      2021-2022: Apolitical-leaning Democrat, was really sickened by 1/6 and the fallout from it but still socially right-wing for the most part

      2023: "NeoLib" Democrat, pretty center-left on most issues and supportive of Biden

      Notable Votes:

      2018 NY Gubernatorial Election - Stephanie Miner

      2020 Democratic Primary - Yang for Nominee, Gabbard's Delegates

      2020 Election - Kanye West

      2022 NY Gubernatorial Election - Lee Zeldin


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: wnwnwn on November 06, 2023, 06:19:13 PM
      If I ruled the States...

      SOCIAL:
      Abortion: Pro choice but no federal funding
      Guns: Background checks (incl mental evaluation)
      Drugs: All legalized, highly taxed and regulated
      Criminal justice:
      - No private prisons, but continue forced work
      - Police accountabily and body cams
      - Better training
      - Gun use when necessary
      LGBT:
      - Ban discrimination for sexual or gender identity on public spaces
      - Equal marriage, even in reservations
      - Ban trans hormonal therapy for minors
      Energy:
      - Tax beneficts and research funding for nuclear energy
      - Tax oil and coal
      - A bit of "Green New Deal" for the poorest states
      Voting:
      - Federal Voter ID (made it a constitutional right of necessary)
      - Election Day on Sunday
      - Redistriting for federal congress districts done by the federal goverment
      - Maximun age for elected politicians
      Immigration:
      - Increase border security
      - Ease as much as possible the inmigration of qualifed workers hired by american business
      - Outside of the former cases, use something like IQ tests but for the multiple inteligences to decide to give Green Cards or not (don't ban me please)
      Affirmative action: Income based AA
      Legacy admissions: Ban
      Birth control: Fully legal
      Euthanasia: Let the states decide
      SCOTUS: Term limits

      ECONOMIC:
      Monopolies: Bust them all
      Healthcare: Universal single payer (incl pills and dental)
      Social Security: Mantain the current situation
      Taxes: Strong anti loophole laws
      Automation: Tax it a bit
      Environmental regulation: Higher regulations
      Consumer protection: Mantain regulations
      Free trade: Force american owned factores to follow american regulations
      Minimum wage: Mantain the federal level one
      Unions: Repeal right-to-work
      College: Free on state colleges (only useful majors)
      Infrastructure spending: Increase investment in public transportation
      Campaign finance: Make all political donations transparent
      Student loan forgiveness: Forgive some cases

      FOREIGN:
      Military spending: Cut
      Humanitarian aid: Decrease
      International law: Support it on human right issues
      NATO: Remain
      Israel & Palestine: Two-state solution (Israel out of the West Bank, Hamas out of Gaza).
      Rest of Middle East: Support secular goverments as possible
      China: Pragmatism
      Russia/Ukraine: Russian areas for Russia, ukranian areas for Ukraine

      EDUCATION:
      History education:
      - General values and patriotis building at primary school, but no myths
      (include precolumbian history)
      - Focus on foreing history at middle school (mostly western, but include Asia, Latin America and Africa)
      - Mix foreing and local history at high school, let them know how every race, country and civilization did good and bad things.
      Maths/Science: Teach them as normal, no CC
      Sex education:
      - Some topics to help children avoid groomers at primary
      - Some basic topics at middle school
      - Let the states be at high school
      - Teach agaisnt bigotry on all forms on other classes
      Music: Put classical music and jazz on each public school
      Trades: For males and females, mandatory for high school


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: RilakkuMAGA on November 23, 2023, 02:19:21 AM
      Overall: Illiberal Progressive (you could say, Progressive Conservative?)

      Social Policy
      * Moderate on abortion. Should be available/insured when people need it. If so, a 15 week limit is okay.
      * Pro-LGBT. Lots of trans activists suck, but trans rights overall good. All the transwomen in sports just to spite Bari Weiss.
      * Legalize but strongly regulate soft drugs, euthanasia, and prostitution.
      * Expand the death penalty for crimes that are hard to falsely convict for (multiple murders, mass killings, etc.)
      * Stricter restrictions on handguns, other guns are okay.
      * End affirmative action/racial quotas for all non-public positions (but it makes sense for police, teachers, etc.)
      * Immigration reform to make legal immigration easier, including a path to citizenship for illegals currently here.
      * Build the wall (where safe to humans/environment).
      * Expand CCTV and public cameras dramatically to fight crime.
      * Massively expand police funding and police numbers, but tie new funding to police reform.
      * Institute more animal rights. Regulate factory farming. Promote meat alternatives.

      Economic Policy
      * Minimum wage should be higher in most places, but one-size-all wage is bad because CoL differs.
      * Increase income taxes for upper-middle class (over $250k) and end the Social Security Base Wage Cap.
      * Lower corporate taxes and capital gains taxes. End the estate tax.
      * Deregulate, mostly (but not everywhere).
      * Against most welfare programs, especially UBI/stimulus checks.
      * For most universal social programs, including universal healthcare, though it doesn't need to be M4A.
      * Universal affordable childcare, but eliminate most child benefits/welfare (they encourage women to leave the workforce, which is gender inegalitarian).
      * Maintain Social Security as is.
      * Free trade is largely good; end the tariffs and begin complying with the WTO.
      * Fight climate change with every method possible (wind, solar, nuclear, etc.) Large public works to promote decarbonization.
      * Send fewer people to college. Work something out for people who didn't graduate and are stuck with loans.
      * Tax private college endowments to fund public universities. Ban spending on DEI administrators.
      * Very pro-YIMBY, pro-development, though the YIMBYs themselves are annoying.
      * Massively expand both roads and public transit, especially intra-city transit.
      * Moderate on unions. Some are good, some are bad.
      * Do everything imaginable to increase housing supply, including CCTV-monitored public housing.

      Foreign Policy
      * Actively participate in the UN, WTO, WHO, and other international organizations.
      * Broadly align with the Global South on political, cultural, and economic issues - and to fight global white supremacy.
      * Leave NATO, a unilateralist and white supremacist organization.
      * Anti-Putin, but pro-SMO in Ukraine (end all military aid to Ukraine).
      * Cooperate with China to combat climate change and fentanyl. Immediately end foolish and self-destructive trade war.
      * Use diplomacy and economic ties to maintain peaceful status quo in the Taiwan Strait.
      * Close most military bases abroad.
      * Massive cuts to defense spending (over time). Redeploy personnel for public works and public safety at home.
      * Condemn Israeli war crimes and end all military aid, but maintain economic ties and support for Israeli civil society in opposing apartheid.
      * Cut all military support to the Saudi invasion of Yemen (but maintain good economic ties). Recognize and reconcile with the Taliban government in Afghanistan (try to bribe them to be better on women's rights).
      * Recognize Iranian and North Korean nuclear programs; seek economic and diplomatic reconciliation.
      * Immediately end embargo on Cuba/Venezuela/Nicaragua and seek reconciliation.
      * Turn the United States into the number one global destination for refugees.
      * Nuremberg-style trials for leading neoconservatives and liberal hawks.

      Politics
      * Continue appointing FedSoc judges.
      * Universal voter registration with election day as a holiday.
      * Pro-vaccination in all cases, but coercion isn't an effective way of promoting it.
      * Against slavery reparations and explicitly racial policies, but the state should seek to erase racial disparities through non-explicit racial methods.
      * Federalism mostly works, and we should seek to retain the United States constitutional structure against radical extremists on both sides.
      * All technological development is generally good, and people who whine about progress should be ignored.


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Pres Mike on January 17, 2024, 12:58:55 PM
      Social Issues
      Abortion: Total ban except for cases of rape, incest, health of mother and few others
      Birth Control: Keep legal
      LGBT+ Rights: Marriage should only be for a man and a woman
      Drugs: Keep marijuana illegal
      Death Penalty: Support in the case of murderers and rapists with undeniable evidence against them
      Gun Control: None
      Policing: Increase funding
      PATRIOT ACT: Get rid of it.
      Immigration: Expand legal immigration and increase the number of refugees we take in. Increase border security.
      Euthanasia: Only if the person in question is still mentally "there" and consents to it
      COVID-19: Ban mask mandates and social distancing except in hospitals
      Trans: Trans atheltes should only play sports of their biological sex. Should only use restrooms of their biological sex. Minors should not be allowed to transition

      Economic Issues
      Minimum Wage: Increase national minimum wage to $15, with further increases being tied to inflation
      Taxes: Raise on rich people and big corporoations
      Unions: Support unions and PRO Act. Penalize union busting
      Healthcare: Medicare for All, price caps on drugs
      Social Security: Remove cap on income
      Trade: Support protectionist policies to keep/bring back jobs
      Monopolies: Bust those trusts!

      Foreign Policy
      Interventionism: Stay out of war unless we were attacked or a genocide is occurring
      Russia: Support Ukraine and expand sanctions
      China: Support protectionist trade policies and shift our manufacturing back to the US, so we are less reliant on them
      Saudi Arabia: Drill for oil in the US more, as well as expanding clean energy
      Israel/Palestine: Two state solution, cut Israeli aid
      NATO: Stay in NATO, and use it to keep Putin at bay


      Elections and Democracy

      Electoral College: Abolish for a popular vote
      Gerrymandering: Ban at both federal and state level
      Voting: Make E-Day a holiday, but require photo ID to vote. Universal voter registration
      Supreme Court: Add single 10 year term limits


      Title: Re: Summary of political beliefs
      Post by: Frodo on February 24, 2024, 07:02:26 PM
      Democracy-Related Issues

      Constitutional Reform: Given the existing presidential system of checks and balances has been found so wanting in an era of ideologically-sorted political parties, polarized politics, and an imperial Presidency verging on creeping executive authoritarianism, I support calling a Constitutional Convention under the guidelines set by Article V (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Article_Five_of_the_United_States_Constitution) of the existing Constitution. The object of the Constitutional Convention would be the writing of a new Constitution declaring we are a federal parliamentary republic with a multi-party system, including the adoption of the doctrine of parliamentary/legislative sovereignty (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parliamentary_sovereignty), and moving the nation's capital to a more geographically central location in the Union (preferably somewhere in between Omaha and Kansas City along the Missouri River, but outside the flood plain), both because of rising sea levels, but also to represent a symbolic break with the past, and a fresh start as we fundamentally rewrite our Constitution to shape the future of our federal republic and representative democracy for generations to come.  

      Washington, D.C. was built from the wilderness on the backs of slave labor as a brand new capital to break with our colonial past as well as served as a compromise location between the North and South at the time; so similarly will this new capital in the American heartland, in the midst of those who feel alienated from a faraway coastal city, represent a break from the accumulated two hundred years of slavery and Jim Crow that cast an indelible shadow and legacy on the current capital city, and marked the old republic.  Given the immense changes involved with changing from a presidential to a parliamentary democracy, we will need a blank canvas -a tabula rasa- hence a brand new capital with no baggage from the old existing capital city. 
      --------------------------------------------------------------------------

      At least thirty-eight out of the existing fifty states must ratify the new Constitution for it to take effect.

      Here are some details I want to see included:

      -The House of Representatives would be directly elected via mixed-member proportional representation (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mixed-member_proportional_representation) from each of their respective states, with a 5% electoral threshold for political parties.  House members, who must be at least 25 years old and live as US citizens in the state they represent for at least seven years, can serve multiple four-year terms. The size of the House as a whole shall be determined by the Founders' Rule (https://thirty-thousand.org/blog/the-founders-rule/), and the number of House members directly elected by their respective states is proportional to their state's share of the national population as determined by a constitutionally-mandated decennial Census. The powers of the US House of Representatives in this new system would be equivalent to the Australian House of Representatives.

      -The Senate would remain directly elected thanks to the 17th amendment.  Two senators, who must be at least 30 years old and live as US citizens in the state they represent for at least nine years, will be elected from each of their states in staggered, multiple six-year terms.  So essentially the same as it is now, except that the power to filibuster would be removed.  The Senate would have the powers equivalent to the Australian Senate.

      -The Prime Minister -who is appointed by the President- would be the head of government and the Cabinet.  He or she must be a member of the political party or coalition that has a majority in the House of Representatives.  The Prime Minister would not have the power to call elections -instead, they would be subject to a default, fixed election date early in November for a general election, which would be once every four years on an even-numbered year as constitutionally mandated.  Election Day would be made a quadrennial holiday to maximize voter turnout and participation.  Unlike in Australia, no one will be required to vote.  States would be strongly encouraged to adopt universal, automatic voter registration (https://www.brennancenter.org/issues/ensure-every-american-can-vote/voting-reform/automatic-voter-registration), some form of proportional representation for their legislatures, and to hold elections to their legislatures on the same day.

      -The President, who must be at least 35 years old and be a US citizen for at least fourteen years, would be the head of state who is elected by a two-thirds majority of both chambers of Congress for a single five-year term, and (not unlike the Governor-General in commonwealth countries) gives assent to all laws passed by Congress, acts upon the advice of the Prime Minister or other Cabinet members, and oversees foreign policy and the national defense.  The Vice-President, who must also be at least 35 years old and be a US citizen for at least fourteen years, would be similarly elected (but can run for multiple five-year terms), and also serves as the President of the Senate.  Following the Indian model, anyone running for President must have either been the Vice-President, Governor, or a member of the Cabinet, and be qualified for election to the House of Representatives.  Anyone running for Vice-President must not hold any office of profit, and be qualified for election as a member of the Senate.  

      -The Supreme Court and the federal judiciary would more closely resemble the judicial system of the United Kingdom as stipulated by the Constitutional Reform Act of 2005 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constitutional_Reform_Act_2005).  In the event of a vacancy, all judicial nominations made by the President would be screened by a Judicial Appointments Commission (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Judicial_Appointments_Commission) not unlike its UK equivalent.  They then would be voted upon by the Senate Judiciary Committee in a closed hearing (and not subject to a public floor vote by the full Senate) to avoid politicization.  At least two-thirds of the committee's votes are required for confirmation.  Judges and justices serve for life.    

      -Articles IV (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Article_Four_of_the_United_States_Constitution), V (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Article_Five_of_the_United_States_Constitution), and VI (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Article_Six_of_the_United_States_Constitution), of the existing Constitution would remain unchanged.  I also support incorporating the original ten amendments of the Bill of Rights, as well as the three Reconstruction-era amendments plus the 19th amendment, into a new written Constitution.  
      ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

      Second Amendment: The Second Amendment (http://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution/second_amendment) was intended to be seen as protecting an individual right as with all the other original ten amendments that comprised the Bill of Rights when it was added to the Constitution.  When it was originally written, 'militia' connoted the entirety of the citizenry (https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/10/246), not just a government-created body.  

      Accordingly, I support concealed-carry, castle-doctrine laws, and other liberalizing measures. I strongly oppose gun-bans at any governmental level.  However, as with every other amendment, there are limits.

      With greater freedom comes greater responsibility in using that freedom, and it is in that spirit that I support measures like mandatory firearms training and universal background checks before any gun or permit is issued, to ensure that the unorganized citizens' militia is well-trained and well-regulated.

      District of Columbia: So long as it remains our national capital, I support having the non-federal areas of DC retroceded to Maryland as the city of Washington, thereby enabling the residents within to be represented at all levels of government.  

      Social/Cultural Hot-Button issues

      Women's Rights: If the Supreme Court sends the current Equal Rights Amendment (https://www.equalrightsamendment.org/) back to square one, we should push for a new (and expanded) version of the Equal Rights Amendment along the lines of the Nevada version, and this time with no deadline for passage.  This should be the wording of the revised resolution text of the federal Equal Rights Amendment:

      Quote
      Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled (two-thirds of each House concurring therein), That the following article is proposed as an amendment to the Constitution of the United States, which shall be valid to all intents and purposes as part of the Constitution when ratified by the legislatures of three-fourths of the several States:

      "ARTICLE —

      "Section 1. Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, disability, ancestry or national origin.

      "Section 2. The Congress shall have the power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article.

      "Section 3. This amendment shall take effect two years after the date of ratification."


      Gay Rights: I applaud the Supreme Court decision (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obergefell_v._Hodges) legalizing gay marriage nationwide, Congress passing the Respect for Marriage Act (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Respect_for_Marriage_Act) repealing the Defense of Marriage Act and to ensure the Supreme Court doesn't backtrack, as well as supporting the passage of the Equality Act (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equality_Act_(United_States)) placing the LGBTQ community under the protection of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, as well as other efforts to ensure that they are accepted as full and equal members in our society.  

      Race: Support the passage of the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Lewis_Voting_Rights_Act) to protect the electoral franchise of African Americans and other minorities.  Support ending housing discrimination against racial/ethnic minorities, as well as fixing and preserving Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (instead of scrapping them); ending the abuse of authority by law-enforcement agencies; and ending the 'War on Drugs' beginning with overturning the Controlled Substances Act, criminal justice (https://www.amazon.com/Collapse-American-Criminal-Justice/dp/0674051750/ref=sr_1_64?ie=UTF8&qid=1469886809&sr=8-64&keywords=criminal+justice+books) reform (http://www.justiceactionnetwork.org/) including ending mandatory minimum sentencing, and instead treat the drug war as a public health issue.

      Immigration: Support comprehensive immigration reform that includes:
      -completing the border wall along the US/Mexico border, as well as adding a virtual border wall (https://www.vox.com/recode/2019/5/16/18511583/smart-border-wall-drones-sensors-ai) to complement it.
      -easing the legal immigration process (while reaffirming unrestricted birthright citizenship) so migrants don't feel impelled to fast-track the process by jumping the border, including ending the last elements of the 1924 Immigration Act by eliminating the restrictive immigration quota system once and for all.
      -reducing the legal backload in the immigration courts by hiring more judges (plus staff)
      - Incorporate the DREAM Act (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DREAM_Act) into any immigration reform bill.    

      Economic issues

      Secondary Education: Favor adapting the Finland education model (http://www.amazon.com/Finnish-Lessons-Educational-Change-Finland/dp/0807752576/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1423263984&sr=8-3-fkmr0&keywords=Finland+education+model) to the United States, including a major expansion in after-school tutoring programs as well as universal pre-school education; and changing the traditional school year to a year-round schedule (http://www.nayre.org/) for struggling schools.  

      Higher Education: Support making community colleges and vocational schools tuition-free, and encouraging prospective college students to fulfill their introductory course requirements in a community college, while subsequently completing their bachelor's and master's degrees in the four years they will spend at a traditional college/university.    

      Tax Code: In addition to closing tax loopholes, raising taxes on capital gains and dividends, preserving the estate tax, and setting the top individual income tax rate at 50%, I favor tax reforms including lowering the corporate income tax alongside cracking down on overseas tax havens, and introducing the Value-Added Tax (http://ec.europa.eu/taxation_customs/business/vat/what-is-vat_en) (superseding all preceding sales and use taxes) tied with cash rebates via smart cards for less affluent Americans.

      Entitlement programs: I support Medicare Extra for All (https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/healthcare/reports/2018/02/22/447095/medicare-extra-for-all/) so that working Americans won't lose their health insurance as well as their jobs.  Until that is achieved, I support ensuring the future of Medicare and Social Security for generations to come (and perhaps even expanding (https://medium.com/@teamwarren/expanding-social-security-4db2f3617ca9#:~:text=Expanding%20Social%20Security%201%20Our%20Current%20Retirement%20Crunch,Extending%20Solvency%20For%20Nearly%20Two%20More%20Decades.%20) them).  These are the measures I am prepared to support:

      -Slow Benefit Growth for Top 20% Of Earners
      -Raise Retirement Age to 69 then index to Longevity
      -Index COLAs (cost of living adjustments) to "CPI-E", or the consumer price index for the elderly, it being more generous and a better hedge against inflation.
      -Tighten Social Security Disability Insurance Eligibility Criteria
      -Limit Spousal Benefits for High Earners
      -Create Minimum Benefit at 125% of Poverty
      -Increase Benefits Across the Board
      -Apply the Benefit Formula to Annual Earnings
      -Increase Payroll Tax by 0.5%
      -Subject All Wages to Payroll Tax
      -Cover Newly-Hired State & Local Workers
      -Diversify the Trust Fund to Increase Returns

      Additionally, I support allowing Medicare to negotiate prescription drug prices as well as including long-term care coverage into Medicare and Medicaid, nationalizing Medicaid (https://manhattan.institute/article/beyond-bailout-federalism-the-case-for-nationalizing-entitlements) so it won't be at the mercy of states reluctant to extend coverage to their most vulnerable, introducing the public option into the Affordable Care Act, as well as making the expanded Child Tax Credit permanent.

      Labor Unions: I favor the repeal of the Taft-Hartley Act in its entirety, and passage of the Protecting the Right to Organize Act (https://aflcio.org/pro-act).

      Free Trade: Strongly support free trade (http://www.thirdway.org/report/are-modern-trade-deals-working), and favor the establishment of the Free Trade Area of the Americas, joining the Trans-Pacific Partnership, trans-Atlantic free trade agreements with the European Union and the United Kingdom, and the completion of the Doha Development Round of the World Trade Organization.

      Also support transforming the African Growth and Opportunity Act (https://ustr.gov/issue-areas/trade-development/preference-programs/african-growth-and-opportunity-act-agoa) into a free trade agreement.

      Energy Independence: I support the federal coal-leasing program; increasing investments into clean coal technology; and strictly regulating the fracking practices of the natural gas industry.  

      In addition, I favor expanding research into nuclear fusion; newer forms of nuclear fission technology; increasing investments into hydrogen fuel-cell technologies, and alternative renewable energy sources like wind, solar, geothermal, and biomass among others; better battery storage technology for utilities; rebuilding our electrical grid to make it more compatible with renewables; promoting energy efficiency in government as well as in private industry, using the LEED Green Building Rating System as a model; tax credits for hybrid vehicles; and increasing fuel economy standards for newer vehicles, all the while cutting anthropogenic carbon-dioxide emissions via a bipartisan plan (https://clcouncil.org/our-plan/) that involves a gradually rising carbon fee and carbon dividends for all American taxpayers.

      I also support opening Yucca Mountain as a storage site for spent nuclear waste, as well as increasing our capacity for reprocessing spent nuclear fuel so that they can be reused and to reduce the total amount of waste that would have to be sent there.

      Infrastructure: To ensure sustainable economic growth for decades to come, we need to rebuild and expand our infrastructure for the 21st century and beyond.  A key element of that would be the creation of a national infrastructure bank, with a portfolio covering everything from transportation (http://t4america.org/) to water/sanitation systems.

      Foreign Policy

      Advocate a return to the multilateralism and alliances-based system that served us so well during the post-World War 2 era.  Accordingly, I support the ratification of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Convention_on_the_Law_of_the_Sea), a return to the Paris Climate Accord, and World Health Organization among other international organizations and agreements, and an expansion of foreign aid through the Millennium Challenge Corporation (https://www.mcc.gov/).  Advocate nurturing and cultivating our relations with India through such agreements like the U.S.-India Civil Nuclear Agreement, including India under our nuclear umbrella to prevent an out-of-control nuclear arms race as China expands its nuclear arsenal, and the reversal of the 1947 Partition (with the reunification of India with Bhutan, Nepal, and Bangladesh at least), with the ultimate objective of turning India into a formal ally of the United States alongside Japan and the United Kingdom.  

      As part of any peace settlement with a post-Putin Russia, Ukraine and NATO should call for Russian reparation payments to rebuild the country, the return of any and all Ukrainian citizens from Russian captivity, the prompt extradition of Russian military leaders for their war crimes trials before the International Criminal Court in the Hague, the expulsion of Russian troops from Ukraine, Crimea, Transnistria, Belarus, and Georgia, the demilitarization of Kaliningrad, and a (truly) free and fair plebiscite for Crimea under United Nations auspices.  Then, and only then, can Russia hope to return to the community of nations and some semblance of normalcy.  

      Following the signing of peace terms, I favor expanding NATO eventually to Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, and Belarus (once it becomes a democracy), and moving our bases in Germany and Italy to Poland, Romania, and the Baltic states as part of a broader strategy to counter and contain future Russian revanchism.  Support gradually moving US military units from Okinawa to Guam, Malaysia, and the Philippines, making permanent our naval presence in Singapore, and re-establishing our naval base at Subic Bay near Manila to deter Chinese hegemonic ambitions in Southeast Asia.  Support rebuilding and increasing the size of our navy, the modernization of our nuclear arsenal, expansion of our missile defense system to better protect our allies, and keeping our armed forces on the cutting edge technologically to meet any threat posed.