Where do YOU stand on the important issues of the country, today?<p>Cary asked for my positions, which is a bit odd since I've expressed opinions on all of these over the past year, I am sure. Nonetheless, it is a fair question.<p>All of my positions are FACT-based, reality-based, rational-thought based, science-based, and not BULLPUCKY- or FEAR-based, like Cary's<p>Energy: Energy policy: Developing additional energy resources (including more power plants) is good for the country, provided the significant, negative, impacts of the development are mitigated. We can afford it. We don't need additional pollution of air, water, etc. in many places in the country. <p>As I've said, drilling is not the answer, but ONLY because the oil companies already HAVE land to drill on and this is just a blatant land grab. Let them show that the land they have is without resources, and let them give them back to the people. I'd ask for that showing before simploy giving them more land. It ain't a complicated policy.<p>Some areas (can we agree on Yosemite Valley, at least for the next twenty years or so?), unless we have a true national emergency. We don't have one, right now. I am not anti-offshore drilling. It can be done safely. <p>Economy? The middle class FIRST. Then the poor. I think we can all agree, the wealty can pretty much take care of themselves. I'm not saying give handouts to the middle class and poor. I am saying make it easier for poor people to become middle class, and for middle class to stay middle class or achieve more wealth, by their choice (and their hard work). <p>Proviide tax incentives for business behavior that makes the country stronger.<p>I believe wholeheartedly in lower taxes. But lower taxes where it has a positive impact on our country.<p>National Security? I don't believe in it, as I hate America. I know Cary hasn't said that, but I believe that's what he thinks of me.<p>I believe America needs to remain strong, and protect the American way of life against forces that desire to eliminate that way of life. I also believe that America can only do this by being very active around the world, in many ways, from missiles to school-building. From helping build Democracies to helping build roads to helping restrain nutjobs. I am willing to pay whatever it takes to do this, provided the people in charge are competent at doing it. I don't believe it includes invading countries that have no ability to harm America's way of life, and may not include countries that DO have that ability. But I also believe that you have to lie to the public to get good work done. "Selling" the Iraq war, for example, on faulty grounds, is necessary if you have some other VALID reason for invading Iraq. The problem is, none of us can find that valid reason. <p>Just as there needs to be a valid reason for giving comfort to our enemies, as Reagan-Bush did with the Iranians after the hostage crisis of the 80s. Why did they empower the Ayatollah? <p>Right to bear arms? I support it, 100%. I don't support criminals having guns. I don't support insane people's ability to get guns easily. I support your right and my right to have as many freakin guns as we want, provided we understand gun safety and can minimize the likelihood our guns will get misused.<p>I am not sure how I feel about concealed weapons being carried. I see the pluses and minuses to it. It's the hardest issue in this area, for me. <p>Even IF the Constitution doesn't protect it (and I submit that I am not sure of how I read it), it may still be OK for people to carry guns. The Constitution is a limit on government power; it is NOT a statement of what is "right" and "wrong." There are plenty of things that are Constitutional, but not "right.'" Should you or I be allowed to carry our gun on an airplane? Probably not. But maybe we should be allowed to carry it back and forth to work. Again, for me, it's more than a Constitutional issue (unless the Constitution says we can carry one no matter what, of course, though it could still be "wrong" to do so under some circumstances).<p>Abortion? As rare as possible. I think we all agree on that. Not to be crass, but I'm not sure I want all those poor people being forced to have children, who are far more likely to turn into crirminals than any of our children.<p>I know it is crass and horrible, but the facts point in that direction. And I know that all life is sacred, but poor people are having most of the abortions, and that's probably been a good thing for our society, given all the other ills in our society. <p>There are people in our society who understand that if you eliminate abortion, you are going to increase crime, and they think that is a GOOD thing, not a bad thing. That crime places additiona burdens on cities. That crime turns more people into hard-line, pro-prison, conservatives, not liberals, not moderates. <p>Abortion IS a moral issue, but it involves MORE moral issues than the life of the unborn person (who does not have any Constitional rights, though that doesn't mean we shouldn't protect it/him/her; I'm all for protecting the unborn. But you can not protect the unborn at the EXPENSE of the living, and that is the basis for much (not all) anti-abortion policy, in my opinion. I sincerely respect all pro-life folks who are actually pro-LIFE and not just anti-choice, anti-woman. Most pro-life folks (99%? are good people who are NOT anti-humanity. But there are people who do not desire to protect the middle class, the American way of life, as we know it. I can not support the use of anti-abortion policy in order to achieve societal changes that I abhor.<p>We can not afford more police. We can not afford more prisons. I'm not anti-police or anti prison. But it's been a HUGE growth industry and is a drain on the economy, so it needs to be looked at carefully. Growing police wages and growing prison guard wages (and pension costs) are just as valid to criticize as growing teacher wages (and pension costs).<p>We need to be careful how we spend the people's money. It's OUR money, not somebody else's.<p>Gay marriage? Not being gay, I find it hard to be as objective on it as I should be. Since I am not gay, I don't know how a person feels to not be able to marry. I am guessing it feels like they are a second-class citizen, and I don't see any reason why ANYBODY who hasn't done anything wrong should be a second-class citizen, not in America, anyway. I thought we were supposed to be better than that. Allowing civil unions get us 99% there, so maybe that's enough. But that's not really fair for me to say, again, since it's not MY rights that we are talking about. <p><br>OK, I gots to go to bed. I'm sure I failed to express many of my ideas.<p>By the way, had W done the right thing lo these many years, then I'd have supported him. But he didn't. Everything he touched turned to ****t, and he does not share, apparently, my philosophy of what makes this country great. As a result, he takes actions that hurt the people of this country. I don't know if it's because he is "a bad man." I think he is a non-entity- a figurehead, at best, controlled by forces who want to have our government work in a certain way. And I don't agree with having our governmentv run that way. Of course, it's always possible that he is evil, and bad, etc. But I doubt it, and it really wouldn't change my feelings about his Administration. <p>I don't believe that McCain will be any different, because his campaign his been filled with the same sorts of lies that his party has always given us in elections (at least for the past thirty years, while I've been aware of these things). I don't believe all politicians are liars. But McCain seems to be one. Sarah Palin has certainly been lying to us. The myth is a good one, I suppose, but it's a lie. For example, selling the American people on "Drill Baby Drill" is lying to the American people, because the issue ISN'T energy independence, but transferring public resources into private hands, with little/no benefit to the public. OilCompanies are private entities, working for their shareholders. It's a myth and a lie to portray to the American people that more leases will help Americans. It isn't supported by any fact. In fact, the facts support the opposite, because of the transfer of resources from the public to the private sector without benefit.<p>But that's just a single example of the lies. I'm sure other folks have other more poignant examples.<p> <p> <IMG NAME="icon" SRC="http://www.vwvortex.com/vwbb/embeer.gif" BORDER="0"> <BR><BR>
<i>Modified by adp at 8:50 AM 9-7-2008</i>
<i>Modified by adp at 8:50 AM 9-7-2008</i>
