Where do you fall on the political spectrum?
- Thread starter Josh
- Start date
Libertarian/Green
You can see much of my positions in the archived "Kaith in 2004" forum.
You can see much of my positions in the archived "Kaith in 2004" forum.
Empty Hands
Senior Master
Fairly libertarian, although I don't go as far as they do in wanting to dismantle the government. Basically, I want the government to leave us alone as much as possible.
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civil libertarian (note the small "L" 
) with progressive and capitalist leanings....
) with progressive and capitalist leanings....
Amazon
Green Belt
Libertarian. Ditch the nanny state with the exception of police, fire dept., military and the federal reserve (I'm sure there's another core essential out there I'm forgetting, but you get the picture). And unless you hurt someone else - it should be legal (whatever "it" may be). You want to screw yourself up, go to it.
It's all about personal responsibility.
bushidomartialarts
Senior Master
i find i tend to fall liberal on social issues and conservative on economic and military issues. there are exceptions here and there.
libertarianism appealed to me when i was younger. we have far too much government (it's gotten to the point of replacing a sense of personal responsibility). but there are just too many idiots running around for me to agree with as little government as the john birchers seem to stand for.
libertarianism appealed to me when i was younger. we have far too much government (it's gotten to the point of replacing a sense of personal responsibility). but there are just too many idiots running around for me to agree with as little government as the john birchers seem to stand for.
Eternal White Belt
Yellow Belt
More conservative than liberal.
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Conservative, but no current party affiliation.
Formerly of the Democratic Party (I was a volunteer for the honorable Senator Paul Tsongas, during his presidential campaign, in 1992). I left after William Jefferson Clinton became the Democratic nominee.
Basically, I'm someone who fits in the mold of the now retired Senator Zell Miller.
I do not follow any particular party. Whoever better fits my preferences gets my vote. Not surprisingly, my votes tend to very closely mirror the recommendations that the Law Enforcement Alliance of America gives.
Back when I lived in South Carolina these people got my votes:
1996:
President: Robert Dole (R)
Senator: Strom Thurmond (R) (former Democrat)
Representative: Floyd Spence (R) (also another former Democrat)
1998:
Senator: Ernest "Fritz" Hollings (D)
Representative: Floyd Spence (R)
SC Governor: James Hodges (D)
When I lived in Connecticut:
2000:
President: George W. Bush (R)
Senator: Joseph Lieberman (D)
Representative: The libertarian guy.
Keep the NIH, NSF, and all other major grant-giving science agencies well funded, and you'll win major points with me.
Oh yeah, stay out of my gun cabinet! Law abiding gun owners have an incredibly good track record at being good citizens, since they have already passed a background check, and obey the laws. Quit blaming us and our possessions for the actions of criminals.
Rarely, an anti-gunner will win my vote on moral grounds (Lieberman). Had I known that Fritz Hollings would become an anti-gunner towards the twilight of his career, I wouldn't have given him my vote in 1998. It's a shame, since he had been quite a friend of the gun owners in the past.
Formerly of the Democratic Party (I was a volunteer for the honorable Senator Paul Tsongas, during his presidential campaign, in 1992). I left after William Jefferson Clinton became the Democratic nominee.
Basically, I'm someone who fits in the mold of the now retired Senator Zell Miller.
I do not follow any particular party. Whoever better fits my preferences gets my vote. Not surprisingly, my votes tend to very closely mirror the recommendations that the Law Enforcement Alliance of America gives.
Back when I lived in South Carolina these people got my votes:
1996:
President: Robert Dole (R)
Senator: Strom Thurmond (R) (former Democrat)
Representative: Floyd Spence (R) (also another former Democrat)
1998:
Senator: Ernest "Fritz" Hollings (D)
Representative: Floyd Spence (R)
SC Governor: James Hodges (D)
When I lived in Connecticut:
2000:
President: George W. Bush (R)
Senator: Joseph Lieberman (D)
Representative: The libertarian guy.
Keep the NIH, NSF, and all other major grant-giving science agencies well funded, and you'll win major points with me.
Oh yeah, stay out of my gun cabinet! Law abiding gun owners have an incredibly good track record at being good citizens, since they have already passed a background check, and obey the laws. Quit blaming us and our possessions for the actions of criminals.
Rarely, an anti-gunner will win my vote on moral grounds (Lieberman). Had I known that Fritz Hollings would become an anti-gunner towards the twilight of his career, I wouldn't have given him my vote in 1998. It's a shame, since he had been quite a friend of the gun owners in the past.
JBrainard
Senior Master
Right where I'm at, buddy.
tellner said:
Just wanted to know, what areas do you believe need/sould be socialized?
CoryKS
Senior Master
Haven't made up my mind yet. Thought I was a liberal until 9/11 happened, then started reading everything I could get my hands on and found myself disagreeing with pretty much everything I once took for obvious fact. I think I most closely fit the libertarian mentality, though I'm leery of the Big-L's. I think the labels are only useful in a general sense because very few people are going to agree with ALL the tenets of their group, assuming that they took the time to form their own opinions rather than just spout the party line.
Xue Sheng
All weight is underside
Where do I fall on the political spectrum?
Hopefully between the cracks
Hopefully between the cracks
And I have to answer your question with a question: "What do you mean by socializaed?" IT would be like asking a conservative "What do you believe should be conservatived?"
Without getting too far into the political theory right now I believe that government should serve as the expression of the collective will of the people. Not the collective will of the rich and the corporations. Not a post office, a cop and a general, but those things which the population believes are important. The current blind, mindless religious fanaticism about The Sacred Market (LAAA!) is just that. Blind, mindless and fanatic.
Government is particularly important where public good is at odds with corporate interest. Take lead in the air. There is no doubt whatsoever, none, not a bit, zero, that mercury and lead in the air are terrible for public health. The last thirty years of strict lead and mercury abatement have been a darned near unmixed blessing. But the oil and coal companies don't like them. Now they are pushing hard to put lead back in gasoline and have had the EPA say that mercury isn't toxic. I believe that in cases like this actual human lives are important and that our *shudder* collective will should be imposed to protect them.
Government is also the right tool for the job when something has to be there today, tomorrow and next year. Firms come and go. When profit margins hit a certain magical point they leave. Prisons, hospitals, schools, highways, health care, public records, sewers, building inspectors, and more need to be there. They need to be predictable and consistent. They need to operate even when you can't squeeze "adequate" profits from them. And they need to serve the public good even when it's at odds with unlimited extraction of cash from the sheep. That's the sort of thing that government is better at.
One of the worst possible situations is what we have now. A partnership between corporate interests and government authority means that the government is turned into a tool for extracting money from people, feeding it to corporate interests and enforcing their desires rather than our needs upon us through the coercive power of the State. If the State and the Boardroom are in opposition to each other on matters of public interest there will be friction, but there is a chance for people to live. If they are united we are screwed without even the common courtesy of a reach around.
