Where do you stand politically?

tivo

tivo

CAGiversary!
How do you identify yourself and what do you believe in? What are your core principles?

What political party do you support the most or where do you stand in the left/right spectrum?

Give as much detail as you want, stating politicians, pundits, or personalities that you listen to and identify with. This is not suppose to be a ground for flaming or a place to build ammunition against others in other threads. I just want to see where other CAGs stand, who they listen to, and what issues or ideas are the biggest for them personally. I think this will clear up a lot of confusion here on the boards and give everyone a better idea of where people are coming from. It's also good to be a bit introspective for once. No need to hold back.


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I'll go first:
Fiscal conservative and socially liberal (but fiscal policies trump social issues every time). I would be willing to support more socially liberal issues (e.g. pro-choice abortion) if the federal government was downsized. So basically, I'm Libertarian who believes in private property. I tend to agree with John Stossel a lot and think smaller federal government and a transfer of powers from federal to state level should be the goal for the next decade.
 
Libertarian seems to be the closest thing that describes me. Like the OP I'm fiscally conservative while being socially liberal. Abortions for all and let the gays get married. Doesn't really matter as far as I'm concerned. Not to be draconian about it, but I think we could easily reduce our federal govt spending by at least 10% and still have a very effective federal govt. Stuff that needs to get fixed doesn't and problems are created for political gain.
The only political radio I listen to is about 15 minutes of Jason Lewis on my way home. He's right wing but seemingly not a lunatic, though I only agree with about 60% of what he's got going on.

A politician that I find pretty interesting is Krystal Ball. She's got some good ideas and even though she's running as a Dem her principals in terms of the economy are very right leaning.
 
Libertarian on everything. I agree with the dems on social issues and republicans on economics (at least as far as rhetoric goes..their actions are another matter). I'm a pretty hardcore anti-theist, so I tend to support the lefties in their attempt to defeat the nationalistic, pro-war, anti-science bible thumpers in the republican party..even if it means we get a bit of economic tyranny in the process.
 
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I used to be a Whig, but now I lean more Federalist. Though, I'll often agree with the Populists' stance on Bimetallism.

I miss the Era of Good Feelings most.
 
Socially conservative, liberal with regards to foreign policy. I like Ron Paul's foreign policy statements, think he goes overboard when he talks about closing the IRS, etc. There aren't any poltiical pundits that I would even remotely support, or listen to with frequency.

And yes, there was a thread about this recently, with a poll even.
 
[quote name='Clak']Did we not just have one of these recently?[/QUOTE]

We had a "who would you vote for" thread but that was basically asking which party is the lesser of two evils. Then there are other threads in the vs. forum which, once conflicting views are stated, mar the political positions of individuals.This is intended for people to open up and clearly state their ideology and where they are politically. My end goal is that I suspect we all want the same things, we just differ in what is the best method to achieve those end goals.


This is already anonymous so I don't know why one wouldn't be honest and choose to share but do what you want. I thought this would get to the heart of conflict, misunderstanding, and elevate discussions past the small details and technicalities that derail threads.
 
Very liberal on social issues. Pretty liberal on fiscal issues as well, though probably not as far left as I am on social issues.
 
[quote name='tivo']This is intended for people to open up and clearly state their ideology and where they are politically.[/QUOTE]
No, there was one of these before. With a poll and everything.

Anyway, I refer to myself as "cautiously leftish". Take from that what'cha will.
 
My mother describes as "just to the right of Karl Marx."

About the only time I didn't have a rebuttal for her. I support strong labor unions, publicly funded elections, a progressive tax rate that needs to return to pre-Reagan levels, the elimination of private corporations in our military and prisons, taxing religious institutions, a strong military but one that does not overstay its welcome (i.e., time to close bases in Japan and Korea), and capital punishment for corporations.

EDIT: And publicly funded cupcake competitions.
 
I mostly agree with myke (though I might qualify the taxes on religious institutions), besides his stance on cupcakes, which is clearly over the line.

I'm also here to destroy this thread by saying this: If anyone ever asks you "what is privilege?" The answer is "fiscal policies trump social issues every time."
 
I stand in my own space because Im not anything. Every issue I have my own viewpoints on, I dont just think one way across the board. No one can or make good choices if they are a democrat or a republican, a conservist or a liberal, or even whatever they call those people who stay neutral all the time. I am sometimes one or more of those labels for politics depending on the situation at hand, but it always varies depending on the issue at the time. I like to think about both sides of the fence and think of consequences or someone elses point of view and consider different options and yes, even I can have my mind changed or altered because Im willing to listen to someone else.

Thats why I hate politics because politicians are all about having one frame of mind, being in a certain party and so on. Well when you have people running a country who diametrically oppose eachother how can they get anything done? Or one party may chose to veto something thats good for the people just because they dont like the other party. You cant take care of millions and make good choices when your a group of 600 people with only one closed minded point of view.
 
*Free healthcare for everyone(fuck the drug/insurance companies)
*Fully tax nonprofits(especially organized religion, universities/colleges)
*Secure the borders, end the 'anchor babies' loophole

Where would you guys place me going by the above criteria I mentioned?

I've almost always voted Democrat, but I've become disillusioned with both parties as of late, since I've come to see that they're both full of shit.
 
I could be called a libertarian, but some libertarians(or Libertarians, there is a difference) would not consider me one their ranks. I believe that individuals can protect themselves and do not need any government services to live their lives. Government only brings war, taxes, loss of personal liberties and intervention in the economy. Yes, fuck the drug/insurance companies, but only because they are given special privileges from the government that give them huge powers, i.e.: patents on drugs driving the prices up.
 
[quote name='Liberty1']I could be called a libertarian, but some libertarians(or Libertarians, there is a difference) would not consider me one their ranks. I believe that individuals can protect themselves and do not need any government services to live their lives. Government only brings war, taxes, loss of personal liberties and intervention in the economy. Yes, fuck the drug/insurance companies, but only because they are given special privileges from the government that give them huge powers, i.e.: patents on drugs driving the prices up.[/QUOTE]

The only law I need is my desert eagle point five o. That and some twinkies.

I don't stand anywhere politically, I tower above it and eagerly await the day the US system borrows the Iron Cage of German Politics from Germany and starts kicking some legislative ass. Man I really want a US version of this. Seriously how cool would it be to have a legislature where the entire political party votes in unison, with the punishment for not doing so being that in the next election your own party will personally fuck up your election and make sure you never even work as a govt temp again, while at the same time sticking strictly to party platforms that their base more or less full supports.
 
[quote name='mykevermin']I'm curious where some of you self-anointed independents and moderates stand on issues.[/QUOTE]
LOLZ...you're going to get a lot of "I'm a fiscal conservative, but socially liberal."
 
[quote name='perdition(troy']Ask away.[/QUOTE]

where do you stand on:
abortion?
the national debt?
growing income inequality?
wages that aren't rising to meet inflation?
gay marriage?
affirmative action laws?
fair housing laws?
snyder v phelps?
the death penalty?
the current state or marginal tax rates?
resolving our energy dependence?
 
[quote name='mykevermin']where do you stand on:
abortion?
the national debt?
growing income inequality?
wages that aren't rising to meet inflation?
gay marriage?
affirmative action laws?
fair housing laws?
snyder v phelps?
the death penalty?
the current state or marginal tax rates?
resolving our energy dependence?[/QUOTE]

Somewhere in the middle, brah. The market shall set you free.
 
where do you stand on:
abortion? -personally against it, don't think it should be illegal
the national debt? -STOP UNNECESSARY, EXCESSIVE FOREIGN AID!!!!!
growing income inequality? -Don't care
wages that aren't rising to meet inflation? -The alternative is for more people to be laid off, so I'd rather see people not be able to afford a new car than not be able to afford groceries.
gay marriage? -Not in favor of it
affirmative action laws? -undecided
fair housing laws? -undecided
snyder v phelps? -don't know what it is
the death penalty? -for it
the current state or marginal tax rates? -think our tax system is terrible, don't know what the solution is
resolving our energy dependence? -Don't care. Every source of energy has its costs and benefits. Those costs and benefits will change over time depending on scarcity
 
That's not moderate or independent, that's a pretty far right stance on most of those issues--both fiscal and social.

From my experience most people who say they're moderates usually aren't--or if they are it's a case of being to the left on social issues (pro life, anti death penalty, pro gay marriage etc.) but on the right on fiscal issues (lower taxes, cut entitlement programs etc.).
 
[quote name='dmaul1114']That's not moderate or independent, that's a pretty far right stance on most of those issues--both fiscal and social.

From my experience most people who say they're moderates usually aren't--or if they are it's a case of being to the left on social issues (pro life, anti death penalty, pro gay marriage etc.) but on the right on fiscal issues (lower taxes, cut entitlement programs etc.).[/QUOTE]

I don't think my views vary much at all from what I listed on the first page. I didn't use the term moderate, others did.:

"Socially conservative, liberal with regards to foreign policy. I like Ron Paul's foreign policy statements, think he goes overboard when he talks about closing the IRS, etc. There aren't any poltiical pundits that I would even remotely support, or listen to with frequency."

Since I don't ascribe to any single ideology, rather I'm all over the place, I'd consider myself Independent. I'm registered that way in fact. Not terribly concerned how others would pigeonhole me. My two undecided comments are the type where I can basically be convinced of either stance depending on who I talked to last. Doesn't make me indifferent, makes me undecided.
 
where do you stand on:

abortion?
Never gonna happen with me and my wife, but people can do what they want, it doesn't affect me at all.

the national debt?
It is growing out of control. Reduce spending (military, social programs, foreign aid, funding the UN, cut whatever we can do without and start digging out of the hole).

growing income inequality?
Don't care.

wages that aren't rising to meet inflation?
Where is this happening? Last I read, social security hasn't had an increase due to cost of living since 2008 due to prices staying relatively flat.

gay marriage?
I think marriage should be church sanctioned and have nothing to do with the state. Personally think it is wrong, but again, I don't care if someone else hands in a paper with the names Bob and Tommy or Bob and Tammy.

affirmative action laws?
Have both +/- but don't really have set thoughts on them.

fair housing laws?
No opinion.

snyder v phelps?
Free speech. As long as they weren't on private property I don't care what they say/do.

the death penalty?
Should be used in some cases. Things that can be proven (ie video of the murder, things of that nature) ex being the fort hood shooter.

the current state or marginal tax rates?
would love a flat tax on goods, but that'll never happen.

resolving our energy dependence?
It is what it is.
 
Wait just a damn minute, that would mean that atheists would basically have to go against their beliefs just to be married, which in this country means certain legal things whether you like it or not.
 
[quote name='perdition(troy']wages that aren't rising to meet inflation?
Where is this happening? Last I read, social security hasn't had an increase due to cost of living since 2008 due to prices staying relatively flat.[/QUOTE]

median earnings (not the numerical wage, but the spending power it has) have declined 7 percent since the mid-1970's. A wage is just a number.
 
[quote name='Clak']Wait just a damn minute, that would mean that atheists would basically have to go against their beliefs just to be married, which in this country means certain legal things whether you like it or not.[/QUOTE]

That's an interesting question in the sense of I wonder what percentage of Atheists give a crap about marriage.

I certainly don't as it's always been more a religious thing to me. But I know several athiests who are married--though in each case one spouse is religious so it may been a case of just catering to the religious spouse.

That said I'd guess the perecentage is still pretty high since marriage is such a big tradition aside from religion. But it's probably a lot smaller percentage than among religious folks.
 
As you continue to give power to others over you that will inevitably be abused, and you continue to rely on those over you to "Take care of you" - you then must continue to pile on more and more governance to constantly try and ensure the power is not abused. This combined with the fact that people quickly figure out that they can use the election system to gain access to the countries treasury has made me realize it all results in exponential growth of government that will literally never stop until it implodes (see the crystal ball known as 'France lately').

I've begun, lately, to feel that putting any amount of power into the hands of PEOPLE over other PEOPLE is essentially lighting the fuse. How you structure government at it's formation simply changes the length of the fuse.

This, lately, has lead me to lean nearly anarchistic (the jesus version; self governance) view as the only viable long term-solution to nearly everything. Any other attempt at "fairness control" is just a shade of slavery and will be abused.

I have come to view election ballots something like this:

"How much of a slave do you want to be?"
Total slave
Mostly slave
Moderate slave
Only sometimes slave
Never a slave

For fun, I'lll try to answer Myke's list.


-abortion?
I've never been able to see it as anything but murder when used as a form of birth control. If a state wants to make some murders legal choices, then so be it.
Things get a little different in cases of rape, insist, or mothers life in danger.

-the national debt?
It sucks. People are just now realizing that our children's quality of life will not be as high as ours and there is little we can do about it - which creates stuff like Tea Party's.
There isn't a lot we can do about it other than maybe treat it like so many want to treat global warming - pull out all the stops to stop growing it and reverse it (taxing as a last resort).

-growing income inequality?
This problem is two fold:
1- We have a government controlled free-market (in other words, we don't have one)
2- Corporations have too much influence on government

Until you destroy both of those simultaneously, income inequality will continue to grow.

-wages that aren't rising to meet inflation?
A perfect example of what I mentioned above this list. Government has a barbed penis, like cats; once they stick it in you it is not coming out, and you have no choice but to ride it out and let them finish.
Wages and jobs won't increase as long as employers live in fear that government can (and does) totally fuck company's over on a whim, on several fronts.

-gay marriage?
Have a legal union with as many people, whomever, and whatever you want.
Leave it up to individuals and their religions to decide how to define "marriage".

-affirmative action laws?
Arguably might have once been necessary, now create more problems than they solve

-fair housing laws?
I should be able to discriminate who I rent or sell my own private property to however I like (and I do).

-snyder v phelps?
I like to look at this as if there were no laws, as this situation would quickly fix itself.
The protestors can disrupt funeral services if they like, it's their right. The people at the funeral can disrupt their faces in response, it's their right.

Ideally that's how the situation would "fix itself" and an understanding authority would try to make it so, and an understanding public would care little for the protection of anyone intentionally causing someone emotional distress.

-the death penalty?
Isn't a deterrent. Should be a state choice. Should be "fixed" to be cheaper to employ than a life sentence.

-the current state or marginal tax rates?
I'd be ok with raising state taxes if it meant greatly reducing Federal power; you can easily choose which state you want to live in.
I'm for flat taxes above 25-30k a year or so (as a starting point in tax policy.)

-resolving our energy dependence?
Would be extremely easy with a one two punch of huge tax incentives for new energy source research and releasing most restrictions on domestic drilling/refining.
Take off the chains and I firmly believe we'll have cheap domestic energy short term, and a replacement for fosil energy in the not-to-distant-future.
It seems to me that the current situation continuously rewards (through grants etc) so-called "green energy companies" that have little reason to actually be productive. Meanwhile, oil companies continue to do what they do because they have little choice to do much else.
 
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[quote name='mykevermin']where do you stand on:
abortion?
the national debt?
growing income inequality?
wages that aren't rising to meet inflation?
gay marriage?
affirmative action laws?
fair housing laws?
snyder v phelps?
the death penalty?
the current state or marginal tax rates?
resolving our energy dependence?[/QUOTE]

I'm very much an independent. It basically started when I was about 8 or 9 and I went to the polls w/ my grandfather. It was a primary and one of the election workers said something to the effect of 'I hope we dont have to use any of those boothes tonight', referring to the boothes set aside for Republican voters. I wondered what was so bad about "Republicans" so I started reading. I found that Democrats have some good ideas, but so did Republicans. I've been in the middle ever since. I've largely supported Republicans in Federal issues and Democrats in state/local. But I did vote for Pres. Obama b/c as Rush Limbaugh says "It's because of race!' (j/k)

As to the questions:
abortion? Personally, couldnt do it. I was always sort of against the idea but once we had a miscarriage, I just cant see how anyone could choose to kill a child (rape/mother's health aside). Technically, I'm still Pro-Choice, but I *really* hope one would explore all possible other options)

the national debt? Debt in and of itself isnt horrible. I dont think everything has to be paid for in cash. However, there should be a reasonable amount of accounting so that you are not increasing your obligations past the limit of you being able to meet them on a shorter term basis. I have no problem with some tax increases along with spending reductions. I'd start w/ the Department of Defense as I have second-hand knowledge of some of the great waste that goes on in there.

growing income inequality? NAFTA and growing illegal workers have done horrible things to working class wages. I'm okay with Protectionism.

wages that aren't rising to meet inflation? In order to pay wages that rise with inflation it seems to me that you'd only end up increasing the rate of inflation. e.g. in order to pay a bread delivery truck driver an extra buck, you'd need to raise bread prices or cut profits. Profit cutting aint happening in the real world so I dont know what you do here.

gay marriage? Marriage is a religious ceremony and should be contained in religious institutions. As such, states should not involve themselves in "marriages". States should only liscense a "Civil Union". A "Civil Union" can be any two adults male female or both. Bottom line, I dont care what any two other consenting adults do. If they wann get married fine. They can be miserable like the rest of us (j/k).

affirmative action laws? In many instances, they have run their course. Race is becoming less a factor than socio-economic state. I'd like to see more of a shift towards economics and away from race.

fair housing laws? Dont really know much about this other than the radio commercials they run.

snyder v phelps? Who?

the death penalty? I'm not morally opposed to death for certain crimes. However, the application of the death penalty as applied here in the USA is horrendously uneven-handed. Plus, we've had cases where death-row inmates have been cleared of the crime they were convicted of due to late-obtained (often DNA) evidence. Since there is always that element of human error, I call for an end to the death penalty.

the current state or marginal tax rates? (I assume or=of) Dont like the tax code at all. I say dump the entire thing. No lay person understands it, the penalties are harsh, and the very people it attempts to tax most are the people who are best able to avoid taxes. I'm more in favor of a national sales tax.

resolving our energy dependence? First, let's be clear that our biggest source of foregin energy is our best-buddy Canada. We have other resources here to use (exploit). I dont have a problem with more drilling, even in the Alaskan reserve, but we know that there isnt enough oil there to make a difference. We need to use less oil, more natural gas. Wind's okay, solar isnt there yet. And for God's sake, build some new nuclear power plants!

I think that sums up my position on your questions.
 
abortion?

With abortion comes the possibility of murder, which I cannot condone.

the national debt?

Ideally, this should be paid off, but unfortunately, we've gotten to a point where that may be impossible.

growing income inequality?

Income (and pretty much any other inequality) comes about naturally and is not necessarily a bad thing. Certain people are simply more fit and more industrious. It is government's role to ensure that the opportunities for all are similar. Unfortunately, it seems as though government typically does the opposite by bailing out the "too big to fails" and cutting sweetheart deals with their fellow white shoe boys, while simply throwing a small bone to the poor and middle class to ensure that: 1) they do not rebel against them and 2) are comfortable enough to lack the motivation to move up in station.

wages that aren't rising to meet inflation?

We should limit inflation by not printing more and more money.

gay marriage?

Gay people should be allowed to marry. However, the issue should not be used as an attempt to weaken and subvert traditional families. People should be free to form associations between each other as they please. Other than protecting that basic right, the government should have no further role in marriage.

affirmative action laws?

These should be illegal. What I have seen happening is that a lot of rich recent immigrants from Spanish speaking countries or Africans whose families never endured slavery end up taking advantage of them in higher medical education, at least. The government should focus on creating an even playing field by promoting good values and development of businesses within the inner cities and poor areas. Make it so that education and simply being a good person is valued higher than being a pimp or hoping to become a gangster rapper.

fair housing laws?
Abolish HUD... nuff said. ;-)

snyder v phelps?
Those Baptists are crazy. There is a right time and a place for protest. It is in poor form to disturb a family's funeral. They should be allowed to protest, but not within earshot of the funeral proceedings. There is a difference between fair and peaceful protest and outright lies and libel.

the death penalty?

If we do not delude ourselves, it is pretty easy to tell who is a "bad guy." Sadly, I believe that a large portion of people who perpetrate heinous crimes are not amenable to rehabilitation and deserve to be killed. My only fear is that the ability of government to administer the death penalty does not extend to political enemies... thus, there should be plenty of checks and balances.

the current state or marginal tax rates?
What about it? It does seem a bit silly that someone earning $300K is in the same bracket as someone earning $3 billion.

resolving our energy dependence?
Alternative forms of energy should be strongly pursued; though, not by the destruction of the current economy (through high taxation of current energy forms).
 
I'll bite:

abortion? SHOULD BE 100% LEGAL AND COVERED BY MEDICAL INSURANCE

the national debt? TOO HIGH AND WE NEED TO STOP GIVING OUT MONEY WHEN SO MANY PROBLEMS EXIST IN THE US

growing income inequality? GREED AT THE TOP IS NEVER A GOOD THING BUT I DON'T FAULT PEOPLE FOR GETTING WHATEVER THEY CAN

wages that aren't rising to meet inflation? EVERYONE SHOULD GET RAISES TO AT LEAST MEET INFLATION IF THEY ARE COMPETENT WORKERS

gay marriage? SHOULD BE 100% LEGAL

affirmative action laws? HMMM... I THINK THERE SHOULD BE 100% EQUALITY BUT I'M NOT SURE AA DOES THE TRICK.

fair housing laws? DON'T HAVE AN OPINION/NEVER THOUGHT ABOUT IT

snyder v phelps? I'M A HUGE SUPPORTER OF FREE SPEECH BUT TO ME THIS DOESN'T PASS THE RATIONAL BASIS TEST (EVEN THOUGH IT TECHNICALLY DOES).

the death penalty? HMMM... I'M PROBABLY OK WITH THIS BUT I HAVE TOO MUCH FAITH IN OUR CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM. PRISONS ARE TOO CROWDED AND THEY REALLY ONLY EXECUTE THE WORST OF THE WORST (ASSUMING THE CONVICTION WAS ACCURATE, OF COURSE).

the current state or marginal tax rates? TAXES ARE ALWAYS TOO HIGH.

resolving our energy dependence? I'M ALL FOR IT

So what does this make me? I don't really follow politics...
 
[quote name='perdition(troy']the CAPS make you ANGRY[/QUOTE]

It was either than or get fancy with quote blocks or colors and I'm lazy. Plus, I'm also pretty angry so it works.
 
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