My views

Interestingly enough, I could swing either way, when it comes to politics. I just took this little survey, and although not comprehensive enough to make it realistic, it does show that I’m all over the map when it comes to my beliefs. Some of the questions I struggled with, others were far too easy to answer.

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Overall: 40% Conservative, 60% Liberal

Social Issues: 50% Conservative, 50% Liberal

Personal Responsibility: 50% Conservative, 50% Liberal

Fiscal Issues: 25% Conservative, 75% Liberal

Ethics: 0% Conservative, 100% Liberal

Defense and Crime: 75% Conservative, 25% Liberal

How Liberal Or Conservative Are You?
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Let me try to explain my positions, and maybe I’ll make more sense to the people who just can’t seem to understand my position, politically. I’ll use the questions asked in this survey as a basis for my answers.

1. Environment:
♦ I do believe that the environment is a primary social responsibility. I also believe that if businesses are polluting our environment, they must be made to change their practices. I think they should be given some time to change things, but not an extraordinary amount of time. I don’t believe that every company that pollutes fits into a particular mold. For instance, if a company is dumping their waste into a body of water, that company should be fined and given no more than 30 days to fix things. But if a company would have to completely re-vamp their entire operations, say because they’re putting out too much pollutants into the air, then they may need a lot more time, but they should receive the fines. I believe, 100%, that Global Warming is at least partially man-made, because the science backs it up.

2. Immigration:
♦ I’m really mixed on this. I look to the past, and to the future, for answers about how I think on this critical matter. This country wouldn’t be what it is now, without immigration. The major difference is, when the immigrants of the past came to our country, the majority did so legally. They learned our language and our culture, and strived every day to pass the requirements set forth to become an American citizen. I think it is unrealistic to completely secure our border with Mexico. We can do what we can, but we just don’t have the manpower or architecture to do so. I don’t know what the answer is, but I have a few ideas about possible solutions, which would be too long for this blog.

3. Gay Rights:
♦ I believe that everyone should have the right to live their lives free of prejudice! I completely, with 100% of my being, agree with gay rights! The only people that oppose this, do so because of religion. And if anyone was paying attention to one of my previous blogs, we’d see that mixing religion and politics is a complete violation of the First Amendment. It is nobody’s business who people have sex with. Love is love, and it doesn’t matter whether it’s between a man and a woman, or between a couple of the same sex! To those who oppose gay rights, I say: get a life, and worry about your own love life!

4. Education:
♦ Our public education system sucks, and that’s putting it mildly. It’s so bad in my area, that I refuse to send my Son to the public schools. He is currently in a Charter School, but I would prefer to see him Homeschooled through a Cyber School which caters to his education style. I think that “No Child Left Behind” is a joke and should be revoked. The only thing it does is to promote children without educating them! I also think that a voucher system would be a great idea! Bad teachers should have their licenses suspended until they complete more education. Competition between good schools would be wonderful! Unfortunately, there aren’t many good schools to choose from in my area, so the good ones would be overcrowded in a heartbeat, which would not benefit the children at all. Even with a voucher system, I would still choose Cyber School for my Son. At least that way, I know he’d get a good education!

5. Marijuana:
♦ I’m mixed on this one. I think it should be legalized, just like alcohol and cigarettes are. It is no more harmful that alcohol. But, I think there should be exactly the same restrictions on marijuana as there are on alcohol and cigarettes. Age limits, DUI laws, and where it can be consumed should be the laws. If an adult chooses to smoke in their own home, away from children, and doesn’t decide to drive a vehicle while they’re under the influence, then it’s not anyone’s business.

6. Affirmative Action:
♦ I’m mixed on this one, too. I think that it WAS a good thing, and still IS to an extent. But I’ve also seen the effects of hiring someone just because of their skin color or gender, and that person does nothing that even resembles work while on the job. I really don’t know what the solution is to this one. I think that everyone should be hired based on their merits, but that there is still too much discrimination in this country to get rid of Affirmative Action.

7. Gun Rights:
♦ I am totally on board with the Second Amendment. I, myself, own a gun! I have lived in some very nasty neighborhoods, and it is my right to protect my family in my own home. And if it became necessary to carry my gun on me when I’m outside of the house, then I would apply for the necessary permits to do so. I have been well trained how to use a gun, and about gun safety. I am, however, for somewhat strict gun laws. I think that the laws we have in place in Pennsylvania are sufficient for the purchase of a gun. But I also know that the criminals aren’t walking into a store to buy their guns legally. I think there should be a “one strike and you’re out” law when it comes to illegally possessing or using a firearm. I am also completely opposed to hunting for sport. I am not a vegetarian, and I know where meat comes from. But killing an animal just to have it’s fur, or it’s head on your wall as a trophy is sickening to me.

8. Luck?
♦ I’m not sure how this is a political issue. I’m not even sure if I believe in luck or not. I know sometimes I feel like the most unlucky bitch on the face of the Earth, but other times, I look at my Son, my Husband, and the fact that we have just barely enough to survive on, and think that I’m pretty lucky compared to others who don’t have any of that. Do I think that some people have less luck than others … yeah. But I think luck equates to opportunity. I also think that the more money a person has, the more opportunity they have.

9. Social Security:
♦ Touchy subject for me, personally. Being disabled, Social Security is something I will eventually be relying on. We don’t have enough money to be able to invest in our future, and we’re not alone! And thanks to the “baby boomer” generation, we may not have enough for our benefits when we’re older, even though we’ve paid into it since the day we started our first jobs. As for my Son’s generation, I have no idea what’s going to happen! I know the system needs fixed, but I really don’t know if privatizing it would be the solution or not. I don’t have enough information to make an educated decision on this issue. I do, however, know that no matter what, I will not be voting strictly the way I’m registered to vote … I will be voting on this issue (if it ever comes up for a vote) based on what I believe will be the best thing for me and my family.

10. Taxes:
♦ In all honesty, I would support a flat tax of say 5-10%, with no loopholes and legal ways to get out of paying taxes. The more you make, the more you pay, no arguments. Of course, the rich would never go for that idea, so we need to focus on reality. I still believe that the richest among us should be paying the highest taxes, and I would stick to my beliefs, even if I was making millions! That’s who I am, deep down inside. I believe that a person should always be looking out for those less fortunate than themselves. I think the rich who complain about taxes are greedy, selfish people. I admire rich people who give a good percentage of their income those that are more needy. What I find really sad, are the poor people who give more of themselves than the rich people. For example, the highest paid Wal*Mart execs gave less of a percentage of their income to help the victims of hurricane Katrina, than the lowest paid employees did! I was working at Wally World at the time, and I was utterly disgusted by the Walton family and the CEOs. I completely agree with the tax plan that Obama has mapped out. Some may call him “Robin Hood”, but I believe he’s right.

11. & 12. Deficit, National Debt, Unemployment and Inflation:
♦ I believe that all of these issues need to be addressed, and that there is not one clear solution to them all. We need to stop throwing money at other countries. We need to collect on the debts other countries have incurred. Unemployment is at the highest rate in the past 6 years, and we need to keep our jobs IN the United States. The rate of inflation is higher than it’s ever been before, and I think our Government needs to step in and do something about it. But I do not know what the solutions are to these problems. I only know that we need to take care of our country first, and stop worrying about other countries and their problems. We did not create their problems, and we should not be stepping in to fix them. I think that butting our noses into everyone else’s business is what’s causing the rest of the world to hate us, and it’s putting us in jeopardy on so many levels, not the least of all financial.

13. Social Responsibility of a Company:
♦ This is almost a no-brainer. Every company has a responsibility to more than just it’s shareholders. They have to be responsible to their employees, their community, their state, and their country. They all need to stop pandering to their shareholders!

14. Healthcare:
♦ Another no-brainer for me. The wealthy should not be the only ones to have healthcare. It would be genocide otherwise. I am currently under a state run health insurance plan, and I want to personally thank everyone in my state who pays their taxes so that I can get myself healthy enough to contribute to it myself! I am also grateful that my Son has health insurance, that I could not otherwise afford. Granted, my health insurance isn’t the best, but I get the services I need, and I don’t have to worry about being sick or having an emergency. I would also like to thank our Governor, Ed Rendell, for putting this health care system into place in Pennsylvania. I think every state could learn from his example. If not for our state health care system, my Husband would be forced to pay $360 a month for just him and I, and on top of that, there would be a $1000 deductible for EACH of us. Those figures are just too far out of reach for us.

15. Authority being questioned:
♦ Um, duh! Of course authority should be questioned! How else do we hold them accountable for their actions? I’ve always questioned authority … keeps ’em honest.

16. Abortion:
♦ I’ll try to keep this short. First of all, I do NOT believe in abortion, except in cases of rape, incest, or if it puts the mother’s life in danger. It should NEVER be used as a means of birth control. I believe that it is every parent’s responsibility to teach their children about sex … safe sex, how to avoid disease, and how to NOT get pregnant. People that exclusively teach abstinence are living in their own little worlds, in an altered reality, and are doing children everywhere a disservice. I believe that it should be taught at home, and at school. If a parent can’t, or won’t, teach their child how to avoid pregnancy, then the school should! However, I don’t believe that Roe v. Wade should be overturned. There are far too many children born, with not enough people to take care of them, as it is. And too many children are born to families that don’t want them, and can’t care for them, and those children suffer because of it. I know too many children who have parents that abuse and/or neglect them. If I could care for them all myself, I would, but that’s not realistic. I live in the real world, where mistakes happen, and birth control fails. And I do not believe that a woman (or girl) should be forced to be responsible for another human being if she’s not capable of it. For me, personally, I could never abort a child, nor could I give a child up for adoption. Luckily, I don’t have to worry about that for myself anymore. But I have to now think about my Son and his sisters, and educate them the best I can about waiting to have sex until they are old enough to handle the consequences, should any arise. And I have to teach them how to prevent pregnancy and disease, responsibly.

17. & 18. Military:
♦ Action that defies international law ever being justified? No, because it makes us look like hypocrites. The war in Iraq being justified? No. Our war is with al’Queda (sp?) and Osama Bin Laden. It should have stayed focused in Afghanistan and on terrorists. The Bush administration lied to us about WMDs in Iraq, to fuel the fire. We should not be there fixing their problems, which center around religion in the first place. This war is as justified as the Vietnam war. I’m sure even McCain would agree with me about the Vietnam War! These are my person opinions, and I’m not asking anyone to agree with me.

19. The US Justice System:
♦ Yet another joke. Prisoners have way too many rights to begin with, they don’t need more! People are being put in prison for too long for petty crimes, and not long enough for heinous crimes. There is no rehabilitation when the inside of prison is no better than the outside, when it comes to gangs, etc. And lawyers … don’t even get me started on how corrupt they are! That a person caught, for the most part “red handed”, committing murder gets a lawyer who tries to prove he’s innocent, or plea bargain for a reduced sentence … well, that’s just beyond me! What’s worse is people being set free because of a minor legal technicality! I think a prisoner should have done to them, what they did to their victim! Which brings us to …

20. Death Penalty:
♦ As long as it can be proved, without a doubt, that someone murdered someone else, then I am all for the death penalty! Only difference is, I think they should go out the same way the person they murdered went out. No more of the lethal injection bullshit. That’s too easy on the murderer! I don’t give a shit about “humane” when it comes to murderers! I say, bring back public hangings! The State of Delaware was the last to ban them; maybe Delaware could be the “First State” once again?!?  I know there are statistics to support that crimes in Delaware were low before hangings were banned, and increased afterward, but I don’t have them offhand, and won’t post something I’m not absolutely sure about. Another day, another topic, another blog.

Anyway, these are my beliefs. Some may seem more Republican, some may seem more Democratic. What’s most important to me right now are the economy and the war, and I fully intend to vote for the candidate who I think will change, for the better, the lives of my family, the people I care most about, and the people in this country who share similar problems.