Saddam was a good guy when Reagan armed him, a bad guy when Bush's daddy made war on him, a good guy when Cheney did business with him and a bad guy when Bush needed a "we can't find Bin Laden" diversion.
Trade with Cuba is wrong because the country is communist, but trade with China and Vietnam is vital to a spirit of international harmony.
A woman can't be trusted with decisions about her own body, but multi-national corporations can make decisions affecting all mankind without regulation.
Jesus loves you, and shares your hatred of homosexuals and Hillary Clinton.
The best way to improve military morale is to praise the troops in speeches while slashing veterans' benefits and combat pay.
If condoms are kept out of schools, adolescents won't have sex.
Providing health care to all Iraqis is sound policy. Providing health care to all Americans is socialism.
HMOs and insurance companies have the best interests of the public at heart.
Global warming and tobacco's link to cancer are junk science, but creationism should be taught in schools.
A president lying about an extramarital affair is an impeachable offense. A president lying to enlist support for a war in which thousands die is solid defense policy.
Government should limit itself to the powers named in the Constitution, which include banning gay marriages and censoring the Internet.
The public has a right to know about Hillary's cattle trades, but George Bush's cocaine conviction is none of our business.
Being a drug addict is a moral failing and a crime, unless you're a conservative radio host. Then it's an illness, and you need our prayers for your recovery.
You support states' rights, which means Attorney General John Ashcroft can tell states what local voter initiatives they have the right to adopt.
What Bill Clinton did in the 1960s is of vital national interest, but what Bush did in the '80s is irrelevant.
Things you have to believe to be a Democrat today....
1) A woman should have the right to choose whether to terminate her pregnancy, but not where to send her child for 12 years of schooling.
2) It's just fine for the average middle class shmoe to pay 39% in taxes, but even better if Heinz-Kerry pays just 12%.
3) The government has done just a bang-up job with running the IRS and the Post Office that we can't wait until it gets its mitts on the US health care system.
4) Innovation in medical care can be done by the government -- no need for the private sector to do this. There are so many creative ideas the government has come up with, e.g., double-taxation.
5) Tax the rich until they bleed. It's not our fault if they're rich because they run small businesses. Or if they scrimped and saved for years to build up their business (taking huge risks along the way) -- why should they be able to enjoy the fruits of their labors if I can't send my kids to private school...which leads to...
6) The vast number of politicians that send their kids to private schools is no reflection on the educational system that of which these politicians are the stewards.
7) In any war, we must have France and Germany on our side, otherwise we really don't have a coalition. (Don't look at WWII -- that's not fair.)
8) Although so many "Free Spirits" did drugs during the 60s and the drug music of the 60s is still celebrated by many, we must never cease condemning Bush for having had a cocaine addiction.
9) A lackluster 20 year Senate record has no bearing on how John Kerry would do as a president.
10) That what John Kerry says today will be what John Kerry says tomorrow.
>1) A woman should have the right to choose whether to terminate her pregnancy, but not where to send her child for 12 years of schooling.
You can send your child anywhere, as long as you pay for it! That sounds more like a Republican thing than a Democratic to me. The true Conservative would say if you want to send your child to private school, by all means do so, just do not expect the government to pay for it!
>2) It's just fine for the average middle class shmoe to pay 39% in taxes, but even better if Heinz-Kerry pays just 12%.
Actually the marginal tax rate for the middle class is less than 39%, and most middle class people pay less than that because of deductions. Also you are comparing apples to oranges. 39% is the basic tax rate for income without deductions. 12% is the net tax rate paid by Kerry. Furthermore, your are basically disputing your point number 5 anyways, because if Kerry is richer, why should he be taxed?
3) The government has done just a bang-up job with running the IRS and the Post Office that we can't wait until it gets its mitts on the US health care system.
Actually the IRS is one of the best run organizations in the government. Everybody might hate them, but they enforce the law and collect taxes quite well. You might not agree with the tax law, but do not blame the IRS for that. Blame congress! As to the post office, the price of a stamp to mail a letter is still quite inexpensive.
4) Innovation in medical care can be done by the government -- no need for the private sector to do this. There are so many creative ideas the government has come up with, e.g., double-taxation.
Government funding of basic research has come up with many advances that simply would not have been possible with private only funding. The space program alone has created many things that we take for granted now. Government funding of research is a great thing!
5) Tax the rich until they bleed. It's not our fault if they're rich because they run small businesses. Or if they scrimped and saved for years to build up their business (taking huge risks along the way) -- why should they be able to enjoy the fruits of their labors if I can't send my kids to private school...which leads to...
Taxing capital gains at very low rates (or getting rid of them completely) is considered by me to be a bad thing. Consider a person who buys stock, and it goes up ten times in price over 5 years. Should that person be required to pay taxes on that gain? I say yes!
6) The vast number of politicians that send their kids to private schools is no reflection on the educational system that of which these politicians are the stewards.
Many of those politicians are republicans. And they have the right to do so, as long as they pay for it themselves!
7) In any war, we must have France and Germany on our side, otherwise we really don't have a coalition. (Don't look at WWII -- that's not fair.)
I just do not understand this one. In any war, we need the whole world on our side, instead of going it alone in Iraq.
8) Although so many "Free Spirits" did drugs during the 60s and the drug music of the 60s is still celebrated by many, we must never cease condemning Bush for having had a cocaine addiction.
Many of those "Free Spirits" were and are not in positions of extreme importance. most of the "free spirits" were entertainers, etc.
9) A lackluster 20 year Senate record has no bearing on how John Kerry would do as a president.
Kerry is much more intelligent that Bush. Nuh said!
10) That what John Kerry says today will be what John Kerry says tomorrow.
Kerry is consistent. The problem is that stupid people cannot understand nuance.
Some responses to your responses; the items I feel more strongly about....Responses are noted by "->"
>1) A woman should have the right to choose whether to terminate her pregnancy, but not where to send her child for 12 years of schooling.
You can send your child anywhere, as long as you pay for it! That sounds more like a Republican thing than a Democratic to me. The true Conservative would say if you want to send your child to private school, by all means do so, just do not expect the government to pay for it!
->Everyone pays for public school via their taxes, provided they pay taxes. No sense in making someone pay for a school that is failing.
3) The government has done just a bang-up job with running the IRS and the Post Office that we can't wait until it gets its mitts on the US health care system.
Actually the IRS is one of the best run organizations in the government. Everybody might hate them, but they enforce the law and collect taxes quite well. You might not agree with the tax law, but do not blame the IRS for that. Blame congress! As to the post office, the price of a stamp to mail a letter is still quite inexpensive.
->You should read some horror stories on what the IRS can do to you and what they can seize if you are "suspected" of improprieties in your tax dealings.
5) Tax the rich until they bleed. It's not our fault if they're rich because they run small businesses. Or if they scrimped and saved for years to build up their business (taking huge risks along the way) -- why should they be able to enjoy the fruits of their labors if I can't send my kids to private school...which leads to...
Taxing capital gains at very low rates (or getting rid of them completely) is considered by me to be a bad thing. Consider a person who buys stock, and it goes up ten times in price over 5 years. Should that person be required to pay taxes on that gain? I say yes!
->It's the level of taxation I am addressing. If you penalize people for taking risks, expect the private sector to take less risks and have this result in less economic output and ultimately tax revenue. Bad thing if you believe in Capitalism; good thing if you believe in Socialism and would rather have the state run all business activity.
6) The vast number of politicians that send their kids to private schools is no reflection on the educational system that of which these politicians are the stewards.
Many of those politicians are republicans. And they have the right to do so, as long as they pay for it themselves!
->You are so kidding yourself if you think I am talking about only Republicans. And I am not addressing anyone's "rights". I am talking about how little faith they have in their own institutions.
7) In any war, we must have France and Germany on our side, otherwise we really don't have a coalition. (Don't look at WWII -- that's not fair.)
I just do not understand this one. In any war, we need the whole world on our side, instead of going it alone in Iraq.
->The whole world? We wouldn't have gotten very far in WWII.
8) Although so many "Free Spirits" did drugs during the 60s and the drug music of the 60s is still celebrated by many, we must never cease condemning Bush for having had a cocaine addiction.
Many of those "Free Spirits" were and are not in positions of extreme importance. most of the "free spirits" were entertainers, etc.
->It's still hypocrisy no matter how you slice it.
9) A lackluster 20 year Senate record has no bearing on how John Kerry would do as a president.
Kerry is much more intelligent that Bush. Nuh said!
-> Nice statement. You didn't address what I said, though.
10) That what John Kerry says today will be what John Kerry says tomorrow.
Kerry is consistent. The problem is that stupid people cannot understand nuance.
-> Character assasination has no place in an intelligent discussion. This also does not address Kerry saying Saddam had WMDs, but then said that Bush lied. That he said he voted for the 87 billion dollars for the Iraq war before he voted against it. That he would be tough on terrorism, but he voted against Desert Storm (where we had one heck of a multi-lateral coalition and had the UN on-board).
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