(December 23, 2011 at 6:32 pm)HeyItsZeus Wrote: I've gone through a series of political ideology changes, nothing drastic. What am I? I can't find a name to group myself into.
We all go through these as we progress over our lives.
Given what I've read here though I doubt I'll have much else to say, but I'll try to give a more point-by-point description, but spoil warning: in America you'd be a pinko commie liberal demoncrat. At least, that's what the political right pundits on television would call you.
(December 23, 2011 at 6:32 pm)HeyItsZeus Wrote: Here are some important things about my thought process;
As far as government regulation goes on business I have a few rules; a business should not harm workers or customers, as well as bystanders. A business must pay a minimum wage to meet necessary living standards (no wage slavery allowed). A business must not create a dangerous environment in the community that it operates in as well as foreign communities.
Republicans tend to almost religiously believe in the 'invisible hand' of the market. They tend to believe that if you leave them alone and allow them to grow, like a delicate flower, then they'll thrive best for themselves and everyone.
To them, this essentially means minimum-zero regulation of any kind and minimum-low taxes of any kind. Oddly, this still means the government can give subsidies to some businesses for some reason.
It's more of a democratic ideaology that allows for things like minimum wage, worker's rights, and various safety, environmental, and other regulations that tell businesses that they cant' discriminate based on race, can't hire children for slave wages, and may even have to give certain benefits (like health benefits).
So, your position here is definatively progressive.
(December 23, 2011 at 6:32 pm)HeyItsZeus Wrote: As far as taxation goes; the more you make the more you pay. This rule must never exceed a reasonable amount and this amount can be settled by democratic means; the people know what they need. No tax loop holes should be allowed to bypass the system!
Republicans usually seem to espouse (lately at least) the flat tax, which is supposed to be as low as possible. This system is supposed to be fair across the board - and it is - technically speaking though you run into issues with those near and below poverty levels paying exactly as much taxes as the people who barely spend 1% of their income on basic necessities. It's fair, but it needlessly punishes those who have the least.
Oddly though, republicans only seem to think this is fair up to and including the middle class. They always seem to favor the rich paying even less than everyone else given their voting record of supporting tax cuts even to groups that already pay no taxes or negative taxes (getting money from the government) thanks to various loopholes they fight to keep in place.
So, liberal democrats tend to prefer a progressive tax code - one that taxes the poorest the least (or not at all) and those with the most wealth must pay the most taxes.
(December 23, 2011 at 6:32 pm)HeyItsZeus Wrote: Concerning human rights? The government should never restrict. As long as you do not impose in a negative way onto others what, you're doing is okay. Law should protect rights.
Well, republicans are all for the rights of individuals. Their voting record is socially libertarian in many apsects because of this - it's all state's rights and individual rights. That's what they say at least, but they voted in the patriot act (government spying on its citizens), they supported the NDAA (though all those corrupt scumbags did - not just republicans), they're fine with restircting your rights if you're gay or do something else they disagree with (like smoke weed or you don't support their war-related policies). Don't even bother thinking you could get an abortion. Apparently life to them is only sacred until after you're born.
Democrats aren't really much better here. They're fine with all of the social issues that republicans aren't, but their more collectivist views tends to mean that the screwups of the few affect the many or any half-assed and half-researched claim will be forced to everyone.
For example, in order to allow the oft-discriminated against population (like black people) to have a fighting chance in the workplace, there's the civil rights laws and also affirmative action.
So what that means is that if my workplace happens to have too many white people, affirmative action might force me to hire a black person despite sub-par word credentials compared to another white person. Perhpas the school system in the area failed the black population there and suddenly the businesses haev to pay for it by having a workforce that can't compete nearly as well as it should because it was forced to hire workers based on race rather than qualification.
Those laws might have very good consequences in many cases, but in others, it ends up hurting more than it helps and affirmative action is just as racist as rejecting someone because they're black.
So I suppose my point is that while it's less overt, liberal and conservative ideaology can be just as infringing on civil rights (did you SEE how easily the NDAA passed? It's horrifying.)
So I would hazard a guess as that if you feel that people should have the maximum freedom that doesn't infringe upon hte freedoms of others, your views are Libertarian.
If you think some social interferance is in order by the government to protect people's civil liberties is in order, you might be a democrat. Republicans talk about the rights of the individuals but they do overtly tell you (especially if you're a woman) exactly what your rights are and are not - like in cases of abortion.)
(December 23, 2011 at 6:32 pm)HeyItsZeus Wrote: With regard to the jailing system? Minimize criminal numbers by legalizing "harmless" drugs to ease the burden on the tax system. Also jails must become education and rehabilitation centers. Criminals should exit jails to become decent members of society or they will be more inclined to do crime again.
The conservative position on the criminal justice system is definatively not this. You wouldn't even dare bring up rehabilitation. To them, jail is a hole where you loose all your rights to enforce the practial laws (like rape, murder, theft) as much as social ones (drugs, money issues, etc) and all of which could result in serious jail time.
It's a *very* progressive position to believe in prison rehabilitation and defiantely to admonish the idea that you should be in jail for mostly harmless activities, like smoking weed.
(December 23, 2011 at 6:32 pm)HeyItsZeus Wrote: Speaking of the education system; there is nothing more important to a democracy than a public education system of the highest quality. Ignorance is poisonous and contagious.
I can't even being to tell you how demonized the 'intellectual elites' or 'college elites' are admonished by the political right in this country.
Just look at the current and past candidates for the republican party! Michelle Bachman believes that the HPV vaccine that should help women alleviate the risk of certain cancers (assuming I remember all that correctly) gives children mental retardation, for crying out loud. I shoudln't even have to mention Sarah Palin. The political right is at war with facts in this country and they tend to not only admonish evolution but consistently vote to instill religious teachings into public schools.
If you like and want to advocate education, you're definately taking a progressive position here.
(December 23, 2011 at 6:32 pm)HeyItsZeus Wrote: Moving on to military spending; I'd prefer a high defense spending (not an unreasonable amount... ahem, USA) with less of a focus on offensive military spending. For example; build high quality AM's not tons of missiles. Also, soldiers should have perks as they currently have, such as life insurance payed by the government.
Both political ideaologies in the US want a strong defense and tend to espouse those particular beliefs and while democrats might talk a strong game, they often just say what they need to say so they don't appear 'weak on defense' which I assume means that they try to make it seem like they won't immediately surrender America to whatever group even slightly threatens us.
Further, no one in America is espousing a pacifist ideaology although democrats tend to be the ones that don't want to be in pointless wars and they tend to talk more about how bloated our defense spending is, though I'm more referring to everyday democrats and political pundits and not politicans, who tend to be in our defense contractor's pocket.
That's another issue however.
So I'm inclined to say 'progressive' view here.
(December 23, 2011 at 6:32 pm)HeyItsZeus Wrote: If you need me to tell you more, let me know. 
NOW LABEL ME!!!
Well, I'm speaking from a strictly american perspective and in that perspective, you are a liberal democrat.
Congratulations.
You're among the sane ones. Welcome to the fold.
If today you can take a thing like evolution and make it a crime to teach in the public schools, tomorrow you can make it a crime to teach it in the private schools and next year you can make it a crime to teach it to the hustings or in the church. At the next session you may ban books and the newspapers...
Ignorance and fanaticism are ever busy and need feeding. Always feeding and gloating for more. Today it is the public school teachers; tomorrow the private. The next day the preachers and the lecturers, the magazines, the books, the newspapers. After a while, Your Honor, it is the setting of man against man and creed against creed until with flying banners and beating drums we are marching backward to the glorious ages of the sixteenth centry when bigots lighted fagots to burn the men who dared to bring any intelligence and enlightenment and culture to the human mind. ~Clarence Darrow, at the Scopes Monkey Trial, 1925
Politics is supposed to be the second-oldest profession. I have come to realize that it bears a very close resemblance to the first. ~Ronald Reagan
