An UNBIASED summary of the candidates' views?

[cratehorus]

“I’m not exactly sure what is meant by intelligent design,” he said. “But I believe God is intelligent and I believe he designed the creation. And I believe he used the process of evolution to create the human body.”

http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/...evolution/

Romney's proposed K-12 education plan for America would redirect $26 billion in federal funding for low income and special needs students, that currently goes to public schools, to pay for students to attend private schools; some of those would be religious schools that use Bob Jones University Press curriculum -- which speculates that humans may have lived with fire-breathing dinosaurs

http://www.talk2action.org/story/2012/6/25/185238/087

[Tiberius]

Abolishing the minimum wage increases employment, which is probably why Romney wants to do it.

http://www.cato.org/publications/policy-...-wage-laws

[The Grand Nudger]

Twice as many people working at half the current minimum wage does nothing to create additional tax revenue whilst simultaneously promoting impoverishment. Minimum wage laws are probably the very last thing you'd want to screw with in the arena of employment. Basic services are required to conduct industry and commerce, and if those who provide these basic services cannot afford to feed themselves (let alone purchase the products) then the whole pyramid crumbles. If you're imagining that the going rates for these products and services would fall, I'd have to invoke an immeasurably deep pool of naivety. The markups and margins on most of these products and services are already obscene. It costs roughly 2k$USD to produce 42klbs of tomatoes, just as one example...and that's an industry that does not have minimum wage (or really, any labor)laws......the lions share of that 2k$ cost, btw, the producers expected ROI (assuming the producer and the investor are one in the same, which is often the case with small-mid sized farms).

Matter of fact Tib, if you really want to see what a labor market without minimum wage laws and very loosely restricted and regulated trade might look like, take a look at US Ag. It's a fucking disaster..lol. Lax wage and labor laws promote (read: force) labor intensive low investment business practices, which often happen to be unbelievably wasteful and almost always completely technologically backwards and irresponsible. This is in addition to the whole poverty bit. Un-enforcable trade laws (a depressing subject in and of itself) lead to product concerns and further malfeasance on a routine and reliable basis. Amusing, considering that food production and commodities trading is probably one of the most well-greased markets in the world. This is of course specific to ag, mileage may vary based on industry.

[Autumnlicious]

I don't give a shit that abolishing minimum wage means more jobs if that simply means more people are slightly above the poverty line.

Throwing the lower-middle class down with the urban poor is not a solution.

[Oldandeasilyconfused]

Abolishing the minimum wage increases employment, which is probably why Romney wants to do it.

http://www.cato.org/publications/policy-...-wage-laws

I guess that may be why Romney wants to do it,but then,he's an idiot.

Jobs are created by demand. Higher paid workers create demand and therefore more jobs. (not to mention pay proportionately more taxes)

Australia does not sodomise its workers as does the US. However, we have one of the healthiest economies and are the fourth wealthiest nation on the planet..(the US is 16th)

Here our tax threshold is $18000 PA.

[Anomalocaris]

So I'm finally of the age to vote now, only I don't know who to vote for, because I can't seem to get a straight answer on what stance each candidate takes on certain issues. I was wondering if somebody could please, briefly describe, in an unbiased, factual way, what Barack Obama's and Mitt Romney's stances are on current issues?

I realize that might be a hell of a lot to write out, and it might be a little pretentious of me to ask for it here. But I have had a rather difficult time finding any source that will give me a straight description of their stances without editorials or ad-hominem comments. If it is a lot to write out, maybe you know of a page that can tell me? If so, please post a link to it.

Answers I am looking for:

"Barack Obama believes this on current issues:"
"Mitt Romney believes this on current issues:"

Answers I am NOT looking for:

"Barack Obama is a communist who wants to steal our money, bla bla bla."
"Mitt Romney is a theocrat who wants to destroy separation of church and state, bla bla bla."

I greatly appreciate any help you guys can give me.

Mitt Romney believes this country needs him, Mitt Romney, more than any doctrine, policy, or principle.

Barack Obama believe this country needs him, Barack Obama, because it doesn't need Mitt Romney.

[Darth]

Too be fair its mostly W.A and the mining 'boom', and the fact that we have all those resources (a continent's worth) but only 21 million or so people, not the policies of our current government that's doing that Padriac.

Agriculture? So then why are your farms (especially the huge commercial ones) being given all those subsidies? That's the other half of the issue. This is an industry that, rather than being free of government interference, has a lot of government interference in it's favour. An inefficient, wasteful business shouldn't last long unless something is propping it up, or pushing down the competition.

Higher paid workers create demand? They are a product of high demand (and low supply) for workers, surely?

[Oldandeasilyconfused]

Too be fair its mostly W.A and the mining 'boom'

Strawman. My assertion is that Australia not sodomise its workers as does the US.


We have been a prosperous country,leading industrial legislation, since the 1950's,with the introduction of 'the means basic wage'*. You speak 'ex rectum'.

00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000


*the amount needed for a family of four to live 'in modest comfort'

[Darth]

Strawman? I wish people would stop throwing that round willy nilly

Australia does not sodomise its workers as does the US. However, we have one of the healthiest economies and are the fourth wealthiest nation on the planet..(the US is 16th)

Right, you said that australia doesn't sodomise workers like the US does, and then go on about how healthy our economy is, and how we are the 4th wealthiest country, while the US is only 16th, thus presumably either attributing that additional wealthiness to the lack of employee sodomisation, or saying that employee sodomisation makes little difference (so either way it would be better not to do it). My point was that there would be other significant factors (such as our low population + our enormous natural resource wealth, particularly W.A at the moment) that would be inflating our rankings compared to the US's.

True, I didn't quote the exact point I was trying to, well not refute, but comment on (16th vs 4th), when I probably should have, but that hardly makes it a straw man.





Oh and that 18k tax threshold? That is what, 2 weeks old, having only just tripled from 6k?

Did some very basic research, seems we had minimum wages back in the 1890s even, can't find the 1950s 4 person family bit though.

[cratehorus]

Abolishing the minimum wage increases employment, which is probably why Romney wants to do it.

http://www.cato.org/publications/policy-...-wage-laws

I guess that may be why Romney wants to do it,but then,he's an idiot.

Jobs are created by demand. Higher paid workers create demand and therefore more jobs. (not to mention pay proportionately more taxes)

Australia does not sodomise its workers as does the US. However, we have one of the healthiest economies and are the fourth wealthiest nation on the planet..(the US is 16th)

Here our tax threshold is $18000 PA.

These's no real reason, but usually when nazi's want something, it's bad
http://www.rawstory.com/rawreplay/2011/0...or-people/

Romney has said he would never increase the minimum wage... but every economist says we should

http://thehill.com/blogs/congress-blog/e...nimum-wage

http://www.bostonglobe.com/opinion/lette...story.html

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/donald-coh...21767.html