Which direction do you want the US to go

[Pengwuino]

Heres a simple question but I bet it'll speak volumes. I don't think people tend to look at what the public really wants for the country.

 

[Cyrus]

I want the country to go away from all of your options, so I vote for none of the above.

 

[Pengwuino]

Just because i made the thread...

 

[Cyrus]

I dream of a day when people in this country vote for a candidate based on how they stand on an issue, and not which party they should vote for out of loyalty. I can't believe how many idiots could not make up their mind until the very last minute in the last election. What suddenly changes their minds, Bush or Kerry says something funny that they like? They wear a really nice tie that day? They like Kerry's smile?

I'm going to go off and mumble curse words now...

 

[Rach3]

#Towards liberal values, policies, and laws
#Towards conservative values, policies, and laws
#A roughly even mix of both

As long as the Americans' attention-deficit is so severe that they only think in terms of soundbites like these, does it really matter?

 

[Pengwuino]

As long as the Americans' attention-deficit is so severe that they only think in terms of soundbites like these, does it really matter?

Im sorry that each poll option wasnt 3 pages long. Ill remember that next time. Then you can go take a look at the whole of PWA and see who are the ones spouting off sound bites. PWA discussions are practically formulaic. You can almost predict whos going to come into say what and which sound bite will be used. Its sad.

 

[Rach3]

So is the whole purpose of your thread to exchange soundbites among ourselves, or do you plan to lead an actual discussion?

 

[scott1]

A mixed kind of government would be the best so that were poltically balanced between both values that constion was created by.

 

[Rach3]

I don't agree with the Constion.

 

[Skyhunter]

I chose option one. Not that I am sure what liberal progressive values are exactly, but because the country has moved so far to the right I am afraid we might drive off the side of the road!

 

[Rach3]

What a terrible analogy! To be fair though, we've already tumbled off the road into the ditch and exploded in a fiery ball of neoconservatism!

I really hate analogies like this.

 

[Astronuc]

Perhaps it would help to define liberal/conservative values.

For example - honesty - liberal or conservative.

Liberty and justice for all - conservative or liberal values?

What does liberal mean? What does conservative mean?

Or better yet, what does one understand as the liberal philosophy? conservative philosophy?

 

[deckart]

Good point Astronuc.

 

[eggman]

Whatever you decide politically it will envolve you destroying or taking something that never belonged to you in the first place...

 

[Smurf]

I voted liberal. But that doesn't say much, since there's no way of knowing which Liberal I meant. ;) I can think of 4 possible definitions off the top of my head.

 

[Astronuc]

I was thinking about this thread when I heard someone quoting Abraham Lincoln's address at Cooper Union -

Here is the text - http://hometown.aol.com/jfepperson/cooper.html

The key phrase is "Right makes Might", and not the converse.

I would like to see the US once again respected for it's moral leadership, which seems to have been lacking in recent years.

I would like to see politicians observe fiscal/fiduciary responsibility, and not line their own pockets at the expense of the public and the public's welfare.

I would like to see a policy of stewardship of the nation's natural and human resources.

Am I asking for too much?

 

[StarkRavingMad]

Yeah unfortunatley it's kind of a loaded question. There's this assumption in this country that the current Democrats embody liberalism and the current Republican's embody conservatism. Neither is entirely true. Both sides seem to get farther and farther away from their core beliefs the longer they stay in the DC Beltway.

 

[loseyourname]

For example - honesty - liberal or conservative.

Neither.

Liberty and justice for all - conservative or liberal values?

Both, in theory anyway.

What does liberal mean? What does conservative mean?

Or better yet, what does one understand as the liberal philosophy? conservative philosophy?

In the United States, "liberal" has come to mean the political belief that government should have a large role to play in regulating business, owning certain resources, spending money to stimulate the economy, promoting social equity. "Conservative" has come to mean the belief that government generally only makes things worse when it tries to intrude on these things, and it should stay away as much as possible.

The only consistent sense in which the modern-day Democratic and Republican parties really hold to being liberal and conservative in these senses is that Democrats have no problem with taxes and seem to want to use government to create social welfare programs and regulate business practices. Republicans prefer to tax as little as possible and not have any social welfare programs. On the other hand, though they give token speech to not interfering with business, they certainly have no problems using the power of government to help big business.