stir the pot with me, y'all

[sigtau305]

Originally posted by AlphaGamDiva
what's so bad, democrats, about being/thinking republican?

it's 2:30am, i'm on lortabs.....just go with me here, ok?

actually, just curious if there are any stereotypical republican traits that you think are true/know are true and that you hate....is there any way we could possibly bring you dems to the good side?

I have a problem with the deficit being as high as it ever was, but yet, the government is still spending money where they shouldn't. While I'll give Bush Credit for having the economy at it's strongest showing, The Unemployment rate is still high.

[KillarneyRose]

Originally posted by Dionysus
The biggest issue I have is their idea of individual responsibility. I do think we all should take responsibility for our own actions, but not everything is under our control. We need the government to make sure that we all are even on the playing field.

I guess this is more of a conservative issue than a republican issue.

I will get into this deeper...but I have to go now.

Come back, Dionysus! lol Seriously, I am very interested in reading what you (or anyone) has to say on this issue. I don't want to start a debate, but I don't see why the government needs to make sure we are even on the playing field.

[AlphaGamDiva]

Originally posted by sugar and spice
Not to start a debate in the middle of this thread (and if you feel it deserves its own thread then feel free to start one), but how does the death penalty protect the lives of the innocent? The people who have been murdered are already dead; the only thing the death penalty does is punish those who killed them. There have been studies that show that places with and without the death penalty have comparable murder rates, and if that's the case then the death penalty doesn't protect the lives of the innocent by deterring murder either.

here's the way i perceive the death penalty: yes, it is a punishment for those who have killed and given up their basic human right to life. when you take the life of an innocent human being, IMHO, you have lost your right to be alive. that's also why i am so pro-life b/c i believe the life of an innocent is so important. but this is just what I believe, and am pretty sure it follows repub thoughts. preserve life....innocent life...i know there are flaws in every system (repubs have issues within the accuracy, etc of the death penalty, and dems have issues within the welfare system, for example), but i would much rather pay tax money on someone who deserves to die's execution than pay the prison's cable bill.

i also think that those who are anti-death penalty need to put themselves in a victim's family's shoes. plus you also have to look at protecting other citizens by keeping someone from killing again. take a look at the 11yr old girl from sarasota who's body was just found. how many times had that guy been in and out of jail? it doesn't hurt my feelings for some murderer to get what he deserves, but it does waste my tax dollars to keep a killer in prison.

--now that that's been said, let's please not turn this into a death penalty thread...i was merely responding to s&s's statements. i'm sure there are plenty of death penalty threads out there, i just don't wanna take the time to look them up.

as far as your post dionysus, "even on the playing field"? we all need to be equal? yikes. that's where we differ a LOT, i guess. lol some ppl just deserve to be where they are, whether that's at the top, or at the bottom. ppl should def be given opportunities, just not hand-outs. that kind of utopia won't ever exist as ppl don't all have the same work ethic. correct me, fellow repubs, if i am wrong in joining that thought with repub ideals.

hope no one took me as being nasty....just trying to explain the thought processes just as i want the democrats to express their party's ideals. i'm sure someone else can be more eloquent than i am about stating all this, but there it is. try not to flame me to death b/c i wasn't trying to flame anyone one here.

nuthin but love for gc dems!

[WCUgirl]

One thing that really angers me about the current administration is they tout their "No Child Left Behind" program...but then they go and cut all federal funding for the program. Their recent budget release shows they are willing to spend more $$$ on election reform than they are on education. In my opinion, the best kind of election reform IS to spend $$$ on education. That way your voter pool is better educated and is going to make a better choice (of course...the Republicans know that would mean more Democratic votes... ).

I am definitely anti-war. I think the current war is pointless and an absolute waste of taxpayer money. But then again, that's just my opinion. I think our money would have been better spent in other areas, such as tracking down Osama and everyone else involved in 9-11 and making sure they were properly punished.

I am pro-choice and I am anti-handguns.

I am pro-environment and I am anti-"big business." However...on the business v. union issue I am pretty much down the middle because I am also anti-union. I think that unions were a necessary evil in the past, but now it has swung too far the other direction, and they are unnecessary 9 times out of 10.

I do not believe in the death penalty.

I believe in the separation of church and state. This does not mean I do not go to church or that I am not a religious person.

I am against any amendment that would prohibit flag-burning. That however, does not mean that I am going to go out tomorrow and burn one. But, the Republican way of thinking, it seems, is that if you support something, that means that you are going out and doing it. Like someone said in another thread (I think it was DeltAlum), that just because the Vietnam vets came back and protested the war, it didn't mean that they were all about Communism.

I think it is better to be liberal when writing laws than to be conservative because if you are liberal, you have a better chance of including everyone and less chance of alienating people's basic freedoms. Isn't that what the founders of our country wanted? To allow people more freedom? That seems like it must have been pretty liberal thinking back in the 1700s.

It's funny...you would never guess my husband is a Marine...VERY Republican and conservative in his opinions. But I am slowly getting him over to my side...

[damasa]

Originally posted by AlphaGamDiva
here's the way i perceive the death penalty: yes, it is a punishment for those who have killed and given up their basic human right to life. when you take the life of an innocent human being, IMHO, you have lost your right to be alive. that's also why i am so pro-life b/c i believe the life of an innocent is so important. but this is just what I believe, and am pretty sure it follows repub thoughts. preserve life....innocent life...i know there are flaws in every system (repubs have issues within the accuracy, etc of the death penalty, and dems have issues within the welfare system, for example), but i would much rather pay tax money on someone who deserves to die's execution than pay the prison's cable bill.

i also think that those who are anti-death penalty need to put themselves in a victim's family's shoes. plus you also have to look at protecting other citizens by keeping someone from killing again. take a look at the 11yr old girl from sarasota who's body was just found. how many times had that guy been in and out of jail? it doesn't hurt my feelings for some murderer to get what he deserves, but it does waste my tax dollars to keep a killer in prison.

--now that that's been said, let's please not turn this into a death penalty thread...i was merely responding to s&s's statements. i'm sure there are plenty of death penalty threads out there, i just don't wanna take the time to look them up.

as far as your post dionysus, "even on the playing field"? we all need to be equal? yikes. that's where we differ a LOT, i guess. lol some ppl just deserve to be where they are, whether that's at the top, or at the bottom. ppl should def be given opportunities, just not hand-outs. that kind of utopia won't ever exist as ppl don't all have the same work ethic. correct me, fellow repubs, if i am wrong in joining that thought with repub ideals.

hope no one took me as being nasty....just trying to explain the thought processes just as i want the democrats to express their party's ideals. i'm sure someone else can be more eloquent than i am about stating all this, but there it is. try not to flame me to death b/c i wasn't trying to flame anyone one here.

nuthin but love for gc dems!

Remember for just one second that the death penalty isn't fullproof and innocent people have been sentenced to it before. Some of these people lived while some did not.

So what happens if a state executes someone who happened to be innocent of the crime they were being killed for? Who is to blame then? The state? The person that "pulled the plug"? I mean ifyou think about, the person that would have illed this innocent person was basically killing them for that very same reason to begin with - taking the life of another innocent human being.

As for the religious side of things, isn't the death penalty a form of retribution and/or vengeance that shouldn't be used as a form of punishment? (This is not relating to all religions of course.)

And I just don't understand the fact that a certain person (no matter the party or politics) could be pro-life and also pro-death penalty. It's almost like save one "life" but take away another and it just doesn't make sense to me....who knows.

To answer the original question of the thread, I don't think there's anything really bad about Republicans. I mean, there are some good-hearted ones out there and there are some that are not so much. The same goes for Democrats too.

[sageofages]

Originally posted by AXiD670
One thing that really angers me about the current administration is they tout their "No Child Left Behind" program...but then they go and cut all federal funding for the program. Their recent budget release shows they are willing to spend more $$$ on election reform than they are on education. In my opinion, the best kind of election reform IS to spend $$$ on education. That way your voter pool is better educated and is going to make a better choice (of course...the Republicans know that would mean more Democratic votes... ).

I am definitely anti-war. I think the current war is pointless and an absolute waste of taxpayer money. But then again, that's just my opinion. I think our money would have been better spent in other areas, such as tracking down Osama and everyone else involved in 9-11 and making sure they were properly punished.

I am pro-choice and I am anti-handguns.

I am pro-environment and I am anti-"big business." However...on the business v. union issue I am pretty much down the middle because I am also anti-union. I think that unions were a necessary evil in the past, but now it has swung too far the other direction, and they are unnecessary 9 times out of 10.

I do not believe in the death penalty.

I believe in the separation of church and state. This does not mean I do not go to church or that I am not a religious person.

I am against any amendment that would prohibit flag-burning. That however, does not mean that I am going to go out tomorrow and burn one. But, the Republican way of thinking, it seems, is that if you support something, that means that you are going out and doing it. Like someone said in another thread (I think it was DeltAlum), that just because the Vietnam vets came back and protested the war, it didn't mean that they were all about Communism.

I think it is better to be liberal when writing laws than to be conservative because if you are liberal, you have a better chance of including everyone and less chance of alienating people's basic freedoms. Isn't that what the founders of our country wanted? To allow people more freedom? That seems like it must have been pretty liberal thinking back in the 1700s.

Amen!

[AGDee]

I am:
Pro-Choice
Anti-Death Penalty
Pro hand gun restrictions
Pro universal health care/insurance
Pro separation of church and state
Anti "No Child Left Behind" (cuts funding to the schools that need it most)
Pro government assistance (although middle of the road on this, like use "workfare")

Would rather see us spending $1 billion a week on our citizens than on Iraqi citizens.

On my drive to work about two months ago, I noticed a "shelter" set up under a viaduct on the freeway. Blankets strewn up, a mattress with blankets on it, etc. Every day, I look at the shelter and wonder how the person is doing. We've had a very harsh winter and I worried about them making it in the cold. After a fresh snowfall, I noticed footprints in the snow leading up to the shelter and was relieved. For the first time yesterday, I saw the man who lives there. It was very windy and bitter cold and he was securing the blankets that are his walls. Today, I looked again. I feel sad every time I drive by. I do not know how to help this man. I'm living on the edge financially myself and wonder what would happen to ME if I lost my job. I think about how it is impossible for this man to get a job when he has no home. You can't put "I-75 and M-10 viaduct" as your address on a job application. He is obviously smart enough to keep himself alive through this winter and probably has some skills that could be put to work but... This morning after I passed, and felt the same sadness that I feel every day as I pass him, I thought to myself "If this feeling means I'm a bleeding heart liberal, then I guess I am". This man haunts my mind and my heart. I'd like to take Bush to see the man under the viaduct and tell him how great the economy is.

Dee

[Rudey]

Ugh - the thing you guys don't understand is that if we spend in Iraq it doesn't mean we won't spend in the US.

-Rudey
--Your votes don't matter anyway

[WCUgirl]

Originally posted by Rudey
Ugh - the thing you guys don't understand is that if we spend in Iraq it doesn't mean we won't spend in the US.

-Rudey
--Your votes don't matter anyway

That's not the point....

The point is that the money we are spending in Iraq could be better spent here. It's the opportunity cost -- we could be using that money we're spending in Iraq on say, education, government assistance or something else to that effect. What we are saying is it's more important spent over here than it is over there, not that because we're spending it over there means it won't be spent over here.

[Dionysus]

Originally posted by AlphaGamDiva
as far as your post dionysus, "even on the playing field"? we all need to be equal? yikes. that's where we differ a LOT, i guess. lol some ppl just deserve to be where they are, whether that's at the top, or at the bottom. ppl should def be given opportunities, just not hand-outs. that kind of utopia won't ever exist as ppl don't all have the same work ethic. correct me, fellow repubs, if i am wrong in joining that thought with repub ideals.

What about the people who don't deserve to be where they are….whether top or bottom? What about the children? Not to sound cliché, lol. Some people just need assistance.

I believe we all deserve the right to live. In order to live one must have food, shelter, and medical care. To a degree, I believe we all have the right to education since education is often "the ticket out".

When it comes to employment, good work ethic and competence does not promise one a job. Eventhough it's 2004 we still have all of these -isms around. Discrimination still exists.

As for what's wrong w/ the Democratic Party, I guess it's the exact opposite. I think some take the issue of equality waaaaaaay too far. I do believe that some really don't deserve to be helped or is far beyond help. We need a happy medium, but if I had to choose between the two, I'd rather see a few get by without deserving it than the other way around.

[AlphaGamDiva]

Originally posted by AGDee
This morning after I passed, and felt the same sadness that I feel every day as I pass him, I thought to myself "If this feeling means I'm a bleeding heart liberal, then I guess I am". This man haunts my mind and my heart. I'd like to take Bush to see the man under the viaduct and tell him how great the economy is.

i don't think feeling like that makes you a "bleeding heart liberal"....i think feeling like that makes you a compassionate person who wishes that this wasn't how that man's life was. b/c reading that, it just makes you realize that not everyone has the basic needs of survival, and that is something that def needs to be addressed. we need decent shelters, good health care, more jobs, etc. etc. i think bush knows that there are ppl in this country who are hungry and living on the streets....i think he knows exactly the state of the economy. i don't think he is sitting idly by laughing in the oval office at the poor lower class. i don't think he puts Iraqi citizens above US citizens...i think he is doing what he can for the US as well as for another country's ppl who have been in much, much worse conditions (on the whole) than we have been. he's saving them from saddam (quite possibly the most evil human being in our lifetime), as well as saving us from whatever plans he has in store for us.

ppl talk about how republicans have no hearts and dems are "bleeding hearts"....does that bleeding heart only go to US boundaries? shouldn't we do all we can for all mankind? i don't think we always need to meddle in other country's problems, but when their problems have BIG potential to leak into our territory, shoot yeah we need to do something about it. to not only help them, but help ourselves....i, for one, am glad that saddam is out of power. and if a dem had been in office and done what w has done, i would applaud him, too (and secretly wished it was a repub who had done it ).

Originally posted b y Dionysus
What about the people who don't deserve to be where they are….whether top or bottom? What about the children? Not to sound cliché, lol. Some people just need assistance

and there are absolutely ppl out there who need assisstance.....my b/f's whole family is on welfare for pete's sake. and they need it....i am not whole-heartedly opposed to fed funded assistance, welfare, all that.....there are glitches within the program, and there are abuses, too. it's just frustrating to me b/c when a republican criticizes the system, they are automatically labeled stingy cold-hearted ppl, when in reality, they just want a better way of doing things. or at least that's how this repub is. i'm not about keeping ppl down, i want everyone to succeed. my fear is that ppl assume these stereotypes about repubs and that's why they vote the way they do.....a republican can help out just as much as a democrat. and i know several ppl who are so uneducated about both parties that they hear these dems say all these untrue/twisted things about repubs, they believe it, and then vote for whatever cracker- jack-richer-than-a-lot-of -repubs-will-ever-be democrat and then there you are (i'm trying to make the point here that some ppl could end up voting for a person that, if they knew the truth, they may or may not still vote for that person....goes for both dems and repubs).....politicians all boil down to the same thing, and we have to really question if they all, repub and dem alike, really and truly care about the issues....of all classes, races, societies.
b/c there's a lot of dems out there i highly doubt are pissed b/c of tax cuts not really helpin out the lower class....why? b/c these dems are a part of the upper class....frustrates me the label we get. that's all i'm trying to understand here....how we got the stingy stereotype, when i don't think either party is lacking in stinginess.

the more i ramble, the more my eyes cross and i stop making sense. hopefully y'all get what i mean.....

and my dear damasa: if i tried to argue my death penalty, pro-life thing again, i would just be repetative....someone else pick that one up. i win!