User: totoro

True! My boyfriend thinks that I should run for political office, but I always tell him, that I would either have to sell out or get shot, and I would rather not do either.

Don't forget Harvey Milk and George Moscone. The best supervisor and mayor that the city of San Francisco ever had. They were amazing coalition builders, and stood up for the rights of ALL people in many ways. They were shot and killed by a disgruntled right wing former supervisor named Dan White who got off with a light sentance because "he ate too many twinkies"-the infamous "twinkie defense".

I have probably smoked pot about 10 times this year if even that. That is HARDLY a habit...or were you just talking in generalities?I Had to throw that in there. If you were talking about me, you were definitely making an assumption. As much as I enjoy the effects of that particular plant, I have enough self control to realize that it is something best enjoyed in moderation if at all. I just used marijuana use/laws as an example of how alot of Conservatives like to control personal behaviour. I understand that too much pot can cause wieght gain due to "munchies", and my job requires me to be articulate as opposed to "spacy", so I only use pot VERY occaisionally and VERY responsibly. Speaking of paying for poor habits, there is on average more obesity in red states than blue states, but I still favor universal health care despite having to pay for the poor habits of Conservatives (quite altruistic I am aren't I? ). I know that I am making yet another sarcastic argument, but I'm just trying to drive home the point that it isn't just Libs that have bad habits.

About my friend that I caught cabs for: He was reasonably well dressed and carried himself in a very non threatening way. I certainly wouldn't have cowered if I had met him in a dark alley....yet for some STRANGE reason, he just could not catch a cab...I just can't figure out why!

Are any of your Black friends Conservative Republicans? Just curious. Do they have the same difficulties catching cabs that my friend does?

I am probably more Green than Democrat, but usually vote Democratic by default. I probably have a mixture of traditional and contemporary Liberal beliefs as you can probably tell by my posts. I supported Dennis Kucinich in the primaries, but don't even agree with everything he says. He does contain more of a spine than most of our current Democrats though, who often disappoint me.

Weisshaupt: There is usually a reason a stereotype exists in the first place, however, it is also not wise to assume things about people just because they exist in a particular group. This brings me to another point. Conservatives seem to have strict black and white definitions while liberals tend to explore grey areas more-at least it seems that way to me.

I actually brought this topic up to a friend of mine who works at one of my accounts, and his opinion is that Conservatives believe that the ends always justify the means while Liberals acknowledge the existance of co-factors that could change this type of outlook. Your poll is bringing up some interesting discussion even outside of Misterpoll.

I have heard of George Lakoff, but haven't read his books. It seems that lately, there are a whole bunch of "government as parent" theories. Some theories claim that Conservatives favor a "strict father figure" form of government based on punishment while Liberals favor more of a "nurturing parent" form of government based on helping people out. Personally, I find them interesting theories, but not always true in all circumstances (am I being an overly nuanced liberal again?-lol).

I don't approve of judges reinterpreting the constitution as a general rule, but I am wondering about what you think of Huckabees statement where he said the constitution should be changed to conform to biblical values (he really did say that). Are you equally appaled when conservatives advocate for constitutional reinterpretation?

BJake is probably more opposed to welfare than I am. I do support progressive taxation, corporate/windfall profit taxes, and only welfare for those who are physically or mentally (truthfully) unable to work, with job training and placement programs for those who need extra help. I also believe in the right to choose where our tax money goes as I mentioned before, since I think government programs should be implemented as a collectively agreed on decision. As a society, we DO agree that things like Fire Departments, Roads, Schools, ect. are all things that benefit society that we all contribute too. I understand that there is a debate about things like Universal Health Care (which I support, but I also support the right of individuals to choose private insurance if they want also) that hopefully more people can come to more of a consensus with someday. I absolutely am against corporate welfare.

On the subject of lobbyists, do you believe that labor unions have MORE of an influence on politicians than corporations do? Curious.

Founding Fathers-I think Jefferson and many other founding fathers would be considered Liberals today (I am working on a full elaboration on this one, but it will take a bit of time-please stay tuned). They were not authoritarian Communist types that you seem to think of Liberals as, but more of the type of Liberals like myself who are wary of an executive branch with too much power, wary of too much religious influence in government, and a distaste for a feudal system that they left in England. I doubt that Jefferson would support warrentless wiretapping, the Military Commissions Act, or even the Patriot Act. Do you disagree?

On your example of "the aggregate behaviour of Blacks", I guess I'm a bit confused. I know and am friends with lots of Black people and find that they have all differant forms of behaviour just like everyone else does. The only thing they seem to ALL have in common (besides their skin color) is they often have a hard time getting a cab (I used to always catch cabs for a very nice and friendly pal of mine who just couldn't seem to get them to pull over for some STRANGE reason) and often get pulled over by cops in these parts. Around where I live, people of all ethnicities, nationalities, and sexual orientations often hang out together...go figure.

I've never been a Reagan fan, in fact, in some ways, I think his administration started some of the negative trends that we are seeing today, so my theory isn't 100% true. It is just a shame that so many good people have been assasinated in American history.

Over here, we do get someone good once in a while, but they often end up getting shot. Conspiracy theories anyone?