Candidate Analysis

[onwa 6]

I know I mostly lurk, but I'm tired of reading articles, I want people's opinion.

Here's what I'd like to know:

1. Who are you planning on voting for?

2. What issues/policies do you like/agree or dislike/disagree with for Obama?

3. What personality/character issues do you like/despise for Obama?

4. What issues/policies do you like/agree or dislike/disagree with for McCain?

5 What personality/character issues do you like/despise for McCain?

6. Are issues or personality more important to you?

Mine:

1. undecided, leaning towards Obama

2. Like---wanting to do something about healthcare

promises to lower taxes for most middle class

thinks family leave needs something more to it

will make ending the war a priority

Dislike---stance on abortion and euthanasia

3. Like--how he ran his campaign and have smart and loyal staff

his ability to inspire

his youth

his wife and kids (appear to happy family)

4. Like--says he will keep taxes low

stance on abortion and euthanasia

Dislike---his view on the war

the fact I haven't heard much about what he actually is promising for the white house

his health care plan

5. Like--He seems like he has a good sense of humor

Dislike--his age (i'm a known ageist when it comes to politics)

how he left his first wife and does not appear to have the best relationship with some of his kids

how he doesn't seem all that close to his present wife (doesn

how he seems completely different now on his stances then 4 years ago

6. How one lives their personal life is more important to me--because I like Confuscious ideas that the family is the starting unit for the government--or something like that.

[akdiver 3]

1. Who are you planning on voting for?

Bob Barr

What issues/policies do you like/agree or dislike/disagree with for Obama?

He is anti-constitution, pro big federal government. Don't like it.

What personality/character issues do you like/despise for Obama?

Don't know, don't care anything about his personality.

What issues/policies do you like/agree or dislike/disagree with for McCain?

He is anti-constitution, pro big federal government. Don't like it.

What personality/character issues do you like/despise for McCain?

Don't know, don't care anything about his personality.

6. Are issues or personality more important to you?

Don't care a hoot about personality. Only issue I care about is whether the candidate is willing to support and defend the constitution and understands, acknowledges, and supports the 10th amendment in particular. Willingness to repeal the 17th amendment is a big plus.

[Peikko 1,575]

Now I have to go look up the 17th amendement, grrr.

Oh, I can't vote, but if I could, I would vote for the candidate that wore the best colour lipstick

[akdiver 3]

Now I have to go look up the 17th amendement, grrr.

As originally written, one of the key distinctions between the House of Reps and the Senate is that House members were chosen by direct election and that Senate members were appointed by state legislators. This allowed the people to have direct representation in congress, and allowed allowed the states, as sovereign entities, also to have representation in congress. The 17th amendment changed this, making senators also chosen by direct election by the people.

As a result, senators are now prone to pandering to the whims of the people, special interest groups and groups that are outside of the state that the senators are supposed to represent. To me, and the founding fathers, this is all bad news - which is why this difference in how congressional members are positioned was put into place in the first place. One major effect of the 17th amendment is to reduce state's rights, reduce their status as sovereign entities joined in voluntary union, and increase the power of the federal government at large.

Edited September 10, 2008 by akdiver

[peejay 327]

Now I have to go look up the 17th amendement, grrr.

Oh, I can't vote, but if I could, I would vote for the candidate that wore the best colour lipstick

But it would still be a pig.

[Peikko 1,575]

Thanks. Ah, the second house and from where to select its members, rather a knotty problem.

[onwa 6]

Now I have to go look up the 17th amendement, grrr.

As originally written, one of the key distinctions between the House of Reps and the Senate is that House members were chosen by direct election and that Senate members were appointed by state legislators. This allowed the people to have direct representation in congress, and allowed allowed the states, as sovereign entities, also to have representation in congress. The 17th amendment changed this, making senators also chosen by direct election by the people.

As a result, senators are now prone to pandering to the whims of the people, special interest groups and groups that are outside of the state that the senators are supposed to represent. To me, and the founding fathers, this is all bad news - which is why this difference in how congressional members are positioned was put into place in the first place. One major effect of the 17th amendment is to reduce state's rights, reduce their status as sovereign entities joined in voluntary union, and increase the power of the federal government at large.

That's interesting. Would make me want to really do a good job picking the state's legislators

[akdiver 3]

That's interesting. Would make me want to really do a good job picking the state's legislators

Yes, it would, wouldn't it?

I venture a guess that most people care more about federal political offices than local ones - even though local ones are the ones that have the most direct effect on them.

The 17th amendment went a long way to kill federalism, the concept that the nation was founded on. Before the 17th, it was common for state legislatures to tell their senators how to vote on various federal issues. It was a mechanism for the states, as sovereign entities, to have representation in the federal government. It made politics a lot more local. It gave more power to the states.

By changing the constitution to allow for direct election of senators, it opened up the doors to pandering to the people, outside influence, special interest groups, and absolutely killed the notion of states as sovereign entities. Now the states are little more than an extension of the federal government, at the beck and call of the federal government, doing whatever it tells them to so they can get money from it. All of the issues that the 17th amendment was supposed to address and cure were actually magnified and made much worse by its passing.

Edited September 10, 2008 by akdiver

[akdiver 3]

FWIW, a local guy here was running for senate. Stopped me on the street one day to ask for my vote, etc. etc. I asked him, "so, what do you think about the 17th amendment?" He said, "well, which one is that? I'm not really sure what it does." I responded, "if you don't know what the constitution says, how can I expect you to support and defend it?" and went on my merry little way. Hopefully, I gave him something to think about.

[IAMX 3,055]

1. Who are you planning on voting for? Brian Moore

2. What issues/policies do you like/agree or dislike/disagree with for Obama? His disrespect for whatever is left of our 4th Amendment and only catering to providing cover for a corporation's back instead of people's rights, which he claims to champion. His back-and-forth disregard for following logic, instead following the issues and idiots who rely on buzzwords and conservative aphorisms (like "freedom isn't free"), being unreasonably inconsistent with his policies.

3. What personality/character issues do you like/despise for Obama? He's an ok talker, but I don't care for his personality or character traits.

4. What issues/policies do you like/agree or dislike/disagree with for McCain? Pretty much everything. He's old, an ideologue, further plans on eroding civil rights, further plans on eroding separation of powers, preventing Congressional oversight, instilling ideology over unbiased law into the Supreme Court (he's very open about this), continuing the Bush war doctrine, and making this country far more unsafe than safe, as well as dividing the nation rather than being a representative of everyone and their rights, first and foremost.

5 What personality/character issues do you like/despise for McCain? Even though age has little to do with why I would vote or not vote for him, I've been seeing from old candidates, beyond their usual corporate asshattery, the willingness to destroy the progress this nation has made in civil rights to cater to a hypocritical moral base who can't even follow their own moral rules.

6. Are issues or personality more important to you? Issues, 99%. The only reason personality matters to me is from friends in my personal life. Someone who's logical about the issues and who can actually look objectively and have a vision that includes everyone's rights, not eliminating them, and not getting on one's knees to corporations. These things I admire, and looking at Brian Moore's history, that's exactly where my vote will go to, the person I feel is the best candidate, not the person in the major two parties who isn't Obama, or isn't McSame, like voting needs to be some sort of strategic game of chess.

Edited September 10, 2008 by SRVT

[akdiver 3]

Hey, careful SRVT - you might be saying something I agree with (: