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Politics : Don't Blame Me, I Voted For Kerry -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: The Philosopher who wrote (7776)	3/16/2004 5:56:25 PM
From: tonto	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 81568

Great post. My most important issues? Good question. Not so easy to answer. First and foremost, I guess, I have a good life and don't want to lose it. There's not a whole lot the federal government can do to make my life better, and a lot they can do to make it worse. Probably my most general overriding issue is federalism. I think that in general the closer to home that issues are decided, the better. Not always, but generally. So, for example, I think the No child Left Behind program, which Bush proposed and Kerry voted for, is a disaster, and that the federal government should get out of the education business entirely and turn it back over to the states and local boards of education. (That's not specifically a major issue, but an example of one.) I think the federal government has way, way too much money. Money attracts corruption, and corruption attracts politicians like flies. I would love to see the federal budget cut by at least 25%, and preferably more, and the states able to pick up the taxes (not in block grants, which the feds always condition, but in direct taxes). Bush has been big disappointment here, but Kerry would be no better. I want security without sacrificing personal liberties. I do believe it can be done, but it isn't. One of the main issues here is protecting our borders. Again, Bush has been a huge disappointment, but again, Kerry doesn't seem to be any better. I would withdraw every one of our troops from Germany -- what the hell are they doing there, anyhow? -- and put to protecting our borders. I live on the border -- I can see Canada out my window -- and I can tell you, we do a lousy rotten terrible job of protecting our borders. It's time that changed. I want an end to the war ong drugs, one of the most wasteful and costly pieces of nonsense we have ever engaged in, and one that makes criminals of hundreds of thousands of people, turning them into criminals and destroying their live. Legalize and tax is the right answer here, and use part of the tax proceeds to provide treatment for those who want it. This would reduce crime dramatically, make our streets much safer, and provide a huge increase in tax dollars while cutting court and prison costs dramatically and freeing law enforcement to focus on what they should be focussing on -- public safety. Again, Bush has been terrible on it, but again, Kerry promises nothing better. And basic integrity is important to me. Bush, again, has failed us in this, though I happen to think he's essentially a decent man. But Kerry's flip-flops and his post-Vietnam war testimony and activities give me serious pause about his personal integrity, too. I wish there were a better choice. But it looks as though this choice is what we're stuck with. Pretty much a tossup, at the present, between two unfortunate options.