Political Confessions & Blasphemies

Taking a page from the Gaming and Geek confession threads, I thought it might be fun to start one for the Politics and Controversies forums.

Here are my confessions:

I used to be a big liberal in college: When I got out of the military and went back to school, for awhile I fully embraced the local Seattle liberal vibe. I think some of it was a backlash against years of being in the military and growing up in a Conservative Southern family. And a big part of it was probably to meet chicks.

I hate most politicians but overall respect government workers: I think some people misunderstand when I say we need to reign in government spending and take a hard look at government worker salaries and benefits. I have quite a few friends who still work for the federal or local government and do really great work.

I don't understand white guilt: Don't get me wrong - I understand white Americans have done terrible things in the past. I also recognize that I'm obligated to give back to the less fortunate and also to be a voice for fairness and equality. But I don't feel responsible for things that were done by people who died a century ago. And in the grand scheme of human history, I don't see how America's sins are far darker than those of the Romans, Mongols, Ottomans, British, etc.

This thread will require very careful self-moderation on all our parts to not get locked. I think we shouldn't comment on other people's confessions, just post our own.

I don't mind paying taxes If I could voluntarily pay more and guarantee it was added to the budgets of specific programs (and not used in place of it's normal budget to free up that money for other things instead), I would.

Stengah wrote:

This thread will require very careful self-moderation on all our parts to not get locked. I think we shouldn't comment on other people's confessions, just post our own.

I don't mind paying taxes If I could voluntarily pay more and guarantee it was added to the budgets of specific programs (and not used in place of it's normal budget to free up that money for other things instead), I would.

Stengah you make a good point about self-moderation. I've added that to the OP.

And btw I totally agree with you on voluntary tax payment.

I believe the nation as a whole would be greatly benefited from a repeal of the 10th amendment.

The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.

Critics argue that use of congress's commerce powers have already eroded this amendment, but in key areas of progressive reforms to education, energy policy conservatives on the court will use this provision to their needs. The 10th amendment has been used to justify neutering the dept of education, upholding voter mandated gender/sex discrimination of homosexuals. The 10th amendment confers to the states rights to pass laws based solely on public morality.

The states by accepting numerous federal funds and projects and assistance have abrogated this right, only turning to it when in the absence of the 10th amendment the individual citizens would be better served and protected.

In the least, I want to see the "reserved to the states respectively" removed.

This amendment was put in place to preserve the existing constitutions of those original 13 states at the time of ratification. We have added 37 since then. 37 states which had NO RIGHTS and no constitution prior to the ratification of the US constitution.

2. Washington DC should be the 51st state, another amendment needed. DC is subject to congress and the president and limited local government. Congress as often as not forgets their responsibility to DC, which has led to its horrendous crime rates.

edit: oops, never mind--I'm wrong.

jdzappa wrote:

I don't understand white guilt: Don't get me wrong - I understand white Americans have done terrible things in the past. I also recognize that I'm obligated to give back to the less fortunate and also to be a voice for fairness and equality. But I don't feel responsible for things that were done by people who died a century ago. And in the grand scheme of human history, I don't see how America's sins are far darker than those of the Romans, Mongols, Ottomans, British, etc.

I actually go the opposite way on this one. I don't really get why white guilt's supposed to be a bad thing. For example, here in Portland, we recently had to vote on a ballot measure that would have allowed a casino in the Portland Metro area. Apparently allowing it would have violated several treaties with local tribes. The pro-casino response to that was, "Psshhaw, white guilt." To which I thought:

a.) What is the rationale for breaking treaties with anyone?
b.) YES!!! White guilt! Absolutely! I do not want to be a white person breaking yet another treaty with Native Americans. I mean, at this point it's pretty much just insult to injury, but damn, do we really have to pile on?

Spoiler:

I actually didn't look real hard into the breaking treaties part of that measure. The bill was bad for a lot of reasons, and this was just one of many. I just know this was a weird argument that were having as Oregonians for a few moments way back in pre-election days.

edit: This isn't a repudiation of jdzappa. I get where he's coming from, I just thought this was kind of a funny counter-example.

These are both deeply shameful, but

In 2000 I got really high and played final fantasy tactics all day instead of voting for Bush.

Also like 10 years ago I used to post on this political message board and someone accused me of being a racist, so I sort of, uh, suggested I might be black and everyone believed it.

N-no judgement right?

I am in full support of more gun control.
As far as I am concerned... every gun on the planet could be under lock and key in military bases only to be used for the purposes of war. With all the nutjobs out there, shooting up innocents for whatever crazy reason... It just doesn't make sense to me to have weapons out there that with a single clip could kill more than a dozen people. I truly believe if the framers of our constitution knew that their desire for their simple and slower rifles would lead to people with guns that shoot more bullets in a few seconds than they could in 10 minutes.... they mighy have reworked that a bit.

Also in full agreement for paying more for services. EPA and DoE for me. Maybe extra towards some green energy while we're at it.

First one was totally ok... as FFT trumps all.

NormanTheIntern wrote:

In 2000 I got really high and played final fantasy tactics all day instead of voting for Bush.

That's the best thing I've read all day.

I actually like a lot of what the current Green Party platform has to say.

To be fair to Norman, a lot of people in Florida got high and then hit the polls and voted for a Pufferfish as I recall, which led to one of the more shameful escapades in our nation's history. To this day presidential campaigns have legal teams on standby to contest the votes. I believe he was responsible.

More people in Florida needed Playstations in 2000.

I am a 30-something, very left, liberal, feminist democrat from Washington State living in Canada. I have voted in every general election and most of my county and state elections since I was 18. The first three things I did on my 18th birthday were registering to vote, buying lotto tickets, and going to a sex shop. My views tend to be more or less in line with college-educated middle-class women from my area. That being said:

Confessions:

1).
RE: Gun Control - Laws only restrict the people who follow them. Crazies and criminals will still get guns if they want them. I think if they're crazy enough and they can't, they'll just use some other weapon (bombs/knives/planes/etc) to suit their purpose. I actually agree with Canada's handling laws in regards to permits, use, and storage. I feel that there needs to be a much more extensive background checking system and wait times to acquire them. I believe failure to comply should result in steep fines and seizure should a carrier fail to meet the requirements. I'm in a gun-owning household.

2).

Stengah wrote:

I don't mind paying taxes If I could voluntarily pay more and guarantee it was added to the budgets of specific programs (and not used in place of it's normal budget to free up that money for other things instead), I would.

Count me in for this one, too. I pay my taxes every year, and I would also pay more if it was used as you say. I intentionally overpay on my taxes every year anyway.

3).
I'm all for retaining and maintaining your own cultural heritage. Diversity is important to social growth. But wherever you move to, at least try to learn the local language. Try. All I want is the effort. I don't care if you're terrible at it, but dammit...try.

4).
I used to be one of those people that would say things like "I'm pro-choice for other people...but I'd never actually get one myself." It wasn't until very recently that I'd realized how judgemental and condescending an opinion like that can be. It seems innocent and positive, at first, but it's a subtle and ugly way to differentiate us from them, to assert moral superiority without being up front about it over someone else's difficult choices regarding a situation I don't know anything about. I still feel really guilty when I think about this one.

5).
Since I've moved to Canada, I've almost completely neglected to keep up on US politics, which has kind of led to me not keeping up on international politics. Or even Canadian politics. It's the first time in over a decade that I haven't been paying attention. I scribbled through my mail-in ballot and had my dad explain to me what the different initiatives where about while I did it.

CheezePavilion wrote:

edit: oops, never mind--I'm wrong.

Most admirable confession in any political thread

I have never voted for Obama. I vote (and am registered as) Green Independent, if only so they can continue to be listed on future ballots.

I used to be a LOT more sympathetic to an unfettered free market/libertarian philosophy until I lived in a country where enforcement on business is toothless. After witnessing how the market "corrects" for atrocious behavior (e.g.: constructing low income housing with irradiated rebar and reclaimed concrete from decommissioned nuclear power plants, filling holiday cakes with expired dog food, etc.), I moderated my position and have become a big fan of government regulation.

Amoebic wrote:

4).
I used to be one of those people that would say things like "I'm pro-choice for other people...but I'd never actually get one myself." It wasn't until very recently that I'd realized how judgemental and condescending an opinion like that can be. It seems innocent and positive, at first, but it's a subtle and ugly way to differentiate us from them, to assert moral superiority without being up front about it over someone else's difficult choices regarding a situation I don't know anything about. I still feel really guilty when I think about this one.

I think for abortion, there is a stopping point. i suspect many conservatives would come off as better if they said that they are not in favor of elective terminations. You can end it there, maybe pepper in except where medically necessary or in the event of a sex crime.

For liberals. Roe v. Wade grounded abortion in our collective rights to sexual privacy, marital privacy, marital confidentiality, and medical confidentiality. Just say a women, or a couple has the right to choose when and if they have children. To say you would never get one not only can come off about you separating yourself from women who do terminate. I would hope that any woman is not making this a unilateral decision, when it does in fact also involve their partner.

I moved a while back and never re-registered to vote. I'm sick of voting for the lesser of N evils and, being in California, my state's pick for a presidential candidate is a foregone conclusion, but I still feel bad for not exercising a right that people have died to obtain. I'll have to fix this before the next election.

Let's see -

1) I think education should be privatized, but have nothing useful to contribute to the discussion of "how". I vaguely agree with the notion that government-run education is a problem and actual competitive schooling would lead to teaching being a career that is actually prized rather than given mere self-righteous lip service to by way too many people. I don't think the US Dept of Ed should be abolished. But... that's about as far as my concept of the topic goes. It really breaks one of my big rules about not having an opinion about something unless you can back it up in a rational argument. Every time I mention this, I fully expect someone to embarrass the hell out of me with studies and figures.

2) I was a card-carrying Republican until 2004 and I voted for Kerry. The whole thing really just makes me sick. Both of those facts. I got so fed up with the GOP that I completely rubberbanded the other way out of anger and hostility, which is another thing I tend to frown on when it comes to political and social views. I've eventually settled on the idea that political parties in general are a problem.

3) I think people who say "political parties in general are a problem" are prats, as a rule.

4) The fandoms over Grand Theft Auto and Resident Evil escape me. The controls and... oh crap, wrong thread.

5) I will entertain, seriously entertain, the idea that democracy is a failure when it comes up in conversation or random thoughts. The usually incorrect comparison between American society now and a feudal state 300 years ago has more parallels than some people want to acknowledge, I think. Trying to actually discuss this with friends here in Austin or back home usually leads to whack-a-doo crap, though.

Bloo Driver wrote:

5) I will entertain, seriously entertain, the idea that democracy is a failure when it comes up in conversation or random thoughts. The usually incorrect comparison between American society now and a feudal state 300 years ago has more parallels than some people want to acknowledge, I think. Trying to actually discuss this with friends here in Austin or back home usually leads to whack-a-doo crap, though.

I totally agree. Democracy is not a bad concept, but in my opinion the execution has been lacking. I think the best form of rule would be enlightened despotism, but it's hard - if not impossible - to ensure that successive rulers continue to put the 'benevolent' in 'benevolent dictatorship'. Alas, it does seem completely true that power corrupts.

Disclaimer: I have no idea on how to fix the problems with democracy, or even if they are fixable. I am not a politician, nor do I have a political science degree.

NormanTheIntern wrote:

These are both deeply shameful, but

In 2000 I got really high and played final fantasy tactics all day instead of voting for Bush.

Also like 10 years ago I used to post on this political message board and someone accused me of being a racist, so I sort of, uh, suggested I might be black and everyone believed it.

N-no judgement right?

If it makes you feel better, I voted for Bush in 2000. It didn't make a difference, as MO was going to go for Bush either way, but I still feel bad about it.

I was somehow convinced he wouldn't try to take away the guns I still don't own, and that that was the only real difference between him and Gore.

1. I've never voted. Period. The problem comes from being a Canadian citizen (thus can't vote in the US) who hasn't lived on Canadian soil since he turned 18 (thus, no Canadian vote). And right now, I'm not particularly engaged enough to bother going for my American citizenship (not to mention it costs somewhere around $1K to do so).

2. Anyone who says "If you don't vote, you can't complain" needs to be smacked. I put my views out there just like anyone else, both as an intellectual exercise and because I do have an opinion on things. Just because I can't exercise my opinion in any meaningful fashion doesn't mean I don't get to say it. And if my opinion is in the minority? Hell yeah I'm going to complain, and there's this thing in the States called "freedom of speech" that lets me. You just have the right to call me an idiot for it, and I have the right to ignore you if you do.

Well, here goes something...

1. When I turned 18, I registered as a Republican. One election cycle later, I registered as a Libertarian, but Ron Paul turned me off to that ideology. I have since been a registered Democrat, but my politics fall in line with Sen. Bernie Sanders (Socialist - VT).

2. I support legalized prostitution in all states, controlled by a highly regulated brothel system.

3. I support the right to a polygamous marriage but only if all of the parties are consenting adults.

4. I would raise the marriage age to 21 and above with no exceptions.

5. I would lower the age of consent for sexual intimacy to 16 in all jurisdictions.

6. I would remove all tax-exempt status for houses of worship. However, those houses could garner substantial tax savings/deductions/credits if they can prove monies spent were for actual charity and not for, say, a new HVAC unit for the building or redecoration of the chief cleric's office.

While I want to admit things to my beloved Rubb Ed. Our nights in Azeroth were magical.

It is my opinion that sexuality is more of a choice than not. As with any behavior there is a confluence of factors outside of a person's control. And this cuts both ways, no sexuality is in itself some default or natural setting.

Phoenix. 16 would raise the age of consent to sexual activity in many states, actually. It is 14 in many states, where the person is engaged in activity with another teenager. Makes sense, 14 is a Freshman after all.

Bloo Driver wrote:

Let's see -

1) I think education should be privatized, but have nothing useful to contribute to the discussion of "how". I vaguely agree with the notion that government-run education is a problem and actual competitive schooling would lead to teaching being a career that is actually prized rather than given mere self-righteous lip service to by way too many people. I don't think the US Dept of Ed should be abolished. But... that's about as far as my concept of the topic goes. It really breaks one of my big rules about not having an opinion about something unless you can back it up in a rational argument. Every time I mention this, I fully expect someone to embarrass the hell out of me with studies and figures.

My confession here is that I defer all educational politics to my girlfriend, who has a Masters in education and will absolutely counter me with facts and studies if I get anything wrong. My pithy position is that the reality of education is a lot more complex than "privatize it all" or "no charter schools". Different people learn differently.

My own blasphemies:

Liberal Arts education is largely overrated. I know we're supposed to talk about the value that it brings to our lives and how we make connections that we wouldn't ordinarily, develop a more complex sense of ethics, etc. Sure. But most people don't actually get that out of their liberal arts educations.

Politics should be more of a tool set rather than an ideology. I think there are situations where a few years of communism would probably work pretty well for a country. I'm not so sure about pure anarchy/libertarianism, but there are definitely markets and situations that I think should go without government interference.

Gun control isn't an all or nothing proposition. It seems to work quite well in some countries, whereas in the US and other heavily armed nations, it could never be effective.

I always think those last two seem perfectly reasonable, but people like to yell at me when I bring them up.

An unfettered free market isn't actually all that efficient.

It doesn't really matter whether people "believe" in global warming any more. The damage is already done. It's now a matter of cleanup costs rather than preventing catastrophe. Btw, if you want to see a coral reef in person, I'd suggest you do it pretty soon. Your own children may not get the opportunity.

Political blasphemy from a born-and-bred Southerner: the South still has serious political cultural and social problems stemming from its current and historical refusal to deal with institutional racism. Until it recognizes those problems in a serious way (i.e. providing more than token education in poor black rural areas, mitigating white and economic flight in urban areas, stopping with the draconian anti-immigration laws, etc.), it will never be more than a second tier region in the United States, and it will never see anything more than marginal movement in its education and health care rates.

More political blasphemy from a born-and-bred Southerner: most Southerners care about things on a neighborhood level and then on a national level, and just plain ignore everything in between (that doesn't relate to college football). I suppose you could say that about a lot of places, but the tunnel vision has always seemed worse in the South. This is the other driving force preventing the South from developing overly much as a region.

I believe that should abolish the election of our representatives. Instead we should select the members of our House of Representatives by a process called sortition. By this method, the representative for each district would be chosen at random from the pool of registered voters in that district, similar to how we select juries. This system would have many advantages over our current system of electing representatives. It would create a much more representative body, socially, politically, economically, ect. It would pull in people from all walks of life, not just those with the money and connections to get elected. Those chosen would not be beholden to any party or monied interests to get elected or to stay in office, eliminating much of the corruption in our current system. This could also potentially break down many of the partisan walls in our legislative system. This system would eliminate all the time, money, and energy our representatives waste on getting re-elected, so they could spend more time on doing their jobs and less time campaigning for their next two year term.

I've voted Green for president since 2000, except in 2008. I live in KY, so my vote for president doesn't really matter all that much.

I think private ownership of guns is a net negative for our society, but I liberals/progressives should spend their political energy on other issues. Also, I think guns are kind of cool.

I think there should be more checks in place to deal with (i.e. fire) bad teachers and more opportunities to reward good teachers.

I work for an environmentalist organization, and I think nuclear power that is done right can be a solution to some of our energy problems.

We need to abolish marriage as a legal construct. Civil unions should be available to any couple who wants to engage in one. Leave marriage to the churches. If some bigoted podunk church doesn't want to marry gay people, more power to them. We shouldn't let the word marriage muddy this conversation any more.

I too am fine with paying taxes.

Phoenix Rev wrote:

6. I would remove all tax-exempt status for houses of worship. However, those houses could garner substantial tax savings/deductions/credits if they can prove monies spent were for actual charity and not for, say, a new HVAC unit for the building or redecoration of the chief cleric's office.

Yes. This. There was a recent study out of the University of Tampa that estimated this costs the US roughly 71 billion dollars per year. (For perspective, I think NASA's 2012 budget was something like 17 billion.) And yes, whatever money is spent on actual exempt/charitable purposes can be tax-exempt. Everything else? Tax it like it's hot.

NormanTheIntern wrote:

These are both deeply shameful, but

In 2000 I got really high and played final fantasy tactics all day instead of voting for Bush.

Also like 10 years ago I used to post on this political message board and someone accused me of being a racist, so I sort of, uh, suggested I might be black and everyone believed it.

N-no judgement right?

I'm never going to say someone shouldn't have exercised their right to vote, but...

A) Getting high can be fun (wouldn't know these days, been a long time)

B) Playing FFT can be fun

Not saying you made the "right" choice, but you didn't make the wrong one either.

1) I believe that Abraham Lincoln was wrong and have a hard time with him being a US hero. I obviously don't think he's wrong on slavery. I believe he was wrong not to let the US split. It was a major turning point in the power of the federal government versus states and I've been uncomfortable about it for a long time.

2) In my first election I voted for Ross Perot. The election before, when I couldn't vote, I was so excited by his appearances on TV that I signed up for his mailing list and donated money to the campaign when I was 17.

I don't "believe" in freedom. I believe in equality under law and the transparency of government. Everything else, including freedom, must come from those principles and must never interfere with those principles.

I believe that in an ideal system, federal authority should stand absolute An ideal system would be transparent. I don't understand the value of dominant local power, unless those local powers had absolute sovereignty, in which case the U.S. would consist of 50 distinct nations.

I don't believe in universal suffrage There should be some sort of test to determine whether or not a prospective voter understands the laws and systems that govern the land. Ignorant people should have no right to taint the system. I believe this test should be difficult enough to disqualify perhaps 50% of the people who take it. I believe the resources needed to pass this test should be free and easily accessible by 100% of the population.

I believe in mandatory civil service and a draft If we are to go to war, the nation needs to have a common stake in the effort. In peacetime, we should all have a stake in the advancement of the society.

Grubber. I think mandatory service, even in peace time, is our best road to a single payer healthcare system. 18 months of service, or enter into the ROTC, or enroll in a military academy. After college in the latter 2, do your service, and you come home with full VA benefits.

I thought the center-right candidate was such a lock in one federal election, I voted for these guys:

The far-right candidate ended up winning.