Politics Help!

google it

Expect a lot of snarky responses.

Most of this things are being covered in other threads.

Generally Democrats believe in more government and more social programs, higer taxes and complaining a lot when they loose an election.

Republicans believe in less taxes, less social programs and letting the individual be in charge of his own destiny.

THat should start things off.

You will probably get answers on this message board, but take them with a grain of salt... they will be more misleading than truthful or factual. Look up the information yourself, from more than one source. You'll be much better off.

Also, an individual running for office does not necessarily have to reflect all the positions of the party.

And finally, be sure you define your terms carefully and often. As an example, if a politician talks about the "poor" or the "rich", make sure you're talking about the same group of people. Some politicians consider a family income over $75,000. to be "rich", while in your mind you're thinking of someone earning $250,000. or more. And by the same token, some politicians consider a family income under $75,000. to be "poor", while in your mind you're thinking of someone earning $20,000. or less.

If you really want to know and learn more about the questions you asked, you'll be a lot better off getting the facts yourself, rather than reading some of the slanted (and sometimes horribly wrong) opinions from a running message board.

well, ill get things started and being that im a staunch conservative, im right on everything:

Republicans/conservatives:

against murdering unborn children and the destruction of fetui

changing opinions on health care - certainly not "health care for all" ie socialism: see Cuba

for lowering taxes, small governament, against the estate/death tax

oppose destroying life, this includes stem cells

of course, not every republican or every democrat follow their party's policy to a T, see Zell Miller, RINO, DINO

Libertarions are for super small government, little taxes, free trade, very very free market.

A Libertarian is what I used to think a Republican was. When I was young, Republicans talked about fiscal responsibility and the ills of big government. But they have done far more to increase the size of federal government in the past 20 years than the Democrats have. That is why I eventually left the Republican party. Libertarians basically believe the government should be minimalists...stay out of our lives...Democrats want to interfere with our public lives (control our health care, education system, etc). Republicans want to control our private lives (no abortions, no gay marriage, a massive intelligence department that spies on its own citizens). Libertarians don't want any of that sh!t.

I believe that Libertarians want to eliminate the federal income tax and have taxation at a federal level just enough to fund a national military. Nearly everything else the federal government does (inefficiently), Libertarians argue could be done either more efficiently at the local level, or completely through the private market. Libertarians' ideology is pretty extreme compared to where we currently are, but if we moved in their direction, it wouldn't be a bad thing, in my opinion. Also, as I warned before, Republicans will lie and tell you they are for the same sh!t, but they aren't. Smaller government? Just look at the federal budget when Bush was in charge with a Republican Congress. Or look at Reagan's fiscal spending. These guys do NOT want a smaller federal government, no matter what they tell you on the campaign trail.

Go to lp.org.

I'm not going to dig through the official party platforms from '04. But these are all generalizations. There are so many exceptions that I think the assignment is kinda dumb, but whatever.

Abortion- Democrats generally favor a strongly pro-choice viewpoint while Republicans tend to be strongly pro-life.

Health care- Democrats generally favor a more socialized approach while Republicans favor market mechanisms.

General taxes- Democrats tend to favor more progressive income taxation while Republicans lean more in the direction of a flat tax. In general Democrats favor higher taxation than Republicans. Republicans tend to believe that lower taxes spur growth that creates a "bigger pie" for everyone and expands the tax base while Democrats feel higher taxes can help redress injustices in outcome and better fund the public sector.

Small businesses- Both are in favor.

stem cells- The divide comes on embryonic stem cells. Democrats for, Republicans against.

federalism- Democrats tend to favor greater federal control, Republicans greater states rights. Unless, of course, Republicans are in control of the Federal Govt.

etc- Democrats love Latin, Republicans hate it.

And what the heck are libertarians? Favor less government involvement in but social and economic issues (like anarchists in a shirt and tie.)

student10 wrote:

what the heck are libertarians?

Thanks a lot.

I'll try to give it to you as straights as possible.

Democrats are generally more in favor of legalized abortion.

Democrats are generally more in favor of the government being involved in the funding or execution of health care.

Republicans are generally associated with advocating lower taxes.

Republicans are prone to change to make regulations more accommodating to small businesses.

Democrats are more in favor of government-funded stem cell research.

Neither party is huge in federalism (ie states rights).

Libertarians advocate removing the government from as many aspects of people's personal lives as possible, both by reducing taxes and government serves as well as by changing laws to allow legalized abortion, legalized drugs, and the like. Although this is often untrue, Libertarians associate more with conservatives on economic issues and liberals on social issues.

There are two types of libertarians: Libertarians (big L) who are members of the Libertarian Party and libertarians (little l) who advocate the philosophy I just described.

there is zero chance that this is a legitimate post.

in that light, and given that there have already been some solid responses:

Abortion: democrats love killing babies; you can often see dead babies on the floor of the convention center after the democratic party meets. republicans want to force women to have kids to keep them out of the workplace.

Health care: democrats want to send doctors to the poorhouse by "socializing" medicine and by making it easier for trial lawyers to win in baseless medical malpractice claims; republicans don't care about you if you can't afford private health insurance. they want to ensure that doctors can be drunk during surgery without suffering any ill financial effects.

General taxes: democrats want to tax you when you are born, when you are working, when you spend, when you own property and when you die. especially if you have worked hard to get ahead. republicans want to force you to fund subsidies for the rich even if you can't put food on your own table.

Small businesses: democrats try to stamp these gnats out by over-regulating - americans with disabilities act, laws giving rights to employees, etc. republicans want to get rid of them by increasing health care costs, increasing subsidies to big businesses and by selectively enforcing existing regulations so big businesses need not comply.

stem cells: democrats want to kill babies to save existing adult lives. as long as it is the life of a famous actor. republicans would rather "save" a small set of cells in a petri dish that were headed for the toilet than help save adult lives.

federalism: here the parties agree. federal government should be all-powerful when they control it, powerless when they do not.

And what the heck are libertarians?

Thanks a lot.[/quote]

Democrats believe that every human being has a right to personal dignity and to survival. Republicans believe that if you are destitute or sick that it’s your own fault, and that you therefore deserve to freeze or to starve to death.

Republicans believe that nothing deserves to exist unless it turns a profit. Thus art and literature are not worthwhile, nor is science except to the extent it can be turned to profitable advantage.

Democrats believe that all men were created equal. Republicans believe in equality for everyone who is exactly like them.

Republicans believe that the Earth is a resource that is there to be exploited until it’s exhausted. Democrats believe that there may be some value in preserving the planet.

Republicans believe that old white men should decide what women can do with their own bodies.

Republicans believe that the answer to handgun crime is easier accessibility to handguns.

Republicans believe that the answer to congestion is more roads.

Republicans believe that corporations should be unfettered by any regulations, regardless of the impact to the common good.

Republicans believe that the highest possible aspiration of mankind is the maximization of corporate profit.

Democrats espouse and practice tolerance of religious beliefs and sexual orientations. Republicans believe that behavior they don’t personally approve of should be a crime.

Democrats embrace diversity. Republicans congregate in ways that are either subtly or openly calculated to exclude anyone who is not white and rich.

Democrats want to spend Federal money on things that will benefit all, but only when they can be responsibly paid for. Republicans believe in spending money they don’t have and pretending that they can get away without paying for anything.

Republicans believe that no crime is really a crime if you’re a Republican. This specifically includes the crimes of lying to justify sending US troops off to die for nothing; torturing your victims to death; and spying on private citizens.

Democrats place trust in their elected officials according to their competency, and not whether they engaged in consensual sexual acts outside of marriage. Republicans are people who were not able to get laid in college.

Republicans enjoy travelling half way around the world to kill fascinating people they've never met before.

Democrats enjoy making love.

i dunno

Libertarians believe in wasting a vote. Otherwise they would vote Republican or Democrat. They're worse than these so called "undecided's". That's bullshit.

People know what they stand for and believe in. There's no way people have no idea who they'll vote for just days before an election. They're just people who enjoy the attention.

Moisten your finger, then stick it up in the air. It will tell you which way the wind is blowing...that's all you need to know.

What a simpleton! Is "choice" an issue with women's bodies when Government wants to mandate 10/11 yr old girls submit to injections of unproven vaccines to protect against STD's. Mandate what they must do with their bodies as children! How you idiots speak out of both sides of your mouth AND consider yourselves SO intelligent (much more so than stupid Republicans) never ceases to amaze me. Your elitist snobbery knows no ends.....as long as you're part of the ruling class. The way you speak, I'm sure Castro or Chavez would love to have you down. There you could run at the mouth about the virtues of liberalism and socialism all day AND feel free to make ANY political comment you want with NO fear of retribution! You guys are funny.

mez wrote:

What a simpleton! Is "choice" an issue with women's bodies when Government wants to mandate 10/11 yr old girls submit to injections of unproven vaccines to protect against STD's. Mandate what they must do with their bodies as children! How you idiots speak out of both sides of your mouth AND consider yourselves SO intelligent (much more so than stupid Republicans) never ceases to amaze me. Your elitist snobbery knows no ends.....as long as you're part of the ruling class. The way you speak, I'm sure Castro or Chavez would love to have you down. There you could run at the mouth about the virtues of liberalism and socialism all day AND feel free to make ANY political comment you want with NO fear of retribution! You guys are funny.

Why would you NOT want a vaccine for your child which can prevent cancer?

Some girls are sexually active at that age, and definitely more at 12/13. They will simply have gone with percentages to assess the best age. Plus, what about rape, etc?

"Libertarianism" describes a political philosophy. A libertarian is one who believes that individual choice is most important and that the government's role should be very limited.

The difference between Republicans and Democrats has less to do with political philosophy than it does with building coalitions to win elections. If either party attempted to remain true to a political philosophy, they would never win an election. For example, a true libertarian would not want the government messing with social issues: if an individual wants to use drugs and kill themselves, what compelling interest does the government have in stopping them? If someone is gay or heterosexual, what difference should that make in the eyes of the government? Of course, those positions would be inconsistent with the Republican party platform because an important part of the Republican coalition is the "religious right". Therefore, while it's appropriate to debate political philosophy/ideology (i.e. what is the proper role of government in different circumstances), to do so has little, if anything to do with the major political parties whose positions on issues are not determined by ideology so much as by what effect taking a certain position on an issue will have on a member of its coalition.

With all of that background, here is how I would answer your specific questions:

Abortion: As mentioned, the "religious right" is a key component of the Republican coalition. Therefore, Republicans are generally pro-life. Giuliani will test this somewhat in '08 as he is pro-choice. While he may be an excellent nominee, his position on that single issue will probably preclude his winning his party's nomination. A traditional constituency of the Democrats' coalition are women's rights groups who are strongly pro-choice. (This is a classic example of how political philosophy takes a back seat to the political realities. A true libertarian would not want the government messing in this area, yet Republicans would favor government intervention in preventing abortions).

Health care: The Rebublican coalition includes lots of "big money" interests such as insurance companies, drug manufacturors and even doctors. Therefore, Republicans will favor policies that protect those big interests. At the opposite end of the political philosophy spectrum is a guy like Ralph Nader. Nader would advocate on behalf of patients and rights of consumers and universal access to healthcare. Will the Democrats go that far? I'm not sure. If they don't Nader will critisize them for "dialing for the same corporate dollars as the Republicans." If they do, Rove and company will accuse them of being "socialists" (the boogeyman). A member of the Democrat's coalition are lawyers who are the last hope of consumers/patients/citizens when they are injured. So at the very least Democrats will try to stop Republican efforts to keep the courthouse doors closed.

General taxes: Again, look at the coalitions: Big businesses see the biggest profits when they have lower tax burdens, less regulations, etc. "Tax and Spend Liberal" is a stereotype that may have been true of Democrats in the '70s and '80s, but no longer seems to apply. In general, government ought to tax behaviors that it wants to discourage and lower taxes on behaviors it wants to encourage. What interests are effected by raising/lowering certain taxes? If you are able to identify the effected groups, into which coalition do they fit?

Small businesses: Both parties would include "small businesses" among their coalitions, but might court them in different ways.

stem cells: I think the religious right have mananged to make this a political issue to the extent it's part of the pro-life agenda. Republicans, therefore, would have to oppose certain research.

federalism: Here's another one where political philosophy and political realities collide. Conventional wisdom says that Republicans are the ones who would support state's rights and a smaller federal government and Democrats are the ones who favor a stronger federal government. But which party supports a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage?

Republican coalition: Big business, religious right, gun rights advocates;

Democratic coalition: Workers, farmers, women, minorities

The descriptions by the posters are actually a window into their own political ideology.

i get tired of seeing pro-life as only dealing with abortion and stem cell research. pro-life, should also include better health care, the death penalty, anti-torture, and unjust/pointless wars and killings. with all of the "life" issues, are republicans still pro-life?