Meme of American controversies...
I got this from gillo. It's about things people might argue about, if the subject came up. It strikes me as - not so much surprising, but striking - how these questions may be of burning immediacy to Americans but they've either been settled in Canada (like the death penalty and gay marriage) or they just don't apply.
1. Do you have the guts to answer these questions and re-post as The Controversial Survey?Sure. If there's something I don't want to talk about, I won't. I have way more controversial issues than any of this.
2. Would you do meth if it were legal?No. Frankly, I don't really know what meth is. I don't do any drugs if I can avoid it on general yoga principles. Besides, I react oddly to all drugs. I get high on Dimetapp. Some chemicals send me suddenly into convulsions, or cause migraines. Why take the risk?
3. Abortion: for or against it?A, c'mon, no one is just in favour of killing unborn babies randomly for the fun of it. I'm not for abortion; I'm in favour of the total freedom of any woman to have one or not have one according to her needs and desires. I think unwanted children (and desperate women) are more of a danger to society than easily-available abortions are.
4. Do you think the world would fail with a female president?The world does not (yet) have a president. If the question refers to the President of the United States as the President of the world, it is an offensively arrogant question that isn't even worthy of an answer. I'll make one anyway. The gender of our rulers doesn't make any difference to their efficacy. Looking around me, I see lots of failing going on in this world whether the countries involved are ruled by women or men. Let's have a few more successes, regardless of who's in charge.
5. Do you approve of the death penalty?No. That makes lawmakers into killers. Not a good thing.
6. Do you wish marijuana would be legalised already?Yes. It's an important medicine for some, and it's less harmful than alcohol.
7. Are you for or against premarital sex?I'm more in favour of the 'sex' part than the 'marital' part, actually. At least for myself. I think this should be a matter of individual choice, but generally speaking, I think there should be a lot more sex going on. Otherwise: make love, not war. Love makes people happy. War makes them dead.
8. Do you believe in God?Define "God". I do not believe in any God who comes from a book. I am a pantheist; I believe that everything is holy.
9. Do you think same sex marriage should be legalised?It is legal. Whoever asked these questions is behind the times.
Okay, okay, I also believe that gay marriage should also be legal in the US - and the UK and everywhere else, especially those countries which arrest and execute people for sodomy.
10. Do you think it's wrong that so many Hispanics are illegally moving to the USA?Do you want an honest answer, or a safe answer? An honest answer, hmm? Okay, I'll make one, because all countries are equally culpable in this, though as far as I know it's only the US which targets Hispanics. I believe immigration should be much easier and freer than it is for everyone everywhere, that borders should be much more open than they are, and that most current regulations are cruel, elitist, corrupt, paranoid and racist.
11. A twelve year old girl has a baby, should she keep it?That depends on way too many factors to say. What does she want? What kind of financial and moral support does she have? Are there responsible adults who can and will care for the baby with her? What will do more harm and what will do less to her already-disrupted life?
12. Should the alcohol age be lowered to eighteen?I thought it was 18. It was 18 when I was seventeen. I don't drink much and I never keep track. 18 sounds fine to me. I think it should be the same as the voting age: if a person is old enough to vote, they should be old enough to drink, and vice versa.
13. Should the war in Iraq be called off?What, like a party no one really wants to attend?
14. Assisted suicide is illegal: do you approve?No. What an interesting double-negative question. I think suicide, and assisted suicide, should be legal. We should not be condemned to suffer when life becomes unbearable.
15. Do you believe in spanking your children?Yes, but not to excess. They know the difference. Any parent should, as well.
16. Would you burn an American flag for a million dollars?Huh? It would be kind of rude of me to do something to someone else's flag, but I have no squick when it comes to flag-burning. In the 1960s, American flag-burners were among my heroes, because they wanted an end to war.
A flag is just a symbol. I'd burn a Canadian flag for ten dollars, and I love my country.
17. Who do you think would make a better president? McCain or Obama?Obama. McCain, regardless of his politics, isn't very intelligent.
18. Are you afraid others will judge you from reading some of your answers?
I hope they will - that they'll judge me thoughtful and caring, even when they don't agree with my conclusions.
Funny how the things that seem controversial in one country aren't controversial at all in another, even when we're right next door and heavily influenced by their culture. Controversial questions here would be things like "how do you feel about bilingualism?" and "should we pull out of Afghanistan?" and maybe "what's the problem with hockey these days?"
1. Do you have the guts to answer these questions and re-post as The Controversial Survey?Sure. If there's something I don't want to talk about, I won't. I have way more controversial issues than any of this.
2. Would you do meth if it were legal?No. Frankly, I don't really know what meth is. I don't do any drugs if I can avoid it on general yoga principles. Besides, I react oddly to all drugs. I get high on Dimetapp. Some chemicals send me suddenly into convulsions, or cause migraines. Why take the risk?
3. Abortion: for or against it?A, c'mon, no one is just in favour of killing unborn babies randomly for the fun of it. I'm not for abortion; I'm in favour of the total freedom of any woman to have one or not have one according to her needs and desires. I think unwanted children (and desperate women) are more of a danger to society than easily-available abortions are.
4. Do you think the world would fail with a female president?The world does not (yet) have a president. If the question refers to the President of the United States as the President of the world, it is an offensively arrogant question that isn't even worthy of an answer. I'll make one anyway. The gender of our rulers doesn't make any difference to their efficacy. Looking around me, I see lots of failing going on in this world whether the countries involved are ruled by women or men. Let's have a few more successes, regardless of who's in charge.
5. Do you approve of the death penalty?No. That makes lawmakers into killers. Not a good thing.
6. Do you wish marijuana would be legalised already?Yes. It's an important medicine for some, and it's less harmful than alcohol.
7. Are you for or against premarital sex?I'm more in favour of the 'sex' part than the 'marital' part, actually. At least for myself. I think this should be a matter of individual choice, but generally speaking, I think there should be a lot more sex going on. Otherwise: make love, not war. Love makes people happy. War makes them dead.
8. Do you believe in God?Define "God". I do not believe in any God who comes from a book. I am a pantheist; I believe that everything is holy.
9. Do you think same sex marriage should be legalised?It is legal. Whoever asked these questions is behind the times.
Okay, okay, I also believe that gay marriage should also be legal in the US - and the UK and everywhere else, especially those countries which arrest and execute people for sodomy.
10. Do you think it's wrong that so many Hispanics are illegally moving to the USA?Do you want an honest answer, or a safe answer? An honest answer, hmm? Okay, I'll make one, because all countries are equally culpable in this, though as far as I know it's only the US which targets Hispanics. I believe immigration should be much easier and freer than it is for everyone everywhere, that borders should be much more open than they are, and that most current regulations are cruel, elitist, corrupt, paranoid and racist.
11. A twelve year old girl has a baby, should she keep it?That depends on way too many factors to say. What does she want? What kind of financial and moral support does she have? Are there responsible adults who can and will care for the baby with her? What will do more harm and what will do less to her already-disrupted life?
12. Should the alcohol age be lowered to eighteen?I thought it was 18. It was 18 when I was seventeen. I don't drink much and I never keep track. 18 sounds fine to me. I think it should be the same as the voting age: if a person is old enough to vote, they should be old enough to drink, and vice versa.
13. Should the war in Iraq be called off?What, like a party no one really wants to attend?
14. Assisted suicide is illegal: do you approve?No. What an interesting double-negative question. I think suicide, and assisted suicide, should be legal. We should not be condemned to suffer when life becomes unbearable.
15. Do you believe in spanking your children?Yes, but not to excess. They know the difference. Any parent should, as well.
16. Would you burn an American flag for a million dollars?Huh? It would be kind of rude of me to do something to someone else's flag, but I have no squick when it comes to flag-burning. In the 1960s, American flag-burners were among my heroes, because they wanted an end to war.
A flag is just a symbol. I'd burn a Canadian flag for ten dollars, and I love my country.
17. Who do you think would make a better president? McCain or Obama?Obama. McCain, regardless of his politics, isn't very intelligent.
18. Are you afraid others will judge you from reading some of your answers?
I hope they will - that they'll judge me thoughtful and caring, even when they don't agree with my conclusions.
Funny how the things that seem controversial in one country aren't controversial at all in another, even when we're right next door and heavily influenced by their culture. Controversial questions here would be things like "how do you feel about bilingualism?" and "should we pull out of Afghanistan?" and maybe "what's the problem with hockey these days?"