(no subject)
1. Do you have the guts to answer these questions and re-post as The Controversial Survey?
This is a dumb question. Obviously if the answer was no, you wouldn't be reading this. Therefore I will take the opportunity to say that I actually really enjoyed doing this meme, as some of my own answers surprised me when I really thought about them, and I'm guessing they'll surprise a lot of people on my F-list, too. I would also like to take this opportunity to say that I rephrased some of the questions, as I found their wording awkward, inaccurate, or idiotic. Also also, I worked 10 hours today so please forgive any typos.
2. Would you do meth if it was legal?
I wouldn't do meth if you paid me. That shit is *nasty*.
3. Abortion: for or against it?
Uhm, so, big surprise number one... after thinking about it for a long time, I came to the conclusion that I'm pro-life. Which really, really surprised me, as I'm a hardcore liberal. So let me clarify what I mean by pro-life...
I don't think I would ever get an abortion. Now, I say this in the context of a woman who has never been raped and never had a child. So I can't say that things might not change my position, but currently, as I am now, I wouldn't have an abortion. The 64-thousand dollar question, of course, is "where does life begin", and as stupid as it may seem, I really *do* believe that life begins when a sperm and an egg come together and form a zygote. I don't have any real reason for that than that I can't find anywhere *else* to draw the line - it's not at birth, as partial-birth abortions have proven, and it's sure as hell not earlier. So I think that life begins when an egg is fertilized, and to abort the baby is to kill it.
Now, having said that, before all the liberals jump down my throat, I still believe abortion should be *legal*, and that other women should have the right to choose whether or not they have one. Abortion is something that I don't think will ever be a choice *I* would make, but I also don't think that my quasi-religious/spiritual beliefs should mean diddly about anyone else's life. So if someone else has a different opinion about abortion, then they should be free to pursue it. And I do believe in abortion in cases of risk to the mother, by the way.
Lastly, I believe that abortion should definitely stay legal as long as the social services system in this country is still a piece of shit, which I think it probably always will be. Adoption is difficult; the foster care system is uncaring and inhuman except for a select few. As long as babies are born when they're not *wanted*, children will suffer, and I don't think it's right for someone to deliberately want a child to suffer.
I'm not sure if any of that made any sense. Whatever; that will be my longest answer. Onwards and upwards!
4. Do you think the world would fail with a female president?
REPHRASE: Do you think the world would fail if the United States of America had a female president?
Because as far as I know, there is no world president. And I sort of dread the day there ever would be.
Anyway, no, not unless the woman is a dumbass. Or Sarah Palin.
5. Do you believe in the death penalty?
Well, it exists...
REPHRASE: Do you believe the death penalty is right or wrong/moral or immoral?
I'd be interested here in seeing the study my sister mentioned that states that the threat of the death penalty is a deterrent to major crime. Because I've never heard that, and never thought so. In any case, the prison/parole system in our country is almost as fucked up as our social services system.
Anyway, death is too easy for the fuckers who really deserve it. The main reason I don't believe in the death penalty is because juries are *not* right one hundred percent of the time. And the death penalty is something you can't take back 15 years later when DNA evidence exonerates the guy in jail. I think that there should be special jails for people who have committed particularly horrible crimes, though I suppose I'm not really condoning torture. Buuuuuuut that would cost a lot of taxpayer money, so in all honesty, I'm really not sure where I stand on this issue. I know, that was a cop-out. I did the best I could.
6. Do you wish marijuana would be legalized already?
REPHRASE: Do you think marijuana should be legalized?
I'm sorry, but sticking the "already" on the end of that question made it retarded.
Yes. With a prescription, like any other medical drug. Marijuana is good for glaucoma, and there is some medicinal marijuana that relieves pain other painkillers can't (what the hell am I going to do when my liver overloads from all the Advil I take? No other painkillers have ever worked for me.) and some medicinal marijuana has been doctored (pun intended) so it doesn't give the same high that regular weed does. I think prescription marijuana is no more likely to be abused than prescription OxyContin or the like.
Legalized for general use like alcohol and cigarettes? No. You can't always have what you want, my friends.
7. Are you for or against premarital sex?
I'm for minding my own damned business. If you think it's right, go ahead and have it. If you think it's wrong, don't. If you think it's wrong and make everyone else suffer by teaching abstinence only sex education, then you're an idiot and I'm going to beat you with a stick.
8. Do you believe in God?
I believe the world is not an accident and that something out there is bigger than myself. I've never really quantified that, nor felt the need to.
9. Do you think same sex marriage should be legalized?
Again, I'm for people minding their own damned business. I fully believe same sex marriage should be legalized, because no one has ever presented me - despite being asked numerous times - a valid reason why it shouldn't be. If you believe gay sex is wrong, don't have it. If you believe gay marriage is wrong, don't marry someone the same sex as you. By there is such a thing as separation of church and state, and I don't see where people get off saying that their religious beliefs should determine US Law.
Eventually, I believe that gay marriage will be legalized, based off the famous Supreme Court case Brown vs. the Board of Education. Separate but not equal. Trying to give gays anything *other* than marriage is trying to treat them like lesser citizens, and it ain't constitutional. Sorry, all you conservatives out there, but history shows that it's only a matter of time.
10. Do you think it's wrong that so many Hispanics are illegally moving to the USA?
Let me tell you, before moving to Arizona I would have had a *totally* different answer to this question.
Off the bat, I will be totally honest: I fucking *hate* all the Hispanics out here. Living in Arizona has turned me into a complete racist bitch. I can't help it. But let's get something else clear: I hate the legal ones pretty much as much as I hate the illegal ones. For one reason and one reason only...
IF YOU ARE GOING TO LIVE IN THIS COUNTRY, FUCKING LEARN ENGLISH.
That's my only request. They can cross the border in droves with packs of coyotes, if they will take basic language classes after they get here.
I also agree with my sister's point that for a country formed off of immigrants, we should be more tolerant of them. And I'll love them once the FUCKING LEARN ENGLISH AND STOP EXPECTING ME TO SPEAK SPANISH. 'Cause I don't. And never, ever will.
11. A twelve year old girl has a baby, should she keep it?
REPHRASE: A twelve year old girl has a baby, but I'm not going to give you a shred of information that would make this question answerable, should she keep it?
a) Depends on the 12 year old.
b) Depends on the 12 year old's parents.
c) Depends on the father of the baby.
d) Depends on the parents of the father of the baby.
e) Depends on the baby.
f) Depends on the social support system.
g) Depends on the availbility of multiple options such as adoption.
h) Depends on why she had the baby instead of an abortion in the first place.
Yeah, sorry, but there is *no* way to answer that question without more information.
12. Should the alcohol age be lowered to eighteen?
Actually, statistically, the alcohol age should be lowered to sixteen.
Then the driving age should be raised to nineteen.
That way the kids get all the STUPIDITY out of their system before they go off to college where they'll be on their own and unsupervised, and before they get behind the wheel and risk killing someone. And I say this as someone who got their driver's license the day after I turned 16.
13. Should the war in Iraq be called off?
The war in Iraq never should have been started, but that's a different question.
But basically, yes. We've destroyed their country enough, and if I thought *anything* we could do would *fix* it, I would advocate staying here, but I don't honestly think there is. I think getting the hell out and letting them try to handle themselves, with support from the UN, is the best option now. Also, I think the US has enough problems right now that we should be focusing on solving them, not working with other countries.
14. Assisted suicide is illegal: do you agree?
REPHRASE: Should assisted suicide be legal or illegal?
Because seriously, what was with *that* grammar.
I think it should be legal. And I think it should be regulated and standardized, so there can be rules like verifying the terminal illness with two doctors, and verifying competency with two psychiatrists/psychologists.
15. Do you believe in spanking your children?
I believe that if I had kids, I would spank them. This is why I don't have kids.
Secondarily, as a psych major I can testify that punishment is not an optimal way to teach anyone anything. It's been proven dozens of times over. The best method of reinforcement is positive interval training - like slot machines. So when your kid does something good, every third or fourth time, give them some candy. That'll teach them up right.
But I'd spank my kids anyway. Kids are too fucking frustrating. So I don't think you should go to jail for spanking your kids on occasion, as long as they're not black and blue afterwards.
16. Would you burn an American flag for a million dollars?
I went to type yes here, and I will eventually, but then realized that I didn't want to. Let me clarify.
Would I burn the flag in protest? Yes. I think flag burning is a perfectly valid way to protest the government doing something that I feel is wrong. Would I support someone else burning a flag in protest? Absolutely. Do I understand why some people find this so horrifying? No, in all honesty. It's a symbol. Not a person.
But that being said, I think I would feel dirty somehow, if I did it for money. Because then it wouldn't *mean* anything, other than that I am a greedy bitch.
All *that* being said, I still would, because a million dollars is a hell of a lot of money. Hell, I'd burn an American flag for a thousand dollars - that's how broke I am right now.
But I would feel bad afterwards.
17. Who do you think would make a better president: McCain or Obama?
When McCain won the Republican primary, I was actually very happy. I have liked him for some time and I think he would make a decent president, and I think out of *all* the Republicans running, he is the one I would be able to see in the Oval Office without believing our country is doomed.
That being said, he's run his campaign like an absolute schmuck, and I think he's made some decisions in the last few months (Palin being only the biggest) that have really damaged my opinion of him. I was always planning on voting for Obama, but now my vote is sealed.
Also, the next person on MSNBC's forums use calls Barack Obama "Hussein" is going to get a rock thrown at them. Seriously, do they have *any* idea how uneducated they look when they do that?
18. Are you afraid others will judge you from reading some of your answers?
I don't actually believe this is the same question as number one, despite what some other people have said. One is "do I have the guts", and obviously I do. This question is "are you afraid of what might happen because of your guts", and the answer is actually yes, because I hate wank and the like.
However, being in that I'm a fairly outspoken person, I can't imagine that much of this will get me into trouble, so despite my slight fears, yes, I will still post this.
Ta da!