"The Controversial Survey"
I found this very thought-provoking meme in amethyst_hunter's journal the other day, and I've decided to do it myself! The survey was interesting and engaging, and I am not ashamed of anything I've written in it! :)
[01] Do you have the guts to answer these questions and re-post as The Controversial Survey?
Well duh! ;) I'm doing it now, aren't I?
[02] Would you do meth if it was legalized?
No. No interest. My body is already exposed to enough possible toxins in the form of prescription medications, pollution in the air, substances in the water, substances used on fruits and veggies, etc. I'm looking to REDUCE my exposure to crap, not INCREASE it! Additionally, I don't like the idea of being out of control of my body, and that's what drugs like meth do.
[03] Abortion: for or against it?
I think that abortion should always remain 100% legal, and am proudly PRO-CHOICE!! However, I don't particularly like how some women treat abortion as blithely as they treat getting a manicure. I've heard of some women who keep getting early-term abortions because they keep getting pregnant. HELLO? There are numerous MUCH SAFER ways to prevent having a baby (condoms, birth control pills, etc.), rather than abortion, since even early-term ones carry some health risk. But I still feel that No ONE has any right to tell women what they can or cannot do to their own bodies, especially sanctimonious right-wing freaks who think it's perfectly OK to force their religious ideology down the throats of perfect strangers! :(
[04] Do you think the world would fail with a female president?
Hell no! Look at how severely the United States has been failing over the past 8 years with a male president! Why would a female be worse than that? On the contrary, I think a female would be better, because they're more ruled by their brains than their balls! Also, overall I think women tend to have better interpersonal communication skills, and better empathy, than men do. I'm not saying ALL women are superior to ALL men in these things, because that's certainly not the case. But in general, I think the gender that has better overall skills in these things, is the female gender.
[05] Do you believe in the death penalty?
I'm going to excerpt some of what amethyst_hunter wrote for her answer, because I like it:
"Yes, in certain instances...preferably in the same manner as whatever was used on [the person murdered]. Especially where it's proven beyond all doubt that the accused is guilty. As it stands now, the DP may be flawed in some areas and certainly those need to be fixed, but I have no problem with it being an option for horrific crimes."
[06] Do you wish marijuana would be legalized already?
I definitely think it should be legal for medical reasons, such as helping relieve the nausea, pain, etc. being experienced by people undergoing chemotherapy, other cancer treatments, people who have AIDS, etc. I think it should be "guardedly legal" in other circumstances. For example, you have to be at least 21 to obtain it (as we do with alcohol), you can only obtain it from a licensed distributor, you cannot purchase more than X amount per day or week or whatever -- you get the idea. I would want at least some regulation on it. Also, if someone was caught driving a vehicle while high, I would want the same penalties as we currently have for folks driving under the influence of other controlled substances.
[07] Are you for or against premarital sex?
I don't have any problem with premarital sex, so I guess that means I'm "for" it, LOL! Besides, some people choose to never get married; that doesn't mean they should never have sex!!
[08] Do you believe in God?
I have, at younger points in my life. Currently, I'd consider myself agnostic. However, I am a spiritual agnostic, and no -- I do NOT think that's an oxymoron. :) I do feel there's some type of spiritual, inspirational, positive/good energy that flows from Nature, and also between people and Nature, and even between people and people. I'm not sure what to call this.
[09] Do you think same sex marriage should be legalized?
Of course! And don't ask me to explain why I think it should be legal, otherwise I'll end up jumping on my usual soapbox, in which I rant against the sanctimonious, closed-minded, right-wing zealots who think that THEIR view on religion, politics and morality is the ONLY correct view, and that their views should be forced upon everyone else. UGH!!! :(
[10] Do you think it's wrong that so many Hispanics are illegally moving to the USA?
I don't see this situation as black or white only; to me, there are also shades of gray. In general I think it's wrong, but I don't condemn all illegal Mexican immigrants either. I think their cases should be considered on each individual basis.
[11] A twelve year old girl has a baby, should she keep it?
OK, I simply *must* quote from amethyst_hunter again, because what she wrote is EXACTLY how I feel, and she said it in a way that's not nearly as rambling as I probably would have made it. *grin*
"I don't think so. At that age, nobody's mature enough to make any sort of informed decision about something that serious. And we should ask, why are 12-year-olds having sex when they should be just enjoying the last remnants of childhood? I really think that we need to prepare kids (on an age-appropriate basis) for stuff like this instead of just pretending that they'll all keep their legs closed. The more educated someone is, the better chance of them making a sound decision about something as serious as having sex/having kids (or not)."
[12] Should the alcohol age be lowered to eighteen?
Absolutely not!
[13] Should the war in Iraq be called off?
Yes! Not tomorrow, but I definitely am in favor of a timeline so that we can get the hell out of there!
[14] Assisted suicide is illegal: do you agree?
Absolutely not! I mean, we're allowed to humanely end the terminal suffering of our PETS, so we should be allowed to humanely end the terminal suffering of our HUMAN loved ones also! And now I'm going to excerpt some thoughts from Amethyst again, because she put it so well:
"Quality of life should be just as important as quantity of life, and each person should be allowed to decide what that means for themselves...get a living will and make sure you have a trustworthy power of attorney so you don't (God forbid) wind up a Terri Schiavo!"
[15] Do you believe in spanking your children?
I don't have kids and don't plan to have kids, so this is kind of moot for me. But, I will just say that my parents never spanked me, and I turned out just fine. They simply used other forms of discipline with me, like stern lectures, loss of priviledges, going to my room, etc. The lecture was always the worst for me! heh
[16] Would you burn an American flag for a million dollars?
I got a BIG wry smile from amethyst_hunter's answer, so I really must quote her again:
"Sure. I wouldn't do it in public, though. One, it would upset the veterans and I have no desire to do that, and two, the social fury that would no doubt arise from it wouldn't be worth the million; I'd have to spend it all to stay in hiding for the rest of my life."
[17] Who do you think would make a better president? McCain or Obama?
Oh please! LOL! If you haven't figured out my answer by now, you never will!
[18] Are you afraid others will judge you from reading some of your answers?
Probably not anyone on my Friends List, because I doubt I'd have hit it off well enough to friend someone, if they were the judgemental type. Although if they do judge me, or if some random person on the Internet judges me, that's fine. It's not like it's going to change my opinions on these topics. Besides, a very smart, kind, famous man one said: "judge not, lest you be judged"! ;)
[01] Do you have the guts to answer these questions and re-post as The Controversial Survey?
Well duh! ;) I'm doing it now, aren't I?
[02] Would you do meth if it was legalized?
No. No interest. My body is already exposed to enough possible toxins in the form of prescription medications, pollution in the air, substances in the water, substances used on fruits and veggies, etc. I'm looking to REDUCE my exposure to crap, not INCREASE it! Additionally, I don't like the idea of being out of control of my body, and that's what drugs like meth do.
[03] Abortion: for or against it?
I think that abortion should always remain 100% legal, and am proudly PRO-CHOICE!! However, I don't particularly like how some women treat abortion as blithely as they treat getting a manicure. I've heard of some women who keep getting early-term abortions because they keep getting pregnant. HELLO? There are numerous MUCH SAFER ways to prevent having a baby (condoms, birth control pills, etc.), rather than abortion, since even early-term ones carry some health risk. But I still feel that No ONE has any right to tell women what they can or cannot do to their own bodies, especially sanctimonious right-wing freaks who think it's perfectly OK to force their religious ideology down the throats of perfect strangers! :(
[04] Do you think the world would fail with a female president?
Hell no! Look at how severely the United States has been failing over the past 8 years with a male president! Why would a female be worse than that? On the contrary, I think a female would be better, because they're more ruled by their brains than their balls! Also, overall I think women tend to have better interpersonal communication skills, and better empathy, than men do. I'm not saying ALL women are superior to ALL men in these things, because that's certainly not the case. But in general, I think the gender that has better overall skills in these things, is the female gender.
[05] Do you believe in the death penalty?
I'm going to excerpt some of what amethyst_hunter wrote for her answer, because I like it:
"Yes, in certain instances...preferably in the same manner as whatever was used on [the person murdered]. Especially where it's proven beyond all doubt that the accused is guilty. As it stands now, the DP may be flawed in some areas and certainly those need to be fixed, but I have no problem with it being an option for horrific crimes."
[06] Do you wish marijuana would be legalized already?
I definitely think it should be legal for medical reasons, such as helping relieve the nausea, pain, etc. being experienced by people undergoing chemotherapy, other cancer treatments, people who have AIDS, etc. I think it should be "guardedly legal" in other circumstances. For example, you have to be at least 21 to obtain it (as we do with alcohol), you can only obtain it from a licensed distributor, you cannot purchase more than X amount per day or week or whatever -- you get the idea. I would want at least some regulation on it. Also, if someone was caught driving a vehicle while high, I would want the same penalties as we currently have for folks driving under the influence of other controlled substances.
[07] Are you for or against premarital sex?
I don't have any problem with premarital sex, so I guess that means I'm "for" it, LOL! Besides, some people choose to never get married; that doesn't mean they should never have sex!!
[08] Do you believe in God?
I have, at younger points in my life. Currently, I'd consider myself agnostic. However, I am a spiritual agnostic, and no -- I do NOT think that's an oxymoron. :) I do feel there's some type of spiritual, inspirational, positive/good energy that flows from Nature, and also between people and Nature, and even between people and people. I'm not sure what to call this.
[09] Do you think same sex marriage should be legalized?
Of course! And don't ask me to explain why I think it should be legal, otherwise I'll end up jumping on my usual soapbox, in which I rant against the sanctimonious, closed-minded, right-wing zealots who think that THEIR view on religion, politics and morality is the ONLY correct view, and that their views should be forced upon everyone else. UGH!!! :(
[10] Do you think it's wrong that so many Hispanics are illegally moving to the USA?
I don't see this situation as black or white only; to me, there are also shades of gray. In general I think it's wrong, but I don't condemn all illegal Mexican immigrants either. I think their cases should be considered on each individual basis.
[11] A twelve year old girl has a baby, should she keep it?
OK, I simply *must* quote from amethyst_hunter again, because what she wrote is EXACTLY how I feel, and she said it in a way that's not nearly as rambling as I probably would have made it. *grin*
"I don't think so. At that age, nobody's mature enough to make any sort of informed decision about something that serious. And we should ask, why are 12-year-olds having sex when they should be just enjoying the last remnants of childhood? I really think that we need to prepare kids (on an age-appropriate basis) for stuff like this instead of just pretending that they'll all keep their legs closed. The more educated someone is, the better chance of them making a sound decision about something as serious as having sex/having kids (or not)."
[12] Should the alcohol age be lowered to eighteen?
Absolutely not!
[13] Should the war in Iraq be called off?
Yes! Not tomorrow, but I definitely am in favor of a timeline so that we can get the hell out of there!
[14] Assisted suicide is illegal: do you agree?
Absolutely not! I mean, we're allowed to humanely end the terminal suffering of our PETS, so we should be allowed to humanely end the terminal suffering of our HUMAN loved ones also! And now I'm going to excerpt some thoughts from Amethyst again, because she put it so well:
"Quality of life should be just as important as quantity of life, and each person should be allowed to decide what that means for themselves...get a living will and make sure you have a trustworthy power of attorney so you don't (God forbid) wind up a Terri Schiavo!"
[15] Do you believe in spanking your children?
I don't have kids and don't plan to have kids, so this is kind of moot for me. But, I will just say that my parents never spanked me, and I turned out just fine. They simply used other forms of discipline with me, like stern lectures, loss of priviledges, going to my room, etc. The lecture was always the worst for me! heh
[16] Would you burn an American flag for a million dollars?
I got a BIG wry smile from amethyst_hunter's answer, so I really must quote her again:
"Sure. I wouldn't do it in public, though. One, it would upset the veterans and I have no desire to do that, and two, the social fury that would no doubt arise from it wouldn't be worth the million; I'd have to spend it all to stay in hiding for the rest of my life."
[17] Who do you think would make a better president? McCain or Obama?
Oh please! LOL! If you haven't figured out my answer by now, you never will!
[18] Are you afraid others will judge you from reading some of your answers?
Probably not anyone on my Friends List, because I doubt I'd have hit it off well enough to friend someone, if they were the judgemental type. Although if they do judge me, or if some random person on the Internet judges me, that's fine. It's not like it's going to change my opinions on these topics. Besides, a very smart, kind, famous man one said: "judge not, lest you be judged"! ;)