Political Irony

[varkiasinflight]

Remember a couple of months ago when so many people got upset over Obama's comment about people in economically depressed areas like Pennsylvania tending to cling to simple issues like guns and religion when voting?

Apparently this guy took it as political advice, instead...

Comments

[varkiasinflight]

Actually, I think by technical terms we may NOT be in a depression yet. It's probably only recently that we've even technically entered a repression. And that's based on arguments I've heard from Republicans. :P :) However, I tend to look at both terms as social mindsets, in which case we are barely holding away from being in a depression.

I don't get how people keep arguing that Obama is going to raise your taxes. How often does it need to be repeated that taxes will only be raised if you make $250,000 or more per year.

There are a lot of issues involved in the difficulties of the impoverished getting employment. Sure, there will be some (and it really is a small percentage) who will game the system to try to live off of welfare, but that just means there needs to be active countermeasures. There are people at the top of the income chain gaming the system as well, but the countermeasures present there are frequently accompanied by deliberate loopholes.

Why is there so much crime in New York, Chicago, and DC? Could it possibly be due to low income/high per capita? The majority of that crime is due to a lack of prospects and overcrowding. Many countries have more stringent gun laws nationally, and have much lower per capita crime rates. But I've already listed some arguments for gun control with you in other posts, and I'll note that Gun Control =/= an outright gun ban. No one (outside of the standard %age of extremists) is arguing for all guns to be taken away. Just for limitations on calibers and automatic weapons, usually.

There's no doubt that Medicare and Social Security need to be revised - that doesn't mean they need to be dropped entirely.

I can't answer for everyone, but why I'm pro-Obama:
First of all, the Democratic platform fits the majority of my values better than any other platform I'm aware of. I'm for equal rights regardless of race, ethnicity, religion, gender, and sexual preference. That includes being pro-choice, although many pro-life supporters have trouble recognizing that there are degrees of pro-choice. I'm for strong education, and for me the military option should be the final option. I'm for strong social programs that provide checks and balances to provide opportunities to those who would otherwise be without in an entirely free system. So it would be highly unusual for me to vote non-Democrat given the current political set-up.
As for why I supported Obama in the primaries: he's intelligent and even tempered. Those are particularly important to me given the current administration, and I feel Obama fits the latter in particular better than Hillary would have. Also, while many of his proponents have given him an aura of being 'destined,' I've never gotten a feeling from him that he's felt entitled the way Hillary did. Based on the way he's run his campaign and given his performance in the debates, I like him even more. He plans things out carefully and is willing to approach problems rather than only talking around them. Sure, he's done so a little bit, but much less than any other politician I've seen running for national office lately. Frankly, I don't care about his race or his age - he's just impressed me all around.

I really don't feel like voicing my complaints against McCain (who I seriously would have considered voting for back in 2000). So far as he's concerned, writing it up would take a long time and would just be annoying for me, and you could probably have more fun watching The Daily Show episodes online. :)

[kumarian]

Wow, an honest to god answer why Obama (not that I didn't expect an honest answer from you, it;s just no other Obama supporter has done that in response to my questions.) For that I thank you.

There are points that I agree with you equal rights, strong education, checks and balances, but there are so many things about the man himself that bothers me. Why is it so hard to show me a birth certificate - not a certificate of live birth (two very different forms)? Using Missouri police to crack down on free speech. His connections to Acorn, and to Bill Ayers. The fact that he hasn't be re-elected to any position. His constant blame for the current housing bust to the current administration and not where it belongs - Carter and Clinton.

These are the things that worry me