4.2 million in one day

[Beckwin]

socialist party goooooooo!

Ron Paul is probably my favorite republican candidate, but that doesn't mean I don't have issues with him. His opposition to the Iraq war and support of universal healthcare are strong points and really fucking progressive for a member of the GOP, but he still opposes gay marriage and supports "Fair Tax" or whatever it's called, which iirc would get rid of the IRS as we know it and essentially do away with any form of income tax. tbh I think it's a crock of shit made to appeal to blue-collar voters that can't really function well in the end, not to mention isn't entirely fair (those with greater portions of their money that they don't *have* to spend or can invest benefit disproportionately).

Still, he seems like a very decent man and at least worthy of respect. I don't forsee any bathroom-busts or corporate reach-arounds from the guy.

[Eaglestrike]

welcome to american politics

I'd love to see the day someone that isn't the democratic/republican's party lead candidate win

I'd love to see the day when we abolish the bipartisan system.

We've been progressing slowly toward a tripartisan system, as a third party often makes its way into the mainstream media and presidential debates. One day, a third party might be on equal terms with the republicans and democrats. So don't worry, we won't be bipartisan forever.

The system is setup so that only a bipartisan system will last, so don't count on that changing. If a third party rises, one of the current parties will fall.

[Stolin]

but he still opposes gay marriage .

This is true, but at least he believes that whether or not gay marriage should be legal should be a state decision not a federal one.

[pohibaba]

We've been progressing slowly toward a tripartisan system, as a third party often makes its way into the mainstream media and presidential debates. One day, a third party might be on equal terms with the republicans and democrats. So don't worry, we won't be bipartisan forever.

We've had a two party system since 1796, why would it change now? Honestly, it's the most efficient way to run politics (don't take this as me endorsing the system, I'm a Libertarian). Whenever a third party starts to make significant progress only one of two things are bound to happen.

1) The third party replaces one of the two major parties. The best example of this is in the election of 1860 when the election of Lincoln helped move the Republican party passed the Whig Party.

or

2) One of the two major parties adopts the ideology of the third party just enough to make the actual third party useless. The best example of this is the rise of socialism/communism during the 1920s-30s. The Democratic Party accepted their theory of statism and is still one of its major ideologies today.

[Khamsin]

socialist party goooooooo!

If the socialist party and nationalist party were to merge, would they become the national-socialist party?

[Kuya]

2) One of the two major parties adopts the ideology of the third party just enough to make the actual third party useless. The best example of this is the rise of socialism/communism during the 1920s-30s. The Democratic Party accepted their theory of statism and is still one of its major ideologies today.

Not to mention the wave of extreme anti-socialism/communism that pretty much destroyed the chances of these idealogies ever developing in the US.

[pohibaba]

His opposition to the Iraq war and support of universal health care are strong points and really fucking progressive for a member of the GOP

While he certainly opposes the Iraq War, and is the only major candidate from either party to do so from the very beginning, he certainly does not support "universal health care" as socialists understand the term. His position on health care can be found here. Basically, he wants to eliminate the 1974 ERISA law, "which grants tax benefits to employers for providing health care, while not allowing similar incentives for individuals."

supports "Fair Tax" or whatever it's called, which iirc would get rid of the IRS as we know it and essentially do away with any form of income tax. tbh I think it's a crock of shit made to appeal to blue-collar voters that can't really function well in the end, not to mention isn't entirely fair (those with greater portions of their money that they don't *have* to spend or can invest benefit disproportionately).

Dr. Paul's policy on taxes can be found here. Basically, his idea is that people know how to spend their money better than the government does, and that allowing people to do so would spur the economy much more than forceful dispersement of it.

[Beckwin]

his idea is that people know how to spend their money better than the government does

And I really can't agree with that. I also still view it as favoring the wealthy. This: "or allows a business owner to save thousands in capital gains taxes and hire more employees"- struck me as kind of paradoxical; a business owner isn't going to hire more employees unless it'll make him more money in the end, so this isn't really a benefit for workers. The unemployment rate in the US is just about as low as it will realistically go (there will always be people with circumstances where they can't work or long stretches where some in higher-specialized fields spend looking for a job, etc). My problem with conservative/libertarian economics is you know exactly what direction corporations will go the more freedom you give them- wherever there is more profit; everything else is secondary.

Thanks for the clarification on his healthcare policy. I hadn't read too much into it, just watched the youtube vid once a few months ago. Still, what he's talking about is a step in the right direction. Any step to knock down costs for everyone would be a help in getting good healthcare to more of the country.

[Maxxthepenguin]

Ron Paul is a fucking nutjob...

He literally wants to cut all our alliances with other countries and destroy such programs the education system. I like his honesty, but it just helps show that his policies are fucked up.

[Eaglestrike]

Ron Paul is a fucking nutjob...

He literally wants to cut all our alliances with other countries and destroy such programs the education system. I like his honesty, but it just helps show that his policies are fucked up.

The education system is shit. Everyone is more concerned with scoring well on tests and having good statistics than actually teaching students.

How can anyone make the argument the government does things more efficiently than something else? The government is known for being incredibly shitty in the efficiency department. Moving things away from the government is going to speed up everything.

Ron Paul is about emphasizing personal responsibility, which is how Republicans used to be a couple decades ago, as well as being one of the founding principles of this country.

[Kuya]

You kind of get screwed either way, wether it be run by the government or a private sector. Best you can come up with is an autonomus institution bound only by the government in the sense that it receives funding from tax dollars. Unless of course, alot of those already exist?

[pohibaba]

Ron Paul is a fucking nutjob...

He literally wants to cut all our alliances with other countries and destroy such programs the education system. I like his honesty, but it just helps show that his policies are fucked up.

Wow, you're getting all hot and bothered by something that you simply don't understand. Dr. Paul simply wants to cut all our obligations to other countries so that we can fully focus on our own affairs. No one is a bigger advocate of trade alliances with other nations than he is. His policy on American Independence can be found here.
His policy on foreign policy can be found here.

As for education, Dr. Paul understands that government education is one of the least efficient ways to educate the public imaginable. He wants to allow people other options when it comes to schooling. He is Congress' biggest proponent of home schooling. His policy on that can be found here.

[Beckwin]

The more I read his policies, the less I think of the guy. Eh, like Maxx said, at least he's honest, I guess.

[Plow]

socialist party goooooooo!

Ron Paul is probably my favorite republican candidate, but that doesn't mean I don't have issues with him. His opposition to the Iraq war and support of universal healthcare are strong points and really fucking progressive for a member of the GOP, but he still opposes gay marriage and supports "Fair Tax" or whatever it's called, which iirc would get rid of the IRS as we know it and essentially do away with any form of income tax. tbh I think it's a crock of shit made to appeal to blue-collar voters that can't really function well in the end, not to mention isn't entirely fair (those with greater portions of their money that they don't *have* to spend or can invest benefit disproportionately).

Still, he seems like a very decent man and at least worthy of respect. I don't forsee any bathroom-busts or corporate reach-arounds from the guy.

Entire "fair tax" is one giant corporate reach-around.

[ozz]

move to europe you pinko douche

[pohibaba]

socialist party goooooooo!

Ron Paul is probably my favorite republican candidate, but that doesn't mean I don't have issues with him. His opposition to the Iraq war and support of universal healthcare are strong points and really fucking progressive for a member of the GOP, but he still opposes gay marriage and supports "Fair Tax" or whatever it's called, which iirc would get rid of the IRS as we know it and essentially do away with any form of income tax. tbh I think it's a crock of shit made to appeal to blue-collar voters that can't really function well in the end, not to mention isn't entirely fair (those with greater portions of their money that they don't *have* to spend or can invest benefit disproportionately).

Still, he seems like a very decent man and at least worthy of respect. I don't forsee any bathroom-busts or corporate reach-arounds from the guy.

Entire "fair tax" is one giant corporate reach-around.

Too be fair, Dr. Paul isn't a huge supporter of the Fair Tax. He's said in the past that he'd be inclined to vote for it, as a flat sales tax is a lot better than the horrible (and illegal) federal income tax that we have right now. The main issue for him though, is the outrageous spending our congress does, and if the Fair Tax does nothing to curtail that, then what's the point?

[Beckwin]

I'm a fan of government spending that benefits the people.

Entire "fair tax" is one giant corporate reach-around.

Point well taken. I was more or less thinking of the Halliburton type of deal, I guess. Paul doesn't appear (outwardly, at least) to be tightly connected to large corporations.

[Zalius]

Ron Paul is a fucking nutjob...

He literally wants to cut all our alliances with other countries and destroy such programs the education system. I like his honesty, but it just helps show that his policies are fucked up.

sometimes i think you disagree just to disagree

that or you heard someone say he wants to destroy the education system and took it for truth - he wants to cut department of education spending, which has been a useless bag of shit for a good while

[Eaglestrike]

I'm a fan of government spending that benefits the people.

And I believe that the people will benefit more by being able to spend for themselves.

[Plow]

I'm a fan of government spending that benefits the people.

And I believe that the people will benefit more by being able to spend for themselves.

idk my bff jill?