I have taken Jesus Christ as my savior, IMO, that answers to which side I am on.

 

:thumb:

I've seen arguments that Jesus was conservative, as well as those to the effect that he was liberal; particularly regarding redistribution of wealth.

I've seen arguments that Jesus was conservative, as well as those to the effect that he was liberal; particularly regarding redistribution of wealth.

 

He was definitely opposed to forced redistribution of wealth.

I've seen arguments that Jesus was conservative, as well as those to the effect that he was liberal; particularly regarding redistribution of wealth.

 

I agree with many of the principles and emotions that the Democratic party stands behind- giving to the poor, universal health care, etc.- just not their methods. If they worked, which they don't, I'd support them. As Getslow said:

 

 

It's a tough world out there for Catholics looking to vote. As a Catholic, I could see this country being a much better place if everyone had health care. That is a very strong Democratic principle. On the other hand, the Democratic party's consistent advancement of abortion as a right and not as the taking of a human life deserving dignity is one that I can NEVER support. A lot of the ideals of the Democratic Party are not horrible, I would just go about them in different ways... but when it comes to the issue of life and human dignity... we have little common ground.

With a few exceptions, I'm basically a Libertarian. I don't care what you do, unless it threatens my family, livelihood, or bank account. I want government out of my life as much as possible. The preamble to the Constitution says " promote the general Welfare", not provide it.

 

 

As to the listed issues...

 

1. Death penalty; Nope. Too easy an out. Bring back chain gangs and hard labor camps. Example: If somebody needs labor to harvest their crops, then I see no reason not to use murderers as opposed to illegal aliens. The land owner can pay the same and thus the inmates work for their own up keep.

 

2. Steeply progressive income taxes and the belief that the rich should be forced to give back more to share with the poor; Eliminate personal income tax. Go to a national sales tax instead. Scale back property taxes to cover essential services, such as police and firemen.

 

3. Estate taxes; No. Double taxation, but that's why God invented Trusts.

 

4. Abortion; Only in the case of rape, incest, and to save the mother's life

 

5. Welfare programs (including increased govt provided/paid health insurance); Workfare not welfare. If somebody needs help, I want to help, but if they are capable of working, there are streets to be cleaned, parks to be policed, municipal buildings that need painting, ... etc. Regarding health care, at the present, no emergency room in the U.S. can turn away anybody, regardless of ability to pay or level of illness. As a matter of fact, ONE reason heath care costs have sky rocketed in this country is because of the amount of revenue needed to cover the current level of indigent care provided. National Heath Insurance will lower the quality of care for all, not lift it for those unable to pay for insurance now. With the exception of love and beer, I've never seen anything free, that's better than what you pay for.

 

6. Privatized social security; Definitely

 

7. Degree of Govt regulation of business; No corporate income tax. Any usage of public resources should be fee based. Property taxes should be limited to revenue to fund police and fire protection.

 

8. Minimum wage; No

 

9. Gay marriage; could care less

 

10. Gun ownership rights.All Americans should have the right to own firearms. However, I have no problem with back round checks and waiting periods. Also, class 3 weapons (automatic and suppressed weapons) should remain class 3.

 

I also agree with rockmom on education.