United Liberty
Anti-Johnson Crowd is Full of Cowards
Thu, 10/11/2012 - 12:20pm | posted by Jeremy Kolassa
Not a day goes by when I get a message from a conservative telling me that I must vote for Mitt Romney, not just because a vote for Gary Johnson (or anyone other than Romney or Obama) would be a wasted vote, but that we must vote for the one guy who has a shot of defeating Obama to save our country. That we absolutely cannot vote for anyone other than Romney, because if Obama gets another four years this country will no longer exist. There’s a reason for this.
They’re cowards.
Some examples of the comments I’ve received:
We are on the preverbial roof of a house while the flood waters are rising. The rescue boat is here to help us off the roof and to drier ground. Are you going to say, no I would rather stay on the roof until a helicopter comes because I like helicopters better?
And:
Let me be clear, Romney was not my first, second, third, fourth,or even fifth choice! But I would vote for the town drunk before I voted for Obama. As far as the status quo you say, well I think we have to STOP THE BLEEDING, you may not agree with that approach but the last four years of the wrecking ball smashing away at the economy everyday I believe we need to try a different approach. Such as getting more people back to work so there is more people paying taxes.
The thing is that there is virtually no evidence that Romney is either A) piloting the rescue boat coming to get us, or B) going to do anything to stop the bleeding. The man is very acutely interesting in expanding our military budget, while doing little to reform our bloated entitlements or actually cutting spending beyond the Corporation for Public Broadcasting—which is a good move, but not enough to save us from the black hole we’re spiraling into.
Because of the utter lack of differences between Romney and Obama, I must ask why people are being so forceful in demanding we vote for Romney. The only conclusion I can come to is that they are cowards. They are not being brave or courageous, as they may think they are. Rather, they are being motivated entirely by fear.
Actually, “motivated” is the wrong word. The proper word is “controlled.” They are being controlled by their fear, consumed by it. Instead of being in control of their own destinies, they are so wracked by fear that they are just reacting to it, being virtual slaves to it.
For what it’s worth, it’s understandable and I sympathize. Obama has been a disaster in the White House. The economic recovery can be best described as “anemic,” or a “noncovery.” He’s also been fairly bad on foreign policy, atrocious on civil liberties (NDAA, anyone?), created the monstrosity known as Obamacare, and at every step has either trampled on the Constitution or made it harder for Americans to actually go back to work. His administration has been a wreck.
But does that mean we should vote for Romney?
I don’t know about you, but watching the debate in Denver last week, it was pretty clear that Romney isn’t much different. First off, the man said that he “loves green energy.” That’s become a watchword for “wasteful corporate subsidies” and a synonym for “Solyndra.” Second, he also said he didn’t want to cut education spending. That’s a huge waste in our government, and while not the #1 thing dragging us down (that’s entitlements and military spending, the former Romney will do jack on and the latter he wants to increase), that is something that can definitely be cut. That he doesn’t want to shows he isn’t serious about fixing our problems and is not the savior conservatives want.
But they gloss over all of these flaws to relentlessly push for Romney, a man just eight months ago they hated with a passion. They gloss over the fact that Romney is really just Obama, only with Caucasian skin and a red tie. They gloss over all his statements where he has proven he isn’t a believer in truly limited government.
Instead of taking a principled stand, they cower in the shadow of Obama. So overcome with fear of this one man they have allowed themselves to be duped into voting for what is essentially his “conservative” surrogate. That is not courage. To vote for a man who represents no change from the status quo, except that he is from the opposite party of the incumbent, is nothing more than abject cowardice.
This has to end. Until we as Americans stand up for literal free markets and a truly free society, will we have no solace. We cannot and must not allow fear to dictate our actions. That’s not the America I grew up in, and it’s certainly not the America I want to leave to my eventual children.
I am not a coward. And that is why I—as a private citizen—will not vote Republican this year.
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Two things that I think matter a lot, and on which the candidates differ a lot, is what kind of judges they are likely to appoint, and what kind of regulations they will pursue against business.
Even though there are huge liberty issues that they do not substantially differ on—and, really, *because* they are so similar in other liberty issues (since Obama hasn’t shown himself to support the kinds of liberty you would expect a Democrat to support)—this is a big difference to me.
When choosing between humans we are always choosing the lesser of two evils. The decision as to whether to make a “statement vote”/”conscience vote”/”protest vote” versus a “strategic vote” should be made (I think) based on the size of the difference you see between the “chance of winning” candidates. If you see no difference—for example, if Obama was severely reducing the spending on empire and ending the war on drugs and reducing foreign intervention, but perpetuating/worsening the welfare state, and Romney wanted to end the welfare state but expand the warfare state, then I could see voting for your conscience candidate, since we can expect the damage to liberty on the net to be about the same.
In this election, though, I see SO MUCH damage done by Obama’s regulatory appointments in a time where people are truly suffering from lack of opportunities to work, etc, that I believe we will see a significant increase in liberty under Romney compared to Obama (not to mention the very long lasting damage to liberty his judicial appoints are going to be).
In my opinion, what this means is that if you live in a state like I do where the outcome is known, you vote Johnson. If you live in a swing state, you vote Romney.
If you live in a swing state and want to vote Johnson, you could make a deal with someone you know who lives in a not-in-play state that Romney is pretty much guaranteed to win. You tell them “look, I prefer Johnson, but I’ll vote Romney in my state if you’ll vote Johnson in yours”.
(Caveat: I don’t know if it’s legal to make a deal like this—like whether it violates “vote selling” laws or whatever—so while I’m suggesting it as a possible strategy, I don’t recommend you attempt it without first finding out if it’s legal.)
Personally, I’m in Texas, so I’ll probably vote Johnson. I want the Republicans to see the largest defection to Libertarians possible without giving Obama 4 more years, so that is how I will probably make my voice heard. If I were in Florida or Ohio I would be voting Romney.
I understand your reasoning in calling a strategic vote for Romney cowardice, and for some people making that decision perhaps that’s all it is. But I personally believe there is a strategic calculation to be made and that it is principled to do so.
Should slavery have been enshrined in the Constitution? I think it was a terrible flaw to have that in there. But if people had “stood on principle” and not allowed it, perhaps they would not have been able to unite into a sufficiently strong body to ward off foreign invasion.
The idea of leaving slavery constitutionally untouchable for a limited period of time, I’m sure, seemed extremely awful to people who truly believed in liberty for all human beings. And the aftermath of keeping slavery legal was undeniably terrible. But would there have been a greater loss of liberty had England been able to retake America?
I don’t think there is any easy way to answer these questions. History is complicated—including the history we are making now, I mean. Because of that, I think it’s not really as easy as you think to know what the “principled” position is. I certainly feel principled in mine.
>implying Romney Judges will not support the continued erosion of the 4th Amendment
>Implying Romney judges will do anything to address the taking clause abuse
>implying Romney judges will do anything to strengthen the 10th Amendment
>implying a “conservative” judge was not the tie breaker in the Obamacare decision
>implying a Romney administration will do anything to reform federal regulations
>implying even if Romney tried the media would not attack his administration until he gave up, which he would because Romney is a spineless chameleon.
>implying the Constitution and not the 9th Amendment institutionalized slavery
>implying the British did not invade the US because of the Constitution and not the turmoils of the Hastings scandal, the French Revolution and the general desire not to fight a minor power in the backwater of North America
you sir, are the cancer killing America.
That’s a lot of thoughtful writing. But I couldn’t get past the first sentence about what kind of judges might get appointed. I expect Romney would give us judges like that great conservative, Justice Roberts. You know, the one who approved Obamacare.
I find the establishment Republicans are just liars. Under no circumstance would I vote for them or any establishment Democrat, like Obama. The picks of the insiders? Not for me.
Gary Johnson is the least of the evils this go ‘round. At least he’s not a liar.
msouth,
Your logic is great until you look at it from the perspective of the slave. Sure, African Americans are better off now, but there were multiple generations who were stuck in slavery because people didn’t stand on their principles from day 1.
Either way, it didn’t turn out that way so saying that if people had stood on their principles the United States would not exist is meaningless. Nobody knows how it would have turned out.
But your analogy is useless even if we ignore that it is meaningless. You still haven’t addressed the fact that Romney will not save us. He won’t stop stop our coming monetary collapse, he will continue to pile on more debt and has made it clear he does not care about our civil liberties (he supports the NDAA). So your point is lost on me completely. I will vote on my principles and will not vote for the Republican’s version of Obama. Because, in reality, that is all Romney is. He supports most everything Obama supports, but is Caucasian.
I think the term slavery is thrown around a lot. What is the difference between a person with a low income from a job they don’t want and a slave. In this economy a lot of people are working long hours and not getting to see their families just to feed the ones they love. That is a slave to society, the difference is he can quit but his wife would leave him and he probably couldn’t get another job. We all know there are good bosses and bad bosses. I think slavery in those days was like that. Now days people who have no clue about work sit around and want to point fingers at who the bad guys are. We as a nation have come along way from those days the difference is modern day slaves sit on their couch and vote for their food. I was taught nothing is free so if you look at it that way are the life time welfare people doing anything other than voting for a little food and a place to sleep? They are slaves to the democrats!
Slavery is when the fruits of your labor belong to someone else and you can do nothing about it. It’s when you are told how many times to wash your hands, what you can wear, where you can go, whom you can marry, what you can eat, how many hours you can work, how much you get paid, what kind of light bulb you must use, what you can’t say, how many times you can withdraw from your savings, when you must be scanned, how many times you must be vaccinated, and on and on…
The government has become the master, not the employer. We are working for them, they get half our pay, and control so many things in our lives that ignorance of the law is normal and unavoidable, and even Congress doesn’t read the bills before voting. The President just does anything he wants to do, regardless of the law. People are assasinated because he says so. Sounds like slavery to me, and I didn’t volunteer for it, that’s for sure. I’ll be voting for Gary Johnson.
The writers of the Constitution had to start somewhere. I have thought a lot about the slavery issue and why it was left alone. I believe that there was no way that those men would be convinced by other men to change their ways. Providence, a vital element to a free republic, is the only way a man’s heart can have the courage to see the errors of his ways. Providence is essential in the equation of good government. Stand on principle. Hold true to liberty because there is no compromise.
msouth, I think you make some good points about strategy, but it is this sort of “strategic” voting over “two evils” that has prevented a third choice from entering the fray for some time now. I stand behind my conscience and vote Liberty. I know that if enough people wake up we can win and every vote now is a step towards waking folks up to this possibility. I applaud you if you vote Johnson in TX, but I would do the same if I were in Ohio or Florida. Liberty-mindedness is what will save this nation again…
Hahahahahahahahaha, sorry for laughing, but honestly there is absolutely no reason to vote for Romney. The author is completely on point, if your scared of Obama let me put your mind at ease by saying…the aware Americans are not going to put up with much more. If you don’t believe me go to your local gun store start talking about Obama, and Romney and how the government is out of control. Let me know if what you see is fear, or unbridled anger. The militias are fed up, we are coming to a boiling point, and to be perfectly honest the R party had a golden opportunity to fix things the peaceful way, but Ron Paul wasn’t acceptable, because he would have taken away much of the corporate governments power. God forbid that should happen. No if we end up in a new revolutionary war the blame will lie squarely on the shoulders of establishment R’s and the people to dumb to think for themselves. Don’t blame me I voted for Ron Paul.
Im not worried about the cops. Im more concerned about the military killing American Citizens in the name of our Facist Nazi Government. Either way, Im ready for a Revolution.
Your concern for the military turning on it’s own is unfounded. Although not everyone who serves is studied in their nations founding document, but are loyal to the country non the less. Many of us who have shouldered the burden of our foreign policy can see through the lies as we have seen with our own eyes, the games children play. No sir, our brave men and women will largly support and defend our Constitution. Look at the oath keepers if you chose to disbelieve.
How are things working out with judges appointed by Republican Presidents?
How did that Justice Roberts appointment work out with Obamacare?
Based on his continually flip flopping rhetoric, how can you preface your comment with the assumption that Romney is going to appoint any judge that aligns with cherished Constitutional interpretations?
How can you expect me, or anyone, to read your entire rant when you preface it with an assumption that is likely to make an arse out of u and me?
A vote for Johnson is not a “protest vote,” a “conscience vote,” or a “statement vote.”
A vote for Johnson is the only vote one can make to help build a true alternative to the D-R stranglehold on American politics.
Gary Johnson is an eminently qualified presidential candidate. He is on the ballot in 48 states and D.C. How does that happen? By magic? No, it happened because for 40 years people with vision and courage “threw away” their vote, choosing to build the LP into a viable alternative to the Ds and Rs. We voted for Badnarik, and Browne, and Marrou, and Hospers and all the other LP candidates for state and local office. We put in vast hours of organizing and working to build an alternative. It is what we built that attracted Gary Johnson.
If we are ever - and I mean EVER - going to have something other than two sides of the same coin, controlled by crony capitalists, the military-industrial complex, and the poverty pimps, then someone, sometime has to build that alternative. Putting it off for another election cycle simply assures that we delay changing the status quo.
The fact that next year’s president will nominate judges isn’t a compelling reason to throw away your vote, essentially leaving to others the job of building an alternative to the status quo. That kind of thinking is what elected Nixon and GW Bush and the rest of the long line of losers that has created $16 trillion in debt, had America at war, snuffing young kids’ lives for over a decade, brought us the wasteful War on Drugs, and all the rest of a system that is wrecking our children’s lives.
Glad to hear after all that thinking you did that you are going to vote for Gary Johnson. Before you recommend that folks vote for Romney, please visit iamthewitness.com. Scroll down a bit on the right hand side to the photo of the elder Bush and a guy with a beard. It’s a 40 minute video. If I was going to vote for Romney, which I wasn’t, I wouldn’t after seeing this. Almost all politicians are crooked. America needs to wake up and realize that. When we get an opportunity to vote for someone with character, we should all vote for that person otherwise our country is done for and so is the future of our children and grandchildren.
Some other gems are accusations of hating America and supporting the “Muslim Marxist”. I think you’re right about many of them. I also think a large portion of them treat the whole thing like a sport or reality show. They are rooting for their team. Many people simply don’t want to hear anything about Romney other than praise. They ignore is record and even his words. They’ve totally bought in to the idea that this is an epic battle between Socialism and Capitalism which is patently absurd. But, it’s simple and makes it easy to root for your team.
Good article!
Open Letter to Libertarians
Dear Libertarians,
Stop attempting to support politicians who do not make the right kinds of efforts for your cause. Do I support Ron Paul? Yes. Does it really matter? No. Why? Because he is part of the Republican Party. Why are you wasting your time supporting a candidate who you knew there was a 200% possibility of not being nominated? Instead of focusing your attention on someone like Gary Johnson, you fell into the trap of supporting a great person who was on the wrong team. At this stage of the game you can even call it the “conspiracy theory” of maintaining the status quo. Please realize that you are being fooled into remaining focused on the views of Republicans and Democrats.
Do any of us have a functional brain (including myself)? As much as I support Ron Paul, think very hard about the following question. Why are Libertarians and other third-parties supporting Republicans? These are two completely different viewpoints. You need to stop thinking about the individual, in this Ron Paul, and start thinking about who you are representing and who is representing you.
That being said, I vow to NEVER support a Republican or Democrat. Supporting someone because he/she is the “lesser of two evils” is exactly why the future of the United States of America’s does not seem very pleasant. Has anyone ever considered that if we take ALL of those write-in votes for Ron Paul (Republicans) and give them to Gary Johnson it will make a huge impact in the numbers?
I ask that you stop being fake Libertarians and start supporting the real revolution. This is not limited to voting. We need journalists/bloggers to stop mentioning Ron Paul, simply because he belongs to the Republican Party. Are you not able to realize that no matter what a politicians views are, you are foolishly, unsuspectingly promoting what you oppose? I propose that you find a local or national Libertarian Party group that shares your views, and promote that party ONLY. Let’s stop inadvertently supporting Republicans, Democrats, and the mainstream media, and let’s start promoting real, libertarian issues and solutions.
Juscelino M. Acevedo
I don’t recall seeing Ron Paul mentioned once in this article…
Personally, I refuse to support the murder of civilians at home and aboard by out militarist and authoritarian government, nor shall I willingly submit myself or my fellow Americans to the serfdom of the Democrat-Republican Oligarchy. If you had any conscience, you would do the same.
The party doesn’t matter, its the principles that matter.
Gary Johnson and Ron Paul have different views on several issues and I prefer Ron Paul over Gary Johnson.
I couldn’t care less what party he put next to his name. He could have chosen to run as a democrat and I would have voted for him.
I will vote for Gary Johnson since he is the only candidate on the ballot that comes close to my views.
What you should never do is vote party line. This is how we get lunatics that don’t read bills before signing them or believe a woman won’t get pregnant via “real” rape. I’ve learned long ago that the R and D are meaningless.
well said Sir!
Here’s your chance to vote for Gary Johnson: http://celebrity-plugs.com/t/
“I must ask why people are being so forceful in demanding we vote for Romney. The only conclusion I can come to is that they are cowards.” Most prople, who agree with your positions, tend to be Republican. When you say Romney and Obama are the same and it wouldn’t matter which of them are elected, you are wrong. You are a waste of a vote. I hate to say it, but the by the very fact that you don’t understand that, makes you more of a waste of a vote.
moron
The only wasted vote is for a candidate you don’t believe in or agree with. Both mainstream parties terrify me for different reasons, but both of them scare me on both economic and social issues. As a rational person, I’m scared of the Democrats that pushed Obamacare with the line that “if we want to see what’s all in it, we have to pass it.” If I have to allow something before I know what I’m allowing, then I’ll choose not to know. That’s a sneaky, deceitful tactic to get things passed that they know are objectionable. As a woman, I’m equally terrified of the Republicans that buy into the “legitimate rape” fantasy - and here, Paul Ryan actually scares me more than Romney. The fact that he says what he does with a bright smile on his face makes my heart stop in fear. Any governing bodies that rule to disallow use of the word “vagina” or other medically-termed references to the female reproductive organs in a discussion about female reproductive health and who silence or ignore the women in the discussion when most men don’t seem to understand the mechanics of the female side of reproduction is repulsive and unfathomable.
Add to this that the overwhelming majority of these lunatics are lawyers and don’t actually have any understanding of how the systems they are attempting to regulate actually function, and I can’t comprehend how we’ve survived THIS long.
I voted absentee (I’m a student), and I voted Libertarian because I can actually understand the trains of thought that Johnson lays out. I can even actually respect Ron Paul as a person and a politician because I understand where his beliefs come from. I agree with the overwhelming majority of what Johnson stands for, and I think I can survive another 4 years and wait for him to be a factor, with allotted campaign funds and more media attention. I CANNOT, however, support either of the portraits of insanity in the meantime.
I say to you precisely what I said to my parents when they told me I wasted my vote: the only wasted vote is a vote for someone you don’t agree with.
Live free, not with stopgaps.
Ed, Your argument is EXACTLY what we are saying is wrong. YOU are the one who doesn’t understand. If we all voted our conscience, we would have had a much different America right now. Because of your mentality infecting America, we have what we have. We now see more clearly that your statement is a lie, meant to keep people voting either D or R.
I understand the desire to stand on principle. I also understand that you may take issue with some of the positions of Romney and Ryan. What I don’t understand is how you can say that there’s really no difference between Romney and Obama. There is a huge difference. HUGE!
Vote your conscience, but do so knowing that if you’re in a swing state, your vote may seem brave to you, but it is, indeed, a vote for Obama. Perot handed the presidency to Bill Clinton. Do you really want to help hand the presidency to Obama and Biden? I don’t.
Please elaborate how Romney and Obama have a huge difference between them.
I read an article posted on johnson’s Facebook about stealth republicans paid to campaign as libertarians voting romney…we know what you are now: no better than the devil himself…why dont you go back to him coward? I read bibically that suicide is a fast method…that is what u believe in right?
I understand the desire to stand on principle. I also understand that you may take issue with some of the positions of Romney and Ryan. What I don’t understand is how you can say that there’s really no difference between Romney and Obama. There is a huge difference. HUGE!
Vote your conscience, but do so knowing that if you’re in a swing state, your vote may seem brave to you, but it is, indeed, a vote for Obama. Perot handed the presidency to Bill Clinton. Do you really want to help hand the presidency to Obama and Biden? I don’t.
Gladys,
What are the differences? Some tax cuts with loop hole reduction, or tax increases with no loop hole reduction? Spend 9 trillion in unfunded entitlements or 10 trillion? Sign into law the NDAA and continue the Patriot act, or, well they agree on that. Balance the budget in 30 years, or balance it in 40 years?
They are so similar that someone critically looking at the 2 without bias will see that their ideas for “saving” the country do not address anything of real importance. They both more or less will continue status quo and status quo has got us to exactly where we are: On the brink of monetary collapse.
Sorry, but no. Perot took just as many votes from Clinton, as he did from HW Bush, possibly even MORE so. People liked Clinton’s “It’s the economy stupid.” And Perot was much better than either Clinton or Bush on the economy. Also, you fail to mention the fact that Perot was actually LEADING in the polls before he dropped out of the race (and then got back in). I believe that if he hadn’t dropped out, he might actually have won the election. I know quite a few people who were planning to vote for him, but after he dropped out, and then got back in, said “He just doesn’t seem reliable right now.. You either want to be President.. or you don’t.” The truth is, you have NO IDEA how the election would have turned out if Perot hadn’t gotten into the race. We -do- know however, know that the balanced budget in the 90s would have never have happened if Perot hadn’t scared the establishment so much..
I prefer Gary Johnson and I actually cast my vote for him via absentee ballot here in California. I did it without hesitation because let’s face it my vote here in California doesn’t count as Obama is going to win this state hands down. I wouldn’t call someone who lived in a contested state who chose to vote for Romney a coward though. I can completely understand why someone who preferred Johnson would vote for Romney in a swing state. No matter how much I like him I realize that Johnson and the Libertarian Party don’t have the support to win a state let alone the election. This is due to a bunch of factors but when it comes down to it it really is due to the fact that the Libertarian Party is run poorly. One only has to look at the campaign adds they have created, they are campy and don’t promote Johnson’s platform at all. The only two candidates that have a chance to win are Romney and Obama. It might be sad for American politics but that is the fact. Romney is much closer to Johnson’s stances than is Obama on the fiscal issues that really matter to me and for that fact if I lived in a swing state, where every vote really does count, I would vote for Romney. If you think that would make me a coward I would have to disagree with you.
Well, there’s this thing called money, which it takes to create and run campaign ads, and which the Democrat and Republican parties have a lot more, because they are backed by super-pacs funded by big business. It certainly would help to level the playing field out a bit if their candidate were included in the presidential debates. I don’t understand how any candidate who is officially on the ballot in every state is not allowed to participate in the debates, regardless of where they sit in the polls. Until that changes, the Democratic and Republican candidates are the only ones who will ever stand a chance.
Gary Johnson could win if all the people who don’t like Obama or Romney would vote for him instead. That is, unless the election is rigged. The RNC went to an awful lot of trouble to make sure Romney was their man. They said as much after the first primary which ticked me off - pretty premature. If the people want a Libertarian, they can have one. They just have to stop being afraid and vote for who they like the best. I think Franklin Roosevelt said, “You have nothing to fear but fear itself”. No matter what state you live in, if you prefer that Johnson be the next president, then vote for him. I am. The people I admire the most are the ones who vote for the candidate they actually want. That makes so much more sense to me than voting for the lesser of two evils. The lesser of two evils is still evil and if you need some convincing, go take a look at the video at iamthewitness.com Scroll down to the photo on the right hand side of Bush, Sr. and a bearded guy. Watch the whole thing. You will be glad you did.
I voted for Obama in 2008 and have voted Democratic for most of my voting history. I’ll be voting for Johnson this year. Why? Mostly because of things like extending the Patriot Act, NDAA, redefining “due process”, etc.
Now, as for choosing between Romney and Obama, I’d still take Obama as I really don’t see them as that different, except that Obama is clearly a superior statesman, is upfront with his policies, and I believe he’s a generally good man, if somewhat misguided (perhaps by his own perception of himself as a good man). That being said, whichever one wins won’t really change things that much. We survived eight years of GW Bush, we can survive another four of pretty much anything.
If anything, this election is a liberating one for me simply because Romney and Obama are so similar it really does not matter much which one wins. Both of them will undoubtedly continue destroying the Constitution, expanding our overseas involvement, increasing our homeland survelliance programs, etc. They mostly differ in how they will market the destruction of our civil liberties.
All the Democrats claim that if Romney wins we may as well just hand our cash to the rich, and the Republicans claim that Obama will turn us into a socialist state. Maybe both claims are true, in which case I can only vote for Johnson. Probably both claims are false, so I’ll still vote for Johnson. If all the two major parties have to offer is fear of the other, then clearly they have nothing to offer at all.
This year is the best opportunity I’ve yet seen to vote for a third party.
NO ROBAMNEY!!! it is time we end the Neoconservative rule… If one Man is a Democrat and another Man is a Republican, yet both men are controlled by the neocons (i.e. Rothschild family, Keyneysian theory, and Corporations) then we have lost our ideal of America completely… It is time to educate, learn about neocons and how they have taken over our country systematically, learn about fear propaganda (terrorism threat level orange to pass the Patriot Act (have you ever read it?) With Americans focused on a two-party system and just grinding along to make ends meet, it allows the Government to swell and thus expand its power systematically and exponentially until Americans wake up one day and realize that their foundation has been removed and replaced with false pride and promise…
Remember that every thing Hitler did in Nazi Germany was completely LEGAL…
gladys -
“What I don’t understand is how you can say that there’s really no difference between Romney and Obama. There is a huge difference. HUGE!”
http://politicalcompass.org/uselection2012
as the author stated before, there’s not much of a difference.
A vote for a good candidate is never a wasted vote. I do not buy that initial premise
I must respectfully disagree that”education is a waste of government spending” and have yet to hear a logical argument in its favor. Perhaps you can provide one? Not every parent possesses the funds for private education. An informed and educated populous means the US has a greater chance to compete in the global economy, which seems more relevant now as our currency value plummets. I could be wrong, lets hope I’m not.
Education is important. Government-sponsored education is simply a way for the government to make sure you learn just enough to be a productive citizen, but not enough to challenge the system.
“Not every parent possesses the funds for private education.”
Not every parent possesses the funds for having children either.
If you’re willing to have children, you should AT LEAST be willing to educate them yourself (or pay for it) without expecting a government which is deeply invested in keeping the population as subservient, obedient and ignorant as possible to do it for you.
“An informed and educated populous means the US has a greater chance to compete in the global economy, ”
Would you really call most of the products of public schooling “an informed and educated populace”?
I wouldn’t.
This isn’t a diss to the PEOPLE who went through public schooling (I am one of them). But the purpose of public schooling is not to create an “Informed and educated populace”, it’s to create a population who confuses propaganda and education to the point that government propaganda = “knowledge”.
Most people are (or should be) referring to the Federal Department of Education, created in 1979 by Carter, not state or local education departments. This isn’t about ending public education, it’s about ending federal involvement in it.
You want to know why (public) education is a waste of money?
-Government subsidies raise the cost of education, particularly w/college. “Free” grants and especially no interest loans cause students to bid against one another, and allows the schools to raise prices nonstop. The subsidies raise the prices, benefiting teacher’s unions and administrators. The amount of waste at colleges is staggering.
-Technology tends to make things better, more efficient, and cheaper. Not more expensive (as public educators would have us believe). Yet the cost of education has skyrocketed ever since (shockingly) the government started heavily subsidizing the sector.
-It wasn’t long ago (last century) that you could work part time to put yourself through college, debt free. Now students graduate with a mortgage (but no house), possibly a worthless degree with little or no practical skills (ask any company why they value experience much more), and they aren’t even guaranteed a decent shot at getting a job even after all that.
-Assuming 12 years of high school + 4 years of college is exactly the “right” amount of education for every single profession and job is such a completely ignorant assumption, it’s hard to take the education cult seriously. And do we really need to be educated for 1/3 of our working lives, only draining society’s resources and returning little? The time span of public & college education is arbitrary and leaves little room for more optimal career paths (such as on the job training).
-It’s quite clear at this point that money isn’t the problem. Schools with more money do not always perform better than schools with less money. Other factors matter more, and extra money isn’t going to solve those problems. A stronger & more efficient economy might, though.
-Large amounts of money isn’t really needed, if you think about it. You need a room with desks, someone who knows what they’re talking about with some ability to teach, and some objectively written books (as opposed to the comic book US history books in public schools full of half truths) - which should be priced at reasonable market prices.
-The Internet obsoletes the entire model. At later ages, particularly college, all could be done from home with little or no campus costs. Not to mention the fact that the Internet has become a better source of information in many cases. What they should be teaching is not just the year X event happened in Y place, they should also be teaching how to evaluate the reliability of sources and find out for yourself what happened.
-Private schools are only expensive because public schools exist. It’s kind of hard to compete with “free”, don’t you think? (Of course, they really aren’t free, because we’re paying an absurd amount for these schools.) Without public schools, private schools would move in to take their place - and even better, they’d have to compete with one another both in quality and cost. Oh, and it increases freedom - you aren’t forced into a particular school (bad or otherwise) simply because you live in the wrong area. Let bad schools fail, let better run schools take over.
-Education has become a cult-like obsession, we’re told that without college you’re essentially a failure. Tell that to the successful plumbers, electricians, small business owners, and so on who never went yet provide much more value to society than a worthless MBA educated failure running banks and large corporations into the ground.
-College & white collar jobs aren’t for everyone. We need blue collar jobs, we need manufacturing jobs. And plenty of people like doing such work. It’s time to stop trashing people that do hard, tangible, NEEDED work. Many of those jobs pay quite well, too. We have too much retail & consumption, and the trade deficit shows it.
-The form of public school education (topics & methods) forced on Americans by the government is not the only form of education. Other forms such as trade schools & on the job apprenticeships are also perfectly valid, and arguably much more effective. A public with more diversity in education types is arguably better.
-It’s dangerous giving the government a near monopoly on education; “history is written by the victors” (the Alexander Hamilton nanny state) bears truth even in the US. Public school history books are one-sided (pro-Federal & Hamiltonian government) and lacking in very relevant details. You’d be appalled if you researched the original, non-revised sources to learn a more accurate version.
-Compulsory education is amoral and arrogant. Who are we (or politicians/bureaucrats) to decide for a low income individual whether attending high school or getting a job will benefit them more? Only the individual can decide what is best for them in their particular unique circumstances. Assuming that “the poor” are too stupid to understand that dropping out of school is sacrificing long term potential for short term gain (a choice that they should be free to make, in a free country) is arrogant and insulting to low-income individuals.
If you haven’t heard ANY of these reasons, you haven’t looked very hard (or in the right places).
Romney and his minions can suck a d***. This registered Republican is voting Johnson.
Anon, I really just want to hug you right now. Phrasing = perfect.
“An informed and educated populous means the US has a greater chance to compete in the global economy, ”
Would you really call most of the products of public schooling “an informed and educated populace”?
I wouldn’t.
This isn’t a diss to the PEOPLE who went through public schooling (I am one of them). But the purpose of public schooling is not to create an “Informed and educated populace”, it’s to create a population who confuses propaganda and education to the point that government propaganda = “knowledge”.
I am a retired veteran of the US Army, injured in the line of duty and still suffering from my wounds both physical and mental. I am anything but a coward. I am voting for Mitt Romney, whether any else approves or not. Simply to call someone a coward because they do not support your candidate is nothing more then second grade mentallity. I am no coward sir.
If you read the article, and comprehended the message then you would not be defensive about the point it was making. This article is pointing out that if you are saying that a vote for Johnson is guaranteeing an Obama victory, or that you like Johnson but he isn’t electable, or anything else along though scare tactic type of suggestions than you are a coward.
If you are voting for Romney because you actually like him then kudos to you—but many are not.
Furthermore, thank you for your service but your status as a veteran is not relevant to this article or your position. By waiving that banner around you are similarly using a second grade mentality.
So basically what you are telling us is that you are voting for the guy who slammed you because you are part of the 47%, the ones who live off of the government teet.
I don’t believe that. I don’t think Gary Johnson believes that, but Romney and Ryan surely do.
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