You Know What Kind Of Debate I'd Like To See?

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   crazyhorsesghostposted 12 years ago

   
   
   You know what sort of debate I'd like to see? One with instant fact checkers, a buzzer that goes off when they lie, and a microphone that switches off when their time is up.
   
   And I would like to see them address the real issues like.
   
   1. The Homeless
   2. Hunger In America
   3. All Our Jobs Being Sent Overseas.
   4. Marijuana Should Be Legalized.
   
   But they are not debating those issues.
   
   I wish we had another choice besides Obama or Romney. I don't think either man can help America.

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      Sooner28posted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Don't forget climate change, and marriage equality.  Domestic policy should be ALL of domestic policy, not just taxes.

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         Cody Hodge5posted 12 years agoin reply to this

         I would rather see social issues not having to be codified by the government. I believe the Constitution already guarantees equality for all. Just follow that and we have everything that we need.
         
         Gay marriage shouldn't be an issue

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            Sooner28posted 12 years agoin reply to this

            So marriage licenses should be granted to homosexuals without question.  Glad we are in agreement then.  It shouldn't be an issue at all.

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      JayeWisdomposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      I think your ideas about the instant fact checkers with the buzzers (like on game shows) and power to the mike stopping when time is up are great!  Now, if you have an idea about how to get those implemented before the next debate, that will be even better!
      
      I also agree with the first three issues you listed that should be addressed. I am not for legalizing marijuana, and this is because of personal family experience.  Marijuana is NOT harmless, especially when someone uses it continuously and stays to zoned out to function. Don't say it isn't addictive, because there are two types of addictions--physiological and psychological.

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         JayeWisdomposted 12 years agoin reply to this

         I have a typo in the previous paragraph.  That should read, "...too zoned out to function."

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      prettydarkhorseposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Pinocchio style of debate is good
      
      Look at my nose, oh no!! I promise I won't do it again, oh no, it just keeps on getting bigger..
      
      

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         Uninvited Writerposted 12 years agoin reply to this

         How about a slight electric shock?

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            prettydarkhorseposted 12 years agoin reply to this

            LOL, ouch that hurts! Want another jolt, not again, oh no!!

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               cleaner3posted 12 years agoin reply to this

               really , .... the country is going to hell in a handbasket and the best you have is a cartoon.?
               makes one wonder just what kind of people are you  that you can not debate or offer any points on the topic.!

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                  prettydarkhorseposted 12 years agoin reply to this

                  The point is that they should stop lying otherwise it will bite them back, the politicians!!
                  
                  People like us know better than what they are saying, I for one check about their claims and check it with data! You have to discern what data they are spewing, whether it is reliable.

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                     cleaner3posted 12 years agoin reply to this

                     if there is any lying going on it is by both sides . one side has a record of lies , the other hasn't even had a chance to show how he can do , he  has a proven record of economic knowhow and just might be able to turn our economy around.

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   cleaner3posted 12 years ago

   Wow, really, you want the most powerful men in the world to discuss your petty concerns. This is a list of what you think is important .there are many other issues that are way more important , such as 23 million unemployed people, just because you have a job it isn't important What about war in the middle east ? some young person who is in the military might have to go and die in a foreign country. It isn't important  to you. Gas prices rising for all who drive , food prices are skyrocketing , our money (the dolllar) will soon be worthless.  and you want to worry about  hunger? the liberals want to discuss social issues to distract from the real problems of America. We need change and we need it now .

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      JayeWisdomposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      If you call homelessness and hunger in a country that wastes millions on a foolish NASA  project to check out the surface of Mars--a planet that will not sustain life, so there is no practical benefit, only to satisfy a small group of scientists and other people's curiosity--then I think you have a problem.
      
      Certainly unemployment is important, a war of aggression that the U.S. was dumped in by lying Bush and Cheney, and the prices of both gas and food. But there are millions of people in this country who have no roof over their heads or food for their bodies unless they dig in dumpsters.This is a very REAL problem. If you don't care about them just because YOU aren't hungry or homeless, you are a very sick and selfish person. What if that did happen to you?  (And don't think it can't.  Homelessness can happen to anyone!)

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         cleaner3posted 12 years agoin reply to this

         hunger and homelessness is and should not be a federal program . it is a state issue just like a lot of other things. when has the federal govt done good with any program but waste the taxpayers money .

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            crazyhorsesghostposted 12 years agoin reply to this

            The Federal Government created this problem especially through out much of the old south with NAFTA.
            
            We have many people who are not yet homeless but facing being homeless on almost a weekly basis. Many of these people worked at the textile mills where the jobs were sent oversea. Not only should the federal government fix the problem but any money now being spent overseas should be used to fix the problem.
            
            We also as a country need to set strict limits on what can be imported into this country. If for example we were to say that only 20 percent of textiles could be imported then the other 80 percent would have to be made here in the USA.
            
            It is going to take very hard changes to fix America. It is never going to be fixed by playing party politics. Not ever. We are going to have to forget being Republican or Democrat and think about being American. That is the only thing that will ever work. We have to stop thinking as states or parties and think as one people. The American people. Or eventually America will fail just like Russia did. I may not see it in my life time but it will happen. It is coming.

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               cleaner3posted 12 years agoin reply to this

               good points , the politicians keep us split up to further their own greedy interests . untill we pass term limits , they are the powerful we are only blowing in the wind.

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      Shyron E Shenkoposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Cleaner 3, Are you saying that hunger is not an issue?  I just heard that one out of six childred are starving, IN THIS COUNTRY.
      
      Do you really believe that social programs should be turned over to states.
      Do you not know that we paid for Medicare, Social Security, and Medicaid all our working lives, and the federal government is doing a good of paying out the benefits, and we still pay for Medicare the payment is taken out of Social Security and Ronald Regan when he was unable to end Social Security put a tax on it.  I KNOW, I Pay Social Security tax.  In the secret videotape of Romney saying that 47% percent does not pay taxes.  Look up the videotape.  If these three programs are turned over to states, will be abolished.

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         cleaner3posted 12 years agoin reply to this

         are they starving because  of the federal govt or is it parental responsibility?  I understand that there are many people on food stamps . i would say that personal responsibility has more to do with that than any other reason.  Social Security is a giant hoax on the American people the politicians have already spent the money !    china is  paying for your Social Security now . get real . we are so close to bankruptcy it is very dangerous , the politicians don't care . if we go bankrupt you will see all of America going hungry . !

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            movingoutposted 12 years agoin reply to this

            Actually much of the world would go hunger given what our farmers supply to other countries. As far as the starving issue greed is responsible. When Iwas a kid you could get five loafs of bread for a buck! Now look! Follow the money. The majority of parents are doing the "Best" they can, taking parental responsibilty! But some politicians would like to make us "think otherwise!"

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         movingoutposted 12 years agoin reply to this

         Shyron,you're right, give these over to the states and more people will do without healthcare and never see their contributions paid into SS and Medicare. Oh, but that's all right, us apartment dwellers without insurance can go to the emergency room! lol Or perhaps we can borrow money from our parents to start a business and it won't matter! LMAO Or maybe us poor, not willing to work 47% can set up tent cities!  Or maybe the "voucher system (kinda like s&h greenstamps) will protect our health and well being! lol Romneys trickle down won't work now and it hasn't worked in the past. I'm starting tobelieve they want a caste system. We the serfs and they are the kings and queens! Maybe planet Kolob will give us the answer?

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            cleaner3posted 12 years agoin reply to this

            moving out ,  don't you have any facts other than drone democratic talking points ? obama is a failure and his record from the last four years are proof of this . thats how you can tell a liberal he will right away attack Romney  instead of looking at the current failure in office right now .

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   crazyhorsesghostposted 12 years ago

   If we don't soon address the social issues facing America it will soon be too late. It may in fact be too late already.
   
   Everyone has their ideal of the issues we should be looking at. But those I mentioned in the original post addressed some other issues also. The Democrats and the Republicans voted in NAFTA and that is what destroyed the American Textile Industry. I think the people who voted it in should be tried for treason against the American people.
   
   We need term limits on Congress and on the Senate. We don't need career politicians.
   
   We need politicians that are for America first and to hell with party politics.
   
   Our current system is not working. And it never will. They keep the bullshit political infighting going on to keep the public's mind off the real issues.
   
   Here's one for you. The infrastructure of America is in bad need of repair. Our bridges and roads are in horrible shape and are going to start failing. We better wake up or we are going to be in serious trouble.
   
   Listen we are all in this together. We need to take care of our fellow Americans first and not worry about the problems of other countries. We need to look in our own back yard before we worry about the problems of other countries.
   
   We lock up more people in prison than almost any other country. Drugs is a big part of this. We need to legalize at least marijuana and maybe everything.  We could use the tax money generated to take care of major problems here at home.
   
   Our entire criminal justice system needs to be redone. Its stupid to give out 75-500 year sentences for non violent crimes. Nothing but stupid. We need to take a real hard look at using all the people we have locked up for things like the roads and bridges.
   
   If major changes are not made to America it will fall. I may not live to see it but it will happen.
   
   I've studied the American Politicians and you know what most of them are out for. Special interests and filling their pockets with more dollars.
   
   We need to take the profit out of being a politician and America would be a far better place.
   
   As a former US Naval Officer and combat veteran I love America I have a Veterans pension for the rest of my life and all my medical needs are taken care of but I worry about my country and the people in it. I would love to get excited about a politician from either party and be able to support them fully but that politician today is not out there. I think Obama has tried but he has been blocked by Congress. I would have liked to have seen what he could have done for the last four years with a Democratic Senate and Congress. But I'm just not sure about Obama. I think he wants to help America but he also wants to be a popular president. It's going to take eight years of a democratic or republican president that has a congress and senate of his own party to ever make the changes that need to be made. And its going to take making some really hard choices. Because I think we need to spend every dime fixing America and to hell with the rest of the world. That's the only way America will ever be fixed. But I bet they are going to keep playing party politics and screwing over the average American. I know after fact checking Mr Romney that he is not the answer either. Don't take my word for it check out what he says yourself. He lied plain and simple. And I can't vote for a man like that. No this year it will be a vote for the Green Party for me. I can't with a good conscious vote for Romney or Obama. I feel like I would be betraying America. I wish every other American felt like I do. Now that would be a change for the better.

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      Phyllis Doyleposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      I agree with much of what you say, crazyhorsesghost. I do not think, though, that that a president should have his own political party for the senate and congress. I will have to think deeper about that -- but, I feel there must be more of a balance of equality in the congress and senate.
      
      You stated that "Because I think we need to spend every dime fixing America and to hell with the rest of the world. " I agree totally. We do not need to keep supporting the rest of the world financially. What good does it do for us to send money to one country then have to borrow from another country to pay our debts. And there are far too many people, American citizens, in our country who desperately need help.
      
      Thank you for bringing up this topic. I enjoy reading all the replies. There are many good thoughts here.

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      Shyron E Shenkoposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Tom, I agree with most of what you say.  But, you said you would not vote for Romney and would  be voting for the Green Party, and that is a vote for Romney.  You must know that the Green Party cannot win and any vote for them would take a vote away from President Obama.
      
      Congressmen and Senators should have term limits and they should be paid only for the time they spend working.  Right now they are just working one or two days a week, if that and they get paid big bucks, I would like a job like that, I would be able to help a lot of my fellow Americans.

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   JayeWisdomposted 12 years ago

   I left out a word in my previous post. The last sentence of the first paragraph should end thusly: "  --UNIMPORTANT, then I think you have a problem." (It doesn't make much sense as a sentence fragment. Sorry.)

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   SassySue1963posted 12 years ago

   Legalizing marijuana is not a social issue and definitely not a top issue. For the other issues, you cannot adequately address any social ills without at least a stable economy. You can even better address them with a growing economy.  When in an economic downturn, exactly how do you propose to address them?
   Romney did touch on this a bit in the debate though. He said that the states know best how to help their poor and he is correct. Every state will have different degrees of need in different areas. Part of the problem is that federal money is earmarked specifically for certain things. If the states were allowed more freedom to distribute federal monies where their particular need is greatest, you would see many of these social issues being handled better. Just my opinion but that is how I see it.

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      movingoutposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Romney gave no specifics? He generalized and basically changed his opinions on just about everything? As for states having control, they don't seem to be doing so well either. Wasted spending at best. Obama gave more specifics but still nothing in concrete either.

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         SassySue1963posted 12 years agoin reply to this

         If the states would have control, how can he give specifics? Just within my own state, each area has a different major need. Even within my county it becomes a regional issue. That is the point. States currently cannot designate the distribution of funds. That is part of the problem. All government has some waste and that is certainly part of the issue as well. Government as an entity needs to become more efficient. I don't think you'd get anyone to argue that point. However,  in a comparison of waste, my local government wastes far less than the federal government. I'd much rather they be making decisions that directly affect me and my neighbors than the federal government.

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            movingoutposted 12 years agoin reply to this

            I understand your argument but its a double edge sword. With the Governement making decisions, many decisions are not welcomed by the people. On the other hand if States were able to make decisions, again many decisions would not be welcomed. Looking at how many States and Cities have declared bankruptcy, I'm afraid neither are capable of making good decisions anymore! LOL

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            Reality Bytesposted 12 years agoin reply to this

            The closer government is to the people, the less corruption you will find.  Where I am, the citizens monitor every dollar spent, from salaries to potholes.

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      cleaner3posted 12 years agoin reply to this

      the states know how to better spend the money and direct it to where it is needed. the federal govt gives the money to the states with all the beauracratic strings and regulations attached, that is the problem .

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   movingoutposted 12 years ago

   Perhaps your area is the exception? In Florida they do things on a whim and a prayer. Did they ask the voters about voter id? No. When they cut back the amount of lottery money going to schools did they ask? No. When they imposed all kind of fishing restrictions did they ask the voters? No. When the hand picked which streets to repave did they ask the people? No. and the list goes on and on and on. We need need people in office with "common sense", who can relate to the people! Not their own pocket books!

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      cleaner3posted 12 years agoin reply to this

      elections have repercussions . if your elected officials are corrupt then vote them out of office .  we need to  exercise change when change is needed . to many people are happy with the status qou and are afraid of change .

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         movingoutposted 12 years agoin reply to this

         Not a question of change,  more of a question of going back to the policies that got us into this mess in the first placel

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            cleaner3posted 12 years agoin reply to this

            yeah, the same old tired statemants of blame bush... REALLY. ! where have the last four years gone ..  in reality the economy collapsed at the end of 2007 and when obama took office it was beginning to rebound before they passed the stimulis , that is fact . his policies have contributed  to a the current economic downturn . but go ahead and play thre false narrative of blame bush .

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               movingoutposted 12 years agoin reply to this

               Stocks at record high a bad thing? Economy on the upswing a bad thing? Jobs being created a bad thing? Costs to seniors down a bad thing? Auto industry saved is bad? Consumer spending up is a bad thing? And the list goes on! I put Blame where it lies.

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                  cleaner3posted 12 years agoin reply to this

                  all false points ...  you say corporate profiteering is bad but the stocks are high ? how does this help 23 million people with out work ? 1.2 percent growth, that is the worst in 23 years ?  Seniors  losing benefits due to obamacare .. fact . the price of gas and foood going through the roof.. ... I blame obama for the last four years!

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                     movingoutposted 12 years agoin reply to this

                     Wall street record gains. Why are people out of work? Because companies have outsourced our manufacturing jobs! Follow the money! Senior losing benefits? Just the opposite, do your research. Price of gas thru the roof? Yeah and O'reilly and fox news said the President has no control over those costs when they went up while Bush was President. Oh thats right, double standard! lol I applaud the President for keeping us out of another Great Depression. Had we followed the previous administrations trickle down plan, we'd all be living in tents! Unless of course you're wealthy!)

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                        cleaner3posted 12 years agoin reply to this

                        if you understood economics you would know that stocks and the economic impact they have are only in savings.  reasearch show me where the seniors are better off  4 milllion will be dropped from Medicaid advantage dut to the obama raiding 700 miliion from medicare .  the presidents POLICIES hav an impact, not the president . have you ever heard of the Keystone pipeline ? or the 92 million obama has wasted on solar energy ? you should do some reasearch . he put us into a downward spiral but your liberal mind refuses to see this  class warfare is all you have !

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                           Josakposted 12 years agoin reply to this

                           Oh man this is the funniest thing i have read all day, you insult someone for supposedly not understanding economics but don't even seem to know the difference between million and billion.
                           
                           Then you qoute an outright lie in the 700 million (which should be billion with a b) taken from medicare which in fact never occurred.
                           http://www.factcheck.org/2012/08/medicares-piggy-bank/
                           
                           Then you state another outright lie in the 90 million (again should be billion) to green energy wasted which is actually a completely incorrect figure off by at least 50% and fails to mention the several successes of the same program.  Also only about 5 billion went to solar energy.
                           
                           Then you cover the Keystone pipeline that was ruled dangerous by independent assessment as constituting "a serious risk to the health of the population through contamination of the water supply as well as potentially devastating for the ecology and economy of the area.
                           
                           Then you say he put us in a downward spiral where in fact the period where Obama took power was during the fastest economic collapse in American history since the depression when our GDP growth was at the lowest it had been since the depression, with the highest growth of unemployment etc. etc. basically you are completely unqualified to be discussing the topic let alone insulting other people and everything you said without exception was factually incorrect.

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                              cleaner3posted 12 years agoin reply to this

                              only from a lefty liberal's view.  am I wrong  1.2 % gdp. 8% unemployment ,. if i can't fix this in my first term then I will be a one term president said by your socailist party leader.

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                              cleaner3posted 12 years agoin reply to this

                              million or billion he paid off his political cronies that is fact .!

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   Uninvited Writerposted 12 years ago

   It's funny. When NAFTA came in it was mostly Canadian's against it because it actually helped Americans. Now it's turned and started to help Mexico, people in the US are now against it.

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      movingoutposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      I don't see Mexico or Canada under NAFTA as the problem. The problem I see is the unfair trade with other countries.If American businesses want to manufacture in foreign countries, hit them with a big Tax for bringing it in. If they choose to manufacture here and export, while creating jobs? Give them the tax breaks and support they need. Penalize the hell out of those companies outsourcing and hoarding trillions of dollars overseas to avoid the tax.

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   crazyhorsesghostposted 12 years ago

   I know what your saying Shyron but I'm horribly disillusioned by both the Republican and Democrat parties. I can't believe that the average American keeps falling for the political spin game. And now it's not only done at election time but now its done almost all the time.
   
   There are some people who will vote Democratic or Republican no matter what and I have a real problem as I said with the spin game they play. And all the news stations play right along with the game they are playing. Most Americans fail to realize that they are all out for special interests and for putting more dollars in their pockets. We need to refuse to continue to play along with the political spin game and maybe start a new party to replace the two parties the Republican and Democratic parties that I would have to give both a F if I was grading them.
   
   I've listened all day today to Romney and checked behind him. He is flat out lying to the American people and they should all know it. Many would choose not to believe it. Yes it really is that bad. Check it out for yourself.
   
   Romney's Health Care Bill when governor of Massachusetts is virtually the same bill as the Obama Health Care Bill.
   
   Bottom line the Republicans want to give it all to the rich and the Democrats want to take care of the middle class and the poor.
   
   Listen to me everyone. America is in real trouble. It's right on the brink and it won't take much to push it over the edge. Yes it's that bad. The fastest growing section of those people standing in soup kitchen lines is women and children. What the politicians from either party are doing is not fixing the problems. It is going to take very hard changes to fix America. It can not be a continuation of politics as usual by either party or America as we know it is over.

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