REAL PEOPLE Positions....

I'm an independent who would never vote republican. The govt has no place in the bedroom. Similarly, what I, as a women, do with my body is not of any concern to my government. Lastly, I would gladly give more money to my government if it helped support and enable my fellow neighbors to better utilize their freedoms. Capital is a crushing force, and we made a communal contract to protect and support each other.

I believe in positive freedom -freedom to- and not just freedom from.

But mostly, Hazel summed up my position for me.

My husband and I are both conservative. That's how we were raised. We believe in working hard and we don't get gov't handouts. We believe that if you don't like some company or product, you don't protest it, you just don't buy it.

I'm independent.
I hate both parties but I dislike Republican policies a bit more than I dislike Democrat policies.
It's always a matter of finding a side you dislike the least and after awhile both sides look the same and they are both awful.

'So Long and Thanks for All the Fish' (by Douglas Adams) summed it up best for me:

“On its world, the people are people. The leaders are lizards. The people hate the lizards and the lizards rule the people.”

“Odd,” said Arthur, “I thought you said it was a democracy.”

“I did,” said Ford. “It is.”

“So,” said Arthur, hoping he wasn’t sounding ridiculously obtuse, “why don’t the people get rid of the lizards?”

“It honestly doesn’t occur to them,” said Ford. “They’ve all got the vote, so they all pretty much assume that the government they’ve voted in more or less approximates to the government they want.”

“You mean they actually vote for the lizards?”

“Oh yes,” said Ford with a shrug, “of course.”

“But,” said Arthur, going for the big one again, “why?”

“Because if they didn’t vote for a lizard,” said Ford, “the wrong lizard might get in.”

Ok, if you are not stirring the pot! To help the young one, I will answer.

I am republican. Lean Tea Party, quite a bit. Wish they would work together a bit more.

I HATE to be in debt. I hate to spend money we don't have. We are are auctioning off our freedoms bit by bit. I would love to throw money at people to make social ills go away but it doesn't work and we don't have the money. As it stands now, the people writing on this board will most likely never get social security. It doesn't have enough money.

Our government is too big now,much less let it take over health care, 16 percent of our economy. The young people on here will pay out the wazoo for MY health care. Because we mortgaged your future. Then when it's your turn, there won't be any money for that.

You want to see the government at work?
Have you been to the DMV? Have you ever sat on a school board and so had your hands tied because of Federal Requirements that you can't even do common sense things? Have you seen the waste? How do you like those standerized tests? Yeah, I know the first to come up with that idea and I still don't like it. It's just bigger and more intrusive government.

Shall I even talk about the TSA or the NSA or the IRS or what passes for privacy these days or even impartiality? Just wait till they have your health care information.

I really like the social benefits of living in those tiny, little Scandanavian countries. It might work there..or Deleware, because they are about the same size and diversity. It's NEVER going to work in the USA. We are too big, bulky and diverse. Our government bureaucracy exists to make more government bureaucracy. I hate big government, that's why I am republican.

I stand where I stand because my morals dictate it.

I was raised to value life, all life. I was raised to value even the teeny tiniest of life...from conception. You don't dare hurt a living being, ever.

I was raised to be a hard worker. If you work hard for something, whether in school studies, or in the work force, you will get what you worked hard for. You either get good grades for working hard or a good paycheck. You will only attain what you put your mind to and work hard to get. If good fortune happens to fall into your lap, great, but don't expect it and be prepared for life knowing that it probably won't.

I was raised to take care of others the best I can. We grew up very poor. We weren't dressed well, feed very well, nor did we even have a "nice" house, or car and we never went on vacation. But, it must be in my genes to help others, because as poor as I was, I could always be found trying to help others, people, animals, anyone or anything that would be willing to take my help. To this day, I want to help others as much as I can, when I can....I don't want to be forced to do this, when I can't and don't want to.

I was taught to think for myself. I never was one to follow the crowd and do what everyone else thought was cool. I learned to think critically at a young age and to be observant and to draw wise conclusions based on facts and observation. I do my own research and make decisions based on my own morals and convictions...not those of my gov't.

I was taught to be grateful for what I have and not expect others to give me what they have. I find it difficult to understand how our own educated gov't can't seem to find a way not to spend money that we don't nor ever will have. We have so much debt in this country it sickens me and our credit rate is taking a beating because of it...my mom however had a credit score of over 800 my entire childhood and still does, she was only a high school graduate and even she knows not to borrow more then what you can pay back.

For these reasons I find myself leaning toward one side, however, I don't believe everything that either side stands for, and therefore I don't label myself as either.

I am a Social Democrat. I support the New Democratic Party of Canada, because people who live in social democracies have higher standards of living and are happier in general. Things like education, health care and protecting the environment are more important to me than individual wealth. I do not mind paying higher taxes to live in a happier place. I support labour unions and fair pay for fair work, and I support crown corporations over private business. It is not a perfect system, but it works.

ETA: I also lean a little to the conservative side fiscally.

I am an independent progressive, learing toward Socialist-lite. This would be my ideal. I think countries which have a larger, stronger tax base (like much of the Netherlands) have shown that this model can be successful for citizens and the country as a whole. I don't agree with the rote enlistment some of those countries have of belonging to the State Church, but overall, I appreciate that the people have a high quality of education and health coverage as well as child care options.

That said, I vote very centrist because I know that my values are not the 'norm' for most of the US. Therefore, I will use my vote to select the politician whom I believe most closely matches my morals while still maintaining a viable chance of winning the election. It's somewhat like taking one for the team.

I believe the two things which stymie real growth in this country are the relative absence (in practice, anyway) of anything other than an overly-redundant two-party system, and secondly, a lack of campaign finance reform. It is atrocious how much money is spent-- wasted badly, in my opinion, on negative campaigns, media and posturing. Were that the money spent on this sort of nit-picking on both sides be spent actually helping those who really need help.

I also believe that both of the large parties have traded away some of their values for votes and funding. Last week, even President Obama admitted that 'no one has clean hands' when it comes to corporate/billionaire donors and accepting money from a very powerful minority of people. We all need to be aware that it is a small margin of people who actually are pulling a lot of the strings right now.

It would be interesting to see if the Tea Party could stand on its own, without the support of the rest of the Republican house. It would be a bold and interesting move if they were to decide to separate from the more centrist Republican establishment. I'm curious about moves like that. I do think the better the variety of voices, the more things get shook up for maybe the better? To at least get us talking...

Lastly, and I don't know how many of you can relate, but I think that if you want an idea of how politics work today, you can find a lot of parallels in Anthony Trollope's "Parliamentary Tales"... when you only have two parties who balk at every stinking thing which isn't 'their' idea, you get the stupidity and mayhem the books tell of. I think that's what we are seeing now overall. Everyone is so busy trying to be "right" that it gets in the way of doing "good". From my perspective, the better we can care for, value, and educate our citizens, the better chances we have of creating a country which will be economically and intellectually relevant, which would offer more and better employment opportunities. If we had better mental health care/rehabilitation programs and child care, there's a better chance that a larger number of citizens would thrive and might experience more fulfilling lives as well. We have a lot to learn from other countries and peoples in the world.

Here's a nice, simple-to-understand chart:
http://academic.regis.edu/jriley/413republicans_v_democra...

Google IS a wonderful thing.

I tend to be a social liberal and a fiscal conservative.

My advice to your son or ANY young person is to beware of labels.
Most people don't pigeonhole that easily.
It's more important to focus on ISSUES, than on the party. PERIOD.
He's seeing for himself right now the gridlock that happens when adults act like children.

Well, I classify myself as a Democrat and mostly because I find the Republican Party's thinking to be outdated and antiquated in today's society. I find Republican train of thought to be stifling and actually oppressive to many different classes of people here in the US. They are not modern thinkers, whole-hearted supporters of women and our right to choose, and don't get me started on the stuff they put forth in regards to gay rights and gay marriage. I find this party to be very judgemental and critical of some of the very things that make our country so special such as personal differences, religious diversity, the freedoms to choose who to love and marry...etc. Things are definitely changing rapidly here in our world and I feel that Republicans need to catch up and fess up about these changes and learn to adapt.

For me, my political beliefs align with my personal and moral beliefs. Not 100% of course, but for the most part, what the Democratic party stands for most generally aligns with the values that are important to me. I don't always vote down party lines or blindly support anyone whose name on the ballot has a D next to it, but there are very few Republican candidates whose values match mine.

I am Catholic and believe that we are put on this earth to serve God and serve one another. To share our resources, not hoard them for ourselves. To help those in need. To protect God's gifts to us, including the environment, animals, and people. It means helping without judgement and without strings. It means equality for all.

The big difference between my beliefs and the general Democratic party beliefs is on abortion. I am pro life. However, I don't let that one issue dictate everything else. For me, the good that I see the leaders of this party do outweighs the evil of abortion. I of course also don't care what other people do in their bedrooms and am in support of gay marriage.

At the end of the day, much of what the current Republican party seems to stand for is, to me, frightening, hypocritical, and ignorant. And I know that the ones who are in front of a TV camera and in the news all the time aren't the true voice of that party. My BIL is a very staunch Republican who is a true conservative in the original meaning of the word, which was in the context of fiscal conservatism and small government. He's one of the smartest people I know. However, unfortunately for him and other intelligent, thoughtful members of that party, the party has been hijacked by the "religious right" and frankly, I think those people are idiots and dangerous. The Republican party would be well served to sever ties with the Tea Party, the Religious Right, and the corrupt corporate barons such as the Koch brothers who seem to be running the show.

There was a great essay I read a while ago on the need for a centrist party here. It talked about how on even the most controversial topics such as gun control, abortion, immigration reform and welfare, most people can agree on some kind of middle ground. Even those who are pro-choice can agree that fewer abortions would be good. And those who are pro-life would agree that fewer unintended pregnancies would be good. Even those who are pro-gun can agree that we want them to be in the hands of safe, sane, legal adults. And those who are against guns can agree that for some people, gun ownership makes sense. Anti-welfare, fiscal conservatives don't want to see people dying of exposure and starvation on the streets. And bleeding heart liberals don't really want able-bodied people living off of the government when they are perfectly capable of supporting themselves. And so on, and so on. It all makes so much sense until you get the special interest groups and lobbyists involved, who push legislators to vote against even common-sense laws and regulations.

I think at the end of the day, the Citizens United decision has done so much to harm the political environment in this country. There is far too much money anonymously buying candidates in both parties. There is far too much money anonymously spreading propaganda and rhetoric that divides the country and ends up profiting the powerful and few. There is far too much money and corruption involved in every decision that Congress makes.

So that's my view. Feel free to have your son use anything I wrote. Hope this helps! Sounds like a valuable project!

I tend to be pretty democratic when it comes to social issues, such as gay marriage, etc. But I am Republican when it comes to matters of the economy and the defense of our country. And I believe that if you have to choose one or the other when it comes time to vote, it is more important to vote for the economy and the military, so that's what I do.

So I am generally Republican, and that's how I have voted in the last several elections. I believe that Republicans believe in hard work and free enterprise, and that Democrats tend to want something for nothing, or adopt the socialist view that those who work hard must sacrifice for those who don't want to work. The problem with that, in my opinion (and as quoted by I think Margaret Thatcher or someone) is that eventually you run out of other people's money to spend.

The current political climate tends to really polarize the positions, and it seems more obvious now than ever. It's too bad, really, there seems to be less and less middle ground. I used to be fairly moderate, but have been kind of 'shoved' over to the republican side!

Good luck on the project!

I tend to agree with Theresa. I wish we had a third party in the US that was more inline with that type of thinking. I think that only having 2 major parties is what is causing a lot of the issues that the US is currently in the midst of.

I don't stand on either side. With regards to fiscal issues I tend to lead to the right because it makes me very nervous when we spend money we don't actually have, same as my personal finances. With regard to human rights issues I tend to lean to the left because I believe all people regardless of their beliefs deserve the same opportunities, because I don't think God will like it when we repress any specific group of people.

I think it's really cool your district has civics in 8th grade, in middle school, I wish we had that.

My middle kid is a second year political science major, international affairs minor. I think it fantastic when the young people are vested in our government.

What a great assignment!

:)

Canuck's answer pretty much describes me, although I don't vote and am a member of no party. The "why" is included in her answer.

I think it's great that you want your son to know what real people think, but I hope you are also encouraging him to read a couple of articles (from differing perspectives). The lack of literacy that I am seeing in 8th graders these days is EXTREMELY scary. Many of these kids' minds seem to be very lazy, and they don't like the hard work of trying to decipher what they are reading. Kids need to be encouraged to read whenever possible. They ESPECIALLY need vocabulary acquisition, so it's important to expose them to higher-level vocabulary.

I vote for the person. I am a registered Democrat but do not vote the party. I vote for the person I think will make the changes I think we need.

I really think a business man who has fixed his whole states financial issues might actually do a good job for our nation. I'd like to give him a chance to do so anyway. I hope he'll run again.

I'm a political midliner.

I believe both main parties are trying to achieve the same ends, taking different paths to get there.

Both paths will succeed.
Both paths will fail.
In similar ways.
If not, we'd either live in a constant state of (true) civil war (see feudal Japan, or modern day Afghanistan as examples)... Or utopia.

In general, I find politics exceptionally boring... As nothing new has happened in politics for several thousand years... It's eminently predictable. And completely and totally beyond my ability to do anything about it. People have to dedicate their entire lives day in and out to affect even the most minutest change, and even then, it's swept away by the next person who has been devoting all their time and energy into doing things differently. Sometimes these are major changes, more often they're tiny changes. Both take life's work. And I don't want it to be my life's work.

Which is NOT to say that politics does not have value.
I'm extremely grateful that others don't find politics as boring and predictable, because having to lead -especially a nation- is one of my personal circles of hell.
And we HAVE to have a governing body.

Ours isn't the worst.
Ours isn't the best.
But it's fairly stable.
Due to the tireless work of thousands who rush about keeping things running day in and out.
So they have both my thanks, and my disinterested consent.
<grin> Which is most politicians goal, anyway.
When the average person gets interested in politics, revolutions soon follow. As things were too bad to allow them to be consumed with their own lives.

At my core... I want to be left alone, as long as Im not hurting others, and others arent hurting me. Which means needing to have a very stable, and generally just, form of government. Because life isn't fair, so justice is darned important.

ETA... Just because I personally want to be left alone, I'm not translating that on to everyone. A smart government forwards the ambitions of its people to enrich and strengthen the nation (education, work, housing, etc.). A compassionate nation cares for its infirm (young, ill, & elderly). A wise nation maintains its integrity in the international theatre. Et cetera. What I want is as immaterial to the needs and wants of the nation as a whole. 2 separate creatures.

I am a black republican. The issues that most concern me are illegal immigration being confused with legal immigration (being here illegally is as much a crime as theft), the environment, and our lack of care for aged Americans (ages 65 plus).

Honestly, I don't care. I never have been interested in politics. Nothing done 'up there' effects me. I know your'e saying "oh YES it does". But no, it really doesn't.
I'll still have a mortgage, I'll still pay taxes. I still have to work. My day will be the same tomorrow and the next day… and the next day. I'll still buy what I want/need at the grocery store.
The war in Iraq didn't affect me, The Lincoln Memorial being closed doesn't affect me. A fence built across the southern edge of Texas won't change my day to day goings on. Limiting how many bullets I can buy won't change anything.
We've had this discussion on here before, 'are you better off today than….' It was a while back.
Cheryl, know that some of my ramblings are literal and some are not. But I think you get what I'm saying and how I feel.

I look at the candidate's position on relevant issues and make my decision. Simple as that.

I find that I rarely vote for republican candidates because I am socially liberal and not religiously affiliated.

Joseph might be able to help. I can ask him. He has to work tonight though. When do you need it by?

Just to add another angle to this discussion -

It's important to remember that many people work in government offices (Congress, government agencies, etc) - as lawyers, speech-writers, secretaries, etc.

Sometimes, people "choose" to support the boss!! To further (and help preserve) their career.

Everybody ("REAL PEOPLE") has to earn a living....

I love the 5 minute videos at Prager University. This may spark great discussion for a civics class....
http://www.prageruniversity.com/mobile/Political-Science/...