name some programs supported by the other side that you support, and why

[American]

I support the idea of a 3-month tax vacation.

 

[CaptainCourtesy]

This thread has lead me to two possibly hypothesis's based on the following facts:

- Liberals seem more open here than conservatives pointing out some of the "other sides" views they agree with
- A number of the liberal things conservatives are saying they like fall partially under libertarian philosophy
- A disproportionant amount of Liberals posting compared to conservatives.

Which leads me to think that.

1. Conservative ideology is not quite as "failed" as people on the left try to point out, but indeed the current parties do a poor job of highlighting the things they may ACTUALLy get moderates to come over for.

2. There are more extreme conservative partisans on this board than liberals due to the inability of many on this thread from even identifying a single thing the other side stands for that they agree with to the point of possibly attempting to derail the conversation, or they just avoid posting all together.

(note, not necessarily saying "hyper partisan", but extremely partisan...IE their principles and view are rooted unquestionably, unwaveringly, 100%, lock step with their chosen ideology on every single solitary thing. Why that is the case for them, and if its unquestionably, may end up pushing it into the "hyper partisan" range.)

Though I agree with your point #1, I think what we see in this thread is more indicative of point #2.

 

[Ethereal]

I'm fiscally conservative and socially liberal, so I don't really have a "side" to contrast myself with.

Things that a "typical libertarian" might not agree with:

I'm very pro-Israel.

I'm pro-life.

I'm a proponent of the Fourteenth Amendment.

 

[Indy]

Border control, every kind of alternative energy, much more medical research and intellectual investment, and debt reduction above all. That's what makes being Independent so darn hard; you can't win many permanent allies.

I was writing up my own list and realized that what I support keeps making me switch which party I'm writing about. So I said screw it.

Here's my list:
Eliminating school unions.
Stricter border security.
School vouchers.
Health Care Reform. If you want to do it in the private sector, fine, but you have to guarantee that it is REQUIRED insurance, same as auto insurance.
Legalization, not just the decriminalization, of pot.
Eliminate the gov't recognition of the institute of marriage and make everything a civil union. Open civil unions up to homosexuals. There, equality.
Eliminate all earmarks and instead set aside a set sum of money each year that states can apply for. Basically an earmark grant system that has a constant price tag each year.
Simplification of the Tax Code.
Consider all capital gains as personal income, thereby taxing it at the already specified income brackets and eliminate this special "capital gains" tax rate.

Everything else can wait until we get our act together.

 

[Indy]

Which leads me to think that.

1. Conservative ideology is not quite as "failed" as people on the left try to point out, but indeed the current parties do a poor job of highlighting the things they may ACTUALLy get moderates to come over for.

2. There are more extreme conservative partisans on this board than liberals due to the inability of many on this thread from even identifying a single thing the other side stands for that they agree with to the point of possibly attempting to derail the conversation, or they just avoid posting all together.

I think your #1 is the victim of your #2, and it isn't just on this forum but as a general "movement" in the GOP. Recent losses have distilled the GOP into the most extreme members of their once large base, and as we all know the extremes of any party are always the worst aspects of the party. Many conservative ideas aren't bad, its just that they are never able to be fully formed because the extreme hyper partisan leaders hi-jack it and start twisting it into something that is no longer acceptable to the nation as a whole.

Do we like the idea of the gov't controlling the school systems? Hell no, but we don't have a choice because the extremes of the GOP want the gov't to be completely out of the picture, watering down the standards, and allowing the schools to do what they want. Not everybody in the party feels this way, but the extremes do and unfortunately they seem to be the loudest members and most visible members of the party at the moment so the leadership goes along with them.

Do we want to trash the religious institute of marriage and force churches to marry gay couples? Hell no, but they won't even budge and allow civil unions for no logical reason.

Do we want to just hand out welfare checks to lazy slobs who don't even want to bother getting a job? Hell no, but once again, the extremes want to take it to the level of eliminating the worthwhile program all together so we have no choice but to support the democrats who, while expanding it much larger than we would prefer, will at least keep it around and functioning.

At this point its really a matter of the GOP leaving rational thinking Americans with no other alternative to support the Democrats because at least they'll keep these necessary programs around. We don't like how they run them, but we recognize that they are needed and the other party has shown that they have no problem crippling these programs.

And how is it that the social conservatives have all the power? Those of us who adamantly reject their policies have no way to support the fiscal conservatives. We are forced to throw out the baby with the bath water. It sucks but the party did it to themselves.

 

[RiverDad]

Do we want to trash the religious institute of marriage and force churches to marry gay couples? Hell no, but they won't even budge and allow civil unions for no logical reason.

Not to be too pedantic, but saying something is illogical is not a same thing as saying that you disagree with something or that you don't understand the logical in a proposal.

 

[Joby]

-Border control
-2nd Amendment rights (to a degree, I don't mind if someone has to wait a day to get an ak)
-School vouchers
-Nuclear and, for now, (cleaner) coal for energy needs.
-Deregulation in certain areas, for instance the Staggers Act
-Implementing the f-22

 

[SWM]

-Like others have implied, nuclear power is a no-brainer.

-The importance of an open market on an international scale. I'm not opposed to assistance for Americans who have found themselves on the wrong end of an overseas labor transition, but protectionism through the blocking of international trade is an incorrect position.

-I vehemently support getting out of the way of up-and-coming third world districts exploiting their environment for the sake of infrastructure and industry. I'm not concerned about rainforests if they can be used to expedite a path to prosperity and infrastructure for the least fortunate of us.

-Sweatshops, generally speaking.

-Maintaining a presence in Iraq for as long as necessary. I was not a supporter of the initial invasion, and still believe that be a mistake, but leaving now would make a bad situation worse.

-I'm sympathetic to privatized social security. I'm not certain that it's the correct path, but an elegant, logical explanation could probably turn me. Likewise, an astute explanation of why it's wrong could turn me the other way.

-Offshore and ANWR drilling. It's not a solution, but it's potentially a bridge.

-While the political-correctness-is-the-downfall-of-society jerks drive me bonkers, there are many things that strike me as too PC. Nothing should be immune to parody and ridicule; I mean that entirely literally. Particularly PC terms strike me as ridiculous, rather than apocalyptic.


And some various other things that come to me every now and then that I can't think of at the moment.

 

[Psychoclown]

There are a number of things that I believe or support that don't fit in with typical hardcore libertarian thoughts:

1) The Federal Reserve - Outside of botching things before the Great Depression, they've done a pretty decent job of evening out the boom-bust cycle of the American economy.

2) Anti-trust laws, basic workplace safety regulations - History has shown us how far corporations will go to exploit their workers in the name of profit. Basic protections are needed to preserve competition (so key to capitalism) and prevent wide spread abuse.

3) Enviromental issues - Its an externality cost that the free market cannot account for. However, I remain very sensative to the economic impact and skeptical of over regulation.

4) Pro-life - I believe abortion ends a human life. As a libertarian I believe the first and most important right is the right to live, therefor I oppose abortion.

5) Public eduction - I'm all for vouchers and other methods of introducing competition with public education, but universal access to basic education is vital.

6) Interventionism - I favor a general non-interventionist policy, but I also recognize that certain events may require proactive intervention on our part to protect our interests. The long term and short term impact of these actions should be carefully considered before going forward with them.

I am surprised to see so many liberals come out and support ANWR and offshore drilling, border control, vouchers, social security privatization, and even gun rights.

Sadly, I'm not surprised to see so few conservatives posting a list here. While both sides have annoying hyper partisan hacks, the conservatives here seem to have more than their share lately.

 

[Hatuey]

My support for the following things would be a lot stronger if the supporters for such causes weren't clearly people I dislike. The majority of people supporting the Minute Men I've seen on T.V. just seem to be normal people who don't want people running through their backyards. However the people I've encountered supporting them in 'real life' are people I dislike simply because I think they're extremists.

Tighter border restrictions but together with allowing illegal families to stay here with a fine to be paid. I think abortion should have a cap on it. Like a number of times you should be allowed to have one. I'd support the 2nd amendment more if the majority of people who I've seen supporting it didn't seem like people I wouldn't want next door to me. I support to some extent No Child Left Behind. I support a little less government regulation in some business sectors and more in others. I think the DEA should be done away with for the way they've attacked marijuana users(but this I think is an across the board thing).

I don't really mind drilling for oil as long as there is certainty that there is not even a remote possibility that it'll harm any ecosystems. I actually support an amendment or some sort of law banning the burning of ANY flag in America.

I guess my support for right winger ideas are more along the lines of basic ideas and not specific programs or laws.

 

[Indy]

Not to be too pedantic, but saying something is illogical is not a same thing as saying that you disagree with something or that you don't understand the logical in a proposal.

I don't quite follow. Care to elaborate?