I’m Politically Screwed
I took a quiz today at OnTheIssues.org, to see which candidate’s views most closely match mine. The result? I apparently shouldn’t vote for anyone, because no candidate really stands for my views. Well, at least no Republican nor Democratic candidate, which were the only ones it listed in the quiz results.
I’ll probably end up voting Libertarian, but I feel bad doing that because it’s a wasted vote, and also, most Libertarian candidates seem to be nutjobs in their own right. I’m all for smaller government, but I don’t realistically think that we’re ever going to get rid of the IRS. I guess I’ll have to keep a closer watch on the candidates.
When thinking about politics, I often find myself in a philosophical quandary involving the most basic issue. On the one hand, I think that in general people should be free to run their lives as they see fit, with as little intervention from the government as possible (the Libertarian mindset). But on the other hand… a lot of people are really, really stupid, and I’m not sure they could handle that much freedom in a way that would benefit civilization as a whole.
For instance, I tend to think that reproducing should be a privilege, not a right. Honestly, some people just shouldn’t be allowed to breed. But isn’t this an inherent part of being a human? Isn’t it your god-given right to produce offspring and raise them, even if you’re not really equipped to handle it, and will only end up screwing that child up?
I never come up with a way out of that conundrum — freedom, versus protecting people from themselves. Obviously the “best way” (if such a thing exists) is somewhere between the two, but where? The cynical among you might say, “Well if people want to screw up their own lives, give them the freedom to do it.” But it’s short-sighted to believe that they would only screw up their own lives — inevitably, they would end up negatively affecting yours, too.
I could ramble forever, and end up going in circles. So to the two or three of you out there reading this: what are some of your thoughts on these sorts of things?
vote Libertarian! I’ll probably end up doing so if they put up anyone who has a snowball’s chance in the sahara. most of my thoughts run right along yours on the political spectrum, though I tend to be a bit on the conservative side of true center (mostly from fiscal issues.)
That’s probably what I’ll end up doing. I just hate feeling like I’m throwing away my vote. I really do think we should use the Condorcet Method for voting, but it’s “complex” enough that the half of the population with under 100 IQ would get confused.
*shrugs* at this point i’m going for the whole “vote for someone who isn’t anne northup and who seems like they’d not do something stupid” strategy.
i dislike that woman.
i agree with you that people are just too collectively stupid not to have laws. and with the fact that some people probably shouldn’t be allowed to contribute to the gene pool/raise children.
but that in particular would be difficult and awful to enforce and makes one wonder about the standards that would be used. i have a feeling that some people i know (and for that matter possibly some i’m related to) wouldn’t exist today. (that wasn’t aimed at you, just a general comment…)
people will be human, which means flawed. they won’t make the right decisions, or they might make ones that are good for them but bad for others/society.
the decision to do something that would ensure the survival of society, but at a personal cost, or at the cost of others, is not a decision that people make very easily. it’s far too easy to see the faces that might not exist.
Heh, you’re probably right — if there were a mandatory test people had to pass to be allowed to reproduce, it’s likely I wouldn’t exist right now. Ironic, indeed.
I guess to me, it comes down to the question of, how restrictive should laws be? And should laws be more relaxed for some people? For example, I consider myself a fairly good driver — I’m alert, and I’ve never had an accident (knock on wood). I tend to drive fast, but not in an unsafe manner. In an ideal world, without getting into how it would be enforced, I think I should be allowed to drive faster than the 80-year-old woman who can barely see over her dashboard.