I don't think anyone disagrees with this on either side of the aisle. Where the difference is, in how to implement them. For example, "Job creation and economic opportunity". The Republicans want this as well. Their plan to accomplish it is to lower taxes on those who can afford to invest in corporations allowing those corporations to increase their work force. What is the Democrats' plan? It's easy to say, "I'm in favour of..." It's much more difficult to say, "Here's how we can accomplish it."
We recognize that the profit motive is the engine that runs our economy. Cutting taxes on the wealthy may or may not induce them to invest in corporations allowing them to increase their workforce. Rational investors put their money where it will get the best return consistent with their other priorities (risk aversion, etc.). If demand for their product goes up, they may make more money by increasing their workforce and producing more of the product. On the other hand, if demand for their product does not increase, what is their motivation to invest more in that business? I posted this a while ago: Which party is a better steward of our economy? Do the math. http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A29205-2004Jul30?language=printer You complained at the time about the writer's relationship to the LA Times, but I stand by the facts and figures he uses in his analysis. The economy does better under the Democrats.
Yes, yes, yada, yada, yada... Basically all you're saying is that the Republican plan isn't necessarily the best plan. I still hear nothing about what the Democrats' plan is. And Job creation and economic opportunity is only one item on the list, how about the others? Give me a reason to vote Democratic. Tell me why they're better, other than that they are not Republicans. Don't tell me to vote for your guy because Bush is an idiot.
Here's the GOP website for its platform:: http://www.ncgop.org/gopinformation/platform.asp Lots of info at both sites: Here are the two sides of issues presented that were comparable - many issues addressed on one side, not addressed on the other. You'll have to read that for yourselves. I will leave it to you to decide the color-code. If you can't figure that out then you shouldn't be voting tomorrow anyway. CHILDREN AND FAMILIES A family – whether it has one or more caregivers – raises children, not the government. Parents and caregivers have a responsibility to raise those children responsibly and teach them values, motivation, and discipline. To that end, we as Democrats pledge our steadfast commitment to improving the lives of children and families. These efforts includes measures to reduce teenage pregnancy, infant mortality, and domestic violence; to create and sustain a safe, nurturing and stable child care system accessible to more families; to encourage adoption and foster child programs; to improve youth advocacy in our courts and in our communities; and, to promote responsible parenting and family preservation programs. Government cannot legislate love and compassion and should not preempt parental responsibility for children; however, government can protect children from abuse and neglect. We support laws that balance parental rights with the protection of a child’s life, safety and wellbeing. We support efforts, including tax credits, to hasten the adoption of children into permanent, safe and nurturing homes. We urge strong support for religious and private initiatives that seek to promote healthy, nurturing families and work to restore and rebuild dysfunctional families. We believe Social Security is not just a contract for our senior citizens; it is also a safety net for our families, particularly dependent children, widows, widowers, and the disabled. That contract should never be compromised. We oppose privatization and the diversion of Social Security funds for other purposes. We share President George W. Bush’s commitment to put Social Security on a sound basis. Congress should protect Social Security funds by balancing the federal budget without using Social Security reserves. These reserves should be entirely dedicated toward meeting future obligations. We support offering today’s workers more choice and control over their own retirement security, but in ways that do not harm anyone already on Social Security or anyone who is within a few years of retirement. CRIMINAL JUSTICE CAPITAL PUNISHMENT: In granting to our government the ultimate power to take the lives of individuals convicted of capital offenses, we have given it the most far-reaching power that can be bestowed upon any government. For this reason, we support both stronger due process safeguards and a moratorium in the application of this power until such safeguards are in place. We believe the death penalty deters murder. Premeditated and deliberate murder calls for punishment directly proportional to the wrong perpetrated against its victim and against the moral order. The death penalty is the right punishment for premeditated murder. We call for legislation to drastically reduce the time between death sentence and executions. PRISONS/PRISONERS: We support efforts to relieve prison overcrowding, including efforts to fund additional facilities and to find effective alternatives to incarceration. We oppose the privatization of prisons. Inmates should work hard to earn their keep and learn the values of hard work, respect, discipline, and teamwork. We support efforts to achieve that goal, including making sure every able-bodied prisoner is participating in work or education programs, receiving appropriate mental health and substance abuse treatment and parental training, learning a trade or getting a diploma, and to making sure prisoners do not return to a life of crime when they are released. We support prisons with less attention to inmate comfort and more to security, labor, and education. Prison labor should be used for construction when possible. All inmates should be required to work and pay for their incarceration, including reasonable payment for health and dental care. INDUSTRIAL RECRUITMENT: We believe North Carolina must continue to attract and foster both new and traditional industries while encouraging growth from within the State. We believe that economic incentives should result in a real net benefit for North Carolina citizens. . It is unfair to recruit out-of-state business with tax incentives when North Carolina-owned businesses must bear the burden of full taxation. The best way to promote economic growth is to reduce our overall tax burden. EDUCATION: We should strive for educational excellence for all persons - regardless of their race, age, gender, national origin, ethnicity, sexual orientation, economic status, developmental disability, primary language, location, or station in life. North Carolina provides affordable higher education to its citizens. But taxpayers should not be required to fund higher education for illegal aliens. EDUCATIONAL REFORM: We encourage and support efforts of school systems to promote and maintain diversity. We believe homosexual behavior is not normal and should not be taught as an acceptable "alternative" lifestyle either in public education or in public policy. We do not believe public schools should be used to teach children that homosexual behavior is normal. SCHOOL VOUCHERS: We oppose the implementation of private and religious school voucher programs. Such a program would harm our public schools by diluting the financial support for those institutions and encouraging students to abandon the public school system. Choice and competition have served the state well in higher education. We believe choice and competition should be used to improve public education at primary and secondary levels as well. We support tax credits for parents who relieve the burden on our public schools by lawfully educating their children in private or home schools. There should not be any additional legal restrictions on parents’ option to educate their children at home. We support charter schools and we urge the legislature to remove the cap that limits the number of charter schools. Parents are the best judges of what kind of schooling is best for their children. FOREIGN POLICY We support increased diplomatic and cooperative measures by the United States government to ensure peaceful solutions to international problems by – but not limited to – participation in the International Criminal Court and the Kyoto Accords, and the full funding of our financial contributions to the United Nations, especially humanitarian endeavors. American participation in the United Nations, or any other international body, must never sacrifice the constitutional sovereignty of the United States. Therefore, we oppose relinquishing U.S. freedom and independence to any organization or agency claiming authority to impose and enforce global regulations or standards upon the United States of America. The United States will never require a permission slip from the United Nations in matters affecting its national security BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH: Recognizing the critical role that stem cell research can play in addressing diabetes, various cancers, spinal cord injuries, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, and many other afflictions, we encourage an increased level of support for stem cell research – including the introduction of new stem cell lines – with appropriate ethical controls. We support all developments in biomedical research and technology that enhance and protect human life. But we oppose any new development that does not treat all human life as a precious gift of God, or that does not treat every individual human life as a locus of unique and irreplaceable dignity no matter how weak, immature, or dependent. We oppose all procedures in research and medicine that involve the intentional destruction of innocent human life. We oppose human cloning, and the destruction of human embryos. We support adult stem cell research. WOMEN: We believe that a woman's decisions regarding pregnancy should be her own choice and not that of the government. We believe that we should focus on preventing unintended pregnancies and reducing the need for abortion through increasing access to family planning services, access to affordable birth control – including emergency contraception – and by providing comprehensive age-appropriate sex education. Furthermore, abortion must be safe, legal, accessible to all North Carolina women regardless of ability to pay; therefore, the State abortion fund should be fully funded and accessible to indigent women. We believe unborn children have constitutional rights to life and liberty, and we therefore urge the Supreme Court to overturn its decision in Roe vs. Wade. We also support the adoption of a human life amendment to the constitution. We stand with the overwhelming majority of Americans who oppose efforts to mandate legalized abortion or to fund local, national, or international organizations that provide or promote abortion services. Abortion is never an acceptable method of birth control. IMMIGRATION While we recognize that immigration laws are enacted at the federal level, our State government and grassroots citizens can impact such policies by influencing our federal representatives to strengthen our national borders, protect homeland security, and to enforce existing laws. We strive for a just and comprehensive immigration law which includes a path to citizenship for hard-working, tax-paying immigrants that have contributed to making our State great. We support the issuance of N. C. drivers licenses only to U. S. citizens and those legally authorized to be here. We support ending all entitlements to illegal aliens except for life threatening emergencies. PAYING FOR PROGRESS The use of a progressive tax system is the only way to fairly pay for the government services needed to build a solid foundation for our future economic security. We oppose reliance on regressive taxes, which unfairly burden the poor and the middle class. We believe that any future changes in the tax laws should increase the progressivity of our tax system. We pay taxes that exceed what is necessary. We have the second-highest tax burden in the southeastern United States. Government spending should not increase more than population growth and inflation combined. We support a taxpayer’s bill of rights, incorporating this principle, which would result in an overall reduction in tax rates.
Congratulations, "Truthteller," on finally adding something of value to the discussion. I can see that you went to a good deal of time and trouble to locate and post side-by-side comparisons of the two major parties' positions on the issues, and if there are some voters still trying to make up their minds before they go to the polls tomorrow, I would highly recommend they read those comparisons in a thoughtful manner. I could offer arguments about why I think some positions are superior to others, but at this time, I will refrain from doing so. That is not to say we may not have endless debates in the future. :wink: Thank you for providing the information in a non-confrontational format.
