Podium Positions: Social Issues

My position on "social" issues.

Abortion
Two things need to happen. One...overturn Roe v. Wade, so we can go forward with the next step. That is step number two...place the legislative responsibility of this issue back in the hands of the states.

What this allows for is better representation of the people on such a bitterly divisive issue. For instance, a state like Massachusetts may allow abortion and provide funding for it and will have the support of the majority of the population. However, a state like Utah has a majority of anti-abortionists, so the will of the people in that state would be different and would probably lead to no practice of abortion within that state's borders. However, I would also not be opposed to allowing people to travel from a non-abortion state to a pro-abortion state to get an abortion if they so desire.

While I'm personally opposed to abortion, the only real federal actions I would approve of in this situation would be upholding the ban on partial-birth abortions, as that is infanticide, in my opinion.

Gay Marriage
Again, this is a state-to-state issue. What may play in socially liberal states will not play in socially conservative states. Represent the population, but as with the abortion laws, state governments must also pay attention to opinion changes and demographic shifts to keep laws up-to-date with the mood of the populous.

Socially moderate/conservative states may want to at least allow civil unions with marriage-style rights. Let the actual term "marriage" be determined by the churches, not the state.

I personally do not oppose gay marriage or civil unions, and I think that some relaxation and/or compromise in this area would be good for Republicans, who probably don't realize how much of the vote they are losing in this demographic due to their current positions, anyway. However, given the anti-homosexual opinions of many social conservatives within the party, I don't know if that will happen anytime soon.

I also believe that we have not come to a scientific consensus on whether or not homosexuality is a result of "nature" or "nurture" (I believe that both of those are roots of homosexuality, as I've seen scientific research that supports both theories), but either way we should not discriminate based on this. I don't believe it to be very Christian to do so, to be honest.

Civil Rights/Discrimination
Basically, we need to move towards putting everyone on an equal plane of treatment. It should not matter whether you are White ,Black, Latino, Asian, Pacific Islander, Native American, African, Male, Female, Transgendered, Straight, Gay, or Bisexual. "Hate Crimes" should cover crimes against any race/gender/orientation, with no extra or special punishment for crimes against certain groups.

In the workplace, we need to get to the point of hiring the best people for the job. We are in the 21st century, we do not need to place quotas based on race, gender, or orientation (though, I don't know of any place that says "you must hire X number of gays", but you get my point).

Understandably, this is not a goal that can be achieved overnight, but society needs to start moving in that direction, as it is not fair for someone to get special (or detrimental) treatment because of their race, gender, or orientation.

Overview
On a federal level, most of the social issues need to be deferred back to the states. Issues such as abortion and gay marriage, due to their controversial and divisive manner, should have their legality and funding determined by the states. States whose populous support these issues can deem it legal in their state, and states whose populous do not support these issues do not have to make it legal.

We should also move anti-discrimination legislation to treat all people equally.

Handing social issues back to the states is a healthy, federalist approach to these issues that tend to be create bitterness and tension between people of different ideological standpoints. Also, it allows for smaller-scale experimentation with various types of legislation, which is a way for people to find out if certain legislative actions are feasible and functional before it gets introduced on a national level.

Marshall On The Brink of a Senate Run

Apparently, Del. Bob Marshall has announced the formation of an exploratory committee, which means he is one step away from officially running for the GOP Senate nomination against former Governor Jim Gilmore.

Interesting that Chris Saxman did not run, but Marshall is. Marshall has very good leadership skills and I like some of his fiscal policy stances, but his vocal stance against gay marriage will both turnout the social conservatives and the GLBT community.

The GOP will be holding a convention to select it's nominee, which may very well favor Marshall. The Dems are having a traditional primary with former Governor Mark Warner and progressive activist Julien Modica.

(h/t Citizen Tom)

Linda Ellerbee to Teach Kids How Jamie Lynn Spears Got Pregnant?

Um, I don't think that would be suitable for broadcast on a basic cable network.

Honestly, I wouldn't want Linda Ellerbee teaching my kids anything. Given what I have seen on past episodes of Nick News, I'm sure that somehow, little Jamie Lynn will be given a free pass from any kind of scrutiny for her behavior.

I'll hand it to Nickelodeon for using the "Nick News" episodes to bring about a reasonable discussion on many topics so kids understand what's going on, but sometimes she ventures into territory on these topics that make many parents understandably uncomfortable (see the link above where she shows how to use a condom to a 10 year old).

I personally believe Nick news needs a new host, but since she co-owns the production company that produces Nick News, I don't see this happening any time soon.

More Presidential Nomination News, Notes, and Insanity

- Despite an apparent wealth of grassroots and blog support in Virginia, Duncan Hunter has failed to make it onto the Virginia primary ballot. Unlike Tom Tancredo's withdrawal, this one surprised me a bit. I figured Hunter had the grassroots to make it on the ballot, and I would've signed a petition so he could at least make the ballot (of course, nobody contacted me), even though I'm a Fred Thompson supporter. I like Duncan, I think he's a decent politician and man, and I'm sorry he didn't make it onto the ballot.

- On the heels of his dropout from the GOP Presidential race, Tom Tancredo has endorsed Mitt Romney.

- No foul play suspected in the death of Dennis Kucinich's brother Perry, an autopsy will be done on Wednesday, Dec. 26th.

- From the Green Party ranks, former Democratic Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney has announced herself as a candidate for the Green Party's presidential nomination. McKinney has been elected, unelected, reelected, and re-unelected from the same Congressional seat (GA-04). Ironically, both times she was knocked out of her Congressional seat, it was in the Democratic primary (shows you her popularity).

McKinney joined the Green Party only two months ago, and is an extremely controversial (if nothing else) person. She has been accused of anti-Semitism, is a 9/11 conspiracy theorist who believes Bush was behind the 9/11 attacks, is an activist for the release of all documents related to the death of 2Pac (she introduced a bill to do this in Congress), attempted to bring about impeachment proceedings against President Bush, holds Fidel Castro and Hugo Chavez in the highest regard, wants Nancy Pelosi replaced with Cindy Sheehan...oh yeah, and she was the one who punched a United States Capitol Police Officer when she attempted to re-enter the Capitol without the proper lapel pin for identification.

Yet, I don't see anything that stands with the Green Party's stances on environmentalism and decentralization...as she hasn't done much of anything on the environment and praises socialist/communist leaders. Hmm...

- John McCain is in a fight with the New York Times over an unpublished-as-of-yet story about a key telecom legislation that is currently before the Senate Commerce Committee. The story would lay out charges that McCain may have been providing special treatment to a lobbyist. The NYT is supposedly investigating the validity of the claims, but are frustrated with McCain's strong efforts to halt any and all publication of this story, as well. The lobbyist in question states that McCain has not shown any special treatment towards her.

McCain has hired high-powered attorney Bob Bennett to "stop the smears".

- Barack Obama stated that he would consider putting Republicans in his cabinet if elected President. Some of the names he mentioned: Sen. Chuck Hagel, Sen. Dick Lugar, and...California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.

- Rudy Giuliani spent the night in a St. Louis hospital after suffering from flu-like symptoms. Feeling better after the overnight stay, Giuliani decided to go home for the holidays before heading back out on the campaign trail.

Lakota Tribe Renounces Treaties With U.S., Declare Independence

The Lakota Sioux, whose tribe is ingrained within American history due to Chiefs Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse, have announced formal independence from the United States and declared themselves a sovereign nation.

Native American rights activist Russell Means made the announcement at a Washington, D.C. church.

"We are no longer citizens of the United States of America and all those who live in the five-state area that encompasses our country are free to join us,"

Those 5 states are Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, and Wyoming.

A delegation of Lakota leaders have been visiting the embassies of Bolivia, South Africa, Venezuela, and Chile. Who wants to bet $10 that Hugo Chavez recognizes their sovereignty immediately?

Anyway, the Lakota have withdrawn from their various treaties with the United States, some of which are over 150 years old. This is apparently legal, per article six of the Constitution.

Phyllis Young, another long-time Lakota activist, tried to soothe relations by saying "We are not trying to embarrass the United States. We are here to continue the struggle for our children and grandchildren,"

Why am I skeptical of that statement?

Tancredo To Drop Out of Presidential Bid

Not really surprising.

However, I would like to see Tancredo run for Senate in Colorado, and he could put his national campaign funds towards that. The Dems are putting a lot of money into winning the 2008 Senate contest in Colorado (currently held by the retiring Wayne Allard), so a figure with as much national recognition as Tancredo would be a big help for the GOP here.

While I am against illegal immigration, I always felt Tancredo was about two notches too far on the issue in the sense that he wanted to limit legal immigration, which I believe needs to be expanded and streamlined into a more efficient process.

An Upcoming Series, Inspired By Vivian J. Paige

Lately, I've seen that Norfolk blogger Vivian J. Paige has done a series of posts about her personal Legislative Agenda. Vivian has always been a bit of an inspiration to me as how I should go about blogging and presenting myself on my blog, even though she and I pretty much disagree ideologically.

Anyway, I figure that I should put my own positions out there in a clear, concise manner such as this. This feature will be called "Podium Positions".

Now, if a position needs to be updated or changed, I will go back and do so if necessary. Ideas, like people, sometimes change in their approach or way of thinking.

Maybe this way, I can give people a better sense of what I believe in, as it seems like I'm constantly repeating myself all over the blogosphere. Who knows, maybe I'll start up a conversation and someone can change, refine, or support my position.

A big thanks to Vivian for the inspiration.

BREAKING: Brother of Dennis Kucinich Found Dead

Perry Kucinich, brother of Ohio Congressman and Democratic Party Presidential Candidate Dennis Kucinich, was found dead in his home today by a third Kucinich brother, Larry.

Kucinich was on the campaign trail, but is now currenty en route to Cleveland to be with his family at this time.

The Podium offers it's condolences to the Kucinich family as they suffer through this ordeal.

More will come as it happens...