Yuck - Gator here! Just kidding of course.

The reason I ask is because I lived in the south and what is termed progressive in the south might be considered moderate liberal in other regions. Everything is relative to the regional cultures and beliefs systems.

>Actually, as to the floor I slightly disagree.  I don't
>think everyone should go to college, rather I think college
>should be affordable for those who are bright enough and
>willing to work hard enough to make the investment pay off.
>

The problem for the so called working class is that the way we incentivize things, the hardest work is often paid the least. And college, being difficult and expensive, requires a good preparation for it, which many students don't have. In the past, those people could count on there being a tier of solid, non-technical careers that they could do to earn money but as globalization occurred, the carrot that was used to get foreign countries to accept US export goods in the past was free trade, and they took the bait and developed their export markets and now we import far more than we export at the cost of the destruction of American manufacturing. (most American companies now manufacture overseas or contract elsewhere to have goods made at lower cost elsewhere)

There is clearly a huge social benefit to having a strogng manufacturing sector but evidently that was less important to the people making those decisions than a quick buck. So American manufacturing is now focused in extremely high tech fields and even that is disappearing. One could even say that for all intents and purposes, the whole world is in many ways becoming one big country for the exchange of trade. However, people can't move and so they become captive MARKETS. The rights to sell to us are bought and sold. However, those rights depend on people here making money so there is a limit to how low we can go before the economy implodes.

>I think full time work should pay a living wage.

We all do. But as jobs dry up and more and more people are looking for work, the atmosphere towards living wage laws, just as they are, becomes hostile - The way I see it the problem is, how to verbalize that and turn it into something that will work for the legal profession and the far right which views any wage laws as an (illegal, they often say) limit on trade. As I understand it, there was a legal decision in the early part of the 20th century that legalized laws setting working hours, etc. (Lochner) and they want to eliminate it. They also feel that with supply being so high (lots of people looking for work) the cost of labor and benefits as well, should by rights be declining. Thats part of the reason working people are having such a hard time now. Supply and demand is working against us.

I think
>that people should have to go into bankruptcy due to
>illness.  

YES, we need to move to a national healthcare system similar to those in Canada, Europe, etc. Healthcare should not be tied to your job and should be available to everybody regardless of their employment status. People who get sick should not lose their healthcare when they can no longer work. Yes. This would take a huge burden off of employers especially when it comes to hiring those over 35-40. Businesses would not be so hard up for skilled employees as they could keep people for as long as they wanted to work.

>I believe in social safety nets for the most
>vulnerable among us.
>
We need to stand up for the poor and sick not only because we ourselves may be poor and sick someday but also because the poor and sick are OFTEn poor and sick because of arbitrary circumstances completely beyond their control. It really is an ugly aspect of Americans that we convince ourselves that to be poor is a disgrace. Its preventing so many people from being able to survive because there is so much pressure to consume and not save. Its inevitable that incomes are going to fall over the next decades. What we should do is learn how to be happy and live on less WELL. Its not hard, the rest of the world has been doing it for a long time and they are often far happier.

If we dont do this, the only alternative is WAR. And America will be on the worng side, us against the rest of the world.. we take >35% of the worlds resources with 5% of the worlds population. We have to learn to make what we have last longer, otherwise we are like an addict that keeps wanting more and more, at some point, everything will break and the system (the world) will need to rid itself of US.

>I think that earning money is a good thing and that hard
>work should pay off, but I think that people who make a
>shitload of money for doing nothing (gutting companies like
>jackals) is just plain wrong.

I could not have put it better myself. But, you also should remember that work, while in and of itself, can have many noble and positive aspects, doing hard work for the sake of its being hard is stupid especially when it is unnecessary. What I think is better is smart work.

Also, consider this, the history of technology has been one of people developing ways to have machines do work. That process will continue and the day is always not far off where machines will do many times what they do at any given moment. Sure, new, high skill jobs are created too, but always less than the low skill ones which are eliminated. But we also need to respect people who do hard jobs and ENSURE THAT THEY DONT BECOME VICTIMS OF A SOCIETY THAT SUCKS THEIR HEALTH AWAY AND GIVES NOTHING IN RETURN.. a few days ago I posted a diary about work related injuries.. the facts in the article it was referring to gave me a shock.

I think the Government needs
>to take a hard look at our regulations and see if they
>protect people.  

Yes.. yes yes..  Often, they dont, they protect the wrong people. That has to change in so many ways. Its long overdue.

I think that companies should have to pay
>for the harm that they do as well as profit from the good
>that they bring.

yes, you are making a lot of very wise statements - thank you. How can we do this sensibly and smoothly?

>
>I think that real people should have at least as much power
>as artificial people (corporations).  

YES, we really need to abolish corporate personhood, its a TRAVESTY. That is where America went off the right path..right there..

I think that if we
>start holding real human beings accountable for what
>corporations do in the name of profit, some of the worst
>abuses will cease.

You know they would. We need a serious dialogue on that.
>
>I think that the minority should be protected from the
>tyranny of the majority and I believe in equality of
>opportunity, not equality of results.
>
>I am a liberal and a progressive.

GO DEMS.. You articulated so many important points.. not just Democratic issues, issues that I think are important to all of us.

Hear Hear, as the Brits would say. That was good..

Will you ever consider changing your signature or at least come up with one that is HRC equivalent? This is a campaign but we need to unite soon. Please.

... dedicated to all forms of morality, be they religious or otherwise. I'm a strict agnostic Jew.

The reality is that the real issue is declining wages and disappearing jobs..

Poor and unskilled immigrants come here because they are very, very poor elsewhere. However, despite the fact that many have found work here in the past, its now getting very hard for them. I would posit that we do need to have a control on who immigrates and when, so its perhaps in most ways a necessary evil. BUT I do think there should be a way for good illegal immigrants to legalize themselves.. so they are no longer part of the underground economy and no longer exploited.

There is another part of the picture that is the skilled immigrants. Unfortunately, many other countries now have much better educational systems when it comes to basics like math and science than we do. (Perhaps its the distractions kids have here) So we have been lucky to have been able to have engineering and computer science people from all the world come here. Its been making up for our own increasingly lacking educational system.

But what would be better if we could make college available to FAR more Americans, both straight out of college and also returning students later in life. The amount of incresed energy we need to put into this is HUGE. We don't realize that the whole future of this nation economically depends on our succeeding with this.

healthcare is also a huge issue because healthcare issues is a huge drain on people's lives and energy. these are two areas where taking a good chunk of money from the Pentagon and moving it to healthcare and education would pay off BIG.

It could be argued that that was a big part of the reason for the economic boom in the postwar years.. sudden access to healthcare and education. Its a no brainer. Thats what the Dems should emphasize as a core part of our platform.

You cant eat bombs, I'm sorry. Education and health creates a safe and sane atmosphere for learning and economic innovation.

Existing businesses could also hire more people.

Lets do it.

I have similar beliefs as you do and I consider myself a moderate/conservative democrat.

In terms of national security , I believe the guiding force behind America's policy should be
 " freedom and Liberty " .

We should take a tough stance with countries like Iran and NK and I don't believe its a smart policy for the president himself to negotiate with these dictators without preconditions. However we can talk to them directly in the cabinet level without preconditions , the president must have preconditions but not necessarily the cabinet.

In Iraq , I am not in the camp of those that advocate for a withdrawal , infact I am more in line with Mccain on Iraq .

I believe we are on the right path now and should try and get the most successful outcome we can .

Thats an unpopular position

The so called conservatives always want big government in areas that benefit them, and small government where they have responsibilities.

If you think about it its true..

The smallest government is basically the situation that exists pre-government and where the feudal system was not in place.. its basically a system of individual responsibility, with NO restrictions on trade, movement of people, or intellectual property..

So, people would be able to move anywhere, buy and sell anything anywhere, and say and do anything - i would say, unless it crossed some moral line that incited people to stop it.

One has to wonder, would such a setup ever be possible, and what technologies would be in play for it to happen?
Its NOT the situation after wartime..

its a situation after peace..  its a state of extreme knowledge and taking responsibility.

Wars are often promoted by the powerful as a way to keep the people weak and themselves strong. I actually think there is more truth to George Orwell's ugly vision of the three colluding superpowers, each pretending to fight one another in order to create a state of permanent poverty of both material and spirit.. than most of us dare to admit.

"Obama haters who will vote for McCain if Obama is nominated."

since you say you're close to considering it...

I will never vote for Obama.

Actually, I know several Clinton supporters voting McCain.

I can name five Republicans I know voting for him, so your vote is cancelled out and then some.

I hear this type of comment a lot, and I really don't understand it.  The Clinton campaign has insulted Obama supporters personally a LOT---our votes don't count, we're young and naive, we're elitist members of the creative class, etc.  Despite this, I'd still vote for Hillary if she was the nominee.  I'd still vote for her if she wrote me personally to tell me I sucked.

By contrast, I have not heard "old people are senile" or "the working class is stupid" from the Obama campaign.  Yet a number of Clinton supporters are so upset from perceived slights that they're going to vote for McCain.  

As for Obama being arrogant---yeah, I'd guess he is.  So is Hillary.  Saying "I can lead the strongest country on earth better than anyone else" doesn't get said by the meek.    

It began a long time ago. When it ends...we'll see.

he hasn't reached the number. For a campaign to have touted 2026, this whole time,its akward to declare victory before you have reached the number of victory, as stated by the rules.

Im sure you wont get any 'congrats' until he has reached 2026.