GOP contenders...

  Okay, let's take a look as some of what the GOP is going to offer us in 2012...

  First up, Michele Bachmann,  A graduate of the William and Mary school of law but never took the Bar exam, even though she served as a Federal Tax Litigation Attorney for the Internal Revenue Service before quitting to become a full time mother and housewife....
  She has five children and has fostered over 20 most of whom were pregnant teens...
  She also spent time as a "sidewalk counselor" which is interesting...
  For those of you who are unfamiliar with the term, have you ever seen those protestors screaming and yelling outside of abortion clinics?
  Yep.

  She's currently a member of the House, and serves the 6th congressional district of Minnesota.

 Her views on same sex unions and abortion are anchored in the standard republican mantra that is part of it's fundamental base, and she is a mover and shaker in the tea party branch of the party...

  I don't see her really standing out in any way...   And she'll probably be seen as a less interesting version of Sarah Palin, who has expressed interest, but hasn't tossed her hat in the ring just yet...


  Okay, how about Rick Santorum...  Whew, what can I say, except it's the typical toe the party line, anti abortion, anti same sex anything, (what is up with the whole, if I call it a disorder, or wrong enough, then people will stop being gay, stop having sex, issue.)   and he has drawed parallels between Iraq and Lord of the Rings.

As the hobbits are going up Mount Doom, the Eye of Mordor is being drawn somewhere else. It's being drawn to Iraq and it's not being drawn to the U.S. You know what? I want to keep it on Iraq. I don't want the Eye to come back here to the United States.

—Rick Santorum

  In 2006 he got booted out of office in Pennsylvania and has tried to get back into the public eye...
  So far, not so good.
  Something tells me this isn't going to be his time.


  Mitt Romney, considered by many to be the front runner for 2012,   Again we have the party line, no abortion, but he wants the decision out of the federal government and returned to state level...
  Gay and Lesbian rights, he says they should be able to serve openly, and while he doesn't believe that they should get married but does think that they should have all the legal benefits of a married couple.
  He is decidedly weak on 2nd amendment issues, having both supported the brady bill, and continuing to support a common sense "assault weapons ban".
  He also claimed to be an avid hunter (don't they all) but a little fact checking by the media found no record of him having ever had a hunting license of any kind.
  Sooooo...
  He's either a liar (politician???  say it ain't so!) or a poacher...

  Sheesh, from bland and blander to flip flopping falsehoods...


  There are a bunch of other contenders, but most all but a couple simply toe the party line in damn near every political checkpoint....



  Okay, gotta pause here...
  Lets go down the list on standard republican staples...
  Abortion;   the ultimate goal seems to be to have the practice banned except in the case of incest, rape, or when the mother's life is in danger...
              I get it, it's a horrible thing, but it's also a very private thing that really deserves to be kept between a woman, her significant other (for most cases, but that's another argument) and her doctor.
  I don't think that any doctor that specializes in abortions is a real doctor in the least, but c'mon folks, it's NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS!   It's a very scary decision that has nothing at all to do with the running of the country any more than buying a contraceptive, or anything of that nature.
  Keep out, Dammit.   It's your achilles heel, GOP, let it go...   Yeah, tax dollars shouldn't have to pay for it, but the polarizing of the issue helps no one...

  Budget/Economy; Okay, a balance budget, a not paying out more than you take it, fiscal responsibility,  All of that is noble, and necessary to our country, but dammit, practice what you preach.  You guys get into power during the Clinton administration and begin spending like your trying to play catch up to the Democrats...
  So don't expect us to trust you until you figure that out yourself...   Don't blame it on the war, and don't blame it on the Democrats, just stop spending like a fucking teenager with a Gold mastercard, M'kay?

  Gay and Lesbian issues;  Again, refer to the Abortion part of this rant, none of your fucking business...   Getting a theme here?  What the hell does it have to do with the governance of the nation?
   What part of all men are created equal don't you get?   Equal under the law?
   What people do in the privacy of their own home is NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS!
   Geez, it's like trying to talk to a child while spongebob is on the idiot box....

  Civil rights;  See above, and read it again...   All created equal, none of your business, every time you create a law to define something you box it into a niche and whatever doesn't fit, is excluded.
  As far as the Patriot Act, if you invade privacy to go on a fishing expedition, without enough evidence ahead of time,  your stepping on our rights...  Go back and read the 4th thru 8th amendments to the constitution...  If you have trouble, look it up on that internet your trying to censor...

  Crime; the big issue here is the death penalty.   Let's face it, spending 20 years or more before you get zapped is not what you can can call a deterrent to crime.   And just because it's called a Justice system, doesn't make it all that just, there are people today sitting in jail who have proven that they didn't commit the crime, but because of our judicial system they have to spend years getting their case retried or overturned, all on technical matters or specific hoops that have to be jumped thru, and don't even try and say it's anything other than a political matter by that time.
  Once your convicted, it doesn't really matter if your innocent or not.
  Yeah, death of a heinous criminal may bring some closure to a family, but not nearly enough.   Unless of course, you let the family pull the switch.
  But without a swift punishment, what's the point.

  Yeah, you say, but what about terrorists, and mass murderers, et al.   How about you build a maximum security prison for those who would normally be on death row, and lock them up until they die?
  No prison interviews, no cable television, no workout room, no nothing.  Just a bed, food, and sunlight from time to time until they die.
  Cruel and unusual?   Not really, just not a holiday inn.

  Drugs;   Well, the war on drugs has gone well so far, huh?  How about we start with decriminalizing pot use?   It's both been proven to be less damaging to the human body as Alcohol and has only really been criminal since the early eighties.
  Hell, how about placing it on the shelf next to the Marlboros and Newports and tax it just as much, think of the revenue, hell, think of the savings of not having to spend so much money on incarcerating so many non violent users...
  If that's too far, than reduce it to a minor misdemeanor, crank out fines and use the money to fund rehab, or something good...
  That way you both make money, save money, and most importantly, take a commodity out of the hands of drug dealers and economically starve their business.
  Again, non violent drug users should be able to rehab, not be placed in prison, when they could be a productive member of society, not a criminal in training.
  And stop calling it rehabilitation, it's a penal system, designed to punish...
  A little honesty in titles wouldn't hurt.

  Education;  The goal is to limit the federal strings attached to the school system and give more control of the child's education to the parent....
  Umm...    I got no problem with that...   As long as the kid learns how to read and write,  I'm all for charter schools and home schooling...

  Energy/Environment; no Kyoto protocols, more energy independence, and exploration, reduce our dependence on foreign oil by drilling and pushing alternatives thru tax incentives and keeping the government regulation to a minimum.   Okay, Kyoto is pretty unrealistic, with todays technology, and so far economically suicidal, but if the tax incentives can push private industries to pursue alternative methods...
  Here's how it works, kids.  You don't force people to do something because it's right, and because if you don't you'll have to pay higher taxes.
  You show them how much money you can save, with the handy side effect of being better for the environment.
  Smart in theory, but in practice, not quite there, huh.
  There's a huge argument when it comes to "clean" technology, such as Natural Gas exploration, but we'll cut that one for another day.
  As far as global warning, they don't believe it's a man made thing, but more along the lines of a natural cycle of the earth.
  Look, as long as it's politicized, you will get biased and politically motivated results, and no amount of goofy graph and monotone folksy speechifying by Al Gore or anyone else is gonna make me trust the numbers...
  It's probably a little of both, but until it stops being a political issue and gets left to the scientists...
  But the subject is damaged goods, and will take a lot of work to not be an either or issue.

  Foreign Policy;  okay, for the last few administrations and into this one, it doesn't seem to make a damn bit of difference.   Both parties spend money of foreign aid like it's made in a factory somewher...... Oh, wait...
  Debating this issue only counts if there's an opposition...  Which I can't seem to find... Both sides suck.

  Health Care;  Umm, here we go again....    NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS, stop regulating our lives, let us be, and we can find a provider, because without government "help" manipulating the cost of insurance and benefits, then the system can begin to settle into something pre HMO, so stop trying to fix something that A; you have no business being a part of, and B; problems that you (both parties here!) helped create.
  No where in the constitution do I see anything that can be construed as an obligation of government to provide health care...

  Gun Control;  Boy this might take long, so I'll save the details for another time...   Look, since the supreme court has already ruled a few times that the 2nd amendment is an individual right, how about you stop with the stupidity, and this applies to both sides.  You wouldn't regulate speech, to what can be said (okay yeah you would) so why regulate gun control.
  The GOP is normally pretty supportive of the 2nd amendment, so I'm okay with that...

  In case your wondering, I support anything that promotes individual freedom and rights, and anything that restricts those rights, is vehemently opposed.   I want as much freedom as possible.
  I mean, restricting a right makes about as (censored) much (censored) as a (censored) in a (censored and tagged for potentially violating decency standards.).

  Social Security;  People should have the choice to invest in private retirement accounts.
  Why not, SS is pretty much fucked beyond all repair anyway...  Don't kid yourself, it's fallen apart years ago and now on life support...  Should have had a DNR.

  Tax Reform; the standard tax cuts and managing the budget.
  Yep...   How about a flat tax/consumption tax and take the whole guess work out of it?  No deductions, no write offs, everyone pays an equal and fair share???   No?...   Fuck off about real reform then...  and call me when you actually get serious about tax reform.

  Welfare Reform;   Get more people off welfare and into jobs, cut benefits that negate the incentive of getting jobs...
   Yeah, lets back burner that until the economy no longer sucks.  Sound like a plan?




  I know, I know, there are a bunch of other issues, but most of the group running for nomination all fall into that basic mold....

  Except.....

  Two are simply outside of the box as far as I can tell....

  First up, we have....

  NEWT GINGRICH; Former speaker of the house, writer, and architect of the "republican" revolution that pretty much bitch slapped Clinton in his first term...
  Hated by the press, but anyone that pisses off that many people has got to be doing something right, so lets see where he stands...

Newt Fucking Gingrich!

  That's right, the architect, the man, the legend...

  Okay, so he's pretty much lock, stock, and barrel with the standard modern Republican line, because he wrote it.  

  Yeah, probably won't get the nod, but wouldn't it be nice?

  Can you imagine the Saturday Night Live skits?

  Seriously though, with this guy, you at least know what to expect, and that's something that you rarely find in politics.

  I may not agree with everything he says, but you gotta admire his drive...  He didn't whine and run away all pissy like Pat Buchanan when he doesn't get his way....

  Agree or disagree, at least you won't get a switch and bait job.   He's Newt fucking Gingrich...

  But is he the future of the republican party???

  Is he there last hope???

  No......

There is another.......

  

  Hmmm....
  Just who the hell is this guy, Ron Paul...  wasn't he a Libertarian?  How the hell did he end up a Republican choice?

  Well...  How does he stack up on the issues?

  Abortion;  Well, he opposes abortion....
  Yeah, I kinda figured...
   But he doesn't think that the Federal Government should play any role in the matter, and quotes the 9th and 10th amendment that the issue should stay with the state, if at all....
  Far out...

  Stem Cell Research;  He supports the research and sponsored the Cures Can Be Found Act of 2007 to promote stem cell research thru tax incentives....
  Huh....

 The Budget; thinks spending should be based on the Constitution, and if all spending had to be justified by the constitution, that spending would drop considerably, that we've come to accept debt, and that we shouldn't.   That war in the Middle East is something we simply cannot afford.  He also believes that the Federal Government has no business bailing out private industry.
  Can't disagree, really.

  Gun Control; He is pro gun rights, and doesn't believe in restricting constitutional rights, and believes that gun control actually makes things worse by disarming the public.
  It's like he trusts us more than the government....

  Death Penalty;  He opposes it.  It's not enforced uniformly and that the system is flawed and that innocent people have been killed.
  Um..  Wow.

   Civil Liberties;  He believes that government should stay out of gay and lesbian agendas, it has no place there.  That the Patriot Act should not be made permanent.  That Washington should not be allowed to dictate personal behavior.  That freedom of speech including the internet should not be regulated or taxed, and that Eminent Domain should be illegal...
  Fuck yeah!  wait, was he serious?

  I mean, is he really the smaller government, keep your hard earned money cause you know better how to spend it that government does, the stay out of our personal lives, as much freedom as we can handle, restricting how much control government has over us, kinda candidate?

  It's kinda hard to believe that someone like that is even looked at by either party..
  Wait, the elections are in 2012...

  Must be another sign of the coming apocalypse...


  So there you have it...   My rather limited overview of the upcoming nominations from the GOP...

  Ron Paul is the only one that I see as actually offering something new, but then again, it's his libertarian roots, that both make him appealing, and at the same time, make any chance of him actually getting nominated pretty nil.
  Still, he's the only one that seems to be thinking outside of the GOP standard line.

  When is either party going to recognize that the public isn't easily categorized or shoved into a cookie cutter template of voter blocks...
  yeah, I know....


  But at least this guy is got something to say, instead of the other ventriloquist acts...
  I'll watch the debates if he's in them...

  I share allegiance with neither party, and simply put out my observations as simply that...

 Observations....  and perhaps a word of advice to all running....



Please.....

 Pretty please.....


   Whatever you do, just try not to fuck up too much....


               Okay?












     Thanks...