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| quote: | Originally posted by shaolin_Z
Do think our rights and / or civil liberties will eventually be restored and fully protected? Do civil liberties even matter? |
Yes, but not permanently and not soon.
| quote: | | Do you expect unconstitutional legislation such as the Patriot Act, Military Commissions Act, and the Detainee Bill to be rolled back after this Presidential term is over? |
No.
| quote: | | Are the Geneva conventions relevant? Are war crimes, biological warfare and torture acceptable means to an end? |
No; they're idealist nonsense.
What means are appropriate to what end depend upon many factors, including available alternatives and their respective chances of success, as well as the importance of achieving that particular end. If someone can't imagine any situation in which each of those things would be justified, then they have a lousy imagination or they are completely insane.
| quote: | | Do you trust politicians? Do you feel they serve your interests or other private interests instead (corporate, big business, their own interests)? |
No. I don't trust anyone that I don't know personally, and of those politicians that I do know personally, none are trustworthy.
Politicians generally serve mainly their own interests, which means serving certain private interests since a failure to do so would quickly see them replaced with someone who will -- a substitution that they generally consider not to be in their own interest. Most of my personal interests are being satisfactorily served at this time because they tend to coincide with the interest of individuals and organizations which wield such influence. But that said, I don't necessarily look to government to do anything for me -- they only provide a framework in which I can pursue my own interests. If they are going to enact some policy that would be contrary to my interests, then I'll simply adjust my position and turn that to my advantage as well.
| quote: | | Do you trust the police force to serve and protect you? Are you phased by the increasing frequency of police brutality or controversial incidents where unnecessary or excessive force is used on citizens with no criminal background or do not pose any kind of physical threat? If you acknowledge these, is it even a concern for you? |
I have no use for police. I am not entirely convinced that police brutality is increasing as a general trend -- rather, other effects such as policy changes which lead to more confrontations between police and the sort of individuals likely to provoke them into misbehavior, increases in the rate at which such incidents are reported, or increases in the distribution of information regarding such incidents (e.g. by the availability of the internet, cell phone cameras, and the like.) The police force always has and always will attract a particular sort of individual, and not at all the sort who would be ideal for the job. Regardless of whether or not it is an increasing phenomenon, though, police certainly do engage in some disgraceful activities. It's not a personal concern of mine, since I don't really put myself in a position to be affected, but it is still an issue I'd like to see addressed at some point in the future.
| quote: | | Is corporate influence and power in Washington DC static, increasing, or decreasing? Do you even see this being a natural obstacle to effective democracy? |
It's difficult to discern a short-term trend, especially in an election year, but it's definitely increasing over the long-term. Effective democracy strikes me as an oxymoron; suffice to say that I don't think democracy would be any more effective were it not for corporate influence.
| quote: | | How would you rate the integrity of the mainstream or alternative media, with respect to both domestic and foreign policy issues (on a scale of 1 to 10)? Do you feel it covers all significant and relevant issues in each case? Do we have a watchdog media or a lapdog media? Do you think the media has become overly politicized and a complete joke? |
Oh geez. Uh, mainstream media, maybe 4/10 on domestic issues and 3/10 on foreign policy; alternative media maybe 2/10 on domestic issues and 3/10 on foreign. The media is pretty much a joke, although integrity is only one small problem among many. I don't know that it has ever been, or ever will be, 'good' -- for one, media tend to reflect popular demand, and popular demand is overwhelmingly for simplistic and heavily biased coverage.
| quote: | | Are you comfortable with GMOs, pesticides, and (for lack of a better term) "non free range farming"? Is health insurance accessible and do you feel insurance companies provide fair services and coverage? Do you feel the FDA does a satisfactory job? Is pharmaceutical industry legitimate in how it operates? |
Yes, I'm comfortable with all that. I could easily get health insurance, but I don't want any. The FDA sucks because it greatly delays the availability of valuable technologies under the guise of safety, yet fails to ensure safety anyway. Frankly, caveat emptor would be better in my opinion. The pharmaceutical industry certainly isn't perfect, but generally I feel they do more good than harm.
| quote: | | We live in the information age now. Do you trust "Internet 2" and IPv2 or will it be the end of "freedom of speech" online? |
I'm not worried about it.
| quote: | | For non-citizens especially, do you think foreign governments (both Western and Non-Western) are subservient to the US? Is the UN a complete failure for purposes for global and regional security? Are we possibly on the verge of a 3rd world war given US policy, Israeli policy, China, Russia and the Middle East situation? |
No, yes, no.
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