Politics Galore

I'm not political by any means. I am capable of having strong opinions, but when it comes to government and politics, I usually let it run its course without me. I got my first taste of true politics (on a very small scale) while helping my dad with his Mayoral campaign in Annapolis. It was an interesting experience, and one that I wish I had been more involved with on the whole.

I know that it is my right as an American to vote, and I've always enjoyed that right. It's harder to think of it as a privilege, because I've never known any other way. When you view voting as a privilege more than a right, it makes the Democratic process a little more significant.

Now, with all the primaries and campaigning going on, I am left--as usual--cramming all the information I can about each candidate in to my head so that I can make an educated choice. For the rest of you who would like to vote but don't know a thing about your candidates, there are a ton of sites out there designed to help you.

Votegopher.com (thank you, Mom) has a decent breakdown of each candidate's background, controversies, etc. Worth a look for a pretty good summary of your options.

If you're like me, you'll enjoy a site like this one because it is a little more personalized and hands-on: Politicalquiz.net offers a survey. According to your answers, it analyzes your political preferences. The percentage by each candidate shows how closely they match your answers.

My results:

Conservative/Progressive Score - 7 - Social Moderate
Capitalist Purist/Social Capitalist Score - 9 - Social Capitalist
Libertarian/Authoritarian Score - 4 - Libertarian-leaning
Pacifist/Militarist Score - 3 - Moderate-Pacifist
You are a Democrat.

John Edwards - 96%
Barack Obama - 94%
Chris Dodd - 88%
Bill Richardson - 83%
Joe Biden - 81%
Mike Gravel - 81%
Hillary Clinton - 79%
Dennis Kucinich - 73%
Ron Paul - 65%
John McCain - 63%
Romney, Huckabee, Brownback, Thompson, Giuliani, Hunter, Tancredo range from 63%-31%.

I think I'm happy with that result. I've been leaning towards Obama without really knowing much about anyone. I think his lack of experience won't be as big of an issue as people are making it. He will have so many experienced Cabinet members and advisors to make sure he isn't being an idiot. Most of the people whose opinions I trust are prO-bama (I've coined a new catch phrase right there, by the way). He is spiritual and religious, but according to his bio, he studied all of the religions before deciding on which one best matched his ideology, and I can respect that. I am not religious by any means, but I can make that claim with conviction because I have studied all of the major world religions and can confidently say I disagree with most of them. Buddhism is the closest match for me, but I wouldn't dare call myself a Buddhist.

Back on track, I have decided to involve myself a little more in the political process. I might as well enjoy the privileges of being a US citizen as much as I can.

On another, government-control related note, the new smoking ban is phenomenal. I completely understand people's issues with the government controlling private business practices, but at the same time, I am all for abolishing people's right to smoke. It may be the most ridiculous habit imaginable. I am usually good at understanding why people do the things they do, but smoking will always baffle me. It isn't mind-altering. There are no benefits. It makes everyone and everything around you smell horrendous. If anyone can explain to me the purpose, I'm open to suggestions. But for now, I'm going to openly applaud the government for stepping in on this one. It makes my bar experience infinitely more enjoyable.

So, anyone who takes the quiz and wants to post their results, feel free. As always, I want feedback. It's nice to know people are reading.