The debates are over, and the best that can be said is that they leave one feeling there is a barren field indeed from which to select someone with promise of evenhandedly leading a nation of three hundred million diverse humans through the next four years.
With the exception of Mr. Huntsman, intelligent but lacking that something called charisma, all blow smoke, are heavy on platitudes, are embarrassingly self inflating, pander to visceral instincts, show bias toward extreme ideals, and in the course of the debates avoided direct, thoughtful answers to questions put to them by the moderators, choosing instead to skirt them with something in their memory portfolios.
From a personal standpoint, nothing satisfactory came of the debates that addressed issues that are of concern to me, which I take this occasion to list. Other voters would likely have different lists. It could be helpful to write them down. I found it interesting that citizens questioned by reporters before the debates regarding their expectations and worries generally missed the opportunity to seize the stage.
My concerns follow, across a span of issues (but limited to a dozen), phrased as questions to anyone moved to reply:
1. You would repeal the health care bill passed by Congress and signed by the President. An improved bill in most minds would provide for universal health care at moderate cost. With this in mind, what would you spearhead as an improvement over the present bill?
2. As Commander-in-Chief, how would you shape the military arm to serve the needs of the nation during your administration and for the administrations following?
3. A consumption based economy must eventually convert to a sustainable economy due to diminishing resources. How will you manage a graceful transition from the one to the other, assuming it is not already too late?
4. There are no statistics that show that the wealthy create jobs out of their take-home pay. Justify continuing to hold their taxes at the levels determined under the Bush administration.
5. As a pro-lifer, you would criminalize abortion. To what extent, if at all justifiable, should the government intrude on the private lives of women, and how would you enforce the law?
6. Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) funding has virtually dried up as compared to the early ‘90’s for example. What would you do to reverse this, as SBIR is demonstrably one way to start up businesses?
7. South Korea is hell bent on providing the most advanced broadband access to its entire population. What is your view on the same for the United States and if positive, how will you implement it?
8. The International Space Station has only a few years left and there is no plan for continued manned presence in low earth orbit. Meantime, China has space stations in planning. How will you manage this clear threat to loss of leadership in this field?
9. The perpetrators of the 2008 financial debacle are still in business. Will you give them a pass, or will you have the Justice Department begin investigations for criminal activity and let the chips fall where they may?
10. As president, will you listen to, and act aggressively on scientific findings and predictions regarding climate change?
11. There are many past decisions that need reversal; for example, not allowing Medicare to negotiate for drug costs, subsidies to pharmaceutical firms under the prescription drug plan,
banning the farming of the cash crop hemp, sugar and ethanol subsidies, subsidies to non-serious farmers, agencies that have outgrown their usefulness, etc. What will you do about them?
12. You will have an opportunity to eliminate the ruinous “No Child Left Behind” situation and put into operation something that restructures and raises education to new levels. What will you do?
No comments:
Post a Comment