Romney Alienates Half the Country in One Go

[AdminAssistant]

Personally, if I were going to address defense spending, I would want to tackle it from the cost overruns that seem to incur on every project.

Exactly. The problem is that so many people think "reducing the military's budget" = "give soldiers less pay". Which doesn't have to be the case. Get out of Afghanistan, close a few unnecessary bases (Okinawa, for example), limit this independent contractor bullshit, and maybe, cut down on the shinies.

[Gravekeeper]

That is incorrect.

How, exactly? Johnson is polling at 5.3% and isn't even on the ballot in every state. With the current US political system a third party vote IS throwing your vote away. Barring a fundemental reworking of the entire political system an outside third party doesn't stand a chance in the US.

[mikoyan29]

Exactly. The problem is that so many people think "reducing the military's budget" = "give soldiers less pay". Which doesn't have to be the case. Get out of Afghanistan, close a few unnecessary bases (Okinawa, for example), limit this independent contractor bullshit, and maybe, cut down on the shinies.

I don't know if I would call Okinawa an unnecessary base though. Like it or not, we have a global presence and with the renewed interest in the Pacific, Okinawa is one of the few bases in that area. In fact, it wouldn't surprise me at all if we re-opened Clark Field and Subic Bay in the Phillippines. But something tells me the costs of running various bases are peanuts compared to some of hte other costs.

[AdminAssistant]

Well, for one, the Japanese want us to close Okinawa. If the host country doesn't want the base, let 'em have it, with the understanding that not having the base means a delayed response time if they need our help. World War II ended over 60 years ago, they can put on their big boy pants, manage their own military, and quit poking China with a stick. There are plenty of first world powers in the Pacific (Australia and New Zealand jump to mind). Let them be the lifeguard for that end of the pool; we can't do everything.

Back to dale's comment, I find Libertarians morally repugnant and/or completely delusional for other reasons, so no, I won't be voting for Johnson. As much as I like/admire Jill Stein of the Green Party, I won't be voting for her either. I'm very much on board the Obama wagon, but that doesn't mean I like *everything* about the man.

[guywithashovel]

Most Libertarian arguments (from my observation) seem to follow the formula of "If we do a, b, and c, then ______ will be the definite end result," and there is rarely any evidence cited to support that conclusion.

As for the Obama/Romney debates, maybe Obama didn't do so hot, but he's still almost definitely going to the winner. In 2004, Bush was an absolute ass in the debates, and he still won, so debates sometimes don't have as much punch as people think they do.

[Greenday]

Well, for one, the Japanese want us to close Okinawa. If the host country doesn't want the base, let 'em have it, with the understanding that not having the base means a delayed response time if they need our help. World War II ended over 60 years ago, they can put on their big boy pants, manage their own military, and quit poking China with a stick. There are plenty of first world powers in the Pacific (Australia and New Zealand jump to mind). Let them be the lifeguard for that end of the pool; we can't do everything.

Back to dale's comment, I find Libertarians morally repugnant and/or completely delusional for other reasons, so no, I won't be voting for Johnson. As much as I like/admire Jill Stein of the Green Party, I won't be voting for her either. I'm very much on board the Obama wagon, but that doesn't mean I like *everything* about the man.

With relations straining as they are between Japan/China and our pact with Japan to protect them, there's just no way Okinawa is getting closed any time soon. It's too important.

Also, can Australia and New Zealand handle a powerhouse like China on their own? New Zealand is a rather small nation. Australia is much larger, but a good portion isn't exactly populated. From what I can find online, Australia's military is pretty small. I honestly wouldn't trust the combined might of those two countries to take on any major Asian power.

[Andara Bledin]

And so, despite Romney's better "presence" in Wednesday's debate, Obama's stronger substance has him up another percentage point on FiveThirtyEight's forecast.

^-.-^

[Jaden]

And so, despite Romney's better "presence" in Wednesday's debate, Obama's stronger substance has him up another percentage point on FiveThirtyEight's forecast.

^-.-^

That is something I'm happy for. That's basically what I was hoping - that even though initially, people would be so shocked that Romney was able to actually get through a debate without making a total ass of himself that they'd immediately declare him the winner and say that it's a real competition now, they'd cool down pretty soon and realize that Romney's actual words, facts, and figures were actually not that good compared to Obama's. And that seems to be what's happening.

[daleduke17]

That's an oddly specific number.

Rapscallion

I was reading Johnson's website before I posted that. He wants to do other cuts as well by about a similar number. I think it is taking the spending back to a previous level, hence the weird percentage.

I, if I ran for President, would say something like cutting budget by 41.3256% just to be different.

[mikoyan29]

Romney's tax plan seems to boil down to decreasing overall rates and cutting out loopholes. When asked to mention which loopholes, he clams up. That hardly sounds like a plan. Of course when you start mentioning the loopholes that get his taxes down in the 13 to 15% area, he really clams up.