Why is John Kerry afraid of his liberal roots? Fiscal Discipline as a top campaign theme? Civil Unions? Lowering the corporate tax? Further enhancing tax cuts to the lower class? Not supporting an increase in gas taxes? Some of his themes reek of think tanks and focus groups, two terrors that have plagued corporate politics as of late.
I think we should have a balanced budget, but social programs should come before further enhancing middle class tax cuts that are already quite excessive. The rich should have to handle the majority of the taxes, because they make the most, and make far more than they need. That, however, is not an excuse to totally remove the burden from the middle class. Why do we pay far fewer in taxes than most industrial countries? It's because not only do these countries care more about their people, but because the ugly truth you don't hear is that by not letting the government handle some programs such as health care, we pay far more with inflation and bureaucratic costs. Where is the education campaign? This theme of have it both ways is a good way to get nowhere.
No gas tax? This is laziness on our government and media's part in letting taxes have a negative connotation, especially on the unusually high gas prices. True, a gas tax is regressive because all people pay the same percent, but let's look at it. First, the people that want to drive the SUVS and bigger cars would pay more because they eat more gas. If that isn't the case, SUVs would be driven and purchased less, as would our reliance on gas, and a la our reliance on middle eastern oil. The money would stimulate our economy, put money into severely underfunded social programs, move us toward energy independence with money towards fuel efficiency research, so on and so forth. The truth that the American People don't want to hear is that our gas is and has been subsidized for a long time. We pay far less than we should for it, and it shows, for our small population accounting for over 30 percent of the world's energy consumption.
John Kerry should have a heart to heart with the American people. We have grown so accustomed to having it both ways. We want to have our low prices and no unions at wal mart, but get angry when John Average's job gets shipped to India. Kerry should say, flat out, that it is a choice we as a country need to make. Which do you want?
The entry workers of the country deserve a living wage. 5.15 an hour is anemic compared to even when the law was enacted. That hourly pay would be over 8 dollars now if adjusted for inflation. Has the wage inflated with it? No. Should John Kerry be on it? Yeah.
Civil Unions are a cop out. Kerry should come out for full marriage rights. I understand that baby steps are how things get done, but Kerry himself has come out in favor of Marriage as between a man and a woman..if he admitted that it was a baby step in the right direction, we would have more common ground on this divisive issue.
Senator Kerry has some important decisions to make. He has an opportunity to run his campaign like no other before: one that listens to it's constituents. He can run on a platform of educating voters on the intricacies of government, and the choices before them. Kerry can show the voting public what a real leader is, and take strong, clear positions, but not strong enough that they can't be modified if circumstances warrant. "Steady leadership in times of change" is an idiotic slogan; change, by definition, demands adaptation. Kerry has this opportunity to take the ball because we currently have a President who has taken our country in the most wrong direction in our history. Don't get me wrong, the most nuanced Kerry position is better than any Bush position, and I defy anyone to find an example that would make me retract that statement. I fully support the candidacy of John Kerry for this presidential election, and I do think we will win. That said, we can make a difference in the way things are done this time around. A dishonest, out of touch moron runs the White House, so why aren't we polling in a landslide? Because John Kerry's nuanced positions of appeasement don't appease too many.
