Why are you voting for your candidate? Is it strictly on beliefs and policies? Or is it on charisma, charm and electability? I came across this quiz that I thought was great and can be a useful guide in determining what candidate you are voting for and why.
http://glassbooth.org/
More on my results and what I am now pondering...
I like this quiz because it forced me to pick what mattered to me.
My top issues (in no particular order) were:
Social Security
Gay Rights
Abortion and Birth Control
Civil Liberties and Domestic Security
Iraq and Foreign Policy
Crime and Punishment
Health Care
Education
And to the results of how I agreed with the candidates are as follows:
Mike Gravel- 88, John Edwards- 80 Barack Obama- 78, Hillary Clinton- 72
Whoa...this took me by surprise. First things first, who is this Mike Gravel guy and why am I not supporting him?
Number 2, why is my candidate in third? What is going on here? Do I need to rethink who I am voting for?
A breakdown of the issues and a few thoughts from me:
Social Security: I am 30. I have grown up with the notion that I will not be receiving SS when I retire for as long as I can remember.
Do I support private accounts? Maybe, as long as every person who had a private account had to sign in blood that they were responsible for any stupid, bonehead moves that may cause them to lose their entire retirement fund. No bailouts for you (and no whining about the corrupt broker/financial advisors). I would want so many restrictions on what they could or couldn't do with the accounts that they would again have to get your bloody signature if they wanted to some much peek at your account.
Do I support increasing the cap? Yes- We can all do our part for the future of our children and grandchildren.
Gravel and I agree 100% on this issue.
Edwards and I agree 75% on this issue.
Obama and I agree 50% on this issue.
Clinton and I agree 50% on this issue.
Is it a deal breaker for me? No, an important issue but I can mitgate the risks by having an outside retirement savings.
Gay Rights: I was very disappointed in this category. I believe in marriage for any two people that love each other. Period.
I see most of the candidates were willing to give civil union's but not marriage benefits to gay couples. Separate but not equal. I hope that this is an issue that all of us, not just gay activist, pressure our leaders about. And go Gore for endorsing gay marriage.
Gravel and I agree 100% on this issue.
Edwards and I agree 50% on this issue.
Obama and I agree 50% on this issue.
Clinton and I agree 50% on this issue.
Importance to me: Huge!!! I believe this is a human rights issue.
Abortion and Birth Control: My body, my choice. I find that this is the issue that women take for granted. Abortion is not just for 15 year old girls. If you are of reproductive age or have a daughter, friend or sister of reproductive age, it's an issue. Now that I'm married, my husband and I welcome children. However that doesn't mean that I could not still be a candidate for abortion. People get abortions for many different reasons and I think we as society should respect all decision and leave those choices up to a mother and her doctor.
I am happy to say that all the candidates agree with me 100%
Civil Liberties and Domestic Security: I like the following quote: "People should not fear their government, their government should fear the people" The Patriot Act scares me and it makes me weary of any candidate that isn't also weary of it.
Gravel and I agree 100% on this issue.
Edwards and I agree 50% on this issue.
Obama and I agree 25% on this issue.
Clinton and I agree 25% on this issue.
Importance to me: Pretty big. Our country is nothing without our freedoms.
Iraq and Foreign Policy: I was never for the war. I went to some protest before the war started and was disappointed when Bush invaded Iraq. I support any and all funding for the troops but I will never support the actual war.
Gravel and I agree 100% on this issue.
Edwards and I agree 94% on this issue.
Obama and I agree 25% on this issue.
Clinton and I agree 25% on this issue.
Importance to me: Large. I don't want any more troops to die.
Crime and Punishment: I disagree with the death penalty. There are too many cases of people getting out prison after DNA test that it makes me nervous. I do not have problems with criminals sitting in a cell 23 hours a day with no TV or any other kinds of entertainment for the rest of their lives.
Gravel and I agree 88% on this issue.
Edwards and I agree 50% on this issue.
Obama and I agree 63% on this issue.
Clinton and I agree 63% on this issue.
Importance to me: Not at the top of my list but still important.
Health Care: Long life should not be a privilege it should be a right. How can we live in a country where we let poor people die because they cannot afford quality health care. Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, aren't these the foundations to our country?
Gravel and I agree 88% on this issue.
Edwards and I agree 88% on this issue.
Obama and I agree 100% on this issue.
Clinton and I agree 75% on this issue.
Importance of this issue to me: Huge. When I was in my 20's, I took a year off from college. I had two part time jobs and no health insurance. I was too poor to afford healthcare and to poor to miss work. I couldn't afford to get sick. I am very, very lucky that I had no health issue during this period.
Education: I don't like stupid people and there seems to be a lot of them running around. Everyone deserves a solid education and it would probably solve half the issue above if everyone got a truly decent education.
Gravel and I agree 63% on this issue.
Edwards and I agree 81% on this issue.
Obama and I agree 75% on this issue.
Clinton and I agree 81% on this issue.
Importance to me: Stupid people drive me crazy. Enough said!
So where does this leave me? As an Obama supporter, I'm a little disappointed we are not more aligned on the issues. Always liked Edwards and his policies so that didn't surprise me. So who do I vote for?
I admit that I am inspired when I watch Obama. I like the idea of the first Black president. However Edwards would be more in line with my true beliefs and principals. Edwards is a great guy. He also impresses me but he doesn't inspire me. What to do and who to vote for?
I'm a little rattled. Do I really stand for something or am I easily swayed by good rhetoric and passion? Is voting just about issues or is it taking into account a feeling? I truly believe that Obama could bring this country together. I'm tired of the bickering and the red state versus blue state. Can I see past historical opportunity and vote for my best interests? I don't have any solid answers but I will be pondering these thoughts tonight.
Good luck all candidates in SC.