my candidate wishlist
While we wait for results to accrue, here's my policy wishlist for November:
THINGS I ABSOLUTELY WANT:
Foreign Policy: I think I'm basically with Obama on this one: let's negotiate with rogue states. Bush has done it with North Korea, and as best I can tell, it's working. I also like Obama's idea that the US can interface with other nations to help solve their problems, rather than just inflicting our domestic policy squabbles on them.
Environment: I'd like to see some candidate take the recommendations of the Copenhagen Consensus and turn it into their platform: Yes, global warming is a real issue, but it's not as bad as all that: instead of splurging however many trillion bucks to implement Kyoto, here's 100 billion dollars to fund (completely) global access to clean drinking water, HIV transmission prevention, and malaria. Once we've tackled problems we know we can solve, then let's worry about the temperature.
Cabinet Members: Go ahead and give some spoilers: who'll be SecState? of Defense? Major bonus points for bringing members of the opposite party on board your team AHEAD of the election. (Joe Lieberman doesn't count).
Energy: Everyone is talking about renewable energy. Who's going to be the first to say, in so many budgetary words, 'Screw the Saudis--we'll come up with our own energy'? I'll lump all federal science funding in under this. Bonus points for including Nuclear AND Switchgrass. Major bonus points for telling Detroit to get on board with higher mpgs.
POSSIBLE ATTRACTIONS:
Hmm. Health Care. Social Security.
MEH:
Tax reform / Killing the IRS - great idea in theory, but no stinking chance of any consensus.
Abortion - great idea in theory, but -- oh, wait, wrong issue. Yeah, like anything anyone could even conceive of is ever going to bring James Dobson and Planned Parenthood together. Don't mess with the status quo.
Landing on Mars. Rovers are cheaper, and they don't fireball upon re-entry.
THINGS I ABSOLUTELY WANT:
Foreign Policy: I think I'm basically with Obama on this one: let's negotiate with rogue states. Bush has done it with North Korea, and as best I can tell, it's working. I also like Obama's idea that the US can interface with other nations to help solve their problems, rather than just inflicting our domestic policy squabbles on them.
Environment: I'd like to see some candidate take the recommendations of the Copenhagen Consensus and turn it into their platform: Yes, global warming is a real issue, but it's not as bad as all that: instead of splurging however many trillion bucks to implement Kyoto, here's 100 billion dollars to fund (completely) global access to clean drinking water, HIV transmission prevention, and malaria. Once we've tackled problems we know we can solve, then let's worry about the temperature.
Cabinet Members: Go ahead and give some spoilers: who'll be SecState? of Defense? Major bonus points for bringing members of the opposite party on board your team AHEAD of the election. (Joe Lieberman doesn't count).
Energy: Everyone is talking about renewable energy. Who's going to be the first to say, in so many budgetary words, 'Screw the Saudis--we'll come up with our own energy'? I'll lump all federal science funding in under this. Bonus points for including Nuclear AND Switchgrass. Major bonus points for telling Detroit to get on board with higher mpgs.
POSSIBLE ATTRACTIONS:
Hmm. Health Care. Social Security.
MEH:
Tax reform / Killing the IRS - great idea in theory, but no stinking chance of any consensus.
Abortion - great idea in theory, but -- oh, wait, wrong issue. Yeah, like anything anyone could even conceive of is ever going to bring James Dobson and Planned Parenthood together. Don't mess with the status quo.
Landing on Mars. Rovers are cheaper, and they don't fireball upon re-entry.
posted by peter at
01:23
2 Comments:
My wishlist covers a few things.
I want the federal budget balanced, no holds barred, and I want a spending reduction approach. Just like in individual finances, the US budget's biggest problem isn't Starbucks (i.e. NASA, USDA) it's the cars and mortgage (i.e. Iraq, Social Security). Oh, and I want corporate tax loopholes closed and the estate tax ban to die.
I want less free trade when it isn't two way trade. Our economy shouldn't be allowed to shrink and die because we decided the commie Chinese could do better than the free ones. I'm looking at you, Bill Clinton, and hoping for you, Jack Ryan. Poor high school kids won't be able to afford cell phones if they cost $200 because they're made in the USA? Good. That will make life better for everyone on the bus anyway.
I want foreign policy that involves the foreigners. This includes asking them to pipe down before beating them to death because we think they're Moslem, and considering whether they want Democracy before we try to make them have it.
I want education policy that makes sense. This involves ignoring the educational establishment and asking the academics. We might even need to hurt some kids feelings and let them fail.
I want energy policy that does not presume a magical work around for the second law of thermodynamics. In fact, I'd like to cover Nevada with solar panels.
I want an acknowledgment that health care problems include advertising and health insurance masking the real cost of medical R&D and application (advertising making it look more expensive and insurance making it look cheaper), and I want those things fixed.
In summary... I think I need to just stick with Civ II.
By
Nate, at Wed Feb 06, 02:01:00 AM GMT
I think you can get away with covering Nevada with solar panels, because Vegas looks best when it's dark and the lights are all lit up. Plus then you won't be able to see the piles of nuclear waste trucking towards Yucca Mountain. Or anything flying out of Area 51.
By
peter, at Wed Feb 06, 02:13:00 AM GMT
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