I really don't understand about Kerry...

[Drogue]

Originally posted by Ned
Drogue, Perhaps your characterization of Austro-Candian-European politics is accurate. But I think you say to much when you characterize this axis as the "rest of the world." By any standard, the Muslim world is far more conservative than any Republican. Ditto the Hindus of India. Even the Communist Party in China is more conservative than the Republican Party.

That is true. They are more conservative. However right wing is largelt about economics. The Chinese Communist party is still left wing, even though it is autocratic, to a large extent. For a western country, the Republican party is conservative. Maybe there are some nations that it wouldn't be considered as that, but they wouldn't be developed nations, for the most part.

Originally posted by Ned
It would be better to define your frame of reference before you start calling the Republicans far-right.

I never called the Republicans far right, as AH didn't either. You have added that. I say they are, but the standard of Europe, Australia and North America (bar the US) a right-wing party. They are conservative by western standards, and right wing by economic standards. That is true for the US too, so it seems. Most US people would see the Republics and a conservative, right wing party. Not far right, but they believe in lower taxes and less regulation, by and large, which would make them a right party.

The main difference between the US political specturm and the Europe/Aus/Canada one is that the Democrats would be a centre-right party, although they are progressive. They believe in a lower tax and less regulated system than centre opinion in Europe, Australia and Canada, whereas in the US they seem to be a centrist, even slightly leftist party.

I don't believe the Republicans are far right in the sense of Facism. I do believe they are economically quite far right, in that the levels of tax, welfare and regulation they desire is lower than the centre right parties of Europe.

The Democrats remind me a lot of our New Labour (progressive, the leaders of which being centre-right, on our scale, but the opinion of individual party members being from far-left to centre-right) while the Republicans seem like our Conservative party, but with lower tax, lower welfare, less regulation and stronger in their conservative views. The point I was making is not that the Republicans are far right and authoritarian, but that the Dems are not a leftist party by the standards which most of the developed world lives. Thus, at least for Euro/Aus/Canada, AH's comments were true.

I just want you to stop strawmanning people who say that the Dems are centre-right and the Republicans are right but saying that they believe they are a far right party. I doubt many here would think of the Repugs as a Fascist style, far-right party. But economically, as the linear right-left would usually mean when accompanied by a conservative/progressive that would explain their social views.

[Drogue]

Originally posted by chegitz guevara
Howard's End?
By SAM SMITH

the uncomfortably telling phrase that conservative columnist James Tarranto always uses in mentioning the senator: "the haughty, French-looking Massachusetts Democrat, who by the way served in Vietnam."

So what is "French-looking"? I can understand not liking the French for the war, but I've never heard an anti-war protestor insulting someone by saying they're "American-looking".

[Drake Tungsten]

North America (bar the US)

What was the point of writing this? "Canada" is shorter and more descriptive...

[lightblue]

And how does kerry look French. That big chin is about as American as it comes

[Drogue]

Is it just me or does Kerry look a little like Jimmy Hill?

[Cruddy]

Damn. I thought this thread was about Kerry the place, not the person.

* Cruddy twiddles his thumbs

[chequita guevara]

Originally posted by Ned
I assume, Che, that the left does not like Kerry.

I dunno. I don't like his personality, but you gotta respect a war hero who returns his metals and helps organize against the war he fought in. His politics are certainly more to my liking than Deans, but he's got no fire in the belly. Plus he's Irish, and I always gotta like a fellow son of the Green Isle.

I would say that many on the left are attracted to Dean's insurrgency-style campaign, and that if Dean weren't in the race, would probably be all about Kerry. Those of us on the hard left, however, would not be, officially anyway. As a human being and an American, it's hard not to get caught up in these things emotionally.

[chequita guevara]

Originally posted by TCO
you left out the months and months of unemployment that you sucked up and all the goofing off you did and how you only got serious about a job once the checks stopped coming.

I was looking for work 8+ hours a day. I got a job before my unemployment ran out (though I did need an extention). Towards the end we were planning on moving to what we hoped would be a better job market.

[chequita guevara]

Originally posted by Drake Tungsten

North America (bar the US)

What was the point of writing this? "Canada" is shorter and more descriptive...

Is it shorter than Canada, Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama?

[MrFun]

Originally posted by Imran Siddiqui

If you had a choice between going into Iraq and pissing off the allies or not going in and keeping them happy, which would you choose.

You could have still gone in and kept them happy (at least no worse than when we went into Kosovo). Bush handled it incredibly rough. The choice need not be made.

I am getting tired of agreeing with you lately!!

[Ned]

I heard Kerry to say that he would never go to war without our allies' approval, meaning France, and perhaps (and this was not clear) the approval of the UNSC. (The latter position would appear to be inconsistent with his position on Kosovo.)

His whole position, then, boils down to French approval.

Bush has signalled that he will make this position a campaign issue when he talked about conditioning America's security on a "permission" slip from France.

[chequita guevara]

Originally posted by Ned
His whole position, then, boils down to French approval.

Bush has signalled that he will make this position a campaign issue when he talked about conditioning America's security on a "permission" slip from France.

If the United States is ever threatened, France would stand beside us. The U.S. was not threatened by Iraq in anyway, shape or form. Just because your friend tries to stop you from beating a homeless person doesn't mean he isn't your friend. He's just trying to stop you from doing something evil and stupid.

[Spiffor]

Originally posted by Ned
Bush has signalled that he will make this position a campaign issue when he talked about conditioning America's security on a "permission" slip from France.

Which is a pure propaganda stunt. Not only do you have other allies that opposed your adventure in Iraq (Germany, Belgium, Greece, to name a few), that are exactly in the same status as France...
But also, your allies never withheld whater "permission slip" you were supposed to get when you were defending your security. If you had managed to document that Iraq was a threat to your security, the opposition to war would have been lifted.

[Drake Tungsten]

Is it shorter than Canada, Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama?

Yes, because we all know he was talking about the long history of left-leaning liberal democracies in Central America...

[Drake Tungsten]

but you gotta respect a war hero who returns his metals and helps organize against the war he fought in.

Kerry didn't give his medals back. He threw back medals that belonged to someone else.