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What questions should I ask statist candidates for Governor?

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JacobGalt

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3 of them are coming to my college in Brazil, and I have been tasked to write some tough questions for them... what should they be? A 50-word limit would be adequate. Thanks.

Jacob, I don't have a specific answer. How can I, since you give absolutely no information about the candidates ("statist" is too general and covers too much to come up with specific questions). However, let me answer a broader issue. You've asked a number of questions on this board, all without context and all without giving your own opinion. I don't know if you expect someone to wave a magic wand and make the appropriate answers appear, but that's not going to happen. Since you appear interested in Objectivism, let me give you one rule for the road: try thinking for yourself first. Work things out in your own mind. It's perfectly okay if you're wrong. That's how you learn.

Give it a shot.

Edited by claire
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Jacob, I don't have a specific answer. How can I, since you give absolutely no information about the candidates ("statist" is too general and covers too much to come up with specific questions). However, let me answer a broader issue. You've asked a number of questions on this board, all without context and all without giving your own opinion. I don't know if you expect someone to wave a magic wand and make the appropriate answers appear, but that's not going to happen. Since you appear interested in Objectivism, let me give you one rule for the road: try thinking for yourself first. Work things out in your own mind. It's perfectly okay if you're wrong. That's how you learn.

Give it a shot.

By statist I mean the typical liberal/conservative politician. As of my own questions, I have some:

- Does man have the right to take property away from others? If not, how can man delegate that right to the government?

- Shouldn't your argument for having public schools and hospitals be reason for the State to control airline and technology companies as well?

- If a man takes away money from another man, it's called robbery and is illegal. When governments takes away money from man, it's called taxation and supposedly moral. Why the double standard?

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Actually - fine questions. Here's the problem: given your scenario of addressing three candidates, the questions are extremely broad and abstract. Nothing wrong with that, but your candidates will blink and have no idea what your talking about. So - can you get a bit (okay, a lot) more specific and concrete. For instances: High property taxes in our city have it difficult for potential first-time homeowners to buy property. Do you have a plan to address this problem?

That's a concrete and specific question tha can be answered. First, find out what your candidates stand for on specific issues. Then, address those specific issues.

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Actually - fine questions. Here's the problem: given your scenario of addressing three candidates, the questions are extremely broad and abstract. Nothing wrong with that, but your candidates will blink and have no idea what your talking about. So - can you get a bit (okay, a lot) more specific and concrete. For instances: High property taxes in our city have it difficult for potential first-time homeowners to buy property. Do you have a plan to address this problem?

That's a concrete and specific question tha can be answered. First, find out what your candidates stand for on specific issues. Then, address those specific issues.

I do realize that more specific questions are more appropriate for these type of debates, but I want to ask some broad philosophical questions so the public can see how inconsistent and wrong politicians are.

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Jacob, do you really think the "public" will have a better understanding of such abstractions? You gotta have a whole lotta smart people where you live. Look, I honestly think you like to lose yourself in the abstract to keep from dealing with concretes. Just a guess, but a good one. So, give concretes a chance. For instance, let's start small. What are some of the specifics that these candidates stand for? Can you list two each?

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Jacob, do you really think the "public" will have a better understanding of such abstractions? You gotta have a whole lotta smart people where you live. Look, I honestly think you like to lose yourself in the abstract to keep from dealing with concretes. Just a guess, but a good one. So, give concretes a chance. For instance, let's start small. What are some of the specifics that these candidates stand for? Can you list two each?

There are no "mixed-economy" conservatives in Brazil - all candidates support higher taxes, more controls, government ownership, public roads, schools, hospitals, etc.

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Aside from "Get the hell out of my way," there's not much to tell these Mr. Thompsons.

But I mean, I don't know, you can always just throw in some snappy comments like:

If it is wrong for one person to murder another, why does this change when one person calls himself "a policeman" or "a soldier"?

If it is wrong for one person to enslave another, why does this change when one person calls himself "your representative in government"?

If it is wrong for one person to steal from another, then why does this change when one person calls himself "an IRS Agent"? (or whatever your tax/fiscal department is called)

If it one man may not deprive someone of their life, liberty, or property by force or fraud then, why can a group of men elect a representative to do these things?

If I do not have the right to do those things, how does my representative get that right by being voted in by other men who do not have that right? Magic?

or something. But you're not likely to convince anyone.

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By statist I mean the typical liberal/conservative politician. As of my own questions, I have some:

- Does man have the right to take property away from others? If not, how can man delegate that right to the government?

- Shouldn't your argument for having public schools and hospitals be reason for the State to control airline and technology companies as well?

- If a man takes away money from another man, it's called robbery and is illegal. When governments takes away money from man, it's called taxation and supposedly moral. Why the double standard?

You already know the answers to these questions, and you should be familiar with what his answers are going to be. I don't know if you just want to show off in your college or something, but It would be better if you don't waste his time and others' who do have questions to ask him.

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Rudmer, that was exactly why I was desperately trying to get him to answer a few concretes. He wouldn't do it.

And he won't. Someone, in every thread, always tries to get him to think for himself, to reason without being spoon-fed the correct, obvious answer. He absolutely refuses to do so. Your average three-year-old does more thinking than JacobGalt appears to be doing -- at least three-year-olds are constantly asking "why" and inventing new ways to get into mischief. With JacobGalt, it's always the same mischief: ask an inane question in the title, write one or two sentences that do little to explain or expound, and then sit back and wait for the answers (many of them rather annoyed, many of them trying to nudge him along like yours) to start rolling in.

Mods: is there a way for me to programmatically filter this guy without checking the author of the thread? I'm sick of clicking on his threads because the titles sound interesting, and then being treated to such inanity.

(Edited for grammar.)

Edited by Rudmer
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In this thread: a lazy troll asks everyone to do his thinking (and his homework) for him. Again.

This is a perfect example of assuming this philosophy is true and correct, and then going out looking for proof. The entire approach is "floating" and detatched from reality. I dont think its "trolling" I just think its an invalid method for gaining any real understanding of anything.

j..

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This is a perfect example of assuming this philosophy is true and correct, and then going out looking for proof. The entire approach is "floating" and detatched from reality. I dont think its "trolling" I just think its an invalid method for gaining any real understanding of anything.

j..

I would agree with you, if this thread was his first or second or tenth. But he has been doing this for weeks now, and has been told multiple times by experienced members and moderators to knock it off, and yet he continues. Smells like a troll to me.

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