Which issues are most important for the US today

[OzarkDem]

Poll question: Which issues are most important for the US today

[BOSSHOG]

1. My number one concern

is preventing religious zealots in this country from using all the problems you have listed as distractions to cover their crime of trying to replace the constitution with the bible. Our domestic enemies are more a danger then our foreign ones.

[Nozebro]

2. A strong economy = rising tide = lift for ALL boats. nt

nt

[Stinky The Clown]

3. That's a very hard poll to answer .....

I chose healthcare because it most personally affects every American. That is NOT to say the other issues aren't vitally - critically - important. Some are.

Iraq needs no discussion. 'Out now' is the only answer. But even if we do nothing, the war *will* end.

Job loss is also personal. But once again, there are self-corrective forces that will create some balance over the long haul. Thjis is NOT to say I support ignoring it. It is only to say that, in the worst case, the healthcare crisis is more immportant.

Energy ... pretty much the same as the other two.

Assault riufles ..... waaaaaay down my personal list of "I DO give a shits'

[Nimrod2005]

4. Most important issue is NOT letting people penetrate other people's

various holes...etc. I am more concerned about who is fucking whom...:sarcasm:

[pooja]

5. Sensible Energy policies...

there is an untapped market out there... Its called the environment. By creating sustainable energy, you create jobs, create market, create talent, stop the dependency on big corporate market. The people who create a car that is affordable and independent of oil... will be the new ford. The people who create the solar unit or wind unit for home use with a dependable backup battery (say a lithium battery that is continually recharged)and create it affordably, will reap financial windfall. What will make these things economical is creating the factories to mass manufacture these ideas and components. There by taking over that wonderful motto: faster, cheaper, better.

On top of that, we could impose green tax fees (I have a feeling that it would eliminate income tax). Your impact on the earth can be measured by the waste you use. You go to McDonald's-- the tax on the work used to make the sandwhich would be applied. If McDonald's had to pay for the wrap, the bag, the little plastic toy (that's a lot of energy to pay for). Think of millionairs and all their toys... homes, cars, clothing, jewels... all that would be taxed for the energy it took to make the items. People would be looking for ways to counter the negatives, by making their homes more energy efficient, driving electric cars, using public transportation. You can essentially change the whole tax code by imposing green taxes. And the rich would pay their fair share, since they tend to be the biggest wasters of energy.

[Sherman A1]

6. Agreed

[Name removed]

7. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[KKKarl is an idiot]

13. I agree in part

I think it should be a non-biased approach to all problems in the middle east. Looking at it from both perspectives. But I definitely agree our non-questioning support for Israel should end.

[newyawker99]

15. Hi allheart!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[xchrom]

8. we must stop job loss and bring back manufaturing -- but if we don't

nationalize healthcare -- we won't be helping business.

we must do both.

[dmosh42]

9. dump some trade agreements, plus....

We do need a strong economy to launch all these other programs. (health, fight terror, etc.) And the quickest way to get back on track is to dump all these Repub trade agreements with China and Korea for starters and control the employment of illegal immigrants.

[xchrom]

10. i agree re: china and other places.

taking healthcare off the backs of business will go a long way to helping.

[KKKarl is an idiot]

14. I agree

with dumping trade agreements with China. Now I know we cannot leave China tomorrow & expect to survive. The problem with that is the fact that big business has made us so dependent on China that our economy will fall flat if we did away with trade agreements immediately. We are funding a major military build up in China. But republicans are not looking at that huge threat. It is much bigger than terrorism. If the Chinese government decided to attack The US tomorrow there will be huge amounts of causalities that will make 9/11 look small in comparison. They could also choose to stop production for a week that will easily send us into a tail spin of recession that could last years.

[flaminbats]

16. I feel the same way..

these problems cannot be separated, whether solved or not!

supply and demand tells the story. Seeing a doctor, filling a prescription, and everything related to healthcare cost more for a reason. Demand for healthcare is exploding as the babyboomers age, but the supply is not.

This means insurance companies will collect more in premiums, while covering less. It means payroll taxes will slowly increase, while providing less government coverage for medical expenses. It means Doctors will get paid more with each day, while doing less.

Increasing the supply is the solution, and the government can play a role in this. We can have more doctors, nurses, and prescription drugs..if the government played an active role in funding the research and education needed to make it affordable. More importantly, the quality of the coverage provided by Medicare would increase..if we all depended on it!

Doing nothing could result in a massive shortage that financially breaks our Social Security program, while making the basic needs of the public harder to get than luxuries. Or it could result health coverage for everyone in the country, while also producing the needed jobs for the children of babyboomers.

[xchrom]

17. very succinct.

and you point out where the opposition to nationalized healthcare in you analysis.

pharma primarily -- but certainly from the mega business that hospitals have turned into themselves.

[slackmaster]

11. Other - Our ongoing refusal to adopt and embrace the Metric System

:nuke:

[Uncle Joe]

12. The trashing of the environment is like a giant asteroid headed to earth,

everything seems ok until it's not and then it's too late. Afterward nothing else matters.