What do you think is the most important problem facing this country today?

[NNN0LHI]

Poll question: What do you think is the most important problem facing this country today?

[msongs]

1. the stranglehold on the USA by corporations nt

[Mojambo]

14. No doubt about it

Every single other issue up there can't even begin to be tackled until corporate control of the government is fixed.

Full public financing of all elections has to be step one.

[rurallib]

15. Agreed - plus their international reach which puts them out of our control

[lildreamer316]

32. I think that is a good umbrella that covers several of the problems in the poll.

It actually IS a domino theory here.. if we were to break that stranglehold, then I bet you that some improvement could be seen in both economy/jobs and global warming sectors.

[varelse]

35. Yes, that's the "something else"

also known as the "root cause" or the "elephant in the room".

[PA Democrat]

62. My response as well.

Every other issue ties back to the influence wielded by corporations over politicians.

[The Straight Story]

2. Something else

Erosion of freedoms in the name of many things.

[gateley]

5. Yes! nt

[gateley]

3. Iraq

because like Biden says (I'm sorry, I just can't quit quoting him because he's so RIGHT) -- Iraq is the big boulder in the middle of the road. We need to move that before we can begin to give the attention to the other issues that they deserve.

Me, personally - economy. Me as a human being and American - Iraq.

[Hugin]

4. Ahem, something else...

BUSH!

[gateley]

7. Ohhhh Yeah! nt

[Olney Blue]

6. The wars.

[stellanoir]

8. Separating the economy from the war is a false argument.

They are inextricably interwoven.

[angrycarpenter]

9. greed

The root of all the other problems. Greed has been presented to us as a virtue for so long that we may never recover.

[femmocrat]

10. While those are all huge problems, I checked Health Care.

So many are uninsured or cannot afford the premiums... It affects a huge number of people; although I don't have the numbers at hand, I have heard it frequently referrenced in the political debates.

[DrDan]

11. bush

[natrat]

12. clinton

[DB1]

13. The destruction of the constitution and fascist state in the making.

[Sinistrous]

25. I second that.

The framework of our nation has been shredded. No progress can be made on the other very real problems listed absent a free and democratic structure within which to function.

[newmajority]

29. Which is tied into everything on that list.

You can't really pick one. They all suck, and they were all brought about by the last 28 years of criminal policies designed to destroy the middle class, and replace a constitutional democratic republic with corporatist fascism.

[magellan]

34. Yep. n/t

[The2ndWheel]

16. Energy

And the cheaper it is, the more we use(jobs, war, healthcare, etc), which results in more impact environmentally. The more impact we have environmentally, the cheaper we want to make energy so that we get more efficient using it, although that has always led to using more energy, increasing our impact environmentally. We just keep going around in that circle. We can't stop doing it, because most people wouldn't be here without essentially "free" energy. We can't continue doing it, because that keeps us trapped in the rapacious production/consumption cycle.

So ultimately, what is the most important problem? Probably the fundamental way in which we organize life. Good luck fixing that though.

[bigwillq]

17. Energy prices and Iraq

are affecting a lot of things, mainly the economy, cost of gas, food, etc...
We are spending way to much money in Iraq and things at home are being neglected.

[Neurotica]

18. Apathy

Many of my neighbors do not even understand how our local government is structured, much less who represents them. You can't begin to address some of the bigger issues until you start to pay attention, especially at the local level.

[Individualist]

19. Corrupt government

[Donnachaidh]

20. Class warfare - the 1% who own the corporations and their grip

on the media and their war to not only take us back to pre-New Deal America, but to also strip away the rights of all citizens granted in the Constitution.

We (the middle class and poor) are merely cannon fodder for the fight over diminished supplies of oil, food and water on this planet. We were conned into a war that was nothing more than a grandiose grab at Iraq's oil fields. What will the *next* war be over? If we don't come to grips with what is happening we are making our children's future nothing more than serfdom for the uber-wealthy. We need to TOSS -all- the wealthy people out of Congress and the Senate who are NOT doing as WE wish, and we need to take the government back before it's too damned late.

[lostnfound]

58. Your selection sums up the corporatism, the intentional ignorance, the economy

I vote for your choice.

"Intentional ignorance" was brought about by the incessant dumbing-down of the public, particularly through the media, because it makes them more sheeplike and able to be manipulated.

The economy may be on the verge of collapse, and it was the unmitigated greed of a small number of people that has brought us here.

[Wizard777]

21. Something else: The lack of impeachment and prosecution of Bush and Cheney.

[Stinky The Clown]

22. Something else - the media

They actually have the power to make the country do any damned thing they wish to make it do.

An honest media would put us way better than halfway to achieving the most liberal policy changes we can imagine.

[ColbertWatcher]

23. Lack of Accountability and Justice.

Because with these, all the others are taken care of.

If the Congress was able to investigate these issues, and the DoJ pursued real criminals, none of the choices above would really be a problem.

War in Iraq wouldn't have happened had there been a legislature checking and balancing the executive and a DoJ that wasn't employed by the GOP.

Healthcare homelessness is not justice for someone who cannot pay inflated costs when their "insurance" squirms out of its contracts. We need a system that does not criminalize poor health and regulatory agencies that do their job without interference from political parties.

Economy/Jobs Corporations are not being held accountable to the "stock holders" when the CEO makes enough money to buy and sell small countries as the workers are fired and the jobs go overseas. Regulatory agencies need to be accountable to the people, not the industry. The GOP DoJ failed to do their job because the GOP prevented Congress from holding them accountable.

Terrorism and national security we already have laws to cover this. Simply follow them without hyperbole and fear. Since when is law a philosophical plaything for partisans to use to justify their crimes?

Energy and the cost of gas regulatory agencies need to be accountable to the people, not the industry. The GOP DoJ failed to do their job because the GOP prevented Congress from holding them accountable. Also, where's the alternative fuels I heard Jimmy Carter talk about in the 1970's?

Private mercenary armies we already have laws to cover this. Simply follow them. They need to be investigated by Congress and held accountable for any crimes by a Justice Department that doesn't get its orders from the political party that employs them.

Foreign policy when the rest of the world is seen as nothing more than markets to be experimented on, this represents only corporations, not the nation. The watchdogs either didn't do their jobs, or they were prevented from doing so. Or worse: they were defunded and disappeared.

Illegal immigration we already have laws to cover this. Simply follow them without hyperbole and fear.

The environment and global warming regulatory agencies need to be accountable to the people, not the industry. The GOP DoJ failed to do their job because the GOP prevented Congress from holding them accountable. Also, where's the alternative fuels I heard Jimmy Carter talk about in the 1970's?

And you can add how the FDA doesn't seem to have the funding to inspect meat and children's toys. What about education? We used to have money for that, but somehow that has dwindled and whatever agencies were charged with overseeing the system can't be bothered to question the private companies benefiting from NCLB as even more districts fall into the "school choice" trap. That is not justice, yet no one is holding anyone accountable.

All these issues could easily taken care of, if this administration had a Justice Department that did its job.

And we had a Congress without any Republicans.

Sorry for the rant, but after 7 years of the GOP, we have to stop thinking with their mindset.

[windbreeze]

24. Figuring out where to start, figuring out which is most important...n/t

[HughMoran]

26. You know you're on DU when "something else" trumps what is more important to the rest of the US

...like herding cats... :rofl:

[countmyvote4real]

27. Partisan corruption in DOJ.

It's all been designed to dead-end there.

[meow mix]

28. no flag-pin choice for the hillz

unfair

[earthlover]

42. Beat me to the flag lapel pin as pressing issue!

However there are other HUGE issues facing us....

People who were radical when Obama was eight years old.

Obama's kindergarden presidential aspirations.

A handful of Obama's minister's sermons.

Obama's middle name.

Obama noticing that there are a lot of pissed off people out there, and bitter is an understatement.

Hillary was taught to hunt a long time ago.

The Republicans are going to try to defame Obama, so Hillary may as well do their work for them. I suppose that is the rationalization

[NNN0LHI]

30. Here is this same poll from last July to see how things have evolved

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=389&topic_id=1419124

[Crunchy Frog]

31. Corporatism. n/t

[kitp]

33. Somethings else

Elections. Can't do anything if you can't control who gets in office.
National Security State. 60+ years of non-stop war. Imperialist footprint in the faces of billions.
Corporate control of politics and the media.
Fix those three and many things are possible.

[Lorien]

36. Hey, if we ignore climate change for much longer, we won't have a war

in Iraq, a lousy economy or have to worry about health care because we'll all be DEAD!

See? Problems solved.

[Lost-in-FL]

37. Americans are being "stupified" by Republican pundits on Radio/TV n/t

[Political Heretic]

38. Government accountability / constitutional crisis

[AteAlien]

39. *

nuff said

[OhioChick]

40. Economy/Jobs

NAFTA, CAFTA, Outsourcing/Offshoring, not to mention our extreme amount of Chinese goods coming into the country.

[leftofthedial]

41. most of those are all the same problem

there is but one real issue--the class war.

[scarletwoman]

43. No war but the Class War! I voted "something else" -- thinking of all the corruption in our gov't.

The strategy of the Class War requires the corruption of government. Corruption of the media, too, of course.

[leftofthedial]

65. we are witnessing the relaunch of feudalism

which is *exactly* the same thing as mature capitalism.

[stevebreeze]

44. loss of democracy

too much influence by big money in politics
a press that sucks up to the powerful and has no responsibility to the masses.

[galledgoblin]

45. all of the above?

so many of our problems are tied to each other, it's too hard for me to narrow it to one category... so I voted "something else"

[frebrd]

46. Restoring the separation between religion and government

but, given the candidates remaining, that's not likely to happen.

[tom_paine]

47. Something else: The ongoing degradation and destruction of the System of Checks and Balaces by the

Bushies, now in it's 28th year (or more dpending on your perspective)

We are like an AIDS patient, as the Bushies have essentially destroyed our immune system to tyranny, meaning much worse is likely to come down the pike in the future. A tyranny that makes the reign of Bushler look like Bushler's reign makes Nixon's look relatively benign.

In the advanced stages of AIDS, a victim is unable to fend off even the slightes infection. Infections that a healthy person would fight off so swiftly they would not even know there had been an immunological struggle in the first place.

So it is, I believe, with the Bushie destruction of the System of Checks and Balances. All of those problems on your list, they would either be much smaller or nonexistant if we still ahd the mechanisms of Liberty to protect us.

From that destruction, stems everything else, and these other problems that wouldn't even BE serious problems in a strong and healthy republic, now are lethall infecting our nation.

Just my opinion. Restore the System of Checks and balances to health and vigor, andthe rest will follow, to one degree or another.

[bush_equals_mladic]

48. George Bush

Only one problem.

[baby_mouse]

49. PARIS HILTON! BRITNEY SPEARS!

[El Pinko]

50. Wealth & Income Inequality - the dearth of good-paying middle-class & blue-collar jobs

I put jobs and economy, but it's more specific than that. The model for economic growth for the last 30 years has been all wrong.

[GOPBasher]

51. Good question, but I can't answer it as a multiple choice. Too complicated.

IMO:

The war is the most immediate problem. Ecological problems are the most dangerous problems, but those are global issues, not just the US. Health care costs and economic inequality (lack of high-paying, middle-class jobs) are the worst long term problems in our country.

[Behind the Aegis]

52. Other: Bigotry.

Bigotry has been and will continue to be the worst thing this country faces. Examine many of the issues and it comes down to bigotry.

War in Iraq -- "They are a threat because they are different than us. They are responsible for 9-11."

Health care -- "Some animals are more equal than others."

Economy/Jobs -- "You are too fat, too white, too black, too smart, not smart enough, have the 'wrong' genitalia...."

Terrorism and national security -- "The 'others' are out to get us!"

Energy and the cost of gas -- "We don't control it/They control it."

Private mercenary armies -- I, personally, don't see this as even being a real issue.

Foreign policy -- "It's the Arabs/Jews/other who have too much influence over us."

Illegal immigration -- "Some animals are more equal than others."

The environment and global warming -- I must admit, this one is hard to pin on bigotry other than to say that 'some are more entitled to resources.' The "bigotry" here is against the very source that supports all life, including ours, yet, we seem to think the environment "owes us," as opposed to our "owing it."

[ThomWV]

53. George Bush - he's still the president

[Kip Humphrey]

54. Fascist globalism, stolen elections, and traversing the galactic equatorial plane in 2012

[natrat]

55. big fucking joke the whole thing-we are in the midst of a huge exctinction event,

[Fumesucker]

56. Yep...

The Holocene extinction event, to be exact.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holocene_extinction_event

[pleah]

57. Could it be all of the above, caused by a

corrupt government taken over by corporations?

[Indy Lurker]

59. Education

With high school dropout rate at 50% in many places, we won't have a workforce capable of getting good jobs even if they are available.

I get to train some people in their 20's, some with a high school diploma, some without. Sadly, their only asset is physical strength for manual labor. Many need help reading work instructions, or must get verbal instruction.

[flvegan]

60. The complicitness of 95% of our government.

[L. Coyote]

61. The Human Population BOMB is exploding still!!

If this problem is not solved, the rest won't be!!

[LWolf]

63. Corporate government. nt

[WA98070]

64. Citizens have lost control of the direction of our government. Voting is an illusion.

[Piperay]

66. Environment

nothing else matters if you can't breath