where do you stand on these social issues?

[Nym90]

gay marriage? support; I agree with Dibble, civil unions for everyone would be preferable.

abortion? support legal abortion up to 5 months, otherwise illegal
except for extreme cases. increase education about abortion alternatives.

legalized gambling? support

prostitution? support legalization with strong regulation (licensing, mandatory STD tests, etc.)

prayer in school? it should be legal, but not led by school employees. no mandatory prayer

school uniforms? oppose

drug legalization? favor marijuana legalization for those age 18 and above (alcohol age lowered to 18 as well), reduce penalties for hard drug use. concentrate on drug sellers more than drug users

gun control? support generally, depends on the specifics. guns that have a legitimate hunting/sporting/self-defense purpose should be legal but regulated

affirmative action? oppose race-based, support socioeconomic based

speed limits? favor raising most of them

death penalty? mostly opposed, except in extreme cases

mandatory minimum sentencing? opposed, generally. there should be some minimums, but it should be mostly left up to jurors and judges.

[Nym90]

gay marriage? Support making it legal.
abortion? Should be legal up to 20 weeks, after that illegal except to save the mother's life.
legalized gambling? Support, with regulations.
prostitution? Support making it legal, with regulations.
prayer in school? Support prayer being legal. Oppose organized prayer led by teachers, or student-organized prayer that disrupts class time.
school uniforms? Oppose, though I don't feel strongly about them.
drug legalization? Support marijuana legalization, with regulations. For harder drugs, the sale of the drug should have a much harsher punishment than the purchase or possession of it.
gun control? Generally support, depending on the measure.
affirmative action? Oppose race-based, support socioeconomic based.
speed limits? Support raising many of them; they should be based on 85th percentile speed, the state shouldn't impose arbitrary maximums.
death penalty? Generally opposed, except in extreme circumstances (serial killers, for example).
mandatory minimum sentencing? Support some minimums, but they should be pretty low. I support allowing more freedom on the part of judges and juries to consider the particulars of the case.

[Nym90]

gay marriage? support; I agree with Dibble, civil unions for everyone would be preferable.

abortion? support legal abortion up to 5 months, otherwise illegal
except for extreme cases. increase education about abortion alternatives.

legalized gambling? support

prostitution? support legalization with strong regulation (licensing, mandatory STD tests, etc.)

prayer in school? it should be legal, but not led by school employees. no mandatory prayer

school uniforms? oppose

drug legalization? favor marijuana legalization for those age 18 and above (alcohol age lowered to 18 as well), reduce penalties for hard drug use. concentrate on drug sellers more than drug users

gun control? support generally, depends on the specifics. guns that have a legitimate hunting/sporting/self-defense purpose should be legal but regulated

affirmative action? oppose race-based, support socioeconomic based

speed limits? favor raising most of them

death penalty? mostly opposed, except in extreme cases

mandatory minimum sentencing? opposed, generally. there should be some minimums, but it should be mostly left up to jurors and judges.

Hmm, I forgot that I answered this in February. As you can see, my positions haven't really changed.

[Nym90]

gay marriage? Support making it legal.
abortion? Should be legal up to 20 weeks, after that illegal except to save the mother's life.
legalized gambling? Support, with regulations.
prostitution? Support making it legal, with regulations.
prayer in school? Support prayer being legal. Oppose organized prayer led by teachers, or student-organized prayer that disrupts class time.
school uniforms? Oppose, though I don't feel strongly about them.
drug legalization? Support marijuana legalization, with regulations. For harder drugs, the sale of the drug should have a much harsher punishment than the purchase or possession of it.
gun control? Generally support, depending on the measure.
affirmative action? Oppose race-based, support socioeconomic based.
speed limits? Support raising many of them; they should be based on 85th percentile speed, the state shouldn't impose arbitrary maximums.
death penalty? Generally opposed, except in extreme circumstances (serial killers, for example).
mandatory minimum sentencing? Support some minimums, but they should be pretty low. I support allowing more freedom on the part of judges and juries to consider the particulars of the case.

Welcome back Nym! Where were you?

I have a full time job now (Economic Development Director for Manistee County, MI) and I had no internet access in my home for quite some time. I now have the internet at home, so I'll be on a little more (not as much as before, as my job is still pretty demanding, but in and out). I'm staying out of fantasy politics, though.

[Nym90]

Gay marriage  - I support it, in fact if not in name. Ideally marriage would be left to churches to decide, and government would recognize only civil unions. So long as we have government-sponsored marriage, however, it should be available to those of all sexual orientations.

Abortion - I support it being legal, though not in the late term except for life threatening situations. I'm still unsure of exactly where the cutoff should occur between legal and illegal; it all depends on where exactly the fetus becomes human, and this is a very grey area with no clear demarcation.

The best way to reduce abortion is through education, not by throwing doctors and especially women in prison, and that should be the primary focus of the debate on this issue.

Legalised gambling - Support, though it should be taxed and regulated.

Prostitution - Support, though it should be taxed and regulated.

Prayer in school - I oppose prayer led by school employees. Children can certainly do it so long as it isn't interfering with anyone else's education. Government shouldn't sanction religion and vice versa, but indivdiuals are free to do as they choose.

School uniforms - Geneally opposed, should be left up to the school, however.

Drug legalisation - Support for marijuana, oppose for harder drugs, though enforcement should focus far more on prosecution of dealers than users (perhaps entirely on dealers only, in fact).

Gun control - Oppose if the gun has a legitimate self-defense or hunting purpose, otherwise support. It should be a case by case issue with some local flexibility as well.
 
The best way to reduce crime is through education; like abortion, it's a social issue that really should be an economic one in my opinion.

Affirmative action - Oppose if race-based, support some degree of socioeconomic AA. We should have equal opportunity for all, but this is far more affected by class than by race.

As with marriage, equal access should be granted to everyone regardless of factors outside of their control, hence we shouldn't discriminate on the basis of race for admissions or job hiring nor on the basis of sexual orientation for marriage.

Speed limits - Support, though many should be increased. They should be set by engineers, not by politicians.

Death penalty - Oppose generally, though I would support its use in extreme situations (multiple murders, and perhaps some other offenses). I don't think it's really a direct deterrent at all, but in some cases a respect for life does require its use as the only possible punishment that can come close to fitting the crime. It should be rarely used but I don't think that eliminating it completely would be a good idea.

Mandatory minimum sentencing - Oppose generally, the judge and jury should decide the punishment and not politicians, although some degree of minimums are required to restrain potential abuses by these groups.