Southern Gubernatorial Debate Debating Thread

[Leinad]

Thank you PSOL, and good evening everyone. I’m going to talk quite a lot in this debate, but I also think an important part of the campaign is listening to what people have to say. And I have been! I’ve heard people say “Leinad isn’t active enough,” that “Leinad is out of fresh ideas,” that “Leinad is too old.” Well, maybe with my back I can’t toss the ol’ pigskin quite like I used to, but I sure as hell can lift a pen! And maybe my signature isn’t the clearest writing in the world, but I like to think it’s more about what that signature represents, what the Governor represents, and well, I am going to make the case to you that I represent the everyday Southerner, and will be a catalyst for positive change!

Before we talk about "fresh ideas"--and I presume there will be a wide array of questions to address such topics--let’s talk about an idea that is not “fresh.” An idea that should not be carried any further into the 21st century than it already has been. Neoliberalism. Now, this is often used as a boogeyman word, something to get people feeling instead of thinking, so let's define it. Neoliberalism, in the sense that I'm using it, was the shift in the later parts of the 1900s that valued, above anything else, shrinking the size and scope of government in the economy. Deregulation, austerity, tax cuts that mostly favor the rich, and attitudes on both business-labor relations and trade policy that favor the profit motive of mega-corporations over a sound financial position for the world's workers. More and more things become privatized and commodified, the rich become fetishized, and as such, the gap between the rich and poor increases to the point where those under the poverty line have to work more and more to have any hope of a secure future, the rat race culture decimates us psychologically and morally, ideas like private prisons saw incarceration rates skyrocket with prisoners facing worse and worse conditions, the military-industrial complex sees an economic demand for a neo-imperialistic foreign policy agenda, resistance to systemic healthcare reform fueled by the profit motives of insurance and drug companies has led to people paying more money for worse healthcare than in just about any other industrialized economy, education becomes about job-training instead of learning due to a massive increase of college tuition prices, and all the while we have a culture that worships those who were born ahead of the starting line and looks down at those running while dragging a hundred-pound weight behind them.

Now, people might disagree with me on this. Shrinking the size and scope of government is sometimes actually a good thing--after all, too much centralized power is always an impediment to freedom for everyone without that power. But isn't the same true in our current corporate structure? With CEOs earning hundreds of times more than their workers, labor unions decimated and gutted of their influence, isn't the power imbalance between the 1% and the rest of us far larger and far more present a threat to our ability to live free and secure than the power imbalance between the citizens and government? I'm not looking to make a drastic increase to middle class taxes, or increase the number of people dependent on government--in fact, I would rather empower and increase the middle class, and reduce the number of people who require government assistance to live, by waging an aggressive yet strategic and most importantly systemic assault on poverty itself! I don't want to make the South less free, I want to make it more free by increasing our freedom from constantly being chased by insufficient funds.

Also if we're looking for "fresh ideas," why not try a fresh party? The previous Federalist Governor just barely avoiding being eligible for expulsion due to inactivity. Do we really want this to happen again? Frankly, I don't really want to talk about "activity," because honestly talking about activity is like a dog's tail chasing itself, but I know it has been brought up in this campaign and will be brought up again, so I might as well address it out of the gate. The only way to be more active is to actually play Atlasia--make proposals, run elections, debate things, and all that. I will recognize that if we really want activity making it ourselves is the best strategy, and we can never expect people who just aren't interested or have too many real life obligations to pick up the slack while all we do is talk about how inactive things are. Especially when things aren't that inactive overall--when I first became Governor back in 2015 we weren't able to get anyone to run for the old Legislature. We initiated some common-sense game reform, which helped a little, but really it's been the efforts of people who care about the game to bring it back from those dark days.

Remember, the South is bigger than it's ever been. Let's make it better than it's ever been!

[Leinad]

Economy:
>In light of the South having the highest rate of malnutrition in Atlasia, what exact path shall you direct to aide in alleviating this issue?

Well, a lot of it is generally connected to the larger issue of inequality. I'm all ears if there's a more specific measure someone has in mind to fix the problem--one I can think of right off hand is free school lunch--but I think the primary focus should continue to be decreasing the gap between the rich and the richly screwed over.

>What should be the role of unions in the Southern Economy?

Definitely larger than they are now. Unions are documented as being a highly important determining factor to the strength of the middle class, and I support an abolition of "right-to-work laws" in order to give people the right to organize, so they have the bargaining power for fair work, so they don't have to worry about getting a second job to pay for rent and food.

One thing unions won't be doing if I'm successful is trying to get better healthcare or a living wage, as I intend to both establish the latter in the South and implement a single-payer healthcare system, which will, among many other things, give unions the ability to focus on empowering the people even further, instead of simply guaranteeing the basics.

>The South has the areas in which teachers are the worst paid in the nation, with there also being the worst rates of student participation and qualitative results, do you see a pattern there?

Absolutely! Teachers deserve more pay--I hope to take us from last to first!--and lots of schools are dreadfully underfunded. It's our responsibility to make sure kids don't get left behind due to a lack of quality education. Better schools won't solve everything, but combined with other programs it'll definitely help.

>How would you respond to the changing “gig economy” in the South

I definitely see the potential for it to empower people to earn money dependent of a traditional scheduled job. The problem, however, is how these companies often take advantage of the non-full-time status of these workers, and don't act in their best interests. In addition to supporting a healthcare system that, among other things, will remove the dependency workers have on their employers, I support legislation to protect people in the "gig economy" from exploitation.

>With the South being at the forefront of tax decreases and Laissez-faire economic policies, where exactly will you supply these needed funds to ensure a working government?

Well I think it's clear in many cases the rich have been getting away paying too little for too long. And I understand the moral argument against taxation, sure, but I don't see any good moral argument the rich should be paying merely a small amount while people die from issues relating to poverty. "Taxation is theft" doesn't apply if you're already taxing them, and really, what do we lose by making a few billionaires have to choose between a second yacht and a second vacation?

> To Leinad: Exactly how will you tackle Neoliberalism

Like a star linebacker on a particularly slow running back!

Ideas I support include things like minimum wage increases and taxes on the wealthy to reduce inequality, along with universal programs in things like healthcare and college. I plan to support all people, but especially those who are struggling in life, instead of supporting those who have already succeeded--often by default at birth--and merely hoping the growth will "trickle down." It rarely does, and frankly, I think the people are tired of those at the top trickling on them!

Law and Order:
>From mb:

What are your positions on free speech, especially requiring permits to protest and banning masks at protests?

The protection of protestors is one of the most important things to protect our republic. The idea that anyone could claim to be "small government" and have disdain for protestors is one I find particularly absurd. While a mask is not necessarily good fashion, protester bashin' is must too fascist to support when it happens. Requiring permits to exercise free speech is an absolute distortion of freedom. As a rule of thumb, if you need permission to be free, you are probably merely serving under whoever you asked permission from.

> With the growing discontent around police brutality, boiling up in the clashes in Ferguson and St. Louis, what are your comments?

The police are there, at least in an ideal world, to make people safer. In reality they often make many people feel unsafe, and the aggressive "tough on crime" strategy has seen many of these people be locked up. The fact that many people defend cases of police brutality, act as if the police are the real victims, oppose any reform to a clearly broken and often racist system, and that in the end many cops who do things like this get little more than a wrist-slap in terms of formal punishment is frankly shameful. We will have less crime and be much safer if we stop letting police be above the law, focus our prison system to rehabilitation instead of punishment, and basically change the police system to where they're working with communities all across the South instead of against.

Domestic Agenda:
> What will be your relations between the government of the South and the Native Reservations situated inside?

Hopefully good! I am aware of how dark the history is between Native Atlasians and colonialism, and how the effects of this continue to this day. I definitely intend to meet with Southern Native Atlasian leaders, and would probably support efforts in the Chamber to reduce inequality between everyone else and marginalized communities, including Native Atlasians, in addition to efforts to reduce inequality period.

>There has been incidents of Anti-Homeless initiatives, such as the presence of public architecture designed to prevent people from sleep and the buzzing of Homeless out of the Southern rural areas. What will your policies designed to tackle the issue of homelessness look like?

The homeless are not bad people, they are people the system has done bad. The fact they are treated like pests instead of people shows how sociopathic we've become as a culture. The truth is there are more empty homes in this nation than there are homeless people, it is a system we could solve if we weren't so preoccupied with greed. I definitely support legislation and a nationwide initiative to eventually end homelessness. It may not be an easy task, but it's one we must attempt!

>What role should the Confederacy be recognized as part of Southern Heritage?

As a dark era in our history. When many people--including those in my own family lineage--died to preserve the institution of slavery, which is one of the most dark practices humanity has conceived of. Combining feelings of superiority towards a marginalized group and an urge to resist change, hundreds of thousands went into battle to defend the interests of the wealthy people who benefited from such a bigoted system. This is not a story I want to erase from history, on the contrary it's one we should learn from. It's a story of a certain evil--slavery--that we put in our past as a nation, but unfortunately has left a stain that is still felt to this day.

[Leinad]

Polls have opened and Leinad is yet to answer the second round of questions

I want to make sure the answers are good! Keep in mind that I was the main one who wanted a debate in the first place

From S019:
>do you believe that big business should be regulated?

Any entity that holds power over others should, for a functioning society to exist, be regulated. Whether that's government being kept in check by an informed populace and adherence to a well-written constitution, or business being kept in check by an organized workforce and a democratic government seeking to protect workers, consumers, and the environment.

> Exactly what is your position on a carbon tax and why?

I definitely support the Carbon Tax that was passed by Congress and signed by President Fhtagn! Whether or not it should be extended in the South or not is a discussion the Chamber and myself can have if they decide to do so, but I definitely don't want to work against such a policy.

Now, the why? Well, I think there is a cost to increased CO₂ levels in the atmosphere. The costs will affect all of us, especially those on the coasts, and especially those who are poor. We're already seeing the effects with increased forest fires and hurricanes. This is the scientific consensus, and I see no reason to doubt this. And I especially see no reason to pass it off onto other countries. Yes, other countries need to do better with regards to this, but that's a ridiculous argument for inaction, considering the costs of inaction or inadequate action. A carbon tax is an attempt to make the big companies that pollute more than any other--who have no incentive not to do so because all they care about is profit--actually have to bare the costs in the short-term. Hopefully this will aid in the prevention of the long-term costs being any more catastrophic than we have already guaranteed them to be.

>. what are your views on increased gun control measures?

I am not opposed to all possible gun control legislation--obviously gun violence is a serious problem and things should be done to address it--but we need to be very careful. Make sure that we look at actual data and consider unintended consequences of proposals. Too often I see people who know nothing about guns supporting terrible ideas like far-reaching bans and mass confiscation (basically creating a second war on drugs against people who can shoot you), or people opposing any legislation without even considering it's merits due to ideological rigidity (which is absolutely insane given the damage caused by gun violence--not only mass shootings but disputes, suicides, accidents, etc.).

In addition to that conversation, I think other causes should be looked at as well. Better mental health coverage would work wonders, as well as reducing air pollution (which has been statistically linked to increases in violent behavior), and embracing a culture and political focus on people instead of profits to reduce social alienation and hopelessness.

>what is your view on abortion?

Eh, I don't particularly like the idea, but it's not really my place to decide. I'm fine with legal bans for, like, the third trimester or something along those lines--when the fetus is, y'know, more like a baby--but considering that almost 99% of abortions happen during the first half of the pregnancy I'm not sure that counts as a "pro-life position." It's all in the framing, I guess.

I would like for their to be less abortions overall, however. There are options for this, including sex ed and increased help for those struggling economically. Draconian bans work about as effectively as most prohibitive laws do--making the practice far less safe, and possibly putting people in jail who shouldn't be, or even killing women in the process. I want there to be less abortions because there's less demand for abortions, not more danger.

To Leinad:
> In the possibility of there being a rightist regional legislature, what actions will you take to advance your agenda?

For one thing, I think Peace, Labor, and unaffiliated allies have some very good candidates. West_Midlander's made an epic comeback, TimTurner of course is an established veteran nowadays, and PragPop's making a run at it, too, that's exciting as well! So, I encourage people to vote for them in the Chamber election if you want me to have success!

But in case that fails, I think I'm perfectly able to work with other people. I'll make sure Delegates supporting the same policies I do show up for votes, and I will involve myself in the Chamber debates as well as possibly personal conversations in order to bring swing voters to my side on bills.

> What measures will you take by executive order or otherwise on ensuring the benefits of workers in this gig economy.

Eliminating loopholes that lead to poorer conditions for free-lance workers, instituting a single-payer healthcare system so people aren't reliant on their job for insurance, as well as just expanding the protections for workers in general. I'd have to look at the law closer and consult with both members of the Chamber and expert consultants (very smart!) to figure out the exact contents of any bills.

>Mr.Leinad, Can you explain your vote here?

Certainly! And honestly my views on this may have changed a bit (although perhaps not exactly in the way people would like). Let me first link to the original thread here, where the debate started. I explain myself fairly well, perhaps a little bit pandering to the right-wing audience of the Chamber (know your audience!), but still I address a lot of points that they had.

And then the second bill, a resolution which was sponsored by Muaddib and Matthew27 (who also made the first bill, and it turns out ended up being a white nationalist!). This, for some reason I don't know, got more widespread support (if you notice the first bill had many people from various parties coming in to point out how bad it was, this was merely a resolution).

Read those? Good. Points I definitely still agree with include that it's an absolute BS narrative to say that we are in a free speech crisis if you're not allowed to call someone a slur on Twitter, or a couple far-right celebrities got banned. Conservatism is not under attack, unless you consider "conservatism" as synonymous with "hatred," in which case it probably should be under attack! Now, I think we know why Matthew27 thought "conservatism is under attack," because his ideology actually is based on hatred, but anyone else should know better.

Regardless, I am actually not entirely opposed to regulation of social media sites. However, if we allow that, it implies that basically the government is allowed to do whatever they want with regards to private businesses if it helps the people as a whole. It implies that businesses do not have "rights" even vaguely comparable to people's "rights."

So, basically, in a sense of left-wing economics I can certainly agree that the control these tech giants have is worrying. However, anyone thinking these things while being "pro-business" probably just want to say slurs on Twitter.

> Can you give us examples of actions possible in your purview to tackle income inequality?

Well I plan to examine the current budget and tax structure, with the possibility of increasing taxes on the wealthiest among us, should that be necessary to fund important programs. I oppose regressive taxes, flat taxes, or tax cuts & loopholes for the rich. They were made wealthy using a system that is created by the hard work of millions--government, private citizens, other companies, etc.--so I think it's fair they should predominantly fund programs to aid those who were made poor in the system (especially considering how heavy the effects of generational wealth and generational poverty are).

Many ideas I support center around the concept of addressing what makes poor people even poorer. Thus I intend to address healthcare, education, public transportation, among other things.

And of course, an increase in both the minimum wage and the power of unions will help bring the working class into the middle class.

>How would you reform the Law Enforcement system to prevent police brutality

I think the starting point has to be holding officers accountable. It makes no sense to have law enforcement if we don't enforce the law with them, too. Making it clear that we don't tolerate this behavior will lead to more trust developing between communities all over the South and those who have pledged to protect them.