My General Political Stances

It's been quite a while since I've written about politics.  So let me recap my general views on things in that area.  I tend to support more liberal positions on the issues, so that usually lands me squarely in the Democratic camp as opposed to the Republicans.  I like health insurance reform, but I think the recently enacted Affordable Care Act didn't go far enough and should have been tax-supported instead of having an enormous competitive disadvantage placed on the backs of American businesses, which really don't have a logical connection with health insurance benefits other than that, in the beginning, some companies offered them as a lure to employees and the practice gradually expanded.  I support immigration reform, which is needed for different reasons, not the least of which being that we don't need a subclass walking our supposedly free streets too afraid to seek police protection from the real criminals out there.  I support firearms regulation and actually do something the so-called conservatives usually insist upon (but don't when discussing gun control): I read the United States Constitution, specifically its Second Amendment, in the context of the late eighteenth century when it was written and when the fledgling nation had no standing peacetime army.  It depended upon its citizenry, along with their ready arms, to be quickly available in response to a military necessity.  Now that we have the world's most powerful standing armed forces, that need is unnecessary and the amendment is outmoded.  I believe that deficits and the national debt should not be interpreted in terms of raw dollar amounts, but rather in relation to the amount of gross domestic product...and that the tax breaks given to the wealthy in essence amount to the rich being the biggest "takers" of government entitlements.  I believe that patience and diplomacy should accompany our use of military and that the sheer presence of our forces in an troubled region can sometimes be an effective deterrent to threats against us, without necessarily instituting open conflict.  There are other issues, some of which you may fault me for omitting... but what I'm done here is cover some of the more pressing, headline-grabbing issues affecting us now...