Where do all the presidential candidates (Dems included) get this

idea that the number one job of the President is to protect the people? Even within the oath of office, the word "preserve" comes before the word "protect" and they both refer to the Constitution, not the populace. Someone needs to clue these candidates in on what their job entails and what they will be swearing to do.

I don't want a President telling me that they are there to protect me. I can't give some public persona that much trust.

When they sell us that crap, and we buy it, they can walk all over Us, Our Rights, and the Constitution.

means. They see it from a simple view - women shouldn't be abused, there shouldn't be ethnic cleansing, etc. They don't see it as the whole of what makes up our Constitution.

I'm beginning to believe that the biggest problem in this country isn't health care, terrorism, or any of the issues we discuss. It's the ignorance of the people, as a whole, over what makes this country, this country.

This is at the heart of the matter!

The fact that some of those idiots you see on TV "news" even have a job proves it. Rush, Insanity, O'Lielly, Lou Dobbs - the whole bunch should be fired because they bring down ratings because the audience rejects them as too ignorant. The lowest common denominator has been allowed too much power, because they are so damn numerous!

not excluding ourselves mind you, We have an excellent school system theres just more emphasis need put on teaching right from wrong, might from fright, why it is not, not why it can't be and on and on. we've all heard the saying thinking out of the box, think about it

going through how little civics were taught and how it was taught. And heaven forbid if they ever talked about current events. It was a travesty.

amazing how I can see now what I couldn't see then, having said that that is why real education should be at the top of the agenda in all high schools. what good did algrebra do me, oh some but not a lot, what good did diagraming a sentence do me, as you can see by my lack of writing skills I didn't learn much there and others. I wish more emphasis would've been put on history and civics classes for me. but thats just me I guess

on ABC. Wish I had the transcript...

“The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed (and hence clamorous to be led to safety) by menacing it with an endless series of hobgoblins, all of them imaginary.” H.L. Mencken

Lather, rinse, repeat.

ignorant of the functions of the government and are so willing to allow their liberties to be crushed over this "my job is to protect you" lie.

They want the job of "protecting" the populace, because to do so, they can argue they need the power to do so.

Yet once they have that power, we not only have the threats posed before, but the threat from the government having too much power.

Or, it could just be the results of decades of propaganda heaped upon them by malicious professionals.

"Preserving the Constitution."

canard, but I've heard the Dems saying it too. I'm not hearing any of them talk about preserving the Constitution. Ever.

seem to be acting like field mice. They are running scared. Remember back when there was a run on duct tape because they were sealing off their homes from poison gas? They are in mortal fear of terrorist hijacking airliners despite the fact that statistically, any one American's chances to be killed in that manner approach nil.

On the other hand, we think nothing of neglecting our health, including the environment in situations that statistically point toward very likely fatal outcomes.

We are mortally afraid of things that are unlikely to harm us and fearless about likely dangers.
How does that happen? The lack of valid deductive reasoning processes.

Politicians know that the main "buzz" issue is the security of the "homeland". So, all must spout it or run the risk of not being elected.

concentrating on that well before 9/11. My gripe is that so many candidates perpetuate the myth that protecting the citizens from harm is their number 1 job. Their number 1 job is to preserve and protect that Constitution, and they're treating it like it is just another piece of old paper.

we'd better keep a close eye on China's space program. The first Country to successfully deploy massive space based nuclear rocketry will be in the position to defeat any other Country on Earth in minutes without the loss of a single life from the attacking Country. The only question would be, would such a Country profit from doing so?


Other than that, there is no Country that could, would or even want to attack the United States.

The idea that we could be conquered by Muslim extremists is ludicrous.

However, if the U.S. continues it's current actions of attacking any ME Country unilaterally, whenever it wishes, some serious retaliations could conceivably happen, such as a couple of ship or submarine launched short or intermediate ranges nuclear missiles slammed into some large Coastal cities.

And should the U.S. continue its strategy of world bully, even some of our present allies might have to start thinking about consolidating their military resources to get us under control. Right now, America is the number one terrorist entity in the world.

It's possible that a Democratic President and Congress could turn that around.

have been able to get away with the fearmongering meme that the radical Muslims were going to come here and take over our country. That if we don't attack the Muslim countries (who happen to have oil we need), we'll all be praying to Allah in 10 years. Who buys that line? Evidently, quite a few people, and the ignorance of such is overwhelming.

They are what Bob Altemeyer calls authoritarian followers & I think they have become more prevalent as we have been encouraged to trade in our citizenship to become consumers. They want some one to protect them & think for them. They don't want the complications that go with critical thinking & being responsible for their actions. They want the ease of living the way they are instructed & feel that that will guarantee them an easier life. Some are finally waking up & realizing they've been had, but not nearly enough.

Here's Bob's book about authoritarians -- both leaders & followers. It's an online book & free.

http://home.cc.umanitoba.ca/~altemey/

I think American society is one of the most fearful of all the developed countries. Land of the free, home of the brave? Not any more.

because it STILL works.

wiretap model on domestic cases, so that we are "safe". To hell with that. Those are MY rights they're taking away and someone else's irrational fear isn't worth it.