JudgyBitch is glad she isn’t eligible to vote in the US elections, because the whole thing is such a clusterfuck of ideological posturing, she wouldn’t know what to do. Unlike many other developed nations, the United States is a deeply divided country, with a whole whack of people who will vote AGAINST their own economic interests for the sake of personal beliefs about abortion, gay marriage, birth control, etc. none of which really matter when compared to oh, a 16 TRILLION DOLLAR DEFICIT.
On the one hand, NOT having a national health care program is INSANE. On the other hand, NOT having a robust military is also INSANE. And the United States can’t afford BOTH. They have to choose. The US, like it or not, is the global police officer, and the rest of us live relatively secure lives because of that. Take a country like Canada, the northern neighbour to the US. Canada has national health care, year long paid maternity leaves, generous unemployment and retirement benefits, an enviable public school system, affordable universities and colleges and a super smug attitude about how superior they are to the United States of America.
http://www.cracked.com/blog/15-reasons-canada-is-better-than-your-country/
What Canada does NOT have is a military capable of defending their country. Oh, sure, they have a small force that can be deployed for PEACEKEEPING (cue smug smiles all around), and they own a FEW jets and tanks and some really old submarines, but only a tiny fraction of their income goes to military spending. Why is that? Because they live under the shield of the American military. If any country seriously threatened Canada, the US would respond with shock and awe force, since the two countries have such deeply aligned interests.
This frees up a whole lot of money for lovely social programs, which is nice, isn’t it? It’s like living in a fenced in community that the guy in the biggest house paid for. All the security, none of the costs. It’s not really any different in Europe. Small militaries are maintained, but there is no country in Europe that could defend itself completely without the help of the US. We all live behind the fence that Americans pay for.
Vote for Obama and vote for increased social spending, reduced military spending, higher taxes, civil rights for all (yes, gay marriage should be legal! Don’t be an asshole.), free birth control (do we need more poor black people?) and guaranteed access to abortion (see http://judgybitch.com/2012/10/19/yes-abortion-is-killing-a-baby-do-you-really-want-to-hand-a-psycho-bitch-a-baby/for my feelings on that!). Some good, some bad.
Vote for Romney and vote for reduced social spending, increased military spending, lower taxes, legal prejudice against gay people, limited access to birth control and severely restricted access to abortion. Great.
Obama wants to spend even MORE government money on poor people and single mothers, and he is willing to raise taxes to pay for those programs. Okay. Romney wants to spend MORE money the US doesn’t have on the military all the while putting in place programs that will see an explosion of unwanted babies born to the poor (the rich can always get birth control and abortion), and he doesn’t want to raise taxes to pay for that. Apparently, the Money Fairy will be paying for food stamps for all the poor babies. Unless he plans on letting them starve? In which case, why not kill them before they are born?
What a fucking mess. Why doesn’t the US have any sane candidates to choose from?
At the end of the day, the election comes down to rich people versus poor people, single mothers versus married wives, people who work to pay for their own lives and people who want the government to pay for their basic necessities, which is just a way of taking money away from the rich and giving it to the poor. The reality is that poor people aren’t going anywhere, and yes, we have an obligation to take care of them, and especially to take care of their children (children don’t get to pick their parents).
http://www.the-spearhead.com/2012/11/03/the-womens-election/
A sane candidate would support robust social programs for the CHILDREN of the poor. Hot meals, warm clothing and a solid education, all delivered directly to the child through the school system. Their parents can go fuck themselves. You’re a grown-up, figure it out. You made choices, now live with them. And when the children of the poor get to be 18 and the government cash stops rolling in, they have a choice, too. They can go to college, have all their food and health care needs taken care of and have it all paid for, too. It’s called the military.
The best social program in the world. And the one that keeps the rest of us safe and sound in a world that seems mad sometimes. On election day, let’s have a cheer for the United States of America, land of the free and home of the brave. Try to imagine the world without them. It would probably look something like this:
And that’s a world we don’t want to contemplate.
Lots of love,
JB
judgybitch 
I don’t entirely disagree with the basic premise of this article but the US spends far too much on its military. It is more than the next several nations combined, which is a rate that is wholly unsustainable. I have no problem with having a military and the wherewithal to use it. The problem comes when you spend the most money in the world by several times the next nation and then use that ridiculous and irresponsible level of spending to justify shortchanging real, important programs that will make a much larger and more positive impact at home.
I am a Canadian who has had members of my family and friends in the military. I did not choose to join the military myself but I respect service men and women. However, the need in the world to have such a large standing army has really passed. Even the US armed forces recognizes this in their tactics, which consist of smaller professional teams rather than massive standing forces in engagements. That kind of warfare no longer truly exists.
I also disagree with some of your conclusions around social assistance for adults. Bad choices can be overcome but mental health issues cannot. Many of the homeless are male with mental health issues that are left untreated because of their homeless status and a lack of social assistance geared towards men. As human beings we need to look out for one another and not place one gender over the other.
My last comment on your article is towards your statement about the election being about rich vs. poor
In some respects it is, but in some respects it is about all of us pitching in our fair share in society. Those who have more can afford to give more. I am not saying they should be stripped of their money and we should all.make the same. However, a tax system that is fair provides funding for a safety net and assistance for all, not discriminating between rich and poor. Health issues affect us all equally, and social assistance in order to provide for yourself and give yourself the tools to do so in the future or provide for those who cannot provide for themselves is part of living in a just society.
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Ok, first of all, aubinmagnus, you live in Canada! You benefit from the US military more than any other country in the world, and you don’t have to pay for it! Of course the US needs to be ten times stronger than the closest competitor – that’s how you achieve devastating power, and the whole damn western world relies on that force.
The fiasco in the Middle East is a direct result of those little teams supposed to wage an entire war. Liberals want to look like they’re doing something, but are too squeamish to call down the full wrath of the USA. America could have the entire Middle East on lockdown if they threw their full force at it. It would be no contest.
Instead, they’re going to wait until China has the power to do it. How smart is that? Who knows, maybe this IS a problem we should pass to China. It’s complicated, is the point here.
Also, excellent point that most homeless people are MEN with addiction and mental health issues. If most homeless people were WOMEN with breast cancer there would be pink ribbons as far as the eye can see. These men have been designated garbage by society and that’s a bloody tragedy. I fully support programs designed to help the most downtrodden members of society, who are largely there through no fault of their own (no one CHOOSES to be schizophrenic).
Social programs need to be in place to help poor people who CANNOT help themselves. But social programs that waste shitloads of money on able-bodied adults who have simply made selfish, stupid decisions? No fucking way.
Help the children of these idiots, absolutely. No kid WANTS to be born to a single, poor mother and grow up in violence and poverty, and we CAN and SHOULD do everything we can to protect and help those children (through the school system – don’t give money to the MOTHER who has already proven she’s a selfish moron).
Children are innocent. Adults have choices. Why should I or you or anyone else pay because they make stupid choices? Make those choices a little more painful, and they might start making different ones. The children should be fed at school. The parents can get a job or dive in a dumpster.
Not my problem. Not yours either. Made your bed? Get comfortable, then, you’re gonna lie in it.
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“Do we need more poor black people?” Jesus fuckin christ.
It is funny reading someone else’s opinion on what we do in our country. Hilarious even.
Trust me, I’m more happy that you cant vote in our elections more than you will ever know.
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Not being eligible to vote isn’t the same as not being American. Did you know that?
I could be in prison
I could be homeless
I could be in a country that does not have an American Embassy
I could have failed to register at the state level
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you failed to register at the state level didn’t you?
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