Our political attitudes, our political beliefs, our interpretations of our experiences are strongly conditioned by our political principles or axioms. While our political opinions are dizzying in number, our political principles or axioms are almost certainly small in number (if they are large in number, they are probably not principles or axioms but beliefs conditioned on a small number of political principles). What are some of your political principles? I hope that this question does not lead to acrimony and attacking of one another. Principles and axioms are foundational and somewhat unamenable to proof or rationalization, they are intuited much as the fundamental axioms of geometry are not proven but simply asserted as directly intuited by universal reason. I wish that our politicians sometimes discussed or laid on the line their political principles and axioms in an explicit fashion, because I think it might make political discoure more direct and productive.
Some of my political principles:
1. If a nation does not have a strong defense it is always prey to predatory forces in one way or another and must accept conditions which it otherwise would not accept. This applies in many other situations, including in the case of the individual.
2. It is not the role of government to solve all the problems of individuals. A limited government that confines itself to its proper role is preferred. This applies both to domestic activities of the government as well as foreign activities of the government.
3. Laws should be few in number; should not change often; and should be rigorously and uniformly enforced.
4. Most people are unsuited for direct control of government. They lack knowledge of affairs beyond their personal affairs. They lack time to study and analyze affairs beyond their personal affairs. The news media is a very poor organ of public education or information. Therefore elected officials should not respond easily to the vagaries of public opinion but rather more often act as they judge best. This is consonant with an elected democracy and provides a touch of the artistocratic form of government.
5. Money should not be spent by the government which it has not taxed individuals sufficiently to pay for. I only except from this, grudgingly, very expensive long term public infrastructure projects such as federal dams, federal highways, and the like. If we can't afford to pay for it, we don't need it. I have not seen a need in my 50 year life span that qualifies as an exception. WW-II might have been an exception.
I may have other principles that I have not yet identified, but this is a start to get things rolling. Again, focus on principles that form the foundation of your political beliefs and opinions.
I've always believed that voting in a moral and ethical leader is paramount ..... the economy will do what it does, etc, but a moral and ethical man will best lead us in times of war, defense, the right and wrongs on how to structure social care, appointing leaders under him etc etc.
GW was suppose to be that kind of leader ...........
What are your political principles?
