Unpopular Opinions
I know you got 'em, what are they?
All countries should be under the authority of the United Nations, with no veto powers to any country.
I think it would be easier to get rid if these dickheads actually. The way the world has become interconnected and the population is growing, I think a world government is inevitable anyway. One way or another...
I disagree. I think if there was a way to ensure fair & democratic elections in each country or region, which I know is saying a lot, then the weight of humanity's will would overcome any wannabe dictators and demagogues.
I think our problem right now is that too many countries think that their way is the better way. Too much like religions as a matter of fact. Or sports teams.
I'm a Conservative Capitalist. Need I elaborate?
The right to vote should be an earned privilege with a high gate. I think passage should be a little higher than what I would even qualify for. I'd rather have leaders selected by people more intelligent and scholarly than I am rather than the idiots that have been swinging elections in the U.S.
I've heard Richard Dawkins espouse the same idea
For a democracy to work the majority of voters need to be educated. As a former long time poll worker I have seen how uneducated voters have brought us to what we have today. Unfortunately, many educated voters still lack some basic knowledge about how to vote.
@TheMiddleWay I completely disagree. I couldn't tell you what the offical line is, but clearly there needs to be one. Look around.
The GOP has built a legacy on stopping people from voting that don't agree with their party, redrawing districts to win elections easier, taking money from big corporations to vote for laws that don't represent their constituents, keeping the blue collar workers afraid of illegals, dividing up groups on single hot button issues (like gun control) causing them to vote against themselves, and stripping education away from the populace slowly to build a party of idiots who love voting and red hats.
Don't get me wrong, the Dems try to do a lot of this shit too they're just also incompetent at politics so when Clinton controls the party she runs the worst campaign ever losing in the biggest layup election in history.
We're a nation divided because of ignorance, and people should have to earn the right to vote. If you think you wouldn't make the cut and want to have your voice heard, what would you do to earn that right? On top of that, if people wouldn't go that extra mile, why should they get a vote?
@David_Cooper Stupid people routinely vote AGAINST their self interests because a politician and party convince them that the thing they should be scared of is something irrelevant to them.
The most common one is illegal immigrants. Many idiots are convinced that illegal immigrants are a threat to their jobs, the economy, and their safety and they're voting for a wall that they ACTUALLY believed Mexico would pay for. The statistical reality is that illegal immigrants help the economy, don't take equivalent jobs, and commit less crime than legal citizens. They'd be better off voting for the Dems but they are buying the snake-oil. The only people who should be voting Republican are white millionaires who don't give a fuck about their children. However they throw in a few things for morons to be afraid of and they've got a party.
@TheMiddleWay We do it already. The US population is ~330M and ~123M aren't allowed to vote. The most common categories are under the voting age, currently incarcerated or past felony convictions, and mentally unable.
Of that 2/3 that are allowed to vote, about 55% actually turn out to vote. Our presidency is being decided by 1/3 of our actual population,and since the elections are usually pretty cut down the middle, 1/6 of the populace is choosing our president and on the last election the president didn't even win the popular vote.
If you want to convince me that we're doing a good job electing representatives because ~17% of the population chose them, you've got a long road ahead of you. The largest selection of GOP voters was non-college educated white males. Racist idiots selected Trump, a president who gets laughed at by the entire UN.
We've already proven REPEATEDLY that our current method doesn't work.
@TheMiddleWay I'm not saying that you need to take an IQ test or have a degree, but a certain level of participation and effort should be a prerequisite. Right now people who can't tell lies apart from the truth are being lied to and its working. You need to train and take a test to drive a car, why can't the same be true for voting?
If it weighs less than a 5 pounds and a cat can slap the shit out of it, it's not a dog.
I strongly feel our life support system is paramount to everything else. I believe the adage "No matter what your cause it is a lost cause unless we come to grips with overpopulation." (this was repeated during the 1994 UN Conference in Cairo on population. Anything that increases a country's population, including immigration, is eventually destructive. Our attitudes should be based on policies not individuals.
I think ALL drugs should be legalized. ALL of them. I'm not worried about the mass
die-off. There are too many people on this rock anyway. Let them cull themselves.
This includes people I know and care about. If they're going to be stupid, so be it.
It'll also free up law enforcement to actually go after other criminals.
Convicted sexual predators (especially repeat offenders and pedophiles) should get the death penalty. There is very little evidence that they are capable of
rehabilitation. Kill them and be done with it. No appeals.
The religious indoctrination of children should be considered felony child abuse.
The immediate and permanent removal of all minor children should be one penalty
for it.
I have others, but those are the three I feel most strongly about.
So when and where are you running for election? ?
I believe flag burning is protected political speech, it's okay to cheat at strip poker and the death penalty should be abolished, I did not support going to war in Iraq and attempting to change Afghanistan into a western style democracy was wrong. I don't believe that people waging jihad are true Muslims and Israel needs to stop oppressing the Palestinians and help them rebuild their country. I don't believe evangelical ministers who support Trump are Christians and we, men, women and transgender persons, don't need the government controlling our bodies. I hold many other unpopular views too numerous to mention here. I do believe that all people are created equal and have many more unalienable rights than are listed in the Declaration of Independence.
That humans should stop reproducing, or at least sterilize themselves, to the extent of extinction.
@maturin1919 yes, please.
I disagree with extinction, but I do think humans should begin a population reduction program. One child per couple globally, until the population is brought back to a manageable level.
[EDIT]: As soon as I wrote that I thought about all the situations of second relationships and individuals wanting a child and I think we'd have to work all that out somehow because I do think anyone who wants to be a parent should get that opportunity but, I don't have ALL the answers yet.
@maturin1919 I am not reproducing again, and my son is dead. So yeah
@maturin1919 I said to stop procreating to lead to extinction. One of these days, I may kill myself, anyway. Won’t you be pleased?
I have many opinions unpopular among conservatives and among religious people.
@maturin1919 The differences are too numerous to list.
@maturin1919 should be a badge.
I believe in the idea of population control.
I agree.
@TristanNuvo I think that with our current numbers and what that does to the planet we could be classified as vermin.
@patchoullijulie Some simple mathematics about food should weigh in here as well.
meaning that by far, there isn't enough food food the whole population as it is, and the numbers keep growing at an alarming rate.
@TristanNuvo Yes and food supply is one of the most damaging things that we do.
@patchoullijulie and @TristanNuvo I accept that this is an unpopular opinion thread. However, we produce far more than enough food to feed the entire population.
People go to bed hungry because we aren't good at transporting it cheaply enough for anyone to do it. The world is not overpopulated. I never really understood this argument.
@Xuande I am actually talking about the way we produce the food not necessarily the quantity produced. I disagree on the over population question. For the stress that we put on the planet, we are in overpopulation mode.
@patchoullijulie The stress that we currently put on the planet isn't harming Earth so much as it is harming our future ability to live on it. That said, we're becoming more efficient and clean in our use of natural resources. By showing a greater respect to the environment, we could easily continue to expand.
The entire human population could live in an area the size of Ukraine. It'd be a bustling metropolis but we're not overpopulated from a land use standpoint.
I lean toward a higher intelligence. That seems to be very unpopular on this site.
The JFK assassination. Oswald could have not pulled that off alone!
@IBuiltTheMoon The biggest part that bamboozles me is how he fired off 3 rounds in 5.6 seconds with a bolt-action Italian piece of shit! Carlos Hathcock couldn't do it. He was the best 1000 yard shot the Marines had! Jesse Ventura couldn't do it. He was Expert. People that have served during the time said it would be hard to get a head shot in that time frame with an M-14. Your target is moving 6-8 MPH, you are on the 6th floor, and you have to shoot through trees. I do balistists tests myself.
I believe that a bit of euthanasia might not be such a bad idea.
Some people really be taken out of the gene pool.
I used to argue to juries that there are some people who are alive solely because it's against the law to kill them...you know given your intent it stops being euthanasia right?
I am all for someone choosing euthanasia for themselves but not so much to cleanse the gene pool (although it needs some adjustment). That would require judgement from other people, ie who should or should not be euthanized. I don't trust other people's judgments.
I'm vegan (for ethical reasons). That is enough for people to bring out their blessed crosses and holy water to exorcise me.
You are correct. I am on the other end of the spectrum. I eat keto and do it almost to the point of being carnivore. I LOVE bacon. Same reaction from people.
@boatdude87 Interestingly, it is possible to do vegan keto. So being vegan and being keto are not mutually exclusive. However, keto is a diet and being vegan is an ethical stance and a way of life (not just what I eat).
Oh I am going to piss off a lot of you but here goes...remembering I am British but I cannot abide the almost reverrant adoration given to people in the armed forces. (Now excluding those who were conscripted) Most people make that choice. They don the kaki and fly off to foreign lands. Then always appear shocked and surprised when Adullah chooses to fight back! You are not a hero, you are a rich man's pawn. You are not fighting for rights or freedoms, you are fighting to protect rich men's investment. Help the Heroes!!! My colleagues working on A&E in busy towns on a saturday night are heroes, the ones stemming stab wound bleeds or fighting to save someone's life who has taken their 50th O/D that week....they are risking their own life and wellbeing to save others. . Yeah and guess what they get...oh yeah a 1% payrise over three years! Thank you to my colleagues and the NHS...rant over.
A real hero is someone who says "Its okay I will knock next door and see if they have any skins" at 3.15am
The US military budget is too big. In fact you could call it bloated. In 2017 it was half of all discretionary federal spending, about 600 billion dollars. Under Trump, defense spending has only increased. And also under Trump, the portion of this expenditure that is paid by the richest 1% of Americans (who own nearly 40 of all the wealth) has decreased.
For a human the divide the earth into sections and claim "ownership" of any of it is absurd.
Well, wild animals are territorial too.
Our democracies are deeply flawed. We should go back to the ancient greek system where people are pulled at random to serve. Rather like jury service
You need to educate people in order to do that and the vast majority of people isn’t adequately educated. It would take forever to implement. Plus, is democracy really that good? Think Trump, Brexit, democratically elected Hitler. What the world needs is a benevolent dictator.
@SergeyCornwall The trouble with benevolent dictators is they don't stay benevolent for too long. If they do? A ruthless one soon comes along. Also anyone who wants the job is unsuitable for the position. The only chance of a benevolent dictator is an absolute monarchy and thats just a chance. They don't have to fight for power, curry favour, just be born.
I LOVE Twinkees...if I hear one more time that the shelf life is 1000 years, I'm going to eat another box! I also happen to have a Twinkee Maker.
I had no idea that there such a thing as a twinkie maker.....that is just sad lol
@patchoullijulie the smiles on the faces tell it all
@lerlo ha ha ha that's great. I had no idea.
Richard Dawkins might be right, but fuck is he an obnoxious arsehole, and this does more harm than good to the athiest cause.
I second that!
I kind of like it when they dispense with the pleasantries and focus on being right. The religious apologists make a big show of being nice and flaunt that shit-eater grin because they are not arguing evidence, they are trying to get people to like them and buy snakeoil.
What is the atheist cause?
@Donotbelieve Oooh, kinky!
@Donotbelieve I believe that being attracted to a man in a cardigan is the height of kink. But then again, I'm so vanilla I'm practically flavourless.
Absobloodylutely..can't abide the smugass sexist git!
There is no atheist cause. Not believing in god is no cause. You believe in god? That is your problem. Just don't bother me with your religion.
The poppy appeal!
In the U.K. in The weeks leading to 11.11 the poppy appeal resurfaces. I hate it for so many reasons and every year I get into some heated debates over it.
The poppy appeal is a charity that commemorates WWI and the battle fields of north eastern France. It was intended to support WWI veterans but it extended to WWII and then all veterans and current serving members. While I respect its initial aim (after all WWI vets were conscripted and faced the firing squad if they deserted) it has now become a “joker card” to would-be soldiers. All WWI veterans have now died. The poppy appeal should therefore stop being. REMEMBERANCE yes LEST WE FORGET. I just don’t think it right to devote all that effort and money to current servicemen who joined of their own accord and are getting paid for it.
Another issue I have with it is to do with charities in the U.K. in general. There are countless amounts of charities and charity shops supporting countless amounts of causes. While, on the surface, it all seems like good human philanthropy, and I do shop in such places for economical and ecological reasons, it is really a symptom of a centuries long tradition of LAISSEZ-FAIRE attitude in the lives and business of the people. It leads to great wealth inequality and the need for a few very wealthy people to do what the government was supposed to provide in the first place. Think Charles Dickens. A country with a government that invests in its people has no need for charities.
RIGHT ON on both counts!