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James Bednarski's Issue Positions (Political Courage Test)

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James Bednarski has demonstrated Political Courage by telling citizens where he stands on the issues he may face if elected.

What is the Political Courage Test?

Pennsylvania Congressional Election 2012 Political Courage Test

Unknown Position Do you generally support pro-choice or pro-life legislation?
We live in a time where folks want things to be black-and-white and they're not. The problems that America and humanity face are incredibly complex and we are doing a terrible job of solving them. One of the real problems in this issue is irresponsible conception worldwide. That is why there will be 9 billion humans by mid century. An environmental disaster. In the U.S., irresponsible conception is the result of poorly designed social support systems. Single women are actually incented to conceive in order to support themselves. We need support systems that do not contain unintended consequences.
No Do you support United States' combat operations in Afghanistan?
Do you support a timetable for withdrawal from Afghanistan?
It's time to bring the boys and girls home. It's time to stop fighting undeclared wars. The last declared war was World War II. The Constitution is clear that only the Congress can declare war. We have lost contact with the Constitution. The greatest document in human governance history. We have been killing people in undeclared wars for 60+ years,. There will be conflicts where we must step up because the security of America is at stake. That declaration of war must come from Congress. Nation building has always been a mistake throughout human history. Look at Africa.

Indicate which proposals you support (if any) for balancing the federal budget.In order to balance the budget,

Yes do you support reducing defense spending?
Yes do you support an income tax increase on any tax bracket?
Yes do you support reducing Medicaid spending?
Yes do you support reducing Medicare spending?
Yes Is balancing the budget a legislative priority?
There is incredible waste in the Medicare and Medicaid support systems. We must do away with costs that are not directly related to providing healthcare. This includes the costs of hundreds of Medicare insurance companies. Medical costs are in large part out of line because of the administrative overhead and irresponsible profiteering by medical equipment and pharmaceutical organizations. Another area that impacts medical expenses is the litigious nature of our society. We need to bring this under control. Countries like businesses and families cannot spend more than they bring in. If they do they will collapse.
No Do you support the regulation of indirect campaign contributions from corporations and unions?
Until they decided that corporations were really people last year (campaign contributions), the Supreme Court was the sole arm of the Federal Government, except for the military, that had generally operated within the dictates of Constitution of the United States. Impeachment is too good for those who made that decision. Ben, George and Tom would�ve been appalled. This travesty must be undone. The Congress is bought and paid for and no longer responsible to We the People as stipulated in the Constitution of the United States.
Yes Do you support capital punishment for certain crimes?
There are certain crimes so horrific and so damaging to society that capital punishment is justified. In those cases it�s use is not to punish the crime but to send a clear message to others that it is possible to cross the line. However, if we do this, we should do it with less delay than we routinely do today. That delay also sends a message.
No Do you support federal spending as a means of promoting economic growth?
No Do you support providing tax incentives to businesses for the purpose of job creation?
No Do you support spending on infrastructure projects for the purpose of job creation?
Yes Do you support the temporary extension of unemployment benefits?
Yes Do you support the 2010 temporary extension of tax relief?
When the federal government spends money to stimulate the economy it incurs debt. That equals bankruptcy. Infrastructure spending strategy has never worked. In the Great Depression, WWII was the cure. Without it the depression might have lasted decades. Strong economies can only be built with a vibrant manufacturing sector. To prove this one only need look at the history of the modern world. England in the 19th century, America in the 20th century and Germany and South Korea at this moment. America needs small manufacturing companies making durable and reliable products. That will fix the economy. Multinationals are the enemy.
Unknown Position Do you support requiring states to implement education reforms in order to be eligible for competitive federal grants?
Education in 21st-century America is a disaster. The system is not going to fail; it has failed. Sanctions are not going to fix it. We need teachers who can make learning simple and keep it fun no matter how challenging or boring the subject matter. That?s what makes great teachers? ?Keep It Simple and Make It Fun?. Try that with English grammar or quadratic equations. We need the folks in charge of the schools to be true Educational Leaders. These are few and far between. Most ?administrators? are folks who got tired of dealing with kids. They are not leaders
Unknown Position Do you support reducing restrictions on offshore energy production?
Don't know what this question means. What I know is that energy is one of our greatest problems. There are too many of us. Fossil fuel is a two-edge sword with both edges on the same side. At current consumption rates we will ?run out of gas? in centuries. The second edge is carbon emissions / global warming. Solar, water, and wind are the answer but there are no serious investments. A conspiracy? Who knows? In any case we need to focus our creative resources in these critical areas. Humanity invented its way out of disaster in the past.
Yes Do you believe that human activity is contributing to climate change?
Unknown Position Do you support the federal regulation of greenhouse gas emissions?
Let?s talk about regulation. Government?s responsibility is to regulate and by regulating, maintain a civilized society. The historic problem with regulation is a tendency to create complex rather than simple regulations. Simple regulations are difficult to create, but they require less resource to enforce. Regulation of greenhouse gases is not the answer. I think we need to focus on shifting to technologies that do not destroy the environment. We need technology that will leverage wind, water and sun several orders of magnitude beyond what we have today. This will take real research by the equivalents of Newton, Einstein, and Curie.
Unknown Position Do you support restrictions on the purchase and possession of guns?
The answer here is yes and no. Contemporary Americans want to live in a black and white world. The problem is the issues we face are complex and must be treated as such. The fundamental right to bear arms should not be taken away. However, there should be limits to the types of weapons should be legal. It�s crystal clear that no one should own a tank. Automatic weapons like AK-47s are just over the edge. The Bill of Rights is an excellent and rare example of simple regulation. It contains 518 words vs. the 2,700 page healthcare bill.
Yes Do you support repealing the 2010 Affordable Care Act?
No Should individuals be required to purchase health insurance, as mandated in the 2010 Affordable Care Act?
The healthcare bill is arguably the worst piece of legislation in the history of humankind. It contains regulation on a myriad of issues unrelated to health care. No congressperson or senior staff read this bill. It would take eight weeks of eight-hour days to do so. That would leave them no time for raising campaign funds. Once again we need simple regulation. We need a health care system that provides affordable care to American citizens and does not bankrupt the country. This is hard but far from impossible. We also need congresspeople who can listen and work together.
Do you support allowing illegal immigrants, who were brought to the United States as minors, to pursue citizenship without returning to their country of origin?
Do you support the enforcement of federal immigration law by state and local police?
Unknown Position Do you support requiring illegal immigrants to return to their country of origin before they are eligible for citizenship?
America stands as the greatest example in history of humankind of a nation that embraced immigration and made it work. We accepted immigrants from every nation in the world. They came here, became citizens, learned the language, raised families and became real Americans. We need to continue this practice. Those who come here must do those things listed above or there will be pain for everybody. Social support systems are important but they cannot be entitlement. They must be earned. We need to return to practices that turned immigrants into productive citizens and not welfare recipients.
Unknown Position Do you support same-sex marriage?
The only reason this issue exists is because of the money involved. If there were no money on the table there would be no issue.
Should the U.S use military force in order to prevent Iran from possessing a nuclear weapon?
Unknown Position Do you support targeting suspected terrorists outside of official theaters of conflict?
Any real threat to national security must be addressed. If Iran presents a real threat, it is our responsibility under the Constitution of the United States to go to war. However the last war, which can only be declared by Congress, was World War II. All conflicts since then have been unconstitutional. It�s time to end that. It�s also time to stop nation-building (Afghanistan). Virtually every Western Empire including the Persians attempted to �fix� the Middle East and failed. Why should we be any different? To see the result of nation-building look at Africa. Bring our boys and girls home.
Unknown Position Do you support allowing individuals to divert a portion of their Social Security taxes into personal retirement accounts?
Social Security has been a Ponzi scheme since the get-go. Roosevelt was bright enough to know that. He thought he had no choice, because he was listening to that idiot Keynes. Going forward we can either change that or bankrupt America. Social Security has to look and act like a funded pension plan. That transition will take a while. We also need to simplify the system and the oversight required so we can move the bureaucrats back into manufacturing where they will create wealth rather than absorb it. Simple regulation yet again.

SpendingIndicate what federal spending levels (#1-6) you support for the following general categories. Select one number per category; you can use a number more than once.TaxesIndicate what federal tax levels (#1-6) you support for the following general categories. Select one number per category; you can use a number more than once.

a) Agriculture
b) Arts
c) Defense
d) Education
e) Environment
f) Homeland Security
g) International aid
h) Medical Research
i) Scientific Research
j) Space exploration
k) United Nations
l) Welfare
Maintain Status m) Other or expanded categories
Greatly Increase a) Capital gains taxes
Greatly Increase b) Corporate taxes
c) Excise taxes (alcohol)
d) Excise taxes (cigarettes)
e) Excise taxes (transportation fuel)
f) Income taxes (low-income families)
g) Income taxes (middle-income families)
Greatly Increase h) Income taxes (high-income families)
Greatly Increase i) Inheritance taxes
j) Payroll taxes
Getting things done requires good people with good minds ? not necessarily money. Certainly not money in the amounts we spend today. Space exploration is essential. Given the history of our planet, we are living on a time bomb. The next big rock or eruption will finish us. We need a secondary base. Our education systems are a travesty. Fixing them is more a matter of good people than money. We need to take the non-productive costs out of healthcare, end nation building, and shrink government at all levels. Put the workers back in manufacturing where they will create wealth.
The concentration of wealth in the United States has reached the same level as 1928. We all recall what happened in 1929. We have created an aristocracy in America. That was one of Franklin?s, Washington?s, and Jefferson?s greatest fears. They carefully designed a system that would prevent that, which has been systematically destroyed over the past decades. Those who understand the history of humanity know that these conditions result in disaster. Rome 44 BC, France 1789, Russia 1917. ?Those who do not understand the lessons of history are destined to repeat them.? George Santayana.
My campaign platform is: �Fix the Congress and Fix the Economy�. The Constitution of the United States does not begin with the words �We the People� by accident. The Congress is bought and paid for and no longer responsible to �We the People�. We must end campaign spending and lobbying and return control the Congress to We the People. In the 2010 Congressional election, which involved 472 seats, campaign spending was $1.5 billion or $3.2 million per seat. This is twice as much as the average American earns in two lifetimes; spent on a single election on a single seat

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