Now, I'm going to list a few commonly cited conservative positions.  Abiding with the board's premise, I'd like to see empirical evidence from reputable, non-partisan sources validating these beliefs.  Then, I'd be happy to present my own factual evidence that I feel debunks each of these prepositions; of which I have plenty.


1. Welfare encourages laziness and traps the poor in a cycle of poverty.
2. Tax cuts for the ultra-wealthy and large corporations stimulate economic growth for working and middle class people.
3. Private charity is more effective than government programs.
4. State run education is more effective than federal run education.
5. Privatized health care is more effective than universal, public health care.
6. Guns deter crime.
7. The death penalty (which I somewhat support) deters crime.
8. Gays marrying is more dangerous than straight convicted murderers marrying (which is legal).
9. The Free Market can stop corporations from fraud and trust-forming without federal help.
10. There exist >5% of the world's climate scientists that reject global warming theory.
11. There exist >5% of the world's biologists that reject Evolution.
12. Abstinence only sex ed works.
13. Contraceptive use increases STD transfer.
14. Second hand smoking is not real.
15. Women rarely get pregnant from "legitimate rape".
16. A fetus is sentient.
17. The Bush Administration's foreign policy strengthened our national security.
18. Western Europe, which has all of Obama's reforms on steroids, is a totalitarian socialist state.
19. The Founding Fathers were conservatives.
20. College is overhyped.

Quote from: Sci Fi Fan on November 11, 2012, 07:22:12 AM
Now, I'm going to list a few commonly cited conservative positions.  Abiding with the board's premise, I'd like to see empirical evidence from reputable, non-partisan sources validating these beliefs.  Then, I'd be happy to present my own factual evidence that I feel debunks each of these prepositions; of which I have plenty.


1. Welfare encourages laziness and traps the poor in a cycle of poverty.
2. Tax cuts for the ultra-wealthy and large corporations stimulate economic growth for working and middle class people.
3. Private charity is more effective than government programs.
4. State run education is more effective than federal run education.
5. Privatized health care is more effective than universal, public health care.
6. Guns deter crime.
7. The death penalty (which I somewhat support) deters crime.
8. Gays marrying is more dangerous than straight convicted murderers marrying (which is legal).
9. The Free Market can stop corporations from fraud and trust-forming without federal help.
10. There exist >5% of the world's climate scientists that reject global warming theory.
11. There exist >5% of the world's biologists that reject Evolution.
12. Abstinence only sex ed works.
13. Contraceptive use increases STD transfer.
14. Second hand smoking is not real.
15. Women rarely get pregnant from "legitimate rape".
16. A fetus is sentient.
17. The Bush Administration's foreign policy strengthened our national security.
18. Western Europe, which has all of Obama's reforms on steroids, is a totalitarian socialist state.
19. The Founding Fathers were conservatives.
20. College is overhyped.

1.  In many cases, yes.
2.  Not sure.  I don't think targeting the wealthy does much for the economy but it does punish and send a message that people like you whine instead of looking in the mirror for the answers to problems.
3. Many are better.  Private charity is outperforming FEMA during Sandy.
4. Not sure.  Inoperable my granddaughter goes to a private school.
5. We'll see won't we?
6.  I think it does.  You have to ask criminals.  Ask your friends.
7. No.  But justice is served.
8. Stupid question.
9.  Only corporations commit fraud or are you only concerned about them?
10. Don't care.  Climate change is normal.
11. Who cares? 
12. Sex Ed starts in the home.  Condoms and birth control work.  Abstinence is the most effective.  Abortion seems the logical choice of many on the left.
13. No.
14. It is for real.  It also stinks.
15. Stupid question.  No such thing.
16. A fetus is a life worth protecting.  It is a human being with rights.
17. After 9/11, we remained safe.  Funny how after four years Obama is not responsible yet Bush after 7 months in office was blamed for 9/11.  Clinton and his policies get a pass.
18. What Europe did has no bearing on us. 
19. They are dead.  Can't ask them. 
20. Depends on the chosen field elected. 

We all have differing opinions on many issues.  Your facts may be factual to you.  You need to start thinking for yourself instead of searching for how you feel or think.   Hmmm.  That sounds good!  I think I will believe like this guy!

Why not "debate" each one thoroughly in its own thread.  As you've posted it, it's a massive time waster.

Quote from: Yawn on November 11, 2012, 08:14:10 AM
Why not "debate" each one thoroughly in its own thread.  As you've posted it, it's a massive time waster.

I'm not wasting my time on it. If he wants to start a thread with facts, we can talk about it.

You're on a roll scifi. Great threads!!!

1) Give me scientific evidence that there's a God.

2) Give me evidence that this random list is accurate.

I think we can add "lazy" to your personal list of attributes.

Quote from: Yawn on November 11, 2012, 08:14:10 AM
Why not "debate" each one thoroughly in its own thread.  As you've posted it, it's a massive time waster.

What?  Start 20 separate threads?   

Yet again, nobody has yet bothered to actually present peer reviewed studies that support any of the aforementioned positions (someone still doesn't understand that I never implied every position in the OP is shared by every conservative).  You just have your "gut feeling".

You have 20 UNRELATED questions.

I would like to address the homosexual "marriage" thing, but I won't with a thousand unrelated other things cluttering up the thread. So I won't bother.

Quote from: Yawn on November 11, 2012, 08:56:49 AM
You have 20 UNRELATED questions.

I would like to address the homosexual "marriage" thing, but I won't with a thousand unrelated other things cluttering up the thread. So I won't bother.

Of course, you don't have to answer all 20 questions.  Respond to any you like.  But I'd expect facts and peer reviewed studies, not your "gut feeling". 

no thank you.

Quote from: Yawn on November 11, 2012, 08:59:52 AM
no thank you.

So you can't actually defend your economic and social stances with facts and evidence, but you think the country should accept them?  Off of what?  Your "gut feeling"?   

Quote from: Sci Fi Fan on November 11, 2012, 08:54:47 AM
What?  Start 20 separate threads?   

Yet again, nobody has yet bothered to actually present peer reviewed studies that support any of the aforementioned positions (someone still doesn't understand that I never implied every position in the OP is shared by every conservative).  You just have your "gut feeling".

Hint: Go spend your time, and present evidence that disproves each one, and we can go from there.

Quote from: kramarat on November 11, 2012, 09:04:19 AM
Hint: Go spend your time, and present evidence that disproves each one, and we can go from there.

Burden of proof fallacy.

But you probably don't know what that is, so I won't waste any more of my time:

Quote
Richest states (per capita)

    District of Columbia
    Delaware
    Connecticut
    Alaska
    Massachusetts
    Wyoming
    New Jersey
    New York
    Minnesota
    Virginia

Highest percent bellow poverty line (per capita)

    Mississippi
    Louisiana
    New Mexico
    District of Columbia
    Arkansas
    West Virginia
    Kentucky
    Texas
    Alabama
    South Carolina




Most Educated

    Vermont
    Connecticut
    Massachusetts
    New Jersy
    Maine
    Minnesota
    Virginia
    Wisconsin
    Montana
    New York

Least Educated

    Arizona
    Mississippi
    New Mexico
    Nevada
    California
    Lousiana
    Alaska
    Alabama
    Hawaii
    Tennessee

Most Suicides (per capita)

    Wyoming
    Montana
    Alaska
    Nevada
    New Mexico
    Oregon
    Colorado
    Idaho
    West Virginia
    Arizona

Fewest Suicides (per capita)

    New York
    District of Columbia
    New Jersey
    Massachusetts
    Connecticut
    Rhode Island
    Illinois
    Maryland
    California
    Ohio

As you can see, states with conservative policies tend to fail miserably in the long run; indeed, all ten states with the lowest suicide rates are liberal.



http://finance.yahoo.com/news/tax-cuts-rich-dont-spur-151649273.html

Quoteutting taxes for the wealthy does not generate faster economic growth, according to a new report. But those cuts may widen the income gap between the rich and the rest, according to a new report.

A study from the Congressional Research Service -- the non-partisan research office for Congress -- shows that "there is little evidence over the past 65 years that tax cuts for the highest earners are associated with savings, investment or productivity growth."

In fact, the study found that higher tax rates for the wealthy are statistically associated with higher levels of growth.

The finding is likely to fuel to the already bitter political fight over taxing the rich, with President Obama and the Democrats calling for higher taxes on the wealthy to reduce the deficit and fund spending. Mitt Romney and the GOP advocate lower marginal tax rates for top earners, saying they fuel investment and job creation.

See this slideshow: America's Biggest Wealth Gaps







The CRS study looked at tax rates and economic growth since 1945. The top tax rate in 1945 was above 90 percent, and fell to 70 percent in the 1960s and to a low of 28 percent in 1986.

The top current rate is 35 percent. The tax rate for capital gains was 25 percent in the 1940s and 1950s, then went up to 35 percent in the 1970s, before coming down to 15 percent today - the lowest rate in more than 65 years.

Lowering these rates for the wealthy, the study found, isn't aligned with significant improvement in any of the areas it examined. Pushing tax rates down had a "negligible effect" on private saving, and while it does note a relationship between investing and capital gains rates, the correlations "are not statistically significant," the study says.

"Top tax rates," it concludes, "do not necessarily have a demonstrably significant relationship with investment."

The study said that lower marginal rates have a "slight positive effect" on productivity while lower capital gains rates have a "slight negative association" with productivity. But, again, neither effect was considered statistically significant.

Do higher taxes on the rich lead to faster economic growth? Not necessarily. The paper says that while growth accelerated with higher taxes on the rich, the relationship is "not strong" and may be "coincidental," since broader economic factors may be responsible for that growth.

There is one part of the economy, however, that is changed by tax cuts for the rich: inequality. The study says that the biggest change in the distribution of U.S. income has been with the top 0.1 percent of earners - not the one percent.

[ More From CNBC: One Percent Gives Up Ground -- to the Five Percent ]

The share of total income going to the top 0.1 percent hovered around 4 percent during the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, then rose to 12 percent by the mid-2000s. During this period, the average tax rate paid by the 0.1 percent fell from more than 40 percent to below 25 percent.

The study said that "as top tax rates are reduced, the share of income accruing to the top of the income distribution increases" and that "these relationships are statistically significant."

In other words, cutting taxes on the rich may not grow the economic pie. But the study found that those cuts can effect "how that economic pie is sliced."

http://www.thepragmaticpundit.com/2012/05/democrats-v-republicans-debt-and.html

(pictures don't show up; you'll have to click on the link)

Quote
Bill Clinton inspired me to rename and repost this information.  This was the result when Presidents had a Congress that compromised.


THE DEBT, DEFICIT AND DEBT CEILING

Don't Blame Obama for Bush's 2009 Deficit
by Republican Daniel J. Mitchell of the Conservative Cato Institute

Click to enlarge




Barack Obama has lowest spending record of any recent president


You will often hear critics say that Bush left office with a $454 billion deficit.  That was the deficit at the end of 2008 (12/31/2008).  Then what accounts for the period from the end of December until the President is sworn into office in late January?  Any calculation that begins when President Obama took office or at the end of 2009 (because the President had been in office for a year), is just flat-out wrong.

Here's how it works...the fiscal year is from October 1 through September 30th.  So a President governs for his first 9 months under the budget of the preceding government.

At the end of the Bush fiscal year, September 30, 2009, the deficit was $1,417,121.

Obama's first fiscal year, September 30, 2010, the deficit was $1,294,090.  The deficit went down!

Obama's second fiscal year September 30, 2011, the deficit was $1,298,614.

Obama's third fiscal year August 31, 2012 (latest available), the deficit was $1,164,373.


Source:  Steve Benen, Maddow Blog




Trade Deficit Goes Down, Budget Deficit and Unemployment drop


Debt Reduction

Most government spending occurs automatically, without any action by the Congress or the President.  Since fiscal year 1957, the amount of debt held by the federal government has increased each year.  The ability to expand the economy has direct impact on the ability to bring about debt reduction, so I've included the following chart.


I am adding the following charts for further clarification.





Source:  CBO Historical Budget Page



Balancing the Budget

President Clinton balanced the budget, giving the government a surplus.  Not one single Republican in either house voted for the balanced budget.

Only 5 (five) current Presidents have governed with a surplus.  They were all Democrats!

click here to enlarge


Recessions and Depressions

Republicans held the presidency at the onset of the last NINE (9) economic downturns, including the two greatest economic collapses in our history.

1. The Great Depression: Herbert Hoover (Republican)
2. Recession of 1953: Dwight D. Eisenhower (Republican)
3. Recession of 1957: Dwight D. Eisenhower (Republican)
4. Recession of 1960: Dwight D. Eisenhower (Republican) *
5. The Oil Crisis: Richard Nixon (Republican)
6. 1980's Recession: Ronald Reagan (Republican)
7. 1990 Recession: George H.W. Bush (Republican)
8. 2002 Recession: George W. Bush (Republican)
9. The Second Great Depression: George W. Bush (Republican) 

Correction:

*  The Recession of 1960 began during the presidential campaign of that same year.  The chart originally assigned the recession to President Kennedy, who was not inaugurated until 1961.  It is important to note that what ended the recession was the call President Kennedy made for government spending.  It helped to reduce unemployment and restore confidence in the economy.  The recession  came to an end that very year.

THANK YOU  David Maurand of  designPhase3


The Debt Ceiling

The DEBT CEILING has been raised 79 times since 1960; 49 times under Republican presidents and 30 times under Democratic presidents.

Under Reagan the debt ceiling was raised 17 times in eight years
Under Bush the debt ceiling was raised 4 times in 4 years
Under Clinton the debt ceiling was raised 4 times in eight years
Under Bush the debt ceiling was raised 7 times in eight years
Under President Obama the debt ceiling has been raised 4 times in 3 years


The Federal Workforce

Employment

Reagan expanded government more than any modern-day President.  His was the largest non-military workforce in three decades.  The only president who had a workforce that surpassed Reagan's was President Johnson's, during the Vietnam War.  Reagan was in office during peacetime.

If we combine the totals for all federal employees, including the military:

Reagan began office with a total of 4,982,000 employees and ended his term with 5,292,000 employees.  President Obama took office with a federal employee roster of 4,430,000 employees.  At the end of 2010 President Obama's federal workforce numbered  4,443,000; that's 849,000 fewer employees than Reagan, the advocate of small government!  Add to this the fact that President Reagan governed during peacetime, while President Obama inherited two wars.


*through 2010.  Includes temporary Census workers


Job Creation

When it comes to job creation, the Democrats again do a better job than Republicans.
From the U.S. Department of Labor;  data is listed from the best to the worst:




Unemployment Rates

Clearly Democratic Presidents create more jobs per year than Republican presidents.  Unemployment rates are higher under Republicans....it's just a fact.

Johnson 1966-1969  average unemployment rate of 3.7%.
Clinton 1994-2001 average unemployment rate of 4.9%.
Kennedy 1962-1965 average unemployment rate of 5.2%.
Nixon 1970-1977 average unemployment rate of 6.3%.
Bush 1990-1993 average unemployment rate of 6.7%.
Carter 1978-1981  average unemployment rate of 6.7%.
Reagan 1982-1989  average unemployment rate of  7.3%.

Here's a pretty damning statistic:



Oh, here's another:



You see what happens when you ignore blind partisanship and actually analyze the numbers? 

This is Nate Silver vs conservative pundits all over again.  Math vs gut feeling.

Quote from: Sci Fi Fan on November 11, 2012, 09:10:28 AM
Burden of proof fallacy.

But you probably don't know what that is, so I won't waste any more of my time:


As you can see, states with conservative policies tend to fail miserably in the long run; indeed, all ten states with the lowest suicide rates are liberal.



http://finance.yahoo.com/news/tax-cuts-rich-dont-spur-151649273.html



http://www.thepragmaticpundit.com/2012/05/democrats-v-republicans-debt-and.html

(pictures don't show up; you'll have to click on the link)





Here's a pretty damning statistic:



Oh, here's another:



You see what happens when you ignore blind partisanship and actually analyze the numbers? 

This is Nate Silver vs conservative pundits all over again.  Math vs gut feeling.

You made one crucial mistake that undoes your whole tangled pastiche...

Quote from: The Boo Man... on November 11, 2012, 10:35:08 AM
You made one crucial mistake that undoes your whole tangled pastiche...

It'll obviously be something entirely unrelated to the statistics.

Quote from: Sci Fi Fan on November 11, 2012, 10:38:35 AM
It'll obviously be something entirely unrelated to the statistics.

Oh. Ok