Ron Paul for President 2012

Since the resolution for this debate is so vaguely made, I am put in a position where I as the opponent must debate according to what I make of the resolution. Within this debate rounds, judging from my opponents first round, I must assume that we are debating one of these two resolutions: 1. Resolved: Ron Paul is the best candidate for the 2012 election 2. Resolved: Ron Paul has the best policy in regards to today's issue. Following this, the burden of proof falls on my opponent to show us that Ron Paul is the best candidate for the presidential election of 2012. With this said, Its time to debate! =======================D Ron Paul although an excellent candidate has some flaws that when looked upon carefully could be fetal to the point of costing him the election. These issues located in his policy involves his Abortion policy, his foreign affairs policy, his views regarding personal liberty and fundamental rights, and finally, Paul wants to erode the power of voters by repealing the Seventeenth Amendment. All these are some of the fetal flaws that adds to the fact that Ron Paul is not and cannot be the best candidate for the 2012 election and the future of the United States. {1} Contention One: Abortion Policy. Though I respect his views on abortion, it simply isn't the best policy for the majority of American population. Ron Paul is pro-life. He says that he developed his views on abortion during his practice as an OB/GYN. Paul's official website states that: "[D]uring his years in medicine, never once did [Paul] find an abortion necessary to save the life of a pregnant woman. While many Republicans want to limit abortion to life-saving procedures, Paul believes even this extreme exception is unnecessary based on anecdotes. {1} While this is a personal anecdote and deserves to be respected, a thorough look at this statement reveals several flaws. Flaws such as the fact that many abortion are caused not because of birth control defects, but because of health problems directed at both the mom, the child, and sometimes both. A Web Md article of February 2011 lists the top causes of abortion in the United states. Inability to support or care for a child, causes such as: To end an unwanted pregnancy . To prevent the birth of a child with birth defects or severe medical problems. Such defects are often unknown until routine second-trimester tests are done. Pregnancy resulting from rape or incest. Physical or mental conditions that endanger the woman's health if the pregnancy is continued. {2} A look into this list reveals that a lot of abortion performed in the United States is caused by issue that could have led to potentially fetal ends if the birth of the child would have been commenced. Following his policy, no form of abortion would be carried out in the United States including those needed to save ones life. This extreme level of anti-abortion policy is a flaw that contributes to the reason why Ron Paul cannot be seen as the best candidate for the election nor can his policy be seen as the best for the United States's current issues. Contention two: Foreign affairs. Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul said Sunday he thinks flawed U. S. foreign policy "contributed to" the causes that led to the September 11 terrorist attacks, though he stopped short of saying the attacks were America's "fault. "{3} he latter went on in stating that "We have 12,000 diplomats. I'm suggesting that maybe we ought to use some of them," Paul said. "I think the greatest danger now is for us to overreact{3} Looking at these two sentences, its quite easy to say that Ron Paul is suggesting that the United States military involvement in the world, is the cause of so much hostility from many countries. Implying that we should use diplomatic policies to solve all our problems without ever using military force. Come on, lets come back to reality, the fact is that before the United States ever engages a country, it always tries to use diplomatic policies; however, these interaction almost always end up in using military forces. Saying that we should avoid using military force, is equivalent to saying that since you stole all of my life savings, killed my family, and took my girlfriend, I should try to talk to you and even if you hold a gun to my head, do noting about it. Due to the united states position and the power it holds in the global community, it is almost impossible to solve all our problems using diplomatic policies at all times. To support this argument, a textus article stated that "Diplomacy is basically a process: the interaction of states and other international actors to reach a common objective or to solve a dispute. This interaction is achieved by unilateral intervention and negotiation. It excludes the use of force but not the threat to have recourse to measures of constraint and, within the framework of the UN or under the latter's authority, to force. "{4} "The famously outspoken congressman added that he'd bring home troops even from Japan and South Korea. "Absolutely. And the people are with me on that. Because we can't afford it. It would save us a lot of money. All those troops would spend their money here at home," he said. "{3} A problem facing the United States today, is what should be done to veterans brought home from Afghanistan. If these troops comes back to the United States as of now, it would be detrimental to the United states economy. Without a job, these troops are forced to either stay jobless, or depend on the government for provisions. Due to our economic situation, the government is now unable to properly give these soldiers the necessities of life without increasing taxes or cutting funding from a department. Ether way, its safe to say that bring home troops in such an accelerated rate will hurt our economy. "Also. .. jobs. Our returning troops need jobs. They also need our support. "{5} Contention three:fundamental rights, and finally, Erosion of voters power by repealing the Seventeenth Amendment. "Over the course of history, the American people have amended the Constitution to provide greater power to voters and to enhance democratic participation. The Fifteenth Amendment allows people to vote regardless of race (although it took nearly a century to make this a reality). The Nineteenth Amendment allows people to vote regardless of sex. The Twenty-Sixth Amendment allows persons who have reached the age of eighteen to vote. Furthermore, the Seventeenth Amendment allows individual voters of each state to elect US Senators directly. Previously, the Constitution delegated this authority to state legislatures. "{1} Paul believes that eliminating the seventh Amendment would protect states against the national government. This policy is highly flawed as 1. The 17th amendment is a tool for individualism and democracy as a whole. 2. The speculation that the 17th Amendment is responsible for the federal government growth is highly flawed. The fact is that the federal government has only grown because the4 people believe the federal government to be capable of issuing decisions that the state government simply cannot issue. For these reasons, Ron Paul is unfit to be the next president or even the better candidate for the 2012 election. Sources: {1} . http://www.huffingtonpost.com... {2} . http://women.webmd.com... {3}. http://www.cbsnews.com... {4}. http://textus.diplomacy.edu... {5}. http://www.psychologytoday.com... I await my opponents response.