Value-based politics

Here are some of my political positions and the values they are based on.

Selfless service is a military and government value but I don't think it can be an individual intrinsic value.  It's really a combination of integrity, loyalty, duty, and courage. I mean it's a value that is necessary for the accomplishment of a military mission or for ethical public service by a politician but its not an end in itself. I think that a government official needs to put the country and its people above his or her own needs, but I also think that this is part of the job description of being a government official - therefore it's part of the duties of an official to willingly forego personal gain at the expense of others through the use of the public office. It's not an inversion of values. Even though it might seem that selfless service places duty above life or property, it does not, because the oath of office explicitly declares a willingness to assume the duties of the office and therefore a personal choice to forego personal gain when it conflicts with the duties of the office.

Openness (as in transparent government). I value openness because it's a means to ensuring that the government functions with honesty, integrity, loyalty, responsibility, and respect, which are concepts I value. 

Worker protection. I value worker protection as it relates to preserving life, liberty, justice, right to property, opportunity, and treating people with respect. That means I advocate for practicing safety controls in work environments, prevention of sexual harassment, and a minimum wage. But I do not value government laws related to unions that force employers to negotiate with unions or force employers to keep unprofitable businesses open just so they can employ union workers, because to me these are huge violations of an employer's liberty and right to property. Also, I think that in some situations a minimum wage does not apply, such as when a person volunteers to do work for free or in exchange for something other than money (such as experience, like student internships), or when the work is done as a punishment (prisoners should not receive payment because their work is paying a debt to society). 

Consumer protection. I value consumer protection as it relates to preserving life. That means I advocate for laws requiring manufacturers or merchants to disclose harmful effects of their products, especially related to health or risk of injury or damages. I also advocate laws that require truthfulness in advertising, including identification of unfounded claims.

Insurance. I value insurance because it's a good way for a community of people to organize and help each other in times of need.

Universal healthcare. I advocate universal healthcare that is provided through charity, volunteerism, or non-profit organization. I reject universal healthcare if everyone is forced to pay for it while the people involved in providing it make profits, because that is essentially forcing everyone to buy something they may not need and is a form of enslaving everyone (even if it's for a limited annual amount) for the benefit of the relatively few in the healthcare field. I think that non-charity healthcare should be community-based (insurance) and not slavery-based. 

Retirement guarantee. I reject the "Social Security" system because it's a form of slavery. Everyone who works has to pay for the retirement benefits of the previous generation, benefits promised to them by people who don't have the right to make that promise, and also subject to change at the whim of any generation of lawmakers.