Instant Democracy, Internet Style

From idea to domain to publishing.

The race for the White House is in the home stretch. So far the media and campaigns have focused mainly on petty things like “lipstick on a pig” and who’s wearing a flag pin. Perhaps they’re just trying to avoid answering the truly difficult questions.

In a fit of frustration, I decided to go through each candidates’ plans and ask the really tough questions. I found that most of these plans are filled with pandering and few details. The candidates ought to be forced to answer the really tough questions.

Thankfully, getting the word out online is cheap. I registered an available domains for $7.22 at Moniker, developed a simple web site using XsitePro, and uploaded it to my dedicated server.

I decided to register DifficultDebate.com for the site. There were some alternative domains I liked better that were for sale, but decided it wasn’t worth paying $1,000 to $2,000 for a domain I’ll only use for a couple months. I mostly used DomainTools.com and Thesaurus.com to brainstorm ideas for the domain.

So, without further ado, I present DifficultDebate.com, featuring 27 tough questions for each candidate, counting:

-What each candidate’s specific plans are for funding social security. Neither has released details that add up to anything. Obama talks regarding taxing earnings over $200,000, but proposes starting that tax hike following he leaves the presidency. Talk regarding passing the buck. McCain doesn’t have much of plan other than “reaching across the isle” to work with democrats.

-Obama wants to enact a windfall profits tax on oil firms. Exxon Mobil’s profit margin is regarding 10%. Google’s profit margin is 25%. Ought to we charge a windfall tax to Google for the “extraordinary” profits they are generating due to growth in online advertising? (I’m sure domainers would like to get a piece of that!)

-McCain proposes a “HOME” plan that allows for “deserving American families” to replace existing mortgages they can’t afford with a fresh FHA-backed loan. He claims that the current mortgage firm will “write down and retires the existing loan, which is replaced by an FHA guaranteed HOME loan from a lender.” Will this be adverse for mortgage lenders? Will they be less likely to make loans in the future to questionable applicants, and will they pass on the added costs to qualified applicants in the future?

-Obama is blasting other countries for subsidizing manufacturing that hurts American workers, but is in favor of agriculture subsidies that hurt foreign farmers. How can he explain this apparent hypocrisy?

-McCain proposes making prescription drugs cheaper in part by speeding up the introduction of generic drugs. Doesn’t this reduce drug firm’s incentives to invest in fresh drug discovery?