Above all, I am extremely opposed to anyone forcibly imposing their ideas on others. As long as people don't try to make others unwillingly live a different lifestyle, I am okay with their ideas.

I believe strongly in people's right to deny medical treatment, and freedom of speech and. I am also very passionate about the concept that no matter how much you know, there's always more to learn, and nothing steams me more than an idiot who thinks he knows everything.

I am passionate about standing up for myself. My late mother said "if you dont stand up for yourself no one else will." To this day I will go to any extreme to do so.

I'll pretty much defend all of my beliefs, but I would never defend a belief in the sense of telling somebody that they should believe the same as me. ...which I suppose brings me onto my first point, that I'll defend the right to free speech to the bitter end. Though I don't believe that people should be allowed to stand in public places (ie. the middle of London), and encourage others to blow the Brits up. I'll always defend my right to be vegetarian, despite the argument of 'if you were in cavemen times you'd have to eat meat'. I get faced with that whole 'caveman' speech every time somebody new finds out I don't eat meat. I suppose one of my other beliefs I'll always defend is that I believe that women shouldn't necessarily stay at home with their children. I believe it's quite possible for a woman to balance home and work. I'm a big defender of gay rights. In my opinion, homosexuals have just as much right to adopt a child and get married as anybody else does. I'll also defend my religion. When I was at school, one of my Science teachers was the most devout Catholic I've ever known (or she claimed to be anyway!). Literally every lesson, she'd try to convince me of all the reasons Judaism was wrong. I had to change classes in the end.

(Ok, this will produce a rating bash, perhaps, but gotta say it anyway...) Defending one's beliefs is -- at best -- an intermediate stage of development. Its a good place to get to in life, but its not the end of the road. Ultimately, identifying with beliefs will interfere with one's cognitive and spiritual development. The problem is that all concepts and belief systems are based in dualisms -- the mind's ability to generate the illusion of separation between opposites (liberal vs. conservative, good vs. evil, self vs. other, etc.) To the degree that the mind identifies with or defines a "self" in these distinctions, it turns the other half of the polarity into the "enemy" and externalizes it. This is why "true believers" of any religion or philosophy are so irritating to non-believers: they've taken all of the 'opposition' to their position and projected it out onto anyone who doesn't share their definition of "us". They've lost all interest in listening to, connecting with, or integrating any other possible viewpoints. So I recommend that people hold their beliefs with a certain amount of "distance" and reserve -- i.e. "this is what I think is most true for now, and I am open to seeing things from a new perspective". Besides reducing our attachment to fixed viewpoints, this approach also tends to produce less conflict with others in our lives. Of course, if you do that its much harder to feel like you're heroically battling for Truth and Justice against the forces of Evil. That loss of drama is a bit like withdrawing from intoxicants -- its uncomfortable.

If anyone invades my country, I'm going to join the militia. No employer could pay me enough to treat me like an idiot. Apart from those, I'm open to changing my mind about anything. We are all constantly growing up and changing our views on things. I used to believe in Santa Claus but I don't any more. I think anyone who doesn't change their view now and again isn't very good at learning.

I'm passionate about a person's right to make his/her own decisions. I agree with Stableboy that our views of truth and justice change as we learn more, but everyone has the right to choose his path, including your spouse, your child, your co-worker, your neighbor. Let people be who they are.

(Part II ~~~~~~~ boredasmustard re: gay marriage) What I'm saying is a bit subtle here: its not that you should never defend a belief, or that beliefs are bad. The trouble is that we get "caught up" in them. The provide an artificial sense of absolute knowledge which prevents us from moving beyond them. You could say they're addictive, in a way. On the journey toward "enlightenment", or true understanding, or full aliveness, or whatever you want to call the spiritual path, there are lots of roadside stops. Many of those are labeled "hang out here and just adopt this belief system and spend the rest of your life defending it and trying to talk others into it." These are very tempting rest stops, lots of people have chosen them, they hang out drinking and having fun, criticising everyone who's still out on the road, and especially criticizing the folks who've chosen other rest stops. This "community" makes them feel like they belong: it provides a sense of identity. But its a false sense of identity -- they've abandoned the true journey, and have fallen into a static posture which prevents them from making further progress. How could they leave all their friends behind? It would be a betrayal! And the longer one spends at these rest stops, the more one is personally invested in proving that it was the right decision in the first place, so it becomes harder and harder to see things from a new perspective. That's why its a good idea to hold all beliefs with a certain amount of doubt: because even the best ones suffer from this kind of "mind trap" quality.

Abortion is the complete stop of a future human being. Contraceptives is a way for young kids to have loveless sex thus creating bad teen issues. Don't piss on an electric fence.

Children... and their right to live and learn in safety with those who genuinely care for them and about them and who will nourish nurture and protect them and their rights at all times.

That no one and, especially, no child would ever go one day without enough food.

I strongly believe in protecting animals and their rights and peoples rights and i believe in my country i will defend all of these with everything i have i am even going in the military to investigate other countries that mistreat humans and animals

Im passionate about fair treatment of all species. This world is so 'speciesist' that so many animals get treated absolutely disgracefully. Im pushing for a change, and waiting for people to realise just like they did with slavery that it is nothing but WRONG. Also passionate about vegetarianism, and how animals have a right to live on this planet as much as we do. Their lack of sophisticated intelligence like ours does not mean that they deserve to be murdered and their flesh eaten.

As a Freemason, I am strongly in favor of public schools. I will defend the public school system forever, and I plan to serve as a public school teacher when I am finished with my degrees. (I'm in college now, and plan on graduating with a Master's in Physics and a Bachelor's in Education)

Everyone deserves the basic rights of food, shelter, and clothing. No one has the right to enforce harm willingly on another human being. No one should judge others based on their differences. Janis Joplin had a voice that touched the essence of my inner being.

That everyone is capable of kindness.

God, country and Notre Dame