Sal - I'm curious as to whether those organizations support Republican cantidates because they are many times less likely to instigate gun ownership restrictions, or for another reason?

I've always felt Republicans have a much poorer track record when it comes to protecting the areas and animals we hunt, but they do defend our right to possess the weapons with which we hunt. It's unfortunate that there aren't more cantidates from either party that have an overlapping interest in both.

Otherwise I share the majority of your beliefs, with the exception of health care.... Since I don't have a plan in place to devalue, the idea of having access to one at a reasonable price is very appealing. I would hope that any steps taken in that direction involve benefits for the people already covered, for instance if your plan was suddenly worth less than theoretically that's because it should cost your employer less, which should mean they could pay you the difference in actual wages. Unlikely perhaps, but certainly reasonable.

As for the police and military type jobs you mentioned, or really with any job for that matter, a persons suitability for the tasks their position requires should be viewed without consideration of gender. Has there been a move to make police and firefighter jobs more available to women via a lessening of physical requirements?