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Disregard the labels and simply choose which is right and which is wrong:

-Involuntary redistribution of wealth from producers to the poor. Moral and ethical?

The "poor" are not producers? Tell that to the countless working poor who scrape by on minimum wage salaries. I assume what you meant was people on welfare or some form of government assistance, though I can only infer. Welfare abuse, which is both unethical and immoral, does occur. Exploitation of the poor, usually by the "producers," is also immoral and unethical (and commonplace).

- Claiming the right to kill a defenseless human for convenience sake. Moral and ethical?

Again, I can only assume you mean abortion, and not the too-frequent occasions an innocent or improperly convicted person has ended up on death row. This is a complex issue, and your simple binaries don't help. At what point is a fetus a human? We all have to make a personal decision on that one. Even people who support the right to an abortion agree that it is a difficult decision. Especially in cases like rape or incest. It's a little more complex than you allow.

- Decrying the injustice of racial discrimination while ardently supporting racially based quotas for college admissions. Moral and ethical?

I notice that conservatives get apoplectic at the notion of "reverse" discrimination, but are usually not the first to defend Arab-Americans and others who are regularly discriminated against. Whose ethics are really suspicious?

The protests against affirmative action and quotas are often based on a worldview that whites are somehow being systematically discriminated against in America. This is due more to the 'victim' culture we live in than any genuine discrimination. Having said all that, I would prefer that all job and school applicants were treated equally and do not agree with quotas. I'm not sure if that makes me immoral.

- Banning Christian prayer in schools on the basis of the 1st Amendment while supporting school programs that teach the tenets of and require participation in the practice of Muslim religious rituals in the name of 'tolerance.' Moral and ethical?

Yes, prayer should be banned in public schools. Period.

I won't shovel a whole lot more hard facts at you until you've had some time to digest my last post, cause I consider it pretty important. Opening the mind after so many years of indoctrination (and yours does seem to be more open than most) is far more important and difficult than anything else.

But I saw this, and I -have- to tell a little story.

"Welfare abuse, which is both unethical and immoral, does occur. Exploitation of the poor, usually by the "producers," is also immoral and unethical (and commonplace)."

As I said, I am Cuban-American, and had the fortune of understanding the inevitable corruption endemic to socialism as a result of my heritage. I was pretty much predestined to be Republican, and I'm glad of it. But I want to tell you when my conservatism -crystallized- for me, when it became emotional as well as intellectual.

My parents owned a small mom-and-pop convenience store in central New Jersey. I was only about 10 when I started working there, and worked there until I was 17.

One day (it took a while, I -was- a kid), I noticed a pattern. Every single 1st day of the month, the line at the lottery machine would extend -around the entire building-. I always assumed prior to that that the jackpot just occassionally got huge and that spurred the massive demand, but nope, one day I noticed the jackpot was as low as it could be and still we had people parking in the firehouse across the street to get tickets.

Under normal circumstances, we had at most three or four people at the lottery machine at any given time. But on the 1st, you could count on 20 people waiting, almost from open to close.

And then I noticed that every single person was walking up to the machine with a similar looking envelope in their hand. And putting every last bill in them into the lottery machine.

It really hit me when I turned older and was allowed to start selling lottery tickets. I wasn't able to -move- from that machine for hours at a time. The line never let up. And the welfare checks pouring into that machine was continuous. And this wasn't even that large of a town!

Then I talked to Jeff one day. Jeff was a guy, dressed nice, amiable enough. But he stood around all day, every day, drinking our coffee and hitting on the 15 year old girl I worked with behind the counter (yes, I found out he did sleep with her). One day, I finally had to ask - how come he never -worked-? I mean, he barely missed a day of hanging out at the coffee machine in almost two years.

That's when I found out that he'd been given Permanent Disability. For life. On what basis? "The unbearable stress incurred from trying to find a job."

If I had a conservative epiphany, those were mine. I never had any doubt of the inherent corruption of socialism again.

Believe me - the abuse is far more "commonplace" among the "poor". It's human nature. The only people more likely to become completely corrupted by socialism are the government authorities who are given the power to distribute the wealth that they did nothing whatsoever to earn.

Qwinn

Exploitation of the poor, usually by the "producers," is also immoral and unethical (and commonplace).

And illegal so that's a non-issue.

The "poor" are not producers? Tell that to the countless working poor who scrape by on minimum wage salaries.

Very few people "scrape by" on minimum wage salaries. Minimum wage jobs are entry level jobs the majority of which are held by students. Even most illegals hold jobs at higher than minimum wage. But the question remains; why should a man who earns a good salary have some of it confiscated and given to someone who earns less? Moral and ethical?

At what point is a fetus a human?

According to the Sutras, the Bible, Science and common sense human life begins at conception. Not complex at all. Perhaps the figures in this post will help you understand who is having abortions and why.

I notice that conservatives get apoplectic at the notion of "reverse" discrimination, ...

Meaning that you are not a conservative or that "reverse" discrimination is acceptable in your view? I'm shocked. Looks like .30Carbine was right.

... but are usually not the first to defend Arab-Americans and others who are regularly discriminated against.

What Arab-Americans have been discriminated against and in what way? Please provide a link to some supporting evidence.

Yes, prayer should be banned in public schools. Period.

OK. Should the teachings of Islam be banned from public schools along with acting out of Muslim rituals by students on the same grounds?

You said: Yes, prayer should be banned in public schools. Period.

I wonder why (and where else) an independently minded Moderate like you would BAN - i.e., prohibit, deny, exclude, forbid, hinder, inhibit, restrain, restrict, outlaw - the free exercise of religion? Especially a practice as harmless as prayer?

I also wonder if a person could be called anything but Liberal who does not appreciate, uphold, respect and defend those rights with which we are "endowed by our Creator" which are enshrined in the Law of the Land in the following passage from the Bill of Rights of the Constitution of these United States:

"Congress shall make no law respecting the establishment of religion,
or prohibiting the free exercise thereof;
or abridging the freedom of speech,
or of the press;
or the right of the people peaceably to assemble;
and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."

You seem to love the idea of "independence" while hating the actual practice of it.

Typical Liberal viewpoint.