I greatly enjoyed the Free and Equal Debate, which featured Gary Johnson (Libertarian Party), Jill Stein (Green Party), Virgil Goode (Constitution Party), and Rocky Anderson (Justice Party). It was moderated by Larry King, whom I thought seemed slightly dispassionate, but set himself aside and let the candidates speak.

Topics not discussed in the presidential debates were happily discussed; the war on drugs, the deficit, and civil liberties (ie. Patriot Act, NDAA). Other topics included foreign policy (with all the candidates being against the war on terror), education reform, and marijuana legilization.

The candidates were all very clear about their particular views, which was very refreshing. They all looked happy to be there, and the mood was very friendly. All four agreed that the deficit was far too large, the war on terror needed to be cut, and bills like NDAA were dangerous for liberty.

Disagreements arose when Anderson and Stein stated they supported free secondary education, which Goode and Johnson opposed. Goode also stated he was against marijuana legilization, which all three other candidates were for.

I suggest to anyone that hasn’t seen it to watch it. It was such a positive, yet sadly unusual occurrence in our current political setup (link posted at the bottom).

The Free and Equal Elections Foundation will be hosting a second debate on the 30th, which will feature Gary Johnson and Jill Stein, decided by a vote held on the Free and Equal webpage. The candidates have very different economic approaches- Johnson being right and Stein left- which wasn’t deeply delved into during the first debate.

The results of the voting

http://freeandequal.org/updates/winners-of-october-23-presidential-debate/

Full Free and Equal Debate:

watch?v=e0vE5CTTSFI&feature=plcp