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Ricky B · November 4, 2008, 01:01 AM

I submit that the difference is between policy and politics. Politics is who should be elected (or not) and therefore who gets to decide public policy. Policy is whether a law is a good idea or whether it violates the constitution. Thus, if discussion is focused on policy espoused by politicians and not on ad hominem attacks on the politicians themselves or their parties for espousing the policies, I suspect the moderators will be satisfied.

Let's take the law in CA restricting the sale of handguns that haven't passed a "safety" test. This is the test that shows that the handguns won't accidentally discharge when dropped. But the same law exempts sales to police officers even though police officers are the ones most likely to be carrying a handgun and sometimes running with it an open holster or in their hand and therefore most likely to drop a loaded handgun.

If I say that the law is bad, that's policy. If I say that the measure was not consumer protection even though proposed as such, that's a policy analysis. If I say that the lawmakers who proposed the law as a consumer protection measure were lying dogs who should be run out of office, that's politics.

November 4, 2008, 01:01 AM	#2
Ricky B Senior Member Join Date: November 3, 2002 Posts: 251	How does one divorce the one [law] from the other [politics]? I submit that the difference is between policy and politics. Politics is who should be elected (or not) and therefore who gets to decide public policy. Policy is whether a law is a good idea or whether it violates the constitution. Thus, if discussion is focused on policy espoused by politicians and not on ad hominem attacks on the politicians themselves or their parties for espousing the policies, I suspect the moderators will be satisfied. Let's take the law in CA restricting the sale of handguns that haven't passed a "safety" test. This is the test that shows that the handguns won't accidentally discharge when dropped. But the same law exempts sales to police officers even though police officers are the ones most likely to be carrying a handgun and sometimes running with it an open holster or in their hand and therefore most likely to drop a loaded handgun. If I say that the law is bad, that's policy. If I say that the measure was not consumer protection even though proposed as such, that's a policy analysis. If I say that the lawmakers who proposed the law as a consumer protection measure were lying dogs who should be run out of office, that's politics.