Do you like politicians?
 

Do you really? I think they're a bunch of phoney bitches who constantly nag at each other like a woman would.

Generally I like the President if he's either honest, or doesn't constantly piss me off, but otherwise I don't really like politicians.

I'm with you. I think the nature of being a politician is self-corrupting, especially in these days of soft money.

Hell, Ben Franklin would be roasted by the press if he was alive today.

some of them, Tony Benn for example, I like.

There's something slimy about all high level politicians because it takes more than being a good candidate to get elected. The problem with politicians is that they play politics, which can sometimes be a sideshow to important decisions. Whlie both of the above statements are true to some degree, politicians are not all bad and are actually a necessity. It's pretty funny if you think about it, if you'd want a politician who didn't play politics and wasn't elected... sounds like a dictatorship there, so I guess politicians aren't all bad.

Career politicians are what is wrong with this country. It's that simple.

I've know my local politicians and a few of them are alright guys.

Unfortunately the higher you go, the more likely you are sucked into career politics and then you mortgage your soul to Satan.

So, a few are alright, but in general, no.

the problem with higher politicians is that they can only get elected if they support special interests who give them money, so the common man/woman is just screwed.

A few politicians SEEM like they are somewhat trustworthy people or they hide the slime trails rather well, John McCain comes to mind.

Indeed, they need to stop giving themselves some big fat pay raises. Being a politician should be like a side job, not the main source of income for someone, that way they actually have to work. Back when the country was founded and even a good ways in, most of the politicians were mainly practicing lawyers, doctors, or they had some other job that was their main income, and they served as politicians to better the people, not to make money.

But back to the topic at hand...
I like some, but there are quite a few that I could just care less for.

Politicians are a necessary part of our system of government. They do their jobs relatively well. It's not easy being a leader (target for everyone's easy criticism).

Back in the day that was exactly what happened, so elected officials could only represent the interests of lawyers and surgeons and independently wealthy folk with stock portfolios and rather nice estates - just like them.

Then you got salaries and suddenly other folk could go into politics. Two of my favourite politicians were previously a boilermaker and a train driver. And salaries aren't exactly massive. Not even 'President of the United States' is the most lucrative job on the basis of salary alone.

The real problem is the former politician who joins the board of a major company; has "friends" and knows what laws are "due for a change" in congress. Blatant conflict of interest is a nasty, nasty thing.

Asking "do you like politicians?" is like asking "do you like lawyers?". Which ones? The lawyer who does pro bono work for refugees or the RIAA lawyers?

Point taken. True, the salary of the POTUS isn't the most lucrative in the world, but 500 thou/year is still pretty damn good. So is the close to 200 thou/year that Congresspersons get. I guess what I meant was that I would like to see Congress take a pay cut. So that the politicians have to take another job to support themselves. That would be the ultimate if the same guy that represented your district was also the guy that lived next door and was your co-worker as well.

You forget that each Senator gets something like 2Mil to run their office, "run their office" is a rather flexible term.

That too.