Where I stand - on the separation of church and state

I believe in the separation of church and state and believe that means the freedom "of" religion versus the freedom "from" religion.
The government should not dictate the religious beliefs of the people. Nor should they ban religious beliefs, practices or services. Prayer is my right and the government has no more right to prevent me from praying than they have to force others to pray.

In general, I feel my personal religious beliefs are irrelevant when discussing my political views. But in this situation, both my religious and political views can be explained by the 11th article of faith from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints:

We claim the privilege of worshiping Almighty God according to the dictates of our own conscience, and allow all men the same privilege, let them worship how, where, or what they may.

The only time the government should get involved in religion is when people are being put in harm's way. In those cases, it is the job of the government to protect those that are unable to protect themselves.

Where I stand - on taxes

I don't like paying taxes, or at least not as much as it seems I have to pay (income - both federal and state, social security, medicare, property tax, vehicle registration, sales tax, etc); but at the same time I believe our government needs to have money in order to function and we must have a government.
I believe that everyone should pay taxes, even though some will pay more than others. Nobody should get more money in a "tax refund" than they actually paid in taxes that year (though some may end up getting most of what they paid refunded depending on their circumstances).
Welfare and tax refunds should be kept separate and I will discuss welfare separately.
I don't know enough about the people that start business to know if they would stop starting business if their tax rates were increased, so I can't speculate on that. I do know that as a small business owner, I enjoy being able to give others work and pay them for the work they do. Profit from the company often goes back into the company and if my tax rate were increased, I would have less money that I could put back into my company.
I feel a flat tax rate would be the most fair, but baring that, we need to cut a few hundred thousand lines of text out of our current tax code. In programming, we have a saying called "KISS". Which stands for "Keep It Simple, Stupid". I believe the same applies to tax law.

Where I stand - on gun control

In general I am opposed.
I believe that law abiding citizens should be allowed to own guns, as long as the ownership of those firearms does not impose undue risk to society. This means that a loaded shotgun should not be placed in the corner of a home where the mother offers daycare services.
Open carry is legal in my state, but that doesn't mean somebody should walk down the street hefting an AK47 and a pump-action shotgun. That kind of behavior can cause people alarm.
Criminals will find a way to get firearms even if they are outlawed and firearms in the hands of responsible, law-abiding citizens do not worry me.
That said, if somebody else is in favor of some form of gun control, I cannot fault them for it without first knowing all of the factors behind their decision.

Where I stand

I don't know if my actions will inspire anyone else, but I personally wish that politicians would make it very clear where they stand on issues. This wouldn't mean they are incapable of compromise, but I tire of rambling instead of answering the question.
For that reason, I am going to start posting my own views on various topics and issues. Comments and even debate are welcome, I only ask that everyone be civil as some of my opinions could be polarizing. Also, please note that if my views differ from your own, that doesn't mean I think any less of you. All views are valid.
Also, if you'd like to know where I stand on a particular issue, let me know and I'll work it into my postings.