I used to be quite interested in politics, and my opinions on it were as passionate as my feelings for religion. However, the 2008 presidential race turned me off to politics.
I have tried to pretend to be a Democrat, but like being religious, the tag just doesn't fit. I'm very clearly not a Republican, since I don't think the world would be a better place just by preventing gays from marrying and women from planning when they have a baby. However, the issues which are important to me are largely ignored by the general population. Worse yet, no political party sides with me on any of my most important issues.
If you want to limit government influence, you have no one to vote for. If you think churches should be taxed, you have no one to vote for. If you oppose funding the wars of foreign nations, you have no one to vote for. If you think the second amendment is an outdated rule from the era of single-shot muskets, you have no one to vote for. If you oppose the war on drugs, want to lower the drinking age, or think cigarette taxes are too high, you have no one to vote for. I'll get to Libertarians in a minute.
Republicans in particular voice their agreement with me on some issues, but their track record in the White House under Reagan and both Bushes has proven that it's all talk meant to garner the vote of people like me (angry men who don't want to be bothered). Republicans love to court the vote of "Libertarians" by making empty promises of smaller government and low taxes. Of course, Libertarian is just what young Republicans call themselves because it's so embarrassing to admit you voted for Bush or McCain.
If you vote Republican, the only things you will end up supporting are socially restrictive policies meant to intrude on private citizens and their rights. Republicans attack liberty at every turn, from the PATRIOT Act to bans on gay marriage and abortion. There's nothing Libertarian about the Republicans besides the horrendous tax policy shared by the two, a tax policy which only serves to create a massive gap in wealth between the rich and middle class.
Eisenhower, the last great Republican president, had it right when he signed off on a 90% tax for the wealthiest earners. This tax carried America through it's most prosperous years, enabling us to grow and build our infrastructure to what we have today.
Republicans and Libertarians would have us believe that the government screws up everything, but the truth is that government is only inefficient when Republicans are running it. The highway system, NASA's trips to the moon, the Postal System, parks, police, firemen, etc. are all "socialized." Republicans can't even say the words "our military" without immediately following it with some variant of the phrase, "which is the best in the world." So if socialism is good enough for the best military in the world... why not other things that benefit every citizen?
Democrats, on the other hand, are more open to the ideas I support... but they're also open to some I oppose as strongly as I would if they were Republican. PETA, Green Peace, censorship, media scapegoating, and countless other types of legislation which I would characterize as "Mommy Laws" all serve only to intrude on the choices of Americans. We don't need anything safer "for the kids." Fuck the kids, and fuck their lazy parents who don't bother raising them.
So if it's between Femacrats and Retardicans, I get bored. I think that's why I like discussing religion: there's more than two sides. The false dichotomy presented by American politics is dwarfed in intellectual size by the plurality of religious debate.
I have tried to pretend to be a Democrat, but like being religious, the tag just doesn't fit. I'm very clearly not a Republican, since I don't think the world would be a better place just by preventing gays from marrying and women from planning when they have a baby. However, the issues which are important to me are largely ignored by the general population. Worse yet, no political party sides with me on any of my most important issues.
If you want to limit government influence, you have no one to vote for. If you think churches should be taxed, you have no one to vote for. If you oppose funding the wars of foreign nations, you have no one to vote for. If you think the second amendment is an outdated rule from the era of single-shot muskets, you have no one to vote for. If you oppose the war on drugs, want to lower the drinking age, or think cigarette taxes are too high, you have no one to vote for. I'll get to Libertarians in a minute.
Republicans in particular voice their agreement with me on some issues, but their track record in the White House under Reagan and both Bushes has proven that it's all talk meant to garner the vote of people like me (angry men who don't want to be bothered). Republicans love to court the vote of "Libertarians" by making empty promises of smaller government and low taxes. Of course, Libertarian is just what young Republicans call themselves because it's so embarrassing to admit you voted for Bush or McCain.
If you vote Republican, the only things you will end up supporting are socially restrictive policies meant to intrude on private citizens and their rights. Republicans attack liberty at every turn, from the PATRIOT Act to bans on gay marriage and abortion. There's nothing Libertarian about the Republicans besides the horrendous tax policy shared by the two, a tax policy which only serves to create a massive gap in wealth between the rich and middle class.
Eisenhower, the last great Republican president, had it right when he signed off on a 90% tax for the wealthiest earners. This tax carried America through it's most prosperous years, enabling us to grow and build our infrastructure to what we have today.
Republicans and Libertarians would have us believe that the government screws up everything, but the truth is that government is only inefficient when Republicans are running it. The highway system, NASA's trips to the moon, the Postal System, parks, police, firemen, etc. are all "socialized." Republicans can't even say the words "our military" without immediately following it with some variant of the phrase, "which is the best in the world." So if socialism is good enough for the best military in the world... why not other things that benefit every citizen?
Democrats, on the other hand, are more open to the ideas I support... but they're also open to some I oppose as strongly as I would if they were Republican. PETA, Green Peace, censorship, media scapegoating, and countless other types of legislation which I would characterize as "Mommy Laws" all serve only to intrude on the choices of Americans. We don't need anything safer "for the kids." Fuck the kids, and fuck their lazy parents who don't bother raising them.
So if it's between Femacrats and Retardicans, I get bored. I think that's why I like discussing religion: there's more than two sides. The false dichotomy presented by American politics is dwarfed in intellectual size by the plurality of religious debate.
That's right Ginx! Fuck the children! Fuck their lazy parents, too!
ReplyDeleteWait . . . I'm a parent . . .
:-D
But, I'm not a lazy one. Not totally. I get what you're saying.
I just see it as a parent's duty to raise a child, not the country's. It should only be the government's responsibility when the parents become negligent, incapacitated, or die. Otherwise, pretty soon the government will decide how our children are raised, and you start getting school prayer and abstinence education...
ReplyDeleteI want Republicans to fuck up their own kids, not mine.