Monday, November 24, 2008

Answering Republicans' Questions

I recently filled out a Republican survey; not because I have any intention of voting Republican in most cases, but because I think they need to know where they are going wrong. Until the Libertarian Party goes mainstream, the Republicans are often the only choice I have.The following questions and answers should help you Republicans out there if you expect to save your party.

How Do You Feel About the Election of Barack Obama as President?
The only reason I'm not terrified is that I refuse to fear my government. If we are going to have a little experiment in socialism to satisfy the masses, let’s get it over with. The faster we hit bottom, the faster the productive people can get back to the business of fixing things.
This is not an exclusively Liberal issue by the way. The Republicans, the Bush administration, and John McCain have as much responsibility for the current situation as the Democrats.

Why Do You Think Obama Won?
Although the most often given reason was Obama's ability to inspire people, I think all of the factors listed had an equal role in his election. (If I remember correctly, the reasons given were 1.A need for change, 2.Dissatisfaction with Bush, 3. The economy)

Democrats expanded their majorities in the House and Senate - although not as much as was projected. Will Congress be more effective or less effective at getting things done (whether you agree with their plans or not)?
I am afraid they will get more done because they now feel justified in their philosophy. They are on a power trip, and they feel like they are making history.

How do you feel about the future of our country over the next four years?
We have been on the path to socialism for some time now. Obama and the Democrats are more than happy to force their philosophy down our throats. Although socialism has historically been a failure, Obama does not care because he intends to create fairness and equality rather than concern himself with the economic results.
The Republican party has shown itself to be more than happy to comply in the name of bi-partisanship and personal gain. The voice of the American people has been ignored, our civil liberties have been trampled, and freedom is becoming an antiquated concept, just like the Constitution.
I suggest a serious re-evaluation of the Republican party's purpose and message, starting with McCain's campaign policy. The differences from Obama's platform are insignificant, as they will yield the same results on a slower timeline. You cannot fight big government on a platform of slightly less government.
Although I recognize that there are exceptions within the party, I do not vote blindly for candidates who call themselves Republicans. I vote on record and policy. Right now, that leads me more to the Libertarian Party than the Republican. I will no longer vote for candidates who do not represent limited government and personal freedom just because they are 'less evil' than their rivals. If that means a Democrat majority, so be it.
The Constitution clearly outlines the limitations placed on government for a reason. We are seeing the results of ignoring those limitations.

7 comments:

Ashok said...

This is a really neat, honest blog - don't agree with everything here, but very happy to have found it via Digg. Am definitely adding you to my blogroll: http://ashokkarra.com/friends if you're interested.

Good luck blogging, and certainly good luck dealing with the art world. I have a friend dealing with that latter issue himself, and it is awful in some ways despite the joy art is.

machinepolitick said...

Thank you for checking me out. I'm just trying to get people to make educated decisions. We all have opinions, I just think we should know why.
As for the art, I find the conflict inspirational. I get mad, I paint like crazy, it works out.

Anonymous said...

Great post. I stopped filling out the questionnaires years ago. The GOP lost their way and I doubt anything I could say would sway them anyway.

The last few times they sent me one, I would scrawl something like "NO A La Amnestia!" or "Stop Spending Like Drunken Democrats!" and send it back. That would then be followed up by a polite letter asking me for money.

machinepolitick said...

I always get letters full of excuses, if I get them at all. I'm not expecting anyone to take my advice, but I can't help giving it if they ask.
Hopefully, people will start waking up and looking at the Libertarian party.

Anonymous said...

I may be overly pessimistic, but I don't think the libertarian party is the answer. If it did become viable, we would end up with presidents getting elected with 42% of the vote (think Perot, Bush Clinton 1992) I would rather like to see a strong libertarian faction move in a start influencing the GOP.

The RNCC is a broken down jalopy, but it's all a conservative has right now.

machinepolitick said...

I understand your concern about the numbers, but I can not support the Republicans. I don't think they intend to change more than they have to in order to keep their positions of power. They have shown us very clearly that they have no concern for our wishes, even when a huge majority of Conservatives cry out against their proposals. My Representative is one of the biggest offenders. Compassionate Conservatism has turned the Republican Party into Democrats. Now the Democrats have free reign to be Socialists.
I also don't agree with many aspects of the Republican platform. I want limited government and increased personal liberty. I don't want to see our military policing the world or our government wasting money on the war on drugs. Entitlement programs redistribute wealth, it matters not where the money goes.
As for the numbers, we are a Constitutional Republic. God forbid we ever become a Democracy, where the majority can vote themselves bread and circuses. I fear we are headed in that direction already. I'm sorry to say, George Bush has a great deal of guilt on that issue. He has handed us to Obama on a silver platter. The fact that McCain, who straddles the political fence in the name of bipartisanship, got the nomination is testament to the demise of the Party.

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