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Last friday's Glenn Beck show was a townhall meeting with several Tea Party protesters. Needless to say, I found myself agreeing with much of the sentiment expressed. Two main themes were repeated by several of the Tea Partiers – 1) The mainstream media completely misrepresented the Tea Party protests (no doubt about that), and 2) The two party system is broken. The Tea Partiers looked at both Democrats and Republicans as betrayers of the public, and betrayers of the Constitution (the media ludicrously portrayed this sentiment as 'rightwing extremist racists against Obama for no good reason').
Those Tea Partiers are some smart folks. They give me hope.
I spend most of my time on this blog criticizing the political left, because they are the statists, the totalitarians who believe big government is the answer to everything. Such a threat to individual liberty, our Constitution, our founding principles, and our country cannot be overstated. I will resist that to my dying breath. After a 20th century in which Americans shed so much blood fighting fascism and communism, I'll never accept those very things in my own country.
Some people, mainly liberals, think my criticisms of the left mean I am the reincarnation of George W. Bush. It's as if they think there is only Michael Moore or Dick Cheney, and nothing in between. They'd be wrong. My contempt for Republicans is only slightly less than my contempt for Democrats. While the Republicans SAY they stand for limited government as prescribed by the founding fathers, which is a natural attraction for me, the Bush administration proved otherwise. We've seldom seen such an increase in government as we did with the Bush administration and his Republican Congress (at least until Obama came along and made the Bushies look like small government types by comparison, no small feat). I look at the Republicans as big government, and the Democrats as bigger government. That's a Hobson's choice I've never been comfortable with. I invariably enter the voting booth thinking, 'should I vote for the Republican just to vote against the liberal Democrat, or should I vote for a third party candidate I actually believe in, but who has no chance of winning ?'
I know I'm not the only one who feels this way. Many Tea Party protesters feel the same, and I talk to lots of people who think the Democrats and Republicans are just two sides of the same corrupt coin. The people feel helpless, because the two big parties form a virtual duopoly, with so much money and power that the game is heavily rigged in their favor. More people categorize themselves as Independents than as members of either of the two big parties, and I am one of those.
I ask the readers, where do you stand on the political spectrum ? Maybe you are a Libertarian. You could be a Libertarian or have Libertarian leanings, and not even know it, so I'm going to link you to the world's smallest political quiz, which is designed to tell you where you stand politically.
Take the test, and let me know how you scored. It's a very short test. I come out as a slightly right-leaning moderate Libertarian, which is pretty accurate.
You can find out more about the Libertarian party here.
{ 21 comments… read them below or add one }
I'm am right there with you King. Where I always get scewed is I am pro life, and against the death penalty. I am also Catholic (religous) and believe as Americans we need to stop illegal immigration. I get so tired of agruing politics since no one wants to hear about an individual view. If you don't have a politicl label, you don't get a voice in politics. I'll stick with the tea partiers for now!
King, I was in the upper part of the Cenrist square just one crossing from the line on it. 60% on both areas questioned. This is the first time I haven't been right of center on things like this one so I guess I need to attend a Tea Party on July 4 since I am getting closer to Libertarian.
Did you watch Glenn Beck talking about our governmental system with the recent student where he says there is no difference in Dems and Reps? I got a bit excited watching him do that as it looks so much like I see the whole thing, also. Both parties are moving toward more totalitarian and there is little difference.
The part I liked best was how close to anarchy he said the Articles of Confederation were and so on. His words about this will be spread at the July 4 Tea Parties as those people there were very interested in what he was saying.
Did you hear the young, black woman, mother talking about not being represented in the CBS poll about supporting Obama. She said she wasn't in either the 96% that support him or the 4% that don't care. She should be the poster woman for the Tea Party people in that she is black and wants less government control. I'll bet the REV won't like her way of speaking.
I'm upper right on that chart. Like an abscess, the government needs drained for the health of the country. Here would be some of my changes to the Executive branch:
1. Scale down the IRS and go to a personal consumption tax and a flt income tax. It would be scaled to take in 50% or less of the current tax revenue.
2. Eliminate the Dept of Education. No more grants for colleges. The grants artificially create a market for the high tuition costs. Without the grants, the colleges would need to drop tuition to meet enrollment goals. Every state can send the top educator to a yearly conference to determine education standards. No feds needed.
3. Eliminate federal welfare. The states would need to pick up the slack.
4. Combine the Commerce and State Departments to reduce costs. One under-sec would run foreign relations, and one would run foreign commerce agreements.
5. Dept of Agri – eliminate any energy programs from the dept. Focus on rural and agri development only. No land preservation or overlap with other depts.
6. Dept of Energy – roll agri renewables into the dept.
7. Dept of Interior – move all energy programs into the dept of energy. This is a parks and preservation dept only.
You get my point. There is enormous amount of duplication and misappropriation in just the Executive branch.
I was straight up the middle libertarian (80-80) though I don't profess to be in real life. A lot of the 'maybes' would have been 'sometimes' for me and I'm not sure how that would affect the results.
90% liberal because of one maybe. I would actually agree to help business in time of need, for the greater good.
You guys still insist the Tea Parties were grassroots originated, don't you?
I do agree with what you are saying about disgust with both parties. I see both parties, because of our campaign finance system, as simply agents of big money. But ideologically, there's a big difference in the two parties, that can't be ignored.
I thought Ron Paul would do better than he wound up doing…..and I think the Tea Parties have a Ron Paul campaign feel to them. But unlike Paul rallies, the Tea Parties lack a comprehensible message, at least so far.
Rev, what do you get paid by the MSM and/or the administration for trying to convince others that the Tea Parties are, in fact, not a grass roots movement and surely the tools of Ron Paul. I am all for them, as what they really are, and it sure isn't Ron Paul orientated. I hope that you and the others open your eyes by July 4 but I doubt you will.
Would you help them like the other Dems, Rev? Force them to do as you say and then send them into bankruptcy like the current Dems. Lying to the people that voted to you every step of the way. This is pathetic. After 100 days Obama has created or saved 150K jobs and as of today has lost almost 2M since he took office. More can be blamed on him because the current congress actually stopped working to improve the condition of American citizens in January of 2008. So indirectly he and more so the Dem Congress are responsible for the loss of almost 6m jobs.
Just a note: Did you know that 1/3 of our industrial base has left the country since the 90's. Thanks Bill for not standing up to BushI and pushing through our demise. Good Job!
King
thanks for the quiz.–If it wasnt so long I could change my name to angry libertarian and I sure as hell wont abreviate it
My problem with being viewed as one is my limited info on their foriegn policy. While I am against us being the world's policeman or sugar daddy I dont belive an isolationist policy would work. Perhaps I am wrong but my view of
Ron Pauls policy was one of passive detachment.
Huh… Though I suspected it, I never knew I was so Libertarian. 70% for personal issues (I suspect my religious views have something to do with that), 90% financial. Like you, King, I find myself deciding my vote usually by who will be the lesser of two evils, and I hate to throw my vote away on someone who has absolutely no chance of getting in office. I voted for John McCain not because I thought he was the best man, but because I thought he was the least horrible thought that might actually win. Sad stuff.
I actually think that the Tea Parties might be a good thing for this country. Maybe mobilize our citizens to stop drinking the Kool-Aid of the main parties? And let's face it, both sides are serving it. I hope that, even if the Tea Parties don't result in a new party being formed, giving us a different choice than we currently have, maybe they'll get the attention of both citizens who vote *and* the major parties. Maybe, lol.
As I count it, that's 6 out of 7 with Libertarian leanings. Pretty good.
Most conservatives can identify with much of the Libertarian platform. Liberals usually only identify with some of the Libertarian social policy.
Rev,
Almost all the Tea Party organizing was done locally.
The Tea Parties most definitely have a message. If you want to find out what it is, go to one, instead of taking the media's word for it. The media is lying.
Roy,
What you said about both parties moving toward the left is exactly what I think. When Arlen Specter said the GOP had moved too far right, I thought he was out of his mind. The GOP moved left in the Bush II years into bigger and bigger government in most ways. That's not conservative. In fact, the way I look at it, in my entire life we've only had one conservative Republican President, Ronald Reagan. I'd really have liked to see what Ronnie could have done with a compliant Congress, but, oh well.
I was right about where you were on the test, maybe one tick to the right.
Dave,
I like the way you think. I'd like to eliminate the income tax, both individual and business. Imagine how many jobs would be created with no business income tax.
The Dept. of Education should definitely go.
angry c,
No, I don't think 'angry lib' would fit you, lol.
larry,
There is a much longer political test floating around on the internet. It's about six pages long. I didn't know if people would want to take that one, but here it is if you're interested.
http://www.politicalcompass.org/
Pure Centrist – 50/50. Pretty accurate, I'd say.
King, you know I respect you, but your post is an out and out lie. As I pointed out to you prior to the election, true libertarians are much closer philosophically to liberals than they are conservatives. Just ask the leaders of the Cato Institute.
You guys call yourselves libertarians, but you are merely angry conservatives that no longer have a say because of your backwards thinking. If you guys are all such true libertarians, why the outrage over gay marriage? Why the outrage on immigration? Libertarians? Please.
truth has a good point.
Of course he does, Reverend. I just read the other day how the libertarians are now pushing for universal healthcare and more government takeovers of our nation's leading industries.
da truth,
I don't have any problem with gay marriage.
I don't have anything against immigration either. I do have a problem with ILLEGAL immigration, which is, you know, illegal. Big difference.
If you would have read what I actually wrote, I said liberals could identify with Libertarians on SOCIAL ISSUES, which is what you just posted about. Conservatives can identify with Libertarians on the founding principles, the Constitution, and economic ideas.
The idea that liberals, who favor big government, and Libertarians, who favor very small government, are anywhere near each other on the political scale is ludicrous. I don't have to ask the Cato Institute. I already know. I used to be a member of the Libertarian party.
If you need more proof, look at who the Libertarians ran as their presidential candidate in 2008. It was Bob Barr, former REPUBLICAN congressman. In 1988, the Libertarians ran Ron Paul, who is a REPUBLICAN congressman. The Libertarians will NEVER run a liberal as their candidate.
I think you should go to the Libertarian party link I provided at the end of my post and read it.
Good one, larry. I think Libertarians are calling for massive tax increases, more entitlements, and vast increases in government spending too, lol.