A Look at the Field...

Because of my Politics Fatigue, my knowledge of the candidates that the Republicans were running with was, at best, cursory. What a bunch of depressing field that turned out to be. Facing almost insurmountable odds in the next election cycle after being a total disappointment to the people who voted them in office (like me), the Republicans come up with, perhaps, one of the shittiest groups of candidates in the history of the Republican party….or so I thought.

Let’s look at the field:

Mitt Romney was the Republican Governor of the most liberal state in the country. PJ O’Rourke put it best when he said, “Mitt Romney is supposed to be my own type of candidate, a true conservative. But Mitt was governor of Massachusetts. This is like applying to be pope and listing your prior job experience as "Chief Rabbi of Jerusalem.". By Massachusetts standards he has always been pretty conservative. When he realized, however, that Massachusetts defined conservatism a little differently than the rest of the country, he flip-flopped on abortion, gun control, taxation, etc.

Hmmm…a northern Republican whose conservative beliefs were born when the opportunity for higher office arose. I’ll pass.

Ron Paul may have some brilliant Constitutionalist/Federalist positions but I really don’t know for sure. The reason I don’t know for sure is that I opted not to study his positions. The reason I opted not to study his positions is that his supporters are batshit crazy. The reason his supporters are batshit crazy is that he HIMSELF is batshit crazy.

Crazy + Older than McCain + Psychotic Supporters = UNELECTABLE. I’m not wasting my time.

Mike Huckabee just scares the shit out of me. He’s a Bible-thumping John Edwards who had no desire to be “Commander in Chief” but “Pastor-In_Chief”. What MOST scares me about him can be summed up in a single quote from the man himself:

“I have opponents in this race who do not want to change the Constitution... But I believe it's a lot easier to change the Constitution than it would be to change the word of the living god. And that's what we need to do -- to amend the Constitution so it's in God's standards rather than try to change God's standards so it lines up with some contemporary view of how we treat each other and how we treat the family.”

This leaves us with John McCain, the presumptive nominee:

Unfortunately, he was really, REALLY wrong on campaign finance reform,. He’s taken pride in selling out his fellow Republicans (thereby breaking the Reagan rule) His cap-and-trade environmental policy is evidence that he’s been drinking the Al Gore kool-aid a little too long.

He’s right on more things than he’s wrong on. He’s right on spending, he’s mostly right on foreign policy, he’s right on the Federal Marriage Amendment, he’s right on Free Trade, he’s right on Social Security, Medicare and Health Care. And maybe I’m not seeing the forest through the trees on the cap and trade thing. Maybe McCain is simply using this as a ploy to get the moderate, enrviroment-loving Democrats to pull the lever for him. One can only hope.

DAMN! McCain really isn’t that bad

Over the past few months, I’ve said that I’m going to hold my nose and cast my ballot for the lesser of the evils. But if I agree with the candidate more often than not, why do I feel like I’m selling out?

I think I’ve finally figured it out. Much like Joe and Jane America, I’M stupid.

When I threw my hands up in the air and gave up, I started letting the pundits, the journalists and talking heads.influence my opinions. If these dyed-in-the-wool conservatives are having such a problem with McCain, there’s got to be a problem, right?

There is. It’s with the conservatives.

Since I started this blog almost 3 years ago, I’ve tried to distance myself from the label “conservative”, generally calling myself a right-leaning Federalist. Over the past couple years, I’m finding an even greater need to remove myself from the conservative fold. I have no desire to be perceived as one of those silly bastards.

So begins a series. I’m taking McCain’s lead in breaking the Reagan Rule (Thou shalt not speak ill of other Republicans) and intend to use this little forum as my platform to talk about how badly Republicans suck and the level of contempt I have for those who call themselves “conservative”. I’ve had it.

So begins “Heretical Conservatism”…

Back on the Psychiatrist's Couch...

Happy New Year!!!!

I figure that must be an appropriate statement as this is my first post to THIS blog since July of last year. Almost half of 2008 is gone.

The lengthy blog silence has been brought on by two significant changes in my life.

The most important, significant and WONDERFUL change manifested itself in the form of a beautiful little boy. My son came to join us in September and I’ve set up a little blog for him…something of an online baby book. His birth has added an all-new dynamic in our house (that of the multi-child household) and he’s kept his Mom, Dad and Sis on their toes.

From a personal standpoint, I couldn’t be happier. A beautiful wife who has born me two beautiful, wonderful kids, all of whom are very tolerable of me and haven't yet thrown me out of the house.

This is extremely fortunate as it’s been a very pleasant diversion from the other important and significant, yet HIGHLY DISAPPOINTING change I’ve experienced over the past year…

An identity crisis.

I continue to be the tolerable husband, loving father and under-appreciated corporate whiz kid…these fundamental elements of my life are unchanged. Regrettably, what I thought was another of the fundamental elements of my life (politics and the state of society in general) has taken such a beating over the past couple years and my opinions on these matters have become so caustic that I had to take a hiatus.

Actually, it wasn’t a hiatus. Hiatuses are planned. This was a withdrawal prompted by a complete lack of motivation. I threw my hands up in the air and gave up.

You see, less than eight VERY LONG years ago, the party who I felt best represented by beliefs took both houses of Congress and the White House. Silly me was under the impression that this would result in lower taxes, a common sense approach to spending (i.e., less of it) and smaller government...you know, things that Conservatives (and, by reference, Republicans) traditionally stood for.

Boy was I wrong about all of those but the first one.

Dubya spends money like a drunken sailor and has overseen the greatest expansion of Federal Government since the LAST Texan was in office. Apparently, he misplaced his veto pen as he didn’t manage to veto a single bill for the first 78 months that he was in office. His first veto was a fucking Stem Cell Research bill. Six and a half years without a single veto and he can only find it in his heart to veto a bill with which he has a moral dilemna.

Don’t get me wrong…I’m fine with him acting on principle. Hell, that’s part of the reason I voted for him. I’m more concerned over the fact that he has not been conflicted over spending money on shit he can’t afford.

I liken it to a conversation I could have with my wife:

“Honey, you are NOT spending ten dollars on that Bratz doll for the kid as it is a reflection of EVERYTHING that is wrong with kids today! ABSOLUTELY NOT!!! I'm against it and I'm taking a stand!

Oh, by the way, I picked up that SL65 AMG I’ve been wanting for a while. Yeah, I know that we don’t have $175,000 to spend on a two-seater,.but, hey, if we fall short, the kids have plenty of money in their savings accounts to cover our shortfall every month.”

For me to say, 7 years later, that Bush has been a miserable failure at everything he has done during his presidency would be dishonest. He has had a few successes. Some of them, such as the Alito thing, was a success in spite of his best efforts to screw it up. But, overall, I don’t think that history is going to be kind. I was a big fan of the guy for quite a while and if I find him indefensible he’s a pretty easy target for everyone else.

And despite Bush’s indefensibility, I can’t come up with a word strong enough to describe how deplorable the rest of the Republican party is to me.

Unfortunately, in 2008, all the Democrats have to do is take a play out of the Reagan handbook:

“Are you better off today than you were [8] years ago?”

If you asked me this question 2 years ago, it would have been a resounding “yes!” My salary had nearly doubled, my 401k had MORE than doubled, my wife and I purchased our own house and we actually had some disposable income after the bills were paid.

Today, however, my monthly gasoline bill has more than quadrupled ($.89 a gallon in 2000 vs. $3.71 this morning), my 401k has had minor losses over the past 2 quarters and, although my house has gained in value since I bought it, I can’t sell it right now because the housing market has gone to shit.

Are these things all Bush’s fault? Maybe a little but not really. It could be argued that the gas prices can be linked to him which, in turn, contributed to the sub-prime crisis, which led to stagnation, etc., but, more than anything, most of this just happened on his watch.

Problem is, we're going into an election year and we don't require voters to pass a basic knowledge assessment before they cast a ballot. For the most part, Joe and Jane America are idiots who will believe anything they’re told if the person telling them is attractive enough, famous enough or at least confident enough to tell a blatant lie without stuttering.

"Sean Penn says John McCain sucks and I REALLY liked him as Spicolli so he MUST know what he's talking about, right?"

Joe and Jane are being told that every struggle they’re facing today is the direct result of failed Republican policies. Arguments are being made that the only way they’re going to improve their station in life is to put a Democrat in the White House.

The problem is, it’s all bullshit. Well, mostly. If Joe and Jane are making less than $50 grand a year and have 4 kids, their station may well be improved.

For those of us in the middle class, though, any dream we have of improving OUR station will have to be put on hold. We’ll be too busy paying higher taxes on incomes that we lost when we got laid off because our companies couldn’t afford to pay higher taxes AND my salary…especially since the company’s stock price went into the toilet because the people with money decided that stuffing their cash in a mattress was a better investment strategy than investing on Wall Street.

It’s depressing just typing this. Pass the Prozac and the bottle of Bulliet.

Since I’m not really keen on anti-depressants and because my liver can only take so much bourbon, I’ve re-fired the blog as a form of therapy.

Lots to talk about. There’s an election to get ready for! Piss and vinegar to unload!! People to ridicule!!!

YEEARRRGH!