My guess is that a lot of us on this blog slant somewhat to the right when it comes to politics. I know that I do--not enough for my highly-
conservative friends, but too much for my far more liberal family.
Because my publisher would prefer for me to keep my politics out of my writing, I am going to limit my participation in this discussion; but I do want to explain myself. After all, Hunter started this discussion when he brought up Sotomayor.
Let me start by saying a little something about cars.
When I was a kid, I thought the coolest cars on the road were the muscle cars. I really liked the Chevrolet Camero. For me, nothing topped the look of a hot Camero driving down the street. The 1968 Camero looked like the picture to the top right.
The enemy of all things Camero was the Firebird, which was a Pontiac. The 1968 Pontiac Firebird looked like the car in the top left hand picture.
Notice any similarities? Except for a few cosmetic changes and slightly different engines, these were the exact same car; but if you went to a Chevy dealer, he could speak for hours about the Camero's superiority over the Firebird and if you went to a Pontiac dealer, he could tell you exactly why Firebird was so much better than Camero.
For you Mustang fans, have a close look at the Mustangs and Cougars of the late 1960s.
Even when GM went to the "Corporate Motor" which put the exact same engines under Chevy and Pontiac hoods, the dealers still had persuasive-sounding reasons why their car was better. Finally, of course, Burt Reynolds settled the argument by starring in the Smokey and the Bandit movies and making Firebird the coolest car in America.
My point?
It didn't matter to GM whether you bought a Camero or a Firebird. As long as you bought one or the other, they took the money to the bank.
I see Republicans and Democrats as being in the same position. Yes, there are differences between Republican beliefs and Democrat beliefs. Some are as fundamental as the differences between the old Chevy and Pontiac engines, some are as cosmetic as the different bumpers.
But it doesn't matter. So long as you vote Republican or Democrat, they keep their monopoly on power.
I believe America needs a third party. During the last election, I voted for Bob Barr, whom I considered a decent candidate. I did not vote for him because I loved his views, though they weren't bad. I voted for him because I could not vote for Obama or McCain in good conscience, and I think both parties will continue playing the same dirty ball game until they are forced to play a cleaner game by losing votes.
Right now America is on a teeter totter. During the Clinton years, Americans lost confidence in the White House and voted Republicans into the House and Senate. During the Bush years, Americans were disappointed by Republicans, so now we have an all-Democrat nightmare.
We're going to keep running back and forth on this teeter-totter until we bring in a credible third option. And why should the existing parties want to change? Why should the Democrats or Republicans clean up their act when we're just running back and forth along the exact same track? Today the Republicans are fighting for their lives. Ten years ago, they said the same thing about the Democrats.
One more belief--Burt Reynolds gave Pontiac a decisive but temporary victory in the late 1970s by driving a Firebird in the Smokey and the Bandit movies. I don't mind Hollywood throwing its weight around in the car market, but I am sick of Hollywood and the news media trying to influence today's politics in the same manner.
