"Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." Paul to the persecuted at Philippi (2:5-11)

10 November 2008

An Open Letter to the Republican Party (moved)

As a small child, during the Reagan years, I recall writing a letter to then Vice President George H.W. Bush. I told him that I thought he was a good person and a good vice president and that when I was old enough, I would vote for him to be President of the United States. In 1992, at the age of eighteen, I kept that promise. I proudly voted for Mr. Bush, though none of my friends on my liberal undergraduate college campus would have had anything to do with him. I do not, for a minute, regret that choice, though President Bush was not able to win re-election. Eight years later, I voted, less proudly but still without major reservations, for President Bush’s son.
I have been a registered Republican since I became eligible to vote. I have voted faithfully in every major election and most primaries. I have studied the candidates, kept up with the news, and made my voice heard. Furthermore, I’ve kept my eyes open. I’ve watched as the Republican Party has slid more and more into the nanny state policies of the Democrats and walked further and further from its socially conservative roots. I have grown more and more disappointed with my party as the years have ticked by. In 2004, I voted for Michael Peroutka, the Constitution Party candidate for President. I was aware that it was a hopeless cause, but I could no longer support the Republican platform in good conscience.

I was encouraged this year by Ron Paul, and voted eagerly in my primary election, even though by the time the primary was held, John McCain had already clinched the nomination. I had hoped that the groundswell of support for Dr. Paul would encourage the Republican Party to return to its roots. Alas, no such message has been received. Throughout the remainder of the election I repeatedly asked myself, ‘can’t we do better than these?’

The Republican Party has shown itself to be impotent. Even with Republicans in office, I find that every year my civil liberties are eroded a little further, my tax dollars spent more foolishly (most recently on a bank takeover, dubbed a bail-out, which further increases our national debt while reducing our private enterprise) and even immorally (in the subsidizing of abortion of innocent children whose only fault is to be inconvenient or somehow imperfect). I have watched the Republican party stand helplessly by as the schools are further degraded, children taught all about sex at an early age but nothing about thinking for themselves. I have heard not a peep from the Republican Party as parental rights have diminished, the courts have made themselves legislators, and the United Nations taken a stronger voice in the formation of our legislation than the American people. I have stood helpless while my family’s hard earned money is plundered for corrupt and worthless legislation.

I have no power to change your policies. I have only one small vote among millions. I cannot change the world. Nonetheless, I can change my behavior. I shall no longer consider myself a Republican. Unless the Republican Party changes drastically, unless Republican leaders can do more than shake a finger at the evil of abortion and look the other way as our foundational liberties are eroded, I am compelled to move on. I acknowledge that it is time for a new political party in America, some old-fashioned American competition in the political industry. History has shown us that parties rise and fall, and it has been all too long since such a rise and fall has taken place. If the Republican Party has chosen a path of impotency and oblivion, then it is time that we ordinary members of that republic put forth the effort to form a new party.

Personally, my hope lies in the Constitution Party. The idea of a republic which is faithful to its founding documents, legislated by legislators and not judges, governed by a small government and small taxes, and where citizens are expected and given the freedom to take care of themselves, these thoughts encourage me.

So close following this recent election, I am sure no one wants to think of politics at this point, but now is the time. This cannot be left until the next election "season." Preparation and grass roots mobilization is essential. So I am casting my lot with a third party. I shall no longer be a Republican; there seems to be no real difference between the Republicans and Democrats anymore, anyway. In order for Americans to have actual choices, we need a third party. Borrowing the words of that first Republican president, Abraham Lincoln, we need this upheaval to ensure "that a government of the people, by the people, and for the people shall not perish from the earth."

No comments:

Post a Comment