Recent events have called into question yet again whether I am left or right in the tired old paradigm of the political spectrum. It doesn't really matter what the debate is on any given day, but as a basic example years ago when I criticized the GW Bush admin for False Wars I'm sure that everyone assumed I was a Democrat. Then when I criticized the Obama admin for False Wars yet again (as I still do), some people who knew nothing about me assumed I was a Republican.

 

I personally don't give much of a shit which side of the aisle anyone leans. I was a registered Democrat for a long time. I eventually (years ago) decided I didn't want to belong to either of the two monopoly parties because they both support war profiteers and constituents on both sides are easily manipulated. In fact I decided I didn't want to belong to any party at all. I want the entire U.S. to break apart just like the Soviet Union. It has been an Empire for far too long. I support all efforts towards the formation of a Cascadian nation. And fuck it, let Texas be it's own country, too, just as it's wanted for a very long time. Let's break it all up into 6 to 8 equal regional nations with no single one having too much military power, and convert the Pentagon into a massive public library or something.

 

I personally believe the average Progressive -- a label which I suppose applies to me more accurately than most political terms -- aligns more with some Libertarians than some Democrats. But I'm afraid of belonging to any group. I don't trust the herd mentality, nor their tendency to be easily manipulated by fear and/or hope, and they are especially dangerous if they can be convinced to hate on a scapegoat or to believe that someone is their enemy without even having a chance to talk it over and reach common ground.

 

I don't care about left or right. I care about ISSUES.

 

I support free speech.

 

I support civil rights.

 

I support marriage equality.

 

I choose science over religion (e.g. stem-cell research).

 

I support a woman's right to choose an abortion. (I've paid for one myself ... not that I'm proud of it but the proof is in the pudding.)

 

I support the environment in many ways. I keep myself educated as much as possible. I minimize plastic in all my purchases. I recycle. I pay extra to my utility company for salmon habitat. I pay extra for the salmon plates on my car which goes to funding for various salmon-related aid. Uh oh, do I lose points for owning a car? Do I win points back for not commuting because I have a home office? Do I score triple points for having not reproduced and recognizing that global human overpopulation is the #1 cause of pretty much every problem on this entire planet?

 

Okay so I'm looking a lot like a registered card-carrying Democrat huh?

 

But hey guess what ... I also support the 2nd Amendment. I believe a well-regulated militia -- as opposed to a standing army -- is one of our best defenses against potential tyranny ... including our own government! History (e.g. fascist martial law resisted by armed citizens) has proven that many times over.

 

My mother was born in meat-heavy Germany and I was born in the meat-heavy South. In my life I have slowly evolved from meat-centric to vegetarian, yet at the same time I understand the value of knowing how to survive in the woods in cases of disaster. I would eat a mammal IF my life depended on it. And let's not forget ... humans are mammals, too. Cue ominous Walking Dead music. Haha.

 

But seriously, it's important to recognize that humans are part of the environment. It's ironic when human beings are left out of the equation and seemingly considered less important than the spotted owl or whatever. The greatest irony of holier-than-thou city-dwelling environmentalists? Well the answer is one word hidden in plain sight right there in that sentence. They. Live. In. The. Fucking. CITY! Yes, they have chosen to live in a place that's covered in concrete, disconnected from the Earth instead of out in the woods with dirt and flowers and trees. How funny is that? I'm generalizing now but you see my point, right? For some it's quite an epiphany. Where do the vast majority of farmers live? Ignore them at your own peril. Truck drivers in general align mostly to the right, I suppose, but 3 days without them with no groceries on the shelves and we're all screwed.

 

What I'm trying to say is that I understand both points of view. I was born and raised in Tennessee and for six months I even lived in a trailer park, but I also lived for a year in Berlin when I was five and as an adult for two years I lived in New York City and worked 4 blocks from the World Trade Center. I empathize with both the "fancy" city people and the "simple" country folk. And we ALL need to get along to keep this human experiment from self-destructing.

 

So, for many years I have eschewed myself from aligning neither right, nor left, nor even center! You may ask ... how is that possible? Well, all you have to do is think outside that oh-so-restrictive box. I've seen the x/y alignments, too, where they separate social vs economic liberalism vs conservatism. That's an evolution in ways of thinking, but still too restrictive. If I must choose one particular direction, I'll take the undefined z-axis and go ... UP!