Where do I stand?

Being an independent means defying the idea of party lines. Some still wonder where I stand: well here are a few pointers

I Stand for Freedom of Religion: I have heard preachers rant that Freedom _of_ religion is not the same as Freedom _from_ religion. I say BS. If you chose to be atheist I will support you even as I kneel to pray. No religious court should think to hold sway over the civil Judicial system, not Sharia, Not Rabbinical (I may have spelled that wrong), not Papal. Churches should not be forced by law to act in ways they deem heretical or anathema. If a church doctrine forbids gay marriage then that church should not be forced to preform it or accommodate it (such as using their land or sanctuary). Churches that forbid Contraception should not be forced to pay for it.

That being said I am not so sure that Churches should be exempt from taxes. If they want the protection of the state then they should be supporting that state through their contributions just as the rest of us do. If they do enough philanthropic work to receive an abatement I am sure they can document and submit it to the IRS just like I have to.

Additionally I think if your primary argument against something is "God forbids it" you should rethink whether you are having a Political or Theological debate.

I have no issue with contraception, or voluntary sterilization ( I had a vasectomy years ago), I have mixed feelings about abortion. Mainly I see no protection of a _Fathers Rights_, clearly a woman's reproductive rights must be protected but it does take two to tango.

For those who claim a religious slant that abortion is a egregious sin, I pose this question, ' If God gave us free will to chose righteousness or sin, then is it a greater sin to chose termination of a pregnancy or to deny Gods gift of choice to those who must make the decision?'

Freedom of the press is much abused these days but it should yet be protected. Although I think at some point the abuse becomes  a manipulation and control of the media itself. My opinion of both sides of our current media.. William Randolph Hurst would be swelling with Pride.

Freedom of Assembly... I am in full support of this however those assembling should expect no entitlement of support from the state in their cause nor should they expect to be able to claim occupancy of public lands in violation of statute and civil law. Just ask the Native Americans who tried to claim Alcatraz island.

Second Amendment Rights... I don' think there is much question where I stand on this one. I am weary of hearing people ask why I need an AK for hunting. The 2nd amendment is not about hunting or sports. it is about the right to defend ourselves and our rights. (for those who must know we have 2 9mm's in the house, and I plan to get a shot gun some time in the near future, I have owned and fired a wide variety of fire arms in my lifetime)

States Rights and Individual entitlements are usually on my hot topic list. The Declaration of Independence Claimed a right to "Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness" Not the right to happiness, not the entitlement .. the pursuit.. as in trying to reach of your own accord.

States Rights are much abused and coerced by the federal Government through ultimatums. (ie if your drinking age is less than 21 no federal high way money)

Unemployment, Welfare, and Food stamps I believe were meant as 'stop gap' measures meant to help people who have fallen in their pursuit of happiness to pick them selves up dust off and try again. I think this is a good thing. I think these programs should be at the top of the "do  not remove" list, however, I do not believe these were meant to be a way of life. I believe if it is legal that my employer requires me to submit to random drug testing then it is legal to require those  in these programs to submit to these test.

Immigration.. This will piss some people off but so be it.. once you attain citizenship in the USA you are no longer an "immigrant" you are a _citizen_ . We are _not_ a nation of immigrants. We need Immigration reform, in regards to migrant workers who are often abused and even tortured because they have no legal status. We need reform, In regards to protecting American Industry and jobs. We need Reform, not amnesty. those who have come here illegally are called Illegal because they have broken a law. There should be no reward for lawlessness.

Also I would really like some one to give me a good reason why Posse Comitatus is violated by militarizing the border (remember the federal govt is responsible to prevent foreign invasion or incursion which is a matter of federal not civil law) ) 

Race (yeah I'll piss off every one who wants it) We are a nation that was built on taking chances and sometimes getting burned. Our nation was founded by social and religious out cast. They in turn reviled and cast down others. The American Indian, the bondsmen, the slaves of every color. Our nation has made mistakes we have persecuted our own. We have persecuted numerous waves of legal and illegals from the Famine Irish to the Italian W.O.P.S (that stands for "with out papers" ) to the black slaves of the south to the Chinese Gandy Dancers on the rail road. We can keep going with the American Indians on each and every res  the Trail of Tears the Japanese American Interment camps of WWII. Yes our Nation has made Mistakes and those who forget history are destined to repeat it. I am good with that. but don't ask me to apologize for things _I_ did not do. Instead lets take a look at school administrations that choose to edit our mistakes from the history curriculum, the same ones that write 3 chapters on JFK's assassination and a sentence or two about the Cuban Missile crisis.

Education: We have no _political_ responsibility  to provide Public Schools... but we damned well had better do it! It is the moral or ethical choice, we must teach our children. Standardized testing is killing our schools. funds are being pulled whole sale from humanities arts and liberal sciences in favor of a given number on a fill in the bubble exam.  education has taught us that we all learn in different ways, apparently our state legislatures were sick that day of class. Let our teachers teach and pay them to do it. and while we are at it lets bring back vocational and skilled trade programs _before_ we can't because no one knows how it works.


I would like to see Electoral reform requiring a split of electoral votes for President, by the percentage of the vote (no a _federal_ election is not a _states_ rights issue) as it stands a third party or independent can not show the progress of their platform only that they lost. This is, I believe,  counter to political growth in a nation.

Senators: I am not sure the 17th amendment which allows for election of senators rather than appointment of Senators by State Legislatures is good.  Willing to listen to arguments on this one.

Term Limits: I believe all elected offices of State or higher level should conform to 2.5 terms in office, the .5 allowing for a governor taking office mid term just as the presidents term limit is.

I think I have hit my hot topics for now but if you want my opinion on any thing else just ask! (and remember you asked)