Everyone should move to their own beat

By now, most people have been asked the question, “Are you registered to vote?” With a major election coming up, pressure to register is intensifying.

So what does one do if not drawn to Republican or Democrat?

After listening to the same regurgitated crap spewing from the mouths of presidential candidates year after year, I decided it was time to look at the other options. I had been without a political party most of my voting years, but I was starting to feel like I needed to participate more in the system that has control of my country. I was feeling disconnected from those who said they were looking out for “our” best interests —and the only way I can change that is with my vote.

From my searching, I found the Libertarian Party, ‘The party of principle’, the third largest political group in the United States. There are other political parties out there as well. The Green Parties of North America is concerned for the eco-system and world peace, while the Communist Party USA is about putting humans and nature before profits. There are others. The Libertarian Party happened to align with my beliefs better than the others.

This comes from the Libertarian Party preamble: “As Libertarians, we seek a world of liberty; a world in which all individuals are sovereign over their own lives and no one is forced to sacrifice his or her values for the benefit of others.”
I have known a lot of great people in my life. Some of them are gay. I can see absolutely no reason why gays should not be able to marry and have the same benefits of heterosexuals. It is a waste of my tax money for this issue to even be coming up in the courts, especially as often as it has. The Libertarian view is that it is the individual’s choice, not society’s. Check.

I believe the people should be in control of their government, not the other way around. The Libertarian view is that there should be minimum government and maximum freedom. Check.

I believe that a strong country should help out a country in need when that country asks for the help. They hold to the idea of a foreign policy of non-intervention. Again, a check.

“We hold that all individuals have the right to exercise sole dominion over their own lives, and have the right to live in whatever manner they choose, so long as they do not forcibly interfere with the equal right of others to live in whatever manner they choose,” from the Libertarian statement of principles.
The thing that has held me to the Libertarian party so strongly is the above statement. I do not feel anyone else has any right to tell another how to live their life, if that person is not affecting other’s lives due to their actions. Once we are “grown up,” do we really need someone else dictating our lives? I can’t answer for everyone, but I must say that no, I do not need anyone telling me how to live my life.

So this year, when I go to vote, I will be voting for the Libertarian nominees, Gov. Gary Johnson for president and Judge Jim Gray for vice president.

I would encourage anyone who feels unattached and unrepresented by the two major political parties to look at the other political parties out there.

A good place to start is www.greyhawkes.com/ps/parties.html, which has a list of political parties and organizations. To learn more about the Libertarian party, go to www.lp.org.

May the vote be within you.