I’m one Republican who is tired of being demonized because of my party affiliation. A recent poll showed that only 21 percent of Americans identify themselves as Republicans, but just because there are apparently fewer of us doesn’t mean we have to stay on the ropes. I’ve had it with taking it on the chin because I refuse to participate in the national orgasm over Barack Obama.
I’m tired of people like actress Janeane Garafalo and others of her mindset accusing Republicans who oppose intrusive government of being racist. My opposition to higher taxes and massive spending has nothing whatsoever to do with the color of President Barack Obama’s skin. Calling people like me racists because of a disagreement over fiscal policy is unfair and wrong. And while we’re on the subject, I’m also tired of being considered a racist because I’m opposed to illegal immigration, with the operative word being “illegal.”
I’m tired of being called a hater because I believe that marriage should be maintained as between a man and a woman. I don’t hate anyone. I’m for equal rights for all, but when marriage has been defined in one way for some 5,000 years, I don’t believe it’s unreasonable for same-sex unions, while enjoying full rights, to be named something other than “marriage.” To say so is just an opinion, not “hate speech.”
I’m tired of being accused of “wanting America to fail” because I disagree with President Obama’s grip on the private sector. I just don’t think it’s a good thing for any American president, Democrat or Republican, to control the U.S. auto industry, the banking industry, a big chunk of the insurance industry and, next, the health care industry. If it turns out that government does a better job of generating profits and creating jobs, I’ll admit I was wrong. But as for now I believe that is still best accomplished by the private sector, a belief that does not translate into “wanting America to fail.”
I’m tired of being accused of being an obstructionist because I disagree with the president’s so-called stimulus spending and bailouts. And by the way, I was just as opposed to President George W. Bush’s bailout spending. I don’t think a dime of taxpayer money should be spent on bailouts and that the normal business cycle should have been allowed to work as it always has. If I were a Republican in Congress I would have voted against Obama’s stimulus package, not because I want to obstruct but because I believe that trillions of dollars in inprecedented deficit spending will prove to be harmful to America
I’m tired of being thought of as a “religious extremist” because I believe in God.
I’m tired of hearing I’m “destroying the planet” because I’m skeptical that global warming can be reversed by human endeavor. Energy conservation is a good thing for its own sake and I’m all for it, global warming or not. But I doubt the inhabitants of this planet can now do much to alter cycles of warming and cooling that have existed for millions of years. That belief does not make me an anti-environmentalist.
In short, I’m tired of being thought of as evil, hateful and harmful just because I have an “R” after my name in party registration. That does not disqualify me from participation in this democracy, at least not yet. Perhaps I’m wrong in everything I’ve said, but if so that just makes me wrong, not a threat to my country.
If there are some who essentially believe as I do but are afraid to identify themselves as Republicans because they don’t want to take flack in Obama’s America, shame on them. We’re not going to achieve a comeback by hiding, but by staying true to our principles.
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