Why I Am a Conservative

Recent events have caused me to ponder on why I am a conservative. When I graduated college, I was fairly liberal. But, something caused me to change. I think I know what it was.

After graduating college, I lived with (and was mostly supported by) my parents. When my father died, I realized that I could not continue to live off of my mother. So, I moved out on my own. For the first time in my life, I found that I could not depend on anyone but myself. Due to bills that I had run up, I found myself without a car and living in a bad neighborhood. I was leaving my apartment at 5:30AM and not getting home till after 8PM due to the vagaries of public transportation. But, I learned a new freedom in self reliance. I eventually obtained a better job and improved my existence. Along the way, I met and married my wife. Without whom, I would probably be much worse off than I am today.

During this time, I learned that the government is not there to help you, people are. I learned to value the money I earned and to give (when I can) to those who need it. While living in areas that had people dependent on government assistance, I learned to loathe it. For way to many people, government assistance is a crutch and a trap. It is a crutch that enables those crippled by habits to maintain those bad habits. It is a trap that punishes those who attempt to better themselves and remove themselves from government assistance.

I also learned that increased taxes, no matter who is targeted by them, affect the working poor the most. They cause increased prices and decreased demand for the working poor’s labor. If a middle to upper-middle income individual or family finds themselves with less disposable income, they are likely to cut back on things like haircuts (getting a cheaper haircut), lawn care (doing it themselves), eating out, and entertainment. Since they people who typically provide these services are in the lower income brackets, they will be affected the most.

Michelle Obama said:

“Most Americans don’t want much. They don’t want the whole pie. There are some who do, but most Americans feel blessed just being able to thrive a little bit. But that is becoming even more out of reach. The truth is, in order to get things like universal health care and a revamped education system, then someone is going to have to give up a piece of their pie so that someone else can have more.”

I think she is wrong. Most Americans want to make the pie themselves and determine how much of the pie they have they will give to others. They do not want people parading around in $1000 suits determining how much of their pie they have to give. Dang it, I made that pie, let me determine who I want to give it to. Unfortunately, the leadership of the Democratic Party believes that they have the right to take pie from others using the threat of force and give some of it to those who voted to put them in power. The rest they will spend on themselves and/or destroy.

Recently, I made a decision. I will not vote for any politician who does not trust me to own a firearm. After all, to even purchase a firearm, I have to go through a background check to make sure I have not been convicted of any crimes that preclude ownership. To determine who trusts me, I look at the person’s record. Obama’s (and Biden’s) record clearly show that they do not trust the average citizen to own firearms. His statements to the contrary mean nothing without firm action on his part. Unfortunately, McCain is not much better. But, he is better. I truly wish that one day; one of the major political parties in the USA will nominate somebody who truly believes in individual freedom. Some may suggest that I vote for a third party candidate. Well, show me a third party candidate who has a grip on reality, believes in individual freedom and stands a chance of winning, and I will. I truly believe me that the Obama/Biden ticket, backed by a Democratic majority in congress, will seriously damage this country and our rights.