Dude, Where's My Politics?

I have been a political junkie since I was seven years old. It was 1968 and the Presidential candidate for the Democratic Party was none other than Hubert Humphrey. I was a huge Humphrey guy right from the start. You see Humphrey was from my home state - and that was good enough for me.

I followed the election closer than a seven year old should and was quite devastated when he lost to Richard Nixon. We hated Nixon. Humphrey, Humphrey he's our man, Nixon belongs in the garbage can. Yeah, that was the mantra back then and as it turns out we were right. Just think how different history would be if Humphrey had won.

For one thing there would have been no McGovern and the Democratic party might not be the socialist organization it has come to be today. Humphrey was the happy warrior, he was for social justice, real social justice not "just" socialism. He was an ardent anti-communist and a pro-growth capitalist. He was what the Democratic party used to be before LBJ and George McGovern destroyed it.

Sure I continued to follow Democrats and root for them over the pro business Republicans because Democrats were for the "little guy" and Republicans were for big business. At least this is what I heard constantly from both my union democrat parents.

By the time I could vote I was already beginning to sour on the Democrats (and I couldn't vote Republican, that would've been a sin). I voted for Anderson in 1980. I know, I know I was 18 - what the heck did I know.

In 1984 I could not vote against Reagan - after all the country had already made the turn and everything was looking up after the mess Carter had left. But my conversion was not completed yet. I did not like George Bush 41 for whatever reason and this Bill Clinton guy was new kind of Democrat, not like the fools that had taken over the party. Or so I thought.

Well 92 was the last time I ever voted for a tax raising Democrat at the national level (including my Senators).

In the early 90's I was starting to earn decent money and was raising a family. The first thing that Clinton did was raise my taxes. My quarterly bonus at work was a cool $1000 and I would net $750 or so. I had come to rely on that money and worked hard to make my bonus every quarter. Well after Clinton's tax hike my net was $530. My $1000 was cut in half because Clinton taxed bonuses differently than wages. What a slap in the face!

I am not an anarchist, I do believe in paying taxes. But, my friends, no one can justify confiscating nearly 50% of my money. Particularly when we all know the government is wasteful and inefficient from the get go. When all is boiled down taxes is the issue I vote on primarily.

I continued to love politics and the political season, even in the off years, it was my favorite time of year. George W. Bush was a no brainer ( no pun intended) for me. He said he would (and he DID) lower my taxes. But little did I know that was the beginning of the end.

The 2000 election was so bitter, but I thought it was merely a speed bump, an anomaly, and things would return to the normal rancorous, good-natured mud slinging. But 2002 and then 2004 were so nasty that I really thought it could get no worse. But 2006 was so bad and the nasty piling on of G.W. Bush was unrelentingly awful - if even a tenth of the things they said about him were true then Hitler and Stalin would have to move over from their lowly places in hell to make room for Bush. But Bush is and was a good man, a terrible politician, and and awful communicator but he is not the devil.

Come "You Decide 2008" and I hate politics. I hate it. The media is so partisan and complicit with ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN, NYT, WaPo, MSNBC and, well etc, etc for the Democrats and Fox News and the editorial page of the Wall Street Journal for the Rebublicans. No one even tells half truths anymore.

I refuse to watch it on the TV anymore. Obama and Biden are so flipping smug they make me want to puke and McCain and Palin sound like imbeciles half the time. They try to keep up with the Democrats when the deck is tilted so far to the left the cash contributions are falling off the table.

Honestly, Republicans are just not inspiring at all. They had the better part of a decade to earn the respect of the electorate and they blew it by selling out to special interests and feathering their own nests. Instead of standing up to the socialists they buckled at every opportunity (including and especially John McCain).

Come tomorrow I'll get up and go to polling place with all the enthusiasm I would muster for getting a planter's wart removed. I am so sad.

All I can say is - dude, where's my politics?



CW