I was a Republican once. I'm sure you've seen those memes showing what Republicans stood for back in the days of President Eisenhower; Unions, equal rights, women's equality, better wages and less wars. That was essentially my family; Working class union members who just wanted to live and let live.
But that all changed in the '60s. Southern Democrats, stung by President Kennedy's push for equality and segregation fled the Democratic party in droves finally finding a home in the GOP. After not very long the parties had traded places. Democrats became more Liberal and Republicans more Conservative. The Republican party after Nixon became the party of religion, racism and intolerance. It became enamored with war and big money while Democrats championed, more and more, the poor and middle income classes.
I hung with the GOP hoping to make a difference in the primaries, but it never happened. Finally in 1999 i'd had enough crazy and re-registered as an Independent. I wasn't sure i wanted to be a Democrat. I was not a fan of Bill Clinton. He didn't seem to have a handle on how to run a government and i cringed as he made one stupid blunder after another. I was actually encouraged when Al Gore ran for President. Finally it seemed we'd have a brain in the White House!
...but no.
When Bush (Dubya) took office i feared for the worst....and he never let me down. He literally gave away the budget surplus of the '90s and gave tax breaks to the wealthy and big corporations while managing to spend more than ever. Using the nationalism that arose after 9/11, he started 2 wars. One, justifiably, to take out al Qaeda who had attacked us....and one in Iraq based upon lies and bullshit. Unfortunately many Democrats were caught up in the patriotic mood of the day...Many Americans were calling for a "war on terror" and Democrats were hard pressed not to oblige them given the horrors of 9/11. But anyone who was paying even the slightest attention could see that "Operation Iraqi Freedom" was a sham. It was literally a war for oil. After we were committed, Dubya as much as said so.
As we all now know, the Bush years left us with two military occupations and an impending depression. When Barack Obama got elected, i was encouraged once again. Here was a man who seemed to have it all under control. The Depression was reduced to a recession (still bad, but somewhat less than a disaster) and he scaled down our useless involvement in Iraq. He even managed to actually get the person responsible for 9/11 without starting a new war. Things appeared to be looking up!
...but no.
Republicans in Congress, bent on making Obama a "one term president", scuttled any and all legislation that would have improved the lot of poor and middle income class Americans. They wanted an end to the ACA (Obamacare), more tax breaks for the rich and less regulations for the companies that pollute our water and air. Blue Dog Democrats soon turned on the President and Far Left Progressives scolded him on everything from not closing Guantanamo to not including the Public Option in the ACA....none of which he had any control over. I've never seen a president get so badly hammered from both sides, right and left, and still manage to keep his composure and get things done. It was the most amazing display of calm and competence i have ever witnessed in government.
By the end of the Obama administration it seemed that the logical choice for America was going to be to carry on with his policies and try to reform Congress.
....but no.
At the beginning of the 2016 presidential campaign i was a Bernie Sanders supporter. I liked Bernie as a person. I was proud of his history as a champion of equal rights and middle class opportunities. There were a few places where i thought he went somewhat over the top...but i was sure that, should he win, he'd adjust to that. As an Independent in NY State i couldn't vote in the Democratic primaries. I could only watch and hope. When Bernie lost the primary i was disappointed, but not crushed. Bernie would still be in Congress...he'd gotten Hillary Clinton to agree to most of his agenda and, at worst, we'd have another Clinton in the White House who would be a tolerable, if not great, president.
....er...but, no.
No sooner were the primaries over than the Hillary Swooners and Bernie Bros went at each other, dividing the Democratic party into two constantly warring factions. Watching this from social media, i warned both sides that the inevitable outcome of this inability to come together on Nov 8th would be President Trump. Well they didn't...and now we are ruled by an imbecile and a Congress devoted to marginalizing everyone except the wealthy. Good Job!
So this brings me to why i'm no longer an Independent.
Well...being a Republican is still out of the question. There is simply too much crazy there to even consider it....i mean.....Donald Trump? Staying Independent would mean i'd get to watch helplessly again as the Democratic Party (which still actually maintains some semblance of sanity) implodes. At least next time i'll get a shot at the primaries.
Now, what makes me a Centrist (apparently) is that i don't hate and vilify all corporations and Wall Street. I don't believe all white people are born racists by default or that all men are inherently misogynists. I don't think all the cops are killers. I don't believe GMOs were invented to poison us for profit. I don't agree that vaccinations were invented by "big pharma" just to make money......
.....and for crisakes there are no fu**in' "chemtrails"!
So that puts me somewhat at odds with the uber-left. I would say i'm an Obama Democrat. If that damns me then so be it.....
I couldn't hope to be in better company.
