Over the years I think I have really confused a lot of people on what I believe and where I stand on many issues. I have gone from being a very conservative Christian to following the teachings of Judaism and I have hit many places in between. There was even a time where I totally dismissed G-D, as I had been taught about him, and started getting into some of the Pagan and Indian religions. To say that I have been around the block is an understatement.
On the political side there has been even a greater change in my my beliefs. Just as I was once very conservative in my religious views I was once very conservative in my political views . In fact I was a big fan of the various conservative talk shows and thought we were justified in our actions in Afghanistan and Iraq. I remember being on my way to Iraq, and all of us sitting around at night and talking about it, and while most of us didn't really see what kind of threat Iraq was to us, we had our orders and that was that. Amazing how time in a war can change your opinion on a great amount of things. That conservative view has changed dramatically for me over the last few years.
For some of you who have personally known me for many years, none of this will really surprise you,a few of you might even be thinking " well duh" but the truth of the matter is that I really can't subscribe to the conservative right point of view any more. I am not saying that I have become a far left Liberal either, but I have had to really come to terms with the fact that much of what I had once held to be true just isn't.
If I had to put a label on myself I would have to say that I am a cross between a Libertarian and what I fondly refer to as a "closet crunchy." My definition of a crunchy would have been a hippie when I was a whole lot younger and though I don't have the long hair (any hair on my head is an amazing sight) I have come to understand and appreciate the ideas of peace and social justice. You might find my belief in " social justice" to be a bit surprising because, as many of you know, I once believed that just about anything that started with the word "social" had to be communist in nature. I was told things to that nature in my conservative world and, as such, I took them to be true. I was wrong. How can it be " communist" to help your neighbor, or the elderly or poor? How can it be that when both Christianity and Judaism beliefs call for that very thing that in this quasi religious nation it can be considered to be a bad thing?
I am in effect a Crunchy Libertarian.
Here are some other things I believe and while I don't expect you to agree with everything, at least it might give you some pause for thought.
I believe in peace as I believe any sane person in this world would. I have no use for war or our continuous war efforts. I am for defending ourselves against anyone who attacks us, but none of the countries that we are currently at war with has attacked us.
I am for social justice. By social justice I mean the collective efforts of the people to take care of those that have needs and assistance for those who need a hand to get them selves back on their feet. Having said that I am not for the government playing a major role in that effort. To often where the government gets involved, there is no progress or real help for those in need and instead they tend to get stuck into the system and can't get out effectively. I grew up like that and wouldn't wish it on anyone.
I do not like the way our "two party" system works, or more correctly doesn't work. There are many reasons for this but the best being that there really isn't any real difference between the parties any more. There was a time that you could easily pick out a republican from a democrat simply based on what they stood for, but that's not true any more and with a two party system there is no real viable option for any real change to take place. Any one who is seen as a third party candidate is generally marginalized or ignored by the powers that be so we are left with a stalemate at best and no real changes . The only real difference between the parties now is simply how they spend your money and the inventive ways that they have found to blame it on the other party or some other entity.
I am for a small government and an ending to all our wars. We call ourselves a Judaic/ Christian society with a large population of Muslims and yet we are engaged in immoral and unnecessary wars. Where is the justification? Where is congressional approval? If OBL is dead why are we still there? Don't talk to me about the stability of the region, that region of the world has never been stable. We are interfering in places we have no business being nor are we wanted. Personally I think it all has to do with the oil and perhaps the heroin trade. If I am wrong , and it's for supposed humanitarian reasons, then why aren't we engaged all over Africa? Why aren't we involved anywhere that there is a need ? Then it would be consistent and might even be justified.
I believe that all the money that is being spent overseas, whether it be our wars or helping nations that hate us would be better spent here in our own country. How can it be that we spend billions of dollars on these wars and hateful nations when our own people sleep in cardboard boxes or live in the kind of squalor that you think only exists in third world countries? I have been to those "homes" I have seen how the people, American people, live. This is just plain wrong. Wouldn't the money be better spent helping our own people and then providing relief for those countries and people who truly need the help?
Our government has now fallen prey to not only those who would perpetuate war but also to those who would control the worlds food supply, big pharma, big everything. They have granted patents on modified food to big agri- companies such as Monsanto, while going after small family farms for having the nerve to sell raw milk to those who want it! They have regulated the food supply to the point that the average farmer is going broke and it won't be long before the only ones left is the big agri-farms. The quality of most of that modified food is so bad that we are not getting the right kind of nutrition for our bodies. If you think I'm wrong just ask yourself a question; Why do we need all the vitamin supplements if our food supply is doing as well as the government would have you believe? Why, if they are not in bed with the big agri-companies, do they go after small farms? The small farms ,especially the organic farms, have not been the ones that have been producing all the bad food, it has been the big agri- farms. What are they so afraid of ? If our food supply is so good why do we need so many drugs to cure us from things that were never heard of back when our grandparents had their own farms? As the saying goes;" follow the money honey" that will answer many of those questions.
Let us speak briefly about oil and alternates. I am all for finding other sources of energy, but until that time comes we need to get out heads out of our collective back sides and use the resources that we have available to us right here in our country. Instead of regulating them to death, let the companies do what they can to make us self sufficient and, at the same time, look for alternatives knowing that this is a limited supply at best. This is not difficult to do if you have people with the courage to do so. Also consider that our dependence on foreign oil has made a bunch of thugs vastly rich while they keep their own people in poverty.
Our personal freedoms have been under serious attack for the last 50 years and with the renewal of the Patriot act ,with the help of both parties, we can rest assured that more and more freedoms will be wiped away. Ask your self this, if we really have the freedoms that our forefathers had, then why are there so many regulations and taxes concerning everything? Try going hunting and fishing with out a license and see what happens. Try building on you own property without the proper permits and see how fast you get stopped. Why should Gay, or straight couples for that matter, have to involve the government at all just to get married, what gives the government the right to decide such a thing? Don't want the police in your home in violation of the 4th amendment? Tough. The supreme court has said that they can enter your home under nothing more then suspicion and your not allowed to resist. These are but a few examples. To write about the violations of many other rights as described in the bill of rights and the amendments would take way too long. The point is that we have nothing left but the illusion of freedom unless we are willing to go back to the constitution, and our G-D given rights.
Some of you may be thinking well these are dangerous times, I agree that they are, but what is the real danger? A questionable threat from a vague foreign opponent who may or may not have attacked us and who have been decimated by all accounts, or the one who puts fear into you and then slowly takes your liberties away all the while telling you it's for your safety?This is the real threat to our freedoms. If we allow our liberties to be removed then we simply don't deserve them.
It simply boils down to this; we have all been lied to and manipulated for the last decade or two. We are nothing to them because we have given them the power rather then the power staying with the people as it's supposed to be. It doesn't matter one bit what the party is any more they have all lost the high ground and they will be the death of this nation unless things change.
Some things I need to add to this, in the last few days as I have been writing this and re writing it,a couple of things happened that again show just how far down hill we have come, you'll need to either Google these or check alternate news sources, but one is a group of people being arrested at the Jefferson memorial for dancing led By a man by the Name of Adam Kodesh and then one,which I have posted from "seeds of truth" is a group in Orlando Florida being arrested for feeding the homeless in a public park.
This is the partial views of this Libertarian Crunchy.
Ignacio
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