Labels

"I'd rather be this moving metamorphosis than to have that good old opinion about everything," said the singer.
This is the year I register to vote. And I will register as an independent.
Why? Because I don't want to be labeled. I don't believe in labels.
Do I identify more with the conservative side? Yes, in some points. But do I really want the label Republican attached to people's idea of who I am? No!
I am not a Republican. I am not a Democrat. I will never be either.

I question everything people seem to already know as right or wrong. "Question everything" is one of the mottoes posted on my classroom walls. That's because this is one thing I hope my students learn from me.
I believe it is healthy, so I try to question everything. If you don't see me questioning something right now it is either because I have already done it and arrived at a conclusion, or because I haven't thought of it yet. And I don't want people judging me on matters I have no idea what my say is yet. Don't tell me how I should think - let me get there on my own. Don't fight me - question me.

Another reason why I will register as an independent is because I feel that if I registered with one party or another I'd be sending the message that I believe that one side or another has it all figured out. I am not naive enough to believe that the Rs have the answer for the problems of this country, even though I identify with many of their views. You're kidding yourself if you think that any side has the answers. You're being extremely full of yourself to accuse the other side of hating the country and trying to destroy it. Maybe this is true of some people. Some people have made it clear that they do believe that. But it is not safe to assume that is what everyone who is not on your side wants. No one has the absolute answer, so accusing each other will only dig us deep into a hole. And no one man or party can save this country. Reasoning together and in honesty, without labeling, might get us up and running again.

When I vote, I will vote according to what I feel it is the less of two evils for that moment in time.

For instance, right now, I know I don't like Obama's economy policies. Obama's ego suffers from something called elephantiasis. He is extremely full of himself. But he is either an ignorant or an evil bad liar. He is a mess and he is turning the country into a bigger mess than his successor did. I will give an example. High gas prices. Obama has said himself he wants energy costs to skyrocket. He has said that because he wants to force America into an age of green fuels that we are not ready for and that is not cost effective yet. No, I don't want this in my future. I would love if green fuels were to be in humanity's future, but not at the wrong  moment. At a moment when it will cost me my ability to save for retirement or to go on vacation (something I work hard all year for), because every penny I make will go to pay for fuel. So I will definitely vote republican, because it's the option against Obama. I don't believe the republican guy will save the country, but if he does less damage to the economy than the current guy has done so far, that's good enough for me.

I fight my battles one at a time, on a case by case basis. So please don't judge me and don't assume I am on your side. I am on my conscience's side. Wouldn't it be nice if more people did that? It's not too late. Throw away the labels, question everything! Reason it out and make sense of it. Don't be satisfied with secondary accounts of history or news, go to the sources, use your brain. If you were lucky you had a teacher that taught you how to use it. Ask questions and keep your mind open to change, if reason leads to change.