Political Beliefs

     I'm actually not really one to talk about my beliefs in politics, mostly because I have so few. But what with turning 18 in a mere 13 days, I thought I should probably look seriously at what I believe politically. If for no other reason, I need to know what to sign up as when I register to vote. Well, here's what I think. From what I know of the democratic party, they are left wingish, and are generally for equality and basically mild communism. The right wing, Republicans on the other hand appears to believe in making money and being wealthy, and not caring to do anything about social inequality, because that's just how it is. I know these are extremes and I don't even know how accurate they are, but in any case I know where I stand. When I register to vote, I'm registering as an independent. I don't care for either of the two philosophies in all cases, and really I don't want to be tied down. I change my mind frequently, and I just don't like the thought of being in a situation where I'm expected to follow one belief system all the time. It's the same for me with religion. I just want to believe whatever I want, whenever I want. I don't need to feel as though I belong to a group and I don't need to feel as though I'm subject to that group's ideology. It just isn't for me. Maybe I'll change my mind on that eventually, but I really doubt it. Absolutes are just chains to me.

The Commander in Chief

     I can not wait until we get a female president. I think a strong and confident woman would do a lot for this country. Not only would she be a model for other women, but she would show the world that women can do the job. This may sound odd coming from a male, but I'm really excited by the prospect. I watch a tv show called "Commander in Chief" about a female president. If we had a president like that character is, it'd be so awesome. I just think a lot of sexism would go down, and a rise in female power would result. I'm not sexist. I don't think men do a better job at running things than women. I think it's high time our country gets past this prejudice, and let a woman run things. A stereotype of men is that they are strong and powerful, but a stereotype of women is that they are weak and submissive. Clearly this isn't true of many women, we need to show that. I'd just really like to see what happens. Assuming she believed in things I believe in, I would so vote for her. Political equality should mean political equality. It would also show other countries that we can still be just as powerful with a woman as the head of our country.

The Constitution

     The constitution is actually quite an efficient document. From what I know of it, it's served our country very well. Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately, there are grey areas. I'm not sure if this is good or bad honestly. On the one hand it seems good that there is flexibility for changing times, which ensures that we aren't lost in time. Our country founders were pretty smart, but they couldn't plan for everything. They had no idea we'd have cars or airplanes or anything. It's good that we can have judges now who can interpret the constitution to help us. The only bad thing is that because of changing times, the interpretations can sometimes not be for the benefit of everyone. Some interpretations in my mind don't make sense. Some constitutional rules stay the same even though we are in a different time where it makes sense to change them. I don't think there's a good answer to this problem though. We don't want to make the constitution too rigid, but we don't want it to be too flexible either, because then our leaders could totally manipulate it to their own purpose. I just hope the judicial branch is full of honorable people who will do their best to preserve the constitution and not let their power go to their head, because it is a ginormous responsibility.