Political issues, a la carte

Read Samuel's take on the Righty/Lefty divide in America. It's not as simple as Liberal vs. Conservative. There's a lot of common ground between the sides, and sometimes what is perceived as Conservative really is not (take W's foreign policy and fiscal discipline, for example). And the opposite is true, since I tend to lean rightward on certain social issues -- gun control, capital punishment -- yet I wholeheartedly consider myself a liberal. So what gives? Why are we left with a two party system that supposedly represent the poles of conservative and liberal, when the two sides share a lot more than we think? I guess there should be a third party that should represent this "purple" area. But there really isn't, since this middle area also has different degrees of left and right. That means you will never truly agree with the party of your choice. The Reform Party and Libertarians have nice things to say on political reform and doing away with Social Security, but I don't agree with the extremes they have on things such as immigration (Reformers are for severe restrictions on it, Libertarians believe the borders should be completely wide open). Not to mention that the Libertarian view of deregulating everything and privatizing Medicare/Medicaid gives us incentive to screw each other over, going against my view that government should be used as the steward to the masses. As for the Green Party, I agree with the intent (ecological responsibility, decentralization of wealth away from corporations), but I don't subscribe to the naive belief that everyone would be looking out for one another. And there several more parties out there that believe more or less all of the above, and some that believe none of it. And then there's Nader, the political chameleon, whose color changes to that of which would give him ballot access (this time it's the Reform party endorsement -- Ugh. I'm going to stop talking about him before I vomit...)

So there you go. Most voters agree with each other but eventually go with the big parties, depending on how red or blue their blood is. I'm the same way. I would love to be able to pick and choose my party's stances (a little pro-choice here, a little national defense there), but I can't. My beloved Democratic party, as fucked up and simpering as it is, beholden to corporations and big media, it is the party that counts that is closest to my issues and my conscience. And I'm sure that's why conservatives of different stripes vote mostly Republican. Politics isn't about absolute ideals, it's about compromise. The more people you can compromise with over to your side, the better your chances of winning. That is the point. If my side wins, most of my beliefs and issues will win out. I'll take it. Better than nothing.