Not Jumping Ship

I've been quite surprised to see the reaction to my thoughts about leaving the GOP the other day. Let me just cut to the chase: while I respect the decision Travis made in deciding to leave the GOP, I've decided that it's not time to jump the Republican ship.

The reason why? Well, because there really isn't anywhere else to go.

I didn't become a Republican on a lark. I did a lot of thinking and a lot of reading and came to the conclusion that I was philosophically a Republican. If one is on the center-right here in America, then you don't have many choices. I could call myself an Independent as is the trend these days, but the fact is, a lot of people who call themselves Independent are not really. They tend to lean one way or the other, but just have refused to be labeled.

But there is another reason to stay. It's the "green shoots" of hope that show that while the Tea Party crazies might be the ones talking now, that will not always be the case. It's the fact that there are Republicans who do care about the plight of our planet. It's a former First Lady who comes out in favor of same-sex marriage. It's a raft of candidates that are good moderate conservatives.

The fact is, there are still some good people in the party. The problem is that too often people like Travis and myself tend to only look at the loud voices that present themselves as the face of the GOP. But they really aren't the face of the Republican Party, or they are only a face of the GOP not the face. A blogger responding to a post by the Moderate Republican on the creation of a third party had this to say about political parties in America:

What people need to realize is that the party is merely a conduit. It is a means by which we seek to achieve an end. If you get an algebra question wrong on a test, is the problem with the question or with the methodology by which you sought to find the answer?

To sum it up, garbage in..garbage out. Third parties can indeed prove beneficial but merely jumping to the independence party or otherwise in hopes of something different presupposes that the independence party is filled with anything different than the other two predominant parties.

Tis why I say, if you're not involved at the BPOU/Precinct level then you will continue to get the government you deserve.

The writer hit the nail on the head. Political parties in America are only conduits. That means that if a Tea Partier wants to use the party to make it...to suit their purposes, I can do the same thing. I am as much the face of the Republican Party than they are.

So, I'm not jumping ship. I will stay and make myself known...as a Republican.