My political education is an on-going process. The one driving factor behind the evolution is control; I want more control of my own life because I don’t trust government. Government is people and people are prone to emotion and emotion can cause people to do injurious and sometimes irreversible acts, all in the name of government or using government as a tool. Just look at the way emotion is being used to pass legislation now. This is why I don’t support the death penalty…but let’s save that debate for another time.

I have spent a lot time thinking about the differences between liberals and conservatives. What it boils down to, in my humble opinion, is emotion. When I read about grown men crying on election night and people fainting at speeches, it brings this driving factor to the forefront. I am passionate about politics but I am not emotional about it. The mention of the currents president’s name does not fill me with hate. Emotion is the driving force behind liberalism; just say the name “Bush” in my father’s presence (and 99% of all liberals) and watch the blood vessels bulge. It would be interesting to have their blood pressure measured at the same time. Mention the name “Limbaugh” to my Dad and all rational thinking goes out the window and a raging madman appears, frothing at the mouth and spewing expletives like Regan of “The Exorcist” fame. I told one well spoken and loud liberal at a bar that I don’t debate with liberals in person because they are far too emotional, especially if they have been drinking. Immediately his voice rose to protest my analogy and my point was proven. Liberalism causes political road rage.

Most liberals are “superficially informed”. They hear sound bites, listen to 30 minutes of news from the big 3 (CBS, NBC, ABC) and then switch to “American Idol” or “Dancing with the Stars” in the comfort of thinking they know everything about everything. Liberals have been taught they are smarter than conservatives, that they are elite in their ideas and thought processes (kind of like getting a ribbon in grammar school for just trying to finish the race). This is the major reason debating a liberal is impossible. When confronted with overwhelming evidence proving a conservative point over a liberal position, insults from the left ensue in order to diminish the messenger as well as the source of the information. If conservative mentions gays he is a homophobe, if a conservative mentions global warming he is anti-environment and uninformed, mention abortion and that conservative is branded a chauvinist and heaven forbid a conservative should be against Obama, he might as well be a member of the Ku-Klux-Klan.

I challenge members of the left…. and right now only one does this, to please send retorts worthy of reading. I am thick skinned but find the insults tedious and juvenile. Calling someone a lightweight because of fundamental disagreement on an article, blog or news item is insulting, not to me but to the insulter’s intelligence and removes all credibility. I do this for two reasons; to spread the truth as I see it and to inspire debate in the hopes of possibly learning something. The beauty of America is the ability to share ideas and opinions without repercussions of a grave nature….at least for the time being. Let us all try to keep this on an adult level.