The recent economic situation has caused many people to turn their minds towards economic theory. As usual, most thoughts are biased towards the thinker’s party, and any expression of those thoughts turns into a Republican vs. Democrat debate. Well, I’m a registered Republican, but I would much rather call myself a conservative. Why? Because Republican and Conservative don’t mean the same thing anymore.

Back when Ronald Reagan was president, Republican and Conservative did mean the same thing. The words and actions of the party fit well with the opinions of the members. But today, what we see is a blind Republican Party, which stands for different things to different people.

For instance, I recently read a book by Mike Huckabee, a candidate for the Republican ticket in 2008. In his book, he described how in Arkansas, where he grew up, all the Christians were Democrats, and it was almost evil to be a Republican. Now, when I read that, I was pretty surprised. Because to me, it didn’t seem that you could be a Christian and a Democrat at the same time. After all, Democrats stood for abortion and euthanasia, right?

I still do think that way, but that story highlights the real makeup of the Democrat and Republican parties. In my opinion, the two official political parties do differ greatly in what they officially “stand for,” but the real debates are between liberals and conservatives. The political parties play a “shell game,” where they ignore the real, factual arguments, and fight with glittering generalities and nice rhetoric.

For example, consider this. At the moment, I am signed up on the email list for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC). Every once in a while I actually read the emails, and think about what they say. The truth is, they don’t say very much. Yes, they have a lot of words, but at the same time, absolutely no substance. Later I read a similar email, and almost laughed. Why? Because the second email I read was a Republican biased email, touting Republican programs in the exact same manner of writing as the DSCC.

Why do we let ourselves be led by party affiliation? Why can’t every person vote for themselves, on what they believe? Well, they can. However, you’ll find that most people don’t. Why not? They have grown up in one party, and they trust the name.

Simple, nice sounding phrases will capture more votes than a solid plan. On the Democrat side, I always see the bumper sticker “Democrats serve the people.” Well, what do you think they serve? The horses? As far as Republicans go, the campaign against John Kerry reveals similar reasoning. The defeat of Kerry will always be connected with “flip-flop,” the characterization that the Republicans succeeded in sticking to him.

You’ll find that most people you talk to are completely unaware of the real political situation. Try it. During election season, ask someone who they are voting for. Most people will know, either by name or by party. Then hit them with the “Why?” question. The answers are usually brainless, repeated quotes, or the honest “I don’t know. He seems better.” A lot of the time, the answer is just “He’s a Republican,” or “He’s a Democrat.”

I found this to especially true during the 2008 campaign. Why did Barack Obama get elected? Why was he even on the ticket? He was a junior senator, with no prior political experience, against seasoned, famous senators, at first Hillary Clinton, and later John McCain. He beat them both. He offered no solid reasoning, no base of experience. What he did have, however, was a good PR idea. Change. He didn’t know what he was going to change, or how far he was going to change it, but change it he would. Until later in the campaign, nobody really knew what he believed in. he was merely made president of the United States because he looked good, talked well, and had one word on his side.

I believe that these examples show how the political parties are merely power hungry oligarchies, where talking points are handed down to the lower levels, and individuals are expected to support the national movement because of them.

I would like to challenge you to decide on your own, to research your beliefs, and to take the bias off of your decisions. Look past the TV makeup, the speechwriters and teleprompters, and look into the heart of the issues. Why do belief in national healthcare? Why do you believe in gun rights? And then take your decision and turn them into actions.