It is sort of funny, but I have been everything in the book.  Most notably, I would have to say would be neo-Nazi and liberal.  What makes it all the more amusing is those that have called me a neo-Nazi cannot list a single trait of commonality that would link a position of mine and that of the Nazism they heard (mis)used by CBS and Keith Olberman, thus picking the verbiage as a new key phrase of their own.  The sad part is the bastardization of liberalism that more aligns the Modern Liberal to the Nazi agenda than any other major political party in US history.

When faced with the neo-Nazi comment I usually ask “how” and wait for their response.  It is no surprise that their responses actually accuse the positions of the Modern Liberal and not my comments against this new and perverse direction the Left is moving in.  Therefore, it is laughable when a member of the Nazi leaning Left, accuses me of having a secret desire to bring Nazism to America.

When we look at liberalism, we cannot help but look at Obama himself.  Few realize how little he even uses the word and when he does, he dares to not delve into its lost definition.  The liberal of today cannot define liberalism beyond that of the common dictionary usage of “liberal.”  Tearfully sad I might add.  What’s worse is that so many of those whom supported Obama’s quest of Commander in Chief had so little interest in America herself, they could not articulate the difference between Left and Right, let alone find an internal political value that aligned them with a concept of liberalism that spawned an aged of accelerated Marxism, Leninism and economic Fascism; among other non American political agendas. 

Part of our collective problem is the need to define and label each other.  We do so with a ruthless scrutiny that disallows the individual expression of moderation.  You are either a full on party line puller, or nothing.  This is not unique to the rhetoric of the Left.  The Republican Party, which in my opinion has been a very poor representation of the Right in recent years is equally guilty.  Thank goodness for the Tea Party and their intent to return Conservative Values to the Right.  Either way, we are not a nation of special interests; we are a nation of individuals born with the right of the individual pursuit of our individual happiness!  To be clear, I redundantly used the word “individual” because that is where I feel the right to pursue life and life’s happiness falls.  It is not an entitlement in terms of guaranteed results as the Left is trying to turn it into.

However, I freely admit that I am not party line pulling conservative either.  Why would I want to be?  I define me; my political affiliation does not.  This definition is based upon a lifetime of developed personal values and beliefs.  I do not agree with all things conservative though conservatism best aligns with me.  If you were to be technical about it and base it solely upon “political aptitude,” I am actually better defined as Libertarian / Conservative!  Here is the kicker.  Most conservatives today actually lean more towards Libertarianism while they hold their conservative true to heart.  The Right of course downplays this because Libertarianism is gaining ever increasing representations that threatens the house that Republicans built on their journey away from conservative values as they pandered to the personal benefit of special interests.  This freedom that I express has caused some to say that I am liberal.  Hold your horses; if you read some of my writings, on the surface you will find some commonality with that of a Left that is now lost.

I am cool with gays in the military.  I have not always been, but “grew into it” as I matured in the military in the same manner I grew out liberalism while I was in the military.  Such a concept may at times cause a lesser politically articulate person to believe blue blood runs through these veins.  At the same time, though I am anti abortion, I am not Mr. Pro Life either.  Again, because I believe there are times that abortions are indeed called for, these same individuals may believe I am Pro Choice because seen in the writings are only certain key words that are attributed to a given side.  Just like people have selective hearing; people also have selective reading habits.  All I can say is read a bit deeper and if I write above a person’s level of understanding; read more – you will eventually catch up.  The one thing I am not is liberal.

Another part of this misunderstanding is what makes a conservative, a conservative.  I believe in less government - a very anti liberal position.  Going back to the individual pursuit, the pursuit comes with a certain burden of responsibility, a responsibility that lies solely with the individual.  It is not a gift owed to a person from governmental involvement in the regulation of personal lives.  What the government owes is equal opportunity, not equal outcomes!  The only gift provided upon birth is the gift of freedom that comes with being American.  What the individual does with that gift is up to them!  The Left of course does not agree with this.  And don’t feed me that “disadvantaged” BS because few were born more disadvantaged than I.

I believe in life and that life should be far more embraced than Americans today are willing to appreciate it.  Abortion in my eyes is not and should not be used as birth control, or as a tool to absolve individuals of their personal acts of irresponsibility.  Even though I do not fully agree with the Pro Life agenda, does not mean that I do not appreciate life for what it is or make me Pro Choice for that matter.

In as much, I believe in personal responsibility and accountability.  By far, this is the single greatest separation between my beliefs and that of the the Modern Liberal that has hijacked a once decent political philosophy.  What Obama and his minions of Modern Liberals want is equal outcomes in order to absolve the individual citizen of the personal responsibility that is granted as a gift upon birth requiring individuals to put their best foot forward despite the challenges they are born into.  This gift of freedom is viewed as curse because the Modern Liberal now covets on behalf of the other.  The other has identified this from a perspective of not having to fully effort the individual pursuit of happiness because it is easier for government to provide than it is for certain individuals to the risk the pursuit of more.  The ability to fail is freedom’s accountability for the willingness to strive.  The Modern Liberal now lacks the courage it takes to accept the consequences of failure as a part of Americanism.  By insisting upon equal outcomes, the Modern Liberal removes the individual responsibility of freedom and the accountability of where an individual finds them self in life.  In doing so, freedom itself is actually abolished!  Personal responsibility and accountability is everything.  It just takes guts to believe in it when times are hard.

How can I be cool with homosexuality?  It is about personal responsibility and accountability.  Homosexuality has been denounced since the onset of monotheistic religion.  For it, there is a consequence and that consequence comes in the form of accountability.  So, for me it is easy.  An adult makes choice just like any other and as with any choice, there will be accountability.  Because a person is gay does not make them bad when it comes to military performance.  It takes a certain type of person to be able to do the things required of those in the military and if that person happens to be gay, so be it.  From firsthand experience, the majority serving with them are more concerned with whether or not those that have been charged with the responsibility of having the life of another in their hands are capable of fulfilling the requirement.  It makes no sense to replace a gay person who can with a straight person who can’t.  Ask anyone who has had their life saved by someone who is gay and I am sure they will tell you the same thing.  If a gay person cannot fulfill such a mission, they should be prevented from serving BASED UPON THAT!  My fear is that gays will exploit this latest ruling and serve solely because they can and not because they are actually capable!  I fear that government will lack the courage to refuse service to those said gays out of fear of lawsuits and allow all gays because they are gay.  You see, supporting gays in the military comes with very conservative values; those of personal responsibility and accountability.  The Modern Liberal sees the tag GAY only and places no conditions of responsibility with it. 

So no, I am nothing like the Modern Liberal of today even when my views are confused with values of the Left.  For anyone stuck on the whole neo-Nazi thing, read a history book that is available anywhere in the world EXCEPT Germany and then re-evaluate your own position before judging mine based upon inaccurate Left Wing rhetoric.

I was 12. Out in a vacant lot playing baseball with friends. Looking for a surprise home run knocked out the "park" by the smallest kid playing, I got way in front of the pitch while swinging with all of the mini might I could possibly muster. I don't even think my eyes were open when I made contact. Toing! The aluminum bat sounded. And the foul ball screeched right over the fence which was the out of play boundary for obvious reasons. It made a bee line straight to and straight through Ms. Foster's second floor bathroom window. I never moved; I knew I was in trouble. I looked up and everyone took flight so fast they dropped the gloves and bats where they stood. Damn, I should have run too! But I hadn't and rather than let Ms. Foster find me, I went to find her. Knock, knock.

"Hi, Ms. Foster. I broke your window." My thought was that confessing would be enough. It's not like I had a job!

"I know. Your father is on his way." She very calmly stated. This scared me because Ms. Foster was NEVER calm! I did not know what my dad told her to bring her to a calm state, but I knew it was not good for me!

"Go home." Is all he said upon his arrival. At home it was not the firestorm I anticipated it would be. Just a lecture about being careful when playing baseball in the lot over there. He paid to have the window replaced. The good news was that breaking a window playing ball was a good problem to have considering all of the things I could have gotten into back on the inner city Philly streets. What I learned that day was even though I did something wrong, my father was ultimately responsible. Paying for a window, though the same in principle is a far cry from raising a child of but a child. Today, would be grandparents seek the means of escape using their own children as an excuse.

It's funny how the abortion issue seems to keep slipping its way back to the forefront. Brian posted a video this weekend that I could not help but share on my Facebook page. A 12 year old girl playing Monday morning quarterback on Obama's pro abortion position. (Make that "pro choice" before I offend the faint of heart).

It is one of those topics that just seems to generate a bunch of controversy as soon as the word the word is uttered. What's fortunate for me is that I am a guy and my input is actually limited. Let's face it, where the rubber meets the road, it is not my "choice" that really counts now is it? But then again, had the rubber met the road in the beginning, the topic would be all the more moot now wouldn't it?

Okay, the president is very pro choice, aggressively so and that is fine. Last I checked, he is allowed to be. He feels that his children should not be burdened with a child prematurely. Or is that a child or a pregnancy? There is a big difference and it is that difference that has caused the uproar.

Here's my contention on the issue. Let's use a word that we hear all too much now a days; "unsustainable." Everything we do anymore is unsustainable; our government spending, our deficit, social security system, health care reform... you name it. If America has gotten its hands on it, we have made it unsustainable. Believe it or not, this includes perpetuating life as Americans. Our birth rate has dropped to unsustainable levels. Yet, abortion and birth control are growing ever closer to synonymy.

Don't get me wrong, many mothers should not be! We see them every day, but they had the decency to become mothers, to be accountable for their actions and respect life. It is odd that we criticize them to the degrees that we do given the alternative.

What I can't figure out is why abortion supersedes adoption options. The parents perhaps. Maybe Obama is saying he does not want people to see him as the father of a pregnant teen daughter. No one wants to be the one with a 16 year old pregnant daughter. I know I don't. Out of our parental comfort (or lack thereof) we "force" them into having abortions and will the associative emotional scaring onto their unready shoulders and off of our own. Or so we think.

The fact of the matter is that the overwhelming majority of teens who have abortions before the age of 17 have a child before 19 anyway. Simply put, two lives for one. A significant amount of young mothers have more than one child before 20 after having an abortion prior to 17. I find this interesting because the abortion comes by "force" (parental influence) and is followed by choices of their own, choices that go directly against the previous wishes of their parents. Many move away from home, many marry, but as a standard, their choices seem to stand in direct resistance to their parents.

When I stop and think and think about it, I can't fathom the guilt associated with having an abortion. But I can imagine the level of rebellion that would result from being manipulated into having one by parents who did not want to deal with the situation. The way I see it, having one child far too soon with the support of the now new grandparents is better than having a child a little too soon with less support.

I do know that as children get older, the thought of a new baby is all but nightmarish. Here our child is all but ready to fly from the nest and we see our lives being relegated back in time to when it was most stressful. So rather than go back in support of our children (who after all, are our responsibility) we take the easy way out at their expense.

If we are at unsustainable rates of reproduction as a people, why would we foster an environment that only ensures our eventual demise? Each passing year we become more selfish and less altruistic. Since not every would be mother is not yet ready to be a mother other options abound. Options that are place out of sight because we insist upon ourselves over all else to the point we will eventually be no more; one child at a time - literally.

Abortion is not a very complicated issue when you stop and think about it. No, not everyone is ready or fit to become parents. Biology foils both socio-economics and personal responsibility, but biology is not something that can just be turned off and on. Instead we intermittently force it off to allow for personal comfort over personal responsibility. It is to suggest that the condition of pregnancy is not worth the life it brings forth; even if that life is better off in the hands of another for the long term. If nine months is too much to ask in the name of life itself; we are a lost people that deserves not the sustainability we fail to understand. What's worse is a great part of this is being perpetuated by the parents, not those in the demographics having the abortions performed. Those defining the standard are demanding the wrong standards. Something is wrong when it is okay to have an abortion when virtually no consideration is being given to adoption. Adoption is more difficult to deal with. Everything is real and tangible so we steer clear of it not wanting to fully acknowledge the gravity of the circumstances. We have become weak and cowardly.

We say life begins within the womb, but our woeful decisions declare we have little emotional connection to any such reality. Sadly, we place the burden on the same youth we declare are not ready to become parents and force them into life and death decisions while expecting no repercussions. The repercussions are there, we just refuse to look at them for what they are and accept who is actually to blame.