by Debbie Robus

Created on: June 08, 2009

People think that I am a Democrat because I supported Barack Obama for President. In our state, you have to choose either a Democratic or Republican ballot in the primary, and since more of the candidates I favor are Democrats, that's the ballot I choose. But that does not make me a Democrat... any more than someone who supports a Republican candidate is a Republican!

Labels often get us into trouble, and nowhere is this more apparent than in our two prevailing political camps - Liberals and Conservatives. We can start with the names themselves... not all Liberals are "card-carrying Democrats," and not all conservatives are Republicans. And for the record, there are Christian Republicans AND Christian Democrats - and even EVANGELICALS on both sides!

I tried several times to write this article from the vantage point of "Conservatives believe this" vs. "Liberals believe that." But it just isn't that easy - most Americans are somewhere in the middle. We can debate such issues as abortion, gay marriage, taxes, affirmative action/diversity, the economy, energy and the environment, or the war and terrorism... and we can discuss all of the ways the far fringe of each side view these topics.

But when it's all said and done, there is a whole lot of talk going on between the sides and more than just a little aggravation and frustration in the middle. I read a quote from someone who said "I believe government should be small, protect our shores and deliver the mail." (Revellian - Thoughts and Fiction of Bobby Revell)

While I wouldn't go quite that far, I do feel that our government gets mired in the issues and rantings of far-leaning Conservatives and Liberals and often loses sight of the bigger picture. We worry and stew ad nauseum over gay marriage, while many of our elderly are wasting away in squalor, unable to afford decent physical and medical care, and forced to eat pet food because it's all they can afford. While we worry about something Judge Sotomayor said in a speech eight years ago - and likely was taken out of context - our children are studying in seriously underfunded classrooms led by astonishingly underpaid teachers.

I believe most Americans want to know how our elected officials on BOTH sides of the aisle plan to handle these issues: health care, education, the economy, energy and the enviroment, and terrorism.

HEALTH CARE
It is my opinion that our present health care system is America's "wart on the end of the nose." How is it possible

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