Replies

I agree. And people need a viable place to go when their party leaves them behind. The Democrat party has taken a turn to the left that is about to leave all of America behind. I am not quite sure which alternative would fill the void, but if the parties were all invited to the table it opens the discussion to ideas and may pull the party away from the fringe. Same is true with the Republican Party. We need to have the dialogue!

An open and honest discussion is needed nationwide.As for the " debate commercials", I think the LP has a small point in their lawsuit.However I do agree they would not have filed if their candidate was involved in the charade of debates.

I would ask a general question of everybody.If you don't agree with every position your party holds should you leave that party?
A case in point is I personally disagree with Harry Brown's position stated on 9-11,I wholeheartedly agree with most of the actions taken by GW to take the fight to the terrorists(excluding the "PATRIOT ACT").
I do agree with only putting people in prison for committing crimes against other people, not for what they do to themselves.I know most people hear "legalize drugs" but what I hear is keep real criminals in prison.

I believe the federal govt. needs to leave education where it belongs,at the local level.Along with any program not set forth in the constitution.

IMHO the federal govt.has taken over responsibilities originally kept by the states, and I do not see any other party even talking about correcting the situation.If we had open debates with the "fringe parties" some of these issues could be addressed in a public forum.

On second thought never mind most people vote for their "party",to heck with any logical thought being put into actually changing the system.I guess I'll just keep supporting my local LP until Hillary takes over then I can defect to Cuba and seek Political Asylum.

Misty (and all):

I agree with both of you completely about needing alternative parties. I personally can't stand the Democrats because of their socialistic views, and their stance against the rights of the people to protect themselves and their communities against hostility.

And, although I am a confirmed, but "non-practicing" Catholic I can't stand the moral judgements that the "religious" right portion of the Republican Party would like to proclaim across the nation. After all, Jesus didn't throw the prostitute in jail - he forgave her for hurting herself like that in an effort to increase her self-worth and put her on the "right" path.

On the issue of Iraq - I'm still undecided as I have a friend whose husband was recently promoted to Major in the AF. So, I have strong feelings all the way around on the issue itself.

I know how horrible a dictator Sadaam was. I have personally spoken with a man whose family members were killed by Sadaam when he came to power and who defected during the war by delivering to us an f-16(?) in the process (He was a pilot in Sadaam's Air Force).(I will spare the details but his was a military family of some status in the old regime - it was not your typical murder scenario). I also know where L(l)ibertarians are coming from when they protest to policing the world and fighting others wars, and how our armed forces being spread out in over 100 countries puts us more at risk for attacks at home as well.

Along the immigration front I personally think that our borders should NOT be wide-open. I believe we should make every effort possible to make free-trade and the ability of people who are not terrorists and criminals able to enjoy visiting, working and learning in the United States. I also see a real need to protect our citizens who would be harmed by those entering our country to do harm, it's a difficult issue to resolve which is precisely why all sides should be brought to the table...

Besides those issues, BOTH parties constantly side-step the restraints of the U.S. Constitution. So you are definitely correct that it would be good for ALL Americans to hear the dialogue. We need to have these discussions on the issues because the avoidance of the main parties to address these problems is destroying the very fabric of our nation...

I could go on and on... (o:

Thanks for sending this article along to your list, I appreciate it. (o:

- Michelle