Party over here? Party over there?

This is being reposted from one of my facebook notes. 

As a number of my close friends know, I have been agonizing over the prospect of leaving the Republican Party. I have been a registered Republican for nearly 24 years. As I have become more libertarian in philosophy over the years, I considered changing to Independent a few times but have never really been able to bring myself to do it. I grew up rooting for Ronald Reagan in 1980 (at 13 years old) and can even remember hoping that Gerald Ford would beat Jimmy Carter in the 1976 election, despite my parents being Democrats at the time. With such a lifelong attachment to the Republican Party, I just can’t see changing now. After a great deal of reflection, I believe that the best way to effect positive change for the party is from within.

I see us as being faced with a unique opportunity to capitalize upon the frustration of the governed with our elected officials. In the coming few years, I believe that there will be a small window of opportunity for us to begin returning America to the Republic our forefathers intended. If we as a people fail to seize this fleeting chance, I fear that we will slip further toward the oligarchy and state-run economy that we are rapidly becoming.

We must restore the Constitution to its proper place in our government and economy. Even though there are quite noble intentions among less mainstream parties, I fear that one will not emerge with sufficient political capital to effect the change that is needed in the time that we have left. The mainstream parties, in my opinion, harbor the only feasible option for bringing forth principled leadership that is also credible. I believe that I will be remaining a Republican.

It is difficult for me to be this passionate about our country, yet feel so helpless to effect any real change. I am hoping that by learning more through some of the educational opportunities I am currently pursuing, I may be able to help support those who are in the position to effect the kind of change I envision.

© the stiff lizard

Smoke and Mirrors

They say that seeing is believing.  The question is, how far do you look before you believe?

As long as we remain convinced that we are lacking a heart, or a brain, or courage, we are easily manipulated by those who play on our fears and our deep-seated desires.  We are swindled into believing that we do not have the ability to make our own life decisions and to choose our own destiny.  We must seek the wisdom and power of The Wizard, because over time we, as a people, have allowed Washington to abrogate our liberty.  We, collectively, either lack the courage to look behind the curtain, or are perfectly content to buy the illusion.

I'm not sure when this trend first began, but it's certainly no recent development.  Since the time our republic was founded, there have been concerns about the growing scope of power that is wielded by our federal government.  Perhaps the ratification of the Tenth Amendment (December 15, 1791) was believed, at the time, to be a bright-line rule that would endure through the ages.  However by 1941, perhaps well before, the highest court in the land referred to the Tenth Amendment as a "truism" in the United States v. Darby Lumber Co. decision.  Lest one not recognize the gravity of such a reference, consider the definition of a truism (I state this, not to be condescending, but to drive a point home):

"Truism: an undoubted or self-evident truth; especially : one too obvious for mention"

Self-evident truth?  Absolutely.  Too obvious to mention?  Give me a break.  Why would our founders choose to make the Tenth Amendment a statement that is too obvious to mention?  How about that whole "We hold these truths to be self-evident" thing in the Declaration of Independence?  Was that also too obvious to mention?  I think not.  What we trivialize soon becomes irrelevant.

Over time, charismatic leaders, in whom we want to believe and trust, have sold us an illusion.  Some have truly believed that the change they championed was for the good of the people, the country, and in the furtherance of freedom.  Others have not.  When will we, like Orwell's Boxer, be unwittingly carted off to the knacker's?

In my lifetime, I have seen the gradual erosion of liberty facilitated by a litany of "wars" on the evil du jour and manufactured crises that threaten to destroy the planet or cause our civilization to crumble if we don't act now.  By the way, "act now" is the code phrase for buying the show; sitting back and watching the third act of our collective tragedy, where the pigs move into the farm house and anyone who challenges or disagrees with them mysteriously disappears.

The lie we are being sold today is nothing but a refined version of the one we bought yesterday.  You had a heart, a brain, and courage all along; use them.  Before you decide that seeing is believing, check behind the curtain.

© the stiff lizard

What's in a name?

If you have not already asked, you may be tempted to do so. Why would someone choose a name like "stiff lizard" for a blog and what is it supposed to mean?

Well, not everything has a rational explanation. When I chose the name, it had no real connection to anything, no hidden meaning, no inside joke.

I read that you should name your blog something that people will remember. Many years ago, when I was young and had hair growing in all the right places, a friend of mine commented that if we ever had a band we should call it "Stiff Lizard." He was eccentric too.

As far as I know, we never started that band. However, the name stuck in my memory for more than 20 years, so I figure it ought to be easy to remember. The other recommendation was to make sure the name is easy to spell. I think I have that covered too.

In many ways I am an old fashioned guy, who was probably born 20 to 40 years too late for my own good. Even though women and men are equals, I think a man should hold the door for a lady, walk on the street side of the sidewalk and pick up the check on a date. I didn't want to go to school to learn a specialized profession or to get a good job; I wanted to learn. I don't want to be the best at any one thing; I'd rather be pretty damned good at a lot of stuff.

Some people may call me a dinosaur. Last time I checked, they were all dead; a bunch of stiff lizards. Maybe there is a connection.

© the stiff lizard

On Joe Stack...

The following is an edited compilation of my responses to a related topic on facebook:

I just read Joe Stack's "manifesto" yesterday and commented on a related article. He has a few salient points, but I think the execution of his message, unfortunately, does a disservice to those of us who truly hold libertarian ideals.

While I certainly am a believer in laying down one's own life for the preservation of freedom and individual liberty, IMHO this was not only a poor execution of that principle, but also more of an attempt to settle a grudge than anything that remotely approaches a noble act.   I hate to say this about someone who gave his life for something he believed in (although clearly the cheese has slid off his cracker), but he's given the rest of us who possess strong libertarian convictions a bad name.

I suppose his action ought to, technically, be considered an act of terrorism.  However to officially do so, may lessen the distaste that the "powers that be" feel we should have against those who we more "traditionally" choose to classify as terrorists.  Not that I am a terrorist sympathizer or anything, it's just that in the context of history there is a very fine line between those who are heralded as patriots and those who are condemned as terrorists.  I hope this comment doesn't put me back on the watch list. ;)

"Terrorism: the unlawful use, or threatened use, of force or violence by a person or an organized group against people or property with the intention of intimidating or coercing societies or governments, often for ideological or political reasons."

All acts of terrorism are criminal; not all crimes are acts of terrorism. Were Joe Stack's actions those of a revolutionary, as opposed to those of a terrorist?

While the term "revolutionary" is, arguably, a bit more difficult to define, the connotation seems to be that a revolutionary act impacts society, or some aspect of human behavior, in a sudden or major way.  While this may have been one of Joesph Stack's intentions, I think that his act did more harm to the cause than good.  It provides yet another example to which people can point and classify those who defend liberty as nut jobs and extremists, without affecting any measurable progress toward restoring individual liberty.

I do not advocate violence or criminal acts to accomplish noble goals, however I do hold the founding principles outlined in the Constitution and Bill of Rights as having far more authority than what Congress has cranked out over the past 200 years (I am obligated to make the disclaimer that "I do not advocate violence or criminal acts..." for the same reasons that the manufacturer of a Superman Halloween costume must print "cape does not enable user to fly" on its box).  The question is, exactly what do we have to do, and what means are acceptable, to accomplish our goals of setting our nation back upon the intended path of its founders?

If we could restore the Constitution to its proper place of authority, and oust all those who refuse to acknowledge such authority, I think we would be a long way toward fixing this mess.  We don't have a bad system of government; we have a bad application of the system.  We have taken that which is good, and bent it to the will of the corrupt.  It is time to take it back.

© the stiff lizard