The Middle of the Road Party: The Proposed Platform

With all the politics going on around me, I want to propose a new party to compete with the extremes we are facing from both the Republican and Democratic parties.

Proposed Platform for the Middle of the Road Party

1. We acknowledge that there is a global problem with poverty, hunger, living conditions and homelessness, but we seek alternative methods of easing these conditions rather than relying on government or taxpayer money to cure the problem.

2. We acknowledge that there is a gun problem in the United States, but rather than exert more control over the existing guns, we will work to educate gun owners on proper use, to increase awareness and find cures for mental illness and to limit the manufacture of automatic weapons and the ammunition they use.

3. We acknowledge that in the United States there are many religions, each with their own set of rules, each with a right to exist, but we will strive for a government that is free of religious influence other than the moral guidelines they set.

4. We recognize that there are times when war is a necessity to maintain global peace, but the act of going to war should be thoroughly discussed and no military action should be engaged unless a valid exit plan is made before action is taken. We declare that we are not the world police and we will not interfere with local conflicts.

5. While we do not condone the use of recreational drugs, we will make no law to criminalize the possession of marajuana.

6. We recognize that businesses in the United States provide jobs and our unique way of life, but there is a need for regulation so that excessive greed does not leave a wake of human, economic and environmental victims.

7. We recognize that the United states has a place in the world's economy and that free trade should be maintained with all countries of the world.

8. We acknowledge that various forms of pollution has had an impact on the environment and world climate. We will work to limit the effects of that pollution.

9. We acknowledge that the world has never truly been safe from those with extremist and dangerous points of view, but we will not hold an entire religion, or an entire race responsible for the words and actions of a few.

10. We acknowledge that every resident of the United States has a right to privacy and no action will be taken by a government agency to usurp that right without due process.

11. We acknowledge that the United States was founded by those whose ancestors were not born here, and the process of immigration that built us into the melting pot we have become shall not be abridged. Instead we will work with the countries where illegal immigrants come from so that the issues that drive their population toward us are resolved. We resolve to embrace the existing immigrant population.

12. We acknowledge that a drug addiction problem exists and will work toward allieving the issue, not punishing those caught up in the practice.

13. We acknowledge that different sexual orientations exist.

14. We acknowledge that a woman has the burden of carrying a child from conception to the end of the pregnancy.

I Deserve To Be Treated Bad - I'm Poor

I rarely blog about politics, but that doesn't mean I don't take an interest in what goes

on nationally and locally in NC. Having been homeless, received Food Stamps, and attempted

to get subsidized housing, I've followed the antics of the NC legislature for some time

now.

Since the Republicans took over complete control of NC politics, law after law has been

passed whose only affect is to make it harder to be poor, jobless and/or homeless. In 2011

I followed the Occupy movement, not as a participant, but as an observer, taking videos of

protests that even now are on my youtube channel. I thought the protests were valid and

were a way to show how unhappy the protesters were with the status quo.

Sadly nothing major came out of that movement. Instead when the legislature began to churn

out anti-poor laws, the movement transformed into Moral Mondays: protests every Monday

while the legislature was in session. I never got a chance to participate in those

protests. I was jobless and living in the shelter, where if I wanted to get fed and have a

bed, I needed to be in the shelter by 6pm.

But those protests go on, and arrests come almost weekly. The legislature tried to change

the rules so that they couldn't be as vocal as they had been. The courts denied that rule,

and as such, arrests are still being made, in relatively small amounts.

I would not say I have ever been politically-active, but that doesn't mean I don't care

about the direction this state is going. I like living in NC. The weather is relatively

mild, the trees are beautiful, most of the people have a form of southern charm, and there

is the kind of technology here that I can sink my teeth into (well, if I still had

teeth!). I don't want to leave.

And yet the state is simply becoming too hostile to those of us who are dreamers; who care

less about money and power and more about art, writing and, you know, Liberal things, like

housing and feeding the poor, helping the sick and injured.

Even with a job that has become full-time, I find it hard to make ends meet without

turning to help. I'm so tempted to temporarily move back into the shelter to put together

enough money so I can find an apartment. But then I realized there are people much worse

off than me who need that bed more. People made that way by laws passed by Republicans,

either in NC or Federal, who seem to go out of their way to make the poor suffer even more

than they already do.

So my questions are: a) How can the poor help themselves if they keep getting pushed down

by Republicans and b) what are the rest of us going to do about it?

My stepfather has to be a Republican, because his philosophy even before my mother died

was that if I get into trouble, I need to work my way out of it. After she died and I

became homeless (entirely my fault, by the way), I asked him for help, and was turned

down, saying the gravy train was over. He'd rather his stepson live on the streets than

lend a hand, and this is symptomatic of the Republican attitude.

Because no one who works hard should ever be unemployed.

Because if you can't find a job you're not working hard enough.

Back in the late 80's I attended a series of courses that taught electronics at a local

'college'. I applied for a student loan to cover the $2500 tuition for a 4 month course.

When I was done it helped me land a job troubleshooting slot machines and video gaming

equipment. Unfortunately the education I received wasn't really adequate for the position

and that job fell away.

But the student loan remained.

Over the years since then, going from job to job, I have paid what I can afford on that

loan, defaulted when I could not pay, and have seen the loan sold at least twice. The

amount of interest charged on this loan far exceeds the original $2500 I took out. In fact

the current value of the loan is around $8,000, and I've probably paid $5,000 on it since

1989.

I bring this up in this blog to point out that I tried to do things the way the

Republicans want me to. I tried to get an education, and partially succeeded, but because

I never really completed a Bachelor's Degree (I have an Associate's), my ability to find a

well-paying job was hampered, and now I have to compete with students half my age with an

up-to-date education on paper (though my worldly knowledge is vast).

And to top it off, all my tax refunds, Federal and State, get confiscated to pay off that

loan. Worse yet, the interest exceeds my ability to pay it off, and I never will pay it

off unless something miraculous happens and I sell a script or a book.

But don't feel bad for me. I'm poor and I deserve the kind of treatment I'm getting. Just

ask the Republicans.