I Listened to Rush Limbaugh and Got an Idea

"Remember what I told you, Mr. Snerdley: There are no rules in the Democrat Party, there are only customs and traditions. Don't frown at me! Do you realize what a brilliant observation that is?" Rush Limbaugh, March 5 broadcast, 2008.

Love him or loathe him, the Right listens to Rush. Why? He’s entertaining. He’s bombastic. But answering beyond that, well, that’s why I listen to Rush.

Plenty of brave souls willingly espouse their political beliefs in public, but few delve the depths of why it matters to them so much as does Rush. I’ve been thinking a lot about Rush lately, and not because he’s so brazenly self-congratulatory. More so because he’s been saying the same thing for so many years and people still listen. 

From what I gather that message all boils down to this: The Democratic Party wants to destroy this country. 

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Blue, Red or Purple?

A funny thing happened on the way to the polling booth in San Diego County. People got lost. I don’t mean they couldn’t find their polling place, although that happened a lot, too. They couldn’t find their political party.

Sure, most everyone had registered to vote under the patriotic flag of their choice, but many I talked to were feeling disenfranchised by their party and wondering where they really belonged.

People are describing themselves as a mixture of parties these days, saying something like “I’m fiscally conservative, but socially liberal.” So does that describe an elephant or a donkey or some new creature?  What do you get when you mix blue states and red states? You get purple. It seems a new purple voter is emerging. A lot of people I talked with on election day expressed frustration with their party and wanted to know how to change their official voter registration card. America is clamoring for change and voters are beginning with whom they want to align themselves.

Some Republicans, for example, claim that John McCain is really a Democrat in disguise. Has the party left the voters or is it the other way around? 

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The ‘90s, a Topless Bar and Libertarians in San Diego

Is this 1990? Really, is this 1990 all over again? Then why is Republican presidential frontrunner John McCain spouting off about "no new taxes" if elected? I know, Republicans are in awe of the Reagan years, but come on! Stop stealing campaign promises from Reagan's former vice president! 

Though, while this is amusing, it also seems someone didn't do neighborhood scoping plans well enough. Yes, Hillary Clinton's Austin, Texas campaign headquarters is next door to a topless bar. Furthermore, it seems her husband was an hour late to the new headquarters. Hmmm... I wonder, I wonder...

What ever could have kept the former president up? In all seriousness, I really hope this doesn't turn out to look too bad on her campaign. Topless dancers aside, the Democrats are pretty split. So split, in fact, they called forth Al Gore to help clean up the mess. And this, my friends, brings up the term superdelegates. 

No, readers, we're not in a Marvel comic book, superdelegates are over 750 REAL people who will finally, once and for all, decide the Democrat's candidate for president. I know, when I heard the term, I pictured Superman and Batman stepping into the Democratic National Convention to cast their votes. Though that WOULD bring some much needed excitement to the proceedings, in my opinion.

Also, this weekend in sunny San Diego is the Libertarian Annual Convention of Delegates for California.

Your Libertarian Citizen Voices blogger is going to try VERY hard to cover it for all of you, if he can! Check the blog for more updates. I'll be discussing it next week either way.

-Steven Garrett is a professional food blogger who lives in Chula Vista.

The Final Four, Commercials, and a Missing Initiative

So, we're in the Final Four! The Democrats are bringing out Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton; and the Republicans have John McCain and Mitt Romney up for nomination. Of course, it won't be until March that we find out the Libertarian candidate or July for the Green Party candidate, but for now we have at least four candidates.

And being in the top four, this seemed the perfect time for Mitt Romney to buy ads during the Super Bowl, which he did. I will admit, I was highly disappointed in the ad his campaign chose. Rather than state his stance, the chosen ad instead bashed on Clinton. Shame on you, Mr. Romney! On the flip side, Coca-Cola's political ad was an interesting and welcome addition! The premise was that with their soda, ANY group can get along.

If this is the case, then all Americans need to buy each member of the three branches of government a 12-pack of their favorite soda to share. It might work!

In South Bay, Chula Vista residents are voting on changing the position of city attorney to an elected position rather than the currently appointed position.

After months of fighting, over 20,000 signatures, and even the city suing itself to stop this initiative that the citizens are requesting, the initiative was supposed to be on this ballot. Instead, back on January 16th, the city postponed the vote until November's election. This, of course, has made a lot of folks even more upset.

Now, some may wonder why the citizens of Chula Vista have been fighting so long to be allowed to nominate, rather than appoint, a city attorney. The idea behind it is checks and balances. In theory, an elected attorney will not be indebted to those who appoint him or her to the office, and thus would work more for the city itself.

Personally, I think it’s also backlash after seeing what happened with San Diego's corruption, and an attempt to ensure that Chula Vista never has that kind of scandal drop into the laps of the city's residents.

Finally on a lighter note in Imperial Beach, I wanted to congratulate the city council for approving a new skate park, thus giving the youth in San Diego's South Bay another safe spot to play and keep healthy. Let's hope they get the remaining donations needed to build and complete the park.

-Steven Garrett is a professional food blogger who lives in Chula Vista.

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“I’m a Republican. Gasp!”

Jack Bauer for President!  What?  He’s not running?  Dang!  Well, maybe he will be tomorrow.  After all, a lot can happen in 24 hours…

Before I reveal my political slant, I want you to know that I’m open-minded and would love to hear YOUR thoughts.  Feel free to present your case.  As long as you don’t call me a fat, ugly cow I’ll listen.  No need to insult the cows.  The end of my blog should be the beginning of a fun discussion!

My editor asked me: “If the election were tomorrow, who would you vote for?”  My vote today goes to Mitt Romney.  I’m really interested in Ron Paul; however, I fear my vote would be wasted.  I don’t think he’ll win the primary and I want to make sure we get a strong candidate who has a fighting chance against the powerful Democrat Machine.

Yeah, you heard me…I’m a Republican. Gasp!

I like that Romney has shown leadership and accomplishments in both private enterprise and public service.  He sees a problem and fixes it, while his counterpart career-politicians sit around debating or throwing money at it.  He built a hugely successful company and turned around the 2002 Olympics, which faced financial crisis before his arrival.  Our country is in need of rescue again.

A recent poll shows that concern about our economy tops the list of important issues for both Democrats and Republicans.  Romney balanced the Massachusetts budget every year as governor and has a sound understanding of economics.  America is clamoring for change and Romney appears to know how to make it happen.  

I like Romney’s stance on immigration, health care and education - just three of my hot buttons.  There is so much more for us to talk about, but I’ve been told to keep this blog short or else I’ll be shot. (Editor's note: I never said I would shoot them. I said I would meet them in the back alley of KPBS.)

We have some fascinating months ahead of us.  The general election isn’t tomorrow, but we San Diegans have the opportunity to submit a primary vote and send a message to the rest of the country next Tuesday.  Let your voice be heard!

If you judge a person by his “fruits” then Romney looks ripe for the presidency. And who do I think Romney’s running-mate should be? Jack Bauer, of course.

 
-Trina Boice is an author and mother of four who lives in Carlsbad.

Ralph Wiggum (I-Springfield) for President

If the presidential election were held tomorrow, I would vote for Ralph Wiggum (I-Springfield).  I do not expect him to win, and if he does win, I do not know how the  Supreme Court would rule on the constitutionality of an animated character holding elected office.

But practicality does not change the primary reason for the vote: None Of The Above is not a choice on my ballot.

I consider myself a little “l” Libertarian.  I believe in personal responsibility and minimal government interference in personal lives. That said, there are some positions where personal character takes precedence over agreeing with my policy views.  I want a president who I believe has good instincts for deciding the issues that haven't yet appeared. 

'Change' has become a popular word during the campaign so far. All the mainstream candidates seem to agree that change is good.

Despite the attraction of fiscal conservatism, the social nanny-statism of the Republican candidates is too much to take. While crying out for change, they seem to be racing to capture the evangelical vote to the exclusion of all others and in co-opting whatever goodwill President Bush has left by ratifying his most egregious mistakes.

Change appears to be nothing but a word about reprinting the letterhead to reflect a new regime, not a change in policy or direction. 

The Democratic candidates talk about change too. I have no doubt there would be change, at least in rhetoric, under a democratic administration. The two frontrunners as reported in national polls - Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama - have conspicuous gaps in their careers as far as actually attempting to implement change. One notable example in my opinion is the issue involving the military's “Don't Ask, Don't Tell” policy regarding homosexual service members.  Both candidates claim to oppose the policy, yet neither has introduced legislation to repeal the policy in the Senate.  

By voting for Mr. Wiggum, I know what I'm voting for.  A caricature whose personality has been molded and crafted by groups over the years based on ratings and consumer feedback. A fictional entity with no pretense toward free will or independent decision-making ability.  I'm voting for a cardboard cutout and if he wins I'll get a cardboard cutout for president.  That might not be much different than what I'd get if I voted for one of the other candidates, but my cardboard cutout will be here by choice, not by pretense and market research.

By voting for Ralph, win or lose, I also get what I want, which is to say loud and clear to the Republican and Democratic parties that enough is enough. This country deserves real leaders who can honestly debate issues, and have worked during their public careers to honestly address issues. The United States does not deserve to have someone as president just because they've avoided being pinned down on the controversial issues of the day.  That kind of track record does not lend itself toward honestly confronting controversial issues while in office and cannot earn my support.