Wednesday, May 12, 2010

Good Morning, Cleveland!

It's 9:15, and I have an all-new appreciation for anyone in politics already.

As you many know, and I'm sure many of you are coming from that direction, Connie Schultz featured me in her morning column today. Job well done, Connie. I enjoyed our conversation immensely, and we'll keep it going into the future.

Now, before online dissenters tear me apart, let me elaborate on a few items. First, Connie and I still disagree on most issues. For those of you looking for clarification where I stand, I'm a fiscal conservative that truly believes in capitalism, but understands the flaws of the system that leaves some members of our society unassisted.

...and the grumblings commence.

"He's a Liberal Republican, a Moderate, Connie only likes him because he agrees with every item she states."

Label me whatever you'd like, just know I was in full support of Marlin Stutzman in the Indiana GOP Senate race. Look up most of his viewpoints, and then label me as a moderate or liberal. Seeing both sides of a situation and not blindly supporting every idea sent down from Michael Steele's mountain doesn't make me any less conservative, we need more of that in this country.

Let's discuss healthcare. The notion of it's passing made me cringe. Remember the now-famous executive order? Repulsive. Understand, I would have voted the bill down had I been in Congress at the time. However, now that it has been implemented, I fear members of the GOP running on "Repeal The Bill" campaigns. It may or may not work, but the hostile divide in this nation will only grow. If we are to take this thing down, we need to have a ready-to-go alternative in place.

I'm enjoying the current discussion on Connie's Facebook wall. Nice, civil, informed discussion, and I'm able to answer some questions and concerns from readers. This comment comes from Mark Stepowoy, by all indications a concerned conservative brought to alarm by my "60-year-old pizza guy" comment:

"There is nothing wrong with a 60 year old man delivering pizza even if that isn't what he wants to do, but realizes he has to do it.

There is EVERYTHING wrong with that same 60 year old guy refusing to deliver pizza in exchange for free money from the govt and oodles of pity.

I'm not sure there is a subject that riles me up more than this. I literally parked cars, dug ditches and picked up garbage for minimum wage. ... See More

There isn't anything wrong with honest work.

Have a great day. I'm stoked.
"

Mark- Awesome. I commend you, and I am the exact same way. I haven't made that clear. I wish every citizen in this country had your drive. I will never advocate expansion of our current gov't support systems, ideally we'd like to reach a prosperous, utopian point in the future where they can be eliminated and spending and taxation reduced.

... See MoreHowever, I advocate fixing problem A rather than problem B. Let's get to the root of the cause, rather than patching it up with government funds. Let's work our tails off through the private sector to expand the economy and create stable jobs, healthcare, and retirement plans for every person in this nation. Let's attempt to provide the same amenities the left can provide through the government via a more fiscally responsible alternative.

Now, I understand that's a pretty large goal and fairly idealistic, but we've made steps in the right direction in making counterproposals to the current healthcare plan. They aren't bulletproof, but we're stumbling down the correct path. I'm a college kid, and I don't have every answer. I don't work for a policy think tank or in Michael Steele's office. There are people getting paid to do such things, let's invest our time there, as that should be the number one issue on our plate as Republicans at the moment. Maybe 5+ years down the road, I'll be in a situation where I can devote more time to deriving informed alternatives, but I'm still a young guy.

Look forward to hearing from you, and many others, throughout the day and into the future. Feel free to post your concerns on this site, Facebook, wherever, and I'll attempt to promote some civil discourse.

Good day to all of you, and God Bless.

3 comments:

  1. It's refreshing to hear honest inbiased comments from a Republican. Republicans and Democrats alike can take a lesson from you. I am an Obama backer, but I don't agree with everything he says or does. I do respect the fact that he is trying to do things he thinks are right for this country. That's better than doing nothing at all. Again, I don't agree with everything, but people need to stop blaming him for everything, starting with the economy. Most rational people will agree that he is not the cause of the recession we are slowly coming out of. I look forward to reading more of your comments, keep up the good work!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Kyle - I wish there were more like you -- willing to have a dialogue even if you disagree. Too often, people on both sides want to scream down the "opponent" instead of listening and engaging in a positive discussion. Sure, we may never agree, but I will always try to respect someone's opinion as long as they will respect mine. I look forward to following your posts.

    ReplyDelete
  3. George Bush was a ''compassionate conservative'' and he proved to be a disaster for this country.

    ReplyDelete