June Primary Preparation

So I finally did it. I've had the form sitting on my dresser for 5 months and haven't submitted it, but today I went down the the Sandoval County Bureau of Elections and registered as a Republican. My original party registration at 18 was Republican, but I changed to Libertarian shortly thereafter in disgust with the big-government policies of George H. W. Bush. I've generally voted libertarian since then, but see a real opportunity to do more than just thumb my nose at the system this June when I check the box for Ron Paul.

Yes, I know that he is not going to win. It's a shame that one of the key criteria people have in voting is whether or not they vote for a winner. You don't get a prize if you mark the right box. I'm actually excited to vote for the first time in a long time. It's refreshing to vote for someone who you actually want to be elected. It's also refreshing to see the grassroots activism that is shaking up the Republican Party.

Witness the fireworks in Nevada where party apparatchiks abruptly recessed the convention when it became apparent that RP supporters would be able to secure a majority of the national delegates. Throughout the primary process local groups supporting Paul have become active in their local parties. This lays the groundwork for shifting the base of the party in a direction more supportive of individual liberty, fiscal sanity and a moral foreign policy and away from the corrupt militarism of Bush and Cheney. It's nice to see a promise for productive change in the future.