In case anyone was wondering, or cares: I am not a Republican nor a Democrat. I don’t like either party. Never have. I am an independent.

I don’t like the Democrats because they are statists. They are for big government and more taxes. They are also for mob rule. They want a democratic society, not a Republic. That is a disastrous recipe. Big government always leads to tyranny, democracy lacks the limited government structure of a Republic, which makes it harder for corruption to prevail. Democrats seem to love corruption. They wallow in it like pigs in their own dung. That’s why they seek to undermine our limited-government constitution at every point. You can go back to Tammany Hall right up to today to see their disregard for the rule of law. Rangel and Waters were merely caught. They are far from outliers.

I dislike the Republicans because they don’t practice what they preach. They’re supposed to be the party of smaller government and lower taxes. But they are just like ’70s Democrats now. Aside from the Bush tax cuts, they’ve expanded government and spending to obscene levels. When the Democrats came into power they just made the Republicans look conservative by contrast.

Less terrible is still terrible. The Republicans share the blame for our debt. But what I really dislike about Republicans is how elitist they are. They cherry pick their primary candidates before the people can choose. They ram their picks through. The public is given a token choice, but the party rigs the results. A great example was the primary race this week. Delaware says it all. (more…)

And now there are Four.

Yesterday, Andrew Breitbart’s fourth “Big” website, Big Peace, launched, fittingly born on the Fourth of July. Editor-in Chief Peter Schweizer, a scourge of liberal mendacity and hypocrisy, is joined by the redoubtable Frank Gaffney and Jim Hanson of Blackfive in a blog devoted to foreign policy and military affairs. Already, Peter and his crew have fielded an impressive array of bylines, including several retired military officers, the brave authority on Islam, Nonie Darwish, and the estimable Jed Babbin, among others. It’s an auspicious start to what will quickly become a must-read, indispensable national security blog.

The timing couldn’t be more propitious. With the war in Afghanistan approaching an important turning point — will American troops withdraw, as President Obama promises, or will they fight to win, as General Petraeus wishes? — the role of the Pentagon and the State Department are ripe for examination. As never before, the Pentagon is embroiled in a struggle for its very soul, with the PC, “green” bureaucrats pitted against the professional officer class, while Foggy Bottom, on its continuing, quixotic quest for “stability,” continues to be less an instrument of American foreign policy than a protector of the status quo — especially that of our enemies.

On a personal note, I particularly welcome this blog and hope to contribute to it myself from time to time. I was born on one of the major Marine Corps bases, and was raised in various military duty stations around the country. Having been present both at the fall of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of the Soviet Union, I’ve seen first-hand the causes and consequences of American foreign policy in action, and know how important it is. Small decisions in Washington today may have immense consequences thirty or forty years down the line, so it’s vital that we try to understand their ramifications early and often. (more…)