A new direction...

So I'm guessing most of you caught the election last night? I want to touch on a few things from last night and then be done with it. Be done with the election, not actual issues, ideas, and policies. Oh no... that whole pursuit is just starting.

So last night I was visibly and verbally upset and depressed for most of the night. We had our friends Dustin and Cassi come over and for those of you who don't know them, Dustin and I are extremely similar. Luckily he brought a nerf ball to throw around so holes didn't end up in the walls. And yes, that nerf ball found itself speeding to different areas of the room for a good 4 or so hours. The TV was not exempt and in fact the main target at times. Our wives endured a very long night with us, talking us down from a ledge and dealing with our disgusted comments during the acceptance speech. I've already asked for forgiveness from Becky and am currently doing a lot of soul searching as to why it made me so angry and why I wouldn't let her talk any sense into me last night. Here's what I've come up with...

1) I'm selfish. When I'm down and don't want to talk, I don't want to hear anybody else talk either. This isn't the first time selfishness has reared its ugly head, just another episode.

2) I'm from Texas. Socialism and handouts and whining just doesn't to appeal to us. These last 2 years of campaigning has been infuriating to say the least. Hearing about the foreclosure "crisis" that wreaked havoc on 2% of homes in the country just makes me want to throw up. Our country should be celebrated for the opportunity and the prosperity that we enjoy, not put under a microscope so very small problems seemingly become nationwide issues.

There are a few things that I love about my state. We take care of ourselves. We give when there is need and when we can and towards things we believe in. We're responsible. And we don't have income tax. We're pro-growth. And some of us have a pretty great accent too, even if time in Indiana steals it away from us :) Now to my next point...

3) Can someone please realize that we are not in competition with each other? Class wise, state wise, part affiliation, etc. This whole false sense of partisanship in the country is ridiculous. I don't believe conservatives and liberals are as far apart as we are being led to believe. There are differences, yes, but when was the last time you went hunting for a spouse or significant other that was EXACTLY like you? And if you did... do you ever find your conversations boring and lacking passion? I mean give me a break, we embrace differences. We also embrace those things that we agree on because that is precisely what keeps us together in the midst of debate. Then why would the media want to drive us apart? Because it increases our dependence on them, not ourselves. If we can make them our barometer for the state of the country, then they are now in power. That's all it is. And guess what? Once you decide to take responsibility for your own life, the media no longer can get you down. It's been a very painful lesson that I've learned this year, but I'm much farther than I once was.

4) I believe America as a superpower is no longer a truthful statement. We've changed alright. Last night as I sat through the "Yes we can" mantra of the crowd (very eery to me), I turned to Becky, Dustin and Cassi and said, "Great, now we're the little engine that could..." That's exactly what it made me think of. I am now the little engine that could. "I think we can, I think we can..." I prefer the freight train myself...

5) If I can be Joe Biden for a little bit, mark my words... oil prices are about to skyrocket once these policies are enacted. The ban on emissions will, in Obama's words, bankrupt the coal industry. The coal industry supplies 50% of the energy needed for the electricity in homes. Once you remove that source of energy, you have to move to another. Oil is the most efficient today. Therefore there will be less available, driving the price up to higher levels than what we've seen. I wouldn't be worried if we were going to drill, but look for the ban on our offshore areas to come back into place around March. We're not decreasing our dependence on foreign oil... it's not pheasible today. Work towards it yes, but provide a bridge to get there with oil...

6) If I hear another sound bite as to why people voted for Barack Obama that sound like these, I will explode. I actually did this morning in the car when I heard this guy pushed as to why he voted for Obama. I yelled...
a) "I just think we need change" Why?
b) "I just like what he says, he speaks to me" What does he say to you?
c) "That we don't need 8 more years of the same thing" What's the same thing?
d) "Failed policies" ** This is where I gave up and yelled. It felt good...


7) I actually have a rational reason for voting against Barack Obama and I haven't even gotten into his associations. It's crazy to me. This is the most uninformed decision we've made in a very long time in my opinion. I hope it doesn't bite us, but I honestly think it will. And we won't forget it.

8) I'm not racist! One of the most profound comments I heard last night was that the youth of America is color blind. I believe this is true. The fact that the media kept talking about race made me sick. Bring anyone in office and as long as their policies are ones that will grow our economy and strengthen our country at home and abroad, I'll put him in office. Period.

9) This was the most telling reason why I'm so upset. I've placed my faith more in my government and country than I have God. That's the root of all my frustrations. I don't know when my dependence was being eroded away, but it has been eroding away. Who's to blame? I don't care honestly, I just know I want my dependence on God back. I need His help and I need your help... Our relationships with the Lord puts life in perspective in a way that makes it impossible to despair the winds of culture and change. I can't be depressed when I think about the Lord. I don't know what it is in me, but I simply can't bring myself to do it.

I love my country and I'll do whatever I can to support it. My congresswoman is very much a liberal and my goal is to make her sick of hearing from me, either through phone or email. I don't care. I just want her to know that I'm keeping up with what she's doing. I hope I can encourage her, but I definitely want to challenge her where we don't agree.

I'm ready to fight for conservatism and throw republicanism under the bus. It's a very different ideology and it's wrong. There should now be 4 parties instead of 2. Liberals, Democrats, Republicans, and Conservatives. The differences are too many to find much commonality anymore.

Here's a few books that I'm going to try to get my hands on to study and learn about our country, policies, and how we got to where we are:
- "Patriotic Grace" - Peggy Noonan
- "The Forgotten Man" (about the Depression)
- "Woodrow Wilson and the Roots of Modern Liberalism"
- "Liberal Fascism" - Jonah Golberg
- "Disraeli" - Robert Blake (This is about the Father of Modern Conservatism)
- "Churchill, Hitler, and "The Unnecessary War": How Britain Lost Its Empire and the West Lost the World - Patrick Buchanan
- "Franklin and Winston: An Intimate Portrait of an Epic Friendship" - Jon Meacham
- "Imposter: How George W. Bush Bankrupted America and Betrayed the Reagan Legacy" - Bruce Bartlett (former Reagan staffer)
- "The Hand of Providence" (Ronald Reagan)