Video: Reject the Status Quo

Article: Rejecting the Status Quo

In America, there are currently only two major political parties -- the Old Parties -- which seems stupid to me because no other developed country in the world is limited to two political parties. And over the past few decades, these two political parties have become increasingly distant in their respective ideologies, so much so that there no longer seems to be any common ground between them. At the same time, adherents to these parties seem to require both absolute devotion to their respective ideal AND absolute opposition to any other ideal.

There's an old saying that "politics is war". Oddly enough, despite their zealous devotion to their respective ideals and their ever-widening ideological entrenchment, the one topic on which the two parties both agree is that no one else is allowed on "their" field. They have created a political "no-man's-land" between them upon which any and all attempts to bridge the gap are attacked from both sides with equal fervor. Now, I will grant you that this sort of battlefield analogy does not resonate with everyone, but over the past few decades, American politics has devolved from a civilized discussion of differing ideas to a tribal us-versus-them cage match where each partisan continues to hurl personal attacks in a back-and-forth screaming match because that's what they think you want to see and hear. It doesn't do much for resolving policy issues, and it certainly doesn't address any of the concerns that we in north Texas continue to face on a daily basis, but it makes for great dramatic television and it keeps you watching.

If you have also long experienced the "battle fatigue" of these two groups whose ONLY goal is less "to serve the public interest" and more "to beat the other guy by whatever means necessary", then perhaps it's time for a change to another field. Some of us who are running for office, myself included, are "flipping the script". We are reaching out to disaffected Old Party voters and simply asking them to look past the party label to our qualifications for the office, and then make up their own mind. After all, it's not really about winning or losing, it's about the integrity with which you play the game.