I never thought I would describe myself as Liberal......

I believe that women have the right to make their own choices regarding their bodies, health, and welfare. It's between a woman, her doctor, and her spouse or significant other, period.

I believe that everyone, regardless of race or gender, has the right to live their own lives and be happy. If two consenting adults want to marry, absolutely no one has the right to deny that. Just because you might not agree with it doesn't make it wrong.

I believe that everyone is valuable. I don't care what your occupation is, what your ethnicity is, what religion you follow, or where you live.

I believe that diplomacy trumps force. We absolutely should be trying to talk out differences of opinion before ever considering military action.

I believe in the Affordable Care Act. I have said many, many times that it's not perfect. But it's a good start. And with over 7 million people having signed up, it is absolutely working.

I believe in equal pay for equal work.

I unequivocally believe in the separation of church and state. Our judges and lawmakers put their hand on a bible and swear to uphold the Constitution, not the other way around.

I believe we should be doing everything we can to help those less fortunate, not persecuting them.

I believe that your religion should be between you, your family, your clergyman, and your God. If you feel the need to use your religion to hurt others you're using it wrong.

I believe that education in this country should be our NUMBER ONE priority.

I believe in practicing random acts of kindness.

I believe in common sense gun laws. Should you be able to "open carry" in a bar, a school, or a shopping mall? Absolutely not! Do I think anyone needs to own an AK47? Again, absolutely not. This idea that the second amendment gives you the freedom to own an arsenal is absurd.

I believe in working hard in order to improve your life. I do think there are those that need assistance at times, and most of them are hard working people who want to better their lives. I also know that there are many people who take advantage of the system and stay on welfare, having more kids, without any thought to working their way out of their situation. I don't know what the solution is, but I certainly don't think that cutting welfare benefits and ending unemployment benefits is it.

I believe that all drugs should be decriminalized and addictions should be treated as diseases. Before you get your knickers in a twist, look up the data on that and see what happens when other countries do it.

I believe that there is a large "good-ole boy" network working furiously to prevent any and all changes from happening in this country. These old white men are out of touch with reality and with the voters.

I believe that lobbying should be completely outlawed. There should be no lobbyists in Washington at all. Legislation should be made based on the will of the people, not based on money from corporations.

I believe that every single Congressman should have to hold a "town meeting" of sorts in their districts once a month. Anyone who has a question or comment should be heard.

I absolutely believe in supporting our military. Whether it's our troops overseas or those who have come home, we owe our respect and gratitude to each and every one of them. The idea that any military veteran goes without food, medical necessities, or much less a home is appalling.

I believe in working to make sure my two daughters have the freedom and the opportunity to be whomever they want to be. This includes making sure they have access to appropriate health care, they have the opportunity to attend college, and that their worth is NOT defined by their gender.

I believe that we have a responsibility to ourselves and the generations that come after us to take care of our planet. At what point do we decide to use common sense? Solar power and wind power come from infinite resources, not so much with fossil fuels. The first thing I would do if I were president would be to install solar panels on the White House.

I believe that the office of the President of the United States deserves respect. You might not agree with his policies, you might not even like him (which is funny, because I'll bet you've never met him in person). But this constant barrage of disparaging remarks, disrespectful memes, flat out lies, and smears upon his character is just embarrassing. The rest of the world is watching, people.

I believe that the right to "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" applies to EVERYONE, not just a select few.

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If all of this makes me a liberal, so be it. I can live with that.

Return to Sender: When Political Activism Crosses the Line

It's a crazy time in American politics right now. There are extremes on both sides, but the Tea Party has damaged the Republican party almost beyond repair. The blatant racism and intolerance shown towards a seated President of the United States is unprecedented. And it's sickening. 

There are multiple Facebook pages attacking the President, calling for impeachment. There are many people who have no qualms online comparing him to Hitler (seriously?) or any other despised despot. Facebook, more often than not, allows this complete sedition as a product of "freedom of speech."

And then this happened. The hubs and I were out to lunch yesterday and we passed by the local Post Office. This was sitting out front:

The other side said, "Impeach the Tyrant." I'm just surprised they spelled it correctly. Yes, this was ON POST OFFICE PROPERTY. According to the United States Code, this is a direct violation. (See h1, h5.)

Excerpt from the code, found at http://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/39/232.1:

(h) Soliciting, electioneering, collecting debts, vending, and advertising.

(1) Soliciting alms and contributions, campaigning for election to any public office, collecting private debts, soliciting and vending for commercial purposes (including, but not limited to, the vending of newspapers and other publications), displaying or distributing commercial advertising, collecting signatures on petitions, polls, or surveys (except as otherwise authorized by Postal Service regulations), are prohibited. These prohibitions do not apply to:

(i) Commercial or nonprofit activities performed under contract with the Postal Service or pursuant to the provisions of the Randolph-Sheppard Act;

(ii) Posting notices on bulletin boards as authorized in § 243.2(a) of this chapter;

(iii) The solicitation of Postal Service and other Federal military and civilian personnel for contributions by recognized agencies as authorized under Executive Order 12353, of March 23, 1982.

(2) Solicitations and other actions which are prohibited by paragraph (h)(1) of this section when conducted on Postal Service property should not be directed by mail or telephone to postal employees on Postal Service property. The Postal Service will not accept or distribute mail or accept telephone calls directed to its employees which are believed to be contrary to paragraph (h)(1) of this section.

(3) Leafleting, distributing literature, picketing, and demonstrating by members of the public are prohibited in lobbies and other interior areas of postal buildings open to the public. Public assembly and public address, except when conducted or sponsored by the Postal Service, are also prohibited in lobbies and other interior areas of postal building open to the public.

(4) Voter registration. Voter registration may be conducted on postal premises only with the approval of the postmaster or installation head provided that all of the following conditions are met:

(i) The registration must be conducted by government agencies or nonprofit civic leagues or organizations that operate for the promotion of social welfare but do not participate or intervene in any political campaign on behalf of any candidate or political party for any public office.

(ii) Absolutely no partisan or political literature may be available, displayed, or distributed. This includes photographs, cartoons, and other likenesses of elected officials and candidates for public office.

(iii) The registration is permitted only in those areas of the postal premises regularly open to the public.

(iv) The registration must not interfere with the conduct of postal business, postal customers, or postal operations.

(v) The organization conducting the voter registration must provide and be responsible for any equipment and supplies.

(vi) Contributions may not be solicited.

(vii) Access to the workroom floor is prohibited.

(viii) The registration activities are limited to an appropriate period before an election.

(5) Except as part of postal activities or activities associated with those permitted under paragraph (h)(4) of this section, no tables, chairs, freestanding signs or posters, structures, or furniture of any type may be placed in postal lobbies or on postal walkways, steps, plazas, lawns or landscaped areas, driveways, parking lots, or other exterior spaces.

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Oh, that's not all. In the parking lot of the post office, There were people campaigning for one Kesha Rogers. Now Kesha is one interesting nut job. Of course, she's from Texas. Kesha is running as a Democrat who has compared President Obama to Hitler and wants him impeached. She has alienated her own party, but has become the darling of the local Tea Party. Apparently they don't care that she's a Democrat, they just love the whole "impeach Obama" message.

(Yes, that is the Post Office building right behind them.)

Here's a piece about her: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/11/kesha-rogers-texas-democrat-obama_n_1873476.html

She claims to be a delegate for Lyndon LaRouche, and if you don't know who he is, read this: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/longterm/cult/larouche/main.htm

Here's the deal, folks: President Obama has done nothing that's actually impeachable. Nothing. Don't you think the GOP would be all over that if there were indeed any factual evidence to impeach? And this sign says that if she is elected, "Obama is finished." How, exactly? You're running as a Democrat trying to impeach a Democratic President without any factual reason why. Your own party wants nothing to do with you. 

In other words, you're making a complete fool of yourself.

Now my issue isn't so much with the complete looney toon that is Ms. Rogers, my issue is that all of this happened on government property and no one seemed to have an issue with it. When things like this start to be accepted, where does it end? I find it abhorrent that the hatred and fear of President Obama can reach such ridiculous levels, and I find it disgusting that it is allowable for him to be completely disrespected in such a terrible way. Where does the Hitler comparison even come from? 

Can't we just stop with the fear-mongering and get back to making this country great again? Honestly, I hate the party system. There should never be an "us vs. them" mentality. We're all in this together.