Progressive sounds like such a nice word. If a politician is a progressive they must want what I want because we all want progress don’t we? That’s where the confusion begins. You don’t have to be a democrat or a republican to be a progressive you just need to adhere to an ideology on what the function of government should be. That is why it is so difficult to identify a progressive unless they tell you they are one like President Obama and Hillary Clinton have done. Progressives have been around for over 100 years and at times they have had famous democrats and republicans among their members including Woodrow Wilson (D), FDR (D), Teddy Roosevelt (R), and William Taft (R). In many ways President George W. Bush was a progressive and so is John McCain. 

So what makes the democrats and republicans different? Often times it is very difficult to make that determination based on their beliefs. The problem we have as voters is that many of us vote based upon what our party affiliations have traditionally been, rather than being knowledgeable of where a politician stands on the issues of importance to each of us. With that said let’s look at what the progressive ideology encompasses.

- Progressives believe the supreme court should decide what is right and wrong based on their morality, cultural trends, and foreign law rather than what our constitution says. Essentially they believe that our original constitution is obsolete and that it is a living and evolving document and the original rights, privileges, and protections are open for analysis and modification.
- Progressives understand what is best for the country when it comes to your tax dollars and how much you pay in taxes. They feel the greater your success is, the more responsibility you have to contribute to those who have less in society. This is better known as redistribution of YOUR WEALTH.
- Progressives believe guns are inherently bad in the hands of the citizenry and there should be severe restrictions on possession and ownership. Isn’t this just another example of the progressive’s attempt to strip the constitution of one of our guaranteed rights?
- Progressives believe that government should be the vehicle for meeting your needs rather than you being personally responsible for your own welfare. They need to take care of us because we aren’t capable.
- Progressives believe that it is their responsibility to make us better human beings by molding us into what they feel we should be based on THEIR STANDARDS of acceptability.
- Progressives believe that Christianity is a dangerous religious belief and that it MUST BE SUPPRESSED in its influence on society.
- Progressives believe that having access to abortions is a fundamental human right disregarding the RIGHTS OF THE UNBORN CHILD. They save endangered mice but have no respect for the human fetus!

To a progressive, anyone who doesn’t have the same ideological beliefs they do is considered to be uneducated and inferior (i.e., Tea bagger, flat earther, birther, racist, domestic terrorist, or any other derogatory term they can think of.). Ask yourself if your belief structure is similar to that of the progressives regardless of their political ilk. If what they believe is what you believe then read no further you will get what you deserve in due time.

However, if you disagree with what their vision is for your future, you owe it to yourself to do some research on your own to determine where your elected officials stand on these and other issues of importance. 

The founding fathers gave us the governmental infrastructure to correct abuses by our elected officials and the time has come to make your voice heard. It is time to restore our republic to what it was intended to be and to ensure responsibility, accountability, honesty, and the morality of our elected representatives in Lansing and Washington. It is our responsibility as electors to put people in office who represent us and to eliminate the malignant progressive elements that have infested our government at all levels. We must restore the Republic to once again to be, “of the people, by the people, for the people. . .”, not “Of the progressive, by the progressive, for the progressive”.

The 2010 primary and general elections give us a chance to correct the wrongs and put us back on the right path. Send a message to Lansing and Washington that you are not satisfied with what they are doing.

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(Submitted for publication to Owosso Independent, Lainsgburg Independent, Perry Independent, St. Johns/DeWitt Independent, DeWitt/Bath Review, Clinton County News & as a Viewpoint submission to the Lansing State Journal on February 22, 2010)

(Viewpoint submission to the Lansing State Journal denied by the LSJ Editorial  Board)

(Published in the DeWitt/Bath Review on February 28, 2010 and March 21, 2010, The Lainsgburg Independent, Owosso Independent & Perry Independent on Febryary 21, 2010,  St. Johns/DeWitt Informer on February 22, 2010).

