A Conservative Rant

I am a gun-totting lifetime NRA member. I am a single white male. I am a Christian. I am your stereotypical right-wing conservative. I am actually quite shy and quiet. But, I listen to Rush Limbaugh and read Ann Coulter articles. I smoke cigars and get an unusual sense of relief watching Fox News. I have never smoked pot. I am pro-life and I will never vote for a candidate who isn't. I love and strongly believe in America, traditional values, the Constitution, and the Founding Fathers; and I consider that love to be reasonable, not blind or narrow-minded.

I am disgusted with Hollywood for their political influence, and I loathe those in my 20-something generation that have bought into the liberal bias of university professors and the media. I love the military, not just because they're doing what they think is right, but because they are Americans fighting in a long historic battle to maintain American freedom.

I think every U.S. citizen should own a gun and know how to use it. Every child should learn to work with their hands and learn what humans are capable of. I believe every parent should teach their child how to use a weapon when needed, how to stay married, how to stick up for what's right, and how to apologize and take responsibility.

I think the movements against "intolerance" and "hate" are the bullshit leftovers of hippie propaganda. I think we need a little more intolerance and a lot more hate, and we need a hell of a lot more common sense than both of those combined. I think the confederate flag still deserves honor and respect because it stood for more than just slavery. I think a country ruled by its citizens should have nuclear weapons, while dictatorships should not.

I think those who want to protect "Mother Nature" will have a hard time defending it from people like me and from human influence, change, and evolution. I shoot deer and donate more money to animal and habitat protection agencies than every liberal I know. I trust corporate America more than PETA, the NAACP, and the ACLU combined.

I believe in gender roles: men are supposed to do certain tasks, women are supposed to do others. I think men are oppressed in this country. I think feminism started because women have a harder time acting as counterparts than men do. I believe women have a harder time submitting to men than men have in submitting to women. Feminists not only ignore this fact, they snub at it so as to ignore further maturity and responsibility as respectable female citizens.
I hope I frustrate every loud-mouthed liberal. I will probably never be seen on television. Never be seen in a picket-line. Never teach on a college campus. I'll probably never even convert a liberal. Nobody will probably ever think exactly like I do.

But, come November 2008, I WILL VOTE. And if I have it my way, Iraq will be the next Germany, the Middle East the next Europe, and we'll be competing with both with our Alaskan oil.

The time for honoring yourself will soon be at an end

It's nearing midnight, but I can't sleep. So, I thought I'd blog about something I was reminded of at church this past Sunday.

This deep thought came during worship, which seems to be the way these thoughts come to me. Most worship songs have something in them about "exalting" God or lifting Him up or something to that effect. Well, whenever I've been away for a long time, I get reminded of why "exalting" is so important. There's something about exalting or honoring or glorifying God that just strikes deep with who I am. Do you ever get that too?

I think that when I'm away for a while I start to just naturally honor or "glorify" myself. Usually it starts with just a self-esteem or loneliness thing, but it ends up being something I'm really wanting for myself. I really can daydream with the best of 'em. I always wanted to be some kind of hero/savior/idol of someone or something. In at least half of the movies I watch I imagine myself in one of the better roles. I even imagine my friends or the people I know seeing me doing some absolutely brilliant thing and be utterly shocked that I could do such a thing.

That's how I am when I'm not worshipping. But when I'm worshipping, or even at least around worship, I get the most distinct impression that I'm doing what I'm supposed to be doing. It's like I'm exactly where I am needed and where I belong, like I SHOULDN'T be doing anything more. It feels so damn good. I don't feel the pressure of needing to be better or earn my praise or wanting to belong.

What's even more weird, and in the more intense times, is when I get the impression that God is thoroughly pleased with me when I'm there. It's like I'm doing EVERYTHING right. It's ridiculously comforting, much more than I can say in words. I really wish I could feel that way all the time, but like I said, I just tend to try to honor myself when I'm not around true worship.

So, throughout the week I'll continue to daydream, watch movies, listen to music and hope that one day I'll be the world's best guitar playing singing comedian who knows jujitsu and can decipher the world's most complex problems. But, maybe next Sunday I'll get more relief from that crap.

Being Single

Let me first say that being single is a blessing from God and can be much worse that we make it. And secondly, being single is one of the hardest challenges anyone can face. I’ve come to realize that there are many others in my boat, erhm… we’re in our own boats, but at least we’re floating adrift on the same ocean. And in spite of hearing about how many nice fish there are in the sea, we can’t help but feel lonely.

So, without going into too much depressing detail, here’s three rather unhealthy single thoughts I’ve had in the past few weeks:

“What the hell is wrong with me?” – The ol’ insecurity loophole. Relationship challenged? Issues? Hair? Car? :) Often disguised as genuine reflection, this statement comes in various perspectives and flavors, all sticky with self-pity. The only thing missing is the feeling of being loved by another, but when no one is there, we try to solve the problem ourselves by asking ourselves this question. Shrinks call this “bargaining.” When the cause of the pain is still up for debate, we don’t have to feel it quite as much.

“Why did I break up with my last girlfriend?” – Sure, now you ask. You didn’t count on this, didja? Once I had someone who made me feel better, but now that she’s gone, I don’t feel as good anymore. For some reason, my memory gets very clouded when this thought comes. On two occasions I’ve gone back to the old girlfriend, which instantly cured the memory problem of why we were no longer together. Either that, or she was with someone else. In either case, escaping this trap requires performing one of the most difficult virtues: remembering the truth.

“How do I get the type of wife my friends have?” It sounds bad, I know. I’m not scoping out my friends’ wives. I’m jealous of the relationship they have. Notice, I went right to “wife” not “girlfriend.” Because, ah ha!, I want the life partner, not a hopeful. I’ve already thought about the type of girl I want to end up with, all I need to do is find her. And despite everyone telling me it’s “God timing,” (funny how the people who say that are MARRIED), I can’t help but feel somewhat neglected. And that’s really all it is. There really isn’t anything to figure out. No magical method. No need for extra charm or sweet smelly stuff. Sort of like looking for a treasure without a map, you should probably keep looking for the treasure rather than start looking for the map.

The hardest thing about being single for me is being around Marrieds. Don’t misunderstand, I love my friends. But Marrieds, especially new Marrieds, are ridiculous to talk to about being single. My favorite bit of advice from a Married is this: “You need to be content with singleness before you enter into marriage.” Bullshit. If this is true, why did you get married? Apparently they weren’t content with being single, either.

Anyway, that's my rant. Most times I enjoy myself as a bachelor. There's so much freedom! It's just that, occasionally, there's too much freedom.

I'm back

Hello internet, I'm back!
For those who don't know, I was in Army training for the past five months. There is very little to say about it now, except that I'm glad it's over. I came away with a few awards and many proud moments. And I'm glad it's over.

Since being back, it seems I have a lot of time on my hands. So, between job searching and playing xbox, I'll see if I can post something profound. I am truly happy to be back.