Republibertocrat?

Was having a discussion with a work colleague last week. He asked me what my thoughts were on Putin and his anti gay rhetoric. My colleague is a staunch Republican and conservative. I take care to state both, since I am very aware that not all conservatives are Republicans. So it came as a bit of a shock to him when I said I thought Putin got it wrong on this (and a myriad of other things). And his next question for me was "I thought you were republican (and conservative) are you not?".  Did not know how to answer that, especially since I think a bare chested Putin is 'overcompensating'.

I thought I had a good understanding on the differences between the party platforms and their underlying philosophies. But just in case they updated something that I may have missed, I figured I would hit the ol' search engine to refresh my bearings.

My first stop was the trustworthy site Diffen.com (comparison) and I did a quick test typing in the comparisons between Democrat vs Republican vs Libertarian. And I was depressed by the results. I didn't fit into the classic platform descriptions and attributes.

• Since I am in favor of a flat tax and believe in free market: I am a Republican
• Since I am pro choice and support gay marriage: I am a Democrat
• Believe in individual rights when it comes to tolerance of other people's property, advancement based on individual ability: I am libertarian

and to make matters worse....

Source: http://www.teluguone.com/comedy/content/political-jokes-655-6999.html

• Since I don't believe in taxpayer funding of religious charities: I am little bit Republican
• Don't believe in government regulated economy: you guessed it ...not a Democrat
• Since I actually believe in science and that climate change is not a hoax created by Al Gore and the Nobel committee: I cannot be a Republican

Therein lies the rub. The minute I say I am a Republican or Democrat  (liberal or conservative) a standard set of attributes and positions are automagically assigned to me. What ever happened to taking an issue letting it roll around the old noodle and come up with a position based on what seems right to you. Why the need for the template?

Image Source: http://thedailycannibal.com/2011/11/02/poster-boys/

So I end up being a  Republibertocrat  (or in simplified campaign terms  - the Undecided voter!). I generally lean liberal on social issues and 'somewhat' conservative on fiscal issues. Obviously come election time I am like the photo above-  an 'elephant's ass'!

Wouldn't it be cool to customize your own vote? Hear me out, don't laugh yet....

Here is a potential scenario - What if there were three candidates for the presidency and I was able to allocate my one vote (in parts) to the candidates and I could decide the split based on my stance on the various issues during that election year?

 .....OK maybe you can go ahead and start laughing.

Ah well..this republibertocrat/undecided/independent/liberterioconservative voter can dream!