I am a registered Democrat, but I really consider myself an independent. I have, in the past, been registered as a Republican (blasphemy, I know, but I wanted to vote in the NJ Gubernatorial primary a decade or so back because they had a more interesting field of candidates.).

I try to keep an open mind and I try to pick the best person for the job regardless of party.  Since the Republicans have turned to the Dark Side, I can no longer consider any of them.

After the whole Geraldine Ferraro mess, I wrote the following letter to send to my Senators (Lautenberg and Menendez) and my Congressional Rep. (Steve Rothman).  I thought I'd share it here.

I think we can all agree that something must be done about our flawed election system.  The states rights folks will probably be up in arms about this, but when it comes to national elections (president, senators and congressional representatives) we need a national standard.  Every person, in every district and in every state MUST vote on the same type of equipment, and in the same manner.  The balloting must be transparent and it must be verifiable.

Here is what I propose:

A while ago, I heard someone say that Democrats fall in love with their candidates, while Republicans fall in line.  As distasteful as it may be, 2008 is the year Democrats need to pull this page from the Republican playbook.  This year we need to set love aside.  This year we must fall in line.

It seems like no matter what the subject of the diaries I read here, the comments invariably include a few that tout a particular candidate.  Those comments, in turn, attract comments from the other candidate's supporters who feel it necessary to defend their choice.  As the battle over who is the best rages, the dropouts show up.  

"If (fill in the blank) wins the nomination, I'm voting for Nadar (or worse McCain)," they shout.  Or perhaps they pout, cross their arms over their chest, and declare, "Well, if (fill in the blank) wins the nomination, I'm staying home!"  The sheer number of these responses concerns me deeply, very deeply.