For my entire adult life I was either a registered Conservative or Republican. I chose such an affiliation because the ideals of the Republican Party were traditionally very close to my personal beliefs. I have always been desirous of small government, low taxes, and an environment conducive to the pursuit of personal happiness. With the unfortunate emphasis placed upon a two party system in our country I had no choice but to side with the Republicans to satisfy those desires.

As time went on I found this to be a very poor decision. Over a period of time less than a decade in length that began in the mid-90s, the Republican Party made a very startling transformation from the party of small government to a party that was perpetuating a vastness of politics nearly identical to that of the Democratic Party. Not wanting to be aligned with such a travesty I jumped ship over a year and a half ago. I left the party - and the two party system – becoming a registered member of the Libertarian Party which is much closer to my political philosophy.

Many lifelong Republicans and those who have dabbled in the party’s practices must feel the same way. Reflecting this widespread disinterest, the political scene has changed in ways that were thought impossible just a year ago. In the November election Congress dramatically switched to a Democratic majority after being under the GOP’s rule. In the Empire State the Republicans are just a few legislators away from losing control of the State Senate (in a system that was gerrymandered for their own benefit no less). And, right here at the local level, the Niagara County legislature has been in a constant mode of reinvention in an effort to save the party.

Many political analysts say that the war in Iraq has played a huge role in the party’s downfall. Voters identified the war with the Republican Party and GOP incumbents and candidates at all levels of governance were penalized for it this past November. Maybe so, but such analysis tells only part of the story. It can be said as well that many true-blue - or more fittingly, true-Red-State – GOP supporters experimented with the casting of a Democratic vote because they, like me, felt disenfranchised by their traditional party. The Republican leaders abandoned them by moving away from their ideals.

This wandering from core values is best exemplified by overblown government spending. Despite having a president who is labeled as a "Conservative", federal spending has gone through the roof, the national debt now standing at a mind-numbing $8.8 trillion. New York suffered under a Republican governor (Pataki) whose lack of fiscal sense seems to have rubbed off on his peers as, this year, the NY Senate offered a budget higher than that of the Democratic Assembly and Governor Spitzer. And, here in Niagara County, a republican-led legislature has helped us to garner the unwanted title of the highest-taxed county in the United States.

A key indicator of this ongoing collapse is the suffering of American businesses. The economy is moving along quite well, but (and this is a big "but") from 2003 to 2006 - which was a period under the Republican’s watch - America’s cost disadvantage versus its major trading partners grew from 22% to 32%. This is an amazing development considering that the GOP has always been identified as the party of business.

What comes will all of this aforementioned spending that has hurt the economy are Republican-sponsored programs that are more befitting of the traditional needs of the Democrats. Flashback to the 80s and the Era of Reagan: back then who in all of their wildest dreams would have imagined that one day the GOP would be touting health care, social services, personal bailouts and a Big Brother police state mentality?

They are doing all of that and more right now, making both parties virtually indistinguishable from one another.

This confusion does not bode well for individuals who believe in the ideals that used to be espoused by the Republican Party. What are they to do? Maybe its time that they, like me and many others, abandon two party politics and explore new options, finding a party that actually lives by the core values it speaks of.