Turn to the person next to you and ask them why they are voting for the person they are supporting in this election. Odds are you will hear a lot about why they are voting against the other guy, or against a man who is almost out of office. This is because most Americans are blindly aligned with one party over the other, all the while filled with disgust for the opposing party. They seek out any media that will support their skewed view of the world, and surround themselves with like-minded people. These people are no longer free thinkers. They are told what to think and when to think it, when they should be happy, and when they should be outraged.

Sadly (for my brain come election time) this isn't who I am. My name is Kody, and I am a man without a party. I represent what is left of the free thinker in a modern society. You see, I am a fiscal conservative and a social liberal all rolled up into one. I want a smaller government. I want less government spending and I want lower taxes. I am also in favor of gay marriage, concerned about our environment and in favor of legalizing drugs.

Clearly America's war on drugs and gays is a colossal failure and a money pit. My reasoning is this: First, by legalizing the drugs, you make them safer, eliminate the money flow to gangs (think prohibition and the mafia) and provide a much needed boost to the economy from the revenue they generate and from the cutting of wasteful government spending. As far as gay marriage goes, it's simply an issue of equal rights. Just like being a woman or a minority, nobody gets to pick and choose when to be born gay. We claim all men and women have equal rights and protection under the law, and it's time we act accordingly.

Just to be clear, neither Presidential candidate nor party is in favor of my social agenda (outside of caring about the environment.) So my social side has to find a compromise. In theory, the Democratic Party is the better of the two when it comes to a fair social policy and the environment, but you may have noticed little to no difference in this election cycle between the parties. Sure there are minor differences in drilling for domestic oil, but only on how many miles out the drilling can be done. So with under a month to go until the election, my social side is conflicted.

Then there is the issue of my fiscally conservative side. Historically the Republicans have been the party of smaller government and lower taxes. We elect them to essentially stay out of our lives (other than the bedroom of course.) Sure John McCain has made a career of cutting pork, but he has done little to stop the over the top of spending going on under President Bush these last 8 years. To put it into perspective for you, Democrat Bill Clinton was far and away, more of a fiscal conservative than George W. Bush. John McCain supported George Bush over 90% of the time. My fiscal side is conflicted.

So with both sides now conflicted, I need to weigh my options. Let's see…vote Republican, vote Democrat or vote a third party. Many of you have probably been screaming "Vote 3rd party!!!" while reading this, but I'm not prepared to be part of a voting block whose best possible scenario is breaking 3% in the General Election (I'm not a "moral victory" kind of person after all). So that leaves me voting for one of the two major party candidates, knowing full well that I disagree with both of them on some major, deal-breaking issues. One (or more) of them will likely increase the size of government (maybe even socializing health care in the process), and raise my taxes, while neither seems to support my social agenda. Come election time, I will be forced to compromise my integrity once again to cast my vote. My only hope is that before the election comes, someone brings me a yard sign so I can stop thinking for myself.

My name is Kody, and I am a man without a party.

Kody Fox