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Stone Williams

Civics

Per. 1

23 October, 2017

Political Party Essay

In Americas current political system, there are many political parties try to have their

influence and beliefs be achieved in the government. The two main parties are the Democratic

and Republican Party with other smaller parties like the Libertarian, Green, and Constitution

Party. Theres even an Independent Party, for individuals who feel their beliefs dont align to a

single party. With that being said, politics and political parties are heavily rooted in America and

its government. After looking through different parties, I found that my personal beliefs aligned

more with the Libertarian Party than any other political party. I mainly came to this conclusion

after taking the I Side With Quiz and found out I related more to the ideals of Gary Johnson and

the Libertarian Party than any of the other candidates of the 2016 election. Some of the issues

that Libertarians and myself feel strongly about is the governments influence on Science,

Domestic Policy, and Foreign Policy.

To Gary Johnson and the Libertarian Party, Science is an important issue to them. The

things I mostly agree with the Libertarian Party on are situations towards space and labeling

foods that contain GMOs. The situation is whenever the government should have an influence

in new influences in science. For myself, I really believe that the government should help fund

space travel. I simply feel that space is really the way to go in terms of the future. Simply, we

should explore the galaxy and universe around us and any funding the government can provide

should go towards NASA or any programs funding space travel. I guess this has been influence

by watching things like Star Wars, Star Trek, and my overall fascination with space. Especially

with something like Star Trek, I love the idea of exploring galaxies and distant planets and going

on this trek to discover the universe. I just believe that people should be heading to that future
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and we should inspire to be ambitious and such. The Libertarian Party feels the same way as

well, believing the government should help support programs. Furthermore, both myself and

Libertarians believe the government should require food producers to label GMOs. Simply,

people should know what is being put in the food they are eating. I cant really put faith in food

producers to insure that what they say is in their products is actually what is in there. However,

some things that I disagreed with the party on were their thoughts on nuclear energy and

requiring vaccinations. They believe that the government should invest in nuclear energy and

that the government shouldnt require children to be vaccinated. Personally, environmental

issues mean very much to me and I want the government to find alternative forms of energy. In

that sense, I would align more with the Green Party on environmental issues. As for requiring

children to be vaccinated, I said that the state should determine if children should be vaccinated.

The Federal Government shouldnt be in control of that.

Gary Johnson and the Libertarian Party also believe that people and business should

have freedom in regards to domestic policies. I mostly agree with the Libertarian Party on

domestic issues. For example, myself and the Libertarian Party highly opposed the Patriot Act,

as we see this as a violation of an individuals privacy. The government should have a control

and monitor over your private life. Really, this should only be done in cases where there is

probable cause and laws should be put forth to prevent any monitoring against normal citizens.

We also believe that drug use should be decriminalized. I myself believe that soft drugs should

be decriminalized, while the Libertarian party believes that all drug use should be

decriminalized. I say soft drugs, like marijuana, should be decriminalized because if people

want to get a sensation that doesnt directly harm others, they are allowed to. However, really

harmful drugs that can potentially damage others like heroin and methamphetamine should be

illegal outright. Furthermore, both myself and the Libertarian Party believe that an independent

and nonpartisan commission should control re-drawings of Congressional districts. Mainly, the

Libertarian party thinks that by having an independent commission would prevent

gerrymandering in elections. For myself, I just believe that having an independent, nonpartisan

commission would insure that there would as genuine and objective as possible. However, a

issue I heavily disagree with the Libertarian Party on, is if internet providers should be allowed

to speed up access to popular websites while less popular websites have slower access. I

heavily am in opposition to this idea, and I am a firm believer and supporter in Net Neutrality.

The internet should be allowed for anybody to access. The idea of this just reminds me of some

dystopian 1984 world or something along the lines of that, which is why it scares me so much.

I guess what mainly influenced these beliefs in domestic policies is just my belief that individuals

should have their privacy and rights protected. I dont know what led me to feel that way, but its

really the fact that I just dont think the government should control a persons life.

Theres also the fact that Libertarian Party, Gary Johnson, and myself also believed in

foreign policies that the government should stay out of situations. For example, myself and

Libertarians believe that the U.S should decrease military spending and believe to stay out of

foreign situations, like Syria for example. Personally, I hate war and the idea that America is

becoming a war economy. Even though it may be too late, I would just like to see some

attempt as to trying to get peace. To me, the step in the right direction would to decrease

military spending and to stay out of foreign situations. Another example is if the military should

use torture on suspected terrorists. Libertarians mainly felt that torture is an ineffective form of

interrogation. Personally, I believe torture is against the 8th amendment and immoral,

regardless of who the person is. While I acknowledge that some suspected terrorists who arent

Americans arent applied towards in the Bill of Rights, I feel that if we want to represent that we

cherish these values, we should apply them towards everyone. This is an issue that Libertarians

and myself disagree on however. A majority of Libertarians think that suspected terrorists

shouldnt be given Constitutional rights, whereas I think they should be given constitutional

rights. Again, I do acknowledge that most suspected terrorists arent Americans and technically

cant be held to the same standards as American citizens. I just believe that America should be
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the bigger man and give suspected terrorists a fair trial. It would show the world that we truly

believe and uphold our values and that everyone will be treated fair.

The Declaration of Independence states We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all

men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights,

that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness. Particularly what stands out to

me is the Pursuit of Happiness. The Pursuit of Happiness is defined as the freedom to pursue

joy and live life the way that makes the individual in question happy, as long as you dont violate

other peoples rights and their own happiness. Really, I think thats the basis of my ideology.

People should do whatever they want as long as they dont hurt anyone, and the government

should be there to protect your happiness. At the end of the day, the quiz made me realize that

my beliefs on government influence towards Science, Domestic Policy, and Foreign Policy align

with the Libertarian Party and Gary Johnson. We should fund space travel and have food

producers label foods with GMOs, protect American citizens rights by letting them live the life

they choose, and leave America out of foreign affairs.