Dean Esmay comments on why he’s no longer a Democrat:

[...] Has Bush done everything to my liking? Hell no. But right now, Democrats simply have nothing to offer that anyone who isn’t a Bush-hater can take seriously. Who they can take them seriously? They have no ideas, no major proposals, no vision–just like the stale, idea-free Gore campaign in 2000 (“lockbox?” Give me a break.)

All the the Democrats are is the “we’re not Republicans, and George Bush is bad” party. Great. You go on and have fun with that, guys. The rest of us have actual issues we’re worried about, for both today and the future.

Watching Howard Dean and his hoarde in particular obsess over everything Bush does, as if every inconsistency or disagreement is a “lie” or “incompetence” also just repulses me. I like Bush the man, I admire his leadership, and even if I don’t always agree with everything he says or does, I believe in him and his people.

Some people want to call me an “ideologue” and a “right winger” now just because of all that. I for one, don’t get it. I’m still a liberal if anyone asks me. But so far as I’m concerned, “Bush lied! Bush is stupid! Bush is evil! Bush screwed up!” and ranting about the Fox News Channel is not a political position. It’s a twitch.

Read the entire essay.

Suffice it to say, Dean’s reasons closely parallel my own, with the exception that my disgust with the Democrats came to a head after the 2000 presidential election.

Over time, my views have become more individualistic, where I now see things in a different light and develop my own positions on issues. For example: I used to oppose school choice; now I support it, not because I want public schools to fail, but because I believe that parents should a greater say in securing the best education possible for their children. When schools are made accountable and competitive, the quality of education will improve across the board. Sadly, the Democrats fail to see the vision due to the political blinders of the NEA and the AFT (who IMHO oppress educators instead of empowering them).

I could go on with more examples, but I’d rather have you read Dean’s essay. Now.