ANDRES: Off-center?

While I agree that the "wooing to the middle" strategy is a misunderstanding of independent voters, to say that independents are partisan because the process they participate in is partisan also misses the point of why most independents declare themselves independent. As an independent activist who talks to many independents daily, what I find most annoying is that these so-called "categories" which define how independents think (conveniently created by those who prop up the 2-party process) fail to address the enormous discontent with the political process and partisanism that most independents express, despite the fact that we participate in that process anyway (What else is there to do other than marginalize oneself?) In some ways, it's why the political pundits always find themselves out of step with the changing political landscape. Gwen www.independentvoting.org

My brother in North Carolina recently switched his registration from Republican to Independent. He is entirely disgusted with the Republican Party's moves away from conservatism and toward bigger government. But he certainly still "leans" Republican. The problem for McCain, is my independent brother is talking about voting for Bob Barr because his real leaning is toward conservative principles. The more the Republican party moves away from conservative principles, the more independents will move away from them. Andres is absolutely correct in his column.

The problem with understanding independent voters is exactly like Andres says it is. We are an amorphous blob of differing opinions and the only thing we all have in common that neither party represents ours. If for a moment, however, we could eliminate that two-party mentality, we might be able to see the real political landscape a little clearer. At the moment, at least six political parties would emerge with six very different ideas about how this country should be run. Take me for example. I'm in the middle at times and on the left or on the right at others. Today, I might be called a flip-flopper, but I'm proud to say that I am a real descendent of the "patriots" who assisted George Washington, not the book version. When it was beneficial for them to fight they did, and when it wasn't,like when their crops needed harvesting, they didn't. In other words, like my political ancestors, my views change with my needs. For example: when I was a very independent small businessman I was reasonably right wing. I hated unions and big government alike because they almost bankrupted me. Yet I also hated big business because they were my unfair competition who, in my opinion, the government always gave preferential treatment to while they robbed me blind. Now that I'm no longer in business and on a scale from one to ten, one being poor and ten being Bill Gates, I'm probably a -5, I tend to be more left wing. Still, neither party fits either my current needs or my somewhat eclectic political philosophies (think of me as a Barry Goldwater/Ralph Nader hybrid). So believe it, trying to figure out people like me (and there are many of us out there)can't be accomplished by using the idiotic polling devices brain-dead PHDs concoct. There are too many ways for us to fall between the crevices.