A Message To Those In The Selfish Party

     The 2016 presidential campaign season has just begun, four candidates have thrown their hats into the ring with many more to come. The Republican voter has a luxury of choices this time around, with many young, principled candidates, and yet the purists are already beginning to set themselves up to boycott the election if their favorite does not receive the nomination. This selfish and childish expression of dissatisfaction with not getting one's way use to be closely and almost exclusively associated with grade schoolers, but has in recent years become a virtual political Party unto itself.
     I have not made up my mind as to who I will support in the primaries, but I do know that I will support the Republican nominee in the general election. Because even my least favorite candidate in the primaries will be superior to Hillary Clinton or any other Democrat being bandied about as a possible choice. And after all, is not selecting the best candidate, who has a chance of winning, out of those running the intended purpose of voting?
     I know that those in the Selfish Party have a problem with allowing what is good to succeed when what is perfect has been eliminated. And those in the Selfish Party refuse to extricate themselves from their temper tantrum of staying home on election day, or just as useless, voting for a third party candidate. The Selfish Party stands on its principles, even if those principles are fed by the defeat of reason and maturity. Those like the Selfish Party who do not vote based on not wanting someone to win who holds only 60% of their values, by their absence at the polls are supporting a candidate who may hold none of their values.
     My imploration of those in the Selfish Party is this: Work hard in the primaries to elect your candidate as the nominee. But if you lose, pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and vote for the good of your country and for the continuation of Liberty. Not participating because your candidate was not chosen to represent you is not standing on principle, it is just the opposite. Were John McCain and Mitt Romney my choice for president in 2008 and 2012 respectively? Of course not. But do I think with all their faults and moderate views that had either of them become president things would be immeasurably better in this country today? Of course they would.
     If you have identified yourself as a member of the Selfish Party, please reconsider and join the rest of maturation in the world of voting for the candidate that best reflects your values, not sitting out because none of the candidates reflect all your values. If you use the latter as your yard stick for whom to vote, you will most probably never vote again. In which case you will have allowed your principles to disenfranchise you from the political process.