This morning I filed the paperwork to officially leave the Republican party. To add “which has been my home for the last 28 years” would be inaccurate; while I’ve been a registered Republican since turning 18, I’ve gradually slid toward the center over time and have voted my conscience rather than just my party much more often than not¹. And while I still consider myself conservative on many issues², the GOP simply doesn’t represent me anymore.

Especially in this state, the Republican Party is the party of hate, of intolerance, of not only making sure you win, but that the other guy gets crushed, and if the less fortunate suffer because of it, well, that’s too bad. It’s the party of euphemisms like “job creators³,” of FOX News and of deliberately slowing down the political process that’s designed to help America so they can make sure everyone else knows how pissed off they are.

Meanwhile, the Democratic Party is the party of comic ineptitude, an inability to get anything done or (most of the time) come up with credible candidates for high national offices, of bleeding hearts⁴, of entitlements and of Keith Olbermann⁵. I can’t go there, either.

So until and unless there’s a viable third party, or until one of the other two starts worrying more about actually doing its job than keeping its job, I’ll be one of a growing number of people considering themselves independent.

I won’t be voting in Arizona’s primary (whenever that is), but it’s a small price to pay.

See ya, GOP. This is one breakup where I can honestly say, “It’s not me. It’s you.”

1 – While I was a Regan Republican from the time I could first vote, I also voted for Clinton and Obama. And, yes, Bush II. Sue me.
2 – I believe in capital punishment, your right to own a handgun and “I want there to be just enough government so that when I turn on the faucet, water comes out,” to steal a line. But I also don’t think you need an AK-47, I think you should be able to marry whoever you like and while I don’t personally smoke marijuana, I’d rather you did that than abuse alcohol. So smoke ‘em if you got ‘em.
3 – Just like liberals like the term “rain forest” instead of “jungle” because white people aren’t going to donate money to save a “jungle,” the GOP has taken to using “job creator” to mean “rich people.”
4 – My dad – like many immigrants – is a bleeding heart liberal (and he’d be the first to tell you that). I accept and respect that a lot more than I used to, even though I can’t go as far to my left as he can.
5 – Whose talent I respect immensely (we once shared an agent), but whose politics and righteous indignation are just too much for me.

The USL Pro season came to a close with an entertaining and exciting final Saturday night that saw Orlando City outlast the Harrisburg City Islanders in a penalty shootout after a 2-2 draw through 120 minutes. Here are the highlights:

It was a heartbreaking loss for the City Islanders, who had finished with the fifth-best overall record in the league but who battled the regular-season champion Lions toe-to-toe for 120 minutes. While it wasn’t necessarily the greatest game ever, it certainly had enough drama and twists and turns for a month’s worth of games. Congratulations to the Lions for being the league’s best team over the course of the season and for drawing over 11,000 fans to the final.

By the way, FOX Soccer is showing the game again Wednesday at 3pm ET, if you want to watch it all.