Approximately three years ago, my father turned on Talk Radio (95.7 FM) in the car and instead of rolling my eyes or inserting my head phones, I actually paid full attention. Ever since then, I have grown more and more conservative (or in my mind- wise) with my political views. But I realize that to have a balanced view point, I must research both sides of every issue before I base my opinions. My research shows that I see eye to eye with the views of the conservative political party and disagree heavily with the liberal and democratic parties. Three particular subjects that confirm my conservative side are the issues of gun control, illegal immigration, and taxes.
Guns have been a part of our American culture from the very origins of our country. The first gun control laws can be found as far back as the early Colonial period which came less than a year after the ratification of the second Amendment in the Bill of Rights. This made guns a controversial issue for the first time and thus began the fight for gun freedom. Liberal and democratic anti-firearm groups argue that by denying citizens the right to all types of assault weapons, the country will have less violence. In my opinion, this is their way of controlling the American people. Gun control laws will not stop criminals from acquiring guns by any means; it will obliterate the independence and self reliance of everyday American citizens until people feel that they can do nothing without government approval- not even protect their families from harm. Conservatives can prove with many examples that gun control laws neither prevent nor reduce crime, but actually increase it. For example, in 1976, Washington D.C. enacted a ban on guns. By 1991, less than twenty years later, D.C.’s homicide rates had tripled. When people feel that their safety is being threatened, they become more willing to take matters into their own hands, and ignore the government laws. Today, 49% of households possess a gun. This statistic merely shows the percentage of households that already own a gun; there are more out there who may not have anything against owning a gun, but have not done so themselves. A few years ago, my family was awaken in the middle of the night by a SWAT team that informed us that one of our neighbors was having a domestic dispute and the husband had a gun so we needed to hide in the basement. I feared for my life that night. I was more afraid that only the husband had a gun. Because only he had a gun, he controlled the entire situation until the SWAT team came to disarm him. Therefore, I believe that those who want a gun for purposes other than protection or recreation will attain a gun without approval from the government. Those of us who follow the law will be the ones punished by gun control laws, and this is one reason I am conservative.
America is known as “the melting pot” for our variety of cultures and races all creating a wonderfully diverse country. However, when people come into our country illegally, and take advantage of our freedoms and benefits, I cannot be supportive. Today there are an estimated five to six million undocumented Mexicans in the American workforce. These jobs are now unavailable to the hard working American families who pay taxes. If it is a crime to break into someone’s home, or steal someone’s personal identity, then why do illegal immigrants escape punishment from sneaking into our country and stealing the right to be identified as legal American citizens? So it is very upsetting to me that only about 34% of Americans think illegal immigrants are taking jobs away from our legal citizens. This statistic shows that people are not being informed on how much illegal immigration is hurting our economy. When Obama ran for president, he appealed to the democrats and leftists by promising comprehensive immigration reform. He did not want to rid America of our illegal immigrants; he just wanted to legalize them so that they would not have to leave. Many people supported his views on this issue. I do not respect a president willing to reward people for breaking into our country. This is another reason why I am a conservative party member; conservatives believe that illegal immigrants should be banished from our country. Jobs are hard to come by these days. I was recently hired at Subway, but it took over a year of waiting. I can now slightly relate to the fear of not having a job because of this, and I do not want to see American families struggling with job loss when there are illegal immigrants stealing our jobs. This is another reason I am a conservative.
Lastly, my views on taxes help identify me as a conservative. In general, 60% of Americans believe that income taxes they themselves pay are fair. However, we need to think about what about the other 40%, such as the top 1% wealthy people who must pay 37% of America’s taxes think. They do not find it fair that their prosperity causes them to pay more taxes for the country. When taxes are cut, everyone is better off. More people invest in the stock market, buy more, and hire more employees for business. If both the wealthy, middle and lower class benefit from tax cuts, why does the wealthy class benefit the least? This is a question that a lot of democrats ignore. I believe that the people making the most money and who provide jobs for America should be rewarded the same tax cuts as the poor. High taxes take away the initiative for Americans to work to their best abilities. Conservatives believe in the least amount of government involvement as possible. We do not want to control every aspect of life because we believe in freedom and free market. The democrats and liberals more often than not have the completely opposite views. They want to tax the rich in order to help the poor. In the long run however, they are killing the competitive spirit of America. I want to be successful in my future, but I do not want to pay an arm and a leg in taxes. I want to see the government being fair with taxes. This is why I side with the conservative party.
I do not believe in a black and white America. There are always certain issues that are based on circumstances and other factors. But when it comes to standing up for what I believe is right, there is no backing down. I am proud to say that I am a complete conservative, and these three issues of gun control, illegal immigration, and taxes helps determine my ideology.
