Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont has been catching on with millennials. Now, I have written about why I don't "Feel the Bern" before, but I really feel it needs repeating. No matter how much I hear or read regarding his campaign, I absolutely will not support Bernie Sanders for a few reasons.

*Note: An important caveat in regards to reading this article, "force" in this article does not refer to imagery that is often conjured up. "Force" in this article in now way refers to armed action and coercion in order to achieve an end.

1) Attitudes on gun control

Bernie has been a strong proponent of "common sense" gun legislation. He has expanded on this further to say, "we need to make sure that certain types of guns used to kill people, exclusively, not for hunting, they should not be sold in the United States of America." There are some problems with with this though. First, there is the Second Amendment. Let's look at the language of the Second Amendment:

"A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."

I suggest Bernie reads that again. He has said on multiple occasions an AR-15 is not needed for hunting. While that is technically true, the Second Amendment was not written in case deer turned on the American people. Sanders' desire to ban guns that are not for hunting extends to handguns. Assuming a ban on handguns went through (which is unlikely), this would make it near impossible for Americans to defend themselves. Most statistics will say that much of the gun violence in America is because of handguns, but these statistics will often include suicides, which hardly indicate real gun violence.

The major problem with this ban too is that there is this belief that guns are inherently evil. This simply isn't true. A gun in and of itself CANNOT kill someone. But the problems lie in two major areas: 1) Responsible ownership and maintenance is not taught. 2) Individuals who lie on background check forms are not prosecuted, something Vice-President Joe Biden admitted to. For anyone who is not aware, lying on this form is punishable by up to 10 years in prison.

I do not own firearms at the present moment, but I know how to use them responsibly and intend to pass this knowledge on to my own family. Now I don't anticipate any problems, but if I have a daughter and she meets a guy that doesn't treat her right, I want her to know how to defend herself because a restraining order is just a piece of paper.

2) Attitudes on third parties

Historically, Bernie Sanders has been an independent; however, this election he chose to run as a Democrat. He then came out to say that the two-party system hurts competition. Um....Bernie? You didn't run as a Democrat until now? The fact that you are now affiliating yourself with a party makes your statements about the two-party system the definition of hypocritical. Furthermore, the demonization of Republicans has shown his hypocrisy in regards to dealing with partisan politics and, as a result, I have a hard time believing he is devoted to real reform instead of pushing the agenda of a political party.

3) Believes climate change has anything to do with terrorism

It really bothers me that Bernie takes such a strong defense of the claim that climate change is directly related to the growth of terrorism. Mostly because it is not true. Now I'm not saying that climate change isn't real; I'm just saying that it does little to contribute to the rise of terrorism. With all due respect, terrorism has been around for a while and for a lot of the same reasons. Senator Sanders needs to be clued into the fact that religious extremism does more to contribute to the rise of terrorism than climate change. This belief could put the United States in a fairly compromising position.

4) I think he lacks the spine to wage war

Now I am a non-interventionist and mostly oppose war, but there are times when war is perfectly legitimate. When that time comes (and it will), I don't think Bernie Sanders will have the convictions necessary. The plan Bernie has to take on ISIS isn't good enough. In addition to this, Bernie has supported the airstrikes against ISIS, which have arguably done more harm than good.

5) I have read an economics book

I know what a lot of you are thinking, and NO I'm not going to say it's just a stepping stone to communism. Socialism (even "democratic socialism) is the economic philosophy of envy. I AM going to give some indictments on the Robin Hood Tax, the tax on Wall Street speculation and so-called "tuition free college".

First, the Robin Hood Tax. It's basically taking from the rich and giving to the poor. Although this is a misnomer; Robin Hood did not steal from the rich and give to the poor, he stole from the government and gave back to those who were unfairly taxed. Looking at the content of it though, it is still wrong to "redistribute" wealth. To quote the great philosopher Thomas Sowell, "What is your fair share of what someone else has worked for?" Apparently this is supposed to lead to tuition free college. Even if it does, that is not really a good idea. I have been highly vocal in the past on Bernie's remarks that the only alternative to college education was prison. I have taken particular issue to this, as it is simply not true. Mr. Sanders assumes the worst of Americans here. There are a lot of jobs, specifically within infrastructure, that do not require a college degree. If everyone has degrees in medicine and law, who will be the police officers, firefighters, etc.

A side note on this point: I really wish Sanders supporters would stop demonizing capitalism. Capitalism did not destroy the American economy. Your true enemy in this respect is corporatism.

6) Attitudes on crime

It actually bothers me (borderline offends me) Bernie Sanders believes that poverty is the only cause of crime. I think a lot of people look at the world through rose-colored glasses and gloss over the fact that there are just evil people, not just in America, but in the world. Poverty is NOT the only cause of crime. If that were true, there would be even MORE people in overcrowded prisons. This simplistic analysis of crime also conveniently leaves out white-collar crime including, but not limited to, securities fraud.

For full disclosure: In regard to police and prison reform, as well as ending the war on drugs, they are one of the few platforms I agree with him on. However, I wish he, and politicians in general, would do more to condemn violence against police officers.

7) Against Congressional term limits

The president is limited to two terms (or eight years) in office. Congress has no such standard. Senator Sanders has also come out against such a standard. Being that he has been in elected office for 32 years, why would he be? It is a matter of public record he never really held a job until he was mayor of Burlington, Vermont. Ever since, he has been a staunch defender of the welfare state. The fact that many have held office for even 20-plus years puts our country in a dangerous position. "Politicians are like diapers: they need to be changed frequently and for the same reason." (Man of the Year, 2006)

8) Healthcare

Bernie Sanders helped write the Affordable Care Act. He talks about this like it is a good thing. This goes along with typical Bernie Sanders philosophy--force. The ACA forced Americans to go to the government to buy health insurance as they risked a monetary punishment if they didn't. A bit anecdotal, but as far as my experience with the ACA, when I first applied I was a healthy 22-year-old with no dependents. I didn't smoke, I didn't drink and I looked at the lowest tier I possibly could (to avoid the penalty). I was STILL paying $161 PER MONTH for insurance. When I had to renew, the same plan was roughly $275 per month for THE SAME PLAN. And this is completely overlooking the "you can keep your doctor" lie. Government cannot determine the market, and when there is only a monopoly in terms of healthcare, there is no incentive to provide a quality product. There is no competition to spur improvement. There is not a problem with healthcare that cannot be solved by the free market.

9) Panders to overly PC culture

Not really current events, but after what happened at the University of Missouri-Columbia, we saw Bernie pander to the people arguing in favor of Missouri. Not to say systemic racism doesn't happen, but everything that happened at Missouri was blown out of proportion from a false narrative. This event also led to on-campus protests where students and even professors (Melissa Click) attempted to forcibly (physical force IS meant here) limit the First Amendment rights of other people just because they didn't agree with their point of view. A relatively small reason, but it still contributes to why I will not vote for Bernie Sanders.

AND FINALLY.....

...................

20 Trillion more reasons!!!

The national debt currently stands at roughly $19 trillion, with the next president estimated to inherit a $20 trillion debt. This does so much more to damage our national security and our standing as a nation. This debt is a mountain made from the original molehill of government spending. The huge amount of spending proposed by Sanders reminds me of something my dad said. "You can't solve a problem by throwing money at it." This saying applies here. The amount of spending being proposed is not sustainable. There is absolutely no way the United States of America can act as a powerhouse in any respect from a bankruptcy court.

A lot of people might look at this and think I have some kind of personal problem with Bernie Sanders, but that could not be further from the truth. I don't believe Bernie has bad intentions. Quite to the contrary. I actually admire his intentions. My issue with Bernie though is how he wants to go about it. I believe people should give out of the compassion in their heart. THAT is true charity. It is compassionate to give out of our own wallets, from our surplus, but it is not compassionate when it is forcibly removed from the individual. People should not and cannot be legislated from prosperity to poverty and vise-versa. Nor can you legislate morality, which is a problem a lot of politicians like to make. I have no enmity with Bernie Sanders as a person, but I do with his ideas.