Now, before I begin this article I'm going to start by saying that NO I'm not trying to force any political views down your throat (quite frankly, I really don't care what your political views are), I'm just here to talk about why it's kind of antiquated and odd that we are expected to pledge our allegiance to a single party and their viewpoints.

I'm not sure if it's just me, but I find this to be a strange way to go about this. Why generalize groups of people, and assume that hey if they're a Democrat they believe so and so, or if they're a Republican they believe this and that. I think that this way of thinking only promotes tension and an excuse for people to dislike or even bash the other party.

Get this: In some states (including New York), during the primaries, you can only vote within the party you are registered to... OOOOOOK, but what if I don't exactly like any of the people in my so-called party this time around? Does this mean my vote or my voice do not matter? Well, in the primaries, that's kind of what they're saying.

I think that if we got rid of this two party system, and actually let people vote their conscience (which many people already do) without a label, things could go about much smoother. I get there is an algorithm behind this and some sort of logic, but all I'm saying is this —

Just because someone is a Republican/Democrat doesn't mean they believe in everything their party is said to believe in. I personally find myself to be more liberal in regards to social issues (LGBTQ issues, abortion, etc.) but more fiscally conservative (pretty much all the money stuff)... So it's kind of hard to be registered to a specific party, then feel like I'm being stereotyped into the negatives of that said party, when in fact, that's exactly the stuff I don't agree with!

All in all, maybe someone out there can come up with a better, less label-oriented way of going about voting and politics. We are all entitled to our opinions and all have very different ways of thinking, and I think those differences should be celebrated, rather than be "forced" to pick between two options. So before you go out and Facebook bash your Democrat or Republican friend, realize that they have their own unique thoughts and viewpoints, and they might not align with yours completely, but that doesn't mean they align with their parties completely either.

So everyone, get out there and vote for who YOU think should be in office, not just who your party thinks should be.