Thank goodness for moderates. Why aren’t we allowed to exist anymore? Why must we fall into camps on every issue? I’m a moderate on most things. For example, abortion is a difficult and divisive issue. Since we live in a free country that puts individuals first, the decision to abort has to be made by individuals who will live with the consequence. Does that make me “pro-choice”? Not really. I would never counsel anyone to have an abortion, but I recognize it’s a point on which reasonable people can differ, and our country is about freedom.

Similarly, I support Israel. It is a vibrant democracy with an open and free press that is often critical of the government. It grants rights to citizens, whether male, female, arab, Jew, gay or straight. It allows Supreme Court petitions from non-citizen Palestinians that often come out in favor of the Palestinians. It has led the world in medical advances, research and humanitarian charity. Does my support of Israel brand me a conservative or zionist?

So congratulations on your “parting” Charles, but really the most disappointing thing is that you or anyone else felt that you were “affiliated” with the right or left in the first place. There is a political spectrum and a hell of a lot of us really belong in the center. Our two-party system, for all its strengths, compels us to choose sides. How unfortunate.