As an independent, I've often wondered why I chose to think outside of the box as opposed to following the seemingly obvious route of group-think. I believe it has more to do with my upbringing which, when it came to politics, was never filtered. My parents taught me that there were principles one should personally have and that I should always follow my personal conscience. As citizens, we need to drop the labels of left or right, Democrat or Republican, and just focus on the direction of thi...