It’s hard for those of us who have absolutely no trouble whatsoever figuring out how to vote to understand what’s going on in the heads of “the undecideds.” It’s also easy to believe that they’re like the folks in this video, clueless morons distracted by irrelevant issues — and not all that bright.

But an essay* from a retired cop in Jacksonville named Jim Crosby, who’s changed parties several times, shows that not all independents are self-absorbed halfwits. In fact, some of them do a more thorough job of thinking through the issues and making a decision than those of us whose leanings in one direction or the other allow us to get there faster. For proof, read on.

I defected…I changed my voter’s registration from Republican to Democrat.

…For many years, I was registered as a Libertarian…Why Libertarian? Because they stood for small government, individual choices and fair taxes. They reflected my values on most issues and were devoted to guarding my liberties. But they shifted simply too far to the right over time, and…I was tired of being shut out of primaries and local votes…

So I changed to the Republican Party. Home (then) of smaller government, hope for the small businessman, building the economy, support for law enforcement and individual success…

But, slowly, the members of the Republican Party started to lose their collective minds…After [George W. Bush's] knee jerk reaction to 9/11, where we blamed and invaded the wrong country for the wrong reason, big tax breaks for his wealthy oil buddies and his pathetic response to one of our country’s worst natural disasters…I began to doubt.

But 2008 was coming, and with it Sen. John McCain. Combat vet, former POW, tough as nails and statesman who knew that progress lay along a path of working together for the country…but the party saddled him with Sarah Palin as a running mate, pandering to the extremists…

So I closed my eyes, gritted my teeth and voted for Barack Obama. And what has that vote gotten me?

I traded Pres. Bush, who bailed out his banking and oil executive cronies for hundreds of millions of dollars…for Pres. Obama, who bailed out the U.S. automotive industry and saved hundreds of thousands of jobs — AND got the bailout money paid back in less time than originally agreed upon…

I traded the president of the financial elite for a man who is closer to the middle class than any president since Truman…a president who’s working to restore the broad financial base of the working class.

I traded a president who invaded the wrong country for the wrong reasons for a president who has done his best and extricated us from another Vietnam.

So now it’s 2012, another cycle, and what to do? I looked at the roster of possible candidates and found that my party failed me again. When the dust settled, the choice given was Romney, a candidate McCain himself considered a poorer choice than Palin in 2008…

I have been abandoned as my party drifted right past conservative to fringe and beyond. If the new Republican Party has its way, my parents, who have paid into Medicare and Social Security their entire lives, are threatened with being given vouchers in return for their hard-earned dollars, which will likely be worth little more than Monopoly money. My daughters could be forced to bear a child to term if raped. Public education would be gutted for privatizing which, remember, is another word for “run for profit.”

…Really, I guess I didn’t defect. I’ve stayed faithful to my beliefs…

That’s why I’m supporting Pres. Obama. He has brought our country back from the economic brink, while building the foundation for a stronger middle class. I really hope the Republican Party has the sense to come back from the edge and address the issues that concern most Americans in their lives. In the meantime, I believe Barack Obama will keep a strong, steady hand on the helm to balance our course.

*The essay is written by Jim Crosby, a former lieutenant in the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, and was published in the Oct. 2 – 8, 2012 edition of Folio Weekly, which is not yet available online. When it becomes available, I will provide a link to the full essay.