Am I a Democrat?

I am East Indian, a community that reliably votes for Democrats. So I was surprised when some east indian friends of ours mentioned that they are Republican. I almost recoiled, wondering how this could be. In one moment, I fit them into the Republican stereotype that I have in my head. That night I was thinking about why I considered myself a Democrat. I have many anti-Democratic positions - I believe that Social Security and Medicare have expanded way beyond their original intent, and are bloated, inefficient government programs. I lean towards a pro-life position (although I don't believe in making abortion illegal because I don't feel I have a right to impose my views on others). Pretty much the only thing that puts me in the Democrat camp is that I cannot agree with the Republican party's support of corporations. I feel that corporations have too much power in our society. So, I really am not a Democrat as much as I am anti-Republican! I now wonder what Republicans think of me when I say I am a Democrat (even though I share many positions with them).

I think that's a problem with having a two-party system. Each voter ends up choosing a party based on some hot-button issue that decides their affiliation. That then stereotypes them - I wonder now what people think when I say I am a Democrat. I certainly don't advocate a multi-party system for the US (I've seen the instability in India where there are numerous political parties) - but I do find myself wishing for a third party which represented the political center of the US.