Reluctantly into the Fray

I have never been a politically active person. I grew up in a politically active family. My mother was a poll sheriff for the Democratic party, and had once worked for Ralph Tucker, the long-time Democratic mayor of Terre Haute. Her father had been a White House photographer during the Johnson administration. For whatever reason, I didn’t inherit the interest.

I used to consider myself to be a slightly left-of-center moderate. I don’t know if the world has changed, or if it’s me, but the older I have gotten, the more liberal I have become. There are some issues that I hold beliefs on that are likely considered more tenets of the Right, but without trying to follow a party line, I find that the majority of my beliefs and opinions are now the same as those espoused by the Left.

As this realization has been happening, I’ve also come to the conclusion that the country that the Republican party seems to want to create is not the kind of place that I want to live in. Although I can see the flaws and shortcomings of the United States, that doesn’t make me any less proud to be citizen. I think that this is an amazing country, and it has afforded me many great opportunities. I want to help ensure that others can have some of these chances as well. In this desire, I have reached the point in life in which I have to start taking a more active interest in the political world around me. PatientC told me that the fight is already happening, and I can either participate or stand by. I think that she’s right.

I don’t know what the end result of this realization will be, but I felt that I should acknowledge it. There will doubtless be more to come.