one45auto
Member
CleverName,
I can understand where you're coming from because at your age I was liberal too, though I was never in favor of gun control at any point in my life. (I also liked Ronald Reagan, go figure) My parents were conservative and so siding with the Democrats was the cool thing to do - especially when my teachers supported that position and slanted most of thier classroom instruction towards it. I'd bought into that "Democrats are for the working man and Republicans are for the rich" crapola hook, line, and sinker. I repeated it faithfully and often, especially in arguments with those on the other side. I also rebelled against being dragged to Church every Sunday of my life by bad mouthing Christians, although I'm ashamed to admit it now. I even hated Rush Limbaugh and used to listen to (gasp!) Larry King!
Basically I was cocky, smart-mouthed, and arrogant. I thought I knew it all and no way in heck was anyone going to convince me otherwise.
Yet time has a way of changing you, as does circumstance. My whole outlook on life began to change once I married and began paying my own bills. It's one thing to sit on your parent's couch or dormitory sofa and say that this Federal give-away or that program should be funded, but watching the take home pay you depend upon to live gradually diminish as a result of ever-increasing taxes is something else entirely. I had to learn how to make hard decisions, and do without a lot of the things I once took for granted. (At one point we literally lived hand to mouth, with cardboard furniture no less) Having a daughter likewise changed me, for looking at her sweet little face made me think of the meaning and miracle of life. Unless you have children, you simply cannot understand what I'm saying. Having someone depend upon you for life is an awesome responsibility. I don't know how, or when, but my faith in God slowly came back. He never gave up on me, even when I had given up on Him - something I am deeply grateful for. I began to question the things I once believed in, and to truly think for myself for the first time in my life. The more I thought about it and researched, the more I found out that what the Democrats and the media had been telling me all those years wasn't right. I began to see thier slant, and to wonder what else they weren't entirely honest about. Little by little, year by year, I started distancing myself from the party until at last I made a clean break halfway through Clinton's first term. His arm-twisting the assault weapons ban through Congress and support of the Brady Bill, to say nothing of his attacks on the free speech of his critics and his support of so-called "hate crimes", clinched it. I registered as a Republican for the 96' election and the Democratic circling of the wagons around him during the impeachment process only served to prove the wisdom of my choice.
These days I'm a Conservative Libertarian whose registered as, and votes as, a Republican. (Except yesterday, when I supported a Constitution Party candidate for Senator) I read my Bible, I shoot my guns, I listen to Rush Limbaugh and Neal Boortz, and my parents and I are extremely close. I look back on my misguided youth and wish that I could undo it, but at least I've come to terms with it.
You'll change too, over time. Trust me.
I can understand where you're coming from because at your age I was liberal too, though I was never in favor of gun control at any point in my life. (I also liked Ronald Reagan, go figure) My parents were conservative and so siding with the Democrats was the cool thing to do - especially when my teachers supported that position and slanted most of thier classroom instruction towards it. I'd bought into that "Democrats are for the working man and Republicans are for the rich" crapola hook, line, and sinker. I repeated it faithfully and often, especially in arguments with those on the other side. I also rebelled against being dragged to Church every Sunday of my life by bad mouthing Christians, although I'm ashamed to admit it now. I even hated Rush Limbaugh and used to listen to (gasp!) Larry King!
Basically I was cocky, smart-mouthed, and arrogant. I thought I knew it all and no way in heck was anyone going to convince me otherwise. Yet time has a way of changing you, as does circumstance. My whole outlook on life began to change once I married and began paying my own bills. It's one thing to sit on your parent's couch or dormitory sofa and say that this Federal give-away or that program should be funded, but watching the take home pay you depend upon to live gradually diminish as a result of ever-increasing taxes is something else entirely. I had to learn how to make hard decisions, and do without a lot of the things I once took for granted. (At one point we literally lived hand to mouth, with cardboard furniture no less) Having a daughter likewise changed me, for looking at her sweet little face made me think of the meaning and miracle of life. Unless you have children, you simply cannot understand what I'm saying. Having someone depend upon you for life is an awesome responsibility. I don't know how, or when, but my faith in God slowly came back. He never gave up on me, even when I had given up on Him - something I am deeply grateful for. I began to question the things I once believed in, and to truly think for myself for the first time in my life. The more I thought about it and researched, the more I found out that what the Democrats and the media had been telling me all those years wasn't right. I began to see thier slant, and to wonder what else they weren't entirely honest about. Little by little, year by year, I started distancing myself from the party until at last I made a clean break halfway through Clinton's first term. His arm-twisting the assault weapons ban through Congress and support of the Brady Bill, to say nothing of his attacks on the free speech of his critics and his support of so-called "hate crimes", clinched it. I registered as a Republican for the 96' election and the Democratic circling of the wagons around him during the impeachment process only served to prove the wisdom of my choice.
These days I'm a Conservative Libertarian whose registered as, and votes as, a Republican. (Except yesterday, when I supported a Constitution Party candidate for Senator) I read my Bible, I shoot my guns, I listen to Rush Limbaugh and Neal Boortz, and my parents and I are extremely close. I look back on my misguided youth and wish that I could undo it, but at least I've come to terms with it.
You'll change too, over time. Trust me.
