"I was a mugwump. We, the mugwumps, a little company made up of the unenslaved of both parties, the very best men to be found in the two great parties--that was our idea of it--voted sixty thousand strong for Mr. Cleveland in New York and elected him. Our principles were high, and very definite. We were not a party; we had no candidates; we had no axes to grind. Our vote laid upon the man we cast it for no obligation of any kind. By our rule we could not ask for office; we could not accept office. When voting, it was our duty to vote for the best man, regardless of his party name. We had no other creed. Vote for the best man--that was creed enough."
- Mark Twain's Autobiography (North American Review, Dec. 21, 1906)

When you're middle aged, like I am, you start getting bit by that nettlesome nostalgia bug. I was raised in a Republican home, and can always remember how both my parents were always open to reason in political matters.

As a college kid in the sixties, I noticed the most radical of my classmates preferred yelling. That has now become the standard: Conservatives discuss, liberals yell.

So, I'm a bit nostalgic for the discourse of yesteryear. I miss the fact that it used to be common knowledge that we don't live in a black-and-white world; that there are an infinite number of gray shades to life; and whether I agree with some of them or not, discussion of them is valid. We draw our own conclusions, each of us alone, not as a group. Collectivism is not my political oyster.

I'm here because I like discussion. I prefer to be responsible for my own actions and words, and enjoy sharing ideas with others of like mind.

I'm also here for something of an education. There is some really intelligent stuff going on on this forum, and there is information here that cannot be had anywhere else that I know of.

It's a fun place.