...

...My Dad had an autographed picture of Ray-gun in his home office, and Nathan Bedford Forrest was over our fireplace. Yep, that Nathan...KKK. That was my home growing up.

I, at a young age, saw the errors in my Dad's ways. I didn't give up on him. I educated him. Like many fathers, everytime he hit me with some beligerent non-sense, I answered with a real world response. At some point, the right wing light dimmed in his head, and the light of reason flickered bright. Eventually, after a long self-reflecting process, he changed who he was. The Confederate bullshit was taken off of our walls. He started to actually pay attention.

Why do I say this? It's just that I always want to point out that people can change. Some change for the worse, i.e., see Joseph Lieberman. But some change for the better.

I'm proud of my Dad. He is proof that people can change. Since 1988, he has voted straight-line Democrat in every election. He "GETS" it. This is the same guy who thought Wallace was our salvation in 1968.

Nobody can ever tell me, or convince me, that some people can't change. I've lived it. I know they can.

Never Give up. Never lose hope. Hope is a precious commodity.