The Black Republican

When I asked Rick to provide something I could post on the "About" page, he sent me a much more personalized mini-essay than the blurb I wrote there about myself. Simply for consistancy, I've gone ahead and added there what I felt was the part appropriate to that format. The rest I post here as a more detailed introduction from our newest contributor.

A few words to introduce myself are in order. My name is Richard Jones, though I am commonly called Rick. A few special friends know me by a single letter, a mythical first initial I sometimes apply to my nickname. No, I am not going to reveal it here, to learn it you must get to know me.

Some things, that, while true, won't help you learn that secret:

I was born on Armistice Day 1953 in the "Land Of Lincoln", and raised in the land of Lincoln's birth. I am related, on my Mother's side, to Lincoln's private secretary and United States Secretary of State under William McKinley and Theodore Roosevelt, John Milton Hay. I have never willingly belonged to a political party (In 1980 the county in which I reside required all voters to belong to one of three politcal parties, Republican, Democrat or Independent, in order to vote. My protest that my United States citizenship should be enough was not recognized until some years later. I gave in to their extortion and signed up as an Independent for that election, but have since re-registered as unaffiliated.) Independent, (little i), and unaffiliated are terms that aptly describe my personal life as well. For me, dating is now a race toward when I stop seeing a girl. Sometimes I skip the dating and just stop seeing her. Growing up in the '60s, exposure to new ideas was commonplace. I partook of the idealism of that time, I gave it a shot, and have now largely discounted so much of that stuff as being intellectually immature. I remain open-minded, but learn from mistakes.

I admire what Malcolm X did to transform his life, most people know him only as the militant Black Muslim, his life ended before he quit growing. These words are his: "I saw that the best thing I could do was get hold of a dictionary - to study, to learn some words".

I am certain: that language awareness is under-rated, and under-used. That practicing Transcendental Meditation changed my life in marvelous ways. That basketball is a religion. That chocolate, pizza, beer and meat taste good. That marriage should be taken seriously. That the traditional union involving one man and one woman is the only true form of marriage. That it is a being when the egg and sperm unite. That furniture should be made of wood. That we create too much trash. And, I am certain that I have already angered someone with this introduction.

Finally, for now, I believe everything going on can be explained by these words:

"The trouble with people is not that they don't know, but that they know so much that ain't so" - Josh Billings

I wish they were mine.

Hmmn. Some sentiments I'd agree with, some not. But such is the spice of life as well as healthy debate. I can't help but consider it a challenge to to try and sway the independent to become A Black Republican.