Being a conservative in radicalized states like California and Arizona

It's January of 2021, and lately I've been hearing people mentioning that they're living in historic times, where everything is changing. It's true, and it's always been true. Walk with me.

Speaking for myself, I'm a conservative, and have been all of my life. That is, I stay away from radical stuff, either right or left, I don't gamble on long shots, I wouldn't have invested in land in Beverly Hills in the 1920s, my investments were always done with a Mutual Fund, not individual stocks, and I believe in a strong central government so that states can't do stuff like segregate schools, or destroy wilderness. Yeah, I like National Parks!

I live in Arizona, which is noted for the people who are radically right. And they're nothing new - I've known a lot of people here that I would describe as "just to the right of Darth Vader". And it's just something Arizona has, like scorpions - you learn to stay away from the danger, and not poke around into dark places. The last couple of years have turned a bright fluorescent light on these scorpions, and it is kinda scary to think that there are so many around. Still, most just want to be left alone, and their sting is for defense mostly, not attack. They tend to stockpile weapons and ammunition, and presumably beans.

Of course when I lived in California, I saw a lot of radically left people. I can't say that they all walked around with Chairman Mao's little Red Book, but some did. Most of the people I met were inclined to be radically attached to always eating avocados, or blocking freeway construction, that sort of thing. These people are just part of living in California, like earthquakes, and in my experience they haven't done much harm. I've found them mostly amusing, and oblivious of how the world works. They seem to often demand that the government print more money so that everyone can be rich. Or they want everything to be free.

In my lifetime I've seen the language change, and words that I used in the 1970s really don't mean the same anymore. If you've made it into your fifties, or sixties, you know what I'm talking about. Heck, things change so quickly I'd imagine people in their forties and thirties having difficulty keeping up with the changing language. Maybe even people in their twenties?

Just exactly when the word "conservative" changed to someone who holds radical views, I don't know, but it's happened. And I remember when "liberal" meant being easy-going! So I'll stay away from those terms, because neither one describes me - I'm not that "far out" (as we said in the '70s).

If you've had enough of people grabbing at your lapels, either from the right or left, follow me. I'm a history adventurer, and history is made all of the time, like right now.


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