Reagan taught me that I'm teachable

In honor of the passing of President Ronald Wilson Reagan this weekend I'll say this: I was wrong about him.

We're going to be seeing hours and hours of footage and commentary about Reagan and his presidency this week. But I don't need the footage to remember. It was all live and in color to me.

Two facts framed his presidency for me. First, the 1980 election was my first chance to vote in a presidential election. Second, I was a college student then, and a raving left-wing liberal. In the clutches of liberal academia and not correctly informed about politics.

As for the election, I did pay attention. Reagan or Carter - choose. I read. I watched the debates. And I voted - absentee because I was off campus working as a co-op student at election time. I remember wanting the voting experience so badly that when my ballot arrived in the mail I took it into the shower, pulled the curtain around me, and punched my ballot. The ballot booth experience in my little apartment. Who did I vote for? I'll tell you at the end.

When I was on campus passions ran high. I remember speakers on the quad railing about Ronnie and his "Super Cosmic Ray-Gun" (clever huh?) who was going to drag us into a nuclear war.

And I was passionate about Reagan, in opposition. I believed he was stupid. I believed his policies were wrong headed and caused the huge deficit. I believed he was a dangerous right-winger. I believed he was going to drag us into nuclear war with the Soviets. And I wanted him impeached over Iran-Contra.

Now I think differently. He didn't change of course. I did. I read more about history and politics from different sources. Frankly, Rush Limbaugh's two books did quite a bit to change my mind about Reagan. You should read them if you haven't.

Now I recognize that his committment to principle, namely the goodness of America and the need for limited government were right on target.

I changed. I'm teachable. That's what my experience with Reagan taught me.

Who did I vote for in my first election in 1980. John Anderson - Indpependent.