At Different Points In My Life, I

More Than Anything Else I Recall Being, Or Trying Very Deliberately To Be, A Perfect Child. Not A Goody Two-shoes, But A Kid Who Did Good, Who Worked Hard And Met Every Expectation. I Strove To Achieve In The Excessive Way That Psychotherapists Tend To Regard With Concern.

We Are Losing Sight Of Civility In Government And Politics. Debate And Dialogue Is Taking A Back Seat To The Politics Of Destruction And Anger And Control. Dogma Has Replaced Thoughtful Discussion Between People Of Differing Views.

Of All My False Identities, The Strategies In My Campaign To Be Accepted, Being A Sworn Republican Is The Hardest To Explain. In My Later Political Life, I Can Only Be Described As A Kennedy Democrat, Eager To Pursue Equitable Treatment For The Least Fortunate.

But Being In The Closet Uniquely Assisted Me In Politics. From My First Run For The State Legislature Until My Election As Governor, All Too Often I Was Not Leading But Following My Best Guess At Public Opinion.

We Need To Seek Wise Leaders Who Will Seek Common Ground Among Americans Instead Of Dividing Us Further For Political Gain. As Citizens, We Must Embrace Those Who Embrace Ideas, Thoughtfulness, Civility And Kindness To Others No Matter What Their Political Beliefs.