I’m a political junkie. I can’t wait to see all the colorful faces at the Democratic National Convention starting Tuesday, people of all ages in silly hats, whooping it up, dancing in the aisles.

Nice people are talking about how handsome Paul Ryan is. A former altar boy with unblinking ice-blue eyes, don’t you wonder what he would do if his wife became pregnant and had a life-threatening illness exacerbated by pregnancy? To Ryan, “the method of conception” doesn’t matter. He won’t condone abortion exceptions to save the life of the mother, or from impregnation resulting from rape or incest.

Would he let his life die, if it came to that? Would he give up his political career to stay home with his three beautiful live children? Would he hire a nanny and leave them without their mother? Start dating? Who would want to be married to this guy, regardless of his good looks?

When political extremists like Ryan  themselves experience what they so stridently believe, they somehow change their tune. Did Dick Cheney rant about the horrors of homosexuality? Nope, because his daughter’s a lesbian!

And why do we all have to believe what right-wing, evangelical extremists believe? I was clearly not a Barry Goldwater fan, but his family members say he was a proponent of real liberty.  Joanne Goldwater, the oldest daughter of the late senator/1964 Republican presidential nominee, along with other members of  the Goldwater family, have endorsed Arizona Democrat Richard Carmona for the U.S. Senate.

Some of their comments from a Carmona press release, reported in Arizona newspapers:

“There’s no doubt that my dad viewed himself as a conservative, but he put serving Arizona over serving any ideology. I don’t see the same from Congressman Jeff Flake. Congressman Flake has tried to claim the ‘conservative’ mantel, but my dad’s brand of conservatism is not reflected by Flake or the modern-day Republican Party,” said Joanne Goldwater.

Granddaughter CC Goldwater said, “Conservatives insist they believe in freedom, as long as it’s not a woman’s freedom to make her own health choices. Congressman Flake has voted to defund Planned Parenthood, block access to contraception and even partnered with Congressman Todd Akin on a bill attempting to redefine rape.”

“Our family has always believed in equality for all Arizonans,” said Ty Goldwater. “My grandfather believed that no matter your race, ethnicity or sexual orientation, you’re no less deserving of your full constitutional rights. We need Arizona’s next Senator to be committed to the same set of beliefs.”

Today’s Republican extremists aren’t true conservatives, which reminds me of my one outspoken conservative student at Mount Desert Island High School. It’s his birthday today:  “If I’m in favor of the sanctity of all life and am opposed to abortion, I must also be opposed to capital punishment,” he said. Makes sense, don’t you think?

And ok, I’ll admit it. I’m glad George Clooney is a Democrat.