2. I used to write quite a bit but have been on hiatus for too long. So, I'll reintroduce myself to the public by issuing some of the writings that led me down this road. The first one I'll share with you explains my basic beliefs regarding who we are as conservatives, our system, and where we need to go in the future: philosophy conservative, temperamentally radical. It is here in its entirety:

     The title of this article must become the mantra for conservatives everywhere in America. The words aren’t mine, but they definitely define my politics. I first read them in a book by Dinesh D’Souza, Letters to a Young Conservative. They were a guideline for a group of kids during their time developing the Dartmouth Review: Mr. D’Souza and Laura Ingraham were among that group. On Dartmouth’s campus, they were hell raisers, turning the liberal (more like socialist) college world upside-down with their relentless attacks on the “apparatus”. This is exactly what we need to do, but on the macro level.

 How can someone be conservative, yet radical you ask? Well, what exactly are we trying to conserve? As Mr. D’Souza so eloquently phrased, “What if the existing society is inherently hostile to conservative beliefs? It is foolish for a conservative to attempt to conserve that culture. Rather, he must seek to undermine it, to thwart it, to destroy it at the root level. This means that a conservative must stop being a conservative.” In other words, to undermine the left, we must act as radicals. And since you may be reading this at the Renew America website, the obvious question is what are we trying to renew? I will venture to say that we are trying to get back to the ideals this country was founded upon by our forefathers. Incidentally, our forefathers were extremely radical considering the times. Therefore, we are trying to reach back through time and cause a rebirth of those “radical” ideas of which our founders were so fond. So, how do we get there?

 Number one: the youth. For some reason, the Republican party is fractured by age. Overall, the party is dominated by those over forty. The 18-35 year group are either liberal or they seldom vote. This isn’t to say that there aren’t any young Republicans. I know from experience that there are quite a few. The problem is that the party is primarily driven by capital, and most eighteen to thirty-five year olds aren’t able to pay the $1000 per plate cost of a Republican dinner or party. I don’t have a problem with capitalism- I love it- but if we were to better observe the liberal apparatus, we’d see that it has the look of youth; hence, the myth that it’s hip to be a Democrat. The solution for the right is simple: GET THE YOUTH INVOLVED. Invite them to the fundraisers, let a hundred into the dinners. You’d be surprised how uplifting it is to speak in front of young enthusiastic supporters who only want to be a part of the mechanics of government. And yes, I know the Young Republicans and College Republicans get involved (I’m a Young Republican), but they are not the grassroots. The grassroots are the people you don’t see behind the scenes, they are the ones on the frontlines working, suffering, but seldom VOTING. If they felt as if they made a difference, our silent majority wouldn’t be as silent.

 Number two: we must believe that politeness is overrated. BE MEAN! Over the past fifty years we’ve been suckered into being polite. Through our politeness we’ve made ourselves that dreaded word: VICTIMS. No, we aren’t victims in the classical sense of the word; we are victims because we don’t defend ourselves to foolish accusations. What do we do? We apologize, back down, and cower like…well, cowards. We’ve been afraid to call ourselves conservative. We fix this problem by following the example of our of the former Secretary of Defense: Rummy. During the Pentagon briefings, there were journalists who were afraid to ask him questions for no other reason than because he answered them. He answered them bluntly, and if it was a dumb question, they knew it was dumb. This is how we should walk, talk, and hold ourselves up. In the morning when you wake up, look in the mirror and say, “I AM NOT A VICTIM. I AM CONSERVATIVE AND IF YOU GET TOO CLOSE, I JUST MAY BITE.” Be proud.

 Number three: know your history. It seems that the Constitution has been outlawed in the public schools. Well, as active grassroots conservatives and the stewards of democracy, take yourself to task. In my view, there are two books that are “must reads” if you think yourself ignorant about “being conservative” (no offense to Ambassador Keyes): Dinesh D’Souza’s Letters to a Young Conservative and Jim Powell’s The Triumph of Liberty. The former enforces who we are, the latter teaches where we came from. Read them for yourself, or give them to your kids as gifts to read in conjunction with social studies or whatever civics has become in the school system. In addition to these books, find yourself a copy of the Constitution. It’s actually a pretty short document-believe me, I read it! Embarrass your liberal friends and coworkers when they say things like “separation of church and state,” and you tell them that those words are nowhere to be found in that document. They’d also be surprised to learn that the First Amendment is about the freedom to exercise religion and not freedom from religion, which is how they interpret it.

 My friends, these three steps are the catalyst to reaching that final goal of “renewing” America. We need to start soon. A wise man once said that there is no limit to a man’s education (I believe he was referencing age), but common sense and a few scientific studies have proven that if you don’t get them while they’re young, you’ll be lucky to get them at all. Being conservative is not merely a political way of thinking that resides in the subconscious, it is a way of living life. We strive to live life with integrity, honor, and yes, faith. It’s a hard life, but living with these ideals makes it easier to deal with trials and tribulations God has tasked us with overcoming. Teach these virtues to your children in the best way possible: BE THE EXAMPLE. Kids are perceptive; your example will not go unnoticed. You never know, they may grow up to be just-like-you. Pretty radical, eh?

 3. In the upcoming weeks I'll be trying to work in northeast Wisconsin to establish an active Young Republicans organization. When I lived in Minnesota we were dynamic and annoyed many on the left. I'm hoping to develop that here. If you're interested in joining me, please send me an email.

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Kimani Jefferson
 

I am searching for columnists to submit op/ed pieces on various subjects. If anyone is interested, contact me via email . Please remember to send a short bio with your piece, no more than 30 words.

Thanks,  
//signed//
Kimani Jefferson,

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