I am a hard-working conservative American patriot. I love America and I believe in traditional American values. I support our military and our police. I am appalled that so many of my fellow Americans have been deeply influenced by propaganda from the Evil Media Empire. I believe it’s important to call out corruption and tyranny wherever we find it.

By “traditional American values,” of course, I mean the same things that every patriot believes in: separation of church and state; the rule of law; and equal opportunity and equal justice under the law for all people regardless of race, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, gender, or philosophy. The United States did not start out as a republic dedicated to equality, but it’s clear that the founders intended it to become one. They had a long way to go. We are still on that journey today and we have a lot of work to do. If America is exceptional, it is because of this dedication to equality and this alone.

I oppose racism. I find that there are a lot of us who claim that there is not a racist bone in our bodies, and I believe that’s true. However, I do see a lot of us opposing any opposition to racism, and I don’t see how that’s different. If we do not actively and continuously oppose racism, then we allow it to continue with our blessing. That’s not acceptable.

The whole point of democracy is to allow for differences of opinion without resorting to violence. Patriots do not condone or encourage violence towards other Americans. If you have to bring your gun to express your point of view, then you have already conceded that you have no convincing arguments and you’ve already lost.

I’m an old white man and I live in the Texas 9th Congressional District. (An earlier version of this page said the 5th Congressional District. I moved. I now live in the 9th Congressional District.)