I'm bound to tick people off, no matter what I say...

That's just the way I am sometimes. I speak my mind. A lot of times, I get flak for what comes out of my mouth. Sometimes it's deserved, sometimes not.

I read the news, so I'm not totally clueless as to what's going on in the world. I'm not quite a news junkie, but I am informed. I have several news organizations that I read regularly, both on my laptop at home and my phone.

I'm passionate about things that interest me. I've always been this way. When people are treated unfairly, it makes me mad. When people mistreat animals, it makes me mad. And sometimes, I wish there was more I could do to make things right.

I started reading newspapers when I was still quite young. My parents subscribed to a couple of papers: the Los Angeles Times and the Orange County Register. The Register, especially, was and still is very conservative. I grew up in Orange County, California, which is the hot bed of conservatism. My exposure to this POV shaped my early political views. Then I moved out of California and discovered other points of view.

It's these views that I now hold. And it pisses people off that I am so vocal about it. Not to the point of my friend, Johanna (see her blog here), but vocal nonetheless.

I don't expect everyone who reads this blog to agree with everything I write here. One of my favorite sayings is one from Voltaire: I do not agree with what you're saying, but will defend to the death your right to say it.

Ain't free speech grand?