I used to be a liberal. It started in college. Was it those classic fall days up in Vermont? A few socialist professors? Or my love for the Clash?

I had a naive belief in income redistribution. I thought that capitalism was bad and the Ivy League elites in government had all the answers.

I was antiwar. Any war. I hoped there would be world peace by Christmas. I believed conservatives were selfish, ignorant and borderline racists. I enjoyed reading The Boston Globe and The New York Times. I cheered when Hollywood actors blamed America for the world’s problems and proclaimed Reagan was evil.

I’m not sure why I became a conservative. Maybe it was working fulltime, watching my paychecks get whacked every week. Or getting laid off. I got married and we bought a house. Then I lost a friend in the 9/11 attacks. This year, I turned 50 and seem to be closer to my father than that clever political science major I used to be.

I wish I believed that windmills and solar panels will solve our energy needs. I want to believe that amnesty will solve our immigration problem, agreeing with politicians and activists that no one is illegal.

I want to believe that Obamacare will deliver better health care for everybody at a lower cost. I wish I could agree with Attorney General Eric Holder that terrorism is simply a matter of law enforcement.

I want to believe the President when he promises us that just one more stimulus package will save the economy and create millions of jobs. I want to trust Barack Obama. I wish I shared his vision. But I don’t. I am worried about the direction Congress is taking us. And I know I can’t count on Deval Patrick and the Democrats on Beacon Hill to do the right thing here in Massachusetts.

Of course, conservatives don’t have all the answers, but we offer the best hope in these troubled times. We have a powerful faith in a time-tested philosophy that can help the country return to prosperity and purpose. When America strays from her fundamental principles — and the Constitution — we risk sinking into chaos and crisis.

I fondly remember my time as an undergraduate, those simpler times and my old liberal ways. I sometimes wish I could go back to those days. It was so much easier then. Of course that’s foolish thinking. But it is September again and I can dream, can’t I?

 

Peter Robb lives in Holliston and Oak Bluffs.