Lots of folks are writing tributes to Reagan on this 25th anniversary of his inauguration and have offered trackbacks to those who want to add their voice.

My tribute to Reagan has been my life. Not intentionally or deliberately – but it has ended up that way. I realized this the week he died and the nation mourned.

My grandfather was a US Congressman from Ohio and a Democrat. All my family were dedicated Democrats from the old school. The Roosevelt-John F Kennedy kind. I grew up walking distance from the Kennedy compound in McLean, VA (before it was the ritzy, exclusive area it is now). Ted Kennedy’s house was not far away, as was Jackie Onassis’. I know these were not their primary residences, just the DC homes.

I grew up with the Shrivers and Johnstons of Louisiana. I had no idea who these people were then. Their kids were in my classes and they had big houses. But they were neighbors – nothing more.

We all lived in the old stereotypes of democrats and republicans. Until Ronald Reagan. The last Democrat I voted for was Jimmy Carter in 1980 (my first national election). I had believed all the hype about Reagan and how he was going to be the end of the world. How he was going to cause WW III with the Soviets. How he was going to kill off the poor…

It seems that was the beginning of the end for the left. Reagan caused so much fear in them, no horror fantasy was too severe to pass off as truth. That was the year I left the democrat party. The party of my family and my neighbors and my childhood. And I was not alone. Not by a long shot.

Reagan’s legacy is probably best described by how he stood by all that was good about America and Americans, defending it and promoting it. And reminding us not all was dark and dismal and harsh – the liberal world of human failure that only liberals can fend off. Reagan put the lie to liberal extremism.

And the country, and the world, has been mending ever since. Reagan started the demise of the Soviet Union, by reminding them too they could focus on the positives of humankind and get farther than fretting about all the negatives and wallow in defeatism. It is the defeatism surrounding human endeavors that support the ideas of communism and socialism. In these models, the dark side will always triumph, therefore the need for strong central government.

We now know this is simply a self fulfilling prophecy. Because once we give power to others over us, the temptation to play god is too strong and those in power try to bend everyone to their will. It proves them right you see?

Today’s liberals see their lack of superstardom as an act of others holding them down. So they want power for payback. BDS is a prime example of this. Their personal problems are all due to Bush and his regime. These people have no responsibility for their situations. It is the lazy way to avoid the hard choices.

Reagan’s message was strong and positive and helped change us for the better. Those who still resist the optimism are trying to offset the spreading pride and optimism with ever deeper pessimism and fear. The final stages of the Reagan revolution are upon us. Too bad it takes so long for such good ideas to spread.

Linked to the Stop The ACLU Reagan tribute

You may want to check out Dr Sanity’s tribute. Both of us have NASA roots so it hits home a bit for me.