Old-fashioned small-L liberals

"What the heck is a conservative Democrat?"

Once upon a time in certain areas of the country, there was a specie of good-hearted old-fashioned small-L liberals, folks who believed, for example, that the little black kids had a right to learn to read just like the little white kids, and it was primarily the Republicans who stood athwart such ideas. That was the case in some places, more a consequence of local social demographics than actual party affiliations or platforms or principles.

My late across-the-road neighbor was one of those Yellow Dog Democrats. He fought for liberal ideals in the 1950s and early 1960s, for example, in his long role as county librarian. Nothing would ever have compelled him to vote for a Republican, and those of you who held your nose for McCain can sympathize at least with that, even if you can't see how that justified voting for the other side.

I have often wished I could sit down with him and discuss the current administration, whether he, like so many others, would finally admit that the Democratic Party moved away from him.