I can’t say I’ve completely flipped my position on many issues over the years. If anything, I’ve probably just softened around the edges. My core beliefs are as solid as they’ve ever been. But I have grown more resigned to certain realities—like the legalization of marijuana.

I’m still not a fan of it, but I recognize it’s coming whether I like it or not. I lean more Libertarian than anything else, so my focus has shifted to how it’s done. My concern is making sure the rollout happens the right way and that the money goes where it’s supposed to go. Florida has a long history of mishandling “sure thing” initiatives. Just look at the Lottery in the 1990s—sold to voters as a boost for education, it ended up hurting schools instead. The experts steered the revenue into pet projects, and the promised funding for students dried up.

If we’re going to legalize marijuana and promise that tax dollars will benefit education, we’d better make sure those guarantees are real this time.

More than anything, though, I think what’s changed most in me is my willingness to listen. I was never a Charlie Kirk follower, but I appreciate his belief that everyone should be able to speak freely—and that we should be willing to listen, even when we disagree. My convictions may not have shifted much, but my openness to hearing differing viewpoints definitely has.

Copyright © 2025 Doug DeBolt.