Who We Are

Hi. I’m Richard Godfrey. I am a 52 year old conservative. I was born in Canada but have been, for the last 9 years, involved in the challenging but ultimately valuable process of LEGALLY immigrating to the United States. I have lived in the U.S. as a child and as a student, before moving to Canada. I also spent a couple of years living in the U.K.  I have, throughout my career travelled extensively throughout a good chunk of the globe. I am a husband and a father. I have been married for more than thirty years and have, with my wife Heather, raised two mature, hard working and kind children – one of each – Jonathan is our eldest and Rachel our youngest.  I guess this is just a long way of saying…. I’ve got some experience under my belt - in time, in geography and in life.

Family Ties, which aired on television from 1982 -1989, is – in the character portrayed by Michael J. Fox (another Canadian, by the way) – a parallel of my life as a kid and a teenager. My family leans, primarily, to the left.  I have, since an early age, just like Alex Keaton in the television series, been an unapologetic conservative.

Fiscally, I am a free market, global, capitalist. With all its faults, capitalism is still the best way to raise individuals and groups out of the pervasive evil of poverty. Socialism, in its many guises, is interesting in theory but proven – after nearly 100 years of experimentation – not to work. I am a social conservative with well considered and strongly established positions on most social issues. 

I am religious – which is not to say I am perfect or that I know how everyone ought to live their life. Religion centers and focuses my life. My family have been Mormon (or LDS/Latter-day Saint, which is our preferred label) since the beginning of the religion.  I am here, not out of a sense of momentum or obligation or tradition – I am Mormon because I choose to be and because I believe its theology is substantial and beneficial.

I am, in most practical ways, leaning libertarian – just leave me alone, leave my money alone, leave my family alone. I’ll take care of me, my loved ones and my deserving neighbors – you take care of yours.

I believe in good and evil.  I believe both concepts can be defined. I believe good is more common than evil and that good ultimately triumphs. I live filled with hope, enthusiasm and a sincere joy for living. I believe it is still a beautiful world filled with great people.

I have had enough experience with people to believe they are, with very rare exception, good and decent. I believe most people want to live their lives secure in their basic liberties and God given freedoms. I believe most people seek peace and wish to live peacefully, but recognize that real evil exists in the world and must, sometimes, be confronted aggressively and violently.

This is a serious world and life is a serious experience. I believe we are responsible for our lives – our choices, the consequences of those choices and how, ultimately our life rolls out. I believe we have the potential individually and collectively to confront and conquer any challenge, honestly and well met. I believe we should take life seriously but should laugh regularly at ourselves – our biases, our mistakes, our triumphs and our tragedies. If this whole thing is going to be worthwhile, it should at the very least, be fun.