Black conservative Republican presidential candidate Dr. Ben Carson took a little heat from conservatives for speaking at an event hosted by race-baiter extraordinaire Al Sharpton.  Critics questioned why Dr. Carson would tarnish his highly respected brand hanging out with a despicable lowlife like Sharpton. 

Dr. Carson defended his actions, saying that we should not remain in our camps, but should reach out to the opposition.  My thought is you can build a bridge only when both sides are seeking fairness, righteousness, and truth.

Sharpton's only desire is to exploit race to feed his financial greed and lust for power.  While I am confident that Dr. Carson's speech was inspiring, there is nothing Dr. Carson could say that would cause Sharpton to see the blinding light that emanates from conservatism.

There are people like Sharpton who are so sold out to liberalism, such believers of the left's negative rhetoric about our country, and so filled with hatred for whites and America that the truth cannot get through to them.

Sadly, I have a black Christian minister friend stuck in a similar mindset.  In our 30-year friendship, he has displayed great wisdom.  But when we discuss politics, he is a walking brain-dead liberal zombie.  He despises the rich and Republicans.  He thinks all bankers and stockbrokers are crooks and con artists and should be in jail.  He is a huge fan of Obama and his efforts to redistribute wealth, which my friend believes was stolen from the poor.  He believes that whites are still suppressing blacks.  He believes that the American system is structured for blacks to fail.

You are probably thinking, Lloyd, how can you be friends with this liberal zealot?  My friend says people ask how can he be friends with a black traitorous Tea Party activist.  We have had heated political discussions over the years.  I have come to realize that no amount of truth or number of facts will change my friend's mind.  It will take a miracle from God.  Thus, I pray for him.

A Bible story speaks of people who reject truth.  In the story, a man died and landed in Hell.  He asked Abraham to send someone back from the grave to warn his brothers not to make the same mistakes as he.  Abraham said such an effort would be fruitless because they would reject the truth even from someone who had risen from the dead (Luke 16:27-31).

Such is the mindset of many severely infected with leftist ideology, choosing to believe lies over confirmed truth.  While I do not understand the payoff, some blacks want to believe they are victims of a racist white America, want to believe that white cops routinely shoot blacks for no reason.

My brother has since converted to conservatism.  But years ago, he believed the left's mantra that whitey had stacked the deck against blacks.  It was a perfect excuse for failure – to be negative, lazy, and not even try to be successful.  Meanwhile, my baby brother ignored our brother's leftist rhetoric and started his own custodial business directly after graduating high school.

So I give Dr. Carson a pass on speaking at the Sharpton event.  Like Dr. Carson, I am a Christian.  I believe that when I am in fellowship with God, He provides insight into where I should and should not go.  If God directed Dr. Carson to show up at the Sharpton event, I believe, despite those who booed Dr. Carson, that some in that audience truly heard (in their souls) the inspiring, life-changing truth of conservatism for the first time.

A Pharisee named Nicodemus came to speak to Jesus one night under the cover of darkness.  Paraphrasing, Nicodemus said to Jesus, Sir, I know that what you speak is the truth.  While some in the Sharpton audience may have been fearful to say it out loud, they knew Dr. Carson spoke the truth.

And, that is a very, very good thing.