Many have written in to opine on how the Republican Party can recover from its defeat in November. As a red-state liberal, I believe I can offer some valuable insight.

Many Republicans, especially here in the South, are wasting their time and energy on conspiracy theories and paranoid fantasies. The sooner they wake up and embrace reality, the sooner the party can begin to heal.

To them I say: You don't need proof that a twice-elected president is a secret Kenyan/socialist/Muslim; you need social policies that appeal to women, gays, immigrants and minorities. You need not worry that President Barack Obama is "coming for your guns"; he's not. No one is. You need credible ideas to reduce gun violence in our country.

It seems that many conservatives missed the most important lesson of the election: Mitt Romney began to do better when he moved to the center, away from the far-right policies he had embraced to win the primary. (Indeed, many who get their news only from the propaganda channel were shocked when Romney was defeated, having been assured he would win in a landslide.)

Thoughtful conservatives, I beg you: Turn off the misinformation network and tune in to smart conservative writers, such as Reihan Salaam, Ramesh Ponnuru and David Frum. They are the way forward for your party. You've already gone the Fox News route. That way lay madness and defeat. We must meet in the middle.

Cheryl Longshore

Bluffton