I am also a husband and father, both roles, I suspect, do more to change a person than one's choice of profession. 

I am a passionate reader, particularly of non-fiction, and attempt to keep informed on developments in the major disciplines, such as history, physics, political economy, economics, theology, linguistics, sociology, etc., through reading books, rather than the INTERNET, although the net certainly has its place. I believe the decline in reading books in the last decades is responsible for the lack of critical thinking skills reflected in the American electorate, both left and right, but that this decline was planned after the near revolution of the 1960's and early 1970's, and obtained by changes in the curriculum at the various Colleges of Education around the country to emphasize the "self-esteem" movement and the "tolerance" ideology. The latter misused the word "tolerance" to mean that all ideas, cultures, religions, ideologies, etc., are equally valid and true, rather than equally to be respected. The difference led students to believe their feelings, as opposed to empirical facts, made their opinions true.