February 06, 2004 12:00am
From the Trenches - Wake-up Call to Vote
Source: DaveCummings.com
by: Dave Cummings
I know! I know! I sound like an alarmist of sorts, but it's my opinion that unless we citizens become Educated voters in the upcoming elections we might indeed see some of our long-enjoyed freedoms curtailed or made extinct. I'm worried, something that's very unusual for me.
My worry is that some of you who are reading this column might rationalize that it's not worth your personal effort to register and vote. I say baloney! You owe it to yourself, your family and yet unborn descendants, your friends/co-workers/neighbors, your military who have fought for and preserved our cherished freedoms, your Nation, and your God to make an emergency exception to "Not being bothered" in this presidential election year---This year, we All must make ourselves into informed and conscientious citizens who actually vote.
It's easy to register, heck merely pick up your phone and ask "Information" for the telephone number for the Registrar of Voters; arrange for the form to be mailed to you; complete it immediately when it arrives, and put it right back into the mail.
The next step, and this is extremely important, start paying attention to the information concerning the candidates and issues; learn about the incumbents and their records, and become informed about the positions of the challengers. Don't restrict yourself to only the presidential election; rather, also learn about the candidates for your state, county, city, school board, and other local elections, including propositions.
I personally will never vote along a specific party line just for the sake of it-instead, I vote each office and issue independently. And, if I don't feel prepared enough or comfortable enough with casting a vote for a specific office or issue, I sometimes skip casting a vote for that specific matter. I recoil whenever I get yet another political mailing or phone solicitation, but I definitely browse/read/study all the official information that the Registrar of Voters sends as background and data for voter consideration in preparation for actually voting on Election Day.
Yes, we're inundated with radio and television talk shows and their biased info about their favored candidates. Nevertheless, some of the talk shows might stimulate our thought processes and provide info to help us personally decide one way or the other.
As a military guy, I'm personally glad we had Bush instead of Gore handling the post 9-11 effort to protect us against terrorism; I just wish his Attorney General would immediately resign or be fired, as I fear his dogmatic and subjective affronts to the separation of Church and State provided for in our great Constitution---I also see him as someone who might ignore the First Amendment and the will of the people who no longer view sex as automatically sinful.
The Adult Entertainment Industry has become more mainstream, something that more and more citizens seem to want; now, we citizens need to make certain that elected politicians reflect the will of the people.
Although the federal elections get the bulk of media attention, we should not lose sight of the local City Council races-it's here where we need to become educated and vote accordingly, or else right-wing radical candidates might get a toe-hold in elected positions where they can impose their subjective/hypocritical barriers to our local freedoms.
Please, every time you hear another news report of military casualties, remember that he/she was serving to protect American and the freedoms of the people; in memory of these military members, Please take advantage of the American freedom to vote.
Make Your contribution to America---register to vote, become an informed voter, and make certain that you actually vote in each and every election!
Keep America Free,
Dave Cummings,
DaveCummings.com
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