Why America is GreatBy Margaret Gardiner
One of the gifts of America is the right to vote. The USA has been perceived as one of the great democracies, yet people are talking about staying away from the voting booth come November. That's a dangerous choice. Let's look back to 2000 and examine a similar climate, where neither Al Gore nor George Bush excited the populace. The feeling was that voting for Ross Perot would send a message. What it did was split the democratic vote in a close election that, with the help of the Supreme Court, confirmed George Walker Bush as the 43rd President of the USA. That led to the invasion of Iraq and a destabilized Middle East.
At the time of the invasion, the idea of Iraq having Weapons of Mass Destruction was propagated. That claim proved to have no validity. Now we have a presidential candidate who seems to advocate policy with little specifics. Who propagates ideas that are lacking in fact. There was a time when facts were indisputable. These days facts seem to be words that are repeated most often, without credibility. That the birther movement could have gone on for as long as it did is proof that anyone can say anything about anyone, even in the face of contrary logic, and a movement will spring up to support it.
There was a time you could disagree with someone without demonizing them. There was a time when after an election if your side didn't win, you still worked together in Congress to get laws passed that were good for the country.
And yes, there was a time when CEO's didn't take obscene bonuses, while the middle class struggled to put food on the table. There's a lot to be angry about. The daily killing of unarmed black men. Unequal pay. The exorbitant cost of medical care and vital drugs being placed out of the price of families already under duress. Drug abuse. Senseless violence. Broken education. The state of the world where working with NATO and our allies is vital in creating some form of stabilization to quell the refugee's flight to seek basic needs so children do not grow up with the sound of bombs as their nightly lullaby. There's a lot to be angry about.
Its easy to lash out into demagoguery when times are tough. It's easy to create a 'them versus us' scenario. It's easier to blame someone else than ask: what can I do? The answer is: you can vote.
Here's some of the most vital reasons to vote. If those who are whipping up xenophobia win the election or lose by a close margin it legitimizes the vitriol that has become part of our daily discourse. On October 16th, Noah Bierman of the LA Times noted that a close election sends a signal that there are real rewards for the racist bigotry that we read of daily, and that future candidates might adopt some of the same rhetoric in order to get attention. The chance of closely contested congressional districts reverting to the inflammatory claims that we've heard this election cycle, increase. What that does is create a paradigm shift in the discourse. What it does is hurt the very concepts that truly make America great. The ideas of liberty and equality for all. The idea that you can come to America, as other's forefathers did, seeking refuge and contributing to society. That diversity thrives and tolerance for differences is not a concept but reality.
There's another important reason to vote. It's not just about the next four years. There's a chance that as many as four Justices could be replaced on the Supreme Court under the next administration. Three very important issues, amongst others, could be effected. Roe v. Wade, campaign finance reform, and the relabeling of voting districts that manipulates likely election outcomes.
We must resist the easy slide into our basest selves. We must refuse to foster the concepts that feed the abuse of the less able, the less fortunate, the other. We must have a calm and realistic conversation about what easy access to assault weapons is doing to society. And if we do not agree, we should not resort to hate. We should utilize America's, and any democracy's gift to its people. It's a gift taken for granted that people across the world have died to achieve. We should vote. Donald Trump or Hilary Clinton. We must vote.