Poor Joe the Plumber. A guy asks a question at a political rally and the next thing you know, he is investigated by everybody and his dog.
It makes me wonder if I would subject myself to the same scrutiny. And for that matter, should someone who asks a question to a candidate be subjected to this scrutiny?
Seems to me that this would discourage folks from asking questions of the candidates. Even though Joe the Plumber apparently has some skeletons in his closet, I don't think it's fair for the campaigns and the media to invade his privacy. It should be anyone's right to present their point of view to a candidate without consequence.
This persecution of Joe puts questioners into jeopardy. That is unacceptable. The same is true of the purging of voter roles that is taking place. The way I understand it, if one signs his name differently on his registration form from his signature on his driver's license, he must at best submit a provisional ballot, which I believe sometimes are not counted. Or at worst he is purged from the rolls. There will be lawyers representing both sides at countless polling places on election day. On Huffington Post, there was news of a drunk voting while a girl wearing an Obama shirt was rejected. Examples of restrictions on our ability to question authority abound.
Shouldn't this be the other way around? I have to believe we would be better off encouraging people to vote. Making it easier. And don't you think that poor old Joe should be able to ask a question without having his entire life examined? It's no wonder the polls show the vast majority believe the country is going in the wrong direction.