VOTE

I am not a liberal or a conservative or independent. I am not a registered anything. I am an American citizen and I, and every other citizen, have the franchise and constitutional right to choose where we stand, whom we support and how we will vote in each election.

In the past I have voted for republican candidates and I have voted for democrat candidates and I could vote for an independent depending on the candidate platform positions. Whether the candidate of any party is male or female is not an issue for me. It is an issue whether the candidate is sufficiently qualified for the office.

Each one of our current presidential candidates is qualified to be president. Race is not an issue unless you are personally prejudice. Each one is an honest and good man and plans to be of service to America. Each one will be presented, if elected, with daily choices that require intellect, knowledgeable advisor input, innovation, compromise, compassion, and an understanding, if not implementation, of what is “the greater good”, not the partisan good.

Patriotism is the process of supporting the positive ideals of our government, not necessarily its policies. Policies can be wrong and often are. Ideals are the shared noble values by which one chooses to be governed and hopes to live by for the good of the whole. To equate patriotism as loyalty to a party or person or position is misinterpreting the word for the aggrandizement of partisan positions.

“My country right or wrong” is a prejudicial, ignorant and irresponsible belief. It undermines our past greatness and our future potential as a beacon for the oppressed of the world. It should be, “my country, let us have the will to do right and the grace to admit wrong”.

Our system of government is a good one. It has its flaws and as a participatory democracy it is our individual responsibility to find the flaws and root them out; if need be vote them out, and replace them with ideals and people who transcend politics and transform our republic into a beacon of light for all who seek to be heard and ask that the rule of law be fair and that opportunity be equal.

It has been a personal sadness of mine for many years as a broadcast journalist to report each Election Day that only a small percentage of eligible voters took the time to vote. We are in this life together, only a few can get by without the help of others, so the rest of us must work to encourage, support and honor the diversity within our oneness. We will not always agree, but in courteous disagreement comes a self-righting process.

Do not let the few who have the public pulpit usurp your liberty of thought or your right of reason. The politically glib may beguile and persuade, but private discernment and choice have always belonged to each of us.