The following originally aired on April 22, 2022, on WDIY’s Jennings Report.
If you love your country, you’re loving your neighbor, your friend, your colleague,
the guy down the street and that person you don’t agree with because each of us is,
well, us.
We must see each other as members of the same tribe with a common agenda: to
have some freedom to be unique individuals but do so with care; to be able to pay
your bills, to raise a family, to live long, to love, to be loved, to die in dignity.
With all due respect, that means we need to be more sharing than accumulating,
more thoughtful than conniving, more friendly and more willing to understand that
nobody gets it all.
I recognize that that is least likely to occur during the mudslinging of a campaign
for elective office but it is the time when that approach is most needed.
So, ask yourself not whether the candidate is for tax cuts; ask whether their
position acknowledges that sometimes government spending is needed.
Consider whether the United Nations, almost every scientist and many of our
neighbors could possibly be lying about the dire consequences of our not taking
aggressive and immediate action to stop the baking of our planet; instead of being
excited that our climate is like the climate in Richmond, Virginia, or having to
worry about the unprecedented floods, tornados, snow stores and record-breaking
heat.
Ask yourself whether, if you were in desperate need to end a pregnancy how you
would feel if some male bureaucrat told you you aren’t mature enough to make the
right decision.
And what if you were a smart kid but were born in the Allentown School District
whether it’s fair that the kids lucky enough to be born to parents who can afford a
big house in the suburbs will get a totally different education.
Consider the ways you might judge someone’s integrity as a key factor in your
decision. Is this person honest? Is the candidate exposed to people of color, poor
people, gay or lesbian or disable or do they spend most of their time in the safe
confines of the country club? Did they earn their living being a slum landlord or
paying their workers too little to survive on?
Did they take time to listen to you or do they only hear the demands of those who
already have access to power? I would suggest that avoiding an audience of WDIY
listeners might give you a hint.
This is an off-year, which means the presidency is not in play. But the United
States Senate is and Pennsylvania has an open seat with the retirement of Pat
Toomey. Every Member of Congress is up, all members of the PA house and both
senate seats. Friends, each of these positions matter.
There are people around the world who are fighting for the right to vote in a fair
election. There are people around the world who are dying for the cause of
democracy. Let’s not let a fallen president convince you that somehow 7 million
votes (the number by which Mr. Trump lost) were cast illegally. Democrats wouldn’t have any idea how to pull that off, even if they wanted to. It is a lie. And that is a fact. Why would you vote for a liar? Why would you vote for someone who is endorsed by that liar?
Pennsylvania’s primary election will take place on May 17. That’s just about five
weeks away. If you are of voting age, don’t waste any time trying to convince
yourself that it’s OK to not vote. Thankfully, it is your right. Now please, make it
your duty.