April 29, 2012

Vote Wisely

In the 2008 election, 69.5 million Americans voted for Barack Obama and 60 million voted for John McCain. About 100 million did not bother to vote.

Each of us was given a gift: the gift of selecting who governs our country. Most did not earn this gift; most have not paid for this gift; but we all posses this gift equally with all other Americans.

With that gift comes responsibility. We have elections every two years and each of us can help decide who will govern us. Yet, in 2008, almost half of eligible Americans did not bother to vote.

The party that Adolf Hitler belonged to comprised about 8.5 of the 80 million population of pre-World War II Germany. The apathetic majority got Hitler elected and allowed him to turn the once democratic country into one of the world's greatest nightmares. He told people what they wanted to hear to get elected and take control of the government. His election eventually resulted in the murder of 11 million people in Europe and the deaths of over 48 million world-wide.

The majority in Germany abdicated their responsibility to verify that Hitler was able and willing to provide what he promised and the world paid a terrible price for their apathy.

Americans have that same responsibility. We must examine every candidate running for office, searching for the truth and discarding the lies. We must investigate a candidate's background as it relates to their suitability to govern in our best interests.

That background should include their activities and group associations in college, their friends and advisors, who provided their income and for what were they paid, and their public rhetoric. All must be scrutinized lest we elect a poser who will say whatever people want to hear and then follow a different agenda once elected.

If all of their background information is not readily available, we must ask why it is being kept secret.

We must become informed by listening to both sides of the debate before making a decision. We must put aside party identification and apply the same fervor we would before buying a car or house.

Then we must show up at our polling place and give thanks for the gift we were given by voting wisely.

Rex A. Hoover
Sumerduck