Care enough to be counted
Dear Editor:
The elections are finally over and we have what we have, like it or not. It will be more than interesting to see what develops over the next few weeks.
I would suspect more of what we have had for the last four years — an unwillingness at nearly all levels of government to end bickering, to stop political posturing and to refrain from exhibiting hateful attitudes. Congress refuses to engage in the type of meaningful behavior that would be expected of learned men and women in Washington.
I am a registered independent voter. That is probably why I received a 4x5 card in the mail from the Republican Party soliciting my vote for Romney because Obama was waging war on the coal industry. The card justified coal as an essential part of the economy because it funds necessary programs and puts food on the table.
When someone asks for my opinion or my vote they are entitled to a response. I went to the Republican Party headquarters in Delta and showed the folks who were there the postcard. No one had seen this before, nor had they initiated the vote request. When I opinionated that coal is the number one cause of pollution in the nation, conversation took a turn for the worse. I left.
Being as I was already downtown, why not go by the Democratic Party headquarters? The folks there did not believe the National Defense Administration Act was a terrible thing. For those of you who do not know, look up the Chris Hedges lawsuit against the Obama administration. As you can imagine I struck out there, too.
Having left both headquarters without any satisfaction, I became aware of my view of both groups — contempt. They were all idiots and deserved utter contempt. How could they not see the obvious. They were dead wrong. My beliefs were absolutely correct. I care about my country more than they do. If you do not think like I do, then I will badmouth you and try to sabotage everything you stand for.
Then it hit me. This is just the way Washington behaves. They are too occupied with their own agenda and/or the "party line" on their minds. They do not have the American people or America and its welfare front and foremost. When conversations do not produce two-way communication, frustration and conflict begin. The political role of elected officials is to work for the American people and always look after our nation. That has not happened.
Like any emotionally charged event, I relived the whole experience and began to examine my role in this political drama and came to realize that, like me, every person I came into contact with was focused, earnest and believed in what they were doing. It would only be fair to believe that Congress believes the same.
And so, openly, I would like to say to all those whom I came in contact with especially to whom I ranted and who reciprocated, I am proud to stand with you as you stand for what you believe in by committing, by being visible, available and willing to take on all comers.
The folks I saw were not couch spuds who do not vote and do not care. The folks I saw were not those who work eight or 10 hours, go home and open a beer and watch the tube until bedtime. Oh, they may vote and then lament when things do not go as they wish, but they let others have the honor of watching over our country. The folks I saw were not the ones who vote and then hope (oh well).
We as a nation really need to look where we are currently and how we have gotten here. Every- one I met was putting themselves on the line. They were not many. That is not an admirable observation. America needs and must have our collective guidance. Care enough to be counted.
Robert Hanson
Delta/Montrose