At this time of year, the old mail bag or box is full of campaign literature. Chock full of requests for funding to turn the old devils out and bring some new ones in. By the pound the USPS delivers the goods. And it will keep on coming until after the Nov. 3 votes are counted.
Now if the non-profits or bulk mail interests just paid a fraction of the full postage price, the USPS would be out of the woods financially and I would have tons less to take to recycling.
But I digress. This time of year reminds me of my favorite horse race song, “I got the horse right here, his name is Paul Revere“ and “here comes xxx down the back stretch” and I need the tape playing to remember the words!
So much to cover - so little space! First up is that early voting for the mid-terms begins on Mon., Oct. 19, coming right up. You have two fast weeks to mark your ballot before the lines expand into an hours -long wait.
Word has it that will happen now that our wishy-washy prez has given his blessing on mail-in voting but no one believes that their ballot would arrive in time to get counted. He does prevaricate, doesn’t he? Can’t believe a word he says.
But plan to vote however you want to do it. Just get your ownself out to the polls and recognize that free and fair elections are something few countries have available. And so far, the U.S. still does!
We’ve gone from a summer scorcher with no rain for 90 days with the last column to now it’s autumn and still 90 degrees occasionally - and before the next “My Two Cents” rolls around, it will be winter and the world may have changed.
Time Change Sunday kicks off on Nov. 1 when the clock falls back an hour, two days before the full election on Nov. 3. This one will be an easy switch compared to the spring “jump” which disorients me for a month. Stay tuned anyway and lock your doors.
DJT#47 urges voters to stick with his ticket and earn $5 grand if the party retains its power over Congress - as if he hasn’t already bankrupted the Treasury with his outlandish schemes. Now he’s headed for bribes for any voter sucker enough to fall for that. Who hasn’t heard that the Donald never picks up a bill?
His earlier advice to the electorate is to lie, cheat and steal to keep the majority. Meanwhile a week ago, my inbox coughed up his latest bribe, a $90 payment (for seniors on MediCare) but it hasn’t arrived yet. I printed out the official letter with his illegible signature which I”ll show to my tax person.
The Texas elections are equally important - maybe more so - because the current batch of yahoos have been in place so long they’re practically petrified. A year ago I touted the benefits of ranked voting, but did anyone listen? Oh no, no they didn’t. It would have made these mid-terms so much easier to sort out.
Almost like, if you can’t trust your Mama, who can you trust? Why don’t you decide to trust a few women in the Statehouse! Almost every nation on the globe, even smaller ones, have at one time or other had a woman lead the government. Great Britain, France, Denmark, Israel, India to name only a few without checking AI!
And offhand, none of those nations has ever called for a public firing squad to punish a legal offender. Or refused medical aid to a pregnant woman, or food and shelter to refugees. All those are so wrong and like many presidential orders, incredibly evil.
That’s another issue voters should consider, besides civil discourse.
Living in a humane nation among thoughtful, educated people. That used to be our America before bi-polar candidates were voted into office.
I guess what I’m hoping for is our country’s return to a semblance of balance that gives citizens a sense of well-being, not what’s happening now.
Shelly has worn more hats in the communications field than Carter had pills but forgot to retire when she closed her promotions business. She earned a BA in Journalism at NTSU (before it became UNT) and has never lost her love of words.