Why This Old Lady Is Going to the Polls to Vote
No, I’m not a Trump cult follower. There, I’ve lost half the audience.
Like many COVID averse seniors, I ordered a mail in ballot so I could avoid the unmasked, non social distancing hordes who threaten my health with every breath.
I have a mail in ballot, but I decided it’s worth the risk to go in person to the polls and have a better chance that my vote will actually be counted.
Yes, I know that even the sluggish post office would deliver my ballot by election day if I mail it early enough. I just fear that the Trump machine will make up some reason to invalidate all mail in ballots, no matter when or where they were cast.
You think I’m a paranoid wacko?
Things that were previously unthinkable have already come to pass as this administration continues to ignore or circumvent norms. Trump has already said many times that if the Democrats win, the election is rigged. Now he just has to find a way to make it go in his favor.
As he encourages his flock to vote in person, a lot of Democrats are planning to take the safe, sensible route in the middle of a pandemic and vote by mail. If that works out the way he wants, he will be ahead on election day. As mail in votes trickle in and he is losing his majority, BOOM!
THEY ARE STEALING THE ELECTION!
My nightmare is that, just like with the Mueller Report, Attorney General William Barr will step in and help Trump secure the lead by making the rest of the votes suspect. The conservative majority Supreme Court, in an effort to avoid total chaos, will seal the deal.
Lately, it seems like Trump isn’t running a campaign. He has pulled previously scheduled ads. He has no policy platform and no great accomplishments to tout, except for a tax cut for the rich that doesn’t play well in middle America. Instead, he has a failed (absent) response to COVID and the resulting massive disruption to the economy that is affecting every person in the country.
So we see trial runs of paramilitary intervention in our streets. Information about Russian interference and White Supremacist activity disappears from government reports as the Trump machine tries to misdirect and blame everything on China and mostly peaceful demonstrators. Trump changes venues almost daily to show he’s in charge as he rails against urban mayhem and mail in ballots.
His personality cult is not enough to win him an election. Political rallies look more like rallying the troops. The mostly negative word salad stays the same but just gets rearranged:
Toxic propaganda destroy phony foreign far left swamp rip apart rigged rapists rioting mayhem murder killers criminals crooks terrorists violence victims hate guns crime Innocent treated unfairly I’ve done more tariffs greatest economy judges wall vaccine ventilators Russia Russia Russia Sleepy Joe lock her up haters traitors protestors spies military invade rob tear down cheat steal betrayal election liberty anarchy Antifa Marxist ballot scam herd mentality open schools establishment media cancel culture socialists suckers losers looters anarchists arsonists police acted early radical chaos conspiracy crooked China virus jobs law and order stock market statues democrats disgusting hoax poison no responsibility nothing more could be done great job fake news
The sad thing is that if he had tackled the pandemic like any reasonable executive, honestly and proactively, he probably would have sailed to reelection. Americans would have buckled up and shut the virus down. Both Democratic and Republican governors have shown us it can work.
Instead, Trump tweeted “Liberty!” and undermined his own government right after they advised measures to be taken. He continues to insist on “opening up” the economy and schools while enabling the virus to take further hold. The piecemeal successes of individual states cannot win this war as long as the virus rages on nearby.
Over 200,000 Americans are dead. Millions have lost jobs and worry about losing their homes and finding food for their children.
We are shunned and pitied by the world. Trump continues to flounder because he is unable to grasp the basic idea that you can’t have a good economy until you fix the virus. He looks to unproven treatments and vaccines that, even if found to have no major side effects, will not be 100% effective and will take a long time to provide even a modicum of safety for the population as a whole. There are no short cuts.
His latest tack seems to be herd immunity. By opening all of the economy and sending children back to school, the virus can spread even further, basically doing what the vaccine would do by making antibodies in the hosts it does not kill. The only problem is that millions of those hosts will die and it is uncertain if the antibodies even last long enough to provide much immunity. Like the flu, you may need to be inoculated (or get the virus) once a year or even more. Nobody knows.
Governors who have refused mask requirements now have states with some of the highest infection rates in the country. Trump shows his disregard for his followers by having massive rallies with no social distancing and few masks in sight. It boosts his ego and looks good on television. But people die.
“All the work, all the sacrifices that have been made…are going to be impacted because of a selfish, irresponsible, reckless decision by Donald Trump.” Governor Steve Sisolak the day of a Nevada rally
Ronald Reagan was a celebrity who became president. Donald Trump is a celebrity who fakes the role of president as he continues to seek the cameras, We are not contestants in his reality show. Our liberty dwindles as he removes safeguards to our rights and even to the water we drink and the air we breathe.
“…a staggering, monumental tragedy across the board.” Bob Woodward, Morning Joe 9/16/20
So I will vote at the polls to try to increase the chance that my vote will not be undermined. Like 33 other states, mine offers early voting. I hope to avoid the crowds and hours in lines that other patriots have had to suffer through on election day, but I will go prepared.
I hope you will join me, or at least mail your ballot early. Just be sure to meet all state requirements so your ballot will count. Some states mandate a witness or notary public for mail in ballots. Some need a stamp on the envelope. Deadlines vary.
Just Vote.
