FIVE DAYS UNTIL THE MIDTERMS

I originally posted this as a not of the TTWN Facebook page.  However, after finishing it I felt it was appropriate to share it on the blog as well.

As most Americans are aware of by now, the 2018 midterm elections are only five days away.  By now many of you have heard from friends, family members, pundits, and even celebrities that we all need to do our duty and vote.  Some have even suggested that everyone should mobilize to make sure one of the two parties takes back some of the power they’ve lost over the decades (you know the party by now so I don’t have to name them) by making sure they get back at least one of the two houses of the legislative branch.  Some say this is needed to ensure a “blue wave” come early November.  While this is a noble goal and since these are not normal times it does appear we’ve reached a “by all legal means necessary” approach ranging from canvassing and phone banking for candidates to trying to convince friends they need to vote, not everybody is able to go beyond voting or doing some work when they can due to the mixture of work schedules and various obligations ranging from family circumstances to dealing with illnesses (either one’s own or that of a loved one) and the like.   Sadly, this makes things complicated for many people but sometimes the little things can help a lot.  This is my attempt to do just that.

Now I have an official policy of not endorsing candidates but I do vote (actually voted early this year).  Because of this I do have a few suggestions that I hope helps people who haven’t voted yet but plan to - and hopefully help motivate those on the fence regarding voting to take to the polls (remember - as I said in the previous paragraph - THESE ARE NOT NORMAL TIMES.  While this is a small and  imperfect list of suggestions, it is one I feel can cut across and help plants seeds in people’s minds.

If you care about freedom of speech and the right to protest then YOU SHOULD VOTE AGAINST THE PARTY WHOSE LEADER HAS GONE ON RECORD FOR SUGGESTING THAT POLITICAL PROTESTING SHOULD BE ILLEGAL.  This should be common sense but sometimes people vote party line rather than exploring the candidates, especially during the midterm elections. The fact the one person in power even thinks this at all should be proof that they have no damn business holding an elected office. While that person isn’t up for election next Tuesday people in his party are so why not let them know this attitude is not appreciate and will not fly.

If you trust women and believe them when they say they’ve experienced sexual assault then YOU SHOULD NOT VOTE FOR ANY CANDIDATE OR PARTY WHO EVEN HAS THE APPEARANCE OF NOT TAKING SEXUAL ASSAULT SERIOUSLY.  From the Kavanaugh hearings to various comments for the leadership of one party makes it clear that they apparently don’t trust or respect women.  They also have the arrogance to think that this stance will solidify their base and actually gain them support from women. If there’s ever a time to shut down this shit and prove them wrong it’s on this.

If you feel that women deserve the right to reproductive freedom and reproductive justice, including the belief that women have the right to make decisions over their own bodies the YOU SHOULD NOT VOTE FOR ANY CANDIDATE OR POLITICAL PARTY THAT WANTS TO TAKE AWAY THOSE RIGHTS FROM WOMEN.   Ironically polls have reportedly shown the majority of people across party lines to be pro choice.  However, one  party has been doing their damndest in the name of "protecting the unborn" (while seemingly not to care about those already here) to erode this right into near nothingness for many parts of the country.  While one election won't drastically change this, it will be a start that can allow people who support reproductive freedom and reproductive justice to build and helps to put pro forced childbirth asshats in their place.

If you feel diversity makes this country better and that current events trying to use violence to shape it to the contrary are nauseating then YOU SHOULD VOTE AGAINST ANY PARTY WHO DOUBLES DOWN ON CODED RACIST RHETORIC (AND BEOYND DOG WHISTLES TO OUTRIGHT BULLHORNS) AND USES WHITE NATIONALIST TALKING POINTS TO IMPLY THEY WANT TO CHANGE WHO CAN BE A CITIZEN AND WHO CAN’T.  This is another one that should be common sense but the mainstream media’s tendency to imply whatabout-ism and both sides-ism are legitimate on these issues make things murky and can lead to some people thinking otherwise.  Current events over the past week have shown that both sides aren’t doing the same thing on these issues and that the party doubling down on said rhetoric and seemingly oblivious to what may occur in the aftermath deserve some sort of political comeuppance in the meantime.

If you think freedom of religion is important and includes not just all religions but the freedom not to believe as well then YOU SHOULD VOTE AGAINST THE PARTY THAT USES THE TERM “RELIGIOUS LIBERTY” AS A WEAPON TO CREATE A BACKDOOR WAY TO BRING BACK DISCRIMINATION.  There is one party doing this, claiming that proponents of a narrow interpretation of christianity are being discriminated against by having to provide goods and services to anyone or that they should be allowed to not allow people of different faiths to adopt children from their agency.  They like to claim they are a persecuted minority even though they seem to be getting everything they want from a certain administration.  Whether you’re not religious or if you are religious but don’t think the government should enforce one interpretation of one religion down the throats of the rest of us, you should do your part to vote this down ASAFP!!!!

If you feel voting is important and should be made easier for those who are able to do so then YOU SHOULD VOTE AGAINST ANY PARTY TRYING TO STEAL THE VOTE THROUGH INTIMIDATION OR SUPPRESSION TACTICS.  People like to say that if one doesn't vote they can't complain.  However, when one side of the political debate wants to make it next to impossible for many to vote or even claims without proof that "illegal voters" stole the vote for a candidate from certain states (states whose electoral vote just happened to go to said candidate's opponent).  From making it harder for students to vote where they go to school (I remember in college they actually tried to encourage students to vote there since their college town was where they were living when an election was held) to SCOTUS upholding voter ID requirements that require street addresses even though a indigenous reservations often rely on P.O. Boxes fro addresses this is less an attempt to make elections fair and more an attempt to rig it in favor of one party.  While this should be opposed across the political divide, one party's embrace of it means people who care about this should make sure they get their power taken away from them.

This is about it for the time being.  As I said before this is far from a complete list and barely scratches the surface.  However, it should give people a glimpse of maybe what they should be against as they head to the polls - or maybe why they should should vote if they otherwise weren't planning to. As I said at the top of this these are not normal times and while elections alone are not enough (even politicians you like have to be watched like a hawk sometimes) at a moment like this it can send a message.