“Us”: America’s Last Line of Defense

By: Dr. John E. Warren, Publisher
San Diego Voice & Viewpoint Newspaper

There are a number of things we should all be concerned about as so many around us focus on summer vacations, the excessive heat, fires and floods. We are saturated with the media each day. So many of us are caught up in the acts of survival; facing things like maintaining income or no income at all for shelter, food and living expenses. We have very little time or interest in the politics of democracy playing out each day with the country being divided over personal interest rather than the concern for the nation as a whole.

In the midst of this, “we”, the everyday people, are the real hope because the democracy in which we live allows us to make decisions concerning our lives with our votes. But if we fail to vote, then those who would take our God given rights, our freedoms which we enjoy without appreciation or commitment, the takers of these rights will do so  with our unspoken permission.

I speak of those minority Republican interests in every state who have organized to take over legislative bodies, at all levels of our society, drawing political districts through gerrymandering so that a few can control the lives and activities of the majority by making laws against their interest, and the planning of restructuring America’s checks and balances as provided in the Constitution of the United States.

At the local level, we must become registered voters with an eye on the issues that we need to address more than on whether we like the candidates that are being placed before us. If we remember that our votes are one of the means we have to safeguard the freedoms we have, even if it looks like we are not getting our share, then we maintain a voice in laws and policies being made that affect us. If we do this at the local level, then we will be better prepared to vote and control outcomes at the state and national levels.

Let’s each of us pick three issues of importance to us right where we live and question what can those who have been elected by us or our friends and neighbors do to make those issues a reality. Questions to be asked: Where do those persons seeking our votes stand on issues of healthcare, homelessness, and feeding and nutrition programs? Those who are against “our” interest have their own. We must find people who think like us to run against them. We must not allow campaign dollars from big money and slick ads to get us to vote against our own interest.

We must ask, will the people seeking our votes form coalitions against our interest once elected or will they work for our interest? Without the considerations raised here on the part of each of us, it will not be difficult for a few to change our laws, nullify our Constitution and cancel our rights as we see with recent decisions on Affirmative Action, Abortion and Supreme Court decisions rolling back 50 years of equality.

We the people, “us”, can change the people in Congress and State legislatures voting against our interest and the democratic way of life guaranteed by our Constitution. It’s time for us to get “woke” and get involved.