Commonsense and Reason

 June 13, 2024 Polarization does not mean we have to be adversaries It keeps coming up in our national debates on almost all issues how polarized we are as a nation. I really don't understand when politicians, media personalities, and others complain how much we are polarized because we see issues differently. We are a nation of individuals with individual liberties that are protected by the Constitution. At the forefront of these liberties is the right to freedom of speech, and freedom of the press. Implicit in the right to free speech and press is the right of each person to have their own opinions. I'm troubled by politicians and people of influence that intentionally sows seeds of discord between groups of citizens with divisive rhetoric for political reasons.   Despite the efforts of those that try to deliberately keep Americans divided with inflammatory rhetoric, I am not influenced by their efforts. I make my own decisions on what side of the issues I will take. An...

June 13, 2024 The problem with voting is not voter suppression. I have not seen or heard of a single case where a person of any color that was qualified to vote was prevented from registering to vote; or a single person of any color that was already registered to vote was prevented from voting in this country. The problem that threatens democracy is not the suppression of blacks and other minorities right to vote. The bigger threat is that voters of all colors may lose interest in voting because many of our elections are contested on uneven playing fields.  Having commonsense laws in order to protect the integrity of elections not only is not voter suppression, but it makes the votes of individual citizens more meaningful and sacred. Commonsense laws requiring voters to register in a reasonable time period and to have valid identification are necessary to protect the electoral process. These requirements do not in any way impose an unreasonable burden on individuals wanting to regi...