When I was growing up, we couldn’t vote until we reached the age of 21. Accordingly, my first time was in 1968, one of the most chaotic election years in our history up until that time. Two major figures, MLK and RFK, the latter of whom probably would have been elected president, were assassinated.
Demonstrations in Chicago during the Democratic convention turned violent when that city’s notoriously corrupt major, Richard Daley, dispatched his police force. I knew a number of the demonstrators who were beaten in the ensuing confrontations.
The country felt as if it might come apart.
I was among that part of my generation that doubted whether voting even mattered, but I voted nonetheless. And over the ensuing decades, in election after election, I have voted again and again.
Sometimes the candidates and measures I supported won; sometimes they lost. Gradually over the years, I developed a deep respect for the process, even though it has been badly corrupted by dark money and the purveyors of extremist propaganda.
Maybe that’s why I hold out a ray of hope that Republican voters will reject the election deniers on the ballot this midterm election, thereby preserving the integrity of the voting process.
Because once we can no longer trust that our votes will be counted accurately and honestly, we no longer will be living in a democracy, however imperfect.
The cruel irony, of course, is this is exactly the mindset of those who believe the 2020 presidential election was stolen — that Trump did not lose — even though there is absolutely no shred of evidence whatsoever that that was the case.
Such is Trump’s gift to history. He lied and cheated and then, when he lost anyway, he sold his supporters on the lie that the other side had beat him at his own cheating game.
Thanks to this tyrant, we now stand at a crossroads. Every citizen should vote accordingly.
NEWSLINKS:
'Kill them': Arizona election workers face midterm threats (Reuters)
How Republicans Fed a Misinformation Loop About the Pelosi Attack (NYT)
Russian-linked disinformation is targeting far-right voters: Report (Axios)
Russia Reactivates Its Trolls and Bots Ahead of Tuesday’s Midterms (NYT)
Why Facts Don’t Change Our Minds (New Yorker)
Midterms pose fresh test for American democracy after two years under fire (WP)
Watch Obama's closing message to voters in Philadelphia (CNN)
What the early vote numbers tell us (Politico)
500 Million Year-Old Fossils Solve a Centuries-Old Riddle in the Evolution of Life on Earth (SciTechDaily)
UN urges Elon Musk to ensure Twitter respects human rights (Guardian)
The Taliban wants to segregate women. So it’s training female doctors. (WP)
As countries convene at climate summit in Egypt, reports show the world is wildly off track. Here’s what to watch at COP27 (CNN)
UN weather report: Climate woes bad and getting worse faster (AP)
For the first time, Iran acknowledges it sent drones to Russia (NPR)
Kyiv Planning for Total Evacuation if It Loses Electricity (NYT)
Relentless drought kills hundreds of Kenya’s zebras, elephants, wildebeests (WP)
Picture Most Closely Resembling Actual Self Immediately Deleted (The Onion)
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