Debate is essential to Democracy!
However much we may disagree, we all benefit when we hear one another out on matters vital to society.
The following note is my response to the polite, “I’m all set,” said by many people I encounter. I respect everyone’s privacy, and right to keep their views to themselves. Nevertheless, discussions can be democratically friendly, though at odds. These days, however, far too often there is a yawning gap. I think every one of us wants to be heard. Here is my democratically friendly voice, and I welcome yours.
Campaigning for the privilege of serving all residents of their 34th district, I have learned about our district's demographics and diversity. But what we all the share is citizenship and love for the United States of America.
I have been talking about the issues facing our district and state. An overriding concern is the state of our economy and pocketbook issues that may drive our votes on Election Day. With inflation climbing, voters will undoubtedly express their pain at the ballot box in a desperate cry for relief, an understandable reaction.
But what will be the long-term consequences of our vote Nov. 8th. Will the cost of food, rent, and fuel be dramatically different because of the way we voted? Midterms don’t possess the power to change long-term economic conditions. Voters can’t influence supply chains, wars, pandemics, or institutional greed at the root of the humanitarian and monetary crises affecting the entire world at present. No one sees the economic future with any certainty, even the members of the Federal Reserve Board, who control interest rates.
Price gouging is contributing to the problem, an undesirable feature of a marketplace economy that can only be curbed by government regulation. Government also creates a safety net of programs that can help those in need, such as fuel programs and rent assistance. That is what Democratic administrations do.
To lay mistaken blame for high grocery, rent and fuel costs on the Democratic administrations in Washington and Hartford is to invite hundreds of 2020 election deniers and authoritarians into federal and state government -- a clear and present danger to our democracy. Authoritarians don’t listen, they dictate.
Personal and private rights, such as a woman’s right to determine her life, and the right of every citizen’s vote to have meaning, will succumb to conservative dogma and challenges to legitimate election results. Americans’ essential rights will be usurped by an unrepresentative government -- the consequence of our failure to stand up for democracy, truth, and accountability of our elected officials.
Who among us will stand up and say that relief from gas prices is worth that awful price?
