Dear Editor,
It is important to choose wisely. We have learned much over this election, not the least of which is that the political parties we grew up with have changed. They are simply not the same parties we grew up with.
Both major parties have selected candidates for the Presidency that are more unpopular than they are popular. As a result, lifetime members of both parties are increasingly looking for alternative candidates.
In times like these, we would do well to remember the words of George Washington, who admonished us in his farewell address that political parties “may now and then answer popular ends, they are likely in the course of time and things, to become potent engines, by which cunning, ambitious, and unprincipled men will be enabled to subvert the power of the people and to usurp for themselves the reins of government, destroying afterwards the very engines which have lifted them to unjust dominion.” Boy, does that sound prophetic!
Political parties are not mentioned in our Constitution. They were never intended to be a part of our government. Instead, we were meant to choose people to be our representatives and political leaders. But we have drifted far from that original intent, and as a result we have ended up with this perversion that we face today, where people treat politics more like professional sports, and elections more like the Super Bowl. They show up in their “team jerseys” and boo the other side without listening to what the other side has to say, or considering other points of view.
But with so many of us looking for alternatives, maybe this year we might take a break from those “straight party” voting tendencies, and actually look at the candidates in the clear light of day. Are they running on issues? Or just mouthing nice words about God, Country, and the American Way? Do they know what they are talking about? Or are they just repeating the last thing some lobbyist or party hack told them to say? Do they have valid experience that will guide them in making wise decisions? Or are they just filled with the same party line ideology that has brought us to failure?
Arizona is not doing well. While the rest of our nation is crawling back to prosperity, we lag far behind and our children will probably have to drive along failing roads as they move far from home to find good jobs. Or worse, we may have to move as the water dries up out from under us while our government does nothing to stop it. We cannot continue to vote the same way we always have, or we will surely get the same poor results and even worse performance.
So, maybe this once, we will look outside of those artificial political parties which were never meant to be a part of our government, and vote for candidates who can actually help us. Maybe this once, we will choose wisely, and vote with our heads instead of our hearts.
Mike Holmes
Democratic candidate for Arizona State Representative, Legislative District 14.
