By Pastor Norm Omodt, Ret.
Chatfield, MN
Most people remain in the political party they’ve always been a part of. I’d like to challenge the RADICAL REPUB-LICANS to give serious thought to a change, at least in the way they vote these days, to be more compatible with surely what they know is good and right for our country, and respectful of all Americans. I used to be a Republican until I was 35 years old. From my experience of living five years in South America and returning home, I recognized that I could not support a Conservative political party that primarily caters to the very rich and is TRENDING OUR COUNTRY BACKWARDS!
When discussing an issue, I’ve noticed that the hard core Republicans don’t comment with any thoughtful words of their own. It’s simply repeating Republican propaganda, even word for word! Also disheartening, they usually don’t allow themselves to know the truth! So, they don’t watch NBC, CBS, ABC, PUBLIC TV, and Public Radio, who deal with both sides of the issues. Instead they watch FOX. Did you know that FOX did not even cover live the Inauguration of President Biden? (Of course Trump who clearly knew he had lost the election, would not attend because he is dedicated to deceiving his followers with his lies and false conspiracies! ) And FOX did not cover our National Memorial Day Service honoring our military!
Nor even cover the funeral of a beloved Republican Senator Bob Dole! Nor would FOX ever dare to expose their followers to the TRUTH of the January 6th Committee Hearings! FOX is so UNAMERICAN! It’s disgusting to the rest of us! Shameful!
The bright spot in politics is the PROGRESSIVE DEMOCRATIC PARTY…always working to TREND our country forward, not backward. I ask those hard line Republican (especially in Congress and Senate) but also you strict followers of Trump: In your best thinking, why would you be against green energy like wind power, solar power, and even ocean current energy? Why comply with the sin of prejudice and racism which makes it more difficult for Blacks and Minorities to vote ?
Other countries are always trying to make it easier for the poor people to vote! Imagine Georgia has made it a crime to bring water to someone waiting in line for five hours to vote! How can anyone be happy with such cruelty? And why do you accept mass shootings with the AR-15 military rifle intended ONLY for killing people in war? If you really cared, you would ban those weapons, as they used to be BANNED until George W. Bush, in obedience to the NRA, let it expire! I cried on hearing how children were shot up terribly at Uvalde. And do you remember a time when Republicans did not want government interference in people’s personal lives?
Now, they want to control women’s bodies, and not let girls and women together with doctors and clergy decide the best course. I am totally against abortion, with exceptions, of course, but I don’t want what Republicans want – that religious laws must control women, so they are Second Class, like in some Middle East countries!
The biggest danger to our Democracy is Trump, the cult-like deceiver that controls his followers with his lies, and they foolishly believe him, even worship him, some say! The result is also there are now millions of ELECTION DENIARS, some of them now running for office. A further serious danger to our Democracy is White Supremacy, the idea that it is RICH WHITE MEN must control the government and society! And just as scary: it is trending globally.
A Supreme Court Judge once said: “We can have Democracy in this country or we can have great wealth concentrated in the hands of a few, but we can’t have both!” If you can’t switch to the Democrat Party, as I did for the sake of progressing our country, hopefully for what’s best for our country NOW, at least vote for Democrats on the ballot.
Knut Hamsun says
Bread and circuses, fear and hate, conservative politics used to at least come veneered in a facade of intellectual rhetoric as perhaps some might remember from William Buckley. Reagan dumbed it down, Bush dumbed it even further than some thought even possible, and now we’ve been subjected to the very stable genius stirring up the feeble minded and the crazy idiots to attack our government.
There are only two types of Republicans, multi-millionaires and fools. Check your bank balances to know which one is you.
This is still not to say much of anything good about Democrats. They are, however by far the lesser of two evils, and seem to be trying to do the right thing for the environment, education, and health care.
Gerald J. Boyum says
I concur with the comments of unbelief from others about a man of the cloth who supports the “Democratic Party”, a political party that no longer exists. The title of his article should be “Why I became a Democratic [Socialist]! (www.patriotpost.us/alexander/9235-the-fundamental-transformation-of-the-democratic-party-2011-03-10)
Unfortunately, they have pulled the wool over too many good, well-intended people a long time now through much of the mainstream media that functions as an “attack dog” for one political party instead of a watch dog for the people, a critical requirement in the democratic process, a well-informed voting public.
Here are some other considerations: All belief systems have a foundation or starting point which must be accepted by faith. In the case of Dem. Socialism, its foundation is godless Marxism, an ideology that has failed whenever it’s been tried in the real world,; e.g. USSR, North Korea, East Germany, and Venezuela.
Democratic Socialism is nothing more than Marxist Socialism masquerading as the party of Harry Truman and JFK who were staunch anti-communists. Since then, the Democratic Party has been hijacked by radical Leftists Now, it would be hard to tell the difference between their platform and that of the Communist Party USA’s. As a matter-of-fact, a president of the CPUSA stated that they didn’t need to run a separate candidate for president,; they just needed to support the current Democratic Party. A centrally-planned economy directed by a one-party system with economic production controlled by taxation, regulation, income redistribution, and of course, public opinion controlled by a mainstream media system that functions as a propaganda machine for the controlling political party. The fundamentally-transformed “Democratic Party” is being used now to fundamentally transform the United States from a Biblical/Christian foundation to one based on godless Marxism/Secular Humanism (Man is the measure of all things.)
A Catholic priest in LaCrosse, WI. sure stirred things up when he stated during his homily that a person who votes Democratic cannot be a good Christian, most likely addressing the fact that they support abortion on demand. A similar statement was made many years before by Billy Sontag, a retired baseball player turned evangelist when he said that a person cannot sit in church and pray “Thy Kingdom come” and then go out and vote for a person who supports an ideology that is involved with doing everything it can to prevent it! He was talking about saloons back then in the 19th century; however, his words would certainly still ring true today.
Besides re-reading the Bible and statements from our Founders as part of American history, here is a contemporary politician who has listed the reasons why she left the Democratic Party in “Tulsi Gabbard: Why I’m Leaving The Democratic Party”, Oct 11, 2022. She is a rare politician who has actually identified some of the main elements of her belief system. Interestingly enough, these are some of the main elements of what has made America great:
1. “Today’s Democratic Party rejects the rule of law.” (equality under the law) The people’s trust in the rule of law is the foundation for democracy.”
2. “Today’s Democratic Party does not believe in our constitutionally-protected right to:
a. Free speech.”
b. Freedom of religion.”
c. Bear arms.”
3. “The Fourth Amendment to the constitution ensures ‘the right of [the American people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures.”
4. “Today’s Democratic Party:
a. Racializes everything and blatantly foments anti-white racism.”
b. Is anti-woman. ‘By denying that there are biological differences between men and women, they are erasing women and the existence of objective truth.’”
c. Is undermining families. Families are the bedrock of civilization.
She mentions God in her article; I would include the fundamental element of conservatism, a belief in a supreme being and the divine origin of man. Who we choose as individuals and country as Ultimate Authority/Reality will determine how we view our world, the people who live in it and of course, the standards and laws that we live by.
Summary: “if you can no longer stomach the direction that so-called woke Democratic Party ideologues are taking our party, I invite you to join me.”
Anonymous says
If Tulsi Gabbard mentioned “God”, as cited in your comment, she might not have been referring to the same “God” as you, unless you happen to hold identical religious views.
Those bewitched under Tulsi’s spell might do well to become acquainted with who she is, particularly looking for consistent threads throughout her life. Remember that she became the first ever Hindu member of Congress, took her oath of office in 2013 on her personal copy of the Bhagavad Gita, is vegan, was married a second time in 2015 in a traditional Vedic ceremony, supported Bernie Sanders in 2016, Joe Biden in 2020, and more recently, guest hosted for Tucker Carlson. Her opposition to Muslims is not surprising, given the longstanding nature of relations between India and Pakistan.
Our constitution guarantees freedom of religion, which this writer enthusiastically supports, so several of the preceding points are mentioned to raise the question, “How relatable might she be to most people residing in southeastern Minnesota?” In a space of six years, she has made the journey from supporting Bernie Sanders to endorsing election deniers for Congress. So the question could reasonably be asked, “Who is the real Tulsi Gabbard?”
This article published by NYMag in 2019 about Tulsi’s life is quite revealing: https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2019/06/tulsi-gabbard-2020-presidential-campaign.html
This Wikipedia article describes her run for the presidency in 2020: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tulsi_Gabbard_2020_presidential_campaign
Perhaps some Fillmore County Journal readers will be able to identify a consistent thread in this Wikipedia article describing Tulsi’s political positions: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_positions_of_Tulsi_Gabbard
Finally, this Wikipedia article describes her life: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tulsi_Gabbard
The support for the Catholic priest telling his congregation how to vote is curious. Despite the oft-repeated contention that this country was founded as a Christian nation, the following quotes would seem to call that sharply into question…
“The United States Constitutional Convention, except for three or four persons, thought prayers unnecessary.” — Benjamin Franklin
“Persecution is not an original feature in any religion, but it is always the strongly marked feature of all religions established by law.” — Thomas Paine in The Age of Reason
“I am persuaded, you will permit me to observe that the path of true piety is so plain as to require but little political direction. To this consideration we ought to ascribe the absence of any regulation, respecting religion, from the Magna-Charta of our country.” — George Washington, responding to a group of clergymen who complained that the Constitution lacked mention of Jesus Christ, in 1789, Papers, Presidential Series, 4:274, the “Magna-Charta” here refers to the proposed United States Constitution
“I almost shudder at the thought of alluding to the most fatal example of the abuses of grief which the history of mankind has preserved — the Cross. Consider what calamities that engine of grief has produced!” — John Adams, letter to Thomas Jefferson
“I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should ‘make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,’ thus building a wall of separation between Church and State.” — Thomas Jefferson
“The purpose of separation of church and state is to keep forever from these shores the ceaseless strife that has soaked the soil of Europe in blood for centuries.” — James Madison, letter objecting to the use of government land for churches
“While we assert for ourselves a freedom to profess, and to observe, the Religion which we believe to be of divine origin, we cannot deny an equal freedom to them whose minds have not yielded to the evidence which has convinced us.” — James Monroe
Finally, it’s helpful to note that the words “under God” were not included in the Pledge of Allegiance when it was first written in 1892. Those words were added by Dwight D. Eisenhower on June 14, 1954, in response to the then “Red Scare” during the Cold War era. Somehow, this nation survived from 1789 until 1892 before the original Pledge of Allegiance was written, and for another 62 years until those two words were added.
There are many different flavors of socialism. To conflate Russia (who our Republicans seem to love), China, North Korea and Venezuela with that which exists in this country is akin to insisting that all Christian religions are the same: Catholic, Protestant and Eastern Orthodox, and the many splinter sects that have emerged.
Democratic socialism is not equivalent to dictatorial, authoritarian communism. If they were the same, there are numerous prolonged, bloody wars that would have never been waged. Perhaps you’ve been convinced that socialism is evil, and if it were possible, would prefer that Congress, a future President and the Supreme Court would order all aspects of socialism erased from our nation. This insightful article describes the many profound changes that would take place in our country (the cartoon by itself is worth a look): https://annelandmanblog.com/2020/02/socialism-is-already-here-and-we-love-it/
Some may claim that Republicans are not friendly toward Russia. Consider the eight Republican senators who journeyed to Moscow to meet with Vladimir Putin on 4 July 2018 (which someone included in a comment responding to an earlier letter to the editor), which seems a strangely “patriotic” way to celebrate our nation’s Independence Day by those who most ardently promote an “America First” agenda.
And then there is this quote from 2014…
“We don’t rely on American banks. We have all the funding we need out of Russia.” — Eric Trump
Gerald J. Boyum says
Considering what’s going on in Europe and the far East, we have a lot more problems than the religion of a political candidate. In any case, there is Article VI of our Constitution: “…but no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States. This also was attempted when JFK was running for office; his Catholic religion was brought up and the accusation made that he would be taking his orders from the Vatican. Then we have Diane Feinstein, Democrat, who remarked to Judge Amy Barrett during her Court of Appeals confirmation in 2017: “The dogma lives loudly within you.” In reference to Barrett’s Catholic beliefs.
Your comments are a typical example of an attempt to attack the messenger and not deal with the message. Topic here was “why I am not a Democrat.” The assumptions that you are making would be based on the correlation and consistency between her religious beliefs and the political ideology she supports. We will be electing a Chief Executive of America and Commander-In-Chief of America’s Armed Forces, not a Pastor-In-Chief.
“Bewitched under her spell” is nothing more than an attempt to discredit Trump MAGA voters. Is this coming from someone who is part of the utopian fantasy of attempting to create a manmade Garden of Eden on Earth? And just what is wrong with trying to “Make America Great Again” versus “Fundamentally Transforming “The United States of America” (Obama, Oct. 30, 2008) where we are heading now: border crisis, energy crisis, rampant inflation resulting from massive government spending, civil unrest and disrespect for authorities, mistrust of media and politicians who have problems with objective truths, American leadership not respected, etc.
Pres. Biden: “This MAGA crowd is really the most extreme political organization that’s existed…in recent history. Mark Alexander: “Since when is being ultra-committed to make America great again a bad thing?” I guess it would be a bad thing for the radical Left who want to “fundamentally change” America.
Quotes are from people who criticized organized religion during the early years of American history, however, we are talking about America’s Christian founding:
1. The predominant religion of countries of colonizers in the 15th century and beyond was Christianity.
2. The theme for English colonization was first and foremost, “to the glory of God.”
3. The First Charter of Virginia, (April 10, 1606). The purpose of all colonization in New World was to spread the Christian religion.
4. The Mayflower Compact (1620) “Having undertaken, for the glory of God, and advancement of the Christian faith, …”
5. John Adams. “The general principles upon which the Fathers achieved independence were the general principles of Christianity.”
6. John Adams (Oct. 11, 1798). “Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.
Separation of Church and State. In 1802, President Thomas Jefferson sent a letter to the Danbury Baptist Association that used the “wall of separation” metaphor which was previously used by Roger Williams, who had referred to the “wall of separation between the garden of the Church and the wilderness of the world.” In other words, the “wall” was supposed to protect the church from government interference, not the other way around.
Justice William Rehnquist wrote in his dissent of Wallace v Jaffree, 1984: “The ‘wall of separation between church and State’ is a metaphor based on bad history, a metaphor which has proved useless as a guide to judging. It should be frankly and explicitly abandoned.”
“Democratic socialism is not equivalent to dictatorial, authoritarian communism.”
Mark Alexander in : ”The Socialist Democratic Party, The Fundamental Transformation of America: “…there is no consequential distinction between Marxist Socialism, National Socialism, or the most recent incarnation of this beast, Democratic Socialism. The objective of socialism by any name, is to replace Rule of Law with rule of men, and the end result of this transformation is tyranny.”
I will deal with socialism and capitalism in a separate response.
Anonymous says
Many readers in southeastern Minnesota are presumably avid churchgoers and profess to be devout Christians. Whether this derives from genuine religious belief or simply for secular reasons (known only unto that person and their Maker), how many believe that the Holy Bible is the Word of God? Why might one ask?
The Holy Bible provides valuable guidance to inform our values, beliefs and practice. The following is provided to explore some of that guidance.
Before continuing further, the text of Matthew 7:16 may serve as a useful starting point: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%207%3A16&version=NIV
Some may find it tempting to dismiss the guidance provided in Matthew 7:1-2, which also serves as a timely reminder: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%207%3A1-2&version=NIV
Even for those who disregard the New Testament, the Old Testament includes valuable guidance. We are likely more familiar with the Commandments mentioned in Exodus and Deuteronomy, however, there is a third set of Commandments that seem to be frequently overlooked. For those who are willing, they might do well to review Leviticus 19: 3-4, 9-18 and 28-37. Why are there gaps? The other language might well have applied in that time, however, are probably less relevant to life in these times. The Commandments of Leviticus 19 provide valuable guidance regarding our treatment of the less advantaged among us, including but not limited to the poor, immigrants, employees and to our fellow human beings in general. For your convenience, here is a link to Leviticus 19: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Leviticus%2019&version=NIV
In the Parable of the Good Samaritan (i.e., Luke 10:25-37), Jesus begins by answering the question, “Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Following that reply, he tells of the Good Samaritan, who found a severely wounded foreigner in his land, whose people were widely reviled in the community where he was robbed and beaten. Despite this, the Good Samaritan provides aid and comfort to that beleaguered victim. How well our beliefs, values and actions reflect Jesus’ guidance, and how well do the promises of our favorite political candidates reflect the same? Here is the text to the aforementioned for your convenience: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2010%3A25-37&version=NIV
Regarding immigrants, with rare exception (those whose lineage is exclusively indigenous), our ancestors came to this country from other nations around the planet. In many cases, they felt compelled to leave behind family, friends, community and everything else that had defined their lives up to that time to escape abject poverty, starvation and extreme deprivations imposed upon them by dictatorial rulers, both religious and secular. We might ask ourselves how much different their concerns were than those who seek to enter our country at this time. Might some of us be like the person who gladly ascends the ladder of success while sawing off the rungs beneath us as we do so?
When we vote for someone, we are in essence hiring them to act in a manner that reflects our values. They typically make promises that we hope will be enacted. With that in mind, to what extent does that candidate’s life, words and actions reflect the guidance provided by Jesus, as cited previously, and in greater detail in Matthew 25: 31-46 (cited at the end of this paragraph), which provides a glimpse into what to expect on Judgment Day, for those among us who believe that such a time lies somewhere in the future. How well does your life reflect Jesus’ guidance and as best you can tell, how well does your preferred political candidate reflect the same? Again, for your convenience, the link to review Matthew 25:31-46 can be found here: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2025%3A31-46&version=NIV
Will you be a sheep or a goat? Does professing to be a sheep but willingly voting for (aka “hiring”) someone to serve as a goat in our stead absolve us of responsibility? Will professing to have visited hatred upon those who are different from you guarantee entrance to the express line into heaven?
For a real life situation to consider, some of you may remember the case of the attorney, T. Eugene Thompson in 1963, who hired Norman Mastrian to served as a “middleman”, who in turn hired Dick W. C. Anderson to invade Thompson’s home and brutally murder Thompson’s wife. Thompson had intended to collect $1.1 million ($10,669,568.63 in today’s dollars) from his wife’s life insurance policy. Neither Thompson nor Mastrian physically harmed his wife – only Anderson. This case dominated headlines in the state for an extended period of time. For his complicity, Thompson was sentenced to life in prison in December of 1963. Mastrian and Anderson also received life sentences. Under our laws, simply serving as an accessory does not absolve us of guilt or responsibility.
If you believe that Judgment Day might actually transpire as Jesus described it, you may be asked to review your life and the extent to which it aligned with the guidance provided in Matthew 25: 31-46. Will you be able to provide a convincing account for your actions?
jv says
Deleted my comment? What bias paper
Jason Sethre says
jv –
I haven’t deleted your comment. Not sure what you are talking about. I just reviewed and approved three of your comments.
We received hundreds of comments per day, and approving comments on the website is among a long list of other things we do at the newspaper. So, approval doesn’t happen right away.
Thank you for your patience and understanding.
Jason Sethre
Publisher
Fillmore County Journal
JV says
Wow, I can’t believe his was a pastor. Thanks god he retire.
What hateful person – Here’s a sample of some the his precious dems denying elections over the years.
https://twitter.com/SteveGuest/status/1561383265143083008
jv says
I meant Thank god he retired!
Kim Wentworth says
Dear Pastor, Ret.
When men of the cloth get into politics, even when retired it can be a polarizing situation. As an example the late great, my view, Rev. Billy Graham is an example. Back to your letter. I find the use of you using caps in your sentences amusing to say the least. When you say the alphabet soup of tv channels deal with both sides of an issue that’s so laughable I’m left speechless and question your senses. For me the morning and afternoon shows on FOX are left of center.
The 2020 election was highly questionable. Pres Trump received more votes in the history of this country running for reelection but still lost to a feable basement dweller. I believe the whole mail-ballot thing has gotten out of hand. 1) incorrect filling out of 2) mishandling of ballots 3) improper use of election watchers 4) counting of mail-in ballots that had NO FOLD in them?? These are a few examples.
Mental health in America is a serious problem. It has NOTHING to do with the 2nd amendment. Enforce the laws that are already on the books. No human being has a right to illegally enter this country, period. I laugh at many of you pro choice people. On one hand you cheer for the killing of a baby but at the same time cry, weep and carry on when it comes time to put a justly convicted person to death. You say progressive proudly, good for you. I will always defend your right to do so. Piece
Stanley J Gudmundson says
It is unbelievable that a pastor would support the party of abortion. I’ve also noticed that some recent editorials from the leftist side of the world won’t talk about the serious issues we face. Inflation, crime, fuel prices, immigration, and so on. They write about vague and silly sentiments, and engage in wishful thinking. They won’t talk about problems we face because of their crummy policies or the people who keep on making things worse for us and our country. One fellow inferred that conservatives are fascists. Fascism and Nazism are both leftist socialist ideologies whose major difference is that Fascist movements were nationalistic while communism’s focus was international. Read any biography of Mussolini and you will see what I mean. Mussolini, by the way, was one of, if not the, leading intellectual in Fascism’s development.
Anonymous says
Despite the horrific implications of the attempted insurrection on January 6th, and the Republican Party’s dismissal of that event as anything of consequence, what do you think life would be like in this country if that armed mob had succeeded? How certain are you that January 6th was not simply a dress rehearsal? Do you enjoy your protections provided under the U. S. Constitution? They could all be at risk. We would be subject to the whim of the dictator or dictators (maybe a tribunal). None of the certainties of our past would necessarily exist in our future.
The Republican Party loves to proclaim that they are the party of “patriotism” and “America First”, however, if that is the case, what do you make of this story, courtesy of Esquire magazine: https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/politics/a22063027/republican-senators-russia-4th-of-july/
You won’t have to look far to find reports that Vladimir Putin is staying the course in the destruction of Ukraine (who, by the way, did not invite the Russians to invade their country), counting on Republicans to prevail in the upcoming elections and choke off the U. S. support to Ukraine, proving their devotion to Putin. Remarkably, many among us would rather live under Putin’s rule than suffer the travails of living in the United States as it currently exists.
Are you retired and collecting Social Security? Are you receiving Medicare benefits? If so, do you recall paying into both of these programs for the entirety of your working life? Would you be disappointed if these programs were crippled or eliminated? And finally, do you have a plan for life after Social Security and Medicare is gone?
Republican Senator Rick Scott of Florida released a plan earlier this year that potentially places Social Security and Medicare on the chopping block every five years, as described in this story published by New York Magazine: https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2022/04/rick-scotts-ultra-maga-agenda-gives-dems-a-midterm-lifeline.html
The Republican Senator from Wisconsin, Ron Johnson, who’s running for re-election this year, is apparently doing Rick Scott “one better”, with his plan to subject Social Security and Medicare to Congressional approval (or disapproval) every year, rather than the current system under which those two programs are automatically renewed each year. Here’s that story, courtesy of Wisconsin Public Radio: https://www.wpr.org/ron-johnson-calls-annual-approval-social-security-medicare-funding
This article was published by the Los Angeles Times in the latter half of last month, addressing the same topic: https://www.latimes.com/business/story/2022-10-19/column-gop-promises-to-gut-your-social-security-medicare-if-they-take-power
Also at risk if the above two programs are severely curtailed or eliminated are: those who are under 65 years of age but are disabled and therefore eligible to receive Social Security benefits, and seniors residing in a long-term care facility whose personal funds have long been depleted and without Medicaid funding would no longer have a roof over their heads. They may not have younger family members to take them in and provide for their care, or try as they might, those younger family members may not have the resources to provide the level of care that their older relative need to survive.
If you are still working and have no older relatives and none who are disabled, then maybe you have no need to worry? Perhaps you’ve been looking forward to retiring with Medicare at age 65 to help cover your cost of health care, followed by achieving full retirement age for Social Security at age 67. If you read the Los Angeles Times article, you’ll see that there are proposals to raise those eligibility ages to 67 for Medicare and 70 for full retirement under Social Security. But maybe most of you wanted to keep working anyway. Despite such intentions, many are unable to do so since health care issues sometimes brings about an earlier than planned retirement.
Republicans love to claim that “more guns keep us safer” and that Democrats are “soft on crime.” If they are correct, then it would stand to reason that the reddest states, which typically have the most permissive gun laws, would also be the safest. So is that actually the case? Here’s the 2020 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report of gun deaths per capita, ranked by state: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/pressroom/sosmap/firearm_mortality/firearm.htm
There are so many other issues, and so little time. Many would argue that the ballots in November are uniquely providing us an opportunity to 1) continue our more than 230 year old system of government as is, or 2) to replace it with the equivalent of an authoritarian dictatorship.
The following quote from the 1930s is worth noting at the present time…
“When liberty is taken away by force it can be restored by force. When it is relinquished voluntarily by default it can never be recovered.” — Dorothy Thompson, (1893-1961), American journalist and radio broadcaster who in 1939 was recognized by Time magazine as the second most influential woman in the United States, trailing only Eleanor Roosevelt
Donna Halvorsen says
You should require Anonymous to reveal his name. In what other “newspaper” in the country is a commenter allowed to spew right-wing bile for years while refusing to give his name?. Pastor Omodt is not the one who is “pathetic” and “a scaredy cat.” Anonymous is.
Jason Sethre says
Donna,
I just reviewed posts from “Anonymous” and there are multiple IP addresses from this posting name, so it is not necessarily the same individual each time. From my +30 years of experience in the newspaper business, anonymous posts are very common on newspaper websites all over the world, and on websites in general. Online comments have always been treated differently with a whole bunch of keyboard warriors who share ideas different than they would face-to-face with the person they oppose. There is less accountability in the online world versus print, which is the reality of the world we live in. That’s always been the case. Thank you for your interest in visiting and engaging in conversation on our newspaper website on a regular basis. We appreciate your continued interest.
Jason Sethre
Publisher
Fillmore County Journal
LuAnn Wilcox says
So sadly true! NO Republicans voted for the renewed assault weapons ban. NO Republicans voted for the Inflation Reduction Act.. Republicans NO everything! They promote anger and vitriol but never proffer ANY solutions. Please, please, please: vote for the COMMON GOOD, for American and Christian values (like democracy, welcoming immigration, helping citizens in need, for example). Vote for Democrats, or just don’t vote.
Mark James Olson says
Obviously you are not paying attention to what’s been going on the last couple of years what the demorats have done to this country. That inflation reduction act is pure bs, yeah let’s spend some more money on the policies that got us in the situation in the first place.
Anonymous says
Ignore the actual total failure of Democrat policies and focus of what might happen with that mean GOP. Pathetic Norm and what a scaredy cat be you.