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Democracy People!

May 14, 2017

I voted today. You didn’t? What the hell? Don’t you know that these incidental elections are the most important ones? What? You don’t vote by mail? I’ve been voting by mail since the ’90s. It’s the only way to go.

I’m appalled at low voter turnout - even here where all you have to do is fill out your ballot and drop it in the mail, or at the library. I can’t believe that people don’t participate, and it is a sin against democracy. It’s your duty, pay attention! ou know our disfunction national politic depends on easily manipulated state and local politics. Please engage, especially if you haven’t before or only voted in presidential elections.

Plus these people spend about three grand every year of my money on my behalf, mostly on the schools. It’s all school committees and more taxes here in Portland. I just voted to tax myself a few more hundred a year to fix the schools - we got lead pipes, old fire alarms, and need earthquake upgrades - again.  It seems every May we got to tax ourselves evermore to have decent roads and schools.

So I take it quite seriously, check the endorsements of the local weekly that interviews the candidates, and inspects the details of the measures. You can learn a lot by looking at the election pamphlet.  I can tell who the jokers are pretty easily there most of the time.

For the record, I went completely with the Willamette Week this time - I don’t always. But they are pretty cool - you can actually watch tapes of interviews with the candidates. Check it here pdx’ers if your ballot is sitting in there with the junk a mail: http://www.wweek.com/news/2017/04/25/wws-may-2017-endorsements/ — Take it to the library, it’s too late to mail.

NE Portland Oregon, Overcast still.


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