Voting By Mail

I have seen some troubling posts on Facebook and elsewhere about voting by mail. These posts proclaim that voting by mail is rife with the potential for fraud or is already rife with fraud and they wrongly equate standing in a long line to vote in person with standing in line at the grocery store. A lot of these posts parrot what Trump or his personal henchman, Attorney General William Barr is spouting.

When I lived in Arizona, we had the option of receiving our ballot in the mail and to either mail it in or turn it in at our local polling place on Election Day. Each election cycle I chose to receive my ballot by mail and to mail it in at my leisure. It was a very convenient way of exercising my right to vote. It was especially convenient as it allowed me time to read and research the myriad citizen initiatives and constitutional amendments on the ballot.

Contrary to what Trump has stated out loud, since the voters of Arizona have had the option of voting by mail, Republicans have won elections in the state. In fact, Republicans control all three branches of government.

Also, why is it okay for Trump and his toadies to vote by mail (via absentee ballot) but it isn't okay for the average person? Why must a person choose between taking time off work to go stand in line for many hours because there are too few polling places, too few poll workers and too few voting machines? Why shouldn't the average person have the same luxury of voting by mail as the President of the United States?

I am an advocate for voting by mail. I think it should be expanded and I think it should be protected. It will allow all of us to easily exercise our right to vote. Shouldn't everyone be for that?

The Confederate Flag

I saw a post the other day on Facebook that sadly was posted by a relative. In this post, it said that if you believe that the Confederate Flag is a symbol of racism, then you must believe the icons representing civil rights groups such as the NAACP are also symbols of racism.

To equate a symbol of treason, hate, racism and oppression with symbols of organizations advancing the rights of minorities is disingenuous at best and dangerous at worst.

I have never understood the allure of flying, wearing or glorifying the Confederate flag. Why would anyone, in their right mind, want to brandish a flag of the treasonous losing side in our nation's civil war? Why would anyone want to glorify such a symbol?

Some claim that they brandish the Confederate flag to celebrate "Southern" heritage. But what part of their heritage are they celebrating and why does it have to be Confederate flag to be that symbol?

If the Confederate flag is supposed to be a symbol of celebrating Southern heritage, why does it show up in locations north of the Mason-Dixon line? Why is it brandished by citizens of states that fought against the Confederacy?

No, the Confederate flag is a symbol of treason, racism, oppression and hate. To say or do otherwise is just plain wrong.

And it not lost on me that I write this on Flag Day as celebrated here in the States.

An Idea For Veterans

My roommate is a veteran.  He served six years in the Navy during the early 1990's and received an honorable discharge.  For over 20 years, he didn't need the services provided by the Department of Veterans Affairs, but when he did need the VA, they were there for him.  Only problem is, he has to travel to a run down part of Indianapolis every time he has an appointment or needs emergency medical care.

This is the case for many veterans.  They have to travel to hearts of cities around the nation to receive the services provided by the VA, unless they live more than 40 miles driving distance from the nearest VA hospital.  If they do live more than 40 miles away, veterans are able to avail themselves of their local doctors.  Since my roommate and I do not live over 40 miles away, he has to make the trek.

Of course, the VA doesn't offer just medical care to our veterans.  It also provides job hunting services, mental health counseling and many other services.  These services, no matter the distance, are only provided at the central VA centers.  Sadly, the VA does not provide for vision or dental.

My roommate would like to be able to see a doctor and/or psychiatrist that is closer to home, but due to the travel restriction (and not having any other health insurance), he can't.  He must travel to the VA hospital for those services.  This is not to say that my roommate is unhappy about the services he has received from the VA.  Quite the contrary.  He is very happy, but would like to not have to travel 45 minutes one way to get them.

In our discussions, we have come to agree that the VA needs the ability to offer all veterans the ability to see the doctor of their choice closer to home.  We both feel the need for a VA specific Medicare/Medicaid type program where all he needs to do is to provide a VA issued insurance card to a doctor and he gets the care he needs.

This would allow millions of veterans to see doctors in a timely manner while also I think saving time and money.  The VA hospitals will still be available but supplemented by tens of thousands of health care professionals around the nation.

Let me know in the comments below if you think this is a good idea and whether or not you are willing to contact your Senators and Representative to get this legislation moving.

No Gays Allowed: The Rebirth of Jim Crow and Segregation

Imagine going to a restaurant and finding a sign that reads "No Gays Allowed".  One would think we were back in the 1950s where signs reading "No Blacks Allowed" were commonly seen.  The problem is, we don't have to imagine it as states such as Indiana, Arkansas, North Carolina and Mississippi have passed "religious freedom" laws that basically give individuals, businesses, organizations and religiously associated groups the ability to hang "No Gays Allowed" signs outside their doors.

These so called "religious liberty" laws give license to discriminate against members of the LGBTQ community without legal repercussion all because of "religious views" of the person doing the discriminating.  Of course, those who want these laws on the books all claim that they are being "persecuted" for having "Christian" views.  So, to battle this so called persecution, they want the ability to tell LGTBQ persons that their business is not welcome.

In these states, it is perfectly legal to deny employment to someone who is LGBTQ.  They are also able to deny public services, lodging, housing and in North Carolina & Mississippi, government services.  All legal, as long as you hold a "religious belief" that LGBTQ people are bad.

We won the fight for marriage equality.  Now is the time to fight for equal rights across the board.

Legalize - Regulate - Tax

For the better part of a century, our nation has fought a never ending war on drugs and losing.  This war has cost taxpayers untold billions of dollars with no visible positive affects.  Instead, the affects have been negative.  We have imprisoned hundreds of thousands and built even more prisons to house them.  We have militarized our police.  We have also brought about the rise of the deadly drug cartels of Mexico as well as Central and South America with our anti-drug policies.

One of the easiest ways to end, or at least curtail, this never ending "war" is to legalize, regulate and tax marijuana.

I have never partaken of marijuana nor do I have any plans to.  Oh, the thought has crossed my mind, especially as a way to deal with my manic-depression, anxiety and PTSD.  But I have never smoked or ingested marijuana.

Millions of Americans do, whether recreationally or for medical purposes.  Many states have legalized the medical use of marijuana while three states have legalized it for recreational purposes.  But on the Federal level, it is still illegal and thus even in these states that legalized its use, users of marijuana are subject to arrest by the DEA.

Now, there is some movement in Congress to decriminalize marijuana and to allow the states to legalize, regulated and tax marijuana.  I am very hopeful this occurs and our nation's resources can be better used in shoring up our social safety net.  States are able to use the extra taxes generated and the money saved to pay for public education and other services their residents want.

Legalization, regulation and taxation of marijuana is a win for all.  We get to demilitarize our police, stop incarcerating hundreds of thousands, raise hundreds of millions in new taxes and save billions in ineffective enforcement.  We also get to start breaking up the drug cartels.

Now, if only our politicians could see the light.