To the Editor:

…to ourselves, to our families and friends, to our community, to our state, to our country, and to our world.

Our vote, as individual US citizens, is our most important and far-reaching expression of that service.

When we elect representatives who will represent the general population and who will balance the needs of the general population with the specific and real needs of vulnerable minorities (such as, businesses, veterans, the elderly, the young, various races, the disabled and infirm, those with alternative orientations, various religions, immigrants, students, teachers, first responders, those in active service to our country, etc.), then we achieve the vision of our nation’s founders, a unified people all moving forward together, yet each in our own private and respectful way, as it should be.

We all hope that those we elect on Nov. 8 will respect the trust and faith we give to them with our vote.  It seems like many of our representatives, at every level across the country, have chosen to ignore our trust in them, which is discouraging to many of us, frustratingly hard to understand, and basically impossible to forgive.

Lately, through a churning maelstrom of good and bad messaging, we’ve pushed ourselves (or we’ve been pushed), consciously or otherwise, into extreme, fringe positions against each other, certainly in our politics.  We, myself included, have too often raised the flag of intolerance and obstruction over that of tolerance, collaboration, compromise and real problem-solving.

We are constantly being manipulated by virtually everything around us.  It’s like we all need to take a deep breath to clear our minds of the endless barrage of fluff we are being fed from all sides and to then carefully assess and meter what goes into our minds and hearts with thoughtfulness and the deliberate consideration of others.

Let’s think about all important issues, let’s understand our candidates’ positions, and let’s vote mindfully.  Our votes do count.  They impact everything right now and for generations to come.  Let’s vote for candidates and issues of value, not just against someone or something.

Michael A. Horejs
Plover, WI