That’s it. I am sick and tired of hearing Republicans and right-wing extremists refer to anyone who has a social conscious as not being patriotic and hating God and religion. I for one am a Christian, and I am very proud to be patriotic. I grew up the daughter of a Vietnam veteran (who served four tours, by the way) and later married a United States Marine. The only reason that I did not go into the military myself was due to an inability to lose four pounds, since females who plan to enter the Marines have to be at their maximum weight or under while males who are overweight can get a body-fat count done (which I would have passed).
I am also very proud to be a Democrat because I am a Christian and patriotic, because I believe that, as Americans and as Christians, it is our duty to look out for those who are less fortunate than ourselves and to strive for social and economic justice. So, to all those who believe that we “bleeding heart” liberal Democrats are nothing more than un-American Godless heathens, I ask you to do further studying as I did while studying to get my Bachelor of Arts in political science from JSU (this does not mean that Republicans and Libertarians do not graduate from the program). I would choose government programs to help the poor and anyone else who suffers from injustice due to the western religious fundamentalist self-righteous hypocritical patriarchal society in which we live. No, this does not mean that all Christians, all men, or even all Republicans are hypocrites who discriminate against others, but we need to wake up and realize that this does happen.
Well, this began as a way to express anger and disbelief over the ruling against the Pledge of Allegiance, but I was tired of all the propaganda and wanted to correct some common misbeliefs. Also, I was astounded that my sister was encouraged by a poll worker to vote Republican on Tuesday because of the District 4 Commissioner’s race. Are they not supposed to remain neutral (at least while on duty)?
Nicki Arnold-Avila Saks
Hoods
The latest boondoggle in the incinerator saga is that of the protective hoods. Seven million dollars worth of hoods; are these just to be sent to the residents with a note “some assembly required”? These are protective equipment and as all equipment requires training, these will require at least an hour’s training in the proper use and storage of the hoods. This will set the implementation of the program back beyond election day (is that the plan?) or even further. Meanwhile, the weapons grow older and less stable. I hope the inactivity does not result in a major incident at the Depot.
