Walking the Dog, Facing the Storm of an Election: Why I Can’t Stay Silent

I am your Neighbor!

As we approach one of the most monumental elections in my lifetime, I debated whether I should write a blog. Why? Because I live in one of the most red parts of the red state of Texas. I have also been quiet to avoid upsetting family, especially my brother and his family in Israel, by voicing an opinion contrary to their own.

But I went shopping yesterday. On the roadside, I witnessed a rally with trucks carrying signs and flags, all for Trump and Vance, in a city where they don’t need to rally. I am also struck by the number of signs for Trump and Vance in my neighborhood. I'm not sure there are more than the last election, but as I listen to Trump and Vance, I can’t understand how so many don’t see the opportunity and risk in this election.

So, in the light of that, I thought I couldn’t just stay quiet.

Who am I?

• I am part of the male couple, a family at the end of your block who walks their dog three times a day and feeds a cat or two in the neighborhood, along with our cat, Lucky. As I walk by, I am the one you wave to, say hello to, and even ask to borrow a computer or maybe a cup of sugar.

I am also the neighbor who has had a neighbor threaten my dog and my own home and life because we are a gay couple, even accusing us of being pedophiles at the end of your street. 

Who is genuinely scared that this election will cause such threats and hate to become more frequent.   I may feel somewhat protected by today’s civil rights legislation and the recent rulings of the Supreme Court. 

However, an election for Trump will increase my fear and risk.  We are seeing that justices nominated and confirmed by the last Trump administration already put civil rights and hate protection laws at great risk.

• I am also the neighbor, who you may not know is Jewish.   In a town where there are few, I can feel somewhat isolated.  However, I know from the rhetoric and language from Trump and his followers stirring up hate and blaming Jews for a possible lost election are a real concern.  That the hate speech and antisemitism are real and with any motivation, great harm can come to Jews in this country.

• I also have neighbors and friends on life-saving medication who lost their jobs.  Who are genuinely worried that what we know as Obamacare guarantees coverage will either be voted out or further gutted in a Trump-won election.

• I could also be the woman down the street suffering a miscarriage and realizing that no doctor nearby will do the right thing and the procedure that will minimize her suffering and save her life.

That we live in a state, especially in Texas, that shows more concern for a miscarriage than for the life of a woman. 

All because Trump, mostly middle-aged white men in Austin, and the Supreme Court do not think she should have the right to control her own body.

•  I could also be the parent who suffered the loss of a child to an attack by assault rifles at school and who can’t understand why those guns are legal in the first place. 

Or the uncle of nieces and nephews who sees horror in the drills they go through in school as to what they should do in case of a shooter.   This is more frightening than the nuclear war drills at school in my youth.  We can’t control who may attack us from across the ocean, but damn well, we should be able to protect our children at home.

• I could be the male who doesn’t like all the hate speech he hears.  Who has genuine concerns about the protests against Israel that surface continued anti-Semitism in this country.  But, who also understands, as the writers of our great constitution did, that restricting one kind of speech because we find it offensive is wrong and will allow the majority and the state to control all speech.

• I could be an IT business professional with a genuine concern about the increasing power over the society of a few technology companies that, in the end, think the only technology that is best for this country and world is what they create in their labs. 

Should we all just accept, they know best as they continually increase their wealth and control. Why are so many of their CEOs siding with Trump to ensure the federal government does not do its job to protect society, protect free markets, and ensure that new companies have the opportunity to compete and innovate?

• I could be genuinely concerned about Elon Musk's power and money. If Trump is elected, he wants to be the efficiency czar. What will he do, as he did at Twitter, just fire most of the civil servants and hope we can all get along?

• I could be the middle-aged man with a mother in assisted living concerned about the rising cost of her care and her future.  Compared to many, she has the care and support of her children, but for many, they do not.

• I could also be the person who beats to his own drum, pursues his own happiness and contentment, and doesn’t want the majority population of this country to dictate what that should be or evaluate my life based on their beliefs, values, religion, or opinions.

•  I could be that man down the street who understands this election is about more than just us vs. them for four years.  But, has genuine concern for the continued impact of younger justices appointed to the federal and supreme courts who have a job for life.

•  I might be the uncle of generations of nieces and nephews, wondering if we are really leaving a better world for them to inherit.  We see evil in Putin’s hands.  We see evil in North Korea.  Do we think they are the right model for our future?  Trump sure seems to.

• Do we believe in the continued denial of global warming by Trump and his followers? After a very busy hurricane season, do we not see the harm in continued denial of the threat to our planet and lives of global warming?

• Should the freedoms fought for in the revolution, written into our constitution, and fought again for in the Civil War be discarded so easily?

I do understand my brother sees this as a vote for or against Israel.  I see a current Biden administration that continues to support and even provide naval and US resources to help defend Israel, including the last two attacks from Iran.   Just because Biden’s opinions and policies don’t align with Netanyahu’s doesn’t mean he is not an ally of Israel.  Many of the polls I have seen show most Israelis don’t agree with his policies.

You may have discounted Tump's convictions, the lost court battles, and the evidence presented by the special counsel.  Maybe you don’t believe all the people who served him in his last presidency who warned of his re-election?  Or maybe you go to his rallies and don’t believe the hate and venom he speaks?  Or maybe the idea that he was more concerned about Putins’ health than your own during the pandemic?

I noticed, reading this over for the fourth time, that I have not stated clearly that I support Kamala Harris and am eager to cast my vote for her to be the next president of the United States. She is the right person to carry the torch of freedom and the good that the USA can and will do not just for its citizens but around the globe as well.

I have not only watched her interviews, speeches, and comments but have also listened to many on all sides of the political spectrum speak out for her.

I am sharing this blog in the hope that before you vote, you might consider that I or someone like me might be a neighbor and that this election is about more than rhetoric. It is about the true future of our democracy and the rights protected in our constitution that elected officials are sworn to uphold and defend.

Just maybe… so I had to write something.