OPEN LETTER TO SENATOR PAT TOOMEY

by Ruth A. Sheets

Dear Sen. Toomey,

I just heard your little speech today claiming that the voter suppression law that was passed in Georgia recently was REALLY not voter suppression.  Did you actually READ the law?  I haven't read its entire 100 pages, but enough to know that its intent is clearly voter suppression, and very particular voter suppression, people of color, young people and poor people, Jim Crow 2.0 as it has been correctly labelled. 

The 2020 and 2021 elections in Georgia were run extremely smoothly, no fraud, no cheating, but Republicans lost.  What do Republicans do when they lose?  Do they look for new ideas to run on that will actually make things better for Americans, not just the rich white ones?  Of course not, at least not for the past 45 years or so.  Making it illegal to give people water or food in voting lines in places where lines are deliberately set up so lines will be extremely long is what, not an attempt to suppress votes?  Then, giving the state the right to overrule jurisdictions if they don't like the election results, that's not voter suppression?  What is it then? 

In short, I will not belabor the point.  In the sections I have read and heard about, there is nothing that actually helps people to vote.  It does nothing to secure elections as they were already incredibly secure.  It does nothing to get more drop boxes for convenience particularly in areas that serve predominantly people of color.  It does not increase the voting stations in those neighborhoods, or anything else positive.  Oh yes, it keeps some of the early voting, but cuts actual voting hours.  Yes Georgians will get a Sunday for “Souls to the Polls” but they will have to jump through hoops to get absentee ballots with state I.Ds that cost (a poll tax?) and the only excuse given is that one needs an ID to fly.  What a bunch of nonsense!  How typical, defend the indefensible, the unnecessary, with a nonsecquitor! 

So, what would you say is the reason for this 100-page Georgia mess, for fun, for entertainment as lines of people stand in the hot sun waiting hours to vote?  You are a pretty smart guy.  You can at least sometimes recognize the truth.  I believe you actually do know the truth here, but you feel you must verbally support your party.  How sad for you, and you retiring.  Who do you really have to please?  How about standing with our Constitution?  I was thinking you were going to take a more independent stand when you rightly voted to convict Trump for his crimes, but I see, nothing has really changed.  You are a Republican guy with maybe one sort of cause, some kind of gun legislation which of course will never go far enough to make any positive change, but oh well, that's exactly what we can expect from Republicans these days, a bankrupt message, a lot of voter suppression, and more lies.  I am so sorry for that.  I guess we will have to look back in the past for Republicans we can admire:  T.R., Richard Schweiker (someone I voted for more than once), Lincoln, of course and Thaddeas Stevens but those folks are in the past. 

When not a single Republican can see the recent disruptions in the voting process since the Supreme Court in 2013 gutted the 1965 Voting Rights Act, as the voter suppression it is, it does not give American citizens much hope that things will get better without a fight, that is unless the Senate passes S1 “We the People.”  I know Republicans would fight that every step of the way with more lies that they are not perpetrating massive voter suppression, and claim that this bill “would destroy our voting system.”  It will be worth it, though,  to force you all to state those lies in public, in front of those people you are working so hard to keep from the polls. 

I’d say “shame on you Republicans” but alas, you are far beyond feeling shame for any of the appalling things you have either done or allowed to happen in the past few decades. 

One day soon, I predict enough people will be sick of the lies and gaslighting from Republicans and vote you all out.  I hope for the sake of our democracy it is sooner than later.

R.Sheets, Voter since age 18 in 1971 (the year 18-year-olds got the vote) 

HOW TO TELL IF YOU’RE MORALLY BANKRUPT

by Ruth A. Sheets

I know there are a lot of politicians these days who are acting in ways that would indicate their moral compass is off kilter.  The moral structure that would have enabled them to deserve the votes they receive from constituents has moved into the bankrupt range, but it is possible they are not aware of it.

As a public service, I have put together a basic guide to moral bankruptcy.  All elected officials should read through this guide and check off the areas that correspond to their personal and public actions.  If you can acknowledge that any of these pertain to you, you are either on the edge of moral bankruptcy or you have actually arrived.

- You refuse to acknowledge that Donald Trump lost the 2020 election

- you believe there is no voter suppression going on in this country, even in Georgia with their new law

- you think that Black Lives Matter protests during the summer of 2020 were the same as the insurgency on January 6, 2021 in our nation’s Capitol and were actually carried out by the same people, and it wasn’t too bad, “I wasn’t scared”

- you feel you must inform people that you are not a racist

- you loudly proclaim that a law to insure the ability of American citizens to vote will lead to fraud and worse for a century or more

- you believe in trickle-down economics

- you thought it was OK to separate kids from their parents at the border and cage kids like animals, but of course called it something else, like deterrence

- you don’t want ANY immigrants, refugees, or asylum-seekers coming into this country, especially those of color; “they’ll take our jobs, steal our money,” and worse.

- you thought a $600 billion rescue plan would even make a dent in the suffering of people in this country due to COVID-19

- you threatened everyone in your caucus that if they voted for COVID relief there would be really bad consequences for them and you would help orchestrate it

- you signed a huge voter suppression bill in private and had an elected member of the opposition arrested so she couldn’t witness what you were doing

- you can’t imagine people wanting automatic weapons off the streets or open carry that allows people to tote around rifles in public spaces voted down

- you lie more than twice a day in public

- you sexually harass your co-workers, employees, constituents, etc. and swear you haven’t done it even though dozens of women and a few men say you have

- you blame Black people for being poor

- you don’t think you are privileged

- you think police violence against Black and Latino men is nearly always justified

- you refuse to wear a mask when in public

- you claim there is no global warming and that the mega fires and storms are just part of the normal climate cycle

- you either don’t think about farm workers at all or you ignore the terrible conditions they live under while they pick our crops and care for our animals

- you believe the myth of huge numbers of “welfare queens” and that is why you want all kinds of assistance programs cut to the bare bones until those programs are entirely gone

- you are OK with millions of Americans not having medical coverage

- you believe there is such a thing as “reverse racism” and you’ve been a victim of it

- you believe affirmative action gives people of color entrance into colleges, universities, workplaces, etc. they don’t deserve

- you are OK with Jim Crow laws and oppression because “it really wasn’t that bad, you know”

- you are OK with the advantages and benefits you get from lobbyists and vote in appreciation for what they have done for you

- you treat women as inferior to yourself by doing your best to take away their right to choose for themselves

- you bad-mouth and try to destroy labor unions for the benefit of America’s corporations whom you erroneously claim will take care of their workers properly

- you think Donald Trump was the best president in American history

- you were OK with Russian interference with our elections and were willing to lie, claiming it was really Ukraine or China who interfered

- Fox News is your only news outlet

I know this is not a complete list, so I would appreciate any contributions to this guide.  The more opportunities people have to see themselves as possibly in moral trouble, the better the chance they might act to stop it.  Naaaaah!

It seems to me that most politicians at all levels who are on the edge really don’t care and are actively working to see just how far they can go and what they can get away with.  Repairing their moral compass is just not in their best interest. 

Increasing voter suppression is the current morals buster, but if their efforts are slowed or stopped, they will find another way to advance their own power-grabbing at the expense of the most vulnerable Americans.  That is what morally bankrupt people do.  They double down and hope no one who matters will call them on it.  Maybe it’s time for We the People to actively call them out on it and get the word out.  It will be hard because alas, the morally bankrupt have access to lots of resources from fellow bankruptees.  That does not mean it is impossible. 

COURTING THE BASE – OR GROOMING IT

by Ruth A. Sheets

It is nearly impossible to go a few days without hearing from someone that some appalling act or statement done/made by Republicans is to cater to our court “the base.”  This is not new.  It has been going on for at least a couple of decades now and I can’t help but wonder about this “base.”

- Back in the 1990s, Newt Gingrich, a hypocrite par excellence made outrageous claims about the Clinton health care proposal because he said that was what his base wanted.  He also was in the thick of the Clinton impeachment for doing pretty much what he himself was doing, and, for the base.

- A congressman called out during the State of the Union Address that Obama had lied.  Obama hadn’t, but Congressman Wilson’s base donated a lot of money to him because of the unprecedented rude outburst.

- The “Birther” movement got a lot of traction for their lies to rile up the base and one rarely heard that it really didn’t matter where Obama was born since his mother was an American citizen, and John McCain and Ted Cruz were also not born in America.  Knowing that would have disturbed “the base.”

- Marjorie Taylor Greene spews lies, conspiracy theories, and other nonsense “for the base.”

- On January 6^th, an insurrection was perpetrated by some members of the base because the president told them to, while lying to them about the 2020 election.

- This month, the entire Republican contingent in Congress refused to approve of a COVID rescue package because their “base” wouldn’t like it even though 70% of the American people wanted the help. 

It goes on and on and on.

One can’t help but wonder about this “base.”  What kind of people are among “the base.”  What can be said about this base that constantly needs to be placated by acts of injustice and pain toward other people?  Well,

- they are mostly white with some resources.

- They are often rural, but not exclusively. 

- They are people who believe they have not been treated by life, the government, their community, or other people as well as they deserve. 

- They have grievance upon grievance.

- They want/need excitement to help distract them from how hard their life is.

- They want to be part of something big while not really wanting the change they say they want. 

- They are often afraid of people who are not like them, particularly people they have never met in person and they never want to meet those people in person.

- They resent those same people  whom they feel don’t work as hard as they do (of course without actual evidence).  They see those people as society’s takers.  They of course, are the givers, (again, without evidence).

- From the many many interviews by the media in the past decade or so, they are people who desperately need to blame someone for their problems.  They watch a lot of TV and scan a lot of social media to see that other people have more than they do and resent it that they don’t have it.

- They can’t explain any of their feelings or positions on current issues, except, perhaps, to say “He believes what I believe” or “He has the right ideas to take care of those people.”

- The members truly believe that if someone is loud, obnoxious, and bullying, they must be good leadership material and must be speaking the truth (ala Fox “News” et al).

The thing that makes this base dangerous in general, but sad to contemplate is just how vulnerable they are to those loud-mouthed bullies who win their loyalty by lying about, insulting, and degrading others.  This language against others takes away some of the base’s loneliness, fear, and worry that somehow they will be left behind.  It feeds their hatred and anger to such a degree that they forget any positive personal values they might once have held, like “The Golden Rule.”

This is certainly not a new phenomenon.  Racists in the American South during Jim Crow lynched innocent Black people in front of huge crowds with not only approval, but celebration.  The Germans used this vulnerability to wreak havoc in their country and throughout the world in the 1930s and 1940s.  Leaders in China, Russia, Yugoslavia, Rwanda, and so many other places have taken advantage of their people’s vulnerability and have done and gotten them to do horrific things to others, actions that without the hateful, pointed rhetoric they probably would never have done.      

Yes, the base is to blame for their support of terrible measures like separating children from their parents at the border and putting them in cages.  Yes, they are responsible for gluing their eyeballs and ears to the Fox “news” lineup of Hanity, Ingram, Carlson, and the late Rush Limbaugh.  To suck in the milk of hatred and fear is a choice even though in their vulnerability, they probably didn’t even realize what was happening to them.  They could have stepped back and asked how what was being claimed could be true, but they didn’t and don’t.

I wondered why until I realized that what happens to vulnerable people is a kind of grooming.  A lot of privileged people have learned just how to get what they want and to keep it coming.  They have practiced the words, emotions, the timing and identifying the targets before they actually strike. 

In some ways, the base is at a major disadvantage.  This is particularly true when their religious and community leaders, people they should trust spout the same lies in their ears.  Who can they turn to?  They are already so boxed in with others who are just like themselves and are feeding on their feelings of superiority to those who don’t see the world as they do, while they are feeling the deep shame of not achieving in life what they had hoped.  In this state, they are totally open to whatever the candidates, talking heads, and other nefarious entities want of them.

Just like a pedophile who grooms innocent young people to become sex objects that the groomer cares nothing for beyond the use he (mostly he) can make of them for his (mostly his) personal gratification, some Republicans and their allies use these tactics toward “the base,” caring nothing for them beyond how they can be used for their party’s gratification.  Then, they do just enough for the base to let them believe the “groomer” actually loves them and will take care of them. 

Teaching and encouraging critical thinking in school and in society in general would possibly break the grooming-using cycle.  The problem, who can the vulnerable members of the base trust?  Then, what kind of chaos will come about for them within their social sphere if they do speak up and report what they know?