Monthly Archives: July 2012

My One And Only Post About Politics!

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So, the world’s eyes on the American election system and everyone seems to be divided. Everyone has their own views and give advice freely to who they think would be a better candidate for them. But ultimately, it comes down to the individual, and what they see in a candidate. I myself, post on Facebook and Twitter as to who I support, I put facts as I see them to share with others who may or may not agree with me. But the golden rule that I live by, is not to actually tell anyone who to vote for specifically. Since those who know me, already knows who I am going to vote for. My posts put out information to cause people to discuss facts, rumors and issues. What really strikes me, is the number of online reporters who are so bias that they should be working at one of the candidate’s campaign office. You see headlines that are so blatantly one-way that you have to wonder if those reporters actually went to journalism school. On the other hand, you have to wonder how their editors got their jobs.

Just like all American’s, those reporters have their choice, their opinions and can choose who they want to win an election, but I am so amazed at the articles day-to-day who don’t use facts or they cut a quote to make it fit their agenda.

The American press is the strongest in the world and what people from across the globe read about us from papers and tv news they take as the whole truth. Wouldn’t it be nice if you could actually go on YahooNews and actually read an article that puts the issues in a story and then has side-by-side facts?

But that doesn’t sell advertising, it doesn’t sell papers or get you to watch their shows, it is too boring. People love hearing about the conflicts, the ugly side, the fights and the controversies that are out there.

The greatest power that any person has, is the power to elect the person who will serve their country the best, the one who will (in your mind) do the things they say they will do. If you fail to vote, then you have no right to complain, although we have freedom of speech in the USA, it doesn’t help your case to complain about who was elected if you did not take part in the election yourself. Often, I will hear someone say “Man, that guy has really ran the country into the ground, how did he get elected?” and my response to them is, “Did you vote in the last election?”  If they did vote, then we have a discussion, if they didn’t vote, I just shut the conversation down, after I tell them that it is ignorant for them to complain when they did not actually go to the polling place and put in their choice and that if they don’t like things the way they are, to register and vote the next time!

Freedom of speech yes, but when you allow your non-vote to elect the person you don’t want, I blame them personally.

The whole point to this post is two-fold:

1. Don’t listen to just one person, do the research yourself and make the decision through looking at the facts. Disregard news that does not attempt to show both sides equally, because they are not going to give you a true view of the candidates. They will make their choice look like Superman and the other look like Lex Luthor.

2. Get out and vote. register, show your ID (no excuse for not having an ID), and don’t let yourself be pressured into voting any other way than the way you want to vote.

The greatest power of all individual American’s, is to change who is in office with your vote if you feel they have not done their job!

Mountain State Proud: The Reason West Virginia Rarely Makes National News.

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I just finished reading a post and all the comments that several friends, my sister and I had written on FaceBook about my hometown, Sistersville. It began when I made the comment about how proud I am to be from West Virginia.

“You know, when I saw the news for the past week about the storms that hit from the great lakes to the east coast, I wonder why the emphasis on Ohio, Pennsylvania and Virginia was what was in the national news, and only a few mentions of West Virginia. Then I answered my own question, West Virginians are a tough group of people, when something happens there, they don’t go begging for help, they roll up their sleeves, fix what needs fixing and then help their neighbors. They don’t wait for FEMA to get there and they definitely don’t expect help from Washington. This is what makes me so proud of the great state of West Virginia. I have traveled a lot in my life and have lived in many different places, but there is only one place I can honestly say that I was proud to live, and that is West Virginia!”

I was concerned about why the national media would not mention much about WV, but then realized the people there might not have let them in (there was a rimshot there, it was a joke! Ha!). But in all seriousness, West Virginians are probably the most resilient, toughest, yet generous people I have ever known.

Since the storms hit, I have been texting, emailing and calling home, seeing how things were going. A lot of people were telling me, “they have the electric in New Martinsville,” or “the crews are just down the road, we should have electric in a couple hours.” But not once I did I hear anyone complain about anything except maybe how hot it was.  As I read on FaceBook from other posts that were trying to find out how their family members were doing, it was amazing to me how many people would take the time to answer a post with “I am going to be out toward your family’s place, I will check on them for you,” and still others that would post that they had water and ice for those who needed it. To top off the generosity of the people back home, was no matter how much was going on, they would take the time to walk outside and offer water to the crews who worked tirelessly on restoring power to the state.

What I have been talking about, has been just one area of West Virginia, but I can say that the whole state is like this. I mentioned to someone the other day how they should look at people from West Virginia,

“There is no place in the country, let alone the world that has more people that would give the shirt off their backs to help out others, but don’t talk down to them, because the same kindness can turn to a fast butt whoopin by the same people.”

It is funny when you mention West Virginia in another part of the country, they often reply, “Is that the western part of Virginia?” Then when you try to explain that West Virginia is a real state of its own, you get the “Are you kidding me,” and the not so nice jokes that most of us just laugh along with. I mention this because, to most people, West Virginia is a small state, with coal mines, mountains and bad roads, but to people like me, West Virginia is where I want to be, and I long for those “Country Roads, Take Me Home!”

*Note: When I speak of West Virginia in this post, I am also including the entire Ohio Valley, because basically, we are all pretty much the same from there!