LETTER TO THE EDITOR…

Reader Applauds

Advance Political Coverage

Dear Advance: The front page of last week’s Vidalia

Advance was very profound. It absolutely blows my mind that our political discourse and resulting elections have gotten us to the point that our small town, local newspaper would have to publish a front page like that in order to fully report on the election. Georgia and our entire nation is better than this. Nevertheless, you guys do a great job of covering state and local issues, good or bad. Keep up the good work.

Without imparting a history lesson on anyone, I can confidently state that the founders of our great nation designed a system that has created the most free and prosperous nation civilized man has ever known. It was a gift to the people of America that has been a model for the rest of the world. Sadly we are in the process of tearing it apart. From Andrew Jackson to Abe Lincoln to JFK to Barack Obama, we’ve had deep divisions in our electorate that have sharply divided the country. This is nothing new. It’s also nothing new that fraud has taken place in our elections; probably most elections ever held have had something not quite right going on. However, what’s happened over the last four years is going to fundamentally change our country if not corrected. The disrespect and even hatred that exist between people on opposite sides of this political divide is being fomented and encouraged by forces that want to see our great form of government fail.

Whether you supported Trump or not, Americans have to agree that the 4 year long response by the “Establishment” in our nation to the 2016 election result is nothing to be proud of. Allowing a visceral, personal hatred of a duly elected President to shake the very foundation of our country’s Constitution should be abhorrent to all of us. We’ve always had disagreements concerning important things such as policy issues, the role of religion, and the role of government in our lives; however, until now, we haven’t allowed optics and style to be the overwhelming determining factor of that disagreement. If we are honest, most of us will agree that the policies put forward by the Trump administration have been good for the USA and our future. However for some, the personality of the messenger far outweighed the message itself, regardless of how self-defeating that idiocy is.

The tragedy is that MAGA haters and Never Trumpers allowed their personal dislike of President Trump to compromise the integrity of our election process. This is the worst thing that can happen to our democracy. Many Americans didn’t like or support Trump just like many didn’t like or support other divisive Presidents. However, there has never been an opposition rise against anyone like it has risen against Trump. Up until four years ago, the American tradition has been to accept the results and move on. There was just as much or more dislike and hatred of Obama in 2008 as there was against Trump in 2016. Nevertheless, we moved on with those opposed to Obama uniting against him. The difference between then and now was that citizens against Obama came together to form an opposition in the form of the Tea Party and other groups in an attempt to defeat him at the ballot box. Those groups competed in a civilized, constitutional contest to defeat him. On the other end of the spectrum, four years ago, a coalition of the Democratic party, government bureaucrats, continued from page

rich oligarchs, and foreign interests all came together to get rid of the “outsider” Trump at any cost, including redefining the ballot box. The results of that will be detrimental to our freedoms and will fundamentally change our country. Real damage will be done by acceptance of the “ends justifies the means” approach taken by that rabid coalition. Freedom of speech and an honest press are the instruments by which Americans should have to educate themselves to be good citizens. Unfortunately, both have been co-opted by anti-American forces in order to dumb us down. You see, revolutions are easier and more politically correct when the oppressed march willingly and in lockstep down the road to servitude.

Donald Trump coming along to represent a push back against the tyranny of the Left played right into the Elite’s hands. He was probably an overcompensation to the Obama political shift. However, that overcompensation was nothing compared to the one pressed on this country the last four years by them. Make no mistake, the folks who fundamentally believe that a few “smarter than everyone else” elites should dictate and direct life in America (and in fact the entire world) cannot do that without an ill-informed American electorate going along. Controlling information through the media and political correctness are their primary weapons and they have used them well. Remember, we were told unequivocally that Trump was a Russian asset and WOULD be impeached before the end of his first year in office. That was the beginning of the big lie.

The duty of all American citizens is to educate him or herself with the truth (regardless of whether or not it agrees with their personal opinions) and to be sceptical of the Government. It is incumbent on each of us to do our part to protect our Constitution, Country and indeed American freedom. That may sound corny, but it’s the truth and is an obligation we all must fulfill. The “Win at all Cost” mentality will eventually dissolve into “Might makes Right.’’ When that happens and becomes institutionalized, we might as well move to Venezuela. At least the weather is warmer down there, unless of course Al Gore was correct and we all burn up from global warming……

Let’s all hope and pray for better years to come.

Karl A. Owens