Cooperative Living September 2020 - 4

ViewPoint | by Richard G. Johnstone Jr., Executive Editor
Vol. 74, No. 9
ISSN 1529-4579
RICHARD G. JOHNSTONE JR.
Executive Editor
BILL SHERROD
Editor Emeritus (2005-2020)
STEVEN JOHNSON
Editor
LAURA EMERY
Field Editor
JANET BAILEY
Production Manager
JOHN GROTT
Production Coordinator
JIM ROBERTSON
Creative Services Specialist
TOMMY CAMPBELL
Design & E-Media Coordinator
AMANDA S. CUNNINGHAM
Advertising Sales
NINA JACOBS
Administrative Coordinator
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contact your electric cooperative.
For editorial inquiries, contact
the magazine at (804) 346-3344
or editor@co-opliving.com.
Published by the VA, MD & DE
Association of Electric Cooperatives
PATRICIA S. DOREY
Chair
RUSSELL G. BROWN
Vice Chair
WADE C. HOUSE
Secretary/Treasurer
RICHARD G. JOHNSTONE JR.
President & CEO
Board of Directors: Christopher D. Bott, Belvin Williamson Jr.,
A&N; C. Michael Sandridge, Michael J. Keyser, BARC; George
N. Goin, Gary E. Wood, Central Virginia; Robert E. Arnold,
Micheal E. Malandro, Choptank; Jeannette S. Everett, Steven
A. Harmon, Community; James E. Huffman, Jeff M. Ahearn,
Craig-Botetourt; Patricia S. Dorey, J. William Andrew, Delaware;
Fletcher B. Jones, John C. Lee Jr., Mecklenburg; Russell G.
Brown, Bradley H. Hicks, Northern Neck; Wade C. House,
Stan C. Feuerberg, Northern Virginia; Dale McNiel, Randell W.
Meyers, Powell Valley; Herbert R. Patrick, Casey J. Logan,
Prince George; Sanford Reaves Jr., John D. Hewa,
Rappahannock; G. Todd Van Horn, Greg S. Rogers, Shenandoah
Valley; Frank W. Bacon, Jeffrey S. Edwards, Southside.
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COOPERATIVE LIVING (USPS 473-300) is
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they are asked to inform the Editor.
In this and every election season, it's crucial
that we exercise this hard-won, hard-kept right
O
n Nov. 3, Virginians and Marylanders
will elect members of Congress,
vote on constitutional amendments,
pick the winning candidates vying for
various municipal offices ... and, oh, by
the way, also elect or reelect a president and
vice president.
Please be sure to exercise your right
to help determine these outcomes.
Vote for the better candidate, whether
you think the field is desirable or leaves
a lot to be desired.
It's a right that a majority of the
world's residents only dream about or
hope for, many of them reduced to
" voting " in sham elections in oneparty
states.
However, thanks to Providence,
our nation's founders and millions
of courageous men and women -
all willing to stand up to protect it -
we possess this most-precious of all rights:
self-determination.
Peril awaits and loss inevitably follows,
though, for any human possession that's
not tended and defended. No external
enemy is as formidable as internal apathy.
Even in presidential elections, the right
to vote is often exercised by just slightly
more than half of registered voters.
This underwhelming turnout is often
explained by inclement weather, irritation
or anger at petty political partisanship,
weary resignation over an assumed outcome
... or cynicism as to the relevance of any
outcome.
But low turnout among registered voters
is only part of the problem; about 30% of
eligible American citizens of voting age are
not even registered.
If you're not, please do so. And whether
you've been registered for many decades
or mere days, be sure to vote and exercise
this precious right.
Don't let anger or apathy be your
guiding light. Let your involvement honor
a remarkable process put in place 231
2
years ago, a process whose success hinges on
average people like us electing representatives
who will convert good ideas into sound
public policy.
At a minimum, we should vote as a meager
way of honoring those who in the 1770s
pledged their lives and liberty to make this
right possible, and to those subsequent
generations who've preserved it over and
over again by putting life and limb at risk.
So, if you're enthusiastic about, or even
merely satisfied with, one of the
choices, vote.
If you're dissatisfied with all of them,
make a difficult decision and vote.
Vote your conscience; vote your
values; vote your interests. But be sure
to vote. To participate in the process.
To express your views through the
ballot box.
Social media, traditional media and
politicos may influence, but do not
determine, who runs our nation. We do.
Whether you're confident about the
prospects of your preferred candidate, merely
hopeful, or even resigned to disappointment,
remember: The only " wasted " vote is the
vote that isn't cast.
So, on Nov. 3, exercise this right so
hard-won by our forebears and so hardkept
by brave Americans for over two
centuries since.
For more information on how electric
co-ops across the country are encouraging
voter registration and voting, visit vote.coop;
for specific information on Virginia, visit
elections.virginia.gov; and for Maryland,
visit elections.maryland.gov.
As the late congressman, physician and
political commentator Walter Judd noted:
" People often say that, in a democracy,
decisions are made by a majority of the
people. Of course, that is not true. Decisions
are made by a majority of those who
make themselves heard and who vote -
a very different thing. "
Be a difference-maker. Vote! ■
co-opliving.com
Vote Your Principles, Politics,
Pocketbook or Passion
http://www.vote.coop http://elections.virginia.gov http://elections.maryland.gov http://www.co-opliving.com
Cooperative Living September 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Cooperative Living September 2020
