Are you tired of political commercials? Do wish those political  signs would just go away? Of course, you may throw something, if you get one  more political call. Please, do not let bitterness from the political cycle keep  you from the polls on Tuesday. Our country needs people to protect freedom for  future generations, support good people, and stand up for their values at the ballot box on Election Day.

 We  have been blessed with freedom in this nation. We protect our freedom through  votes. Ronald Reagan said, “Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it to our  children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for  them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our  hildren and our children's children what it was once like in the United States where men were free.” We could be the generation that loses the freedom our  Founding Fathers sacrificed so greatly to ensure for our nation. One of purposes  of our Constitution is to “secure the blessings of liberty for ourselves and our  posterity.”Posterity is simply the future generations. As part of upholding the  Constitution, we are securing “the blessings of liberty” for our children and  their children. When my grandchildren climb onto my lap and ask what I did so  they could live in a free nation, I want to have an answer. I will not say, “Nothing. I’m just not interested in politics.” I will not say, “Nothing. I  really could not make a difference anyway.” I will say, “I made my voice heard  by voting for the candidates I thought would do the best  job.”
 
Many  people claim they do not vote because there are no good candidates. If that is  you, please consider that there may be no good candidates because the good  people do not vote; therefore a candidate cannot win by being “good”. Also,  consider that there may be good candidates, but a 30 second television  commercial only reflects a snippet of a person’s life. People are naturally  drawn toward the negative, so the media reflects the negative. As much as  people claim to dislike negative advertising, it works, so candidates tend to  point out the flaws of their opponents instead of their own strengths. The  truth is everyone makes mistakes and no one will agree with any one of us 100%  of the time. Find out which candidates will vote to best support your values,  and don’t write them off just because their opponent says they are evil. If you  are a good person, do your best to vote for good people.  According  to Thomas Jefferson, “All tyranny needs to gain a foothold is for people of good  conscience to remain silent.” Are you a person of good conscience? Will you remain silent and let  tyranny gain a foothold or will you make your voice heard through your  vote? 

It is true that you may not know which candidates will promote  your values. Not everyone can go to town halls and meet the candidate events.  Does that mean you cannot make an informed decision? Try finding organizations  that support your values. Here at the North Central West Virginia Tea Party, we  support fiscal responsibility, constitutionally limited government, and  accountability of elected officials. We try to encourage support of candidates  who do the same. Political parties have headquarters where people can get  information on where candidates stand on the issues. Although I do not encourage  people to vote merely based on political party, people can always look at the  party platforms and vote for candidates in the party that best represents their  values. In this information age, please, do not let lack of information be your  reason for not voting.
 
This is your opportunity to stand for future generations, to  stand as good people, and to stand representing our values. Will you take this  opportunity or will you leave it in the hands of someone else? You have a voice!  You have an opinion! You have a vote! Please, use your vote to express your  opinion and make your voice heard!