(Pittsburgh in my 60s) Can we just start over?

By Sherry Pasquarello,Worldwidehippies.com – I am thoroughly and most completely confused now. I thought I understood the different ways that states conduct their primaries, I knew about voting and caucuses and straw polls. At least I thought I did. Caucuses and straw polls did seem a bit strange to me because here in Pennsylvania we just go and vote for the candidate we choose. My only complaint here was and still is, if you register as an Independent you can’t vote in a primary.

This time round the whole system just seems like it’s nothing but dirty tricks and sleazy dealings. I’m not talking about attack ads or even the fairly recent way of “swiftboating” an opponent. I’m speaking about the way straw polls and caucuses can be manipulated. All this business of busing in voters or having to pay in certain states to cast a non-binding “whatever”is just wrong. Then there was something about telling one candidate’s people that the festivities were over and they weren’t so they lost out, there was a recent vote in which THREE counties votes were ignored, (that was on Maddow last night). We have states, including mine that are redistricting in favor of republicans. I am sure there are even more obscure ways that most of us are not aware of since even the pundits and pros on the television and in print are trying to sort out.

So, I will admit, I am getting massive headaches trying to understand whose campaign is trying to do what and to whom and how they are doing it. All I can say is that it seems shady, not illegal, just, unethical. If a candidate has to resort to trickery on top of those gawdawful attack ads plus the millions that one person can now back them with-well, they aren’t anyone I’d put in charge of a head of cabbage. Let alone my country! If they were a relative of mine I’d be embarrassed.

Now, I know this idea isn’t going to ever come about. Me? I’d give every candidate that got X amount of signatures to run, a specified amount of money to run their campaign. That would be IT. No other monies spent by ANYONE for that person. AND every penny of the money granted to each campaign would be fully accounted for BEFORE the election or their name would be off of the ballot. Primary day would be on the same day in every state and this goofiness of straw polls and non- binding delegates and caucuses would be done away with.

Oh, another thing- any, and I mean ANY religious organization that says ANYTHING about ANY candidate or political party would lose all of their tax free status. I think that if a religion teaches it’s followers their faith’s rules and just leaves it at that, well, it should be more than enough. Let your members decide. If you’ve convinced them of the rightness of your beliefs you don’t need to be in politics. If you aren’t sure and politic for or against any person or law- then you are no longer entitled to a free ride!

Just my thoughts. I know none of these things are going to happen. But, I can dream.

Now, I’m going to the kitchen for an aspirin.

Sherry Pasquarello is an eclectic little woman who has been published in the Individualist Newsletter, Black Roses, online at the Amateur Poetry Journal and the Alchemy lit. mag, and elsewhere. Sherry is a member of the international PK poetry kit list workshop and has been included in many of their projects. For more about Sherry check out her blog After the Bridge.