Are you like me and feeling nauseous about the upcoming election, or are you hopeful on what can be accomplished with the people we elect?

When Joe Biden visited the Lehigh Valley in January, friends who don’t know my political affiliation asked me if I attended. When Donald Trump visited the Lehigh Valley April 13, friends texted me and asked if I attended. The answer to both was no.

What divides me and others, though, is how I view the folks who oppose the values I hold onto when picking a candidate because the differences are so extreme. And honestly, I look at these folks differently. And they look at me differently.

How and when did we get so divided?

Dale Murphy, Major League baseball player with the Atlanta Braves (1974-91), Philadelphia Phillies (1991-93) and Colorado Rockies (1993) believes part of the divide is a “profound lack of empathy in our country.” In his blog “Why America Is So Divided,” he says “People view things through an all-or-nothing lens. You either think this or you think that. You’re either with us or against us. There’s no middle ground.”

When picking a candidate for this election and again in November, you are picking a person who will be your voice in the House of Representatives, Senate and the highest office of the country.

What is your hot topic? What are you most concerned about? Immigration, the economy, gun control, crime, women’s reproductive rights? Do the candidates have integrity? Can you count on them to be your voice when making decisions concerning all Americans?

There is a U.S. Senate seat and a seat in the House of Representatives up for grabs in this election. Their voices will help pass the laws you are most concerned about.

Murphy, in his blog, quoted Bruce Springsteen, who addressed a Broadway audience during one of his shows.

“I never believed that people come to my shows, or rock shows, to be told anything,” Springsteen said. “But I do believe that they come to be reminded of things. To be reminded of who they are, at their most joyous, at their deepest, when life feels full. It’s a good place to get in touch with your heart and your spirit. To be amongst the crowd. And to be reminded of who we are and who we can be collectively. Music does those things pretty well sometimes, particularly these days, when some reminding of who we are and who we can be isn’t such a bad thing.

“That weekend of the March for Our Lives (2018), we saw those young people in Washington, and citizens all around the world remind us of what faith in America and real faith in American democracy looks and feels like. It was just encouraging to see all those people out on the street and all that righteous passion in the service of something good and to see that passion was alive and well and still there at the center of the beating heart of our country.

“There’s the beautiful quote by Dr. King that says, ‘The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice,’ Springsteen continued. “Now, there have been many, many recent days when you could certainly have an argument over that. But I’ve lived long enough to see that in action and to put some faith in it. But I’ve also lived long enough to know that arc doesn’t bend on its own. It needs all of us leaning on it, nudging it in the right direction, day after day. You’ve gotta keep, keep leaning. I think it’s important to believe in those words, and to carry yourself and to act accordingly.”

My hope and belief is we come together in the service of something good, close the divide and find the center of the beating heart of our country.

Your vote matters. Please don’t say it doesn’t.

We need to find and elect candidates who will pull the nation together and work for the greater good.

We all came together for the greater good on 9/11 - no politics involved. We were all one nation under siege.

Let’s not wait for another tragedy to happen to become one nation again.

Debbie Galbraith

editor

East Penn Press

Salisbury Press