H.L. Mencken once said, “For every complex problem, there is an answer that is clear, simple and wrong.”
As we enter yet another election cycle, I ask my fellow voters to consider that the single most important issue in this, or any, election is not global climate change, or income inequality, or adequate health care for all, or fair taxation, or accessible education, or gun control, or the substance-misuse epidemic.
No, the single most important issue is the reflexive partisanship that cripples our institutions of governance and makes it impossible for them to deal effectively with those and a score of others.
This partisanship lends itself to sloganeering – “global warming is a hoax” and “if guns are outlawed, only outlaws will have guns” – instead of thoughtful consideration of complex issues and the comprehensive solutions they demand.
It thrives on the influence of dark money and corporate influence that handcuffs our lawmakers.
Reversing this status quo will be an arduous and long-term undertaking. A start would be to ask every candidate you encounter at house parties or town halls the following question: “What will you do to countermand the effects of the Citizens United Supreme Court decision and assure fair and open elections?”
MIKE BRADLEY
Hillsboro