Letter to the Editor: Voters Should Focus on What They Want, Not What They Don’t

In reflecting on the election, it seems to me that as a nation we are better at knowing what we don’t like rather than what we want. I would submit that we will have better outcomes if we focus on what we do want.  

So, what do we want for our nation, state, city and county? What direction do we want our elected officials to take? We will not always agree on these issues. The important thing, I believe, is to be clear within ourselves as to what we want and to vote accordingly. 

First no one is a perfect candidate. We are all human and as such we have our strengths and weaknesses. It seems wise to keep that in mind when voting.  

One issue that seems to be important to many of us is healthcare. What do we want to see happen with healthcare? Right now, we have the most expensive healthcare system in the world and our outcomes are not top notch. Do we believe that healthcare is a human right? We are in the middle of a pandemic. Should we allocate more money for public health? What about insurance for people with preexisting conditions? Which candidate seems to move us toward the outcomes that we prefer? Finding that out is not too difficult. Look at the candidate’s website, look at her/his history. Check the newspaper and look at the party platform. With a little research we should have an idea of the direction and action that candidate will take.  

We can do the same thing for all the issues that are important to us. My list would also include jobs, infrastructure repair and replacement, affordable housing, clean air and water, governmental transparency, and solving homelessness just to name a few.  

We know that politicians have often used fear and anger to motivate people to vote. Let’s go beyond those emotions and all be informed voters. In this election there will be lots of information that tries to side track us from what is important to us. Let’s ignore the distractions and stick with what we want. Hopefully we will have a huge turnout in the election.

Kathy Tennyson

Centralia