Political Mailers/Fliers
To the Editor:
Have you been persuaded to vote for a candidate who has loaded your mailbox with fliers deriding his/her opposition? Have you asked yourself who composes the messages on those fliers and where does the money come from to pay for the postage to get those mailers addressed and sent to you? The return address on the mailer is the source of the message.
Most of the mailers are sent by PACs, political action committees. PACs often have deceptive names. Check them out for yourselves. Do candidates approve the messages being sent to represent their campaigns?
The purpose of the mass of repeated negative messages— I received five mailers in my mailbox last Friday, all addressed to me from one candidate? Obviously, attempting to influence my vote for him, to persuade me that his challenger is a bad actor. Have you checked out the messages on the flier to determine if they are true? The words chosen to describe any given candidate are intended to directly affect how you will perceive that candidate. The educated voter has a responsibility to find out about every candidate on the ballot before marking his/her ballot. I was taught not to believe everything I read or hear. I was also reminded of the adage, “No matter how big the lie, repeat it often enough and the masses will regard it as truth.” (attributed to JFK). Another quote more to the point, “They don’t lie to you because the truth will hurt your feelings. They lie to you because the truth might provoke you to make choices that won’t serve their interest.” (found on https:// www.reddit.com/r/survivinginfidelity/ comments/1axjufm/ sharing_a_quote_about_lies/) I perceive many of the political mailers are propaganda. The Merriam-Webster dictionary definition of propaganda is “ideas, facts, or allegations spread deliberately to further one’s cause or to damage an opposing cause.” The educated voter must determine whether the mailer information is propaganda or honest information before acting on their civic duty to vote. Don’t be discouraged or give up and decide not to vote. Your vote is your voice.
No candidate is perfect. Learn about the candidates so you can make an informed, responsible decision.
Wolves in nature tend to travel in packs. Political wolves seem to travel in questionably well funded PACs.
The responsibility of every citizen is to select good shepherds to guard their freedoms against the political wolves.