Giving Thanks

With news coming at us at blinding speed, it’s tempting to do a rant on HIM today. I’m not going to do it, though. There will be plenty of time for that in the coming weeks. We have turbulent waters ahead, and it’s going to take all of us to stay focused so that we can exile the current President of the United States to one of his failing properties. We cannot allow the man to win a second term.

But today, I’d like to veer in another direction. Tomorrow is Thanksgiving, and well, I’d like to take the time to give thanks.

When my long-time pal Greg, aka Ohio Realist, called to ask if I’d be interested in doing this project in early 2018, I couldn’t say yes fast enough.

Both of us had remained in contact with each other after I moved to the West Coast in 2004. We’re very much in line politically and had always touched base to discuss the latest goings-on in the political world. But something changed in February of ’18. The horrific mass shooting at the Marjorie Stoneman Douglas high school was the final straw.

In Greg’s call, he said the following words to me, “Jeff, I’m sick of this. I’ve got to do something!” Do something! He was right. Instead of lamenting and complaining to each other about the dangerous and troubling move to the right by the Republican Party and the corrupt influence of the NRA, how about we try to affect positive change through our words? Thus, On The Fence Voters began.

For that, I’m so thankful to Greg for giving me the final push I needed. I’d wanted to do this for a long time, but I always postponed it for one reason or the other. Finally, I have a platform to discuss and debate the things that are so important to me.

I want a better, less violent society. I want the earth I inhabit protected from the greedy fossil fuel companies, who only see profit as their ultimate goal. I don’t know about you, but I want cleaner air and water. In our two-party political party system, one party doesn’t seem to care about that. I will continue to hold them to account.

Our whole system is corrupt, and I want it not to be corrupt; we need to get big money out of our politics; we need a better and fairer way of electing our politicians. There’s so much on our plate, and while I won’t be on this earth for too many more years, I want to do what I can to help that “perfect union” our Founders wrote about come to fruition. Or, at the very least, move the country in that direction. It won’t be easy.

Finally though, and most importantly, I want to thank every last one of you who follow this blog. In this day and age, with social media and other avenues available to explore political discussion and debate, I appreciate the time you take to read and comment on our posts. I can promise you that I will never take that for granted.

We’ve got a lot of work to do, but I want you to know I’m in this fight for the long haul. Occasionally, you may see a few non-political things in this space. While we’re certainly a political blog through and through, sometimes life itself has a way of interjecting itself in ways that I, or Greg, may want to share. As we say in our ‘About’ section, we’re continually evolving. It rang true when we started, and it still rings true today.

For the foreseeable future, most of the posts you see will be from yours truly. Greg is dealing with some real-life issues, but I do expect him back in the game at some point. We’re always in touch with each other, and he’s chomping at the bit to contribute. For now, though, I’m keeping the light on for him until he’s ready.

These two guys are my buddies. That’s Ben on the left, Jack on the right. They make my days so much better. From them and myself, to all of you: Happy Thanksgiving!

We can do this!