I Had to Ask

On my bicycle trip across the USA this summer I talked to a lot of the good folks who live in rural parts of the country. My opinions were often very different from those I encountered and so I stuck with a "smile and nod" technique. I listened because I was very interested in the way they saw the world, but I kept my opinions to myself. One day though, I just had to ask.

My route passed through a very small town in Wyoming - population 2. I stopped there, in the middle of nowhere, to get a bite to eat in the cafe/bar/post office/store - which was all in one small building. While I was eating my surprisingly good cheeseburger, I chatted with 1/2 of the population - the man behind the counter. The TV was on and tuned to Fox news (of course) and the elderly man scoffed in disgust at what he was hearing about the Presidents plans. He started saying how it won't be long before someone at the grocery store would start pulling things out of his cart that he wasn't allowed to buy. I was amazed at how angry he was - especially based on the benign topic that was actually being discussed on TV. I couldn't hold my tongue. I ask him did he really think that would happen - that someone would be telling him what he could or couldn't buy at the store? He replied in all seriousness that he absolutely believed that would be the case. I decided I better go back to my smile and nod rule.

I wish I could say this was an isolated incident - that not all people in rural towns are so out of touch with reality - but I heard it over and over again in the cafe booths next to mine. Their opinions seemed based on a total lack of information on the facts. Either they hadn't heard the facts or they chose not to believe them. The scary part is that these are the people who actually vote while, sadly, lots of people who do have the facts choose not to.

I share this story because I truly wish there was some way to get all the people to hear the same story. People will always have their own opinions and that is good. But the media we have today is often so skewed and dangerously misrepresents the actual facts. The town hall meetings are a prime example. Folks are yelling and screaming about "death panels" and "socialism" without knowing one single word about what is actually in the bills being considered. They heard it on Fox news so it must be true.

I know you are busy America, but you must do some research and verify what you heard before you make an opinion - and especially before you vote. Please!