Women's march a righteous cause for all of us

“We must not confuse dissent with disloyalty. When the loyal opposition dies, I think the soul of America dies with it.” 

— Edward R. Murrow

“Freedom is hammered out on the anvil of discussion, dissent, and debate. “

— Hubert H. Humphrey

“Free societies are societies in which the right of dissent is protected.”

                                                                                         —Natan Sharansky

AUBURN — Witnessing a sea of humanity snaking through the streets of our nation’s capitol during the women's march reassured me that common sense, dissent and freedom are alive and well in the United States.

If you have a gripe with what you just saw across America and in fine cities around the globe, writer letter or relocate to a nation ruled by despots who intimidate and murder citizens for their opinions and outspokenness. 

If the current administration can’t understand what just transpired on the streets of Boston and New York City, then it doesn’t comprehend the intricacies and brilliance of the United States Constitution and its citizens, who gave us an old-fashion lesson in civics this weekend.

I stand with all women who demand to be treated with equality and respect — in and out of the workplace. I have no problem with a woman governing this nation. As a liberal democrat from the great state of Massachusetts, I voted for Mrs. Clinton after taking issue with President Trump’s acerbic remarks directed toward a female candidate and President Obama during an ugly campaign.

I grew up with three sisters and learned quickly that they are a formidable force when they band together. 

Nobody in this nation should be considered a second-class citizen.

Being bitter about Clinton’s loss is a waste of precious time, but what I can’t understand is a president with a Twitter addiction and his disdain for the Fourth Estate — the press. Calling the press to a briefing and then admonish it over the reporting of the size of inauguration crowds is simply absurd. This is the same nonsense when the president reeled off tweets about SNL skits about him.

Should the current administration move the press out of the West Wing, does the president truly believe reporters are going to go away or news organizations will start pandering to him?

When the press is doing its job right, I know the nation is doing well and not sliding toward rogue status, where life is cheap and leaders are assassinated when their countrymen grow tired of being tortured. We vote our presidents out of office. It works better that way.

By the way, the press isn’t going anywhere. Whatever it takes, the Washington Press Corp will file stories from the Watergate or from a phone booth like Clark Kent. The press will continue to keep a watchful eye on the U.S. government and its leaders, who need to be held accountable for their actions. 

I think we sometimes forget our officials work for us, but we reminds ourselves and politicians every time we vote. That is why citizens were standing up for themselves this weekend. It is our duty as Americans and to the founding fathers of a country that embraces dissent and debate.

This nation has always been a work in progress and I would like it to continue moving forward no matter who is in office.

Walking off and away from Trump

"There is pleasure in the pathless woods, there is rapture in the lonely shore, there is society where none intrudes, by the deep sea, and music in its roar; I love not Man the less, but Nature more."

Lord Byron

LISBON, Maine — We needed to take a long walk in the woods after watching Donald Trump say nothing and loom over Hillary Rodham Clinton like a stalker in a dark alley in Sunday’s debate.

Civility was not on Sunday night’s agenda when the two competitors went head to head for 90 painful minutes. As a family, we are appalled that the man with his filthy mouth and lack of substance is still in the running for president.

I have no confidence in a presidential candidate who has no respect for the opposite sex and no concept of the greater good.

Yeah, I am a liberal democrat who will support Mrs. Clinton despite the email controversy.

Why? None of your damn business! Let’s just say you can’t reason with a narcissist — ever! After all, I am originally from from Massachusetts — and that’s Kennedy country.

Watch PBS' Frontline episode called "The Choice" and you will get the big picture of this horse race.

I voted once for a GOP candidate — and I still regret it. But this candidate might just tear apart the Republican Party with his senseless tirades.

While Republicans spent the weekend abandoning the Donald like passengers on the sinking Titanic, we decided to cleanse our souls of the exasperating Mr. Vile and drove to a place where the soothing waters  of the rambling Sabattus River washed away our disgust of a man who treats the Oval Office like a big joke.

My son was home for college and a long walk on the Paper Mill Trail was the right prescription to clear our heads of the traumatic experience of watching another round inanity from the overbearing GOP contender.

The Paper Mill Trail is our favorite haunt. It is paved, safe and the sound of the river’s waters can wipe away anxiety from stressed-out voters who experienced PTSD after Sunday's debate.

The walk is easy and the inclines give you a good workout. Right now, the colors of the foliage are brilliant on the trail and the stunning shades made the three off us feel pretty damn good on a chilly autumn day.

The cool air and the sweet sound of fast-moving water put a spring in our step on the trail where many other walkers had the same idea.

We felt refreshed after our two-mile walk in the sunshine and hopeful that the citizens of this nation will make an informed decision.

But then again, stranger things have happened in politics and some voters are easily swayed by a candidate's empty promises and antics.

When terrorism strikes, level heads must prevail

"Hatred is corrosive of a person's wisdom and conscience; the mentality of enmity can poison a nation's spirit, instigate brutal life and death struggles, destroy a society's tolerance and humanity, and block a nation's progress to freedom and democracy."

— Liu Xiaobo

"Everybody's worried about stopping terrorism. Well, there's a really easy way: stop participating in it."

 — Noam Chomsky

AUBURN — I voted for President Obama, and like many voters, I sometimes disagree with the commander in chief, but his common-sense approach to these inane terror attacks works for me.

How many times do you see politicians employ common sense whenever they open their mouths? We are often treated to nonsensical sound bites from presidential contenders like Donald Trump. Some of our nation's leaders sound just like the rantings and ravings of posters on news web sites. What a bunch of angry people we have become, and you can’t solely blame our negative actions on terrorists.

Was it necessary for the president to take center stage on national television Sunday night?

You bet! 

After what transpired in San Bernardino, Calif., and in Paris, and the frequency of terrorist attacks across the globe, we needed to hear what OUR president had to say.

Look, I never understood why background checks and gun control are an issue. There are people who shouldn’t own a water pistol, never mind high-powered semis which make mince meat out of human beings. I also realize the significance of the second amendment and the fact that this nation was settled with a gun.

At this point, don’t go shopping for a gun just yet even though I have one in the house, too, but owning a rifle doesn’t insure my family’s safety. Every time a deranged individual attacks an abortion clinic, we get a glimpse of our own home-grown terrorists who also use religion to justify homicide — with a rifle, of course.

But terrorism’s roots run deep and there are numerous reasons why people commit nefarious acts. Through the ages, all three monotheism's have experienced radicalism and its violent repercussions.

If hatred prevails and we single out people because of their beliefs, beliefs that I may not share, then chalk one up for terrorists who have succeeded in making a mockery out democracy and fools out of all of us.

I had no problem with law enforcement converting the terrorists’ SUV into the Bonny-and-Clyde death car after police were fired upon by these killers. Police did their job and saved us a costly trial. Anybody of sound mind does not want to hear assassins spouting their warped ideology in an American court of law.

This violent couple presented a clear and present danger to citizens, and law enforcement acted appropriately. Good people were caught in a crossfire of malevolence in San Bernardino, and all I can do is offer my condolences to the families — and my sympathy is not enough to console all those grieving souls — especially during the holidays.

I will never understand a person who claims to be religious, arms himself, chooses a soft target and begins blasting away like a gunman at the O.K. Corral in Tombstone, Ariz. How can hateful propaganda or a video streamed across the Internet inspire someone, anyone, to commit mayhem? Using a gun to make a point and murder dozens of fellow human beings is a senseless act and their point is lost right after the first shot is fired. 

Martin Luther King and his followers never fired a shot, but his words and devotion inspired a generation of young people, black and white, to act without picking up a pistol. They demonstrated, marched and withstood the water hoses and painful beatings, and they were only armed with the belief that all men are created equal.

We are not a perfect nation and there are several episodes in our history where we failed to live up to the phrase. Slavery, the subjugation of native Americans, the internment of Japanese Americans and exploiting cheap immigrant labor to satisfy a growing nation are a part of our dark past, but every nation has experienced growing pains at the expense of its citizens.

I offer no excuses for our embarrassing past, but we have come a long way thanks to a bitter civil war and a civil rights movement 100 years later that allowed us to turn the corner when it comes to hate and indifference. It was a long moment in history where citizens, black and white, made their point without resorting to violence.

Rounding up Muslims or tossing them out of this country is a nasty step backward, and anybody who understands the U.S. Constitution knows that. Remember, when Italians, Jews, Irish and Asians came here, U.S. corporations had no problems exploiting them for cheap labor. Our new countrymen experienced racism and indifference, and yet they still made their way in a nation that took them for granted and still helped build bustling nation from the ground up.

That is why turning on any group of people is simply wrong and gives every damn terrorists a reason to smile. This kind of thinking triggered the Holocaust and has been the catalyst for all genocides in every generation. There is no justification for murder — and that includes piety.

I’d like think all Americans are smarter than that. If we begin lashing out against a certain group of people, then terrorism wins and all our ideals mean nothing. 

What would our founding fathers say?

Keep that thought in mind during Christmas and Hanukkah this holiday season.