My letter to Carol Voisin

This is a letter I recently mailed to Carol Voisin, the Democratic challenger to Republican incumbent Greg Walden, the US representative for the second congressional district of Oregon. Soon I will be writing a letter for Walden as well.

Update Wednesday, October 18^th: I should've made this update sooner. I had the opportunity to learn a bit more about Carol at the fundraiser dinner for the Klamath County Democrats on the 12^th. I feel that my questions were answered, and that my wish to replace the man in Congress who does not stand for my voice is well placed. I'm voting for my voice in Congress, Carol Voisin.

— Athelwulf

Dear Carol Voisin,

I must say that I am glad that you are challenging Greg Walden for his seat in the House, and that you are aiming to do what needs to be done about the most important issue facing America these days. It is my hope, whether you win or not, that this country will withdraw from Iraq and the rest of the Middle East as soon as reasonably possible and start handling the problem of terrorism in a just and moral manner, a manner whereby America will finally and truly become safer.

It is because you will do your part in what's in America's and, indeed, the world's best interest that I am certain my vote will go to you. It's because of this also that I hope, once election day passes, I can proudly declare, "The Honorable Carol Voisin represents me in the United States House of Representatives."

Since I know you will be handling issues other than the war while in Congress, I would like to take this opportunity to ask you several questions, which will give me a much better idea of whether or not you will represent my voice on those other issues as well.

The war is very important, but civil rights are also important. The rights that are of utmost concern to me are the rights that the Bush administration is trying to take away and the rights it has already taken away. First, I want to focus on what has already been taken from me and the rest of the American public, as well as non-citizens.

I am worried by the usa patriot Act. Its vague, broad definition of "domestic terrorism" can be interpreted too loosely. My Constitutional rights have been violated by the post-9/11 policies that fall in line with the usa patriot Act. No right should be alienated by a government for any reason other than due process of law; once they are, the question arises as to whether or not they'll ever be given back.

Will you do your part to take out the aspects of the usa patriot Act which threaten my rights, as well as to block new legislation which further curtails them, and to pass reforms and legislation which will secure my rights for good? Will you try to stop any efforts to extend or eliminate any of the Sunset provisions of the usa patriot Act?

You can be certain that I'm not only interested in the issues directly tied to the war. For example, it also greatly troubles me that it's still widely acceptable in this country for the government to dictate which rights a person can't have, simply because of which sex they wish to have a life-long romantic and sexual relationship with. This is a manifestation of sexism, even though it doesn't appear so on the surface to most. It is sexism because it is discrimination based on the sex of a person relative to that of who they are attracted to.

I want a representative who believes that homosexuals are not yet equal to heterosexuals in the Land of the Free. I want a representative who will block the Bush administration's efforts to amend the United States Constitution to make discrimination the supreme law of the land. And I want a representative who will guarantee homosexuals the right to marry — the right to make a life-long, loving commitment to their partner and to have the government recognize it — which heterosexuals have enjoyed for ages. Will you be that representative?

Other rights which Bush and his Republican party wish to infringe upon are the rights to free speech, expression, and protest — in particular, the right to burn an American flag in protest. I'm well aware of the ill feelings associated with such an act, and I sympathize with them. Their reasons to ban flag-burning are understandable, and indeed, for related reasons, I believe I would not exercise the right myself. For me and for lots of Americans, the American flag is a symbol for our Founding Fathers, the country they founded, and the values upon which they founded it. In my mind, to burn the flag says nothing to Bush and his administration's actions; rather, it says to the Founding Fathers that the country they founded and its values are a heap of bullshit. That's not the message I would wish to convey if I'm participating in a protest.

But the symbol is just that: a mere symbol. When it comes to freedom of speech and our other related rights, mere symbols are not and should not be held sacred or untouchable. (An analogy can be found in the Christian religion: Idol worship is forbidden.) It is ironic, but nonetheless the case, that our rights should include the right to burn the symbol of the country which aimed to guarantee those rights. I want the rights to free speech, expression, and protest guaranteed in their entirety to me and the rest of America, even though I wouldn't burn a flag myself. It is my hope that you agree with me and want this too. Will you block any attempts to infringe upon these rights, including new legislation or another proposed amendment banning flag-burning?

I hope that my expectations in a representative are in line with what can be expected of you while in the House. I know that the incumbent Greg Walden certainly isn't, and for that I support you instead.

In closing, I would like to recommend to you a book I ordered from Amazon.com a month ago, which may be of great interest to you. Its short title is Talking Right. (The full title is a bit long.) It is written by Geoffrey Nunberg, a linguist who teaches at the School of Information of the University of California at Berkeley. Talking Right explains how the conservative right wing has captured and dominated the language of political discourse over the past forty years with impressive results, and how Democrats as a whole unfortunately do not yet realize the great power that language possesses. Nunberg doesn't cite many of the statistics in his book, which is unfortunate; however, I think it's a very enlightening read, and I also think the subject matter will be a tremendous help in Congress. The book's isbn is 1-58648-386-2. I'm sure you won't find it a disappointing read.

I look forward to your timely response to the questions in my letter. Good luck in November.

Sincerely,

[name and city withheld]