Fix what's wrong in this country 

The following diatribe is this 80-year-old voter’s assessment of what’s wrong with American voting practices and what it really means to vote Republican in the real world.

• You favor deregulation of banking practices and Wall Street’s abuse and are against environmental concerns on Earth’s health and welfare.

• You want to privatize public education.

• You will send jobs overseas in favor of buying cheap.

• You want to end Social Security or privatize it.

• You want to privatize government health care or abolish it altogether.

• You favor outlawing all unions, thereby denying workers a livable wage and benefits.

• You favor tax cuts for the rich.

• You are against removing offshore tax havens for corporations and the rich.

• You accept corporations as people.

• You are against public funding for all elections.

• You are against transparency in government.

And this is just the tip of the iceberg. When you vote Republican, you accept all of the above and more. You are also slapping the face of all veterans who fought in foreign wars to preserve the very way of life all Americans enjoy.

The Democrats are certainly not perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but they are genuinely concerned for working class Americans and progressive concerns that affect all of us.

In the upcoming 2012 elections, don’t make the same mistake that occurred in 2010. The American voter put the fox back into the chicken coop. Vote your personal and financial checkbook. All that matters is your individual lifestyle and financial health. If it’s not good for you, it isn’t good for the country. Vote wisely and fix what’s wrong in America.