Another election cycle: flawed candidates, negative commercials, dark money attack ads, Internet-only truths, charges, counter-charges, October surprises, rallies, boring speeches, sensational sound bites. So what’s new?

I never figured it was my place to tell anyone how to vote. This is a Democracy, you figure it out.

I will tell you how I see the situation:
1. Donald Trump is a danger to our nation and the world.
2. His lack of debate preparation foreshadows his un-preparedness to assume the Presidency.
3. He is a divider. He has alienated significant portions of our population.
4. He cares only about himself.
5. He refuses to take good advice from competent people.
6. He admires dictators like Putin.
7. There is a huge disconnect between what he says and what he does.
8. He is an arrogant, bigoted, self-centered, misogynistic, xenophobic, narcissist.
   (Full Disclosure: I had to look some of these words up.)
9. He is a serial liar. He lies about his lies.
10. He cares nothing about this country or its people.
11. He brands everything he touches with his name, just like the world’s dictators.
12. He thinks paying taxes to support defense, education, etc. is for peons, like you, me and Jose.
13. He is a school-yard bully, demeaning those with valid concerns about him.
14. He incites his followers to violence with dangerous rhetoric.
15. He is heavily into conspiracy theories that have no basis in fact.
16. His business deals only help him. He cares nothing about suppliers, contractors, employees, communities and taxpayers who get stiffed the process.
17. (Deliberately left blank for you to fill in your own concerns.)

            O.K., this is where I stand. Now I ask you for a YUGE leap of faith. Put aside your feelings about the traditional issues. 2016 is not a contest between liberals and conservatives. It is a struggle to ensure this wonderful, tolerant and freedom-loving nation will continue to inspire the world and our citizenry. Get out and vote for what is just and right. We may have to endure four years of a candidate we don’t much like, but at least we can save ourselves from Trump.

            “Have you no sense of decency, Sir?“  was Joseph Welch’s classic take-down of Senator Joseph McCarthy over his trumped-up charges of communism at every level of government in the 1950‘s. Ironically McCarthy’s attorney, Roy Cohn, went on to serve Donald Trump for decades until he was disgraced an disbarred.