Conscience +1 Girl With 1 Vote+ A Few Good Americans

A village? Nope.

1 girl with a good conscience using hustle plus a few good Americans* with a great work ethic, civic responsibility and professionalism helped Kayla, just 19, vote in today’s 2020 Presidential Election.

Thank God., too.

In the last 3 business days + 1 weekend I’ve championed to her a fundamental American truth:

A child of God, Imago Dei, Kayla can accomplish whatever dreams she has in her heart.

Within reason; It’s a little late to be the starting quarterback for the Indianapolis Colts, but hey she can train like a Hoosier David Goggins and call their lawyer Dan Emerson, Esq. about a walk-on.

From Staples, the George Mason University Schar School, Navy Federal Credit Union, Maryland;s Board of Elections, a Congressman’s office, did each person* share my political party or faith, a devout Catholic conservative?

Maybe. Maybe not.

They* and a small army of American people of faith, Jews, Muslims, Christians by their prayers, cheered Kayla as she ran a football of personal agency down the field of American politics to score a national touchdown of civic personal responsibility.

You GO, Kayla, you GO!

“How did you get her – the system?” asked volunteer Angie yesterday at the Southern Area Aquatic and Recreation Complex voting station.

“No, Jesus,” I said and then explained that her family had unexpectedly kicked her out of the home late last Wednesday; with no known father and a recently deceased mother (late May, 2020) it was a hard hit.

I had just inquired whether Kayla could vote in our U.S. 2020 Presidential Election with an official Navy Federal Credit Union bank statement, i.d. and bank card with her newly changed address.

Beginning last Thursday morning Kayla has been on the phone with the people in and websites of Navy Federal Credit Union, Maryland’s Division of Vital Records and Baltimore Circuit Court, the Social Security Office and the U.S. Postal Service to correct and obtain an accurate and official address, social security card, birth certificate, bank account and identification and library cards.

A daunting, exhausting task, it was a good civics lesson – and a test of any one’s soul.

“Listen, Kayla, all those people leaving these different states? ‘Cause of Wuhan Covid 19? They’re going through the same thing and re-considering their political party, too. Take heart.”

(Zita virus, named for Zita forest; Ebola named for Ebola River; West Nile.. for West Nile River. I’m not going alpha numeric on Wuhan Covid 19, nor the China SARS virus. Just sayin.’ Nice try, China.)

“Kayla, some people are “allergic” to work and even act as though work is a disease that may kill them if they do it; you may have to involve your Congressman, so you can vote next Tuesday.”

She did.

Accountability cures most of the aforementioned ills.

I’d checked Maryland’s Board of Elections website and called, but triple checked with Angie about Kayla, “Yes, she’s fine to vote; we’re here ’til 8 pm,” she said yesterday November 2, 2020.

An unapologetic nerd’s nerd** and politics major, I play by the rules and taught my former U.S. History/Government students and now Kayla the joy of political fair play.

They learned if a rule or law is unjust to change the rule or law by prudence- sans complaint –with legislation through one’s U.S. Congress or respective State Assembly or local council.

Alas, I had tweeted multiple times — mostly to Senate Democrats in our beloved U.S. Congress — during the Judge Amy Coney Barrett hearings this cherished Constitutional fact:

The U.S. Congress’ Senators and Representatives make and change laws NOT U.S. judges whether city, circuit or county.

I also asked them not to practice scare and share with false constitutional and civics facts.

Next time, I’ll use sock puppets.

“Your vote is your business alone – not anyone else- so if someone asks, it’s none of their business,” I told Kayla after she left the voting poll.

“And Jesus,” she said grinning.

“Yes, right, now let’s take a picture,” I replied.

Hard-working fellow Americans Deborah and Regina who work at the park facility posed with us.

They, like the other good Americans mentioned in this story, have 0 allergies to work, know work gives life and believe the American adage: “a man builds the house and the house builds the man.”

A Republican, I taxed Heaven, Hell and Earth to help this young lady vote.

And I hate taxes.

Other people hustled the muscle – like her – to get her answers on how to vote.

It may be that by casting her vote in good conscience, Kayla punched the Democratic ticket.

No matter. It has never been my personal goal to have another person think 100% like me.

More importantly, today’s 2-fold civics lesson is:

1. Her well-formed conscience + vote is vital to the health of our United States Democratic Republic
2. Every day there are good Americans* who will always have her 6, her back, no matter her 20, location — whatever their politics- so she can exercise her conscience and vote.

Your 2020 civic lesson to America’s future, our young people, by you word and action has been?

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

*A hearty hale thank you to:

• Schar School of Policy and Government, George Mason University’s Zavin, Arlington, VA;
• Ayanna of Navy Federal Credit Union Waldorf, Maryland;
• Christian of Staples, Waldorf, Maryland;
• Josie of Democratic Congressman Steny Hamilton Hoyer’s 5th district office;
• members of the Maryland State Board of Elections;
• volunteers at the Brandywine, Maryland Southern Area Aquatic and Recreation Complex
• Mary & the telephone operator at the Baltimore Circuit Court & Domestic Office

**my nerd’s nerd cv of professionalism and education: Oberlin College politics major inspired and taught by geniuses in the Politics, History, Economics and Black Studies Department (yeah, it was called Black studies – grow up politically correct ahistorical folks; Catholic University of America Masters graduate school student political philosophy – and 1-time research lackey of Professor John White as he wrote Obama’s America; U.S. Government textbook writer — Rocky River, Ohio Center of Learning’s We, The People: U.S. Government: Book I; Graduate Fellowship recipient, The George Washington University Graduate School of Education and Human Development – Social Studies and English as a Second Language mentored by the brilliant Professor Kathleen Steeves, PhD; LADO Institute, Silver Spring Maryland – working with students from across the world and here in the United States: foreign diplomats and presidents’ children and new Americans working as gardeners, cleaners and McDonald’s employees ; contractor for the National Geographic Society’s Genographic Project — observed how genetics, culture, science and politics criss-cross and intersect in smart, respectful and fact-based conversations on personal identity and cultural affiliation – in our America.