<strong>Dear Editor:</strong> When the creeks and rivers in West Virginia overflow their banks, the rushing water leaves thick mud in houses all along the waterway. It isn’t long before the neighbors, near and far, show up to clean the mud out. Lately I’ve noticed my garden boots aren’t tall enough for the mud around these parts, so I thought I’d better do a bit of shoveling. Here’s what I found stuck in the mud this week. Antifa: This group stands against Nazi ideas and the far right just like our grandparents did in WWII. They are American citizens of all parties, and marched because of the murder of George Floyd and so many other Black men and women. The worldwide demonstrations were mostly peaceful in spite of media depictions of cities being looted and burned. The Covid-19 virus: The government has reported they had knowledge of the Virus in January, yet the Bush and Obama national pandemic preparation plans were discarded, and the Hoax story was spread far and wide. It is not a hoax that over 170,000 Americans are dead, and there are 5 million certified cases in our country. After all this time, there is no federal plan to help Americans deal with the Virus or the economic gut punch; the states are told to figure it out on their own. The stimulus package awarded millions to giant corporations, and a much smaller amount to ‘We the People.’ Now there is a substantial push to open businesses and schools in the midst of a growing pandemic putting us and our children at risk. The Post Office: The President put a rich supporter in charge of the Post Office to deliberately slow mail delivery, and the administration has generally admitted this was done to interfere with absentee voting. Americans need to get their medicine, income, and mail safely delivered and on time. The response from Congress: This week the Democratic House gave up their vacation to meet together to address the attack on the Post Office. The Republican Senate went ahead with their weeks’ long vacation without voting to provide more funds for those in dire economic distress. The House passed their version of this economic aid bill in May. This is not a game of Us vs Them. Our Democracy is at stake. Want to get out of the mud or help with the shoveling? Read widely and vote. Apply online for an absentee ballot at GoVoteWV.com. Mail it or carry it to your Circuit Clerk at the County Courthouse. <em>Nan Issenberg</em> <em>Lewisburg</em>
