Letter to the Editor: Submitted by Ann Hart

To the Editor:

I don’t know a thing about soccer, but I am enjoying the reactions of the soccer fans who have followed their country’s teams to the USA. The World Cup games are being played in small and large cities across our country. The interactions between these visitors and ordinary Americans have been fun, respectful, and joyous.

Videos of the Scotts drinking Boston dry, the Norwegians rowing, the Aussies discovering Walmart, an Englishman gushing about being able to drink Pepsi with free refills. It’s a reminder of what it means to be an American. We are the land of opportunity, of welcoming the stranger, of helping others improve their lives.

It’s only fitting that this year, our 250th as a nation, we remember who we are. That we are more alike than different. That we are guaranteed the freedom to express ourselves in our speech, our religion, our free press.

We are a diverse country that began 250 years ago by immigrants joining together to build a democracy. We are the freest country in the world because ordinary people, not kings or aristocrats, govern ourselves.

I want leaders to celebrate our country and help us to afford to live in it. Families are worried about the cost of groceries, gas, and healthcare. Our elected officials should be working to make life better, easier, and more affordable.
Instead, they are spending our tax dollars on expensive vanity spectacles like a reflecting pool or a Trump ballroom, billions on a war of choice, and tax cuts to billionaires.

Our path through 250 years of democracy has not been perfect. We’ve had many starts and stops along the way. It is up to us to protect our freedoms, expanding our opportunities, and improving the lives of all Americans. Don’t allow the few to divide us.

We got this, we are the United States of America. Vote for leaders who unite us and who will live up to the promise of this nation.

Ann Hart
Waukon