spoiler alert: this is an unabashed political post

 

If you're anything like me when it comes to politics, or to religion for that matter, you may hesitate to add your voice to the din out there. After all, what can you add that hasn't already been said a thousand times? What can you say that will change anyone's mind? Why engage in the drama?

This is my question: Why not?

Consider this:

"The only thing necessary

for the triumph of evil,

is for good men to do nothing."

~Edmund Burke~

And this:

"Our lives begin to end

the day we become silent

about things that matter."

~Martin Luther King, Jr.~

With this in mind, this week I decided to do something. I decided to break my silence. Here is the letter I plan to mail to every Republican member of Congress this week in an effort to make my thoughts known, even though nothing may come of it. Evil may still triumph, but these are issues that matter to me:

Janet F. Cincotta, M.D.

2254 Old Hollow Road

Mechanicsburg, PA 17055

717.574.7357

drmomjfc@gmail.com

 

The Honorable (full name)
(room #) (name) Senate Office Building
United States Senate
Washington, DC 20510

 

September 25, 2020

 

Dear Senator (last name):

 

I am fearful about the conduct, legitimacy, and impact of the up-coming 2020 presidential election. I am writing to you in an effort to understand what inspires you to embrace the crippling politics of Donald J. Trump in his quest for re-election.

 

I am a Family Physician with over thirty years of experience in private practice, so I know something about the issues that impact the availability and affordability of health care. I understand the management of medical and public health emergencies including disaster relief and pandemic mitigation efforts. I know a lot about the sanctity of women’s bodies.

 

I am also the mother of three adult children, and a grandmother to three youngsters whose future worries me. It is a challenge to teach them that it is unacceptable to mock and demean people, that it is wrong to lie and cheat, and it is shameful to bully when these are the behaviors they observe in the president of our country. How will they regard honesty, compassion, and kindness when what they witness is deception, cruelty, and indifference?

 

We have witnessed the violation of basic human rights, the corruption of justice, and a surge in violence and outright fear among our most vulnerable citizens, all in just the past four years. As the election approaches, we fear for our democracy. We worry about war.

 

This is not the America you and I grew up in. It is not the same country that bestowed upon us a path to success, security, and peace. How can we deny it to others?

 

I am one of the lucky ones, and you may be, too. I am not a woman of color, so I am not confronted with racial discrimination. Instead, I harbor deep respect and affection for friends and colleagues who are. I do not live in poverty, so I am able to give freely. Even though I am not a member of the LGBTQ community, I support and defend my friends who are. I have never broken the law, promoted hatred, or instigated violence.

 

Instead, I have cared for and supported my family and friends. I have served my community with dedication and compassion. I have done my part to protect the environment, and the life that depends on it. I believe in the principles of humility, honesty, inclusivity, and generosity.

 

What about you? Do you feel powerless to change the course of history as it is being written in our lifetime? Why are you afraid to stand up to liars and cheaters? Why are you intimidated by men who are arrogant and greedy? Has your heart hardened against the humanity you are part of? Against the environment your survival depends upon? What scares you about defending the rights of the poor, the sick, and the suffering? What prevents you from acting out of dignity, purpose, and principle? What about your children, and your grandchildren? What will happen to them?

 

You took an oath of office. You solemnly swore that you would support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that you would bear true faith and allegiance to it; that you took this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that you would well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office to which you were about to enter. Then you swore to it: “So help me God.”

 

The Constitution you pledged to uphold begins like this:

 

“We, the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”

 

When did you change your mind?

 

For the sake of my family and yours, out of compassion for all who suffer, for the preservation of our democracy, and for the sake of peace, I implore you to reconsider your support of the Republican leadership in the upcoming election. Do what you know to be honorable, compassionate, and just, or explain to us why you refuse.

 

Thank you for your attention and consideration.

 

Yours truly,

Janet F Cincotta, M.D.

Please feel free to copy and paste this letter, or to paraphrase it, or to write and mail your own letter if you are moved to do so. Please, just do something.

"Do what you can,

with what you have,

where you are."

~Theodore Roosevelt~

Here is a list of republican senators and their Washington addresses:

https://www.270towin.com/elected-officials/contact-us-senators

Thank you for doing whatever you can!

jan