Did you vote on August 2nd in the Primary Election? I did. They say all politics is local. I agree and the Primary Election is where you can make some of the greatest differences. My dad was a stanch Democrat. I remember as a child listening to FDR giving his Fireside Chats. My dad always voted. He said he didn't have the right to complain if he didn't vote. Boy, oh boy, could he complain. He instilled the Democratic Party's ideals in me that remain today.

I have voted in every election since I voted for Adlai Stevenson in 1951. I was twenty-three. I missed voting for Harry S. Truman in the previous election because I was only nineteen. You had to be twenty-one back then to vote.

I realize I am living in a Republican dominated area. That's OK. It helps to have opposition. I still vote my conscience in every election. There is an old Chicago joke that says to vote early and often. But don't do that. It only leads to trouble. I do agree with Dad in that you can only complain if you vote. How could it be otherwise?

Adlai Stevenson (1900-1965) was one of my favorite Democratic Party candidates. He was known for three things: losing the election, a hole in his shoe and his quotes. A couple of them were:

“In America, any boy may become President, and I suppose it's just one of the risks he takes.” (It hasn't been a risk for any woman as of yet.)

“He who slings mud generally loses ground.”

“My definition of a free society is a society where it is safe to be unpopular.”

It's not the years in your life but the life in your years that counts.”

Adlai Stevenson was known for something else. He was divorced. That fact was used effectively against him in the election. Time to get off my soapbox.

We have another election coming up in November. I urge you to study the issues and get out and vote. Then you at least can complain even if it doesn't turn out the way you like. I hope I still have enough life in my ninety years to vote. I probably will complain anyway.