On February 11, 2020, the World Health Organization announced an official name for the disease that is causing the 2019 novel coronavirus outbreak, first identified in Wuhan, China. The new name of this disease is coronavirus disease 2019, abbreviated as COVID-19. In COVID-19, ‘CO’ stands for ‘corona,’ ‘VI’ for ‘virus,’ and ‘D’ for disease. Formerly, this disease was referred to as “2019 novel coronavirus” or “2019-nCoV.” Was this viral disease an accident or was it an attempt to create a weapon of mass destruction?

By Valentine’s Day global politicians of all political affiliations had developed methods to take advantage of this disease for their own political benefit showing that stupid has no political affiliation. They immediately started bickering and to this day they have not stopped. Political bickering and posturing bring attention to officeholders and potential candidates for the next election. Money is the key to winning any political office. Media publicity brings campaign contributions.

Now we are three years later. COVID-19 has settled down and is not killing as many people as it was when it first showed its head, but it will likely be around forever like the common cold and other viruses. Soon we are looking at another big election for president, all of the U.S. House of Representatives and one-third of the U.S. Senate. We also have elections at the state and multiple levels of local elections. Do you study the initiatives that will make your ballot? Will you vote at all? Will you vote an absentee ballot or will you go to the polls and vote with the others who go to the polls? I do not like either of the front runners for president, and I hope you do not like them either. As usual, the candidates are jockeying for the media attention to put their names in front of a block of potential voters. So far I have not picked anyone for president.

I will likely vote for candidates who represent me and not themselves. Will you vote for one of the front runners, or will you study the candidates and vote for candidates who will represent your interest or only their own pocketbooks? Please study the candidates. Find multiple sources of information about your candidates, then vote for the best candidates. If you like me are a member of the silent majority, speak up. Our country needs to hear your opinions on the candidates.