Long time progressive activist supports Sen. Bernie Sanders.

TUCSON, AZ - Seniors pay attention to politics and we VOTE. Our votes count heavily. There will be many close races this year.

We’re old and have survived wars, recessions, layoffs, strikes, good times and bad, poor health and deaths of family and friends. We’ve worked with many people and judge good character a bit better than when we were teens.

Our present president has a character problem. Leading government and foreign affairs is very complex. It’s critical to our grandchildren’s’ future to have leaders we can trust - not people who lead us into being killed or trapped.

We seniors know when we’re in trouble.

Because of past failures, we face climate disaster, nuclear war disaster, run-a-way greed and corruption that has led to the greatest wealth inequality in decades and the disaster of ”forever wars” costing trillions and killing millions. When we find 1% of the people controlling twice the wealth of the next 6.9 billion people, we know we’re in trouble and ripe for civil wars.

We seniors are dumping all these disasters on our kids. Corporations, our economy and federal and state governments have created an educational and work world for our kids and grandkids that results in LESS economic security than our parents left us. People can educate themselves, work hard all their lives, play by the rules and still end up in retirement barely living above poverty.

With inflation factored in, the average annual wage for workers has NOT improved much since the 1970’s. Jobs have gone from offering health care and pensions to NOT offering pensions and forcing workers to pay thousands for healthcare – if they get healthcare.

Many have no sick leave so they cannot properly care for ill children.

Many of our parents were in unions and nearly 30% of us were unionists. But unions are now busted. Only 8% of private sector workers are in good paying, union jobs with benefits and pensions.

How can we get out of this fix? Senators Warren and Sanders advocate strong structural “change” in America. Biden fears change’s impacts on special interests.

It’s like America is on the ship Titanic.

The watchman seeing icebergs yells, “Danger Ahead!” The Titanic captain is steering toward that iceberg knowing the Titanic will never sink. Biden says calmly to passengers, with the orchestra playing in the background, “Trust me - just a few policy tweaks, we’ll be OK!” Sanders is racing to the Captain yelling, “Change course Now – damn it!”

Meanwhile Trump is handling your grandkids’ futures between golf games saying, “All that crisis talk is fake news.”

We must vote to build a better world for our grandkids.

If we Don’t change our ways, the America we know Won’t be there for our grandkids.

Until we stop polluting our atmosphere, rising oceans, flooding rivers, violent storms, droughts, fires, high winds, super high temperatures, heavy snows will get worse killing the planet for human habitation.

Scientists tell us nuclear war will create a “nuclear winter” with clouds blocking sunlight prohibiting most crop growth for years - starving hundreds of millions who have lived through the nuclear blasts and months of worldwide fires and radiation.

These existential threats, will destroy our way of life, democracy and earth.

Syrian woman and child

Seniors, the world’s children deserve a chance to live life. They must not pay for our failures with their deaths.

We must vote for massive, progressive change to pull America back from the brink looming disaster.

Sen. Bernie Sanders is the one who provides us with the best plans to solve our problems.

Vote Sanders to give little kids a fighting chance!

*****

Buzz Davis, formerly of Stoughton, WI now of Tucson, is a long time progressive activist, member of Common Cause, Veterans for Peace and a former VISTA Volunteer, Army officer Vietnam Era, city and county elected official, union organizer, impeachment organizer, former Exec. VP of WI Alliance for Retired Americans, a retired state government planner, presently working to Stop VA Privatization.