LETTER: Take nuclear war into account when you vote for president

This is an election letter. It’s short. It might fall under “Vote your conscience.”

For a time, I found myself saying I didn’t like this candidate, or that candidate. Then I realized, I didn’t like Nixon, or Reagan, nor Bush, and thought Obama wasn’t ready for prime time, no matter where he was born. In spite of that, the world kept turning, and who I didn’t like didn’t seem a high priority to anyone.

When discounting all the propaganda each party nominee threw at each other, approximately 90 percent is false, or just plain lying. With Putin, 99 percent after they alter the emails. That said, it seemed appropriate to take it out of the popularity-contest category, and concentrate on the most important issues at stake. Even all the infidelity issues could not be measurable. If Jesus’ words had been spoken in Washington at any occasion — to the effect that “he who has not sinned should cast the first stone,” few stones would/could/can be cast. Those it applies to would not care, and those who were victims would feel more pain.

Before voicing the main concern, I have one dumb question. I see all these throngs of supporters, and wonder why they are not at work. Are they unemployed? When you have no income, you don’t have money for travel, food or lodging. How can they afford to follow the nominees from state to state — chant, scream and beat up on each other?

The primary, THE PRIMARY, concern we must all consider is — Do we personally know what World War II was like? I was here during WWII. These wars aren’t fun. All eligible boys were gone into some service branch by September following graduation. Rationing of gasoline, butter and certain other food items, electricity levels reduced, car shortages, school activities cut, no proms, loved ones left to defend our country — some come back. Some came back but didn’t know it. Many came home for burial. Some are still lying somewhere on foreign soil or at sea. History tells us that one U.S. service person died every three minutes. I worked in a defense plant, that was easy.

Those conditions would probably not be the same for a third world war. No doubt it will be nuclear driven. It has been said that North Korea, China and Iran, at this time, have the capabilities to destroy U.S. locations, without setting foot on U.S. soil. Lives would be lost if U.S. failed to intercept them.

When voting our conscience, we should feel peace in knowing we voted to prevent this from ever happening to our children and grandchildren. Only the Japanese can describe how it is to be fried like a piece of bacon, in the aftermath of nuclear war. —Betty Willits, Kalispell