DEAR EDITOR:
I, for one, am planning on voting no on Issue 2 on Election Day. My position is based on the arrogant attitudes adopted by Gov. Kasich, and other recently elected governors in states like Wisconsin and Florida. The campaign rhetoric compared to controversial actions taken once elected is, in my opinion, an affront to the electorate at large in times of low voter turn out. Certainly some of the issues brought to lights regarding contract negotiations should be revisited during these dire economic times.
Arrogant politicians, vast divergencies in the income among the classes, and a transition from ''...of the people, by the people and for the people,''... to one redesigned by special interest groups (think the Supreme Court's Citizens United decision) are rampant today. Such conditions are destructive to the core values of our society.
I do not believe the evolving growth in the ''Occupy'' movements is an attempt to destroy or overturn this country's banking and financial institutions, structures of government, or the lives of wealthy individuals or businesses. These movements are attempting to send a shock wave throughout this nation in an effort to rectify an imbalance within these systems.
There are political activities under way today to limit, or subvert, citizens' rights to vote under the guise of voter fraud. However, it appears that such occurrences are not of a number that constitutes a serious threat to our state or country at this time. Efforts to limit voter rights are conceivably the greater threat to our democracy.
A final factor influencing my no vote on Issue 2 deals with the current method of redistricting every 10 years according to census reports. The existing procedure is designed to advantage the party in the majority at the time. This political bias in redistricting is archaic and should be ended.
We live in an era where non political solutions can achieve more meaningful methods for distracting. For example, advances being made in marketing research and/or regional economic planning models might do a far better job for defining homogeneous voting districts as opposed to the current two party political method. Increasingly, more and more individuals prefer to be identified as independent voters.
Politicians like to say they want to hear the voices of the people. In reality, they are listening to those special interest groups who fund their political warchests. At a time when incumbent credibility is rated at an all-time low, the voices ''''...of the people ...'' may more constructively be heard in the ''Occupy'' movement. Now is a time to revisit the history of this country relative to the Constitution as it relates to the Right to Assemble and Free Speech.
A good starting point just might be found in reviewing the efforts of the Bonus Army of the 1930s.
Thomas Flynn
Warren