The houses becoming adorned with various gourds and the obligatory carved pumpkins.
The local stores have begun to put out their Christmas decorations in an effort to get people in the spirit to spend, spend, spend.
In grocery stores and coffee shops, cinnamon spiced treats, seasonal beers, and the newest variations of pumpkin spiced lattes get introduced.
The chatter changes from what you did on vacation, to where will you be for the holidays in November and December.
It seems almost like your standard fall in good ol' US of A.
Except this year also involves the mid-term elections. One of the true opportunities the citizenry of the country has to actually change how the government operates.
In front lawns and rear bumpers, the names of political candidates are plastered about, letting other people know who they support.
For the past few months I've done my best to stay out of politics and talk and type about other things. Things that I can actually affect. I can't vote out people in July or September. But come this November that can change.
The America that I believe in is one that believes in easy immigration, one that risks the outsider coming to this country because no matter where you were born, you are welcome here. That you can live in peace here, no matter what religion you practice, if you practice at all.
If a caravan of immigrants is coming to America in search of a better life, to seek asylum, to seek peace, we should be welcoming and doing all that we can to help those that are so desperate that they would risk death to come here and find peace.
If we hold true to the idea that all are created equal, and that life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness are true inalienable rights, then we must be a country that makes it easy to come to and become a citizen.
Hostilities and fear directed at the outsider coming to America is not unusual, but that doesn't make it good. The far better model is one of inclusion, that takes the incoming assets and makes use of them in a way that is better for everyone.
I understand that taking care of others and helping them assimilate can be difficult, but those are the values of America. To give people a sense of freedom and liberty as opposed to the places they are from.
We need not be a fearful country, that we may let people from all religions and origins congregate under one roof and not fear that one will act against the other, for the American belief should be that all are free, and all are welcome here.
Sadly over the past few years we have seen that not to be the case. Hate crimes and tension are clearly on the rise including the recent attacks in Pittsburgh, as well as the bomb attempts made against the President's self-declared "Enemies of the People."
In front lawns and rear bumpers, the names of political candidates are plastered about, letting other people know who they support.
For the past few months I've done my best to stay out of politics and talk and type about other things. Things that I can actually affect. I can't vote out people in July or September. But come this November that can change.
The America that I believe in is one that believes in easy immigration, one that risks the outsider coming to this country because no matter where you were born, you are welcome here. That you can live in peace here, no matter what religion you practice, if you practice at all.
If a caravan of immigrants is coming to America in search of a better life, to seek asylum, to seek peace, we should be welcoming and doing all that we can to help those that are so desperate that they would risk death to come here and find peace.
If we hold true to the idea that all are created equal, and that life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness are true inalienable rights, then we must be a country that makes it easy to come to and become a citizen.
Hostilities and fear directed at the outsider coming to America is not unusual, but that doesn't make it good. The far better model is one of inclusion, that takes the incoming assets and makes use of them in a way that is better for everyone.
I understand that taking care of others and helping them assimilate can be difficult, but those are the values of America. To give people a sense of freedom and liberty as opposed to the places they are from.
We need not be a fearful country, that we may let people from all religions and origins congregate under one roof and not fear that one will act against the other, for the American belief should be that all are free, and all are welcome here.
Sadly over the past few years we have seen that not to be the case. Hate crimes and tension are clearly on the rise including the recent attacks in Pittsburgh, as well as the bomb attempts made against the President's self-declared "Enemies of the People."
Some talk about Jews, Blacks, the uneducated, Christians, Muslims, Whites as though they are all different species and outsiders rather than a kindred human spirit.
It is this culture that I choose to vocalize against.
There are others that will care more about the economy. Perhaps you care about guns, or gay rights, or how we allocate our taxes, and those are all worthwhile discussions.
But at the very core of America, we need to decide if we will continue in the spirit of equality and freedom, or if we will be restricting and controlling this country, with the use of force, who is free and who is not.
There is a large group of people who want to come to America, that have heard stories about how it doesn't matter where you're from, who your parents were, or what you believe. That America is a country that will welcome you if you are willing to help one another and not trespass against another person's rights.
I for one do not care where people are from because to me, you are a human being first and as such, you deserve to be respected and treated as my equal, as a brother or sister.
As Tuesday approaches, think about the world we live in today and think about what the right response is when a stranger approaches you for help. Will you help that stranger, or will you turn your back out of fear or anger?
If America is truly a land of the brave then we will not fear the immigrants and outsiders that come to our doorstep. We welcome them.
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