With the election coming up, remember:

There are, of course, all kinds of corruption.

Generally, corruption in the political sense involves money, favors, power and/or blackmail.

The basis for the corruption is, essentially, irrelevant.  That it exists, regardless of reason, is the thing.

The number one way corruption makes itself known is by the record of the politicians involved.

The easiest and biggest example if that of Sen. Ann "Gas Tax" Rivers, who has cost this county hundreds of millions of dollars.

Hundreds.

Of.

Millions.

THE biggest gas tax and tab fee increases in the history of this state... after pledging to oppose those increases as a condition of her election.

Exploding property taxes.

Hired by a democrat campaign firm while "negotiating" with teacher's union thugs.

Militantly opposed to allowing public scrutiny of her communications with the special interests who now own her like the 13th Amendment was the 13th Suggestion.

I call her corrupt.  Her voting record more closely resembles that of Jimmy "Candy Man" Moeller than that of someone upholding allegedly Republican tenets of government.

Those we elect and reelect are responsible for where we're at as a county, state and city.

As the GOP lost the state senate last year (And who didn't know THAT was going to happen?) and as they look liable to lose at least the US House this November, those casting their votes bear a large share of the responsibility for these outcomes.

For example, we have an utterly worthless congresswoman allegedly representing us.  She's done nothing of any importance for this district, save for trashing President Trump during the 2016 campaign, effectively guaranteeing that if we were to get any consideration from the White House at all, it certainly wouldn't be of the favorable variety.

For the entire time of her sorry tenure in Congress, she has accomplished nothing on the most pressing issue confronting us in Southwest Washington: cross river transportation problems.

During the entirety of her forgettable tenure in Congress, she has had ample opportunity to have been a major player on driving a federal solution to our bridge issues.  Particularly over the past 16 months, where the GOP had control of both Houses and the White House.

What has she accomplished?  Nothing.

Is she going to get reelected?  More than likely.

Will she continue to sit on her ass and mail it in for this district?

Absolutely.

So... why are we sending her back there?  What good will that do US?

The Establishment at all levels; local, state and national, want us to ignore the lack of accomplishment.  When our own representatives screw us, we're just supposed to forget all about that because the people beating us to death have an "R" after their names; never mind that they've forgotten the meaning of the word.

But this upcoming year, for example, we're cheerfully going to reelect leftists masquerading as Republicans who voted to slam the door shut on any review of their correspondence with the special interests who own them.

We're going to send the same people back into office who ignore us on the CRC/Loot Rail scam.  We're likely to re-elect everyone who worked so hard to cause our property taxes and fees to blast off at the county level.

As voters, when we participate at all, we're lazy and gullible.  We're going to put... and return... candidates back into office who don't tell us anything about what they're going to do when they get there... like Rivers' sock puppet, Larry Hoff.  If he gets elected... what... exactly... specifically... is he going to do except what Rivers tells him to do?

The local establishment GOP trashes perspectives like these.  They don't dispute them; after all, how can you dispute a well-known truth?

It's kinda like having a local GOP chair with an extensive criminal background.  They don't dispute that, either: they just don't care because he's an establishment tool.

As you sit there and review your ballot, you've hopefully done your research and you won't get fooled into voting for someone merely because of the label after their name.  Those we've got in office now use that as a scam to GET your vote because they count on your laziness and your bias and your refusal to consider other alternatives.

Don't you think it's about time these low-lifes stop taking us for granted?  Don't you think it's about time they pay the price for screwing us instead of sending them back so they can do it to us again and again and again?

They count on you to be ignorant.  Take this opportunity to disappointment them.

Don't vote for or against anyone merely because someone else, including me, tells you that you should.

Do you own work.  Make your own choice.  But if you don't know why you're voting for someone?

Then don't.

But it's all up to you.

It used to be that if you didn't vote, you'd have no right to complain.

I'll take it a step further:  if you don't do the work and you vote anyway?

You've got no right to complain then, either.