Vote for Joe

I took some backroads into Bellville and Butler, Ohio, today.   I put up a flyer in the IGA Store in Butler (pop. 500) then headed into Bellville where the editor of the Bellville newspaper told me someone had called from Butler to let her know I was in the area.   (I love small towns.)   While in the V&M Family Restaurant in Bellville, I noticed the Ten Commandments on a plaque on the wall and on the menu it said:   “Feel free to say a prayer of thanks before eating…” –Al and Joe.   I talked to Joe’s son Shawn who said they are Christians who want others to feel free to pray in public here…   I then walked about town passing out flyers and talking to people on the street — without as much fanfare as when John Kerry stopped here briefly during Campaign 2004.

We have come to Loudonville, Ohio, where I wrote on one of our flyers:   “Loudonville… get LOUD for Joe!”   (I got a million of ’em.)   We are staying  at Rita and Chuck Henley’s small farm.   The Henley’s are on fire for their Catholic faith.   They help their neighbors, they help the disadvantaged, they take seriously the spiritual formation of their children…   It is these kind of unsung heroes who form the back bone of our country…   We stumped in the downtown area of Loudonville, passing out campaign information and putting up flyers.   My father-in-law Stuart met a woman who enthusiastically led him around town to pass out information at the American Legion Hall, a restaurant called “Bagels, Baubles and Brew,” (great place– get the “Just Enough” bagel), and so on… When Stuart got back, he said he wanted to start receiving a: “campaign salary.”   Note: This afternoon I was interviewed by phone by the editor of a new e-magazine out of San Diego called The Naughty American.    The editor  said the title is reflective of people (like independent presidential candidates) who are willing to challenge the system.   During the interview, he asked me how my addiction counseling background would help me as president.   I said it has given me key insight into some of the systemic problems of our society.   Adrenalin addiction, for one.   I said so many people, at this stage  in society, have come from stressful homes that fostered the adrenalin addiction.   When they get out of the home, they carry the addiction with them.   To keep the adrenalin going, some will continually drive fast and recklessly — as our nation’s highway deaths and maiming escalate.   Others will get into a string of stressful/dysfunctional relationships to keep the adrenalin going — and  America’s divorce rate skyrockets.   Others will continually create worrisome debt — credit card debt alone in this country is off the scales.   Others still will be drawn to high stress jobs, which will create all kinds of physical and emotional maladies — as our nation’s healthcare costs increase exponentially…   I could go on with this, but stay tuned for my first “State of the Nation Address.”   It will prove to be, oh, a little different.

Met with Phil Pinks in Dunkirk, Ohio.   He said his grandaughter had an extreme case of Down Syndrome and was given virtually no chance of going to school, etc.   However the extended family rallied around the girl and she is now 13 and enrolled in school.   Pinks said he has done fundraising and helped with other activities for the handi-capped.   He said his desire to help comes from his own mother, who would regularly help “hobos” and others down on their luck.   “She did it because of her faith,” Pinks smiled… We then headed to Ada, Ohio, and the annual Herb Festival.   I walked about the downtown area passing out flyers and talking to people.   A good number of them had either seen the recent NBC and/or Fox News pieces on our campaign.   One person I bumped into at the festival was Pastor G. Alan Brown from Sugar Grove United Methodist Church.   When we got to the topic of war, Pastor Brown said:   “Christians can’t propogate violence as a means to peace.”

average JoeOhio Tour cont:   I went to Columbus Grove, Ohio, to stump.   Got in a great conversation with a group of locals at “The Gas Station.”   (Simple and to the point.)   One of the issues that came up was the fact a school levy had failed three times here.   I suggestted an ad hoc committee be formed to set up a fund for all those who voted for the levy.   They could voluntarily put the money they’d been assessed — or even more — in the fund for the schools.   I mean, wouldn’t that be common sense?   …I was then interviewed by the Putnam County Sentinal newspaper.   In referring the the ‘voluntary levy’ idea, I said some people have a tendency to do the right thing — if they are given that option…   Later today I was interviewed by Nancy Kline from the new Voices newspaper in the area.   She told me about a priest from Nigeria that she recently did a story about.   He is here trying to raise money for his impoverished country.   I said our platform calls for people in America to sacrifice significantly so people in the Third World can have the basics in food, medicine, shelter… There’s enough to go around.

average JoeOhio Tour cont.:   We headed to Delphos, Ohio, where I was interviewed by a reporter from the Delphos Herald.   While talking about the economy, he said it was his belief that the core of our current state of capitalism is conflictual.   That is, it’s for the most part about cut-throat competition.   I said we had researched a Christian business paradigm called the Economy of Sharing, where businesses across the country are committing the first third of their profits (off the top) to humanitarian aid agencies into the Third World.   These businesses also commit to paying their employees a “living wage,” commit to be good environmental stewards, and so on.   What’s more, if they find out a competitor is in trouble — they offer their help.   I mean when you think about it, would Jesus ‘turn the screws’ to help push a hurting competitor out of business?   Common sense would say no on that one…   When then went to Jim’s Restaurant in Delphos for lunch.   (Great ‘Mom & Pop’ place!)   NBC News out of Lima caught up to us there.   During the interview, I said that: “Instead of joining the PTO, Liz and I decided to run for president.”   (Liz always rolls her eyes when I say that.)…   Later that night I gave a talk at a prayer group in Delphos.   Afterward, the prayer group leader told me his daughter was at a college in St. Louis majoring in: social justice.   How absolutely refreshing.