An Open Letter to Rand Paul

Leslie, Graves County Kentucky


 
As a homeschooling parent I have studied and interacted with practitioners of libertarian philosophy extensively. I don't want anybody telling me I have to get my kids tested by someone who does not agree with my unschooling approach to education or tell me I have to have an approved curriculum.   I get it.

But you don't get what a democracy is all about.  And you don't understand that no one in the media is saying you are racist or hold racist views.  What they are pointing out is that your extreme anti-government ideology leads to positions--that in turn lead to votes--that have as a result perpetuation of racism in private venues of our society.   That if you were to be elected to the U.S. Senate, you would affect laws negatively that most citizens in Kentucky would ardently support.  Your claim that the questions are politically motivated and “it’s not an issue” is immature and not very Senatorial.  Voters have a right to know your views and not be subjected to your avoiding and dodging the questions. 

Your views on the Americans with Disabilities Act also deserves scrutiny. You claim that business can best decide how to accommodate their employees. Yes, they can--but will they? What if the employee does not feel the accommodation is adequate? What if the business uses poor accommodation as a strategy to get rid of an employee? In this world where we see corporations trample individuals in pursuit of profits, how can we expect businesses to voluntarily “do the right thing?” 
This is very real to me because my father lost his job as a mechanical engineer in 1963 simply because he had one paralyzed leg after a stroke. This is what your ideology would take us back to, along with restaurants that refused to serve minorities. 

When you say you want to "take our government back" you are echoing dictators who want to impose their ideologies on the citizenry.  You are saying you do not want to represent me, Leslie in Graves County, who does not agree with your extreme views.  I want our politicians to act like grown-ups and be able to acknowledge that other points of view have validity and that democracy involves compromise and majority rule.  I want acknowledgment that we are a pluralistic society with people that have diverse views.   The Tea Party is only one of those views--a noisy one--but it is not the majority view.  
I will say you are going to equally energize the opposition.  All that energy of the Tea Party is a double-edged sword.
Thank you for motivating me to get involved to volunteer to work for your defeat!

Best wishes for your health and well-being.
Leslie in Graves County, Kentucky