First, I'll thank Edward Morris for writing, in his reply to Joyce Marcel's recent column [“The despicable patriarchy is rising again,” June 29], that he will be voting after recently moving here.
Everyone who is of voting age should want to vote. It is not only a right given to us by the Constitution but for me also an obligation. As my dad told me back when I was protesting the Vietnam War, “It is all fine and well, this protesting you do, but if you want to protest, it is also your obligation to vote in every election.” And I have taken that seriously - even voting for the local fence viewers.
But I do wonder where his certainty comes from “that the energy of many Vermonters protesting [the overturning of Roe v. Wade] is wasted because we know abortion rights are going nowhere in Vermont.”
In the past, Vermont has been widely perceived as a state where folks have a “you-do-you-and-I'll-do-me” attitude. But given the political climate of this country and the election in 2016, it seems that nothing is certain any longer except that all the previous norms around conducting government business have been thrown out the window.