Ben Cline

The phrase, “mom, apple pie and baseball” was coined in the early 20th century. No one is sure of its origins. It’s a kind of code for a certain ideal of an America – one where citizens can enjoy their favorite pastime in security and peace.

Every fall I become the embodiment of this attitude.

I make apple pie fillings, using the best local apples bought from the Farmer’s Market and freeze them for the upcoming holidays; post-season baseball is on and stays on until the last out in the World Series.

I jot down Thanksgiving menu ideas at this time. (I mean, sure, Thanksgiving Day is founded upon a myth, like so much of American lore, but sitting with family and friends and giving thanks for blessings is always worthwhile, no matter the reason.)

I’m just an ordinary American who believes in the Constitution and the law. And I like our traditions.

My congressman here in the Sixth District, Ben Cline, just called me a “barbarian.”

Because I don’t support him and his party of grifting criminals?

Speaking at the annual “Oysters with Obenshain,” a Republican party fundraiser on Oct 14 at the Rockingham County Fairgrounds, Cline said, “We’ve got to keep the socialist barbarians outside the gate. But they are beating on the gate, aren’t they? They were actually beating on the windows yesterday in Winchester.”

No one beat on any windows in Winchester on Oct. 13, but Republicans are not known for keeping facts straight.

This is what Republicans are running for public office on this year; by calling Democrats “socialists,” they hope to mask their massive failures. There are no legislative successes to talk about. They think if they keep the socialist smokescreen going, no one will notice the spread of measles, the price of gas and food, the never-ending pointless war, the siding with Putin – Putin, the head of Communist Russia – whose bidding President Trump never stops doing.

Trump just lifted the sanctions the U.S. put on Russia at the start of the war with Ukraine. Their Communist leader told him to.

On Oct. 9, Trump and Putin brokered a deal to purchase Russian-produced diesel, further enriching Putin.

Ben Cline and his party adore socialists and Communists.

Republicans claim to be capitalists; someone needs to sit down and explain how American so-called capitalism works.

But they think if they keep calling those who oppose them socialists, no one will notice.

The hallmark of capitalism is competition; it’s a great system. It means companies and businesses are allowed to compete with one another, benefiting the public. In theory, to attract the most customers, businesses will constantly build better products and provide better services. That guarantees them a steady stream of loyal customers. And businesses will keep prices down to attract consumers and keep them.

In vast swaths of commerce across America, there is no competition: our corporate overlords are the few companies that control technology, finance, healthcare, retail and energy. This small group has way more influence over America than ordinary folks. This means they can set prices at any level they want; there are no competitors for consumers to turn to.

They can – and do – bribe politicians who in turn write legislation that benefits companies, not consumers.

That is the opposite of capitalism. That is oligarchy.

Republicans, especially Ben Cline, remind me of Pee Wee Herman’s old “I know you are, but what am I?” routine. It’s some kind of weird projection – they project on to us their own evil.

Everything Ben Cline says I am is what he is: he’s a weak bootlicker of a president who actively works for the leader of a Communist country.

Not me. I’m in my kitchen, slicing apples and watching the American League Championship Series, wondering what Putin order Trump will eagerly obey next.

Ben Cline needs to go. All the supporters of the worst president in history must go.

Election Day is Nov. 3; early voting is available. Ben Cline is on the ballot.

Vote for Democrat Beth Macy who takes no corporate money for her campaign to become the next Sixth District House representative and is owned by no one.

Yvonne Surette lives in Staunton, where she is the outreach coordinator and PR assistant for the Staunton Democratic Committee. Before she retired, her professional life was spent in high school and college classrooms teaching English and creative writing. She has been published in local and national publications such as The Boston Globe, The News Virginian, Rivanna Review and Vogue Knitting.

Don’t get too excited, because nobody has played a game that counts yet, and won’t for a couple of weeks, but the UVA Basketball program is Top 10 nationally in the preseason AP Top 25, which is … something.

Virginia State Police has announced its next Operation DISS-rupt, which will involve saturated coverage of all 325 miles of Interstate 81 in Virginia, on Wednesday and Thursday.

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