I came home from work the other night and found a picture on the kitchen table that Lily had drawn. She had been at pre-school in the morning and I thought she had drawn it there. After looking at the picture, I was a little concerned…

The image was of a small girl, her face contorted in obvious distress, her little round mouth turned noticeably downward. Now, keep in mind, most of the pictures they draw in pre-school are smiles, flowers, etc. So I got to wondering what could have possibly happened at school to warrant this picture. I found Lily sitting reading a book with Char. I interrupted…

“Lily, honey,” I began, treading lightly, “did you draw this picture at school today?”

“No, I drew it here with Mommy.”

Now, I felt a little better about this, but I have to admit, my curiosity is piqued. “Why is she frowning?”

“That’s Charmaine when she was sick,” Lily said.

“Ah… I see.” Then I noticed that the back was covered in multi-color lines running willy nilly all over the page, no apparent rhyme or reason. I was about to ask when Lily said…

“And on the back is after she threw up!”

Even the most apolitical among us is aware that we are in the midst of one of the most polarizing election cycles in our country’s history. Whichever candidate has your vote, one thing is clear: now, more than ever, every vote counts.

It’s the nature of democracy that each individual has a voice and a right to be heard. Voting is how we exercise that right. It is, perhaps, our most cherished right, our most vital responsibility as citizens. And though most of us would agree, the majority find themselves too busy chauffeuring their kids or picking up the dry cleaning to make it to the polls. Just how apathetic are we? The election of 1992 garnered the highest number of voters in election history, and only 55% of those eligible bothered to show up. Judging by the buzz surrounding the current contest, I think you can expect that record to be broken, but it will still be a dismal display of democracy in action.

Compared with the rest of the world, America often demonstrates a lesser desire to exercise our voting rights. The site for the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance shows voter turnout percentages in countries across the globe, in all national elections from 1946 to the present. A quick glance will show you that America (arguably the cradle of democracy) consistently lags behind most of the world in voter turnout.

Over the years, several ideas have been promoted to address this concern. MTV launched a dramatic campaign called “Rock the Vote” in 1990 that certainly helped boost turnout among younger voters. The campaign continues, and the web site works hard at disseminating credible information without coloring it with opinion. The site helps visitors register to vote and provides detailed information (heavily skewed from a “youthful” perspective) on topics ranging from the economy, healthcare, defense, etc. It’s a great resource for young Americans.

A slightly different perspective, with many of the same tools, can be found on the PBS site, “Why Vote?” Indeed, though the site teems with information important to young and aged voters alike, it has a decidedly more serious approach. Famous speeches and essays throughout history serve as the argument for the democratic right to vote and your responsibility to exercise it. Perhaps most importantly, the site provides links to other resources to help all voters make better informed decisions in this important and contentious election.

The most important of these resources is Project Vote Smart, a site dedicated to inform the electorate. The idea is to provide each candidate for either national or state-wide election a National Political Awareness Test (NPAT) to assess the positions they would take on various issues if elected. Unfortunately, about 30% of the US Congressional candidates and 80% of state legislative candidates in Indiana refused to complete the form, thereby diluting the value of the site by deliberately masking their positions. This site represents a great concept, however, and it’s one that I hope will see more candidate support in the future. After all, it’s up to each of us to become informed voters, and sites like these can help make that process easier. Which, in turn, could help increase voter turnout.

In each of the 4 years that I have been a member of the state Assembly, we have had many “celebrations” on the Assembly floor. These “celebrations” are orchestrated by the Democrats who control the House and often involve singing and dancing. Every one of my 4 years have seen substantial celebrations of Cinco de Mayo (Commemorates the Mexican victory over the French at the Battle of Puebla), St. Patrick’s Day (for the patron Saint of Ireland) and Chinese New Year’s Day, among others. But never once have we celebrated America’s Independence Day, the 4th of July.

So, this year, Republican Assemblyman Jay LaSuer of San Diego arranged for Vietnam war hero Admiral Jeremiah Denton to come to California to be a part of a 4th of July ceremony. As you may know, Admiral Denton was a Navy pilot in Vietnam who was shot down and spent 8 years in a Vietnamese prison. In 1966 while in prison, he was interviewed by North Vietnamese television in Hanoi after torture to get him to “respond properly.” During this interview, he blinked his eyes in Morse code to spell out the word “torture.” He was asked about his support for the war in Vietnam to which he replied “I don’t know what is happening now in Vietnam, because the only news sources I have are Vietnamese. But whatever the position of my government is, I believe in it, I support it, and I will support it as long as I live.” Four of his 8 years in prison were spent in solitary confinement. He later wrote the book “When Hell was in Session” chronicling his experience in Vietnam.

When he stepped off the plane after being released from prison in 1973, he said “We are honored to have had the opportunity to serve our country in difficult circumstances. We are profoundly grateful to our Commander-in-Chief for this day. God bless America.” He was later elected to the U.S. Senate from his home state of Alabama, becoming the first retired Admiral ever elected to that body. I could go on and on about his accomplishments.

Suffice it to say, Jeremiah Denton is unquestionably an American hero.

The Democratic leadership refused to allow him on the Assembly floor and there will be no 4th of July celebration. A memo from the Democratic speaker’s office said “problems have arisen both with regards to the spirit, content and participation of various individuals with regard to the ceremony.” Apparently, they said that he did not believe in the “separation of church and state” and they didn’t like the policies he supported as a United States Senator and therefore they would not allow him to be on the Assembly floor or to speak.

Upon hearing about this, Governor Schwarzenegger offered his meeting room last Monday for a ceremony with Admiral Denton. The room was overflowing with people. Only one elected Democrat was in attendance. A number of veterans of the last 4 wars were present. Admiral Denton gave a very moving speech about the 4th of July and about the undeniable commitment of our founding fathers’ to their faith in God. He talked about how the war on terrorism may be the most difficult war we have yet fought. And he went on to say that he fears that partisan attacks on our mission and our troops in Iraq and Afghanistan sound too familiar to what he experienced in Vietnam. Following his speech, The Governor came out to personally spend time with him.

Then this American hero, whose debt from us all can never be repaid, flew home to Alabama.

The Assembly did meet on that day. And we did have a ceremony that lasted nearly 20 minutes. That ceremony was to celebrate the career of a reporter from the LA Times on the occasion of his retirement. Democrats universally praised him as being “balanced.” He was allowed to speak for about 10 minutes. Admiral Denton was no longer in the building.

Four years of Cinco De Mayo and not one recognition of the 4th of July. An LA Times reporter praised, and the very person whose sacrifice allows him to express his opinion is banned. It is perverse. It is wrong. And it is disrespectful to all the men and women in uniform who have stared death in the face and to those who gave the ultimate sacrifice for the American people.

Admiral Jeremiah Denton is a hero not because he was politician, but like all the other men and women of the Armed Forces, because he defended the ideals set forth with America’s independence.

Democrats are always railing about intolerance and discrimination. But yet in practice, it is they who engage in regular state-sanctioned discrimination and who are intolerant of the presentation of other views. Maybe they are worried that people will listen.

I do not send you this to bash Democrats. I send you this to demonstrate the huge chasm that exists between registered, voting Democrats, and elected Democrat leadership. I hope those of you who are not Democrats, will send this to your friends who are. If you are a Democrat, don’t be ashamed. Be angry. Change your party and your leadership, or leave it.

Fortunately, we do not need the approval of the Speaker of the Assembly to celebrate our nation’s independence this Sunday. Nor do we need his permission to thank those who fought to give us and to maintain our freedoms. On this 4th of July, as the burgers cook and the fireworks fly, let us remember . . . and give thanks.

As a final offering, I give you a poem that Admiral Denton read to us this week, through eyes clouded with tears:

It is the soldier, not the reporter,

Who has given us freedom of the press.

It is the soldier, not the poet,

Who has given us freedom of speech.

It is the soldier, not the campus organizer,

Who has given us the freedom to demonstrate.

It is the soldier,

Who salutes the flag,

Who serves beneath the flag,

And whose coffin is draped by the flag,

Who allows the protester to burn the flag.

Amen. God bless America.

Things are progressing nicely, but Char is getting tired pretty easily now. I was reading the other day that the babies are about 10 1/2″ inches long, which would be 21 inches of baby — with at least 15 weeks to go! No wonder she feels tired — that’s about the size that Jack and Lily were when they were born.

Here’s a tidbit on their current development:

“Your baby now weighs about 12 1/2 ounces and is 10 1/2 inches long, head to toe. The eyebrows and eyelids are fully developed, and the fingernails are starting to sprout. Watch what you say from here on in: If you talk, read, or sing to your baby, she’ll probably be able to hear you.”

When Charie read this she said, “Shit!”

(Just kidding. For some reason, I’m the only person who thinks that’s funny.)

As you probably know, when you live in Indiana, almost anything can happen with the weather at any time. So it’s not all that surprising when the weather changed from 50 and sunny on Sunday to 3 inches of snow on Monday morning. But I think we forget what this all looks like through the eyes of a three-year-old.

When Lily woke up on Monday morning and saw all that snow she was astounded.

“Mom! It’s snowing outside! I can’t believe it!”

On Monday night, I was putting them to bed and called downstairs for Lily to come up. Instead of coming upstairs to bed, she ran to the kitchen door in her pajamas and bare feet and was working on the lock to open the door and go outside.

Charie said, “Lily, what are you doing? It’s time for bed.”

She responded, “I just want to go outside and throw one snowball!“