Please don’t vote until you know where the candidates stand on issues important to you and your family.

Power, profits, people all vie for our elected officials’ attention and votes. When we walked the halls of our government buildings asking for help protecting our loved ones, too many of our Fayette County elected officials either didn’t care or actively opposed our efforts.

When Democrats controlled our state legislature, the Speaker of the House made sure that even though we had the support, our Smoke-free Air Act never got out of committee. Rep. Terry Coleman made sure of that.

When Republicans took over our legislature our sponsor, Senator (and doctor) Don Thomas was so respected and knowledgeable we knew our problem would be in the House. I wish our local Republican legislators had helped us.

Instead, when in our State Capitol, Lynn Westmoreland (aiming for Washington) was much too busy protecting the rights of business, even after we explained, that like with the bacteria on your glass, government regulations make it safe to put health ahead of profits by requiring all competitors meet the same minimum health standard. Some corners shouldn’t be cut.

Last year Dan Lakly addressed the House of Representatives and condemned our efforts to protect nonsmokers from needless damage done by second-hand smoke by comparing our efforts to those of Hitler’s Nazis. My adored Jewish uncle probably frowned in his grave. He would be proud of us.

Unlike his relatives who fled the pogroms of Russia by simply going to Poland, his grandmother insisted on going the much harder trip to America. Her decision meant my uncle saw Hitler’s concentration camps as an officer in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers instead of as another Jewish prisoner.

Today’s decisions can have far-reaching results. Make sure it is the right decision before you vote. Past decisions indicate future priorities. We need elected officials who put the safety of the air we breath ahead of the easier profits made by ignoring damage done to others.

It is why we unite through government. We don’t need officials that only support the politically profitable causes. We need those who care about our concerns.

Dangerous wastes in our air, whether from Fulton County, thoughtless smokers, or coal-burning power plants require elected officials with the priorities and wisdom to balance people with profits and power and demand that our families’ safety counts also.

Your vote is your power. Use it wisely.

Kathie Cheney
Peachtree City, Ga.

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