By MARY WILHOITThis town has been a joy to us. One reason we moved to Los Alamos is because we love the area and the small-town atmosphere. I know many of you feel the same way. We have found it to be a place where people take care of each other. And you don’t necessarily have to believe or think the same to care for someone else.
I’ve heard stories from past elections about people having their cars “keyed” due to displaying a candidate’s bumper sticker or campaign signs being taken down, but I must say that this year has been particularly disappointing.
I often work in our Republican Party Headquarters, and we have people coming in daily to replace their yard signs. Campaign signs for local, state and national Republican candidates are being stolen, removed and destroyed. One person even reported seeing a woman stomping on a sign. As I sit here working this morning, it’s not even 11 a.m. and we’ve already had three reports today.
This photo was taken this morning of a destroyed sign. Courtesy photo
I expect more of the citizens of Los Alamos or whoever is doing this. It is good and valuable for our political system to have opposing viewpoints. This makes for a stronger democracy. Everyone has a right to express their view in a respectful way, but no one has a right to intimidate another person’s first amendment right to free speech, and displaying a yard sign for your candidate of choice is one of those ways.
It is a misdemeanor crime to steal or vandalize property belonging to someone else. I urge every citizen from all parties to be vigilant, and if you witness someone committing this crime, please report them to the police.
