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<div class="moz-cite-prefix">Thank you, an excellent post.<br>
<br>
Civil discourse, focused on the question, seems to be rather hard
to undertake today. Your comments, if people take the time to read
and understand, really capture the essence of the question who
should be given the right to vote, and why.<br>
<br>
Thank you again,<br>
bob smith<br>
<br>
<br>
On 3/11/18 4:53 AM, Spiro Dimakas wrote:<br>
</div>
<blockquote type="cite"
cite="mid:27F60F87-F310-477A-966D-49A010E4CACD@gmail.com">
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<div>So....</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>Look there has been a lot of back and forth on this not just
here but across the country. I'm a relatively new resident
(bought my house back in 2015) and I used to work for the town
as a dispatcher. </div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>For what it's worth, I'm a 1st generation American. My
parents emigrated to America from Greece in the beginning of the
60's with my grandparents as children. They had to come over
with visas and take citizenship tests. And yes, we are a product
of chain migration thanks to laws that favored Eastern European
immigrants after World War II.</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>I don't think it's necessary to expand voting rights of
non-citizens to vote in local elections. People can still
participate in our small town government by talking to local
representatives and attending meetings. Nothing bars you from
voicing your opinion and we live in Maryland which is one of
these most diverse states in the nation.</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>However something has to be said for elections in general and
it does take A LOT to become a citizen of this country if you
aren't born here. The current process takes years, background
checks, interviews, and citizen tests; not to mention an oath of
allegiance.</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>If our elected officials want to make it easier for
non-citizens to vote and participate more in local politics and
elections so be it, but there is a reason the law is written to
allow only citizens to vote in elections. In order to vote you
are either born here, have a parent who is born here, or go
through a rigorous 10 step process. This ensures you have a
stake in who you are voting for because you can't just pick up
and leave at a whim for a different country. </div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>My grandfather and grandmother would talk about what they
went through to become US citizens; they were die hard Americans
till the day they died. I would hope that people just take that
into account before they try to diminish what it truly means to
be a citizen of the country. </div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>Voting is one of the few things that distinguishes US
citizens from non-citizens (and those US citizens who have
severely broken the law in the past). It ensures that your voice
is heard and counted once a year (or every other year) if you
choose to vote.</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>If anyone has a problem with someone's viewpoint they should
reach out and address it civilly. If you don't like something
then be the action for change. No one should stifle anyone's
right to freedom of speech. Regardless if you don't like the
opinion or what they are saying, they have a right to say it. </div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>Part of what makes this country great is that it's a
constitutional democracy that's stood the test for over 200
years. I hope everyone enjoys their daylight savings day today;
Remember to set your clocks forward and test your Smoke
Detectors!</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>Spiro Dimakas</div>
<div>4804 Somerset Rd<br>
<br>
<div>Sent from my iPhone</div>
</div>
<div><br>
On Mar 11, 2018, at 1:08 AM, Sarah Wayland <<a
href="mailto:sarah.wayland@gmail.com" moz-do-not-send="true">sarah.wayland@gmail.com</a>>
wrote:<br>
<br>
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<div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:trebuchet
ms,sans-serif;font-size:small">I have to agree, Emily,
that if I were an immigrant (legally here or otherwise)
reading the discourse on TownTalk over the last few days,
I would find it very very difficult to trust my neighbors.
That's bad news for building community. </div>
<div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:trebuchet
ms,sans-serif;font-size:small"><br>
</div>
<div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:trebuchet
ms,sans-serif;font-size:small">I didn't know that you and
Raymond Rivas had invited young people in town to learn
more about the town and to start a dialog. What a
wonderful initiative! Perhaps time to think about reviving
it? Sometimes when key players aren't available to carry
on worthwhile programs, they are put on hold. But that
doesn't mean we can't start it up again! </div>
<div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:trebuchet
ms,sans-serif;font-size:small"><br>
</div>
<div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:trebuchet
ms,sans-serif;font-size:small">And I fully agree that we
also need to reach out and find out the stories of our
town's residents. People are here in Riverdale Park for
many different reasons and we come from many different
backgrounds. Our stories are <u>all</u> part of our
town's story. </div>
<div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:trebuchet
ms,sans-serif;font-size:small"><br>
</div>
<div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:trebuchet
ms,sans-serif;font-size:small">-Sarah</div>
<div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:trebuchet
ms,sans-serif;font-size:small"><br>
</div>
<div class="gmail_extra">
<div class="gmail_default"
style="font-family:"trebuchet
ms",sans-serif;font-size:small"></div>
<br>
</div>
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<pre wrap="">_______________________________________________
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