Odd choice for civility voters

Re “Retirees lament ‘venom’ in politics,” Nov. 5

Like the people featured in your article, I’m an Orange County senior who laments the tone of politics today. But I’m worried about more than just the tone.

I do not understand the logic of one couple who say they will vote for Republicans. They must make use of Medicare and Social Security, as I and many others do. They seem to be concerned about rising antisemitism, as I and many others are.

So why do they want Republicans to control the House?

Republicans have expressed support for plans that will gut Social Security and Medicare. Former President Trump also posted an antisemitic statement online recently, and in Wisconsin, the Republican running for governor said his party “will never lose another election” if he wins.

As for inflation, one Times letter writer recently pointed out that economies rise and fall, but if we elect Republicans we’ll have inflation and autocracy. Democracy is indeed on the ballot today.

Margo Kasdan Seal Beach

This article is about six or seven years out of date.

By 2016, things had changed so dramatically that the country in which I grew up, where people pulled together for the greater good, had all but disappeared. Within a year and a half, my wife and I already purchased real estate in two countries outside the United States.

Fast-forward to 2022, and despite the substantial policy achievements that President Biden has attained, politics has been reduced to the point where democracy itself is on the chopping block.

Meanwhile, my wife and I, now empty nesters, dropped off our completed ballots a few weeks ago, pointed the car south and joined the millions of Americans who have taken up residence in Mexico. I am hoping democracy survives in the United States.

Chris Ford Cabo San Lucas