Down to the wire
The holiday season is fast approaching, a time of love, introspection, and renewal. I’ve already written about the meaning behind names, and in a brilliant new novel I just read about the Byzantine Empire, I came across a new one, PALMER. During the Middle Ages, a palmer was a person returning from the Holy Land, carrying a palm frond indicating he or she had made the pilgrimage.
Bill Palmer has taken us on a pilgrimage to the church of the United States of America. Even as a lifelong political junky, I never imagined I’d need to become a scholar of our government and institutions, let alone, save them. But as we approach the most consequential election in the history of the USA, the Palmer Report has been an essential resource for true believers spreading the word to get out the vote (GOTV).
Personally, in addition to volunteering, donating, and writing for the Palmer Report, I also use a direct approach. For the past three elections, I have personally contacted certain friends, with sometimes astonishing results. Just yesterday my heroic nephew – an Army veteran who did a tour in Afghanistan, works hard, and takes care of his family – reached out to ask me how I was. He must have sensed my anxiety about the midterms. Since he asked, I begged him to check his voter registration and to vote Democrat up and down ballot. His reply stunned me. He promised he would make sure he was registered. That meant he hadn’t been planning on doing so if I hadn’t asked.
By simply reaching out, we find people who are going about their daily lives, disconnected from the news. These are voters who would otherwise stay home. One of my favorite things about Palmer Report is our readers. You, dear readers, are informed, passionate, and a great means of crowdsourcing. We are each Palmers, spreading the word. Let us know how you are reaching out. Reply via Tweet, and in the comments. And, no matter what, VOTE!
Chicago native Lorraine Evanoff earned her degree in French from DePaul University then became a Certified Financial Manager. She worked as a finance exec in film production for seven years in Paris, then in Silicon Valley during the dot-com era, and later for various Hollywood production companies, notably as CFO of National Lampoon. She is currently living in Los Angeles with her husband.