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On Saturday, September 1, 2012, we began the last four months of this historic year, none without problems, defeats and setbacks, but all with victories, rays of new hope and blessings. The last week of August, for the sixteenth time in my life, I paid attention to a political convention by newspapers, magazines, radio and most of them by television.

Having been born and living for 17 years in the upper reaches of Cabin Creek in the coal mining community of Wevaco, WV, some 30 miles from Charleston, you may correctly assume that I was born and rocked in a Democrat cradle. In many Carbon Fuel Company houses, there were three prominent pictures – President Franklin Roosevelt, United Mine Workers President John L. Lewis and an artist’s conception of Jesus.

My parents were, and I assume most were, Democrats. They believed a lot like today’s conservative Republicans. They believed in a high standard of morality, hard work, earning our own way, helping our neighbors, loving our country, in the right-to-life for the living, both born and unborn and taking care of their own elderly family members.

The last four years have been tough for our nation and most of its citizens. Somebody said in my hearing, “Unless we have a lot of change, there is not much hope.” As I write this, I am looking forward to watching many hours of the Democrat Convention and wondering what they will offer in an attempt to bring the needed and necessary changes if our nation is to again become strong and bring a dramatic decrease in the many millions who are unemployed in our country.

While there may still be sufficient time to rescue our nation from the abysmal depths to which it has fallen, we must get busy on that project, all of us who love this nation of ours. A nation that does not belong to government but to its citizens. All citizens need to adopt with every possible effort with all others who love our country with a determination that says, “Let us all get going together now.”

We have no time to waste. We cannot borrow our way out of debt. We need jobs, people working and producing, creating more jobs. Many years ago, early in my attempts to write, I was told to answer these questions – who, what, where, when and how. These are questions our leaders, especially the President, Vice President and Congress must correctly answer.

• Who? Us. We. All the people of the nation. Every citizen. We are in it together and “We, the people”, must extricate us from our depressing and destructive mess.

• What? Become active. Get involved. Show personal responsibility.

• Where? Right here where we are. In our town, county and state.

• When? Now. No time to wait. Change needed now or it’s goodbye to hope.

• How? Together. The best effort from everybody.

Politicians have been known to make and break promises and then do irrational things and lie through every tooth in their head. We need more men and women, of every age, who will themselves, be honest and committed to service for the good of the whole nation.

We need leaders of experience, preparation for service, of high ethical standards and a love for our country. Otherwise, “They are blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both will fall into the ditch” (Matthew 15:14).

If the blind lead us, it can spell the end to what has been the greatest country in the history of the world. I would like to keep it great. Dismiss leaders who have destructive ideas. Let’s all get going together now. We do have another opportunity to make a difference for many years to come. Our present situation is critical.