If you listened to and believed what a few political candidates out there shout, you would think that the USA is currently in a dystopian state overrun by every bad guy you can imagine. But, instead I ask you to rely on your own experience and decide for yourself what is reality.

For instance, when you went to the grocery store today, did you battle your way across the parking lot, pistol in hand, fending off murderers and rapists left and right? I doubt you even ran into a panhandler. When you picked your child up from daycare, did you have to snatch them away from a sex trafficker or some Hollywood type attempting to eat them to increase their own longevity? Probably not. When you arrived home, had heavily armed undocumented immigrants taken over the building? No, no evidence of that.

In the last few weeks, I have been in several large cities and I saw not one sign of what has been claimed by some. No, everyone is going about their ordinary lives just like you do here in our little corner of Maine. So, instead of believing what some tell you or what you found at the bottom of a five hour rabbit hole on social media, lean back and ask yourself, have I seen any evidence to back up their assertions?

What you have encountered in real life is what everyone across the country encounters. There are no marauding hordes murdering, raping, and pillaging their way through the day. If there were, I guarantee that that would make the headlines of every reputable news organization in the world.

Paul Keene

Winslow