Vote for me, I’ll set you free

Ah, October.
The leaves are changing, the air is crisp, and the Detroit Tigers can watch the World Series from the comfort of their La-Z-Boys on their big-screen TVs at home – again.
The temperatures may be cooling down, but political races are heating up as the calendar speeds toward Nov. 4.
The August primaries resulted in more than a couple surprises, and I’m guessing there may be a few more in the general election.
Like we did in the run-up to August, The Chelsea Standard will bring readers profiles of the different races.
As a general policy, this newspaper does not endorse candidates.
Having been the editor at small community papers in the past, I think that’s wise.
In a close-knit community, feelings can be too easily bruised, and the newspaper’s position as a neutral observer can suffer.
After all, we reporters have to work with these people and depend on them for information, and if they feel they have been slighted in any way, they can just clam up.
Not a good way to do business.
That’s why we do the candidate Q&As.
While they may not make for the most compelling reading, they at least give voters a little bit of information on which they can base their decision, and they are in the candidates' own words.
It’s better than going into the ballot box, staring at the list of names and marking a box, almost at random.
You may as well pick a name out of a hat, and how can the democratic process survive by doing that?