I don’t talk about abortion in public because I don’t have a say on this matter. Nevertheless, I am going to put my head on the chopping block and share my thoughts.

I support abortion in extreme cases such as rape, incest, and fetal nonviability. I don’t find having an abortion due to financial difficulty is sufficient, yet it is the most common cause of abortion. I believe there has to be a better choice.

First, the U.S. government does provide food for the kids through welfare if the parents cannot provide for them. It’s not a whole lot, but enough to live.

Second, shouldn’t the father have a say in keeping or aborting the baby if money is the issue? If the mother felt that having a baby would put her in financial burden, can the father step in and take his responsibility? If he is man enough to get a woman pregnant, he should man up to raise his child.

My views are based on my own thoughts and not religion, but I am glad that I have found a group of pro-life evangelicals supporting Biden for the same reasons. I thought I would never agree with evangelicals, but here we are in 2020 and I am on board with their views:

Knowing that the most common reason women give for abortion is the financial difficulty of another child, we appreciate a number of Democratic proposals that would significantly alleviate that financial burden: accessible health services for all citizens, affordable childcare, a minimum wage that lifts workers out of poverty.

For these reasons, we believe that on balance, Joe Biden’s policies are more consistent with the biblically shaped ethic of life than those of Donald Trump. Therefore, even as we continue to urge different policies on abortion, we urge evangelicals to elect Joe Biden as president.

Sáng thứ Bảy đưa hai thằng con đi hướng đạo. Lâu lâu mới gặp lại những phụ huynh nên cũng hỏi thăm vài câu. Dĩ nhiên là phải đeo khẩu trang và giữ khoảng cách. Cuộc trò chuyện nhanh chóng chuyển sang dụ ông Trump. Tôi định rút lui đọc sách nhưng nén lại lắng nghe thử họ nói gì.

Có người cho rằng tại sao ông Trump lại cẩu thả để bị nhiễm. Tôi định nói ông ta có thèm cẩn thận bao giờ đâu mà cẩu thả nhưng chỉ lắng nghe. Có người cho rằng họ không thể nào bỏ phiếu cho ông Biden vì ổng nói chuyện yếu ớt và không hay bằng ông Trump. Tôi hơi ngạc nhiên đỉnh hỏi ông Biden nói yếu ớt ra sao còn ông Trump nói hay chỗ nào thì có cho rằng cuộc tranh luận vừa rồi ông Trump đánh gục ông Biden không có đường đỡ. Nghe xong tôi cũng im luôn. Theo tôi nghĩ chắc tiếng Anh của họ còn kém nên ông Trump nói dễ hiểu hơn vì ổng nói như đứa con nít lớp hai lớp ba. Ngược lại ông Biden nói về những chính sách ở tần lớp cao hơn nên họ không hiểu hoặc không muốn tìm hiểu.

Có người cho rằng họ ủng hộ ông Trump vì chỉ có ông mới chống chọi lại Tàu. Tôi đã nghe rất nhiều người Việt nói về điểm này. Họ chỉ nghe và tin những lời đe dọa trống rỗng của ông còn việc ông bị Tàu chơi xỏ thì họ không thấy. Chẳng hạn như lúc COVID mới bắt đầu ở Tàu, Trump dại dột tin lời tụi Tàu nói mọi chuyện đã ổn định. Ổng còn khen ông Xi đã giải quyết mọi chuyện tốt đẹp. Lúc COVID tràn vào nước Mỹ, ổng mới biết bị tụi Tàu chơi nên chửi bới tụi Tàu này nọ. Lúc đó đã quá muộn. Có la ó um sùm cũng đã thua tụi Tàu. Bây giờ còn bị nhiễm con “vi trùng Vũ Hán” nữa. Vậy mà nói ông ta có tư cách chống tụi Tàu. Thật là một sự mù quáng.

Có người bình luận rằng bây giờ có hai bên. Một bên muốn ổng mau bình phục còn một bên muốn ổng chết. Tôi hỏi ai mà ác vậy muốn ổng chết? Câu trả lời là đám Dân Chủ. Tôi đáp lại rằng bên Dân Chủ không muốn ổng chết. Chỉ muốn ổng thua. Một con người tự cao như ông ta, thua còn nhục hơn chết.

Đến giờ phút này mà họ vẫn không thể nhìn ra được sự thất bại nặng nề của ông ta trong việc ngăn chặn COVID. Họ vẫn cho rằng con số hơn 209,000 người chết là giả tạo để lật đổ ông Trump. Họ cho rằng nếu như ông Biden thắng, nước Mỹ sẽ trở thành cộng sản. Không biết phải nói gì hơn nữa ngoài sự thất vọng với những người như thế trong cộng đồng Việt.

After the primary election, I jumped on the Biden wagon because we don’t have a choice in the general election. His candidacy didn’t inspire me like Elizabeth Warren’s or Pete Buttigieg’s. Even Biden’s record hasn’t been all that great. He made many mistakes and he came off arrogant. I still remember him ridiculing Paul Ryan on the VP debate stage in 2012.

Looking back to his recent primary debates and his first debate with Trump last Tuesday in particular, I noticed the change in him. Despite calling Trump a clown and telling him to shut up, Biden was so much more disciplined. He held his composure. He didn’t counterattack Trump’s family members even though Trump dragged his son through the mud. He tried his best to speak directly to the American people despite Trump’s constant interruptions. He was still sharp. Unlike Trump who wrongly accused him of calling young Black males superpredators, Biden showed no sign of dementia.

Unlike the blustering younger Biden, the older Biden is wiser and quieter. He listens more and he is being honest about what he doesn’t know. Like Obama, Biden is constantly learning and searching for new information to help him make better and smarter decisions.

I was curious to know what had changed him; therefore, I did a bit more research. The pivotal moment was in 2015 when his son Beau Biden died of cancer. The death of Beau had a profound impact on Biden. He turned his tragedy into positivity. He has compassion. He treats people with kindness. He cares for all Americans. By picking Kamala Harris as his running mate, Biden is a man of his word.

I have come to realize that Biden is the right candidate all along to help us get out of this mess. Biden alone can’t fix everything, but he will unite America, keep us healthy, and resuscitate our dying democracy.

I sincerely wish Trump and his wife well. As much as I want to see him lose, I want to see him defeat by votes, not by COVID.

I also sincerely hope his supporters discontinue to believe that COVID is a hoax. At this time, we have over 208K deaths in the U.S. In addition, Herman Cain who contracted COVID at Trump’s rally died 28 days after he was tested positive. Then again, Cain was in a high-risk category because of his history with cancer.

Trump had dodged lots of bullets in the past four years. I hope he will dodge this one as well.

Trump là sự đe dọa cho nền dân chủ của nước Mỹ. Bạn không nhìn ra được điều đó, bạn thật là đồ ngu. Còn bạn nhìn ra được điều đó mà bạn không quan tâm, bạn là đồ rác rưởi.

One of the unspoken rules in politics is to leave family members out of the ring. In the first presidential debate, however, Trump attacked Biden’s son again and again. Biden defended his son, but never returned any attack on his opponent’s family members. Biden didn’t sink low to Trump’s level. He kept his decency. For that alone, I have tremendous respect for Biden.

Tonight’s debate has confirmed that Trump is an incompetent president. Unlike most incumbent presidents who became older and wiser as they served the country, Trump has become more childish and clownish. It was such a national disgrace witnessing the president of the United States behaved like a toddler who could not follow a simple rule. It’s a damn shame!

The endorsement for Biden from the Washington Post is not a surprise, but its editorial board makes strong case for China and democracy.

On China, the board writes:

Both Mr. Biden and Mr. Trump promise to “get tough” with Beijing and to combat its mercantilism, thefts of technology and expansive claims in the South China Sea. However, Mr. Biden’s approach would be values-based, not erratic and transactional. He would work with allies to confront China’s abusive behaviors while seeking cooperation where interests converge, such as on climate change and health security.

On democracy, the board writes:

Democracy is at risk, at home and around the world. The nation desperately needs a president who will respect its public servants; stand up for the rule of law; acknowledge Congress’s constitutional role; and work for the public good, not his private benefit.

Just as desperately, it needs a president with the know-how and experience to show that values and results can go together.

It is fortunate to have, in Joe Biden, a candidate who can lead an administration that is both honorable and successful.

I have voiced my worry on democracy again and again. The Post has confirmed my concern. Read the full endorsement at the Washington Post.

An endorsement for Biden from the New Yorker isn’t a surprise. The case, however, isn’t as convincing as I had hoped for. I expect much higher from the New Yorker. From the editors:

The polls suggest that Joe Biden currently leads the 2020 Presidential race. We suffer no delusions: Trump has on his side demagogic skill and ruthlessness, a willingness to break any norm or law in order to win. Nevertheless, we hope that Biden will displace him by a margin that prevents prolonged dispute or the kind of civil unrest that Trump appears to relish. Ideally, Biden will have an opportunity to govern with Democratic majorities in both the House and the Senate, which would vastly increase his chances of passing legislation to confront the nation’s array of crises.

Read the entire endorsement at the New Yorker.

I mailed in my ballot on late Wednesday, 23, 2020 and my ballot arrived at the election office on late Friday, September 25, 2020. The mail-in process took two or three days the most. I could have placed my ballot in a drop box at an early absentee location, but I wanted to see if mail-in works. It is still safe and secured to vote by mail in Virginia; however, vote in person if you can. Vote early and get your family and friends to vote. Make democracy great again.

When Trump declared that he won’t commit to a peaceful transition of power if he loses, that is the test of our democracy. We don’t have to wait for four more years to see if democracy will die. If Biden wins on November 3^rd, we will see right away if Trump has absolute power or not. I still strongly believe that the Secret Service and the military will kick his ass out if he loses, but we’ll see.