DANVILLE — Editor:

The United States officially became a republic in 1776, 236 years ago. The number of people now getting free stuff outnumbers the people paying for the free stuff. We have only one chance to change that in 2012. Failure to change that spells the end of the United States as we know and love it.

The folks who are getting the free stuff don’t like the folks who are paying for the free stuff, because the folks who are paying for the free stuff can no longer afford to pay for both the free stuff and their own stuff.

And, the folks who are paying for the free stuff want the free stuff to stop, but the folks who are getting the free stuff want even more free stuff on top of the free stuff they are already getting.

Now the people who are forcing the people who pay for the free stuff have told the people who are receiving the free stuff that the people who are paying for the free stuff are being mean, prejudiced and racist.

So the people who are getting the free stuff have been convinced they need to hate the people who are paying for the free stuff by the people who are forcing some people to pay for their free stuff and giving them the free stuff in the first place.

It is frightening to realize that all great democracies have committed financial suicide somewhere between 200 and 250 years after being founded because some of the voters figured out they could vote themselves money from the treasury by electing people who promised to give them money from the treasury in exchange for electing them.

Election 2012 is coming; I will not tell you how to vote, but indeed, I beg you to exercise your privilege to voice your opinions in early November.

Are you registered to vote?

Do you need to arrange for transportation to the polling place?

Do you need to research the candidates which deserve your support?

There is still time.

Stand up as a patriot by doing all that you need to do to prepare to vote.

Keith Daniel Bouslog

Danville