GOING POSTAL
A polio-free planet
Country over party
Editor: What would you think if you woke up on Monday morning with a slight headache and by the end of the week you could not move your legs? This nightmare has recently occurred to clusters of children in Colorado and Minnesota as the Centers for Disease Control reported a mysterious outbreak of acute flaccid myelitis, which mimics symptoms of polio. Could it happen here? It already has. In 1941, newspapers across Alabama were reporting widespread polio outbreaks statewide. Some simply contracted flu-like symptoms. Others were permanently paralyzed, some died. Why? Polio is a virus that attacks the nervous system. It can be transmitted through direct contact with someone infected with the virus or through contaminated food and water. There is no cure for polio but it can be prevented. Fortunately, in 1955 Dr. Jonas Salk developed a vaccine which stopped the virus dead in its tracks. In 1979, Rotary, an international service organization, and Mobile area clubs chose to lead the way to eradicate polio around the world and thus help protect all of us. As a result of Rotary’s efforts more than 2.5 billion children have been vaccinated and protected from polio. Rotary’s World Polio Day is Oct. 24, Dr. Salk’s birthday. This year the Mobile Sunrise Club celebrated the date at their regular club meeting. Members divided into teams and played Jeopardy! with questions about the Rotary International Fund and Polio Plus campaign. Guests were welcomed and encouraged to participate. Next year the club plans on putting on more special events to raise awareness and support to end this dreaded disease. How effective has Rotary been? In 1979 there were more than 350,000 polio cases worldwide in more than 100 countries. As of today, only two countries are still reporting cases of the wild polio virus. But we cannot rest until every country gets the all-clear. Teams of doctors, nurses, researchers, analysts and field study personnel must be supported along the way in order to keep polio at bay and ultimately defeat it. The vaccine itself is very inexpensive because Dr. Salk and those who followed him chose not to get a patent, recognizing this lifesaving discovery was bigger and more beneficial to the world than any paycheck. Salk is a true inspiration of the love he had for his fellow man. Mobile Rotary Sunrise invites you to join us in “Be the Inspiration,” be a part of history by giving generously to end polio now. The club meets on Wednesday mornings at the Mobile Country Club. Each year the club raises money for the fight against polio and local charities. Guests are always welcome. To donate or find out more about Mobile Rotary Sunrise and other local Rotary clubs, go to rotary.org. You, too, can help end polio today.
Editor: I’ve voted for a Republican. Once. I’m about to vote for a Republican again. So, what in this age of tribalism, when American voters choose a side and pledge their undying loyalty, would make me turn toward the other team? Not what, but who. In November, when I cast my vote for Alabama House of Representatives District 97, my vote will go to Stephen McNair, Republican candidate for House Seat 97. “Now, hold on, self-proclaimed feminist and proud tree-hugger, you’re voting for the man?” you might question. “Why would you do that?” you ask in disbelief. The answer is simple: District 97 needs someone who knows what to fight for, when to fight and how to fight. I want someone who is ready to fight tooth and nail for Mobile. Stephen McNair knows how special District 97 is. He knows our potential. He was raised here, and is a proud graduate of Murphy High School, but don’t vote for him because you want the cannon painted blue and white. Vote for him because he has the stamina to fight the long fights. In 2009, McNair completed the 2,181 mile long Appalachian Trail, including hiking a 700-mile stretch then a 1,000-mile stretch. To do this, he and his wife, Lila, averaged 20 miles a day. This is the determination I want for us in Montgomery. Rest on your laurels when the job is done, legislators, but not a mile or even an inch sooner. I want someone with empathy in Montgomery fighting for District 97. Someone who knows our district is a melting pot of socioeconomic circumstances, but remembers we all deserve the opportunity to thrive. In 2005, as Hurricane Katrina barreled toward the Gulf Coast, McNair was a student at Tulane University. He lost everything in the storm. With no money, no job and plenty of student debt, he turned to FEMA and the Red Cross for food, clothing and shelter. When I asked what that experience taught him, he answered, “When you’re in a Red Cross shelter waiting on your food card so you can eat, you will never look at people the same who need help.” After working in Arkansas for a few months to regain financial footing, McNair returned to New Orleans, ready to help rebuild his second home. He and Lila stayed for five years. True empathy and perseverance are rare qualities, but McNair has an abundance of both. As I consider the problems we have in our district — failing public schools, crime and inadequate infrastructure — I am tempted to wring my hands, lament over the job at hand being too tough, too daunting. But then I think, “No. Mobile deserves better than hand-wringing and lamenting.” Doing nothing has not moved us any closer to where we need to be. We deserve someone who will fight for what is ours and what should be ours. We deserve a representative who will demand that Mobile no longer plays second and third fiddle to Birmingham and Huntsville. We deserve someone who will fight the long fight, the hard fight, the unpopular fight. Stephen McNair is the person for that job. And if I must abandon my tribe to get us there, so be it.
Andy Falls, Mobile
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Jodie Cain Smith, Mobile