Senate Candidate Everett Stern identifies an all-consuming sense of apathy as one of the major problems facing America today. Apathy and cynicism, he says, have robbed citizens of their hopes and dreams, and all but snuffed out the spirit of innovation that once helped this nation become a world leader. Having persevered through significant personal challenges, Stern sees a light in the darkness; reaching that light requires a re-investment in values like integrity, freedom, justice and truth.
"I believe the war against apathy is the most serious battle we face," argues Stern. "If we lose the war against apathy, then we will lose all the other wars we face. Hanging in the balance is everything we hold dear as Americans."
"Politics as usual" has become focused on one thing above nearly everything else – re-election. Incumbents wield tremendous power, and party machinery works hard to keep them seated. At the same time, politicians work in subtle ways to limit voter turnout, because low turnout benefits the status quo. During election cycles, Congresspersons receive hefty donations from corporations, which can sway their votes on a number of issues. The American people are on some level aware of all this maneuvering, and it feeds into the feeling that political participation is meaningless.
"The elevation of Donald Trump to the presumptive Republican presidential nominee is a prime example of how political discourse has devolved," adds Stern. "Today, politics is too much about anger and mudslinging, with far too little substance. Trump's actual positions tend to be drowned out by his rhetoric. While his energy and irreverence certainly captivates some, most voters are just turned off and made cynical by the whole spectacle."
When Stern blew the whistle on international banking titan HSBC, he lost everything in the process – but he contends it was the right thing to do, and he would do it all over again. He might easily have thrown in the towel, but instead his commitment to restoring American values was only strengthened. This conviction to make personal sacrifices in the interest of the greater good is what's sorely lacking in politics today.
Facing off against Stern in the race for the Pennsylvania Senate seat is incumbent Republican Pat Toomey. From Stern's perspective, Toomey is representative of everything broken about the establishment. As a member of the Senate Bank Financing Committee, the Senator had the opportunity to send a strong message to HSBC and any other banks, but the committee failed to take any meaningful action. The fines levied on HSBC were a drop in the bucket relative to its revenue.
"I ask all Americans to join me in the fight against the most dangerous enemy we've ever faced," concludes Stern. "Together, we can defeat apathy and restore the values that actually matter. "
About Everett Stern
Everett Stern is a U.S. Senate Candidate, Intelligence Director at Tactical Rabbit, and the HSBC Whistleblower. He has received extensive international media coverage, including a feature in Rolling Stone Magazine. He uncovered, analyzed, and reported terrorist financing/national security threats to the CIA and then the FBI. As the whistleblower in the ongoing HSBC money laundering scandal, he uncovered billions of dollars of illegal money laundering transactions that led to an SEC investigation and a $1.92 billion fine against HSBC in 2012.
In the fall of 2013, Stern (R-PA) worked across the aisle with Maxine Waters (D-CA), the ranking Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee, on the Holding Individuals Accountable and Deterring Money Laundering Act, which sought to give the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network the authority to litigate on its own, and to stiffen penalties and criminal sentences for bank executives involved in money laundering. Stern received a BA from Florida Atlantic University and an MBA from Stetson University. He was the winner of the F&M Presidential Scholarship for outstanding academic achievement and was a highly-ranked national debater.
Read the War Against Apathy at the following link:
https://everettstern.com/2015/09/the-war-against-apathy/
Twitter @SternEverett
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EverettSternFan/
SOURCE Everett Stern
RELATED LINKS
Editor’s note: The information provided on this page is from an independent, third-party content provider. If you have any questions or comments about this page please contact editor@ivn.us.