So close to the general election, when we should be finalizing our own vetting of candidates and preparing to exercise our right to vote, hate pays a visit.

            Disagreement deteriorated into hate in our election cycles some time ago.  Hard-core activists on both sides took the "my way or the highway" mentality to a new level when they added "at any cost" to the phrase.

            Verbal tit-for-tat grew to public arguments which transformed to rage.  Rhetoric slid into the realm of outright lies.

            While many good people searched for the truth, activists tried to shove their version of it down your throat.  Conversation and debate was replaced by intimidation and, sadly, hate.

            While many folks were trying to understand or cope with pubic attacks on elected officials and their families who were having a meal, visiting friends, or watching a ball game, hate exploded in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

            While a nation was busy pointing fingers and dealing with a crises of dozens of bombs sent through the United States Postal Service to a variety of people who didn't share the same political views, hate exploded in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

            While people spewed their inflammatory messages on social media, smugly thinking that theirs' was the only opinion that mattered and measuring the success of their vitriol in clicks, likes, and shares; hate exploded in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

             Hate exploded in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania last Saturday when a lone gunman walked into the Tree of Life Synagogue shouting hate for Jews and killing 11 worshippers in a 20-minute attack.  Two other worshippers were injured along with four law-enforcement officers.

            A 46-year-old long-haul trucker, was charged with 29 federal counts, including hate crimes. Before the shooting, he posted anti-Semitic rants on social media,

            Almost lost in the last week's news was the report of a lone gunman who killed two people at a supermarket in Jeffersontown, Kentucky. 

            A 51-year-old man is in custody for the shootings which, reportedly, occurred after he failed to get past the locked doors of the nearby First Baptist Church; where 8 to 10 people were inside.

            The suspect had a criminal history, including assault and domestic violence. He also had mental health issues, which he was seemingly public about on social media.

            The shooting is also being investigated as a hate crime.

            The message this week should be to exercise your right as a United States citizen to "get out and vote."  And, we hope that our readers do just that.

            But, there is a feeling of apprehension when the outcomes of the election are announced.

            Fear of what haters may do after the election is not something people in a civilized society should have to face.

            Facilitators of hate on social media, those who stoke the fires of hostility,   need to think about the possible outcomes of their messages.

            Those who read those messages need to step up and report them before they lead to tragedy.

            Don't hide from it, do something about it.  Learn to face the hate.