I watched the first airing of the January 6 Committee Hearing on the U.S. Capitol Insurrection of 2021. 
I’m a decorated, honorably retired U.S. Navy veteran who has repeatedly sworn a solemn oath to defend the U.S. Constitution against enemies foreign and domestic. You’d better believe watching this hearing is important to me and I hope to those I swore to protect. 
The coming months will tell what kind of country we live in.
While I believe this is important, I wonder if my neighbors and my fellow citizens feel the same. Have we grown so numb to political sounding topics that we don’t even bother to pay attention to the fact that we came close –– dangerously close to losing our democracy and the freedom we claim to hold dear?
Have we grown so uninformed that enemies of this country can just step up on a given day and take us down in an afternoon? 
Have we grown so divided that we can’t even hear what our neighbors, friends and family members are saying to us if they don’t agree with our stance on a particular topic? 
Have we grown so gullible that we’ll listen to lies upon lies and then elect the very liars who will further exploit us?
The stakes couldn’t be higher. Our democracy is being tested as never before and we must act. To use a nautical term, our ship of state is “listing” and the call for help is directed at American voters. 
Our voice, our vote can “right the ship” and begin to address the national security peril we now find ourselves in. Yes, our enemies are watching all of this — bet on it. 
I urge you to pay close attention to the upcoming J6 hearings. It is our responsibility as citizens to hear the exact account of the events that nearly took down the most powerful democracy on the planet.  
Start by educating yourself on exactly what it will take to protect our democracy and support truth. I can assure you, I will never bow to a tin-pot dictator or serve tyranny in any form.  My ancestors sacrificed too much and our citizens deserve accountability. No one is above the law.

Sallyann Hobson
Stem