THIS WILL BE SHORT. It takes no special powers of imagination, time or education to know which candidate is a better person. That alone is not enough to make Joe Biden a good president. But it’s a good place to start.

His upbringing gave him the ability to know what it means when so many people in this country tell us they’re hurting—not inconvenienced, worried or annoyed—hungry, cold, scared. Don’t take Joe Biden’s word for it. Come to the County Fairgrounds in Chatham the next time there’s a free food distribution. Pitch in and help. See for yourself.

If we don’t want hunger to be the new normal, who has a better plan for helping the people like those who had jobs until the pandemic hit? That would be Joe Biden.

The pandemic. We’re not immune to it. The numbers tell the true story. Our shared anxiety speaks louder. Which candidate will give us the most accurate guidance coupled with federal actions that reduce the spread? Which one would you trust when the country needs to know the science not the fantasy. Who would we trust to make sure that a vaccine is the safest, most effective one possible? C’mon. Pull your mask up over nose and mouth and go vote for Joe Biden.

Climate change is something for the future, right? Except it was only a few weeks ago that the whole West Coast burned until the sky was a reddish curtain that drifted across the continent. It’s late October and tropical storms still swarm ashore over toasty ocean waters. How much will we have to pay as the costs of emergency relief and reconstruction mushroom. These are facts, not theories. They’re called the effects of climate change.

But it seems like there’s less change here than other parts of the country. That might be true except for invasive species. One invasive bug is killing the ash trees. Another threatens hemlocks. Sad to lose the trees. Maybe we should invest in bamboo and coconut farms in Austerlitz and Canaan.

We can’t tough it out and assume we can transition from one crop to another. It’s already too hot to grow tomatoes in parts of California where, until recently, they thrived. It will be too late to be asking what will happen to our farmers, our food supply our economy—and us when orchards wither.

Joe Biden gets the urgency: we can no longer release more carbon pollution into the atmosphere than we remove from it. He frames it as an initiative that will create new jobs and stimulate the economy. He talks about climate change with knowledge that doing nothing is not an option. He does not hide this threat behind a wall of meaningless promises and self congratulation.

It’s a good person who shows genuine concern about universal affordable healthcare. It’s a good leader who makes that kind of healthcare a government priority. We will be a stronger, healthier nation if an affordable, universal option is available to all who need it. Healthcare is another reason to vote for Joe Biden.

No politician is perfect. We have had ample opportunity over the last four years to appreciate exactly what that can mean. What can we do now? One step is to inoculate ourselves from repeating the error of placing power in the hands of a person who never should have had it. This starts by electing Joe Biden and his vice-presidential running mate, Senator Kamala Harris. They are leaders with the experience, the knowledge and the decency to serve the nation rather than themselves.

Elect good people to our highest office. Vote for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.