EDITORIAL: Your dire warning for what's ahead

The big day is coming.

Voters, beware: People parading themselves for your support are not always what they seem.

We live in a time of thinly veiled treachery. Uncomfortable in their own skins, perhaps, some will try to impress upon you the certainty that they represent one thing, when in fact they stand for something completely different.

Don’t be fooled. Do not believe them. In fact, trust nobody. The only thing all these fakes have in common is self-interest. No, that’s not strong enough: It’s greed, unadulterated avarice.

Improve the community? Not on their agenda.

Protect your hard-earned money? Ha! Quite the opposite, because they want to tap into it.

Work hard on your behalf? Take off those rose-colored glasses! These societal leeches will put in only as much effort as they think they need to win your goodwill, and then they’re gone. It’s as if, once you’ve given them your support, you no longer exist. You’re dead to them.

And here’s the thing: You have no recourse. Fail to participate at your peril, because you will end up paying, one way or the other.

On this late autumn Sunday, we apologize for dunking you in a newsprint-and-ink pool of pure cynicism. But in the quest for truth no matter how painful the punch it’s sometimes delivered in, we felt it necessary to warn you all about the big day ahead.

Tuesday, after all, is Halloween, and legions of posers and pretenders are headed your way. Scrutinize them closely and support the best with your vote of a little extra candy.

Oh, the following Tuesday something else is happening. Maybe we'll remember eventually.