An old union song from the 1931 coal-field wars in Harlan County, Kentucky, has been rattling around my brain.

Written by Florence Reece and later popularized by Pete Seeger, it repeatedly asks the question: “Which side are you on, boys? Which side are you on?”

But what makes the song particularly apt for this spirit-numbing presidential election is this lyric: “They say in Harlan County/There are no neutrals there.”

Up until now, Libertarian Gary Johnson was neutral ground. The affable former two-term GOP governor of New Mexico, famed for his permissive attitude toward marijuana, represented a safe haven for Republicans who couldn’t vote for the bilious billionaire who has taken over their party.

Competent and capable?

On Thursday morning, The Detroit News endorsed Johnson, the first non-Republican presidential candidate the newspaper has backed in its 143-year history. In an editorial that included the subhead, “Fit for the presidency,” the News declared, “This is an endorsement of conscience, reflecting our confidence that Johnson would be a competent and capable president and an honorable one.”