Why You MUST Get Involved

A person who I know, who shall remain nameless, told me not to blame her for the current mess in Washington – she didn’t vote – and has no plans to either. Why vote and get involved when it’s always the lesser of the two evils? I asked if she thought we’d be in Iraq if Gore was President. The answer from others around us was a solid no. I said that whenever we choose not to vote – we make an implicit vote for the most powerful, intrenched candidate. Things became kinda heated. And it was agreed to simply not talk about politics. Very disappointing.

Over heard in this Metafilter thread and very applicable:

Democracy does not ‘take root’ (or ‘flourish’ or ‘grow’ for that matter).

…Democracy is viable only so long as the general public demands it.

As soon as the public ceases to be active/activist, democracy is destroyed by the power-seekers. These power-seekers will manipulate the laws, the media, and the political process to work in their favour. The end result is inevitable: democracy is destroyed in practice, if not in name.

If you desire a democratic government, you must participate in a meaningful, deliberate, and active manner.

The only way to get the government to take notice is to vote. Besides, the difference between the lessor of two evils can be a great one. It’s the difference that counts. Whatever your preference… get involved.

2 thoughts on “Why You MUST Get Involved

  1. Well said Karl. Thanks for linking to my Vet memory…

    I heard a news story a while ago (don’t remember where! NPR?) about American Idol and the fanatical voting that happens for the contestants on that show. The commentator asked young adults if they felt their vote on AI made a difference. The answer was always a resounding yes. Without skipping a beat he asked if the person had voted in the 2000 Pres. election. 90% of the time the answer was no, because, “my vote doesn’t mean anything.”

    The crazy part about it was that these 20-25 year old “kids” had no sense of the irony in the questioning or their answers.

  2. Thanks. I like your weblog. It’s great seeing it’s headlines over at Philly Future now that it handles Atom syndication.

    You know what’s sadder about this.. the person I’m talking about is over 40. An educated, reasonable soul who feels completely cynical about the process and can’t overcome that cynicism to participate.

    I think kids feel the way they do because we don’t lead by example far enough.

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