@ncscswitch:
Vote the bums out. Vote out every single politician that has voted for pork, or programs, or whatever beyond the strict limits of Article 1, Section 8.
I agree. But who does that leave, seriously?
I think that by and large “we the people” still care a great deal. Certainly well beyond our means to easily change things. If we can no longer find politicians ready and willing to make the changes that need to happen then we have been essentially sidelined from the democratic process. It’s no longer “we the people” collectively as in government representing the constituents. Government and people have become “us and them”, a breakdown of the wealthy elite and the rest. The haves and the have not’s.
We could take to the streets like was done in the 60’s and 70’s and maybe that’s really what needs to happen. But in this day and age I just can’t see that happening. We face a modern quandary. This is an age of technological distraction. 200+ channels on the tv, cell phones, internet, home game systems, and so on. Actually the internet has a positive effect in all of this though because it is one of the few places you can still find information that has not been filtered through the slanderous bias of “big media”. But unfortunately most people don’t read. Far too many weak minded individual just stare at the “glowing little box” all day and let the “glowing little box” hand their opinions to them (inbetween mind numbing doses of ET and American Idol). So they don’t know. Therefore they don’t care.
So the quandry is the youth of the nation, who has historically been the ones to take things to the streets, has become distracted and hooked on technology of the age. Most seem more wrapped up “things” rather than ideals, such important fundamental ideals such as democracy and freedom. As long as they have access to cell phones, a nintendo wii and a myspace account and a microwave dinner well, they’re more or less complacent. They’re not taking to the streets, and it’s not really their fault. They’ve been bought off by the system and a future of status quo.
The quandary for the non-youth (like you and I) is that we know very well the importance of the ideals like freedom and democracy. We can plainly can see what’s going on and what’s being lost. We see something must be done and must be done now. But what? Who to vote for? Because other than the vote… where to go and what do do? We’re not taking it to the streets either because we’ve been distracted in an entirely different way. Hell we gotta be at work tomorrow! So it’s not really our fault either. We’ve been integrated into the system of a future status quo.
So I think the single biggest problem is there isn’t a true representation of “we the people” in government anymore. There aren’t any political choices left to make the changes that need to be made. I’m not taking about this or that particular stance, program or funding. I’m talking about the fundamental principles of democracy. Like Habeas Corpus! We’re all outraged that this true pillar of democracy has been quietly removed at the sole discretion of the president in the name of “war on terror”. With terror being merely a concept also subject to the sole interpretation of the president. So sad really.
We the people are outraged yet again but there isn’t a single damn politician to be found willing to do anything about it. The Dems got marginal control of Congress and spent weeks and weeks barking up the Scooter Libby tree, and the Alberto Gonzales tree. Neither were the top level instigators themselves to the crimes of course. But what happened? Libby got pardoned immediately and Gonzales quietly resigned while Congress was on break. And that was that. No investigative follow up the food chain like should have been done. And not even a single consequence for those blowing off Congressional subpoenas. Just sigh nothing.
The people care, there just aren’t any politicians left who care. Government has become the embodiment of status quo. Politicians run on their touted platforms of health care and economic recovery and it’s all completely abstract to them. They don’t face unemployment or realistic economic woes. They have no worries about how to pay for their health care or the consequences of Asian outsourcing. They’ve become too far removed from we the people to even remotely rationalize a true representation of what it is to be an American citizen.
And if there are no politicians left to make the changes, to let us make the changes we want to see made through them… then this system of democratic representation has become a farce, a charade, just a quaint antiquated idea who’s time has come and gone. The only other option is taking it to the streets and unfortunately I just can’t see that happening anymore in this day and age.
