I first started this blog last year with certain ideas in mind.
1) I wanted an outlet to share with others the concepts, opinions and ideals that I have formulated after listening for many hours to talk radio hosts across the country.
2) I wanted to be a participant in the "war of ideas" that helps to shape our culture, our society and our nation.
3) I wanted to demonstrate how politics in Washington (and to some small extent the various state and local governments) affect our daily lives.
4) I wanted to convey the importance of being involved in politics.
I am grateful to all those who read my blog on a consistent basis and I am especially grateful to you who take the time to comment. I am not at all certain that this post is even addressed to you, as I know that you are active and informed. Perhaps my regular readers can take encouragement in the preceding words and perhaps there will be those who stumble upon this post that will take my message to heart.
I have often heard people say they do not wish to "be political" or that politics is not something that they're interested in. I say that politics is human nature. It is the process that we use to get along with others. The politics of DC are just an extension of how we interact with our neighbors. Often people are afraid to express their view point or ideas. People find it easier to share their preference of skin cream or shampoo than to tell people who they will vote for and, more importantly, why. While it is important to have clean hair and soft skin, I think it might just be more important that we are informed and that we inform those around us. Who we choose to represent us in our "representative government" is a decision that has long lasting reprecusions. Too often have I heard the complaint that they're all bums and crooks. To that complaint I ask how did all those crooks get into office and more importantly how do they stay in office? I believe that it is the responsibility of the American populace (those of age to vote ) to be well informed on the issues before stepping into the voter booth and pulling the lever (okay, I think I just showed my age by saying "booth" and "lever" but you get the idea). I'm not egalitarian enough to say you should vote if you're not voting for my candidate. I would just as soon you stayed home or didn’t mail in your ballot, but since I know that you'll vote for your guy no matter what I say, than I just ask that you are as informed as you can possibly be.
Since our government is supposed to be run "by the people" we all are combatants in the war of ideas. This should be a civilized war where we treat those who disagree with us respectfully, but still try to convince them that our argument is right or be intellectually honest enough to be swayed by theirs. As Rush Limbaugh has eloquently stated, "Ignorance is our most valuable commodity". Speaking up is our best defense against ignorance, including our own. It is too easy to sit on the sidelines and think that what we have to say does not matter, but not having everyone involved has cost our nation dearly.
5 comments:
Wait; politics is more important than shampoo?! ;-0
I just wish more people understood that. While it's great to take care of your hair, it's even greater to take care of your country. I fear we have too many apathetic and/or ignorant folks running around. I just wish they'd stay home on voting day. We don't need anymore simpletons being caught up with the farce of "hope and change". When you have more people who know who Snookie or Justin Beiber is rather than who are leaders are, something is wrong in this country.
I totally understand. I wrote a blog post on this subject recently too. I think people assume that things will always stay the same, but there are those out there who will gladly take our freedoms in exchange for perceived security.
Ignorance is slavery.
Miss Devine, Shampoo is more important to people who have more hair than others. Since I'm starting to go bald, Eh, not so much.
Angela, You are a hero of mine, taking the time out of your life to be more engaged in the process, is terrific. When are you moving to the "good" side of the Rockies.
It's also easy to sit on the sidelines, afraid to try and share your voice for fear others will beat you down.
My mom is a State senator and I am in awe of the time and effort she puts into her job. I think if all elected officials, be they conservative or liberal or anything else, would do a much better job of representing the people if they'd put as much effort into understanding issues as she does. And that we, as the people who are represented, would do just as well to understand those issues.
It's a time consuming thing, which I think is one of the reasons people don't want to get involved.
Barb, you make some good points. It's not easy to speak up. One reason why I like the blog-a-sphere is it makes it easier to write things that one would not want to say in a public setting.
It also gives us a chance to "flesh out" more complex issues.
I believe that in the here and now with the internet we can be more informed than ever before. our "voices" can be "heard" world wide. Some schlub like me can pretend to be a political commentator and someone in England can read it and decide on the worth of my writing along with all the news and commentary from countless sources. Due deligence is required to ferret out the truth to the best of our ability but I prefer this to when we just had the major three or four sources in the past.
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