How exactly will that fairy tale “hold politicians to account”?
A clear majority of people, 52% according to latest polling, are opposed to the Healthcare Reform act, yet here we limp along divided and dispirited despite the fact that an abiding and clear majority are steadfast in their opposition. So what are we missing as unpopular policies are foisted upon the majority by a vocal and committed minority? We are not the same country we used to be, we are fragmented with everyone at each other’s throats. What we need to do is to rebuild neighborhood communications. We need to meet together face to face, take up local issues together, and find common ground. Only when we do that and stop accepting frustration and learned helplessness as our lot in life will we be able to fire these useless SOBs and put things right.
How do we hold politicians to account? Let’s look at Healthcare Reform which a clear majority of Americans have opposed since its inception. Why is this the law of the land then? I think it is because we are a house divided which renders us incapable of offering an adequate opposition to the small vocal minority which are currently running rings around us and subverting our government.
There are no shortcuts, we are just going to have to find common ground with our neighbors (healthcare reform and border security come to mind) and that will entail getting out and doing things like building precinct organizations. The GOP has relied on big donors and wave elections far too much, and that kicks the ball into the court of the people who do not share our values and priorities. There are no shortcuts, we have to reverse our tendency to chase squirrels and huddle together in progressively smaller groups and instead we will need to learn to prioritize issues where there is a clear consensus.
THAT’S how “this fairytale will hold politicians to account”, by learning to stick together so we can follow through instead of just emoting.