Participatory Government At Its Worst
The first Tuesday in November has always been Election Day in the U.S. The airwaves, both television and radio, are full of campaign slogans and promises; but unless you've been paying close attention, the candidates are virtually indistinguishable.
All are for "the family" (and defining what that means could take eons), better schools, lower taxes (hum...diametrically opposed goals...that should be interesting), less traffic (and the solution is to build more roads?!?!?!?!), and lower crime rates.
Even if you have been paying attention, for most Americans the choice boils down to this . The sad part is, most of us aren't paying attention; as one pundit recently said, regardless of the outcome of the mid-term elections, George Bush will be President for at least another 2 years.
Comments
My solution to the election problem here in the States is to write in the candidates that do offer real solutions. Here in Georgia, our election laws require a massive campaign machine to get a candidate on the ballot, but the process to register a write-in candidate is quite simple. I was able to vote for registered Green Party write-in candidates for three of the top offices in the state, and I voted for another third party candidate who has pledged to help improve the ridiculous ballot access restrictions in Georgia.
Until such a time as real choice appear on the ballot, we have to do what we can to make our voices heard. But the catch 22 is obvious: it takes 40,000 votes to get a new party on the next ballot, but it's impossible to get 40,000 votes without being printed on the ballot.
Posted by: Niel | November 5, 2002 4:41 PM