Apparently, the American people voted entirely for their conservative values yesterday, even to their own economic detriment. Those of us that lean a bit more to the left cannot afford to be complacent or let "someone else do it" if we hope not to get goose stepped over for the next four years. Also, please don't leave. Remember, almost 50% voted against Bush. Half the population is a major force to be reckoned with if we get organized.
Please join or support those organizations that will be pushing back, trying to hold the line for the next 4 years. I think the various CSS organizations, the ACLU, any large GLBT rights groups, NOW, and others will be our "front line" defense and they need the close 50% of voters who wanted change, or to stem the tide of repressive values, behind them.
Keeping informed isn't enough, discussing with our small circle isn't enough, stewing isn't useful at all.
Naturally, I can not be an activist in America. But I salute you, LS, and anyone else who gets involved in such a way. Major kudos, and the very best of luck, my friends.
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“Passion makes the world go round. Love just makes it a safer place.”
I'm planning on the usual bombardment of letters/emails to my reps--although I'll have to focus more on the state level now, since GA's state assembly seems to be overwhelmingly Republican. This endangers abortion rights especially, since the Dems pretty much kept that issue off the floor while they were in control. As well as our own special set of faith-based initiatives.
I've been thinking about what more I could do--action-wise, besides the letters. I'll keep my eyes open for opportunities to be heard. Perhaps we'll be able to donate $ to the groups we are already involved with.
Maybe there needs to be some type of concerted effort--weekly meetings and action by those who want there to be change. I think there will need to be a lot more work in the trenches--boring, thankless work--that might pull in people who are not otherwise working on this. I don't know. Maybe there aren't enough of us to matter in the long run, but I really don't know what to do.
I'm with you, LadyShea. I've avoided politics most of my life because I had no faith in the American people. In fact I used to justify my inaction by saying, "My views make me a minority in a country ruled by the majority. I don't speak up because nobody will hear it."
However I've come to believe that isn't true. People hear, you just have to chisel through years of exposure to misinformation and ignorance to get them to. Hey, once upon a time a majority of Americans favored keeping slaves and not letting women vote. We didn't get where we are today because reasonable opponents to that type of thinking fled to Canada. Optimism doesn't really suit me, but I'm gonna stick around and try to make a difference.
I am a fan of LTEs, or letters to the edittor of newspapers.
Surprisingly it appears a lot of people read them.
MAP (Media Awareness Project) has instructions on how to write them effectively as well as links to web submission forms to many papers and directories to papers lacking a web submission form.
I have found that it helps to actually read the paper as many will publish LTEs related to recent stories they ran.
LTEs are a decent way to express your views in a one sided fashion, that is, there is no debate unless the paper runs an opposing view. Short, pithy, level headed and you stand a good chance of getting published.
I wrote a pro pot one approaching from the libertarian angle of personal choice and it got published in a conservative, small town paper which surprised me. It was the first LTE I wrote around 3 years ago. In it I got to dispell some myths being perpetuated by a nurse who wrote an article on the dangers of pot like she was some kind of authority.
Pick your issue, settle on the argument you consider most likely to be considered by the paper's circulation and write it. Most LTEs need to be 300 words or less so the average poster here should have no difficulty with it.
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Rightful liberty is unobstructed action, according to our will, within limits drawn around us by the equal rights of others --- Thomas Jefferson
Perhaps we should try to start an organization dedicated to teaching people to think (forgive me, I'm having a brain fart regarding the correct term) rationally.
Holding the line
Re: Holding the line
Hybrid Mode
