Are you involved in any kind of political activism?

I don't know how I missed responding to this when you wrote it, but I did. I'm with you all the way, and just came back from a Tea Party Patriot meeting tonight myself. Keep up you vigilance.

It is onlt abuse it you let them bully you . The moment I realized that whatever the suits deem illegal can Still be had I stopped worrying about what they Try to do! Besides they are too scared to do anything too drastic because they Still have to ge reelected. So what happens is the rookies say all the right things and then get to Congress abs see how they Can't change a G-ddamn thing and they fall in line. so by election time comes around except for a few issues no one can tell the difference. and since about 1990? They are more focused on beating the guys on the other side than to do anything. So they fight among themselves and we are free to live the way we usually do. So would anything happen to make me care about politics ? No! What is the point?

Maybe we should just keep them fighting among themselves so they will leave us alone! If only it really worked that way!

And if it doesn't match? Then what? How much are you ready to take that they dish out? Or have you just given up and are willing to take any amount of abuse they give you? Is there anything that would motivate you to become involved? I would never run for office because that's not something I could do well. But I'm sure going not going to let my country turn into the one my huband left so many years ago without trying my best to prevent it.

I work as a freelance writer. I write a column for disabled people. So a lot of my activism can go into the the column, too. That's one advantage of being a freelancer. God knows there aren't many. I also get to design my own schedule, which help with having time to do community organizing. Editors, I found, don't care what you do or when you do it as long as you meet the deadline. My editor could care less if I go to a march all day as long as the article he wants done is done by the time he wants it.

I have to admire your perseverence. Are you also employed? Or do you have more time for activism because you don't work full time? Just wondering if you do all this on evenings and weekends.

Congratulations! That takes a lot of work and dedication. I hope it passes.

It sounds like you are doing your part as a citizen, holding your officials to account. That's a lot more than most people do. Bravo!

It's very easy to get discouraged with politicians. I have only cared enough about one to actually walk precincts for him. He lost because his party was enamored with a movie star who would finance his own campaign, and our candidate couldn't compete with the star power of his opponent in that primary. I think the winner made a terrible governor, but his alternative in the opposing party would have been worse, so I voted for him half-heartedly. The candidate I had supported has now gone on to Congress where I think he's one of the few who is doing a good job. I actually hate having to be involved in politics. It's not a special interest. But I realize if I leave politics to the politicians things in my country will only get worse. It's because ordinary citizens got no more involved than voting that things have gotten as bad as they are.

i completely agree with you. i am pleased to hear you found a politician that you genuinely admire, they do exist, there just aren't enough of them. i find the problem is that because so many of them are such unattractive people it is easy to not be interested in it, but in a way that makes it even more important that we are. trouble is i know this, in a rational way, but i still find the nasty people very off putting.

Part of the problem is that the only politicians we have any real chance of knowing personally and watching on a day to day level are the local ones. The others we have to know as they are portrayed by the media, political campaigns and what the candidates say themselves on TV, etc. It's easy to lie to a camera and live a double life. Look at John Edwards here in the United States, for exampe, and numerous Congressmen who did dispicable things they thought they could keep hidden with enough hush money. Also, many people do not even know the simplest thing about how their government works and what is Constitutional or lawful and what isn't, so they don't know if a politician is trying to pull the wool over their eyes or trying to do something illegal. Another thing that might keep people from getting involved is old fashioned fear. Sometimes bad things seem to accidently happen to good people who try to fight corruption. That's one reason it's important to pay attention to local politics where you might have some influence and can actually get to know the candidates and watch those who are successful, in action. Mayors go on to become County Supervisors or state legislators, who in turn may later run for governor. As we see in America, popular governors go on to become presidential candidates. Sometimes enough good people can weed out the corrruption at the local level if they pay attention to what city officials do. But if people don't care enough to try to clean things up on the local level, which takes work, attending boring city council meetings, etc., very often the sleeze will rise to the top.

That's another reason people who become politically involved get discouraged and lose heart. Politics takes takes time and you can go to a city council meeting to make your voice heard along with other voices and you hope you've made a difference. But then the matter is referred back to a committee or postponed for further study, and it may take months before the matter is really resolved. By that time, those who originally involved at that first meeting have often gone on with their lives and are no longer paying attention to the outcome, since other issues have replaced it as a priority concern.

Do you particpate on a local level? I've been to a few city counsel meetings when important issues come up that will affect me or people I know. I hate going to those meetings, but sometimes you have to get your voice heard or the city will trample on you with their silly regulations. They will often do what they please if no one protests it.

You're right. Every country that became morally corrupt has collapsed. Our founding fathers said that our form of government would not work unless its citizens were moral people. We get the goverment we deserve. It's because good people have ignored politics that we are in this situation. If we just lie down and continue to take it, the country will collapse and I fear Canada will not be far behind us. A moral and spiritual renewal has to come before we can solve our political problems. And I don't mean we should have a theocracy. I believe in a separation between the church and the state, but the people need to return to demanding their politicians adhere to what was the generally accepted morality -- honesty, honor, and no stealing, murder, adultery, and coveting what they don't have so that they cheat to get it from someone else.

Please don't give up on voting. It's the single most important thing you can do, and it's easy now to vote by mail absentee if you are an American. You don't even have to leave your house to make your voice heard. It's when good, educated people don't bother to vote that the uneducated and politically naive people who are herded to the polls make the decisions.

Would you keep your opinions private if your city decided that you would be subject to a fine if you and your neighbors didn't make some expensive change to your property for no impelling reason? I have a situation where the boundaries of my property slope. If I water, some of it might run into the street unless I put up some sort of raised border on my flower beds which border the sidewalks. This is especially true if it rains or if the wind is blowing hard the wrong way. The county or state or city -- I'm not sure which -- was proposing a fine or worse if it's possible for your water run-off to go into the street. That means to comply with the law, I would have to spend money I don't have right now. I was prepared to fight this. Then I found out from a contractor that it only applies to new construction so that the landscaping can be done right in the beginning. Had it applied to present homeowners, I would have fought it. I would have written to the people making the decision and spoken out at meetings. And if they did it, I'd vote against them in the next election. Unfortunately, good people disagree on some issues. Maybe you and your friends do disagree. Maybe the trick is to ask your friend why he believes as he does and then discuss his reasons if he has any. You just need to listen first and then ask "Do you mean ___?" and then fill in the blank with a rephrase of what you thought he said. That will convince him you cared enough to really listen and make sure you understood him. Then you can express your opinon in a thoughtful way on what he said, being careful only to discuss the ideas -- not attack him for believing as he does. If, of course, the person has no reasons and is just repeating talking points,you might ask where he got his information and how he knows it's true and see what says. If he just gets mad, you know he doesn't have an answer and the discussion is useless. We have found that there are a lot of people now who are more open to changing whom they support since the economy got so bad. Some are looking for real answers -- not just promises. These people are now willing to discuss things they would not have before.