LESSONS LEARNED
THE LAST ESSAY
Albert Einstein is
justly famous for his theory of relativity, but I know him best for his
definition of insanity.
Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and
expecting different results.
Following along,
I've decided to abandon my efforts to convince people that they should use
their votes to protest against corruption in DC as well as my efforts to enlist
people in any way to involve themselves in actions to eliminate said
corruption. You may be interested in my reasons.
To begin, my own
efforts will continue; I will support Rootstrikers, Lawrence Lessig, and others
in spite of my conviction that these groups have allowed themselves to slip
into a diffuse, 'Occupy Wall Street' rabble. Still, their energy is bringing
the 'root problem' to the forefront with a growing number of voters.
My reasons: To the
best of my knowledge, I've failed to convince a single person to use his/her
ballot to express disgust with the corruption of special interest money in DC.
Curiosity has led me to search for why.
My conclusions--why
we vote:
1/ Out of a sense
of duty.
2/ Loyalty (however
reluctant) to our party.
3/ Our own vested
interest (where our paycheck, our benefits, or welfare come from).
4/ The media frenzy
catching everyone up in the excitement of the moment--a turning point in
history.
5/ We're passionate
for a specific issue--welfare--too much/too little, the tax code, immigration,
and see our party's version as best.
6/ Our selective
listening, and the pleasure we get from our own party's propaganda--the fear
factor. This last is where most of the money is spent, creating distrust and
loathing for the 'other' party. How can we risk those bastards winning? And
it's not just voters who are effected; politicians don't want to be seen with
those ^%^#$%. So much for bi-partisan cooperation.
All of this is well
understood by our political class, and is how they insure their incumbencies
with special interest money.
P. S. Several people have
reacted to my 'Last Essay'. Further clarification seems in order.
For clarity: I am
not discouraged by my failure to persuade people to my point of view, but rather,
I recognize the difficulty in accepting my radical concept. I firmly
believe that our democracy is broken, and that the only votes that count are
those cast on behalf of a well-funded special interest. (Not all special
interests are evil.)
To effect change in
any organization (government, business, your local garden club), one must
understand the natural (sometimes base) motivations of its members. Our
elected officials in DC seem to be motivated overwhelmingly by power, and a
comfortable retirement. The current system of corruption serves these
motivations very well, especially for incumbents. With so many citizens not
voting (disgust etc.), an incumbent can count on his/her party base for most of
the votes needed, and on special interests for enough money to be reelected.
And, should the opponent win, we have a new incumbent. There is no chance that
either party will change this system unless a large number of voters withhold
their support unequivocally on this condition. A vote for a candidate of either
party sends the opposite message. Meanwhile, we will continue to see issues
important to the American people ignored, or dealt with largely to the
satisfaction of special interests.
I continue my
efforts as an individual.
P. P. S. I received an
email from Ben Cohen (Ben&Jerry's). nhRebellion looks more focused than
Lessig.
Joseph –
Hi, it’s Ben, the
guy on the left, co-founder of Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream and now Head
Stamper at StampStampede.org and we’ve teamed up with our friends at
the New Hampshire Rebellion to create a customized stamp to stamp money out
of politics and end the system of legalized bribery.
 The Stampede helps to build the movement by encouraging Americans to legally rubber stamp paper currency with a demand to get money out of politics. So far there are over 25,000 of us! We are literally making our money talk by turning it into media. 
What we are
creating together is a “Petition on Steroids,” because once it goes
into circulation, each stamped dollar is seen by 875 people.
If 1 person
stamps 3 bills a day for a year, the message will reach 1 MILLION people.
It’s totally legal, slightly subversive, and fun too.
Click here to get a stamp (or get a few for the
holidays!) They cost $10.50 a piece and the first 25 people to order get a
FREE PINT OF BEN AND JERRY’S ICE CREAM.
And please don't forget to join us in New Hampshire this January. Spaces are filling fast so be sure to register to walk today!
Thanks for helping
us fix this root problem together!
Ben Cohen NH Rebellion http://www.nhrebellion.org/ |
P.S. I continue to
write, making slow progress on a new novel and I plan to post occasional
personal (not about corruption) essays and short stories on my blog.
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