Don't just vote....COMPLAIN!

I have been reading the usual spate of "if you don't vote, don't complain" Schtick. May I remind everyone of taxation without representation and inalienable rights. It is your duty to complain - vote or not. And I believe refusing to choose one of two republicrats bought and sold by the same people, or even refusing to pick a third party and be coopted and marginalized, is not a viable statement in and of itself. By the way, I vote and I welcome EVERYONE to complain about injustice. It is the American Way.

Allow me to elaborate. Our political system is a conundrum. If one believes only those who vote have the right to complain, how do we as a society explain allowing corporations to have access to representatives those corporations have no right to vote for or against to talk about laws those corporations have no right to vote for or against? And if we base that access on paying taxes, how do we stop people who pay taxes, but choose not to vote, from having access? And how do we continue to allow access to corporations and businesses that pay no tax but ship their profits offshore? And how do the 300 million votes (if there were that many and they even voted) compete with the millions of dollars that can buy influence AFTER the election and BEFORE the next election cycle? Finally, how do we justify the very existence of professional firms whose sole job is to hire themselves out as influencers? Their status does not depend on voting, taxes, or even their own money. It is apparent citizens cannot vote away this power and citizens cannot vote to acquire this power, no matter how many people there are voting.

Vote early. And vote often. But make no mistake, your vote is worth no more and no less than pushing a button in an opinion poll that is time stamped as of the second the polls close. Do not depend upon a vote in a system that has self y family, as well as others, have adopted children and advanced the discussion on how to do so in a loving caring manner to both adoptive families, as well as birth parents. I know a family that has purchased and uses an electric mower which, in our area, is probably powered by cleaner natural gas or wind than coal. My wife drives a hybrid vehicle. All of these are the power of consumers that the market recognizes and reacts to in positive ways. Right now, I am very interested in plastic bags. I refuse to take them and try to use my own reusable bags. And Target now offers .05 cent per bag if you bring your own. Starbucks gives a ten cent discount for reusable cups. All of these things are changes I want to see and I dare say they have darn little to do with government and much more with ideas passed among people (like our church) and executed individually in the marketplace. While I vote and think there is a place for such voting, I also think it important people (voting or not) abdicate their visions and desires. Our families need all the help we can get.

One further point is that the power of a vote is so diluted so as to be laughable. If I wanted real power, I would purchase shares of Haliburton and vote for the corporate governance of Haliburton. My vote would be less diluted, I would have far more power, and I would never actually “vote” as part of the political system. It is time our political system is separated from our economic system.

In all these instances, I am suggesting the power of the citizen consumer. A person who associates with others like themselves (or different, but with a common interest or interests) and who takes actions to make their interests become real. Every suffragette did not think exactly alike. But women got the right to vote. Every African American did not have the same reasons for wanting civil rights. Some wanted education, some good jobs, and some political freedom. Some all three. But they banded together and used the power of strikes, boycotts, selective purchasing and plain old fashioned public opinion to get what they wanted. They did not accomplish everything they wanted by voting.

It is time we as consumers reevaluate our purchasing. We do not need to be driven by advertisers. We do not need to be controlled by status or what we think we need. We can control the discussion of what we want. Talk with your neighbors. Unfortunately in some ways this means Facebook them. But join together in ways that transcend the old ties of unions and political parties. I guarantee that the corporations and political action committees have already done this. Take control of your own destiny. Turn down a plastic bag. Plant a garden. Feed someone who is hungry. Pick up garbage. Mke it a party and have some fun. We owe it to ourselves and our children.