One thing that these Healthcare Town Hall meetings have shown us is that citizens showing up and either losing their minds or not losing their minds showcases an informed public who demand accountability from their representatives and use our democratic system of ideals to do so. This of course leads to politicians and the media proudly chest-thumping "That's democracy in action!!" which inevitably follows with some flag-waving talk about freedom and Jesus etc etc. We repeatedly are told about how "worked up" everybody in the country are about possible legislation that determines the outcome of their own healthcare.
But there have been 3556 bills introduced thus far this year. And yet these informed citizens fighting for democracy have shown any interest in exactly one. There's 3555 that nobody has really given a crap about - do you honestly believe if you ask the Hitler lady at Barney Frank's Town Hall meeting to name any other idea for a bill that has been introduced, she could? Of course not. Few could. For all we know, there has been a bill that would require you to take Scooby-Doo to the prom, and we have no idea about it because it hasn't been used as a political or media culture war touchstone. If they had wanted the Scooby-Doo bill to become the firestorm issue instead of healthcare, do you not think it would have? Or is ours really such an unprompted "Democracy in Action"?
I guess what I'm saying is I'm more impressed with politicians and the media's ability to pick and choose how we use "Democracy in action!!" than I am in any of us actually doing it.
2 comments:
That's because most of those 3555 are painfully unimportant and ineffective. So if what you are saying is that we have too much govt. for its own good, I say "Finally, XMAS gets it. Welcome to the Party!"
yes, thats exactly what Im saying. can I coach the party softball team?
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