Effective government requires our participation
12 October 2023
Today’s column by Heather Cox Richardson, an American historian, summarizes the disorder caused by Republican Party leadership:
a U.S. House of Representatives that is unable to function because no leader has been elected
a proposed Speaker of the House, Steve Scalise, who previously compared himself to Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke “without the baggage” and went along with the lie that Donald Trump won the 2020 Presidential election
a U.S. Senator, Tommy Tuberville, who has placed holds on more than 300 military promotions and other diplomatic positions because he opposes a rarely used policy allowing military women in anti-abortion states to travel to other states to get an abortion
a U.S. Supreme Court that ruled in Rucho versus Common Cause that although partisan gerrymandering is incompatible with democratic principles, it cannot be challenged in federal court. It can only be challenged in state court, which is usually not a practical remedy because these courts are typically dominated by the same party that produced the gerrymandering.
We can point fingers at individuals who are directly causing these problems but in the United States, we as citizens control our government. However, we exercise this control only when we vote and contact our elected officials with our views. The above problems are directly due to the failure of enough Americans to vote and to be politically active.
The Talmud states (Avot, Chapter 2, verse 16), “We are not required to finish the task, but neither are we free to ignore it.” We have to try our best, even if we cannot bring about the desired result just by ourselves. But like a grain of sand dropped on a sandpile (see section 2), which seemingly has no effect, our actions can eventually lead to major changes.
We can and must do more of these activities to solve our political problems:
Write emails or letters
Donate
Attend events
Join a group
Do one of the above and tell others about it to encourage them to act
The only thing necessary for the forces of evil to triumph is for enough good people to do nothing.'
What are you going to do next?
Comment: Dick Cooper recommends contactmypolitician.com to assist with writing to our elected officials.
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