OK, I had this idea last night that is so simple, so crazy that it actually might work. It is the very essence of citizen empowerment and activism. :) I was going to write an elaborate note about the hows and whys, but now I just want to throw it out there to see what people think. Protest for protests sake is all well and good, because with the right publicity it can change the conversation. But it doesnt much change anything else. You are however sending a message to people of like mind to yourself, and those who potentially are, so it has some limited utility. Ive always thought that the best way to send a message to Those In Power was by way of a general strike. Telling them that a large percentage of the public were willing to withhold their labour for even a day demanding change is pretty powerful. But what day? How do you co-ordinate it? And to what end? So heres the idea: A GENERAL STRIKE ON ELECTION DAY - the entire country taking a day off TO VOTE (which is already given them in many democracies. In Canada for instance, all qualified electors must have 3 consecutive hours off work on election day, and employers are required by law to give them that time off.) It sends multiple messages: 1) the usual message a general strike sends, that youre willing to lay it on the line for change 2) that youre not going to allow your BOSS to schedule you out of your franchise, 3) that you take democracy more seriously than youre being given credit for by the Powers That Be 4) tells the Republicans that they no longer have a chance to win by voter suppression and gerrymandering 5) tells the Democrats that theyd better shape up and provide a REAL choice - something different from the Repukes. So what do you think? Merely raising the percentage of qualified voters who actually vote from 60-something percent to 90-something percent would be FANTASTIC. Having the poor folk show up at the polls when they actually have a chance of voting (in the last election there were LONG lines especially in lower-class areas after working hours) would quite simply change the whole formula of who wins and loses.
Posted on: Sat, 05 Apr 2014 19:05:41 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015