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The Eroding Seesaw

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“Shallow understanding from people of good will is more frustrating than absolute misunderstanding from people of ill will.”
– Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Another election has passed and once again dissatisfied Americans voted the ineffective incumbents out, and those advocating for change in. It only took two years for the Democratic Party to lose the unprecedented political capital it inherited on the heels of the Bush presidency. When one “inherits” something, they did not earn it. The Republicans in 2010 followed the same blueprint to victory as the Democrats in 2008, namely, they were not the incumbents. When the Republicans bail-out corporate America and escalate wars, we vote the Democrat. Then the Democrats bail-out corporate America and escalate wars, we vote Republican. And the elaborate game of seesaw continues without interrupting the corporate elite and war profiteers.

Americans are dissatisfied with our nation’s political status quo. According to a Reuters Poll taken in October of 2010, 62% of Americans feel that generally speaking, the United States is headed in the wrong direction. Recent elections echo this sentiment. Those Americans who continue to vote, voice their dissatisfaction by voting Obama, Tea Party, or Ron Paul, all with the naive hope of tossing out the Washington elite and “voting ourselves back to democracy.” (C. Hedges) On the other end of the spectrum, a majority of Americans do not even vote in midterm elections, and voter turnout for presidential elections is significantly lower than in most “democratic” societies. The non-voting populace is portrayed by the Political Establishment, the Media and by “Establishment Cats” as being either; ignorant, complacent, unrealistic or unproductive.

However, the decision to not vote, particularly in national elections, is at the least a sign of conscious or unconscious disengagement from the system, and at best a principled and revolutionary choice. When the average American is questioned why they do not vote, a common response is “what difference does it make.” This is often met with incredulous gasp and a lesson in ninth grade civics from your local Establishment Cat. Yet, the non-voter’s seemingly naive answer may in fact be a profound lesson in political theory here in 2010. What difference does it make? As Martin Luther King Jr. once said,

“While Mr. Boutwell is much more articulate and gentle than Mr. Connor, they are both… dedicated to the task of maintaining the status quo.”

A democratic government is tasked with representing the will of the people. When the hopes, aspirations and necessities of a majority of society are consistently subverted by a small group of elites, the very underpinnings of the said democracy crumble. The American populace has effectively lost what Robert Dahl considered one criteria of a democracy, namely “control of the agenda.” It doesn’t matter if you want better public schools, safer urban centers, real health care, no corporate bailouts or wars of aggression… “Those are not decisions for serfs to make. Now go back to your cubicle/office and be grateful you have a job. Try to sneak in some espn.com then go home to your kids…who we just indoctrinated in social studies so they will grow up to be a sheep…like you.”

In order to solve a problem, it must first be identified. If you choose to put your trust in the results which can be garnered from the current political order, understand that you are late to the party; as a majority of Americans (voters and non-voters alike) recognize that the two-party plutarchy is a problem. While it is predominantly an unconscious realization clouded by corporate media and pagan nationalism, it is a realization nonetheless. Admirably, it is a realization most have come to without having been given a viable alternative. But that is only natural isn’t it? After all, one must say lâ ilâha (there is no God) before illallâh (but God). More is required of you.

“As I continued to think about the matter I gradually gained a bit of satisfaction from being considered an extremist.”
– Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

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