The Politics of Apathy
Barack Obama talks about the politics of hope. But isn't it funny how 'the politics of being a corporate asshole' seem to be leading the polls right now?
I want to talk about a different kind of politics, a colder, more depressing type, one that's not speculative or optimistic, a kind that no candidate in his right mind would dare try to articulate: the politics of apathy. It's how Bush stumbled into the White House. It's what got us stuck in Iraq. It's what lets prisoners at Guantanamo get tortured.
Simply put, we have poor leaders because we're poor citizens; the reason politicians treat you like shit is they don't respect you. And why should they? They've forgotten what real democracy feels like (and so have we). They don't fear their constituents because they know they can manipulate us so easily. All you have to do is raise a bunch of money to run a slick campaign. No surprise that's what their main goal is nowadays: fundraising, so they can buy those ads to convince you they're NOT incompetent shitheads who create more problems than they solve---no, no, no, they're on your side, they always have been, and they always will be. And the lie wins most every time, aided by the facts that most congressional districts are unfairly drawn to favor incumbents and that most people just don't care much about politics.
Most people don't want to be bothered. They (we) just want to go about their (our) daily lives, watch TV, go to work, drink on Fridays, spend time with the kiddds, go shopping, and on and on, whatever age you are, and rarely a letter or even an email to Representative Douche, let alone a trip downtown for a protest, because what's the point? Politics are ugly and boring and there don't seem to be any protagonists, only lots and lots of villains. It seems like politicians don't care about your opinion, so why bother telling them?
And we lose and lose and lose...
Because the only way we're ever going to get out of this vicious cycle and finally use government as an instrument to solve problems --- OUR problems, remember? --- is if we develop a closer relationship with them. Well, maybe not "closer" --- just one based on mutual respect. They need our advice and opinions, they need to see public actions targeting them, they need to be shown that people aren't as docile and apathetic as they seem. They need to be shown that voters do indeed have brains cause there's been very little evidence of it lately. When they look at their constituents, they see a bunch of people stuck to a TV screen --- OMG AMERICAN IDOL'S ON!! --- and that's just fine with them. And people wonder why there's corruption!
Do you think it's a coincidence that Paris Hilton is extremely famous and George W. Bush is president? Do you think it's a coincidence that there are always people at shopping malls but antiwar protests are sporadic, at best, and usually tiny? Do you think it's a coincidence that the college campuses are quiet and DC politics just keep rolling along, business as usual?
I see all these people pinning their hopes on 2008, as if some wonderful magical leader is going to take us out of this mess and to some promised land where all our problems are solved and we're back to the good old days (whatever those were). It's all BS. If you want change, do it yourself. When enough people do, at the same time, it's called a "movement": a rare and beautiful thing, and if you ask me, about the only thing that can save this country.
you know that phrase, "If
you know that phrase, "If ______ can't do it, no one can!"?
I'm starting to think no one can.
^^^^^^^^^^
"Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly."
-Robert F. Kennedy
Reality check...I've bought
Reality check...I've bought into certain campaigns maybe a little too much. This isn't to say that I don't love the ideas and energy behind Obama, but I think you're right. I look to him as if he's gonna fix everything. He is a start, but maybe I should consider a more active roll now that I have harnessed this new found interest in the world.
There's nothing like a sunset to prove how genuine is life...
if there's one thing history
if there's one thing history has proven over and over again it's that politicians rarely deliver on promises. I hope Obama can be an exception, but that's a pretty consistent trend to buck. real change comes from social movements, and those are driven by individual citizens, rarely by elected officials.
^^^^^^^^^^
"Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly."
-Robert F. Kennedy
I am so sick of this
I am so sick of this "politics of change" thing. College students and lattes have so bought into this HOPE ACTION CHANGE bull. He is a junior senator, that doesn't impress me in debates, and isn't going to be able to get anything done if he wins the white house.
Ok.
That was a little harsh. When you go for a job interview, your experience doesn't count against you.
Do you really believe Hillary Clinton is as evil as the media tells you?
not evil, but definitely
not evil, but definitely establishment-friendly. just my personal opinion, obv.
frankly none of the candidates impress me enough to be an activist for them. I like most of the Dems, but figure it'll be up to Congress and the grassroots to drive any real change.
^^^^^^^^^^
"Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly."
-Robert F. Kennedy
There's a saying amongst
There's a saying amongst programmers that goes something like this: anything that you've spent 5 hours trying to debug will take someone else 5 minutes to fix -- even less if they haven't seen the code before.
That's why I like Obama. He's new to the Washington system, and he has pretty much identified every problem I have with it. All we need now is a fresh Congress, and we're set.
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The world will not be saved by old minds and new programs. If the world is to be saved, it will be saved by new minds -- and no programs.
no no way you really think
no no way
you really think Obama is going to fix all these problems BECAUSE of his inexperience. That is the reason why he isn't going to get anything done. He has little to NO international experience, there were be a tremendous learning curve. Guess what, experience in this case isn't a bad thing. Not to get too into talking points, but really Hillary is much more capable of getting into office and getting things done. She has been to over 80 countries, she has been to the middle east multiple times, world leaders already know and respect her. Her plans are more thought out, and better planned (healthcare HELLO).
Hillary is not business as usual. Don't just absorb what the media tells you.
Ok rant over lol
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