Young congressman from Illinois and presidential hopeful Barack Obama wants us to answer the question: How can we engage more people in the democratic process?
I'm guessing he means how do we compell folks to get out and vote. Perhaps by making it seem like it makes a difference. Although some elections end up being decided by the 'mass majority', most of the times it's decided by electoral college votes. That's silly. It should always come down to actual votes period. I think it really comes down to a more everyday level though. Big government is pretty much disconnected from what real everyday people think and want... even need. They're all for protecting the conglomerates that can afford high priced lobbyists. Heck, I guess those big companies do need protecting, but so does the average 'Joe'. A great many laws are passed for 'the common good' that if you actually polled real individuals you'd probably find the overwhelming majority of them think they're stupid at the least, and infringing on their personal rights more often than not.
That's my answer Mr. Obama. More people don't get involved because they don't feel that the government really stands for them. And they rarely feel like their vote really makes a difference anyway either. Add that to the fact that most times picking a candidate for office is usually like chosing the 'lesser of two evils'--who cares if your voice does count. Either way it's a losing battle.
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