Culture

Activism leads in the absence of an effective government

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In the absence of a government that can effectively govern, activism leads us. 

Most of us are not in the position to govern. We rely upon those passionate for that path to represent and act on behalf of the collective. When that process fails people become apathetic. The problem with that is that the collective memory forgets its aspirations. When leadership fails you, activism is the only way to hold strong to the issues of importance.

A single voice is louder when joined with others of like mind. Find organizations that represent the issues you care about and give to them. They are unlikely to be perfect in their message or execution, however, doing nothing ensures those in power have no objection.

Exercise your rights and privileges as often as possible. It is easy to step back and construe that the lack of engagement represents a point of view. If you never express your voice then maybe you do not need freedom of speech. It may sound ridiculous, but this is how people manipulate data – “lack of use means it must not be important.” Of course those are two different observations and the latter something you need to ask about in order to discover – “Is freedom of speech important to you?” When was the last time you were asked anything?

The ninth amendment to the United States Constitution is Madison’s attempt to ensure that in defining liberty, in listing rights, the omission of a right is not be used to deny it. And while this may have been inspired by the need to balance the rights of the states and the general government, it also underscores that as long as a right is protected somewhere, it need not be listed to be protected. Stand up for what you believe is true and you continually shape what governs your circles.

We have optimized around following someone with a point-of-view. We know them no better than an actor in a movie. We cross our fingers and hope. For most of us this means we have to spend money for others to represent areas of interest. Acting like giving money to support these agendas is wrong only makes it easier for those that more effectively fundraise. Money shapes how the current society governs. Short of a complete reboot, we must accept that and work within it. I promise you can throw up after your voice is heard. Doing nothing makes you an irrelevant passenger.

Don’t just adopt the cat; fund the lobbying effort that fights to protect animals. Don’t just hope the new restaurant in town makes it, make it a point to patron there. Gay and want to get married, do! Get active. Exercise your rights and privileges and ensure lack of use isn’t an excuse.