A continuation of the 'conversation' on The Hamiltonian, as mentioned in my previous post:
- look, this is the last thing I will say on this, because I think your intentions are good. You giove yourself =too much credit. Out of the box? Obama has been having town hall meetings with Twitter, voter pathy is so ingrained, it is built in to our system - but it does not make it right. Our polticians are REPRESENTING us (or suppossed to be), for a reason. It's because it is know that the working person cannot apply themselves so thoroughly on all the issues that they would be making informed decisions.
Priorities? Lets see, i work 50 hours to make ends meet. i have precvious little time. i can choose to spend time with my three year old or read reams of material on LRT, and only thats the tip of the iceberg, so that i can do my councillor's job that they should do? Come on now! Like I said, i like your intentions but you would be better off getting involved in keeping your councillor accountable. Read the Sc News my friend. there is a lot to correct.
- Anonymous:
Seeing as this subject is the raison d'etre of my blog, this *won't* be the last thing I say on this.
Everything slant you've provided has varying elements of truth attached. So? I get that you feel you wouldn't have time to 'get involved', no matter that what I'm talking about isn't going to cost anyone much...certainly no more than sitting on their fat asses for one or two less tv programmes a week, and the Cheetohs that go along with them...and I get the cynicism you feel about politics in general and I get how you feel that 'making your Councillor more accountable' is a priority (even though you *don't* seem to get that what I'm talking about accomplishes this on more levels than might be comprehended at first glance), and I get how frustrated you feel at the entire ball of wax, and I get how someone even *whispering* about wanting to change something that feels so pointlessly unchangeable might aggravate you all the more...
...but what I don't 'get'...or maybe what I reject totally, is this:
"You giove (sic) yourself =too much credit."
Thank goodness I feel sufficiently strongly enough about everything I'm endeavouring to accomplish that naysayers have less effect on my intentions or my spirit than a gnat would to an elephant.
(Oh, and thanks for providing more illustrations for me to highlight on my blog. Always appreciated.)
The letter-writer typifies an 'average person'. They're living their life. They cannot imagine making time for what I'm suggesting.
Mostly because diving into 'politics' is not a pleasant prospect. It already brings on images of grief and disappointment. Who'd want to get more involved with that?!?
I know this is a distasteful analogy, but I'll use it anyway, simply because of its effectiveness: someone who is married, working a hard job, raising kids, yadda, yadda, yadda...who has an affair...
...will do anything to make the affair happen.
ANYTHING.
My point is that if there's a draw to something, if there's sufficient motivation generated to do something, it gets done.
My point is that I am not surprised at the cynicism and pre-emptive rejection inherent in the ongoing responses from 'Anonymous'. After all, this is the cultural default. It's half the overall problem.
But that doesn't mean I have to accept it.
