The Big Story
I Blame the People
I have been taking a lot of heat for a shocking opinion I have, and I want to give more people a chance to dump on me. I say, what is wrong with this country is not congress, the president, the 1%, lawbreaking corporations, the Illuminati, the Pope, welfare cheats, the National Debt, illegal aliens, ISIL, ISIS, Al Qaeda, the antichrist or Christmas shopping.
Nope, none of the usual suspects. What in fact is wrong with America is . . . (drum roll) AMERICANS. I say that American voters, by not voting, are screwing themselves and the country, and turning our hard won democracy into a plutocracy.
A plutocracy is a society run by the wealthy. Though I’m pretty well off myself, I don’t agree with the economic policies of the 1% (the “plutocrats”), which are pretty much tax cuts for themselves, no financial regulations, and low wages for workers, primarily by outsourcing.
I prefer the plutocrat Henry Ford’s economic policy: Pay his workers enough so they can afford the cars they themselves build. I, too, believe that I get richer when more people can afford the expensive colleges I’ve taught at or the expensive financial services I provide.
But for the workers to get better jobs and higher wages, they’d have to vote. And they don’t. So for the first time in American history, our famous middle class is going to have it worse off than their parents. and it is all their own fault.
Here is where I take the flack. The one sacred cow in American politics is the unquestioned virtue of the American electorate. If they don’t vote, it’s because of poor candidates, or bad messaging, or nasty ads. But in fact, it is voters who just don’t give a damn. When they did vote, they elected a number of governments that were NOT plutocracies. We got suffrage, unions, honest banks, social security, Medicare and safety in the workplace. Racists feared voter registration in the South so much they murdered civil rights workers in the 1960s. Most recently, we elected an African American President. Twice. When people vote, they can win.
But this year, and in all non-presidential years, most of them don’t. So they will get the government they deserve. I have been chastised for “blaming the victims” of the corporate/1%/Koch-Rove Evil Overlords.
But I am not blaming “victims.” I am calling out those responsible. People who don’t bother to vote for their economic interests deserve the plutocratic society they themselves have, by their apathy, created.
This is actually quite a modern insight: Personal responsibility. It started with the popular philosophy movements in California in the 1970s. It was simple. Don’t blame others, take charge of your life.
This movement has persisted for decades. It infuses many modern religious movements saying, in the extreme, that if you have cancer, it is because you for some reason brought it into your life.
As “blaming the victim” as that sounds, I am going to say it is NOT crazy. The idea of taking personal responsibility for everything that happens to you makes a great deal more functional sense than saying it’s hopeless.
If you see yourself as a victim, you lie down and suffer. If you have what might even be a delusion of control, you try to do something, you act instead of rolling over. Ideally, you vote to maintain a democracy instead of bowing to the plutocracy. You re-create the remarkable middle class paradise America invented but has lost.
OK, non-voting working-class “victims” of the Corporat-ocrocy. Am I a “bigot” who hates you, or am I kicking you in the ass to redeem yourselves?
Neugent update: The Ethics Commission has assigned its most senior investigator to his case.
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You will get no flack from me, but I would add to the recipe for apathy a generous helping of SCOTUS rulings of late (corporations are people, money is speech and overturning the voting rights act), with a dash of gerrymandering and a soupcon of FOX “News”. Say what you will about the loony fringe, but they are dedicated.
Right on the money, Rick! After one of the most crucial elections of our lives, when so much hinged on the Democrats maintaining Senate control, I was furious to learn so many Democrats did not vote. Surely they realized that our Social Security, Medicare and so much more that the Tea Party Republicans want to ax in so many ways was at stake. Surely they realized that we needed every vote in order to keep a balance in Congress. That’s how I think and that’s how most responsible informed Democrats think. Sadly, it is not the case, because sadly, not all Americans believe it is their duty as citizens to not only vote but stay informed on the issues important to us all. I don’t understand that way of thinking, because I’ve never been one of them. But let’s face it, there are multitudes of Americans who tune out anything beyond what’s happening in their lives on any given day. They have no concept of what is happening beyond their doorstep that will affect not only them but the rest of us. And, as Alex put so succinctly, SCOTUS rulings share that blame, as well, and I’d pretty much guarantee that in every home where there is an apathetic totally uninformed American, Fox News is on the tube every night. They soak it in and then go back to their 6 pak of beer, thinking they’ve heard the news of the day. How sad for them and how sad for us.
Dang, Rick, I am shocked to learn 🙂 I have so much power, that my not voting in the last four US presidential races made it my fault George W. Bush was elected twice, and then Barack Obama was elected twice. The blunt truth was, I didn’t like either of them, nor did I like their opponents, so who was I supposed to pull the lever for? I did campaign against both Bush and Obama, so maybe in a backhanded way I pulled the lever for their opponents.
Looks to me USA is so fouled up it no longer matters who gets elected; it ain’t gonna get any better, but it will get worse. I hope my age, 72, will be a good exist strategy before the heaps of various manures hit the fans; but perhaps I won’t be so lucky. The rich will weather the future better, I imagine, but maybe the folks with the guns and lots of ammo and sniper scopes and night vision goggles and water purification tablets and devices, and skills at hunting, fishing, trapping, carpentry, plumbing and electricity, and food and bottled water stored away will last the longest. Last for what, though?
Well, I suppose they could watch the seas rise and the Keys become living coral reef again – if they, the surviving humans, go into suspended animation. Otherwise, perhaps their children, or grandchildren, or great grandchildren will see that come to pass and watercraft the main mode of travel in the Keys, again. FEMA will be overjoyed.
You are spot on, Rick, Alex & Peggy. If I may add, I feel the attack on education in this country has contributed to the erosion of America’s foundation to our current state. Americans are so dumbed down, I question whether the vast majority of us even understand how our government works. Isn’t it sad that Civics is a subject not offered in most schools anymore? Instead, we now threaten teachers to program kids to simply pass tests designed by politicians to manipulate education to a self-serving standard.
Instead of murdering and imprisoning our intellectuals who threaten the power base like Hitler and Stalin did, we’ve chosen to simply not create any more. Power is easily consolidated and intellectual thought removed through just one generation of attrition. Well, people, we’ve arrived. You can’t expect the uneducated to educate themselves to make intelligent choices at the polls based on knowledge they can’t comprehend. The apathy of these folks with regard to voting is simply a byproduct thereof.
There’s so much focus on blaming the Executive branch for America’s ills, the failings of Congess seem to fly under the radar. I’m willing to bet most Americans don’t even know the names of their congressional representatives or even the district they’re located in much less hold them accountable. I honestly feel Americans simply view the President as a king who can simply issue edicts. Consider George W’s comment, “There’s nothing wrong with a dictatorship . . . as long as I’m the dictator.”
Though I don’t share the views of other responders, I do agree with one assessment. I doubt a major shift in American ideology will occur in our lifetime. Perhaps the best exit strategy for some is indeed old age. However, the rest of us can’t stop pounding our drums to effect the type of change America needs. It has been the duty of each generation to leave the world a better place for our children to inherit. To simply lay down, passively watch, then exit is a selfish and irresponsible cop-out.
Regardless of our opinions of candidates, get to the polls. You may choose to abstain from voting for candidates in particular races but there’s a lot more on the ballot to be considered. If you don’t vote, don’t bother voicing an opinion later. By squandering your opportunity to make your views count, you forfeit having your convictions validated by others. Don’t be a hypocrite and part of the problem that Rick has so accurately identified.