Weeks after the failed Wisconsin recall election people are still wondering what went wrong. One theory is that there were many people who just did not like the idea of a recall that was not based on criminal misconduct in office, that such a recall was not worth the money it costs. I have problems with that theory on two counts.
First, the turnout for the election was incredible. I believe that people that are against an election even happening will sit it out. I do not believe they will actually go out and vote for someone they do not like just to spite the election they believe is too costly, adding the cost of counting their vote to the expense of it.
Second I have a problem with people thinking the democratic process is too expensive. However I do believe that many people think that. And that is a huge problem.
The problem is one sided as well. When recall elections have been held in the past there was no ranting and raving about the cost. In fact there is a recount going on in Racine county right now that is going to cost taxpayers money but no grumblings about that. The cost will be minimal, and a small portion of it picked up by the Republican challenger but that is not the reason there is no grumbling. The reason is the media of course. The side asking for the recount is conservative. And the media is conservative.
When the media goes on about how much an election is going to cost people think about the cost. They think about the cost to them as taxpayers. And to them the cost is just too darn high.
I have a huge problem with this as well. I have a problem because it is not too costly for men and women to die for democracy in any war the media claims to be for the sake of democracy. Neither is the money spent on these wars too much.
It is also not a problem for them that the rich and the corporate are spending huge amounts of money on democracy (or the crushing of it). The same people who think that if we tax or regulate these entities we will be punished in the form of higher costs passed down to us. But it never occurs to them that we fund their political activities with higher product costs (among other costs).
That people do not want 'we the people' to participate in the election process through taxpayer money and leave the paying for politics to the rich and the corporate alone is scary. The people who want to own our government like they own the media must see this as some kind of sick game. They have nothing to lose if Social Security goes away.
They treat the elecorate like pawns, brainwashing them with unbelievable propaganda they push through the airwaves they own.
And for this kind of democracy people have died. Because people are brainwashed sheep who believe that any democracy that benefits the 99% is a waste of money.