To say that I haven’t learned to balance my home, work, school, and political life would be an understatement. I think one of the challenges that progressives have is talking every day people into contributing something to the political process–something more than just reading the newspaper or blogs. The problem is finding a balance in ones life. You get worn out, apathetic, and disenchanted.
Learning how to organize ourselves, learning how to build communities that are strong, vibrant, and have a positive impact on our community is necessary if we are to establish a more progressive, democratic, and equitable society. But we can only bring in more people by breaking things down into smaller chunks. I think some of us take on too much stuff, giving others the impression that this is what we are asking of them when we ask them to participate. But then that gets me thinking even more (and at this point I'm just rambling)..
What does a democratic society mean though? What does it mean, when 9 out of 10 elections are won by the candidate that raises the most money? What does it mean, when most people don’t trust government–further feeding into the conservatives agenda of cutting government services and programs, which in turn further frustrates citizens whose lives are impacted when government services and programs are reduced.
Quality of life for everyday citizens in an industrialized society requires strong government services that help our most important infrastructure investment–human beings.
How do we build trust with citizens? How do we keep from burning ourselves out and walking away? How do we improve the quality of life of citizens? How do we keep the political parties and politicians honest? How do we keep everyday citizens focused on the fact that politicians will have to make compromises and cut deals to get things done–meaning they won’t always accomplish what they set out to accomplish...
These are things that have been going through my head all day at work. Not that I’m off, I’m exhausted, tired, and wondering how solutions to these problems can be found. I’m not sure...