"I guess a small-town mayor is sort of like a community organizer, except that you have actual responsibilities."
Oh, really? So when I founded a student club at my university and served as its president for two years, I had no "actual responsibilities"? I probably had to budget and monitor more money we were allotted annually than you did for your annual budgets at Wasilla, governor!
(Cross posted at Raising Kaine)
As an atheist, I was disgusted by the national reaction to the Pledge of Allegiance "under God" ruling in June 2002. We had a good number of religious-affiliated student organizations at my 16,000-student university but none dedicated to non-religious students; I thought it was time we had one.
I spent that summer and fall recruiting friends to be founding officers.
I wrote our constitution.
I worked with other political clubs I was involved in to advertise and recruit members.
I made, posted and distributed fliers around campus.
I asked my political science professor to be our advisor, and she agreed to help not because she was a secularist but because she believed such a group was needed.
I established a relationship with the religious clubs so we could sponsor events together.
I established a rapport with American Atheists, Americans United for Separation of Church and State, Secular Student Alliance and the Campus Freethought Alliance.
I petitioned the student services administration for extra funds when we needed them.
And I made it clear from Day 1: Our objective was to promote church-state separation as a guarantee for religious freedom for all, and to discussing secularist ideas, not to demean or attack others’ religious beliefs.
As founding president, I bought pizza for meetings to encourage members to attend. I asked speakers from American Atheists and Americans United for Separation of Church and State to visit campus, and they did pro bono. I asked one professor to speak about religion and psychology, and another about the history of the Pledge of Allegiance.
We co-sponsored with the religious clubs debates between experts over the existence of God, church-state separation and intelligent design; all attracted a few hundred people each.
Each time we held a meeting, I worried about how many would show up. Each time we sponsored an event, I worried about turnout. Each time we held officer elections, I worried if enough people were interested to run.
Now, I didn’t save any lives, I didn’t save anyone’s home, I didn’t save anyone’s job — and I certainly didn’t do it alone. But, three years out of college now, I consider founding the club one of my life’s achievements; and hopefully we opened a few eyes and a few minds along the way.
But I must’ve wasted my life because none of that were "actual responsibilities."