Just Pull That Lever! Tuesday, February 05, 2008
It's difficult to escape politics these days, no matter how hard you may try to just be left alone about the topic. Expecting to find sanctity in the weight room, even there I had to suffer audio paeans to the Great God Democracy via a local disc-jockey on a classic rock radio station urging listeners to go to the polls this "Super Tuesday.""Guys, get out there and vote. Be a part of it and make yourself heard. I don't care who you vote for, just pull that lever!"
What is with this irrational devotion to the religion of mobocracy more commonly known as democracy? What compels people to advise others to "just pull that lever," damn the consequences?
I wonder if people like the DJ, who believe democracy is so good that everyone should participate whether they participate thoughtfully or not, have really considered what they're advising people to do.
What if there was a racist or two on the ballot? What about a homophobe? What about a man who openly desires to push the government toward theocracy should he assume power? What about a would-be fascist dictator trying to get to power without the whole bloody-revolution thing? Do the democrats still want people out there pulling that lever if they plan to pull it for those people?
I can't believe the DJ would still be saying "I don't care who you vote for" if Idi Amin was on the ballot, or Mr. Zedong. But even though there are no people as brash as Amin or Mao Zedong on the ballots this election, there are plenty of people who are only slightly less hardcore socialists who are on the ballot, like Clinton, Obama, Romney, McCain and Giuliani. Even Ron Paul, as freedom-minded as he is, still believes in a little bit of the old socialism, however minimally.
What if I went for a write-in, say "Mr. Spaceman" or even "Nobody in particular" and then pulled the lever? Would the eternal democrat congratulate me in my moment of electoral political success?
Does the knowledge a potential voter has of the issues and a particular candidate's position on the issues matter to a democrat? Do they expect voters to understand what is at stake when they pull the lever? Or is it okay for someone who just woke up from a 30-year hibernation period to walk right into a voting booth, pick a candidate and pull the lever? Is that what "making your voice heard" means?
Democracy offers its adherents a false promise of paradise through participation. Pull that lever, make your voice heard! But if you happen to be part of the minority of lever-pullers on a given issue, your voice isn't heard. Your voice is rejected, and violently so. You will have your property stolen from you (taxation) and then that stolen property of yours will be used to implement a policy you disagree with. At that point, what does it matter if you "voiced" your concern or not?
Labels: absurdist society, bias, democracy, politics, statism
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