People, politcs, and money

[Joan Johnson <joan@altair.com>]

I have heard it said that people get the government they deserve. Cynical perhaps, but apparantly true. People's level of commitment varies from bored to gung-ho. I see that in my friends. I saw that as a classroom instructor in mathematics and computer programming with people whose very jobs depended upon what they learned. Even though government and laws effect the lives of the citizens, why should we expect them to behave differently than they do for training for their jobs? For that matter, why would we expect all legislators to be altruistic and morally upright?

Are people uninterested in government because it appears so removed from their day-to-day activites that they don't recognize it for what it is? Or does the energy required to change how government functions too much and the issues so complex they feel powerless to have an effect?

Despite the seeming unwillingness of the people to act in their own behalf, those who govern need to put "communtity" back into the legislation they make. And there needs to be constraints on how they act to do so. That does not limit free speech. What it calls for is leveling the playing field for rich and poor alike. Being poor or disenfranchised does not nullify their constitutional rights for equal protection.