Transitory Unrest

As an American, I live in a society that is perpetually beset by a political pseduo-crisis every four years. Activists of all kinds take to the streets, the phones, the news, and the internet, all trying to sway voters to their causes. Change is in the air. Dueling documentaries. Explosive headlines. The nation is set ablaze with a political fever unmatched by other countries. Election day, the Western world comes to a screeching halt. Stockbrokers stand with laymen as they peer into televisions broadcasting the latest polls, CNN devotes itself to monitoring the official tallies, making small comments that equate to nothing more than filler...

And yet, regardless of the media attention and the seriousness of the event. Many people seem unaffected. Voter turnout averages around fifty percent. Local news headlines include as many sports events as political rhetoric. People seem as excited over drinking games as election results. There is a schism of public interest, betwen those who are "jacked in" and the apathetic.

And there is little wonder. This is one of the most important elections of the last fifty years, the national identity is in question, and foreign affairs hang in the balance. On the other hand, 527 groups circumvent "soft money" legislation. Special interest voter registration groups systematically disenfranchise citizens with opposing views. Intrusive political canvassing creates resentment as people feel victimized by political activism. Negative advertising blankets televisions and newspapers. Above all, however, candidates seem to be destroying whatever concept of integrity or dignity that was left in American politics. Voting is slowly assuming the air of rejecting the worser of two evils rather than choosing the best leader for our country.

There is a need for a reevaluation of our democracy. We need to be taking a closer look at the methodology of our electoral college, at our two-party system, at the advent of political extremism, at the prevalance of personal attacks rather than the discussion of issues between politicians, at the impact of corporate lobbying, at the social responsibilities of news media. However, it seems unlikely that any of this will occur. Washington has become a self-supporting system that, to quote Jon Stewart's wonderful new satire, "neither needs nor particularly wants voters". Corporate lobbying and party politics ensure an obscenely high incumbency rate, leaving politicians to pursue their personal ideology while tending their diminuitive constituency.

However, there is hope. Grassroot campaigning and increasing awareness of the problems in our bureaucracy is restoring the power of populism. The exponential growth of the internet as a communicative medium, as well as the success of community (as opposed to commercial) projects such as Slashdot, WikiWiki, and Linux, is reminding our society of the potential inherant to intelligent and passionate groups of people willing to work together. Together, these events could enable the populace to regain some modicum of their power.