Newsletter

Fear, Loathing, and Voting

You damn voting beasts are in the way.

"Too many people struggled, suffered, and died to make it possible for every American to exercise their right to vote." -Rep. John Lewis

The Many vs. The Money

I’ve written that in every election cycle when you have a new “sound-bite” filtering mechanism the elections are essentially the interests of organized extreme wealth versus an increasingly divided people. Some of you may already know that I have a tendency toward loquaciousness, my writing style is long-winded, garrulous, and verbose. Sometimes I just go on and on… [ See non-succinct -ed.]

Rep. Jamaal Bowman, when talking about the concept of wealth versus people coined “The Many versus the Money” -an apt and pithy description. It is a multi-generational war fought, at least for now, at the ballot box. And the right-wing who, throughout history, act on behalf of organized wealth have learned an important lesson about democracy.

Right-wing extremists have learned an important lesson about democracy.

They have learned that once democracy is out of the bottle and the vote is placed into the hands of the people, it is an ordeal to take it away. Disenfranchising voters is something that requires a multi-generational commitment, resources, and patience. (Of course you can minimize it at the inception by eliminating classes of people, such as women and people of color).

They have also learned you can slowly erode voting rights in bits and pieces until -presto! -aspirations of democracy, equality, and justice for all are simply a footnote in actual history (that you won’t have to teach or document anyway).

This begs the question -if you love “freedom” as so many “flag-sucking half-wits” claim to do, why would you be against voting and democracy?

The problem with a meaningful democracy is that it is antithetical to an extreme accumulation and concentration of wealth. In a democratic society when every individual has their basic needs met, and some important “wants” met, and also is able to put some money away for a rainy day it reaches something of a sleepy status quo. When people in “status quo-land” vote to elect leadership, the votes are well-balanced between protecting their individual self-interest and societal interest. They want to improve their own quality of life, but also want to make investments together that are reasonable. Maybe they want to invest in a reliable power grid. Maybe they want safe roads, highways, and bridges. They might want to invest in a better education system so future generations can compete in a challenging and dynamic world. They might want to provide a healthcare system. Retirement and economic security for all. Maybe they want high-speed rail.

Let’s now consider that a small group of greedy narcissists insinuate themselves upon this democratic society. They are not interested in societal goals. They simply want to accumulate more wealth and more power. Democracy is in their way. Regulations and rules are in their way. A sense of societal community is in their way.
YOU DAMN VOTING BEASTS ARE IN THE WAY!

“We have become a Nazi monster in the eyes of the whole world—a nation of bullies and bastards who would rather kill than live peacefully. We are not just Whores for power and oil, but killer whores with hate and fear in our hearts. We are human scum, and that is how history will judge us. . . . No redeeming social value. Just whores. Get out of our way, or we’ll kill you.
Well, shit on that dumbness. George W. Bush does not speak for me or my son or my mother or my friends or the people I respect in this world. We didn’t vote for these cheap, greedy little killers who speak for America today—and we will not vote for them again in 2002. Or 2004. Or ever.
Who does vote for these dishonest shitheads? Who among us can be happy and proud of having all this innocent blood on our hands? Who are these swine? These flag-sucking half-wits who get fleeced and fooled by stupid little rich kids like George Bush?
They are the same ones who wanted to have Muhammad Ali locked up for refusing to kill... They speak for all that is cruel and stupid and vicious in the American character. They are the racists and hate mongers among us—they are the Ku Klux Klan. I piss down the throats of these Nazis.
And I am too old to worry about whether they like it or not. F*ck them.”

-Hunter S. Thompson

Human garbage Paul Weyrich (L), and Ronald Reagan (R), each major contributors to the erosion of democracy in the United States, and both now worm food.

There’s a great deal of talk these days about the Heritage Foundation and their 900+ page democracy extinguishing plan “Project 2025” (also known as Agenda 47 or whatever secret code name the fascists are calling it now).

In the meantime one of the two major political parties scoured the nation looking for someone among their party who had the highest intellectual capacity, the most integrity, and track record of incredible success and they found that the narcissist, pathological lying, business bankrupting, tax evading, racist, misogynist, ally-extorting, and convicted felon and fraud purveyor Donald J. Trump to be the best of men among them (which makes perfect sense when compared to Josh Hawley, Tom Cotton, Marsha Blackburn, Ted Cruz, Joni Ernst, Kristi Noem, Matt Gaetz, James Comer, and most everyone else still remaining in their Putin-loving confederacy of dunces) -because what can be better than four more years telling Americans they need to drink more bleach and shove more UV lights up their, well, you know.

And then Trump just famously said the quiet part out loud: “Vote for me, you’re not gonna have to do it ever again.”

While considering the above Trump quote, remember that Paul Weyrich, the anti-democracy co-founder of the Heritage Foundation said “Now many of our Christians … want everybody to vote. I don’t want everybody to vote. Elections are not won by a majority of people. They never have been from the beginning of our country, and they are not now. As a matter of fact our leverage in the elections quite candidly goes up as the voting populace goes down.”

Other times when democracy-hating members of the right-wing have said the “quiet part” out loud…

“This law [the North Carolina voter ID requirement since struck down in court] is going to kick the Democrats in the butt . . . . If it hurts a bunch of lazy Blacks that want the government to give them everything, so be it.”
-Don Yelton on the Daily Show

“I’m concerned about voter registration in Mississippi. The Blacks are having lots [of] events for voter registration. People in Mississippi have to get involved, too.”
-Jones County Election Commissioner Gail Welch

“I think electing Republicans is better than electing Democrats. So I drew this map to help foster what I think is better for the country.”
-David Lewis, North Carolina Redistricting Committee

“If we win this battle [for one of the most restrictive voter ID laws in the nation], President Obama’s going to have a much more difficult time getting elected and winning the state of Wisconsin.”
-Scott Fitzgerald, former Wisconsin State Senate Majority Leader

The right-wing is doing everything they can to suppress voters through restrictive laws and continuing challenges to the 1965 Voting Rights Act.

“If voting changed anything, they'd make it illegal.”― Emma Goldman

Another important element in this continuing battle between the many and the money, is that over many years, people lose an important emotional generational connection. For example, the National Archives has preserved the testimony from John Lewis about the horrific events of “Bloody Sunday” -the 1965 march from Selma to Montgomery in support of voting rights. People died, some suffered skull fractures, and other injuries sustained when the peaceful march was met by so-called police armed with batons, pepper spray, and guns. Anyone who participated in the march, saw the photographs and news reports, and heard direct stories from friends, families, and neighbors knew how important voting was and is. As time passes, the next generation might hear the stories recounted. They might study them in school (except in Florida and/or other school systems now under right-wing extremist control).
As time passes the torch from one generation to the next, the marches, the suffering, and the sacrifices that paved the way for the next generation to be able to vote fades. Eventually, if the right-wing is able to influence the system, voting becomes viewed as by many as a burden.

John Lewis’ Testimony: https://www.archives.gov/exhibits/eyewitness/html.php?section=2

Voting Rights Hero: Rep. John Lewis, Feb. 21, 1940 - Jul. 17, 2020

As time passes -voting becomes a burden.

“I have to wait in a long line.” (not questioning why the line exists).
“What difference does it make, both major parties are the same.”
“I’m just one person -what difference will I make?”

“The person or issue I wanted to win the primary isn’t on the ballot. So F*ck it.”

“Do not get lost in a sea of despair. Be hopeful, be optimistic. Our struggle is not the struggle of a day, a week, a month, or a year, it is the struggle of a lifetime. Never, ever be afraid to make some noise and get in good trouble, necessary trouble.”
― John Lewis

In this election (as in every election) vital issues that impact us as individuals, as families, as neighborhoods, as cities, states, nation, and world are all on the ballot. Every one of these (and some I’m certain I’ve missed) are on the ballot.

The people we entrust to lead Local/State or our nation will shape legislation and policy on all of these issues. And many of these issues, at their essence, reduce to a small group of obscenely wealthy looking to accumulate more wealth (through stealing something from you, your future, and your families future) -or for you to improve your own well-being while also improving conditions for the many.
If you did not hold that power, there wouldn’t be so much attention focused on taking it away.

Climate action is on the ballot.
Economic fairness, the national debt, and fair taxation are on the ballot.
Student loans are on the ballot.
Affordable housing is on the ballot.
Healthcare
Immigration
Reproductive freedom
Education
Voting rights
Foreign policy, Global security, alliances, and peace
LGBTQ rights
Race and Gender equality
Supreme Court corruption and Judicial system reform
Gun violence prevention -all on the ballot.

Voting impacts all of the issues above and more. And if voting didn’t matter, the right-wing extremists like Barre Seid would not be dropping a billion dollars into changing the judicial landscape and Harlan Crow wouldn’t be showering luxurious gifts on corrupt judges and justices. Remember that the Supremely Corrupt Court has equated money as “free speech”, opened the door to vast, secretive dark money political “action” committees, while eviscerating voting rights such as “Preclearance”.

“Throwing out preclearance when it has worked and is continuing to work to stop discriminatory changes is like throwing away your umbrella in a rainstorm because you are not getting wet.” -Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Democracy and equality-hating billionaires like Elon Musk, Charles Koch, Peter Thiel, Richard Scaife, and Miriam Adelson wouldn’t be dropping millions of dollars into campaigns, or, in Musk’s case buying Twitter to transform the platform from a place where people were able to get news and information into a cesspool of hate speech, disinformation, and propaganda.

Democracy, equality, and justice-hating billionaires count on right-wing extremists and politicians to disenfranchise you. This allows them to accumulate more wealth and power through tax cuts, deregulation, privatization, extracting oil and coal, and war profiteering. And they can keep us divided (and conquered) while we argue about climate, public health, which books to ban, reproductive freedom, gun violence prevention, and issues of race and gender. They are focused on gaining more wealth and power and are largely entertained by striking a match on the issue du jour and watching us burn.

So while right-wing party extremists, doing the bidding of the obscenely wealthy whether called the “Moral Majority”, the “Tea Party”, “MAGA” or whatever comes after MAGA works to undermine and subvert democracy through gerrymandering, voter suppression, refusing to certify elections, deleting voters from voter registration rolls, challenging voters at the polls, or attempting to harass and intimidate voters, we must act with courage. People marched, sacrificed, suffered and died.

Our ballots are marked with the blood of past generations who fought so we could all vote.

“I gave a little blood on that bridge in Selma, Alabama for the right to vote. I am not going to stand by and let the Supreme Court take the right to vote away from us.”
—John Lewis

Check your voter registration to make sure it is still valid.

https://civ.works/voter-rights/

Make a plan to vote.
Commit to vote.
Vote.

Additional Resources:

Learn about protecting your voting rights if you ballot is challenged.
- https://protectdemocracy.org/work/voter-challenges/
- https://www.brennancenter.org/issues/ensure-every-american-can-vote/vote-suppression
- https://www.lwv.org/blog/voter-challenge-laws-suppression-tactic
- https://www.democracydocket.com/
Help and support any of the above organizations, and all those working to defend and expand voting rights.

Report any abnormal issues or concerns you observe to the local precinct or election supervisor, and/or to organizations dedicated to election protection such as: https://866ourvote.org/
- Election Protection Hotlines:
- ENGLISH 866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683)
- SPANISH/ENGLISH 888-VE-Y-VOTA (888-839-8682)
- ASIAN LANGUAGES/ENGLISH 888-API-VOTE (888-274-8683)
- ARABIC/ENGLISH 844-YALLA-US (844-925-5287)